Looking back at May 2013

The nineteenth century American poet and diplomat James Russell Lowell once said of the month we've just experienced that, "May is a pious fraud of the almanac". This strikes me as a bit harsh, but I can certainly appreciate the sentiment and see where Mr. Lowell was coming from.

May, that month in which we've been led to believe April's showers will give way to boundless fields of flowers and picturesque sunny days in not always the case. Or, conversely, sometimes it is - but in such abundance that you wonder if you overshot your alarm clock and woke up in August.

For the first half or so of the month, that was precisely the case here, as we slogged our way through numerous days of +31C temps and sunshine so brazenly bright you could all but get a tan just by thinking about.

The second half of the month proved more in keeping with the seasonal norm, and included a handful of much needed rainy days which helped welcome an abundance of greenery - as well as the beginning of tourist season - once more.

In many respects, it felt like a quick month as each day ticked by, yet as a whole it was a somewhat lengthy at times, too. Overall though, it was a pleasant enough month - certainly less stressful than the previous one and towards the end, I even felt well enough (following last month's surgery) to venture out a couple of times, one of which I blogged about here two days ago.

While I wouldn't say May was the most action packed month (phew!) on the home front, here in blog land things were buzzing up a storm (that reminds me of the immensely charming magazine cover from June 1954 pictured below), which was spurred on in no small part by the necessitated two week blogging hiatus after my surgery in April and my zeal to throw myself back into blogging big time!

{Image source}

Some of the highlights of this past month for me included the return (after more than two years) of the popular Vintage Fashionista Friday series, an exploration of the role that nostalgia has played on my life and wardrobe, a fresh edition of Vintage This and That, a peak at the history of Cutex nail polish, and the super easy (and dirt cheap) way in which I store my stud earrings.

On the wardrobe front, I reviewed the latest dress I received from eShakti (it fared much better, I'm happy to say, than the previous two), sported an outfit comprised of numerous vintage pieces (including my dress itself) that I've received from treasured online friends, and traversed a wildly dangerous and incredibly narrow road to enjoy the view from Skaha Bluffs in my beloved Freddies of Pinewood overalls (a snap from which post appears below).




May ushered in an extremely exciting new chapter in Chronically Vintage's life when, mid-month, I put out my first ever official call for blog sponsors.

The response to this post has been wholly positive and very encouraging, and I'm pleased as punch to announce that I'll be collaborating with some seriously stellar sponsors in June and beyond. I'm always looking for further and/or future sponsors, so if you've been considering blog sponsorship here, I would absolutely love to hear from you anytime.

As we embark on the very last morning of May, I'm not entirely sure what June - the final month of spring - will entail for my day-to-day life. I don't have too many big plans, especially as I'm still recouping (and am in the midst of a massive flare-up of my one of my conditions right now, too), but I sense that barbeques, yard sales, walks on the beach, sundresses, and capri pants will be on the agenda for sure.



{Beautiful as a vintage bride, sweet as a popsicle, and as invigorating as the first late springtime dip in lake or sea, June has the potential to be a glorious month from start to finish, and I really hope that such will be the case this year. Image source.}


Much as with May, I've got a bevy of fun post ideas just bursting to appear here in June. Throughout the coming month, we'll be getting to know some of my new blog sponsors, chatting about 1950s eye make-up, taking a gander at some classic menswear pieces (in celebration of Father's Day), talking about how to throw a great ice cream sundae party, and I'll debut my first ever garment from Jitterbuggin, amongst numerous other topics.
 
James R. Lowell was right about May in that it can often be hard to predict, the weather unreliable (just ask most of Europe, where temps have been well below the seasonal norm in many countries as of late), and it's appearance a bit more of an idyllic mirage of how spring is supposed to look than what reality often serves up, but it is - and was - also a gorgeous, pleasurable, lighthearted month that smells of honeysuckle, lilacs and freshly mowed grass.

It's bare toes, the first bonfire of the season, camping trip filled weekends, picnics on the beach, and the making of joyful plans and dreams for the coming summer, which we'll hit before next month comes to a close. It might not always be the most reliable of months weather wise, but I love May and the one that we just experienced was certainly no exception.

Here's to the hope that June is every bit as lovely - if not more - for all of us!