Market Values

Thought I’d write a little about my recent experiences with vintage fairs. It’s one thing selling things on the internet from the glorious isolation of your vintage ivory tower – it’s quite another to get out there and interact with the public, get instant feedback on your goods and also get a more immediate feel for what’s popular and what’s not. So I was delighted to receive an invitation last year from Sarah of the Vintage Village at Stockport Market Hall to come along and trade at one of their monthly events. I didn’t have time to go and check Vintage Village out as a customer in advance so it was kind of an in-at-the-deep-end experience of rolling up one October Sunday morning to see what fate had in store for me. I needn’t have worried – the organisers Sarah and Alan were helpful and welcoming and the other stall holders a joy to be around. I couldn’t believe how nervous I was and had done practices at home in packing my stock and setting up a table. I could barely get my table cloth spread I was so nervous! I decided to dress up for the event – any excuse to get into some of my vintage finery - and found this was a great ice breaker as I got so many compliments and interested questions that I soon started to relax.



My stall at the first Vintage Village – I wasn’t too happy

 with the layout so I practised some more for the next one.

Couldn’t believe that I got my first sale within minutes of opening and, instantly, I was hooked. I’d be lying if I said that it wasn’t hard work – there’s the hours of prepping and price-tagging your stock, the day of packing before, the early morning to load the car and drive to your destination, unload the car and get your stall looking pretty, a full day on your feet, and then packing away and driving home. I generally leave the unpacking until the next day as a martini and some supper is generally the first requirement on returning home exhausted and triumphant.

Making the stall look pretty

The hard work is all more than compensated for however by the absolute joy of being among so many like-minded vintage lovers (fellow stallies and customers) – knowledgeable, interested and keen to make your acquaintance. As if selling there wasn’t pleasure enough then there is the endless temptation of spending your hard earned cash on everyone else’s treasure. So far me and the hubby have come back with a reconditioned 70s telephone, 50s sunglasses, a pair of handmade vintage leather brogues (for the hubby) and a deerstalker hat (for me) amongst other things…

More utilitarian in dungarees and headscarf

for my second market as I didn’t have

assistance carrying my stock in.

I worked as hard as Rosie the Riveter!

I’d like to give a shout out, while I’m at it, to Sarah and Alan who not only organise the event but do so much to promote the traders who participate by photographing and publicising the event, writing up a blog of each fair, and also giving website space to help promote each of us. They also generate interest by having a Finds of the Fair section on their website and a Visitors Gallery – I was overjoyed to be included in both of these sections after the January market. My stall's next appearance at the Vintage Village will be on Sunday 8^th July although I will certainly be going as a customer before then.

Stall layout mark 2. I know I'll keep working on this
 - am never satisfied.

Diary of a photoshoot

I've recently done the first photoshoot for Strumpets and it was such a great experience I thought I'd blog about the process. 

I'd been toying with the idea of setting up a vintage photoshoot for a while when a chance encounter with two Natashas made me determined to go ahead with it.

Natasha Estdale is a young friend I've known since childhood who's recently started doing some modelling. When I asked to see some photos I was completely bowled over to see how stunning she'd grown up and I thought she'd be perfect for a vintage look. I found Natasha Aldred's website through a work colleague who casually mentioned to me that her daughter was a photographer and gave me her web address. I was really impressed with her portfolio so arranged to meet her and chat through some ideas.

I didn't really want studio shots or anything that resembled catalogue shots as my stock changes all the time and once a piece is gone the photo is redundant from a marketing point of view. But I did think it would be fun to put some vintage looks together and shoot them in different, and maybe unexpected, locations. I also wanted to show how vintage clothes can be worn now - not just for fancy dress parties or reconstructions. I was feeling inspired by Brigitte Bardot whose looks crossed from 50s demure to 70s goddess - covering two eras that I wanted to play with. I also had New Wave diva, Debbie Harry, in mind.
 

Brigitte Bardot



Brigitte Bardot



Debbie Harry



Debbie Harry

Natasha A totally got what I meant and came up with some great suggestions. She chose all the locations including a beaten up telephone box, Morley town hall steps and streets, and Bertie's Diner. I had so much confidence in her that once I had chosen the outfits I was happy to let Natasha direct all the shots and take complete artistic control of the photos.

