Being a Nanny

I am taking a break from the Vintage Necessities series, and am going to discuss my job as a nanny.

It is not easy being a vintage vixen and being a modern nanny. I work for a thoroughly modern family, with the children resorting to playing Minecraft on their iPod, or iPad, or whatever. I love them, the children are dears, their mother is sweet, and the other nannies (yes, there are a few of us) are two of my greatest friends.

I dress a little housewifey when I am at work. Classic cut skirts or high-waisted pants that are comfortable, with cardigans or sweaters. Every day I come in and everyone says, "You look nice," or "Are you sure you mind doing this dressed that way?" I almost feel as if I am overdressed, and come across as this:

Housework does not rule, but, it is my job. I do laundry, dishes, mopping, vacuuming, and general cleaning on top of making sure the children get their work done and are behaved. I love it! The hectic part, not necessarily the labor.

I feel like the work I do sort of leads me to want to dress like a housewife trapped in 1959. Now, I do not like that women had to be housewives in the 50's and 60's, but it is work that I find fulfilling. I almost feel this job has resulted in me dressing more nicely all the time. When I started the job I tried to dress down (I wore denim, which I had not done in about 2 and half years!), but the longer I had it, the nicer I began to dress.

This photo shows how I dressed when I started the job (it isn't sloppy, but it is not very chic. Also this picture is pretty old)

I grant, that I always dressed nicely, at least for the past four or five years, but I have learned how to dress comfortably and still look absolutely lovely. Wearing a skirt and crinoline while washing dishes makes me feel as if the work has more meaning. It makes me want to a better job at my job.

What I am trying to say with this post is, it doesn't matter if the job requires running around, scrubbing, and cleaning, you do not need to dress down, you can still do it looking chic. Others opinions do not matter when it comes to making your work feel meaningful to you.

Vintage Necessities: Casual Wear; High-waisted pants, Pullovers, and Cardigans

One way to always look chic while still being casual and comfortable is to pull on a pair of high waisted pants and pair it with a sweater. The pants come to thinnest part of you, and the sweater should be slim fitting so it skims over all your curves.

High Waisted pants:

There are two types that come to mind when I think of high waisted pants for a vintage look: Cigarette pants and tapered trousers. Cigarette pants are slim fitting, like skinny pants, that come up to your waist. Tapered trousers, for a vintage look, should come up to your waist. They have pleats at the waist, and on some shapes they are very flattering.

Cigarette pants:

The first person I think of when I think of cigarette pants is Audrey Hepburn:

Her pants, as you can see, come smoothy up to the waist and cinch it. They are cropped slightly. Not all cigarette pants need to be cropped, but a true 50's/60's look is cropped.

Cigarette pants can come in many patterns, not just black. Think of Betty Draper in pants.

Tapered Trousers:

The person that comes to mind for me for tapered trousers is Grace Kelly:

In High Society, from 1956, she wore this style of pant when casual.

This kind of trouser is typically full length, not cropped. For these pants, you would want to avoid loud patterns, because of the bulk it could cause at the waist. I think that these pants are well suited to women with slim hips, because it can provide curves at the hip, giving a more vintage figure.

These pants are more loose, and possibly more comfortable, than cigarette pants. They are great for days you are feeling lazy, but still want to look vintage fabulous.

Sweater Shirts:

Sweater shirts, as I define them, are knit tops. Pullover sweaters and cardigans function great as shirts, especially when going for a vintage look.

Pullovers:

Pullovers are knit tops that you pullover. They can be a thick turtleneck that you would wear in the winter, they can be a pullover sweater vest, and a thin-knit boat neck or v-neck.

The climate I live in does not work well with thick pullovers, so I opt for thin-knit sweaters that can be layered. Sweaters stretch, too, so if you want to to you can get one that is slightly small so it will skim over your curves and be very flattering. Also, slim fitting sweaters look great with a bullet bra.

Here is Joan with a slim fitting pullover. She looks just too sexy for words.

Cardigans:

Cardigans can function as shirts or jackets. Buttoned up all the way, embellished with a brooch, and with a long necklace draped on top, you will look so vintage. Or, if the cardigan has beading, you do not need to add anything at all!

