Get Inspiration with our MAD MEN Vintage Photoshoot

A MAD MEN STATE OF MIND:

Vintage Dresses, Coat and Accessories 50's-60's with the exception of the sunglasses which are early 70's.
Thanks to our models Carrie and Leslie!

Read More

Steampunk: Fashion and Historic Victorian Clothing

Steampunk is really a science fiction subculture which began to gain strength around the 80's/90's. It contributed a perspective on fashion which repurposed Victorian and Edwardian aesthetic using vintage clothing and combined that with industrialization and technology/steam power.

Picture Victorian bustle meets Jules Verne.... Steampunk designer produce elaborate clothing, jewelry which mixes gadgets and softer Victorian elements and other designs. Ultimately steampunk encompassed in one film would probably be Fritz Lang's Metropolis. In terms of fashion the style finds itself enamored with old Victorian beaded pieces, structured jackets and pants. As this is a subculture if your not a steampunker what can you take from this: innovation in terms of mixing your wardrobe with a few Victorian pieces mixed with everyday clothing or modern clothing would be one thing stylistically. Also the sort of larger aesthetic in an avant garde is visually interesting. Vintage Victorian pieces you could appropriate:

Over collars circa 1890 Sarara Brazil collection

Victorian Lace Over collar Irish from Regeneration 1stdibs.com

http://www.samayalingvintage.com

Victorian Beckham wearing a design with Victorian aesthetic












STEAMPUNK SUBCULTURE:

http://gothic4weddings.blogspot.com

Steampunk watch ring













http://www.etsy.com/shop/tempusfugit?ref=seller_info

Read More

Coco Chanel Wowza What A Life: New Biographies

Lesbian love affairs, spies, drugs....welcome to the world of High Fashion:) With so many books written on Chanel what is left? Well, another Book on Chanel was released and if you are not familiar with it the name is Coco Chanel. An Intimate Life. Lisa Chaney. See the link to the article and text which puts a little soot on our CCs but in the end I think Coco was an interesting woman who clawed her way to the top at a time when female empires were not made. Who knows if she knew her lover was a Nazi Spy? See the first text below for more on this. Who can deny that classic style and her impact on the fashion world? All questions you may ask yourself if you are interested in her history and biographies as well her house of fashion!

Link to Information on Biographies

http://www.guardianbookshop.co.uk/BerteShopWeb/viewProduct.do?ISBN=9780701185008.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2021234/Coco-Chanel-biography-claims-used-drugs-lesbian-affairs-loved-Nazi.html

GREAT BOOK REVIEW of Coco Chanel. An Intimate Life:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/fashion/2011/sep/23/coco-chanel-intimate-life-chaney

Read More

The Best of Women in Men's Clothing: Marlene Dietriche, Katharine Hepburn, Diane Keaton, SJP....

There are certain looks that recycle and women in menswear is one of them. I have compiled a mood board of the best this iconic look to inspire your next outfit whether vintage, new designer or both....

Quick History:
Women like Dietriche born in the Edwardian era and coming out of age in the roaring 20's, where women shortened their hair and hemlines, seemed for Marlene in a suit by the 30's. This change from corsets to straight flapper silhouettes flaunted straight more masculine shapes a style that seems to have led right into menswear. As women began to assert themselves, as a gender, menswear has often reappeared. Fashion and Gender are closely tied together in societies and reflect social movements. During the first world war women began wearing pants out of necessity in factories. Women in "menswear" in western society was still taboo really until after the 60's when Mary Tyler Moore wore cropped pants on TV. However women are said to have worn pants as early as the 1800's on Ranches as well as "lower class" women in various labor situations. Great history of women in pants article: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/54701/the_history_of_pants_and_women_wearing_pg2.html?cat=46

Marlene Dietriche circa 1930's

Katharine Hepburn 1930's Embodied this Tomboy who was still a sexy woman.

