Polka Dot Fun

Enjoy the few last days of summer sunshine and be inspired by the lightheartedness of Polka Dots!  

 

Fantastic 1960s Ad

1960s Jantzen Swim Caps

1961 Arnold Scaasi Polka Dot Dress

Marilyn Monroe on the Beach

Polka Dots make everything feel so cheerful and happy, and couldn't we use a little more of that all year around?

Phone Art

A piece of art to carry in your purse.  Salvador Dali collaborated with Schiaparelli Haute Couture to create this Telephone Compact in the Fall 1935.  Can I call this the original flip phone? 

 Then came Dallas Handbags with an amazingly adorable and fully functional phone purse.  Just connect to a wall socket and you are good to go.

Small and Red

Large and Reptilian

Now in 2012 we can get the best of both worlds with a pocket sized rotary phone that lets us make real phone calls.  Check out the Second Skin Rotary iPhone 4 Case.

Is it bad that I want all of them?  What do you think is the must have?

Fancy Tights

 The beginning of summer is a wonderful time where the weather gets warmer and the days become longer.  It's time to bring out the bikinis and beach towels, but unfortunately, also time to box up the winter layers.  I have to say goodbye to my cold weather friends - the tights (if only for a season). 

At the turn of the century women had some amazing looking silk stockings that had incredible embroideries and lace inlays like the ones below.

Evening Stockings from Around 1903

It's interesting to see that there are similar styles on the market today.  Tights with spirals designs and argyle patterns are being sold by some of fashion's big names.  The material and processes have changed over time, but the inspiration is still surprisingly similar.

Kate Spade Spiral Stripe Tights

American Apparel Argyle Tights

One dramatic change is the point of interest is on the stockings.  In the early 1900s the details were all at the bottom of the leg since that is the only thing that might peak out under a skirt.  At the time it was considered very sexy to reveal even an ankle.

Now we see styles like the one below where the detail is high on the thigh because that is the new sexy.  Today, this is what might peak out from under a skirt and get some attention.

Wolford Spring Leaf Tights

Sunglasses Straw Hat

A couple of weeks ago I popped into a Kate Spade store in Orange County and spotted this super cute straw hat with embedded sunglasses.  It seemed like the perfect beach side accessory.  No longer would a girl have to choose between people watching or covering her face from the sun.  Finally she could do both - and still look stylish.

Kate Spade Straw Sunglasses Hat

  

I had all but forgotten about the hat when I came across a very similar vintage hat.  Looks like the women of the 60s could have been wearing a version of this hat as well.

Vintage Straw Hat, Libelle (Dutch) May 1965

 The colors have definitely been toned down since the 60s, but the idea's the same.  If you're wearing a sunglasses straw hat you're not looking to blend in, so might as well go for the bright colors.  What do you think?