CHATHAM SALUTE TO THE 40's 2016

I've wanted to visit the Chatham Dockyard for many years so, on Saturday 17th September, it was no hardship to get out of bed at 5am(!) to prepare to drive down there.  I'd excitedly sorted my outfit the day before - Heyday! Mary dress, Dragonfly Vintage swagger jacket, Dainty Touches hat, Virtue To Victory snood, vintage handbag and basket, and two pairs of shoes to accommodate my bad foot - one pair from Canama and a pair of hotter Sandy shoes in olive and flint.

Bob was sporting trousers by House of Stanley, shirt from The Original Collarless Shirt Company, shoes by Clarks, hand knitted slipover by Hilda's House, coat from Chaps of Distinction.  He often feels a bit self-conscious about his 1940's clothes, but I'm slowly bringing him round!

Our friends, Graham and Sam were similarly attired with Graham sporting both a slipover, jumper and trousers by House of Stanley.  Samantha braved the blustery day in a sleeveless dress but a welcome hand-knitted cardigan by Hilda's House.  Sadly, I was so busy looking about that I never took a picture of Samantha who even managed to crawl the entire length of the submarine in her dress!  I'd never have managed the small doorways so took the chance to relax with a welcome cuppa from the NAAFI.

I have absolutely no idea what Graham and Bob were laughing about - perhaps it's best to keep that as a mystery!



It was lovely to finally catch up with Lee Sinatra who administers the 1940's World page on Facebook and his lovely lady, Sandra.  Lee and I have been conversing for a while so it was great to finally meet up with them both.

 Photograph courtesy of Lee Sinatra and Sandra

Photograph courtesy of Lee Sinatra and Sandra

 

All four of us particularly like the tour of The Ropery which is the longest building in Europe.  The guides were friendly and informative, and we learnt that one side of The Ropery features in Sherlock Holmes films, and the other side features in one of my favourite programmes Call The Midwife.

There were bargains to be purchased at the various stalls, and Bob bought two lovely ties from our friend, Roy Courtneydeal, at his stall Chaps of Distinction.  It was lovely to see Roy and also Karen Back who is a very talented milliner and has great hats at The Heritage Milliner.

Despite the blustery day, we had a wonderful time and hope to return again at some stage.

Now to get ready for Life On The Holme Front followed by the Pickering 1940's Weekend and catching up with more friends.

Saturday 20th and Sunday 21st August 2016 saw Bob and I at Ramsey 1940's Weekend.  Unlike me, Bob doesn't feel comfortable in his "vintage regalia" as he sometimes calls it but, this weekend, he was happy to join in and, after buying a lovely green cap at one of the stalls, he was looking forward to being an Honorary Girl and join the Meet-Up with Jill, Claire, Esther, Anita and Cheryl to partake of baked goodies provided by Jill and Claire.  My cooking is atrocious and I wouldn't inflict it on anyone so my contribution was hand-made lavender bags for everyone.

Anita, Bob and Jill



Cheryl was dancing in the display with the C&BLE dancers and we took audience participation to the next level with our whoops of joy and hand waiving.  Cheryl then treated us to a happy dance (above) when she spotted the Beryl Ware that Claire had found for her.

Claire and Esther hit the dance floor with style - leaving Bob to look after the cakes!

 

 

The weather was fairly kind, although the majority of ladies (myself included) had to hang onto our hats in the strong breeze, and there were more than a few trilby hats soaring through the air swiftly followed by the owners attempting to retrieve them.

 

 

It was lovely, too, to catch up briefly with Jill and the ladies at The Hairaid Shelter where I was enticed to join in the fashion show the following day on the understanding that I wore one of my 1940's jumpers that I sell on my Hilda's House Facebook page.  Jill is not a woman to say "No" to either.

 

 

Sunday saw us return to Ramsey, partake in Spam sandwiches in the NAAFI, catch up with Jill and Neil again and my appearance in the fashion show.

 

Thanks to the unknown person who took this picture.  I was modelling trousers by Heyday!, shoes by Canama Dance Supplies, hand-knitted jumper by Hilda's House, blouse, coat and handbag vintage, and hat by Dainty Touches 

Photo courtesy of Jill Merlot Palmer

 

 

Another great weekend with good friends.

