Fashionistas: Don't miss this

It's on again........hoorah...

The way we wear fairs is back this weekend, this time for 3 days of vintage fashion loving heaven. The fair brings together all of 'the best' dealers from around Australia at Canberra's historic Albert Hall for the best vintage clothing, accessories, fashion ephemera, jewellery and more.

"Life's too short to wear ordinary clothes"

The theme this time around is "Fly me to the moon", with a 1969 fashion display celebrating the 40th anniversary of the lunar landing. But of course you can still expect the fabulous open slather of vintage and retro frocks, accessories, textiles, ephemera and more. OMG I can't wait...

Friday July 3 from 6pm-9pm, Saturday July 4 from 10-5, and Sunday July 5 from 10-4 at the beautiful Albert Hall.Tickets $12

In a spin: On all Bids

Hot Hot Hot...

Spotted: 6 black vinyl upholstered bar stools with a slick retro edge (and they swivel)... now only $7.00 on All Bids.

Here's where they would work like magic... some of you may remember this gorgeous Canberra home I blogged about here...

Or equally in this humble Dickson cottage...

High Tea with a retro twist

This Sunday at Benedict House get retro ready for a high tea with a difference...

Dress inspired by Safari Suits & 70’s, Abba, blow away hair, flairs, platforms, Star Wars, and Cat Stevens. Dress up or ‘hat up’ according to the theme. Participate in quiz on fashions, food, trends and arts on the theme – light hearted fun with giveaways and prizes

Carrie Fisher stars in Star Wars. The ABBA look in the 70's

The classic safari suit. 70's tragic glam rockers Slade

Traditional high tea food, served with traditional etiquette. Four savoury, three sweets, glass of sparkling, tablecloths and tiered plates. 22nd March $25 per person 3pm-5pm

And if the seventies aren't your thing, then fear not, the next one goes glam...
26th April - Deco Delilah
Jazz, Chanel, Marlene Dietrich, Schiaparelli, Tamara de Lempicka, Sonia Delaunay.

The work of Tamara de Lempicka; Coco Chanel (sigh); Marlene Dietrich; Elsa Schiaparelli... smoking optional!

Sounds like fun! Hope you have a divine weekend,

Love Nina x

Re:loved recycling in style

Have you ever wondered what has become of the clothes you discard? With the current availability of disposable fashion, what are we doing to our environment? What if our cast-offs could become something new, something extraordinary - reborn, reloved?

Former CIT Fashion grad and emerging Canberran designer Lee Dewar, and her handbag designing mum Hanny, decided to take a closer look at ways we can reduce, re-use and recycle in style by challenging themselves and a handful of talented designers to create new garments and accessories from recycled materials and deconstructed garments.

Above: Event organiser and designer Lee Dewar (Third from left) with some of her amazing collection for her Craftilee label, all created using recycled garments and materials.

Supported by the Salvation Army's Fashion with a Conscience campaign and Green Threads, an ACT initiative "based on a commitment to sustainability and reducing the impact of discarded clothing in a way that is exciting, fun and doesn’t sacrifice style in the process."

Above Left: Handmade by Hanny handbag, designed by Hanny Dewar
Above right: and recycled couture by Zoe Denise.

And this t-shirt shall become my new motto!

Above Right: Michele Grimston of Green Threads rocks her amazing recycled Tupperware jewellery!

"We are about recycling, rescuing, recirculating and refashioning old garments, fabrics and accessories, saving clothing from landfill and wardrobe purgatory." - Green Threads.

Above: Designs by Grazed Youth's Amelia Thompson, all created from recycled materials from Salvo's op-shops. Amelia also produces jewellery using recycled clock parts and tiny barbie shoes!

Wow, well done to all of the designers, I feel completely inspired!

Love Nina x

Eco fashion: Re-Loved

"Re-loved" will showcase designers who use recycled materials and clothing in their practices. Designs on show include local labels CraftiLee and Handmade by Hanny handbags, and previous and current CIT Fashion students working under the recycled brief, with all new designs to be made from a minimum of 80% recycled materials.

Joining us is Michelle Grimston from Green Threads showing some of her work, as well
as all the fun and quirky clothing people bring to swap.

"Re'loved" is on Thursday March 12 at the designspace@CIT Ried campus at 6pm. As it is a fundraiser for the Salvation Army tickets will be $10 at the door, with proceeds going to the Red Shield Victoria Bushfire Appeal. Faaabulous...I can't wait!

Vintage fair goodness

Loved the Kimo-yes fabrics stall, where I found the most delicious offcuts from silk kimonos and also bumped into a reader (lovely to meet you Alison!). Bought a fabulous apple green cardi which actually sits like a perfectly tailored jacket from Me and You 2 from Bungendore, and a marvelous outrageous coloured skirt from the gorgeous Christine (pictured) from Classic Vintage in Mittagong. Beauwdiful!

And organisers already have plans to make a return in July 2009...Hoorah!

Don't Miss: Vintage Fair

Hat's off to fashion - A special one day event... Following the unexpectedly enormous response to the first Vintage Fair back in July... the "Way Wear - Fairs" crowd are back this Saturday for a follow-up event which is sure to be as huge as the last one.

Once again all of 'the best' dealers from around Australia at Canberra's historic Albert Hall for the best vintage clothing, accessories, fashion ephemera, jewellery and more.

I'll be heading straight for the Button Bower and checking out some fabulous accessories, can't wait!

Don't Miss it,The vintage fair is on this Saturday at Albert Hall from 10am to 6pm $10 entry.

Futuristic Thursday: Space Pod

Who knew that this amazing example of 1960's pop architecture was hiding in the graveyard of the now closed Canberra Space Dome and Observatory in Dickson? Well, the Shopping Sherpa knew and I will not resist any temptation to share it with you too. Designed in 1968 by Finnish architect Matti Suuronen as a pre-fab relocatable residential pod, the Futuro gives an obvious nod to the space age futuristic movement of the time...

Image from The Shopping Sherpa

"The circular house, 11 feet high and 26 feet across, was designed by Matti Suuronen, a Finnish architect, in 1968. A hatch door in its lower half opened down to reveal steps, like the door of a small airplane, and led into a room outfitted with six plastic bed-chair combinations and a central fireplace slab, as well as a kitchenette and a bathroom. Photographs from the time make the house look like a place where the Teletubbies might live, with Barbarella as a frequent houseguest."

Image by the Shopping Sherpa

Too cool to go unnoticed, our Canberran Futuro was never used as a live-in pod, but as part of the Space Dome and Observatory, probably manufactured in Australia. Now completely disused - it would be a damn shame to leave it to rust and ruin, what I wouldn't give to convert this into some very special accommodation!... see below for some images of other Futuros in their original glory and the final image of a refurbished 'holiday pod' in the US.

A film about the Futuro was released in 1998, leading to a resurgence in the popularity of it's ideals and an audience of a whole new generation of fans... and me! Hot tomale, if Dickson Tradies are going to give it away, can I have it please!??

Open house: Modern miniatures

Saturday saw the grand opening of Playing House: Dolls Houses 1957-2007 a remarkable display of 18 dolls houses and furniture collected by none other than The Shopping Sherpa. I gave you a preview here last week, now a sneak peek at the exhibition made famous on design sites Desire to Inspire and Apartment Therapy... you should not miss...

Playing House is on display now at Canberra Museum and Gallery until January 2009.