Twiggy 1960's. Photographed by Terence Donavan

Diane Keaton Annie Hall 1977

Lisa Bonet 1980's

Kate Moss 90's/2000: Often puts her spin on Menswear

Sarah Jessica Parker Sex and the City 2












Other Recent Reincarnations as the Style Hit the Sidewalk, Red Carpet and Runway in 2010-2011

I think I personally prefer the sort of deconstructed style of Diane Keaton and Kate Moss with a little sexy tomboy courtesy of Katharine Hepburn in terms of real life application:) If you are looking to vintage a vest, 80's jackets and trousers 70's/ 80's are great for this.

Article Images not attributed to Sarara Brazil and this blog makes no claim to them.

Read More

20's collar meet 60's Buckskin

I fell in love with this newest find. Soft like butter and combines the sort of southwestern 60's look that is in now with the 20's lux collar. Be on the look out for these great combos. You can find this one in my store: Sara Brazil Vintage on etsy or SararaBrazil.com

Read More

Crazy About Deco: Collecting and Wearing Art Deco

Fashion and Culture at the Moment are having a definite Deco/20's Affair. Many times we think of art deco as the 20's exclusively however; the movement began in Paris in the 20's and spans until the early 40's. Not everything from the 20's embodies that deco style, just like everything from the 20's is not flapper in style. Flapper's represented a cultural style and subculture really.

ART DECO design appeals to me because it drew inspiration from non European cultures such as the Egyptians, Asian cultures and groups native to the Americas. It was modern in its interpretation of geometric mathematical lines and shapes but cultural as well. There was a use of bolder colors and a sort decadent yet streamline aesthetic.

I want to highlight the art of wearing Deco here for those who want to apply that aesthetic using vintage pieces. There are certainly many current designers inspired by the look.
Sources:Art Deco Fashion [Hardcover]Suzanne Lussier
Roaring '20s Fashions: Deco (Schiffer Book for Collectors)by Sue Langley, John Dowling
Flapper Era Fashions: From the Roaring 20s by Tina Skinner

HERE ARE SOME STATEMENT PIECES TO LOOK FOR WHEN WEARING HISTORICALLY CORRECT PIECES:
Evening gowns and OVERDRESSES, these are the beaded sheer tunics you see originally worn over neutral frocks. They are great if in good condition, look for items which seem current in design. They will be show stoppers at a party. Remember you don't want to look like you came out of a time machine but instead like you are wearing a couture piece off the runway.



COATS are another way to get a great look and still be fashionable and modern. Lastly ACCESSORIES such as purses and jewelry! I cannot say enough about finding a few great pieces from this era and highlighting them. Mixing vintage and contemporary designer and neutral pieces gives you an extra chicness and edge.


EXAMPLES:
Great example of the use of Asian and modern lines-



















Coat with the drop waist full collar and exaggerated bell sleeves. However the neutral palette and fur accentuate the deco style:






















Deco style purse: This one is actually one from my store but it mixes modern metals/lines and exotic leather:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/SaraBrazilVintage


































JEWELRY: This is great because it has the use of color, the lines, and the Egyptian theme. Find it at:http://www.etsy.com/shop/EmbellishgirlVintage





















When collecting for investment purposes one has to be careful not to over estimate its value just because of age particularly the items from the 20's. Was it machine made lace, that is not as valuable. What is the condition? You expect some wear but the more maintained the better. Also does it showcase what we celebrate in terms of the design of the era. There are various texts on the 20's and Art Deco which one should read.

Collecting Art Deco by McConnell, Kevin
Art Deco Interiors: Decoration and Design Classics of the 1920s and 1930sby Patricia Bayer


Various books of interest in terms of interiors:
Art Deco (Revised Edition)by Arwas, Victor
In the Deco Style by Dan Klein, Nancy A. McClelland, Malcolm Haslam

Online NY Times Fashion Article:http://runway.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/11/09/a-deco-moment

Read More

Mad About Gwen Stefani's Bowler Bag the Kingston

I literally discovered this find at an estate and let me tell you she had some bags. This however; was just like new and I contemplated keeping it. As I design jewelry and sell vintage this was a fun current fashion tid bit so I decided to share it on my store on ebay. Loving it! It is a classic bag with a Gwen twist, named after her son Kingston. So fab. Stay tuned for more fashion, articles and vintage finds/shopping locations etc! Celebrity's have a love for this bag and at over $700 retail for the wallet and Bag take a look:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200673408459&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT

Read More