Love & Lockets

Posted on May 14, 2014 by Crashing Nightingale

Lockets are one of my favorite pieces of jewelry. There has always just been something about them. For some reason, as a kid, I was fascinated by the fact that you could insert a tiny photo into the little case.

Lockets have been around for a while but have always served a one true purpose: to carry something sentimental for the one wearing it around their neck. Whether it was a photo, a lock of hair, a little love note, perfume or even ashes, it’s been the little keeper of our true love for centuries. It’s the piece of jewelry that has transcended through time and has never gone out of style.

These little keepsakes fascinate me in that they seem to have a story to tell or hold some little secret that is just hanging around one’s décolletage.

I love the idea of carrying a tiny photo of your sweetheart. Keeping your loved one close to your heart; always with you.

I recently found a locket that my dad gave my mom. His name with a simple message and the date are inscribed on the back. The date reads 12-25-67. I’m uncertain if this was a Christmas gift or wedding gift as they were married on December 28, 1967. I truly cherish owning this little love locket.

Do you have a locket with sentimental value?

My mom’s locket given to her by my dad.

Tap pants: The Little Undergarment with Big Appeal

Posted on April 27, 2014 by Crashing Nightingale

This is not my first time declaring my love for vintage lingerie. I posted in an earlier blog about my admiration for vintage lingerie here. My current love affair is with tap pants. There is just something innocent and naughty about this little undergarment.

Tap pants, french knickers, side-pants shorts, whatever you may call them, they are a little piece of fabric that packs a pretty little punch underneath it all. They look like little shorts and the name derived from tap dancers wearing shorts while practicing their routine in the 1930s. You can find vintage photos from the 1920s-1940s that showed these were a common undergarment women wore.

When it comes to lingerie, I typically don’t buy it just for the bedroom. It’s usually not worn long and I don’t want to buy it just for it to come off in minutes. Confession: my favorite reason to wear lingerie is underneath my clothing while my outfit disguises what is underneath. Garter belts, corsets, lace, silk, vintage or vintage reproduction brassieres, seamed stockings, I love it all. To be all bundled up under a vintage dress or skirt and blouse is the bees knees.

I recently came across a sewing pattern by Mrs. Depew Vintage. The pattern seems slightly simple so I’m interested in giving it a whirl to see if I can make my own vintage reproduction tap pants. If I’m successful, everyone can expect a plethora of tap pants in my undergarment wardrobe.

If you’re looking to incorporate these beautiful knickers into your attire, I suggest searching through Etsy for the various vintage shops. I usually order vintage apparel on Etsy because I like supporting the small online business owners and the site is easy to navigate and find what I’m looking for. I also suggest other vintage manufactures such as Dollhouse Bettie and What Katie Did.

Now it’s time for tap pants eye candy 🙂

The Saint & Sinner: A vintage-inspired photo shoot with And How! Imaging

Posted on March 15, 2014 by Crashing Nightingale

I love photography. I love admiring the images others create and I enjoy creating images in front of the camera. I think the camera is one the best inventions. To capture our moments in time is such a beautiful thing to me.

Last month my husband and I had the pleasure of creating a vintage-inspired photo shoot with the lovely folks of And How! Imaging. And How! Imaging is Amy and Charles Rouyer who are two very creative people. Their work ranges from pin ups, portraits, conceptual, events, bands and musicians, girls + cars and weddings. They create some great photo shoots and capture the subjects of their photo shoots well. Our inspiration was the 1920s and we just took it from there. When we arrived they had many props and a great setting for us to come up with a theme. I wore a black dress from the 1920s that I had picked up on our trip to Virginia. My husband wore his jazz age-inspired suit. We sat on a church pew, picked up an old, old bible and posed in front of many items that hark back to this time. My husband, being the silly person he normally is, took a few naughty shots. It reminded me of the purity and conservative facade people gave during this time in history, yet, underneath it all, something else could be lurking. Me looking like a saint and him looking like a sinner. 😉 It was a lot of fun and I definitely recommend booking a photo shoot with them. They are great people to work with. Go ahead, check out what I’m talking about ☞ And How! Imaging.

Below are the photos from our photo shoot.

Art Deco Weekend in Virginia: Day One, Part 2

Posted on February 1, 2014 by Crashing Nightingale

So here we are, at the Jazz Age Preservation Ball hosted by the Art Deco Society of Virginia. The event was at the historic Bolling Haxall House. Talk about a grand place to put on such an elegant event. The historic building is an 1858 Italianate Mansion. If you read my recent post about Second Empire style, you can figure I was about to have a heart attack when I entered the place.

The event was to benefit the historic Byrd Theatre in Richmond, Virginia. The Art Deco Society of Virginia aims to raise funds through the Jazz Age Preservation Ball for one of Virginia’s selected Art Deco preservation projects. The Byrd Theatre definitely had the classiest-looking benefactors to raise awareness about it’s preservation. The night kicked off with some dance lessons by two of the Art Deco Society of Virginia’s board members. Guests grabbed their partners and learned the Charleston to get them ready for dancing the night away.

Everyone danced to the sounds of the Blue Crescent Syncopators, a jazz and swing band that brings back the music from the 1920s to 1930s. There was a silent auction that had a bevy of jazz age items for guests to bid on. Guests could sign up to get their photo taken by photographer Lynn Redmile so they could capture their twenties look. There was plenty of food and drinks for everyone to enjoy while mingling among each other.

Towards the end of the evening there was a burlesque performance by The Garter Snaps. The Garter Snaps are burlesque-duo that treated the Jazz Age Preservation Ball guests to a hot little number to the music of 1933’s “We’re in the Money.”

We were so glad we got to experience such an extravagant event. It was such a sight to see everyone dressed up to celebrate their love for this era and help raise money for Art Deco preservation. It truly was the cherry on top to our weekend and we look forward to next year!

Getting Decked Out in Art Deco

Posted on January 11, 2014 by Crashing Nightingale

First thing first, happy new year!

I’m a little belated on my happy 2014 exclamation. I did have a fun and entertaining New Year’s Eve celebration and kissed 2013 goodbye.

Currently, my husband and I are getting ready for the next big event on our agenda, the Jazz Age Preservation Ball in Richmond, VA. We are SO excited! The Jazz Age Preservation Ball is created and presented by the Art Deco Society of Virginia. I stumbled across the non-profit organization and found they put on this extravagant event. So my husband and I thought, let’s go! This will be their second year and by the looks of the photos from their inaugural event, it’s going to be a grand time.

I am a Jazz Age and Art Deco enthusiast and love to get my hands on anything from this era. My husband and I love this time period so much our wedding was 1920s themed. (See article on this here ☞ Saying ‘I do’ Roaring Twenties Style.) I’ve always had a dormant obsession with the twenties. Unconsciously admiring the structure of finger waves and secretly falling in love with the flapper style. I love many decades between the 1880s to 1960s, but if I had to choose, hands down the 1920s win. This time is just intoxicating for me. The colors, style, architecture, and the way America was after the Great War and before the second one. When we became engaged and I was going over the theme of our wedding with our photographer, she suggested I start a Pinterest board to give me wedding ideas. At the time we had not decided on a 1920s-themed wedding, but knew we wanted a vintage-theme event. I started my search and started to come across couples who had done this. Thus began my (so far) 1, 777 pinned images of the 1920s style. I could literally live my life in this style, no joke.

So we’ve prepared for our trip to Virginia and are ready to attend the Ball. We’re looking forward to meeting other Jazz Age and Art Deco enthusiasts. Keep your eyes peeled for details on this event!

Here’s a sneak of my dress ☞