Under the sea vintage fashion fun

{Whether your hair is as long as a mermaid’s or considerably shorter, there isn't a head around that wouldn't look sensational with this elegantly gorgeous handmade seashell and starfish comb nestled against it. $35.00 from Be Something New.}




{If ever there was an aptly named scent to wear to the beach or anyplace during the summer, this lovely bottle of Mermaid Kiss handmade perfume is it. $9.25 for a 15ml bottle from Butter Toki.}




{If you're not in the mood for a full on ocean inspired look, or if you want to jazz your mermaid-worthy outfit up even further, why not pick up these beautiful vintage lucite clip-on earrings featuring oodles of cute little seashells and metallic confetti? $18.00 from SoCal Jewelry Box.}




{Aren't these handmade capiz shell, starfish, and Swarovski crystal earrings absolutely breathtaking? I could see them working wonders with everything from vintage tropical print playsuits to a flowing, breezy white dress for a relaxed beach wedding. Swoon!!! $25.00 from Lovelorn Siren.}




{Vintage frocks really don't come any more shimmery, alluring, or gorgeous than this stunning 1960s metallic blue tinsel wiggle dress. Love. Epically. Fits up to a 36" bust/28" waist. $125.00 from (fellow B.C. Etsian) True Value Vintage.}




{Whether they're the real deal plucked from the sea or the sort created on land in factory, there's no denying the truly timeless appeal of pearl jewelry. This strikingly beautiful 1940s hand knotted faux pearl necklace features a 23.5 inch strand of solid, good quality glass pearls in a beguilingly lovely shade of rose gold meets brown gold meets champagne that would look especially incredible against summertime tanned skin. $28.00 from Chronically Vintage on Etsy.}




{Every time I go to the Vancouver Aquarium (as we did on our recent travels to that fine city), I spend a good long while gazing at the resident mighty fire hued Giant Pacific Octopus. There is, to my mind, something both scary and appealing awesome about these powerful eight-armed aquatic creatures and its easy to see why they've long held court over much of the ocean floor. Far from frightening, this wonderful block of handmade vegan soap featuring one of these hefty octopi is just the ticket to get your skin looking, if you'll forgive a relevant maritime pun, shipshape in no time! $9.00 for a 4 ounce bar of soap from The Charming Frog.}




{Raffia and summertime go together like tropical drinks and the beach. Lightweight, breathable, and comfy, it's a classic natural material that makes for the ideal warm weather shoe and these great 1960s woven raffia flats are no exception. Fits a ladies size 6.5 foot. $25.00 from Luckiest Duck 1.}




{Today's final item entry isn't for your wardrobe, but instead for your walls! I discovered these fabulous hand painted underwater themed vintage reproduction chalkware sets a few months ago and have been thoroughly smitten ever since. They look the kitschy mid-century part to a tee, are very reasonably priced, and just as cute as cute can possibly be! $40.00 for a three-piece set of chalkware mermaids from HilltopCast.}

♥ ♥ ♥

Before I delve further into today's post, I want to take a moment to thank absolutely everyone who has showered me with happy 30th birthday wishes this week. Yesterday was fun filled, beautiful, inspiring and bursting with all those special elements that one hopes for when the anniversary of their birth rolls around. My celebrate was truly made all the more sweet and memorable thanks to your splendidly lovely wishes. Thank you, one and all!

I'm not the only thing getting older these days. I recently read that 2014 is the 25th anniversary of Disney's endlessly classic take on The Little Mermaid and it stopped me right in my tracks. No way! I thought to myself, feeling like I could remember watching it, on VHS, naturally, for the first time as though it were yesterday. And yet, it only took a couple more seconds of hopping down memory lane to realize that, by Jove, yes, it really had been that long, because I can clearly recall having a Little Mermaid theme for either my sixth or seventh birthday.

As a child, growing up in a very dysfunctional, oppressive, challenging home setting, I instantly felt like I could relate to Ariel and her desire to break away from her tyrannical father's rule and discover a world of her own where she could finally experience the freedom she deeply, powerfully longed for. Though I wasn't born with a tail and I never forgot what the word "burn" was, I found so many parallels between her life and my own plight that Ariel became something of a personal mascot and certainly a major source of inspiration for me all through my early childhood years.



{A copy of the exact same Disney Little Mermaid poster that hung on my bedroom wall for a few years of my youth, reminding and quietly helping to encourage me each time I looked at it to explore my own proverbial "shore above" and to take my freedom into my own hands. Image source.}


Much like Disney's most famous mermaid, I too eventually found both my freedom and my wonderful prince charming. I developed my own legs of a different sort and taught myself how to stand on them, even in the face of the harshest adversities. While I'm certainly no longer a child anymore, I still love Ariel and her delightful cast of underwater friends all the same and can sing, to this day, all of the songs in that movie by heart.

Inspired by my passion for and personal relationship with this film, in the midst of one of (if not "the", depending on whereabouts you live) hottest months of the year, I knew that I wanted this month's edition of Vintage Fashionista Friday to have a charmingly fantastic mermaid theme to it.

July, the sea, cool waters and the joy that imagining a world in which mermaids really did exist makes for a seriously appealing combination and one that will continue appeal to me whether I'm five, thirty, fifty or a hundred years old! :)

*PS* 

Hurry, my dears, and take advantage of the awesome 25% off sale that is still underway on everything in my Etsy shop. The sale ends tomorrow and is the only one I have planned for the summer, so now is the time to save big!