Next step was to get Natasha E round for a try on to find out what fitted her and what suited her:

The dress was a yes but these accessories were axed





Bingo - got this right straight away!

 

Cute dress but it didn't quite fit with the themes

 


Yes to the dress and the coat but no to the sequinned belt



We had great fun trying lots of outfits on and easily decided on looks that suited her best. Having picked the outfits I was then able to refine them by sourcing some more appropriate accessories.

We did originally have a make up artist on board but unfortunately she was not available on the day and so I was reluctantly put into the role of stylist. Having never done anyone's hair or make-up before ensured that I had maximum nerves when the big day came. I knew in my head the looks I wanted to achieve but would I be able to pull it off? It ain't easy to apply eyeliner and false eyelashes when your hands are shaking.....

Once Natasha E was into her first outfit, with hair and make-up done, we set off to collect Natasha A and off to our first location. I was very relieved to hand over the reins of responsibility to Natasha A and my role then for the rest of the day was driver, carrier of bags, dresser and lipstick re-applier, with a spot of extreme hairdressing as I put Natasha E's hair up in the street with a fair wind messing up my efforts.

I also had to keep my wits about me to make sure the frocks came out in the right order with the right accessories. We caused quite a stir being out on location and some people were dying to get in on the act!

I'd like to book Cowboy Dude for the next shoot too

I'd never done anything like it before but we had a great and hectic and creative day and I'm so proud of the resulting photos and the two Natashas. Can't wait to do it all again.



Black 70s dress and coat

 

Cerise 50s circle skirt

 

Red 70s dress and scarf



The full set of pics can be viewed here.

And the full set of outtakes can be viewed here.

And don't forget to check my shop if you're interested in buying any of the items.

Strumpets on the web and in the flesh

I've finally got round to creating a website for Strumpets Bazaar! I've got a shop in one place, a blog in another and facebook and twitter accounts in yet other places and I felt like I wanted a hub to pull it all together. I'm no expert so I daresay it's a bit crude but it feels good to have one web address that I can refer people to and they'll find everything that I'm publishing. Now that I own the domain name I may be able to transform it in the future into a fully self-contained one-stop web shop.... Who knows??!!

But anyway, without further ado, may I introduce.... trumpet fanfare....

www.strumpetsbazaar.com

Any comments, suggestions, raspberries gratefully received!

And for those of you who would like to sample Strumpets Bazaar in reality rather than virtually I will be trading at The Sunday Market, Salford  on 4th September so it would be lovely to see you there.

Right - now that I've finished laying out my website I'd better start practising laying out a stall.... I hope it's not as befuddling.

Toodlepip strumpeteers.

Strumpets Progress

Well, having started this blog in such good faith I find I've very little time to keep it up to date. What with developing my Etsy shop and getting involved with teams there; networking on Facebook and Twitter; not to mention sourcing new stock, photographing, researching and listing, there's barely enough time to keep attending my day job never mind blogging!

Anyway, I thought I'd drop by and log some exciting new developments on the horizon. I've been invited to have a stall at this fab new indoor Sunday market: 

I'm working on overcoming my nerves to dive in there and grab this particular bull by the horns. It's something I've been hoping to do for a while, after all. Why should I feel nervous.....?? *ponders* It certainly looks like an interesting market to keep your eye on. The organiser plans to rotate stalls each week so there will always be something new and unique to find there - a million miles away from high street shopping. Bring it on!

Another new development is that I am branching into dress agency-style selling whereby I can sell vintage clothing on your behalf for a percentage of the sale price on the item. If you're interested in finding out about this, drop an email to me at mrs.horder@yahoo.co.uk So far I have an amazing 60s Stuart Couturier wedding dress with train and matching veil, and a gorgeous 50s Cresta Couture dress with full skirt. Sneak previews here:

Detail of skull cap and veil

Detail of draped neckline

To cope with my growing empire I'm converting part of my house (where I previously ran a holistic therapy business) into a store room to house the expanding stock and with a changing facility where you will be able to make an appointment to view items and try clothing on before you commit to buying. So - lots on the horizon to keep me occupied!

