Under the Influence: A Girl With Particular Shoes

So, Little Red Riding Hood said to the Blackbird Girls: "What big nerds you are!" And the Blackbird Girls shrugged in agreement....

We at Blackbird World Headquarters are unapologetic bookworms. One of us also happens to collect fairy tales, so when it was time to brainstorm our first photo shoot for the new website, turning to the magical world of literature was an easy step. While we could have run straight for Cinderella or Belle, we instead looked to the nameless, but fearless, heroine of a slightly more obscure story called The Enchanted Pig--or as we like to call it, The Girl in the Iron Shoes.

It isn't exactly a tale of boy meets girl. In this particular story, girl marries based on a prophetic book that she wasn't supposed to read. By night, the princess and her husband are able to...umm...live the married life. By day, he is a bona fide, mud-rolling pig. She happens to prefer the night-time version of her mate, and in an ill-timed attempt to break his porcine curse, the princess is punished with an impossible quest: to search the world for him, on foot, until she has worn through three pairs of iron shoes.

As the story goes: "On and on she wandered over nine seas and across nine continents; through forests with trees whose stems were as thick as beer- barrels; stumbling and knocking herself against the fallen branches, then picking herself up and going on; the boughs of the trees hit her face, and the shrubs tore her hands, but on she went, and never looked back." In addition to the traditional obstacles of a long journey on foot, the girl must visit four dangerous places to seek guidance. The first is the house of the Moon....

And what better outfit for this occasion than a cream 1960s mod mini and cape, paired with groovy 1960s cream Renauld sunglasses and a chunky silver pendant? The combat boots, of course, are her "iron shoes."

Next, she must hike to the house of the Sun. For this look, we put a 1960s gold sweater vest over a printed Carol Craig dress and added a copper turban, 1970s Dior sunglasses, and a groovy handmade copper statement necklace.

The third milestone of her quest is visiting the house of the Wind in a fluttery silk dress, 1970s green-framed Foster Grant sunglasses, faux pearl bracelet, and rhinestone earrings.

From there, she must walk across the vast Milky Way. We chose a sparkly sequined top with just the right amount of slouch, paired with cropped seersucker trousers, 1980s aviator sunglasses, a 1960s MGI studded purse suspended from her belt, a 1950s multi-strand necklace, and a shimmery rhinestone bangle.

At last, our intrepid heroine reaches the end of her quest at a weathered little house in a lush forest.  Here, she will prove to her husband that she is no longer the girl that he married, but a better (stronger) version of herself. For the "Honey, I'm home--and we need to talk" reunion, we dressed our model in a 1970s floral chiffon maxi dress under a metallic silver vest, and added black and coral sunglasses and screwback earrings.

The story has a happy ending, in which the pig's enchantment is broken, revealing him to be a prince from another kingdom. He weeps when his bride relates the tale of her harrowing journey, and they kiss. Soon afterward, they travel together to her father's castle, and he asks them to rule in his place. As the story concludes: "And they ruled as only kings rule who have suffered many things."

And although our well-traveled heroine can now prop up her feet and indulge in a well-deserved rest, we're sure that she will continue to be the Queen of Cool, and look incredibly fierce while doing so--in more comfortable footwear, of course.

Our photos look great on our shiny new website with some vintage celestial illustrations, including a couple of our favorite artists: Don Blanding and Dorothy Lathrop. We're keeping the Etsy shop open, but our favorite finds will end up at www.blackbirdgirlsvintage.com. Check us out!

Junk Love: Lilli Ann

Think of the last time you saw Disney's animated Alice in Wonderland. Imagine Alice finding that charming little cottage in Wonderland, and the White Rabbit rushing in, screaming, "Mary Ann! Mary Ann!" Now replace that with "Lilli Ann!", and you will understand how my brain works sometimes.

But on to other matters, like the fact that the Blackbird girls love Lilli Ann clothing, especially from the 1960s and before.... We're all about a tiny waist, dramatic collar and unusual sleeve--all things that epitomize Lilli Ann. Oh, and did I mention coats? (But we'll save those for the end....)

The company began in 1933, and they used a lot of unusual fabrics after WWII that became characteristic of the line. We have a fabulous variegated tweed suit in our shop (shown below) that was made of a silk/wool blend. Unfortunately, due to the fact that silk tends to become very fragile over time, and the nature of the weave itself, the wool strands often exert too much pressure on the silk threads, thereby causing the fabric to shred at stress points. Ours has this problem at the shoulders, which broke our hearts. But it's still gorgeous!

In our shop

Here's a near-perfect suit in a variegated silk blend:

On Etsy

A side view of another near-perfect example of the same design:

www.lulusvintage.com

And here's the original ad for it from Vogue (1955):

Love that accordion sleeve? Here's another version, with mink trim:

On Etsy

 The company's designers definitely loved fur collars, which you'll see on suits and coats. This green suit is another to-die-for example of Lilli Ann perfection:

On Etsy

And some great fur-trimmed coats:

On Etsy

On Etsy

I absolutely fell in love with this 1940s beaded suit. Even though there's some damage, it's fabulous:

On Etsy

This 1950s dress came as a bit of a surprise, as it was vastly different from most of the other Lilli Ann pieces that I've seen (but I have always focused mainly on suits and coats, so I suppose it makes sense). This one is pale gray with a pink, green, and metallic gold print.

On Etsy

But the thing I love the most is the wasp-waisted princess coat. This brown one is a fine example:

On Etsy

But THIS ONE IS MY DREAM FANTASY. I want to hold this coat, and love it and squeeze it (but not hard enough to damage the fabric!)...!

On Etsy

Could a coat possibly be any more fabulous than this? Why yes, actually. If you add Persian lamb to the sleeves:

www.1stdibs.com

And...I just went into cardiac arrest. I think we're done here.

On the Radar -- A New Vintage

a 70s dress on the left, a 50s circle skirt on the right

In lieu of the traditional trend post today, I wanted to highlight a fab photo shoot I did this week with two of my vintage-loving design students.  They illustrate (perfectly, might I add) how to wear vintage right now.  Both of them are stylish -- I admire the way they put together outfits, and most importantly, they get their style.  They know their aesthetic.  It's a rare thing, and something I tend to preach about sometimes.  You need to know your style before you design anything.  Now, I'm not saying people are limited to just their style.  I just feel that you need to have a solid foundation in what you like and don't like before you start trying to sell a client something.

left, an 80s shirt and 50s suit jacket; right, a 50s blouse and 40s jacket

I was going for an Anthropologie-meets-Etsy type look.  I asked them to bring their staples -- shoes, jeans, or anything else they can't live without from day to day.  Then I let them play with the racks of clothes, choosing what they wanted.  I love that they were fearless with their decade mixing, taking a 1950s Lilli Ann green and turquoise wool swing suit jacket and pairing it with a striped 1980s button up.  Or a 50s Pat McKay lacy blouse under a claret 1940s wool jacket.

left, 80s blouse and 50s jacket; right, a 60s cropped shirt and plaid jacket

They had a great time, and so did I.  I think the pictures turned out amazing! 

1950s Gigi Young dress

1970s dress

Items that are already available in the shop have links attached.  Be on the lookout for the other pieces -- they should be in our Etsy shop within this month!

left, 60s coat and dress; right, 60s dress with late 40s coat

left, 1970s dress; right, late 60s Neiman Marcus maxi dress

left, 60s Mr. Dino dress; right, 60s dress and coat; 60s umbrella