Vintage 70s White Angora

Posted September 6, 2013 by finnfemme & filed under Fashion, Vintage.

Angora sweaters are timeless. Fall is rapidly approaching, and it leads me to think I should probably get the stack of vintage white angora sweaters ready to sell. I’ve been collecting them over the summer, and the summer heat just doesn’t put me in the mood for washing angora. There is something about pure white angora that is so beguiling. Maybe it’s because it’s the natural color of most angora rabbits and it just seems so fresh and clean. The soft fluffiness of angora is just so wonderful – it truly is an amazing fiber!

The pic above is from a 1973 ad for Revlon’s Natural Wonder ‘Super Nails’ nail enamel. While the ad features the model’s very long red-polished nails (shade: Fire-Engine), they are offset by everything else being white. White typewriter, carpet, curtains, necklace, pants, pencil, ring, blouse, and the pièce de résistance…a very fluffy furry white angora sweater! It just reminded me that angora is classic and never really goes out of style.

~Marilyn

Class of 1973 Flashback!

Posted September 3, 2013 by finnfemme & filed under Daily Life, Fashion, Vintage.

I graduated from high school in 1973, which means my 40th high school reunion is right around the corner (next week, actually). I’ve always felt that 1973 was right in between the eras of hippie and disco, but it did have its own vibe to it. I recently grabbed a bunch of Seventeen magazines from 1973 that were still stored at my mom’s house, and took a trip down the beauty and fashion memory lane of my graduation year:

This montage of fashions best depicts what we wore in 1973. The pantsuit, the smock top, the maxi dress, the halter dress, cropped jacket and wide-legged pants, and the pinafore. I remember lots and lots of polyester!

There were still elements left over from the hippie ’60s that we embraced. Tie-dying with Rit Dye was one of them.

Tanning was still big. I can remember laying out all summer long in a bikini to get that elusive “perfect” tan.

Lip Gloss was huge! Yardley’s Pot o’ Gloss was a favorite.

1973 was all about Chicago (the band).

We wore blue (and green and violet) eyeshadow from Maybelline. Great Lash mascara too!

Scents took an earthier, muskier tone. “Skin” from Bonne Bell had fragrances of Ambergris, Civet, and Musk.

We all had to take Home Ec, and learn to sew. There was a lot of sewing going on in the ’70s. My mom, who was an excellent seamstress, sewed most of my wardrobe. I never took to sewing though, it proved to be very frustrating for me.

I had long hair in 1973 and so did most other girls. Long hair has remained a constant for most of my life. I cut it all off and then grow it long again!

Sunkist Lemons wanted us to use their lemons on our hair. It was supposed to be used as a rinse to get rid of “nasty soap film and excess oiliness”. I think I used it once or twice, but it’s pretty messy.

Johnson and Johnson pushed us to use their baby products. Baby Powder, Baby Shampoo, and Baby Oil were big. I thought it was all pretty ridiculous and never used any of it. Baby products are for babies!

Tampax. Where would we have been without it? Especially when your period always seemed to happen when doing something fun and adventurous.

Last but not least, pantyhose! Especially L’eggs pantyhose – that egg shaped container always seemed so cool. When we weren’t wearing knee socks, we were wearing pantyhose.

Thanks for walking with me down 1973 memory lane! ~Marilyn

A New Finnfemme Blog Design!

Posted August 28, 2013 by finnfemme & filed under Daily Life, Fashion.

I have a fresh new blog design, which I am really happy about! I love the colors. It seemed like a good time to change, with Autumn in the air, fashion week coming up, and going back to school in progress. Fall has always inspired more change in me than any other season. I also cut my long hair into a medium-length bob. And yes I cut it myself (I am fearless with the scissors)! New blog, new hair…it feels good!

~Marilyn

September Issues!

Posted August 22, 2013 by finnfemme & filed under Daily Life, Fashion, Vintage.

