The Fabulous Fifties

Hello Dear Friends!

I’m afraid I haven’t posted in quite awhile, due to an illness but there’s nothing stopping me now!  I’d like to resume my blog with a recap of a wonderful event I had the privilege of attending.  On Saturday, May 6, the Dennis-Yarmouth Women’s Group had a fundraiser, entitled “The Fabulous Fifties.”  They had asked me to do a fashion era presentation about this wonderful, fashionable decade.  A few of the many women who attended had their 1950s wedding gowns on display, including the wedding pictures of each of them.  It was incredible!  Other women had clothing and accessories on exhibit, one of which was a handmade poodle skirt!  As I always do when presenting any era, I display items from that time period for all to enjoy.  A beautiful luncheon was served before the festivities began, and they included a raffle of some pretty fabulous prizes!

One of my favorite parts was the opportunity to dress in one of my ’50s ensembles.  Pictured, you’ll see a lovely dress, sweater, and hat from the era, as well as a demi-parure, which is a necklace and bracelet set.  In this time period, it was common for women to wear “sets” of jewelry, such as a necklace, earrings and brooch. What cannot be seen in the photo was a sparkly petticoat from the fifties, which I wore under the dress, of course.  My shoes were modern Aerosoles (also unseen), but certainly could pass for a 1950s pair.

One of the best things about the ’50s, in my humble opinion, is the way ladies matched their accessories to their outfits so that they may have worn a hat, shoes, gloves and bag of the same color. This is something we rarely see today, and I feel that we’ve lost a good bit of elegance in our dress as a result. For this reason, my fashion era presentations are all the more enjoyable to myself and to my audience when dressing up is encouraged! I am fortunate that my husband and I own Nostalgia Antiques & Collectibles, since the store is the perfect setting to play dress up! Customers sometimes come to the store with fabulous outfits, so it’s anybody’s game. It’s also terrific when customers bring in vintage items that I can purchase and use in my presentations. This has been a great addition to my store experience!

I hope that my readers and event attendees will be inspired to find their own personal style in dress. Simply wearing a vintage sweater or blouse, for example, really adds pizzazz to any contemporary outfit. Since we really no longer have a strict fashion code, we need to find our own way of dressing authentically. It should be fun to get dressed every day, and it will be once you find the perfect mix of vintage and modern clothing and accessories. Start out slowly, if you must, but experiment with your look and make a statement with your style! Until next time, practice putting together your own unique outfits and surprise yourself and everyone you know. Most of all, have fun!