Lately I Love: 1930's Embroidered Ladies

Something I've been completely enamored with as of late, are these adorable embroidered and often hand-tinted or appliqued ladies.

Recently, I was at an antique shop and saw some lovely embroidered and embellished pillows with faces or silhouettes of beautiful ladies on them. I have always enjoyed sketching female faces and portraits. Add that to my love of embroidery and you have extreme inspiration! I have started one of my own, which is pictured first.

I wanted to my girl to be very elegant with an element of flora or nature. Her soft green headband has a small bouquet of lilies-of-the-valley and violets. I also made her be a redhead, of course.

Whether they are depicted as Southern Belles in a garden, a flapper with her modern bobbed hair and expressive face, or a mademoiselle of the late 18th century, I absolutely adore them. Here are some photos for inspiration.

These photos are from Pinterest, see this board for more

amazing embroidery featuring these delicate dames.

I hope embroidering becomes a favorite pastime again.
Things always come and go, old trends resurface, so I think this would too.

Ivy

A Downton Themed Tea at Barnes & Noble!

Hello!

 

This weekend I attended a Downton Abbey themed party at the local Barnes & Noble bookstore. It featured tea, cookies, trivia, as well as a hat and costume contest! I had a wonderful time with all the other ladies that attended and had fun bonding over all things Downton. I had fun putting together my ensemble for the event, trying to match the upcoming season, which is the early 1920's.

 

 

Though not necessary, I tried to make my look as accurate as I could. I chose to wear a black dress with black embroidery and a black cloche with a felt flower. I accessorized with a long peach colored pearl necklace and my peach beaded handbag. Because my dress hem was above my knees, (unacceptable in these circumstances!) I wore a black skirt underneath the dress so my hem was at an acceptable length, mid-calf. Another benefit of the skirt underneath was that it gave the dress a tiered effect, which was somewhat common at the time. When we chose the nominees for the contests, I was lucky enough to win the costume contest and a trivia contest! It was a tie with another woman with a fantastic outfit. She also won the hat contest, which was well deserved. For the prizes, I won a photo album and canister of tea.

 

The costume contest winners

 

 

Ivy

Book of Etiquette

Happy February!

I thought I'd share a vintage book of mine, called Book of Etiquette by Lillian Eichler. The book is circa 1922, and gives vital information on the do's and dont's of hosting parties, proper dancing and correct dress for the business woman, as well as much more. I find this book absolutely wonderful. The rules, and etiquette, in this book are certainly true to the era, and at times should still apply to present day. Not only is this book intriguing and informative, it is very attractive. The facade is a rich purple hue and has a golden rose design. Here are some pictures as well as some of my favorite excerpts.

Excerpt No. 1

Dancing

 

Excerpt No. 2

The Business Woman

 

 

 

 

Excerpt No. 3

Dress

 

 

 

 

 

 

Excerpt No. 4

On the Street

 

 

Excerpt No. 5

Etiquette Abroad

 

Excerpt No. 6

Teas and Other Entertainments

 

 

Excerpt No. 7

Games and Sport

 

 

These are just a few of the fantastic guidelines, tips and instructions in this book.

Have you found it as wonderfully informative and intriguing as I have?