I’ve received the September 2013 issues of Vogue (902 pages), W (456 pages), and Harper’s Bazaar (600 pages) in the mail. Still waiting on Elle though! This is me walking in from the mailbox holding Vogue and W in all my suburban work-at-home glory. 🙂

It’s been an annual ritual, since I was thirteen or so, to await the mailbox arrival of fashion magazine September issues in late August. I started my obsession with fashion magazines in the late ’60s with Seventeen, continued in the ’70s with Mademoiselle and Glamour, then in the ’80s and beyond with Vogue, Elle, W, and Harper’s Bazaar. I had a brief time-out from fashion magazines in the ’90s, when I was immersed in motherhood and wearing mom jeans and spit up, but I digress…

There is nothing quite like the experience of getting that thick heavy mass of glossy paper in the mailbox. Oh, the internet is great for looking at fashion photos, but holding all that heft in your hands and paging through all that glorious sartorial autumn beauty is a lot more satisfying. It seems as though magazines are really pushing their online editions. I spend an inordinate time on the internet as it is, but I really hope that fashion magazines continue the long-time tradition of a print edition. I like the contrast of looking at actual print on paper vs. on a screen.

Meanwhile, I am making my way through the magazines. I am done looking through Harper’s Bazaar and will now start on the 902 pages of Vogue. Yes, I realize that it’s all about consumerism and unattainable beauty -blah blah, blah – but I don’t care. I love it!

~Marilyn

Vintage 80s Chanel Jewelry: Pile It On!

Posted August 10, 2013 by finnfemme & filed under Fashion, Vintage.

This is a great pic from the June 1987 issue of Vogue magazine. It shows model Carey Lowell (who is now married to Richard Gere), piled with masses of Chanel jewelry. Wearing a simple Gap white shirt and denim skirt, she is simply loaded down with gold cuff bracelets, bangle bracelets, charm bracelets, chain and medallion belts, long chain and pearl necklaces, a medallion necklace, and long dangle earrings. And she had the oh-so-current 2013 crop haircut in 1987!

What’s funny is that I would have totally worn this much jewelry in 1987. Along with a wristwatch, various hair clips and bows, and diamond engagement ring. It wouldn’t have seemed out of place or odd because everyone wore tons of jewelry then. Along with shoulder pads. You had to wear shoulder pads in the ’80s — I think it was the law. 😀

Over the years I’ve collected several pieces of vintage Chanel jewelry, which I covet. Okay, it goes without saying – being the Chanel freak I am – that I covet and collect anything vintage Chanel, but the jewelry is especially cool.

These days I wear little to no jewelry, which just goes to show you how much personal style changes. I like a more spare look, and it just gets in the way. If I wear jewelry it’s usually one piece at a time – bracelet, necklace, or earrings worn separately. If I wore this much Chanel jewelry at a time I would look and feel quite conspicuous, and pretty ridiculous!

“Fashion fades, only style remains the same.” – Coco Chanel

~Marilyn

Brewing Iced Tea in the Refrigerator – Simple!

Posted July 28, 2013 by finnfemme & filed under Daily Life, Frugal Living.

Over the past decade or so, I have really become a fan of iced tea. I’m not one for hot tea – much prefer coffee – but a cool glass of tea really hits the spot. I’d been buying those instant iced tea mixes, usually mixed with tons of sugar and various dubious-sounding chemicals. Then I progressed to buying it already made, in huge plastic gallon jugs. It was ridiculous to have to lug all that tea around. Plus, it was expensive.

So this spring I started making sun tea in a one gallon glass container. I set it outside in the sun for several hours and it seemed to brew quite well. However, after further research and several helpful comments, I decided that the sun tea method probably wasn’t the best way to make it. Seems that bacteria can grow in the tea when it is out in the sun. Soooooo I decided to try the cold tea brewing method, a la Refrigerator Tea!

Refrigerator Tea is super simple and easy to make: I use my same one gallon glass container, fill it with cold water, add six teabags, cover, and leave in the refrigerator for 8 to 12 hours. Then remove the teabags and enjoy!

I have gotten used to drinking cold tea without any sweetener added. It takes so crisp and tangy! Plus, it has no calories and is completely natural (and it’s cheap 😀 ). I especially like drinking it with meals – it seems to add a good balance and tastes better than plain water. So sit back and pour a cold one!

~Marilyn

“Iced tea is too pure and natural a creation not to have been invented as soon as tea, ice, and hot weather crossed paths.” ~John Egerton