Everything Vintage: Retro Vogue

Vintage Friday!

Apologies for this morning's post running a little late - I was at the U2 concert lastnight!!!

I found this very cool blog, Vintage Fashion Magazines, when searching for Vintage Friday images. She is a collector of vintage Vogue and has scanned and posted pages from the 60's up to the early 80's editions. Unfortunately she had to sell her collection so she won't be adding any more but take a look anyway - there are still some really great images to browse through.

The very famous Twiggy on the April, 1967 cover of Vogue. And Twiggy today.

The beautiful Lauren Hutton on the June, 1968 cover of Vogue. And Lauren today. Those big blue eyes are still the same!

A few Vogue covers from 1965.

The 3rd cover model of each row is Veruschka, one of the top models of the time.
She had quite an interesting childhood - she was the daughter of an extremely wealthy
German Count and Countess. Her father became part of the German Resistance and
was assassinated for plotting to kill Hitler! After that her family spent time in labour
camps and were homeless by the end of the war. She was discovered at the age of 20 in
Florence and became a full time model.

More Veruschka - she was absolutely breathtaking...
1966 and 1967




This is Veruschka today.

"Night Drifts - The Unbelted Dress" - 1966
Love them! The hair and makeup are beautiful as well.





I couldn't leave out the 80's since we are seeing styles much like these again in today's fashion magazines.

Isabella Rossellini - 1982
Look at that hair!




The 80's empowered corporate women in Oscar de La Renta and Abe Schrader

Iman in Calvin Klein, 1982
A severe silhouette prominently seen in the Fall 2009 trends.




Happy Vintage Friday!

All vintage Vogue images via Vintage Fashion Magazines

Soup's Up!

In keeping with the "soup" theme I've had going the past couple of Tasty Thursdays, here are some delicious looking soups from the Jamie Oliver site.

There's nothing better than a nice hot soup on a chilly evening... Can you tell I'm getting into the Fall nesting mode? LOL

(It's actually sunny and warm outside right now but that's beside the point - somewhere someone is cold right now and would like some soup!)

Click on the soup name to be directed to the recipe

Early Autumn Minestrone
Very fitting name ;) There are a lot of healthy veggies in there too

English Onion Soup with Sage and Cheddar
I've had french onion but never english - does anyone know what the difference would be?

Bread and Tomato Soup (Pappa al Pomodoro)
This looks wonderful! I eat tomatos whole and could even eat them straight out of the can - this soup is right up my alley!

Feel Good Chicken Broth
Chicken soup for the soul - this certainly doesn't look like any ol' Campbell's soup :)

Scrumptious Spanish Chickpea and Chorizo Soup
Mmmm! This definitely does look scrumptious! This will probably be the first soup recipe I try out of all of these.


Southern Indian Rice and Seafood Soup
I really enjoy nice hot Indian dishes. I would probably switch out the seafood for chicken but I'm looking forward to trying this one as well.

There's definitely going to be a lot of soup-eating in our house this season!

Enjoy :)

K

All images courtesy of the Jamie Oliver website.

New England Clam "Chowda"

Tasty Thursday Feature

I've been going through clam chowder withdrawal since coming home from our New England trip earlier in August. It seemed like we devoured whole pots of it while we were there - yet we never got sick of it! Maybe gained a few pounds... but let's not focus on that :)

I found this chowder recipe from Emeril Lagasse. Haven't tried it out yet, but here's hoping it's as delicious as the "homegrown" kind ;) If not, I'm just gonna have ta get in the cah, drive to Bahston, and go to a bah to get more chowda!