One thing that came into fashion in the late 50's and through the 60's was having the buttons in the back. This something that I go for all the time. When you do this, the collar in the front is high, providing a canvas for jewelry. The look works really well with low cut v-neck sweaters.

This isn't a vintage picture, but you get the idea.

Cardigans, for the best vintage look, should come to the waist, or if slim fitting, come just below, as long as the waist is defined.

I hope this helps some. As soon as I can find someone to help me take pictures, I will do a post on everything that I bought on my trip. Look forward to that!

Vintage Necessities: Casual wear, The Shirt Dress and Circle Skirt

Most of the vintage necessities that I am posting about are the necessities for 50's and 60's vintage wear. The undergarments are universal, but now that we progress outergarments, I am staying withing this era, since it is the time I am most comfortable with.

The shirt Dress:

Every era has had a shirt dress. Well, most. The shirt dress, or shirt waist dress, is a dress with a shirt style at the top.

The dress I am wearing here is a shirt waist dress:

This dress was my grandmother's from the 60's. You can see the top looks like a blouse.

This style of dress is casual, comfortable, and always beautiful. It is a complete outfit. Some have a straight skirt, and some have a full skirt. If you have ever watched Mad Men, you know this is Betty's go-to outfit for the first few seasons.

Here are a couple examples of different styles of shirt dress patterns. The full skirt is well suited to a crinoline, as the crinoline will provide that poofy look.

The Circle Skirt:

The circle skirt is just that: a circular skirt. The fabric is cut in a circle, the waist cut out, a zipper put in, and voila! A circle skirt.

A circle skirt is the same type of skirt that is on the full-skirted shirt dresses. However, the most well known circle skirt is the poodle skirt.

Did people wear these? Absolutely. Did women wear them? Almost certainly not. The poodle skirt is pretty much just a teenage thing.

The circle skirt is not a teenage thing, though. It is a classic, go to skirt for the busy housewife. Circle skirts just fall into place, and with a crinoline it can transform into a dress suited for a night out.

This style of skirt is the perfect casual skirt. Not only is is convenient, it is very comfortable. It flows, is breezy, and is not too tight. It is, lastly, incredibly flattering. It makes the waist look tiny! Paired with a blouse, cardigan, or pullover it makes the perfect casual outfit.

Vintage Necessities: Tertiary Undergarments; Stockings, Slips, and Crinolines

Two days ago I discussed girdles; yesterday I discussed bras and underpants. Today we are going to go to the last layer of undergarments: Stockings, slips and crinolines. I am discussing them in order of dressing, first to last

 

Stockings:

There are three different types of stockings that can be vintage style: garter stockings, thigh-highs, and panty-hose.

 

Thigh-Highs:

Thigh highs typically have elastic or rubber at the top. This keeps them up. On top of the elastic is lace to add a bit of sex appeal and femininity.

This style of stocking is not expressly vintage, but it can give a vintage feel to lingerie. You need to make sure you buy a good brand, though, because some have too much stretch in the actually stocking, which will cause pull and they won't stay up. And, when in doubt, go a size down. Since all that is holding the stocking up is rubber grippers, you do not want to risk them falling just because they are slightly too big. Haynes silk reflections are a really great brand that I go for, and have a variety of colors.

 

Panty-hose:

Panty-hose have been around for a while. They gained popularity in the late sixties, because they eliminated the need for garters and girdles. Both legs were connected by a "control top" which acted as the girdle and the garter.

They became popular because hemlines got shorter. The shorter the skirt the more likely to expose some bare leg at the top, between the garter and the girdle.

This is a package of panty-hose, and you can see the model is wearing a short skirt. This look is a bit later vintage, but it is still vintage. Unfortunately, it is probably the least attractive of the three.

 

 Garter Stockings:

Garter stockings are the quintessential vintage stocking. They come up to the thigh, and they are held up by garters. They are often referred to as nylons. These are the stockings that have seams, though not all do. When you see seamed stockings in old pictures, the women are wearing garter stockings.

These are the ones I wear most. Garter stockings, I mean. Berkshire is a great brand for garter stockings. They have them with and without seams. Seams are 40's, and they faded through the 50's and 60's, which is my nice, so I opt to not wear them. I own several pairs, in case any run, but so far they are all standing up to the wear nicely.