 





BASTON IN THE BLITZ - 6th & 7th August 2016

The last couple of years Bob and I have been unable to make it to Baston In The Blitz but this year we kept the weekend clear especially and are so glad we did!  Baston is a small village only about 10 miles from our house so we tootled along on Saturday 6th, were directed to the Disabled Parking which was easy to find, paid our £16 for two weekend passes and walked right into the 1940's.

The weather was very kind but, after my stint of heat exhaustion, I was taking no chances so was sporting my parasol that Bob bought me on our honeymoon in Gozo 11 years ago, a pocket fan and spare batteries, and cooling spray.  My canvas tote bag proved a good addition just to carry my cooling items!

The first people we met were the lovely Jill Merlot Palmer (no relation!) and her partner, Neil Mitcham.  Jill was toting a large basket filled with baked goodies so, instantly, she was Bob's best friend.  Believe me, Jill's sausage rolls and bread pudding are amazing.

The weather was perfect to wear items from Heyday!  On Saturday I wore my red deco Mary dress and shoes from Canama Dance Supplies.  My navy bag was a charity shop purchase a few years ago.

On Sunday it was the turn of my Heyday! swing trousers and Martha Blouse in the Rambling Rose fabric, and again my white sandals from Canama Dance Supplies.  This time I took along a vintage leather handbag that I bought from my friend, Kate, at her stall a couple of years ago at Life on the Holme Front.  It was time to give my lovely beige snood from Virtue To Victory an airing too; perfect for keeping my neck cool.

The weather was perfect for the fly past but, as I've tended to do since Dad died in 2014, (he was ground crew on Lancaster Bombers), I shed a few tears when the Lancaster flew over so apologies for the bad pictures!

Baston had lots of trade stands and it was good to see my Facebook friends, Julie Topley of Knits and Kitsch, Karen Back of The Heritage Milliner, and Vivian.  We made some new friends (and a few purchases!) from two lovely ladies at Vintage59.

Anita and her husband, Keith, were friends who we kept bumping into, and their advice on my hat purchase from The Heritage Milliner was very welcome.

The whole weekend was a success.  Weather was perfect, the company of good friends, a welcome bar for cooling drinks, and a lovely surface to walk on.  A few more chairs would be useful but there are certainly no complaints from me.  We are already making plans to return in 2017.

HABERDASHERY IN FELIXSTOWE

My husband and I joined some family members and friends on Saturday in Ipswich to celebrate at a joint 70th birthday party.  The party was for my cousin, Alan, and his wife, Roz, and was arranged in secret by their sons Nathan, Duncan and Ben - the surprise on their faces was priceless and the party was a great success.

Thanks must go to Jim and Pat Baxter for stepping into the breach when the first taxi we ordered never arrived, and then six other firms mysteriously had "no cars available" when they realised the party venue was on the site of an old hospital and many of the abandoned buildings are still standing!  It was quite spooky waiting outside in the dark, even with the noise of the wedding reception in another room at the venue, so we were glad to return to the party.

Everyone loved the wonderful birthday cake which, for quite a while, we all thought was a bouquet of flowers!  It was a shame to dissect it but the cupcakes were delicious!

Yesterday, in an attempt to blow away our hangovers, I drove the short distance from Ipswich to Felixstowe for what turned out to be a bracing walk along the sea front!  That did the job perfectly!  We first walked around the town, bought a couple of books and a lovely brass jug from a selection of charity shops, and then found a parking space on the sea front close to the Sunday market.  The market was smaller than our last visit five years ago but I was happy to see that the book stall I love was still there and, joy of joys, a new haberdashery shop called Botchett and Leggitt.  I could easily have spent a small fortune but restrained myself to just three purchases - some ready-made foam covers for coat hangers which I'll use with my Cath Kidston Stanley fabric, and two lovely vintage wool holders.

Vintage wool holders are wonderful and the salmon pink one has a lovey ornate pattern on the lid which, unfortunately, doesn't photograph well.  As I knit often from 500 gram cones, Bob bought me this heavy kitchen roll holder which does the job perfectly.

