Its a question I get asked often, How can I be more Eco & Ethical in my approach to shopping without looking like a hemp adorned hippie? Well I have a serious inner hippie as most of you will know, but I like to think of it as more hippie chic, so I think I can advise here.
My answer darlings, is Vintage & Charity Shops, and yes I know most of you could think of nothing worse that trawling through rails at Charity shops, but the good news is, you don’t have too. Vintage and Pre-loved boutiques are on the rise and to me are a total god send. Savvy boutique owners have done all the hard work and eek out some serious gems, all for you.
You see the beauty of vintage clothing, is that it was made in a time when there was no such thing as Fast Fashion, clothing was made well, made to last and the result was high quality timeless pieces, made to be worn over and over again. When you buy Vintage, its an investment piece and the real beauty of it, its unique, no chance of you rocking up to a party dressed the same as every other lady there, no my little vintage vixen, your outfit is truly unique.
Ok so that advice is all well and good I hear you say, but where can I go to get these pieces, well fear not vixens, Ive done the hunting for you. An amazing new Vintage & Pre Loved Boutique, The Humming Bird Rooms, has just opened its doors to us Cork ladies and its a mecca of dresses, hats, bags, shoes, jewels, coats and everything else in between. The owner, Maureen, who is literally the queen of Vintage has years of styling and sourcing under her belt so your guaranteed the very best in quality and price.
I teamed up with a super crew to show you my latest Re-worked vintage pieces and styled them with some amazing pieces from The Humming Bird Rooms. But, before I go any further, I must quickly tell you about the crew for this shoot..
What a gang, from the get go we had a laugh! I had never worked with any of the crew before so was a little nervous as they were coming to my house! Eek, a quick clean and a few nibbles and I was ready to rock! I had been in contact with Rodger from Leeside through a Lens via Facebook and he had his dream team all set and ready to shoot within hours, seriously this guy is a dream to work with, nothing is a problem and just seems so content in what he does, its a pleasure to see him at work. Rodger had lined up the lovely Ms Wexford, Caitriona as a model, and wow, what a model she was, a stunning natural red head with striking features, she was perfect for the shoot. Our chief MUA on the day, was Sarah from Class & Contour , a mum of 2, weight lifter, sports nutritionist as well as a MUA, seriously I don’t know how she does it all, Im in awe! A quick cuppa, natter and that was it, we set off to a few random locations and well I think you,ll agree the results were pretty awesome.
Pre-Loved Fedora, Vintage Faux Fur and Vintage Bag all from the Humming Bird Rooms, Liberty Street, Cork
One of a kind Re-worked vintage tea dress from Wear we Wander and available at Devilish Designs By Gina, English Market, Cork
Re-worked Navy Pleated Dress from Wear we Wander @ Devilish Designs By Gina, Handbag and Hat from The Humming Bird Rooms.
Huge thanks to everyone for all their help in making this happen.
Till next time, love & light
Bon x