Sustainable Fashion Facts

We're in deeper than you think. In up to our necks one might say. Fashion is everywhere. We are surrounded by it and the advertising that forces us to consume it. We can't help it! What red blooded woman doesn't feel better after buying a new dress or pair of shoes? or two :$

We, as consumers, need to start making more educated, conscious decisions about what we purchase and what we wear. Check out these fashion facts;

- Approximately 94,670,778 pairs of jeans will be sold globally this year.

- In the UK alone, 1.8 million tonnes of clothes and textiles are thrown away every year.

- By December, India's largest polyester manufacturer will be making 1,400 tonnes of polyester per day. Polyester is a synthetic fiber derived from coal, air, water, and petroleum.

- The Carbon Footprint of one woman's tshirt if 5kg over it's lifetime.

There is alot of information out there and I've included some links below...but just one of the good things about Vintage Vixens and Vamps is the promotion of local retailers selling sustainable fashion. Not only are you supporting LOCAL retailers but you should FEEL GOOD with the purchases you've made because you're saving it going to landfill.

http://researchbank.rmit.edu.au/eserv/rmit:6309/Pears.pdf

http://www.sustainable-fashion.com

http://www.fashiontakesaction.com/

http://www.ecofashionworld.com/

http://www.defra.gov.uk/publications/files/pb13206-clothing-action-plan-100216.pdf

http://organicclothing.blogs.com

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainable_fashion

What the Butler Saw

Just what did the butler see? Lots of divine clothing that's what.
So come on be naughty...take a peek and indulge your vintage passion.

Marina has been selling vintage for over 15 years, in fact if you've ever visited "Tumbleweed" in Armadale or a market around Perth you've probably met her.
Notoriously slow at adopting "new" technology - like having a phone in her shop, she prefers to devote her time to finding lovely things and .....ironing.
But now she's created a new facebook page.
So please have a sneak peek at "What the Butler Saw" coz it's sad having 0 friends

Quality of Yesteryear

Look at this dress ... it is beautiful. Permanent pleats, the dress has weight, metal zipper, it will last forever .... exactly what clothing made today doesn't do - and neither does it generally do justice to the women we have grown into! Recently I purchased a mature woman's wardrobe of yesteryear .... they no longer fit her. I don't know her name, but all her clothing is marked with a 'J' ... a woman called J. As I sorted through the bags of items memories were stirred of my own clothing over the years. I used to make all my own clothing once, and then Target came to town and we all thought that to be 'hip' meant to wear clothing mass produced in Taiwan or Hong Kong (China wasn't on the scene then). And to be honest the quality and style of Target back then was good. But little by little we have all been hoodwinked, quality has deteriorated, each year style is a variation on the 'bag' look (I went for it in a big way for while), we all look remarkably the same and unfortunately black has taken over. It's time for a revolution. Can we recall what we looked like in colours that belonged to us, made us look gorgeous regardless of our body shape and size? I have started to remember and to notice. Have you ever bought an expensive item which looked fabulous on the shop mannequin only to don it at home and wonder why it didn't give the thrill you expected it to? And then have you ever bought something not quite what you would normally purchase and then found it really makes you sizzle? Colour and shape and our personalities, manufacturers can mass produce as much as they like but the truth is we aren't mass produced replicas of each other - we are all wonderfully unique!

From 23 - 27 June Vintage Vixens and Vamps will be at the Everywoman Expo in the Perth Convention Centre. We will have our range of vintage and recycled clothing and will be accompanied by She Seldom Blushes of Fremantle and Winifred and Bance of Inglewood. We are taking the style, grace, colour and quality of vintage and retro fashion to the women of Perth. Our recycled clothing is the best that we can source from hours of wracking through racks! In our op shop hunts we are looking for styles that suit our mature shapes, quality of local and European made labels and wherever possible - colour! We want to show you how, in combining the quality and style of Vintage and good recycled clothing you too can look fab on a frugal budget and rekindle feeling like the goddess you felt at 18 and are even more so at 38, 48 and older!

Get into the Groove

For those of you who aren't quite yet up to swishing, who are just tentatively dipping their toes into revamping their wardrobed with Vintage and recycled, and for those of you who are right into the whole thing, we want you to turn up on Sunday 23 May with one good quality piece of preloved but no longer coveted clothing to hand over. It will be used ... in our swishing event ... in our community events coming up ... in our next big event .. nothing is going to waste. And in return you go into the draw for a $100 shopping voucher with Winifred and Bance. $100 will nearly get the likes of my gorgeous faux fur I intend to wear everywhere, or, it will get you one great outfit. So what have you got to lose? Before you dash out the front door on Sunday grab that 'oldie but a goodie' and hand over when you walk in our front door.

Vintage Comes to Town!

One week to go and time to reveal our fabulous list of stalls participating. I personally give a great big thanks and welcome to ...

Winifred and Bance, Inglewood. Delilah was very accomodating with the Sunday Times photo shoot and yep we were disappointed that she wasn't mentioned in the final cut.

She Seldom Blushes, Fremantle. Fern has been wonderfully positive since the day I met her and helped out with the Community Paper photo shoot.

Broken Doll, Fremantle. Annette has been a trooper, also helping out with the Community Newspaper photo shoot.

Miss Betties, named after a chook but hey. Deb has been supportive from the beginning, I think this will be a big day out for her.