Vintage weddings: their part in my downfall

I've always been a fan of second hand and vintage clothes but when I decided to re-marry in 2009 I knew I wanted to go down the vintage route and it is then that my passion for vintage became an obsession. I decided that every detail of mine and my fiance's outfits and accessories would be vintage and I set about sourcing everything with a fervour bordering on lunacy. I became totally addicted to the adrenalin of the ebay auction.... Never before had I fought with such cunning to win my prizes!

Along with the items of clothing I bought I also started buying vintage wedding photographs for inspiration. I realised that a white meringue hadn't always been the order of the day and so didn't need to be a part of mine. In fact I didn't need to look much further than my own parents' wedding to realise that! My first and most important inspiration was my mother in her beautiful short white velvet dress with pearl buttons:

Of the photographs that I collected I realised that my favourites were not the ones featuring long, white, "traditional" gowns. The following is one of the most charming I found (Madge and Eric, May 10th 1936). So elegant, not a frill or a flounce in sight, and with the sweetest hat:



I also loved the pared down elegance of the 40s brides in their fitted suits. It seemed always the hats, not the veils, which caught my attention. So, armed with this inspiration I focussed on finding my ideal dress which turned out to be - a tight-fitting crepe number in black with coral coloured sash. Once that was hanging safely in my wardrobe the hat became my next grand passion (feather AND a veil - could it get any better?) Then the bag, the coat, the jewellery, the fiance's suit, hat, shirt, tie, union suit. Even our wedding night was enhanced with vintage - a 30s silk nightgown for me, striped pyjamas for him. We also bought vintage gifts to thank everyone who played a part in organising our wedding. Here are some snaps from our perfect day:

I can safely say that our wedding became the point of no return from my vintage addiction. Our house started to fill, not only with the pieces we collected for the wedding but the also-rans - the things that didn't make it to the big event because the size, the colour, the fit weren't quite right.

And you know what, once the wedding was over I couldn't stop collecting...... That was when a vaguely-held ambition to own a vintage shop started to crystallise into reality and Strumpets Bazaar was born. Now I have a wonderful focus for my collecting habit and it is giving me so much pleasure. Long live Strumpets Bazaar!

Introducing Starletta

Any reputable vintage fashion house needs a front woman to show off the threads to best advantage, and short of the werewithal to pay models & photographers, I went on the hunt to find the face of Strumpets! Ebay came up trumps with this superb mannequin. I think she dates from the 1980s but she's versatile enough to go 1930s or 1950s with conviction. She's a little bit battered and she's definitely been round the block a few times.... but I reckon that makes her an authentic Strumpet.

Starletta has removable arms and hands, a removable leg, lifts off the stand, and comes apart at the waist, making her very easy to style. She also has eyelashes, painted fingernails and pierced ears which all add a touch of refinement (must get my hands on some earrings for the Bazaar to make full use of this feature....).  As for her name? Well I didn't make it up - I borrowed it from an actress I worked with a couple of times.  She was a memorable lady with a memorable name. True story. Starletta Strumpet has quite a ring to it, and so my right hand Strumpet was born.

Please note that Starletta is exclusive to Strumpets Bazaar and is not taking any other bookings. No matter how high a fee you offer her. 

 

Photographic inspirations

I found these two photographs in an antique shop, instantly fell in love with them and wondered whether I could bring them along with me on my Strumpets Bazaar venture. This first one has proved to be wonderful for the purpose - I've been able to crop it to make a banner for my shop, and home in on my favourite lady to use as an avatar. I know it's more popular to use glamorous images, and I love glamour too, but these ladies have so much character and humour and I thought they deserved an outing. After all, they have on their best hats, handbags and shoes!  

This next photo hasn't lent itself so well sadly but I can't resist including it because I really love it. These two friends don't look like they had much money and probably had to work hard to make ends meet. The lady on the left is so beautiful but has such a pensive expression - I wonder what she's thinking about....? Again - it didn't matter what walk of life you were, you didn't leave the house without your hat and your handbag. There was something so proper about it all. 

I really do love old photographs even when I don't know who the subjects are. Perhaps more so because I don't know them. I get completely absorbed in imagining who they were and what their lives were like. I've got a nice little collection of vintage wedding photos too - perhaps I'll post some another time.