Another Year Older...

Hey Guys, it is me again..four months after I last blogged and well I dread to tell you I am another year older. But I also like to think of it as another year wiser, I have certainly learnt a lot, even in these last four months. I still love heels, all things vintage and girly but as my age (and those sneaky chocolate bars) start to catch up with me, I have found a peace to appreciate who I am and who I meant to be. I may not be perfect but I was made to be unqiue for a purpose..and guess what? So were you!

 I don't mean to get all sentimental on you but as Audrey Hepburn once said " I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls". Anyway I am just going to leave this post for tonight short and sweet. I have plently to fill you in on in the next few months including a website launch, a skydive and a charity collaboration, but there's plenty of time to fill you in on the details.

 As ever guys, don't hesitate to get in touch. Until next time, lots of love Helen x

Photo: A much needed cup of tea on my birthday night out, even if I did have the barman, security guard and my friends laughing for asking for a pot of warm tea at a cocktail bar.

A Year of Honest Mistakes..

It has been over a year since my last blog entry here at Educating Vintage and well it has been an eventful year of discovery and mistakes beginning with the death of my laptop which to date I am still rather mourning the loss of.
I started this blog in 2010 because I had a real passion for women (and men) to discover their creative selves, the people they were born to be instead of shaping themselves by the rules of in and out style charts. For me this dream has not changed I still firmly believe "there is too much emphasis in the modern world that style has to be confined within certain rules and regulations before it can be enjoyed and not enough people enjoying the art of dressing up". However within this last year I became a victim of giving in to those style regulations and I started to doubt my ability to talk about fashion, feeling I was not worthy or stylish enough to do so.
In 2010 fashion blogs were at their height, 14 year-old girls were front row spectators at every fashion week, (expensive) vintage fashion was commercial, and a person's success rate was based on how many followers they had on their number of social-networking sites.
At this time the local fashion magazine I was an editorial assistant at was in financial difficulty and eventually it folded. I found myself in a temporary job situation far removed from the fashion industry and after going to countless job interviews for fashion retail jobs (all unsuccessful) I started to believe I was not cut out for fitting in to what many people call the fashon world.
This past year has been an on-going inward (sometimes outward) battle with myself to realise again why I started this blog in the first place, which is at it's core a passion for fashion, but not necessarily in a commercial sense. I don't care for what's in or what's out I just love a pair of trousers that hug in all the right areas, a pair of heels that make you feel on top of the world, a nice blazer that means you're ready to start the day, something with a story to tell, and like many I just love a bargain! However none of these are the main reason why I love fashion, and why I believe so much in it as a positive modern day force. Whenever I think of fashion, I am transported back to late 2009 to a changing room/toilets in a hotel at a local vintage fair where I myself was trying to squeeze into a dress that had caught my eye on a number of occassions. Here I was surrounded by another 4 women who were doing the same with other sparkly vintage items that had caught their eyes. None of us 5 women knew each other and none of us had the same style or were the same shape, build or height but in that tiny space there was something there that just made sense. I might be going all airy-fairy here, but having these 4 women (plus myself) appreciate each others beauty, style and creativity was one of the most beautiful experiences I've ever been part of.
And because of that moment, you are finding me type this blog post tonight. I still struggle with moments of doubt but I feel like that this is even more reason to continue with the Educating Vintage journey. As I've said in the past Educating Vintage is not solely mine, I want it to be a creative place for people to express their individual style and their relationships with it. This is why Educating Vintage exsists and why it will continue to do so. Expect to hear a lot more from me soon and as always feel free to get in touch.
Blessings,
Love Helen x
Photo: Me in Mount Stewart House grounds - early 2010
http://beta.nationaltrust.org.uk/mount-stewart/

My Blue Suede Shoes

Vintage and second-hand shoes are a funny topic as the majority of shoppers still find it unhygienic and unnatural to walk in someone else's shoes. I myself an avid shoe-lover to be honest couldn't give two hoots! For me, a gorgeous pair of shoes are a gorgeous pair of shoes no matter where they have came from.
Plus wouldn't it be interesting to hear what stories your shoes could tell if they could speak?
Throughout the ages and world, shoes have had and have a very important role to play in society. For some they have religious value, to others they represent luck, they can simply be a pretty accessory on a night out or they can in fact mean the difference between having an education or not.
Have you ever thought about what your shoes mean to you? If you have any thoughts on the matter I'd love to hear your stories for a future post. Please get in touch if you do, via email or commenting below.
In the meantime to find out more on just how much value shoes can have visit the official website of the ethical footwear company toms at http://www.toms.com/our-movement and see how footwear can make an active difference.
Photo: A pair of vintage blue suede shoes (on top of French Vogue) that I absolutely adore but I am not sure of their story......yet!