Smith and Bird, Mandurah. Lara, I knew from the Perth Markets, she's been fantastic with support, ideas and just bumping into each other.

Benswick Vintage. I made contact with Sarah and Connor after seeing their work at the Red Feathers Fashion Parade. It will be exciting to see more of it next Sunday!

Hey Joe Retro, anyone living around Fremantle would know Helen's shop on South St.

Kate Laurendi's Cupcakes, she tee'd up this time with friend Danica, get in quick they don't last long.

Two Timing, East Fremantle. Liz got all excited when she finally decided to join us.

Tumbleweed and Beleza, Marina and Claire have helped out with promotion, looking forward to meeting them.

Martha and Lilly, looking forward to the handbangs from Cindy and Kris.

Dark Nouveau Jewellery, Helen has been great at spreading the word among our alternative community.

Tania and Katherine's Vintage Clothing, interesting combination this one.

Lisa McDiarmid Jewellery, looking forward to her vinyl and cassette creations.

Sewanista, Malaga. Sandra has been wonderful with ideas, her connection with TCFWA and contacts. Watch out for her vintage buttons.

Anita Gadenne, upcycled and refashioned.

Red Feathers and a Hula Skirt, Melville. Mel and Kerrie have spread the word, spiced up our flyer and will be very active on the day. Watch out for Kerrie's fabrics and patterns.

Batty Bags, Just Hanging Around and N Gear. Had several interesting phone calls with Rose and Jan, look forward to seeing their ensemble.

Pom Pom Vintage, will be great to meet Nicolette.

Birdie Loves Pie, women's and men's vintage gear from Jeremy.

Leah Tarlo, retro gear she's been collecting for years.

Rebecca Gianetti, retro gear she's finally letting go of.

The Bean Runner, Fair Trade Coffee for a fair day's trading I think.

Morph Me, Genna and her daughter will be available to advise us all on those individual image tips.

Vintage Vixens and Vamps, local, national and international delights from Maureen and Georgina.

Next week is the culmination of 3 full months of creating this event from scratch. We have met some wonderful people along the way, wrestled with too many ideas and started to put together what comes next. My apologies for not capturing all the wonderful things about your stalls, my head is a little overloaded with putting together my own stall for this weeks Craft and Quilt Expo as well as completing as much as possible for our own event. I noticed the latest comment on our event is something about it being so exciting. I totally agree. We may not have got it all perfect but the momentum and enthusiasm is there, and as a Vintage Vixen I am looking forward to introducing other vixens into the stylish and sumptuous world of vintage and retro fashion so that they too may feel as fabulous as our vamps and ... what's the name for vamp men? Speaking of which we had a question during the course of our preparation asking if it was worthwhile for lads to come along? I can now confidently and enthusiastically say yes! So come along everyone, enjoy the day, have fun with Swishing, feast your eyes on the fashion parade, and walk out with a new wardrobe. And don't forget, if you come along with one quality item to hand over you go into the draw for $100 gift voucher with Winifred and Bance.

Benswick Vintage

Introductions to Sarah and Connor's work came through a fashion parade by Red Feathers and a Hula Skirt in Melville. Benswick Vintage is recycled clothing business that offers a huge range of clothing that comes from a highly edited collection of op-shops and wardrobes. Most of the clothes have been altered by professionals to make each article a unique piece! Guys and gals will find something to inspire them from this dynamic partnership when they stage their creations at the Vintage Vixens and Vamps event platform in Fremantle on 23 May 2010.

What Have Chooks Got to do with Vintage?

Miss Betties Vintage and Retro stall of course. Miss Bettie hails from Deborah Varga's chicken - BettieBird - who was the best chook and friend a gal could have hoped for! She is dearly departed these days - gone but not forgotten! Deb says she was a real character who would probably be rather pleased about the mini-empire built in her legacy.

The story behind the business begins with Deb as a quilter 20 years ago and in the process she fell in love with making aprons. She uses only the best quality 100% cotton vintage or American cotton fabric. All of her aprons are one-off originals, designed and made by her. She does special orders including children's aprons and makes her aprons 'Queen-sized' so they fit the ladies and the lads who like a few frills and ruffles in the kitchen! Her most popular apron is her 'cocktail' apron - which suits the more bedroom / burlesque orientated cook ..... entertainning! At Vintage Vixens and Vamps, Miss Betties will primarily have retro fashion items Deb have collected over a 25 year period and include clothing, bags & jewellery together with fabric, buttons and patterns for the 'do-it-yourself' fashionista! I have seen Deb's stall in action, be prepared to watch it whittle down very quickly!

Stallholder Rollout

One more sleep then my little one is back at school and I can get busy! Everything is getting soooo exciting. Miss Betties, Benswick Vintage, Martha & Lilly, Tumbleweed and Beleza, Joe's Retro, Awoke on a Whale Heart, She Seldom Blushes, Smith & Bird .... plus a host of others ... just a few of the great names coming in to our Vintage Vixens and Vamps event. Starting tomorrow I will commence featuring stalls through facebook so look out for the pics.
And Maureen has returned! We spent yesterday afternoon enjoying all the goodies she brought back with her - we had a lot of fun playing dress ups! I'd upfashioned one of the men's shirts I love to wear and was complimented by a young male passenger riding in another car when we stopped at the traffic lights! Certainly politically incorrect but there are days when a bit of playful cheek just caps off how one is feeling. All good fun.