They say that small is beautiful and Botchett and Leggitt's two units definitely are!  Dot, the lovely little dog who hides under the chair, makes a delightful watchdog too.  Pop in if you are ever in Felixstowe - you can find them at Mannings' Market just behind the amusement arcade.  They have a website www.botchettandleggitt.com and are a Facebook page too www.facebook.com/BotchettAndLeggitt

HOUSE OF STANLEY

My Dad, Stan, came from a family of tailors in Jamaica and his services were often called on in the RAF during World War 2 to alter uniforms etc.  When I visited the house where my Dad was born and grew up, I was fascinated by 4 grooves in the wooden veranda floor.  Dad explained that they were caused by the tredle sewing machines that his parents used, but that Gran's was deeper than Grandad's as she used to rock children to sleep across her lap while she was sewing - multi-tasking at it's best!

Sadly, there are no photographs of Grandad Edwin, but the photograph above is of Grandma Suzette taken in Jamaica during the 1940's.  She brought up 6 children alone, Ashley, Alvern, Stan, Beryl, Ivy and Mavis following the death of Grandad at a very early age.

Dad taught me to sew but my skills are still very basic and, all too often, projects are discarded and I return to my knitting.  I recall him visiting my secondary school to see the sewing teacher - she had cut out a gingham school dress for me but had done it so badly that none of the checks matched up!  In his quiet but firm voice, Dad showed her how to do it and she asked him to cut out 4 more while he was there!  He was even invited into the Staff Room for a cup of tea!

My House of Stanley page on Facebook is obviously named after Dad but features hand knitted garments from 1940 patterns for men.  Garments for boys will hopefully be added in time.

One of my customers, Ben, found a wonderful knitting pattern for me which I knitted up for him and he has kindly allowed me to use his photograph wearing the finished garment.  I found two perfect buttons in Dad's stash that I have inherited.  I have no idea how old they are but was really pleased that the colour matched so well.  The wool was a lovely soft Merino blend from http://www.deramores.com/.

In one of my major shredding sessions for my day job as a legal PA, I accidentally shredded the pattern that Ben sent me but did manage to knit another from my handwritten notes and the picture of that jumper, in the same colour as Ben's, can be seen on www.facebook.com/HouseofStanley.

THE HILDA JUMPER

In 1988 I knitted my first vintage jumper from a pattern Mum had written on scraps of paper from which she knitted her own in the 1940's.  Later that year I found the original pattern in a book in the library and, although I always called my jumper "The Hilda Jumper" for obvious reasons, I was delighted to learn that the original pattern was called "Jersey With A Soft Bow".

This jumper is still going strong after all these years and, amazingly, still fits me - the joys of feather and fan stitch!  I wore it to the first 1940's event that my husband, Bob, and I went to in 2008 and it drew the attention of a re-enactor.  That lady, whose name I never took, begged me to start a website but, as each item can take four week or more to knit, depending on work and family commitments, it would take years to build a stock so I began my Hilda's House Facebook page a few years later.

I knitted a black short sleeved version which I donated to a fundraising day for Help For Heroes at Fox Vintage in Buckingham.

I hope to find time to knit a short sleeved version for myself but the biggest decision is what colour!

A Hilda Jumper is also now in Australia which would please my Mum enormously as she always wanted to visit that country.  My lovely customer there, Linda, has kindly agreed that I may share her picture.  Thank you Linda.

ABOUT STAN & HILDA'S HOUSE

Hello and welcome to Stan & Hilda's House.

This blog is dedicated to my never-ending journey into the vintage world, particularly the 1940's, which is an era I love because of the clothes and the never-give-up attitude of the people who lived in that era.  The main inspiration are my late parents, Stan and Hilda who met during World War 2, married on 8th April 1947 by special licence as Dad was due to return to Jamaica to be demobbed from the RAF.  They were the first inter-racial marriage in our home town and were married for 62 years before Mum's death in 2009.  Dad joined her in 2014 and they are sadly missed, but both left a legacy of memories, my brother's love of the blues, and my love of knitting and sewing.

My Dad, Stan, came from a family of tailors in Jamaica and Mum was one of a large family of farming stock.  My Grandfather and Grandmother are in the wedding photograph above.  Gran taught all her daughters to knit, and Mum passed that talent onto me.  It was a given that I should name my Facebook business page after her to showcase my hand knits - Hilda's House with ladies and girls clothing - and I have a growing customer list.  My Facebook page for mens' and boys' hand knits was started last year and is called House of Stanley.

www.facebook.com/HouseofStanley
www.facebook.com/HildasHouse