Barbara Hulanicki and The Biba Girls

I feel a fashion-metamorphosis coming over me lately. Does that happen to you from time-to-time? It seems that roughly every two years, I start getting bored and restless with my personal aesthetic [and with my closet, to be frank]. I find myself wanting to shed my skin like a chameleon and find a new persona to inhabit. Don't get me wrong, it isn't drastic [except to me] but it is very rejuvenating! For the past few years, I have been going through a very casual/minimal/80's phase of dressing. I've enjoyed the ease and comfort of this style, but recently I have found myself yearning for some romance, some bohemian frivolity, some eccentricity in my wardrobe.

News of the upcoming Biba documentary could not have come at a more opportune moment! If you haven't seen the preview yet, you really must check it out. It will make you want to take a time-machine back to the 60's, and visit the original Biba store in London -- land of the Biba Girls, with their soft curls, big floppy hats, granny dresses, and 30's-inspired fashion...

Everyone from Twiggy to the gorgeous girlfriends of rock stars shopped at Biba. The look was decadent and dark, but with a playful edge -- deep, rich colors intermingled with chunky platforms, long lashes, and bright makeup. The Biba look consisted of what Hulanicki called "Auntie Colours" - Hulanicki described them as ‘look[ing] like a funeral.’ These colours were blackish mulberries, blueberries, rusts and plums.

Hulanicki herself was a marketing genius, far ahead of her time in her conception of the shopping experience: the store was marketed to a younger generation of women, and unlike the other stuffy, formal department stores in London, Biba encouraged women to experiment in the shop with makeup and to try on and play with clothing combinations.

The Biba logo also played a crucial part in Biba’s success; the logo was gold and black which reflected the growing taste in youth for art deco. The logo was designed by Antony Little. To create a look for Biba in the first store, Little painted the Biba sign above the shop and blacked out all the windows. The blacked out windows didn’t allow the store’s interior to receive any sunlight which was vital for the Biba’s art nouveau atmosphere [wikipedia].

I'm officially smitten with the Biba look, and look forward to incorporating more of the rock-n-roll romantic vibe into my wardrobe. Aren't the Biba girls just too gorgeous for words???

If you love vintage Biba as much as me, you should also check out Hulanicki's website, chock full of old photos and ads for the store in its heyday [as well as some of Hulanicki's new looks!]

New Vintage Postcards, Bloomsday...and an Award!

Please pardon the randomness of this post, but I just have so much to say today! First of all, Happy Bloomsday!! If you're a lover of modern literature or just love James Joyce, then you should be celebrating today by reading the naughty parts of Ulysses with friends and perhaps taking a few sips from your flask in his honor [look how cute Marilyn is reading Joyce on the playground!]. Dammit! I don't have a flask. That will need to be remedied. Until then...

Speaking of naughty, I have purchased some new vintage postcards I wanted to share. I am completely enamored by these images of women smoking, and for no other reason than they seem naughty...

This beautiful 1920's Parisian lady is from Dog Day Afternoon:

And this one from Fike's Funtiques Too...I love the way the smoke from the cigarette is actually forming the image of the woman:

I also recently recived these two splendid prints from the very talented Sam from Matou en Peluche, who creates such elegant, quirky girls!

Sam also recently awarded me with the "Your Blog Makes Me Smile" award. I am so honored!! You should definitely check out her store and her gorgeous, inspirational blog.

And, drum roll please, here are my 10 picks for blogs that make me smile:

1. Progress on the Prairie -- a local blog, a great friend, and witty, clever, political commentary !

2. Child of the Moon -- the most amazing collection of vintage fashion and music photos.

3. Chintz of Darkness -- quite possibly the most dramatic design aesthetic ever!

4. Oh, Mishka! -- always inspirational art and decor ideas.

5. Poetic Oneirism -- thoughful, exquisite poetry, art, and music.

6. They Don't Call Them Lovers in High School, Leland -- hypnotic and surrealistic juxtaposition of photographs.

7. Pandora -- a modern-day style icon and art lover extraordinaire!

8. Lost in a Spotless Mind -- her posts are always thoughtful and full of excellent fashion advice.

9. Sea of Shoes -- how can her shoe collection not make you smile??

10. The Cherry Blossom Girl -- sweet, wearable, romantic clothes and mesmerizing photography.

Cuurent Obsession: The Peasant Mini-Dress

I am completely in love with these peasant mini-dresses from French Connection. Now I just have to decide which I like the most...

New Items at A Single Charm Vintage This Week

Just a little taste of a few new items in my shop this week...

An adorable faux-fur cap, a sexy bandage dress, and a military-inspired vest, to name a few!

The Height of 1890's Decadence: Aubrey Beardsley, The Yellow Book, and the Fall of Oscar Wilde

Since I've had my nose in these gorgeous little collections for the past week or two [trying to properly balance my blogging with my library research...not easy], I thought I would share a bit about what I have been researching for my dissertation. I fell in love with the Yellow Book series a few years back when I learned it was the publication that brought artist Aubrey Beardsley much of his fame, as well as his controversial reputation. I am probably annoyingly transparent about my obsession with Beardsley, and the Yellow Book is like art-crack to me. And to add to the attraction, many of the writers featured in the Yellow Book have become some of my favorites: George Egerton, Henry James, George Gissing, Max Beerbohm, Charlotte Mew, Arthur Symons, and W.B. Yeats, to name a few.

Here is a bit about The infamous Yellow Book -- considered to be representative of the height of 1890's decadence in art and literature [all images are by Beardsley]:

According to Stanley Weintraub, "The color of The Yellow Book was an appropriate reflection of the 'Yellow Nineties," a decade in which Victorianism was giving way among the fashionable to Regency attitudes and French influences; For yellow was not only the decor of the notorious and dandified pre-Victorian Regency, but also of the allegedly wicked and decadent French novel" (Weintraub, 99).

The Victorian Web notes, "The first volume, published by the Bodley Head on 16 April 1894, was highly anticipated, and went through three printings to satisfy demand. The critics, however, vilified both the text and the artwork, especially Beardsley's. More biting than the straightforward criticism, though, were the parodies of Beardsley's work and the magazine in Punch, a British political/social comic weekly.


To put the critics in their place, Beardsley published in Volume III two drawings by him in differing styles under the names Phillip Brouqhton and Albert Foschter. The Saturday Review exemplified the general reaction by finding Beardsley's work "as freakish as ever," but found Broughton's "a drawing of merit," and Foschter's "a clever study." Once he had fooled enough critics, Beardsley admitted the hoax.

The Yellow Book was successful, despite the critics, until Oscar Wilde's arrest in April 1895. When Wilde (who openly despised the publication) was arrested, he was seen clutching a book with a yellow cover. It was assumed to be The Yellow Book, or at least was reported as such in the newspapers. Contributors such as William Watson demanded that Beardsley be fired as art editor because of his association with Wilde (he had illustrated Wilde's Salome the year before) and the Bodley Head's premises were set upon by a mob who broke every window. Under pressure, Lane sacked Beardsley and removed all traces of the artist -- but the back cover and the spine, which were overlooked -- from Volume V, then in the final stages of production.

Wilde was actually carrying a French novel with a yellow cover when he was arrested; but no doubt he was satisfied with the difficulties he caused to the magazine that denied him. The Yellow Book continued publication until 1897, its pages open to a wide vareity of writers and artists, particularly women and relative newcomers such as Arnold Bennett, Charlotte Mew, Maurice Baring, who would make their reputations in the coming decades. "

If you're interested further in the Yellow Book, many large universities and libraries carry copies in their archives. I also recently ran across a few copies on Ebay [which are going on my wish list!]