New England Clam Chowder
Recipe courtesy Emeril Lagasse, 2001

Level: Easy
Serves: 6 to 8 main course servings

Ingredients

* 8 pounds small quahogs or large cherrystone clams, scrubbed and rinsed, opened clams discarded
* 4 slices bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
* 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
* 2 cups finely chopped yellow onions
* 1 cup finely chopped celery
* 1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
* 6 sprigs fresh thyme leaves
* 2 bay leaves
* 3 cups 1/2-inch cubed, peeled potatoes, about 1 1/4 pounds
* 2 cups heavy cream
* 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* Salt
* 6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1 1/2-teaspoon pieces
* 1/4 cup minced parsley leaves
* 1/4 cup finely chopped chives or green onions

Directions

In a large stockpot bring 2 cups of water to a boil. Add clams, cover and cook for 5 minutes. Uncover, quickly stir clams with a wooden spoon. Cover and cook 5 to 10 minutes longer (this will depend on the type and size of clams you are using), or until most of the clams are opened.
Transfer the clams to a large bowl or baking dish and strain the broth twice through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl, being careful to strain out the sand. (You should have about 6 cups of clam broth. If not, add enough water to bring the volume up to 6 cups.) When the clams are cool enough to handle, remove them from their shells and chop into 1/2-inch pieces. Set clams and broth aside.

In a large heavy pot cook the bacon until crisp and the fat is rendered. Pour off all bacon fat except 2 tablespoons. Add the butter, onions and celery and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, thyme and bay leaves, and cook until the vegetables are thoroughly wilted, about 3 minutes, being careful not to brown. Add the potatoes and reserved clam broth, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, cover, and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes, or until the broth thickens slightly and the potatoes are very tender. (If you like a thicker broth, mash some of the potatoes against the side of the pot with a wooden spoon.) Remove from the heat, stir in clams and heavy cream and season with pepper and salt, if necessary.

Set aside for 1 hour, covered, to allow the flavors to marry. Place the pot over low heat, and slowly reheat, being careful not to bring to the boil. Serve hot, garnished with 1 or 2 pats of butter, parsley and chives.

Do you have any favourite clam chowder recipes you would recommend?

Enjoy!

K

Alkemie - A little taste of Design Heaven

Featured Blog

If you want to see some of the most beautiful designer rooms out there then you must pop on over to Alkemie.

Perusing Karen Olivia's blog is a full out "designer-studded" event saturated with beautiful photos with colour, style, and texture for all tastes. And it's not only a great resource for home decor inspiration but she also links to other fabulous blogs to do with art, fashion, books, and event planning (to name just a few).

In keeping with my "Ode to Stripes" post earlier today, here are some photos Karen posted here of designer David Carter's 40 Winks boutique hotel in London.

One of the guest rooms at 40 Winks

We also share a great love for the colour purple! Below are some examples of GORGEOUS contemporary, eclectic, and glamourous purple rooms that can be found here at Alkemie.

The bold printed carpet looks spectacular with the dark purple walls. The yellow
definitely adds a lot of punch as well.

Lovely accessories.

LOVE this! The purple walls and natural linens are a gorgeous combination.

So pretty

Purple is the colour of royalty - would you not feel like a Queen sleeping in
this room?!



LOVE IT!



In love with that headboard! It's a room for a princess :)


Many shades of purple...


I think I've died and gone to Purple Heaven!!!

To see more delicious designs - of all colours - be sure to visit Alkemie

K.

All images via Alkemie - to see the original sources click here.

An Ode to Stripes

All-Things-Creative Wednesdays

I am really loving stripes right now - especially bold black and white stripes! Stripes on the walls, stripes on the floor, stripes in the fabric, stripes on the facade. Depending on the look you're looking for, they can be paired with pretty florals for a romantic vibe or with bright solids to make them pop.

Bold black and white stripes carried onto the ceiling elongate the height
of this nook.

via Elle Decor (I think!)

The lovely Sassafraz in Yorkville with its striking yellow facade and striped awnings.

via Sassafraz

Who can resist a baby pink house with striped awnings?!

via Absolutely Beautiful Things

The legendary Fashion Crimes in Toronto. My favourite - black and white stripes
with hot pink! Their window displays are also to die for... if ever in the area
(located on Queen W) be sure to drop by - glamourous party dresses from floor to ceiling!