Slips:

There are two types of slips that I will discuss: full slips and skirt or half slips. Full slips cover the whole body, and are similar to vintage nightgowns, only they are more slim fitting. Skirt slips are simply the skirt part.

Slips act as lining for dresses, and were vital in the 50's and 60's (and before) because most dresses were not lined. Wearing slips prolonged the number of times a dress could be worn before washing, and it also protected the wearer from unintentional damage.

Full slips:

Full slips, as I said above, are a dress that lines the inside of clothing. These were worn with dresses. They come in a variety of colors, but almost all of them have lace detailing. In a bind, women would wear them as nightgowns, but only if they were desperate.

Vintage slips are the best option when buying full slips. They are cut slimmer, and meant to shape to a woman's body, whereas modern ones are more straight cut and bulky. I don't have a personal preference for where to buy these, but Etsy has several nice ones, and most vintage stores carry them. You could even try thrift stores.

Skirt or Half slips:

Half slips are skirts that act as a lining. These were typically worn under skirts, and some dresses. If the dress had a sturdier top then the skirt slip would be the way to go.

These come down to about the knee, and can be plain or have many embellishments:

This one is relatively plain with just a little lace trim; it would be perfect under a nice spring skirt.

It is a little hard to see, but this one has lace and flower embroidery. This would probably be the slip that a woman would wear under something for a nice occasion.

Crinolines:

Crinolines are wonderful. They are also called petticoats. These are what give skirts and dresses that classic 50's feel. Betty Draper/Francis from Mad Men wears them constantly in the first three seasons. They are layers of tulle that create a pouf:

This is a rather fancy one, most would look more like:

They come in many, many colors. You could take your pick and match it to your dress. If you are wearing a pale blue dress, you could wear the one above or a white one. I like a little contrast, and wear a slightly different color with my dresses.

You want a crinoline that is about the same length as your dress or skirt. If they are too long they will hang out, and that is not attractive. If they are too short, the skirt will hang flat where the crinoline ends. These are best under circle skirts, because those allow the most room. One last tip for crinolines: you can layer them on top of each other to create a fuller skirt.

I hope this was helpful! This is the last installment of undergarments. There are going to be more Vintage Necessities posts in the future, so look out!

Vintage Necessities: Primary Undergarments, Bras and Panties

Yesterday I discussed the necessary vintage items: secondary undergarments, the girdle and garter. Today we go down a level and discuss the first thing you need to put on before getting dressed as a full fledged vintage vixen.

Underpants:

There are many different types of underwear, but I always felt the most vintage style is a silk high-waisted brief.

This is a slightly shorts shape, but you get the idea.

I think the real purpose of the high waist is to prevent lines. Skirts and pants came up to the natural waist, and dresses were cinched at the waist. When the panties came up higher, there was no line. Even girdles and slips fit at the waist. It makes life easier for everything to fit there.

The underwear that I normally buy is Haynes silk briefs. They have a lace band, and come in a variety of colors. I think it is best to have neutral colors (white, black, nude) along with some fun ones (pink, blue). Though, for a real 50's feel, I would stick with pastels.

Bras:

There are so many different types of vintage style bras: bullet, longline, strapless. Each bra was meant for a specific style of dress.

Bullet bra:

The bullet bra. That is the standard vintage bra shape. The bullet bra is pictured above in that ad. Underneath a pullover, or a cardigan, the shape is very distinctive:

I love old Maidenform ads! The bullet bra is what gives that pointy shape underneath clothing. I would wear this under late 50's shirt dresses, pullover sweaters, and other form fitting tops.

Longline bra:

The longline bra can come down to the waist, or can come down just a couple inches below the wire. This is my preferred bra, especially the one by Rago (as you can tell I am just obsessed with their brand!). Their bra provides the bullet shape:

This is the full-length one, but I typically get the 3/4 length because I am so short waisted:

These bras are best for pairing with a pencil skirt that comes up to the waist. I say this, because sometimes there is a little bulge just above the waistline, and this shape bra will help smooth it out. Really, under any form-fitting, super-tight shirt/skirt combo this bra is best.

Strapless:

Strapless bras, if they are the right shape, can provide an ideal vintage lingerie feel. There are longline strapless bras, which I prefer, because they offer more support. I am rather large busted so I need all the support I can get!