I've Got Soul .. (But I'm Not a Soldier)

I don't know what everyone's political views are on wars or whether you even have a view on it but my personal view is 'violence is unnecessary', although I am extremely thankful that there were and are people out there brave enough to fight for a cause to protect others, and I am internally grateful for this.
However I have no political views and this is a fashion blog so I will explain my reasoning behind that little questioning...
I have always been interested in old things and the history behind them, and recently my Dad mentioned he had something of his Grandfather's; a coin (medal) given to every soldier that had fought in the First World War. My first thought was 'ooh can I see it?' and my second 'could you wear it as a necklace?'. To some I understand this may seem extremely insensitive but I can say with my hand on my heart I do not mean to be in any way.
To me this medal is a part of my family history, a reminder of the seriousness of human conflict and also the medal itself is (for lack of a better word) a 'pretty' example of brilliant craftsmanship. However it made me question what message would I be conveying if I wore this medal out in public as an item of jewellery? What would be the reaction? It is only three days away from Remembrance day and everyone will be wearing their poppies as a sign of respect. However in a week everyone's poppies will be gone so would it still be appropriate to wear something that acknowledges the First World War after this time without being seen as being political? Even subconsciously?
I suppose, I am not looking any real answers to these questions as I think they are near impossible to ever answer but to try to make people think after reading this post of the messages they are conveying every time they put an item of clothing or jewellery on. As David mentioned in the previous post, we are all affected by fashion whether we like to think we are or not. And we are all soldier's of style whether that be to charity shops, Topshop, Chanel, Tkmaxx, clothes hand-me-downs, friends, the media, beliefs, education etc. We all wear a uniform to reflect who we are and what we represent and what our families represent. We all just need to grab our war paint (make -up,clothes, perfume and shoes) and fight the same peaceful war; the one that aims towards the fashion world and society letting us openly express our 'selfs' without fear of persecution or ridicule. So what do you think, would you make a fashionable protest? Picture: The coin and my Grandfather's old pocket watch that no longer has any hands but which can still be used for decoration.

The Art of Clothes

Here is a blog post on what fashion means for the everyday person, by the ever-stylish David Aiyeniwon.
I coloured the sky red last night and I woke up with a blue sky. I saw a flower withering last night but I woke up and it was blooming. And I went to bed dying last night and I woke up Alive!
Fashion is an art; an art that people need to explore and study a lot harder. Fashion embodies so many emotions and so many thoughts. People think they enter a shop, buy some clothes and somehow think that they are not sending a message. The anti-fashion people are more into fashion, than the people in fashion because they have to know what is going on in order to go against it. The people that just don't care, care more than people who do.
My world is surrounded by fashion and so is yours! Open your eyes, clear your mind, look beyond your horizon, and look beyond what your eyes can see.
Fashion tells people who you are without even knowing your name. I was once one of those people that thought that clothes didn't say anything about you, until I started realising who I was. I realised that when people look at me, they see someone who wants to be seen and guess what, I do! I feed off the bad looks, the surprised looks and the impressed looks. This might sound like I am the most conceited or egocentric, however when I look in the mirror I see someone who is aiming for imperfection. Since I can't be perfect, why can't I be imperfect and find beauty in the imperfection?
You have artists like Lady Gaga, Isabella Blow (R.I.P), Anna Dello Russo etc.... that show their absolute devotion to fashion, and to art by wearing art fearlessly and boldly, while introducing the world to the art of clothes.
These women are the women that make me wear my skin tight skinnes and extra large shirt. And feed off the different type of energies from the people looking at me with admiration or disdain. Positive or negative, energy is always energy, it all depends on what you turn that energy into. If you let it fuel you or if you let it run you over and leave you feeling exhausted,
Fashion is and forever will make me and I forever will make it!
If you want to hear more of David's views on fashion, art and life check out his twitter page at http://twitter.com/italonigeriano8
Photo Credit: Photo courtesy of David Aiyeniwon

Frock Me! Brighton

Frock Me! hits the seaside town of Brighton tomorrow. Between 11am to 5pm at Corn Exchange in Church Street you can pick up those early quirky Christmas presents. Admission is £4 or £2 with valid Student ID and Under 16s get in free. So therefore there is no excuse if you're near the Brighton area for not having any ideas on a great family day out this half-term!

Fold-Away Fashion

Here's an interesting piece I came across the other day about taking green fashion to the extreme. I strangely kind of love it and honestly believe it would make choosing an outfit in the morning a whole lot easier! Let me know your thoughts. Here is the link....
http://www.ecouterre.com/issey-miyake-unfolds-origami-inspired-132-5-eco-fashion-collection/