Such cute socks :)

via Merimekko

Max Axria's (of BCBG) living room. LOVE the funky chair and ottoman!

via Harper's Bazaar

The mirrored surfaces and lucite are stunning in combination with the stripes.

Joseph Abbatti design via Alicia B Designs

HOT shower!

via Eric Cohler

Horizontal stripes help to elongate a room and make it appear larger. I love the
primarily white furniture with dashes of colour carried out throughout the space to
accent the walls. And the cushions are gorgeous!

via Manolo Home

And of course, here is the charming room we stayed in at the Captain David
Kelley House in Cape Cod. Since the post is an ode to stripes I just had to use this photo
again to showcase its darling periwinkle stripes with floral bedding.

via Captain David Kelley House

What are your thoughts about stripes? How would you use them in a room? Do you ever wear them?

K

Captain David Kelley House - Historic B&B Inn

Tuesday Feature: Travel

It was an absolute pleasure staying at the Captain David Kelley House this August in Centreville, Cape Cod.

The innkeepers, Tom and Rick, were just delightful and the inn itself combined the charm of yesteryear with the comforts of today.

Sometimes at B&Bs you can feel like you're intruding on the owners' personal space or that they're intruding into yours - but one of the many great things about the CDK House is that Tom and Rick had separate living quarters from the guests so it felt more like an intimate inn than like staying at someone's home. The guest quarters were so beautiful I was just dying to see what Tom and Rick's space looked like - but I didn't have the guts to ask for a tour! Maybe next time!

Each morning Tom and Rick served us a 3-course breakfast. The first day we a light and fluffy breakfast quiche, with fresh fruit and delicious home baked banana bread. On the second morning we were served eggs benedict, fruit and scrumptious just-out-of-the-oven scones.

CDK House is a 19th century Greek Revival, Cape Cod sea captain's home. The decor was just darling - romantic and cozy.

We stayed in the Alexander Suite shown below. It had two bedrooms (one we used for dressing and the other for sleeping) and a private bathroom. I just fell in love with the rooms...

This was the intimate little bedroom we slept in for the weekend. The four poster
bed and the floral print linens paired with the periwinkle and cream striped wallpaper

was a beautiful and striking combination.

Our bright and sunny "dressing room" had a slightly more masculine feel with a

nautical motif and maritime blue and cream striped walls. Touches of red and yellow

were used as accents. So gorgeous.

This was our charming bathroom.

Unfortunately it rained the whole weekend we were in the Cape, but staying at this darling inn was our saving grace.

Tom and Rick were always so hospitable and very happy to engage us in conversation about the history of the home or give us spectacular recommendations about where to dine. They really pay attention to the small details that makes one feel welcome and comfortable. Every morning we were always greeted with a smile and on a first name basis. Every evening there would be a platter of various cheeses awaiting us before we went for dinner. And every night we came back to a turned down bed and delicious chocolates waiting for us on our pillows. Oh, and I can't forget to mention the soft, cozy bathrobes that were provided for us in our room either!

The enclosed porch where we spent lazy, rainy hours reading.

The view from the breakfast porch where we ate each morning... except our view at the time
wasn't as sunny!

The common room where soft music was always playing.

Here are photos of some of the other guest rooms at the Captain David Kelley House...

So incredibly pretty!

I love the floral wallpaper with striped accents.

Gorgeous bed!

If you're ever in the Cape I highly recommend staying at the Captain David Kelley House - rain or shine, it's a delight! It is one of the most beautiful inns in Cape Cod with the two most hospitable innkeepers you will ever find!

They have only ever received raving reviews. To read some of them see tripadvisor.

Happy travels :)

Kristy

All photos courtesy of Captain David Kelly House - Historic Bed and Breakfast Inn.