The over and underwire of this bra helps maintain the slightly bullet shape. Also, it will help with support. I will not lie though, this is not the most comfortable for me.

One more perk about the longline, is that it works as a waist cincher. It will pull in your waist a little bit to help maintain that vintage shape.

Some of these bras have very low backs, and they are perfect underneath low-backed evening dresses. They are also great under strapless evening dresses. The vintage style (especially in the early-mid 60's. Elila has some pretty good ones.

Of course the strapless bra is perfect under dresses that do not have thick straps, or straps at all.

I hope that this was helpful. Tomorrow we will go two layers up, and discuss slips, crinolines and stockings.

Vintage Necessities: Secondary Undergarments, Girdles and Garters

In order to truly live a life that is taken out of the past you need to completely take on the part. An aspect of this is wearing vintage/vintage style everything, even things people don't see under your clothes. There are a few layers that women wore under their clothing, including underpants, bra, slip, girdle, garter, and stockings. The first layer is bra and underpants. Next comes the girdle and garter. Last is the slip, stocking, and crinoline layer. These I call the primary, secondary, and tertiary layers.

Over the next few posts I will discussing the different layers. Girdles are the most complex, I think, so I will start with those.

Girdle:

I have several girdles, open bottom, corselette, waist cincher, shorts, and even spanx. I am not a huge fan of spanx, because they do not give that vintage feel. They smooth, more than control.

I want to note, that I do not buy vintage girdles. I am wary of vintage underpants, girdles, and bras, because of the wear that they may have. Underwear gets worn out, and becomes less useful. A stretched out bra is useless, as I am sure most of you know. A stretched out girdle will not perform as advertised.

I am not a large woman, but am not by any means small either. I do not feel that I need the girdle to improve my figure, but I think that the girdle helps provide the perfect vintage feel to an outfit. If you buy the right ones, they are more like sexy lingerie than granny underwear. Spanx are not the sexy lingerie I am talking about. I wear girdles to make me feel sexy, not to make other people think I am sexy (that is an added bonus, though).

Another thing about girdles is that they give you that signature walk (think the Joan of Mad Men wiggle), especially the open bottom girdle.

Open bottom girdle:

There are many different types of girdles that were popular in the 50's and 60's, but I think none is more so than the open bottom girdle. If you ever watched Mad Men, you will recognize it, especially on Betty:

The best brand that I have found, that is pretty much identical to this (sorry you can't see the bottom) is by Rago. They have been around since the forties, and still make products in almost the exact same way.

You can get them in black, white, black and pink, and a few other options. They have light to extra firm control as well. Most of their girdles have garters, and on some of the designs they are removable.

Waist cincher/ nipper:

The waist cincher/ nipper is like the corset of girdles. The main difference is that it does not have lacing, it comes up under the bust, and it is not as constricting. They typically have elastic bands at the waist that pull it in, and they flatten out the stomach.

Corsets give you a figure like this:

See how the figure is pushed up at the top, and down at the bottom. This gives a pooch, I suppose you call it. The waist may be small, but the rest of the shape is not ideal.

The waist cincher does something more like this:

The waist cincher gives a smoother figure, with the waist gracefully curving in, and the rest of the figure being smoothed flat, not pushed up or down. One thing I found when buying these, is to go a size down. With Rago, the brand can run slightly big in this type of girdle, but just this one. There are a few different types of cinchers/nippers that the brand carries. If your waist is 28, I would go with the nipper that says 26, that way you will have your waist pulled in a little extra, and the over all fit will be better.

The waist nipper they have (821, pictured) does not have garters, but all the other cinchers do, though they are removable. I have a Rago 21 in black.

Corselette:

The corselette is a full body, open bottom girdle. That means it has an included bra. I prefer this type, because it makes my life so much easier when dressing to just pull this on.

This ad features many types of girdles, but the one the model is wearing is the type I am talking about. Once again, Rago has quite a good selection of open bottom girdles (as well as many full body girdles that are not open bottom).

These styles come in: black, white, pink/black, red/black, and mocha/black. I have white and black/red.

They have a low back, which is great for low back dresses. And, the bra part gives you a great vintage shape for under clothes (especially pull over sweaters).

Also, never underestimate how sexy this is. Not everyone has to see it for you to feel sexy. I find just wearing it makes me have a little more confidence, even when no one will see.

The garters are not removable on this.

That is all that I have for you. I am not going to discuss my shorts or spanx, because, well, I almost never wear those. The shorts are good for tight pants to prevent camel toe, but I almost never wear pants. I already discussed how I feel about spanx at the beginning.

All of my girdles have garters, so I do not wear them separately, and will not discuss them separately.

I hope this was useful, and that all of you can start exploring the world of girdles.

Jazz

Yesterday I said that I was going to be going to a jazz night that evening at a local pub in Fredericksburg. It turns out that the jazz was a lie.

You think of Ella Fitzgerald:
Everything Happens to Me, is in my current top songs by her (this video is mislabeled as Moonlight in Vermont, which is also a fantastic song). This is what I was expecting, or maybe something more upbeat, like Goody Goody.

You know what we got? A local rock band. They were pretty good, I will not lie, but they were not what I was expecting. In fact, I was so disappointed I could not make myself stay and listen to them for more than a half hour. I wish I could tell you the name, but, alas, I could not understand them.

I love jazz. It has something for every mood.

When I'm feeling cynical, I go for Goody, Goody, which I discovered when I was in the play You Can't Take it With You (I was Penny).
If I feel romantic, I go for Little Things Mean a Lot, by Kitty Kallen. Or even I Only Have Eyes for You, by Ella again.
I have a list of jazz, or at least jazz like songs from the 50's/60's Mad Men era, that I listen to over and over, here we go (also, Ella Fitzgerald is my favorite, as you will soon see):
These Foolish Things, Ella, or anyone
The Very thought of You, by Frank Sinatra and Ella
Bewitched, by Ella
Moi Je Joue, by Birgitte Bardot
Ciel de Lit, by Birgitte Bardot
Cry me a River, Ella
Someone to Watch Over Me, Ella
Embraceable You, Ella
Je ne Veut pas Travailler, Pink Martini
Fly me to the Moon, Frank Sinatra
The Way you Look Tonight, Frank Sinatra
It had to be You, Frank Sinatra
Come Fly with Me, Frank Sinatra
Stormy Weather, Ella
Ain't That a Kick in the Head, Dean Martin
At Last, Etta James
Let's Do it, Ella
My Special Angel, Bobby Vinton
I Can't Get Started, Ella
I can Dream Can't I, Toni Arden or The Andrews Sisters (both versions are great!)
We'll Meet Again, Vera Lynn
Break it to Me Gently, Brenda Lee
Je ne Regrette Rien, Edith Piaf
I'm Through with Love, Marylin Monroe
Let's Make Love, Marylin Monroe
Botch-a-me, Rosemary Clooney
Lollypops and Roses, Jack Jones
C'est Magnifique, Peggy Lee or Dean Martin
Goody Goody, Ella
Summertime, Ella
My Funny Valentine, Ella
Blue Moon, Ella
Dream a Little Dream of Me, Ella Fitzgerald with Louis Armstrong
Night and Day, Ella
Heart and Soul, Ella
The Man I Love, Ella
Sentimental Mood, Ella
Misty, Ella
All the Things you are, Ella
Manhattan, Ella
It Don't Mean a Thing, Ella
I only Have Eyes for You, Ella
Anything Goes, Ella
The Lady is a Tramp, Ella
Black Coffee, Ella
Isn't it Romantic, Ella
Let's Call the Whole Thing off, Ella Fitzgerald with Louis Armstrong
Love is Here to Stay, Ella
Everything Happens to me, Ella
Nice Work if You can Get it, Ella
They Can't take that Away from Me, Ella Fitzgerald with Louis Armstrong
Unforgettable, Nat King Cole
Smile, Nat King Cole
Moonlight in Vermont, Nat King Cole
Moonlight in Vermont, Ella
Autumn Leaves, Nat King Cole
Half of a Photograph, Kay Starr
Little Things Mean a lot, Kitty Kallen

These songs are just in the order I discovered them, so no particular reason for the order. I typically sit down with an easy read, put this list on shuffle and sit for a while. It is loverly. Youtube has all of these songs, if you want to give them a try.