Polka time

My daughter and I were both wearing polka dots yesterday. She looked down proudly and said, "circle!" I said, "Yes! But their proper name is polka dot."But then I thought, why? For me, polka dots bring Lucille Ball to mind. 

An iconic '50s look that has never gone out of style.

But the round pattern goes back to when the polka dance craze hit Europe in the 1840s. Polka supposedly means Polish woman in Polish... And when the dance became popular, the word "polka" was attached to all types of products. But like many things in our language, this term stuck. Minnie Mouse, Winston Churchill and Lucy all loved polka dots. What is it about this print that makes starlets and stay-at home-Moms feel pretty? 

I might have 4 polka dot items in my closet right now, most of the black and white variety.

Since polka dots had another surge of popularity in the '80s, I do remember wearing leggings and such with the pattern. Just like Madonna I was!

I call my red and white pin dot dress the "diner dress." Looks like I could be bringing you your corned beef hash and eggs...

This is another beauty from Lindy Bop I'd like to have...

As I type this now, I'm in my favorite road trip shirt. I recalled this is the exact outfit I wore on my last road trip to Tennessee.

It's long enough to cover my rump with another road trip fav.....leggings:) It's like a dressed up version of sweatpants! An now... Here are some ladies who probably never got close to sweatpants... But loved a good polka dot!

I have a black and white polka dot bathing suit from Target, but much prefer my red and white gingham from the Esther Williams collection. But if you add just one polka piece to a wardrobe, make like Audrey and buy a one piece. Instant retro flair❤️

Classic trench

Every girl needs an iconic trench. But if you live in Florida, you only get to wear it about 3 times. It was a chilly 50ish degrees on our way to Miracle on 34th St. at the Athens. And what better place to wear a trench than to a theatre built in the '20s?  I love how I can belt it for some waist definition, and pop the collar if I want to. I have a great many brooches that will find their place on my lapel. Coat is from CAbi. Handbag and jewelery is vintage. Shirt from PinUp Couture, skirt from LindyBop and shoes by Mel.

Mad for plaid

I'm sure I had some adorable Christmas pajamas when I was a child. Or a sweater with kitties donning Santa hats. But I have found my favorite Christmas outfit ever!

 Lindy Bop is becoming my favorite retro-clothing Web site. 

http://www.lindybopusa.com/

Both top and skirt are from this British site. It's amazing I like plaid after 8 years of Catholic school. Everything fit right out of the box... A first from an online store. Paired with my Mel shoes from Pinup Parlor, I had a festive look. I loved my jewelery tonight. Crescent-moon shaped red rhinestone earrings with a matching necklace added merry sparkle. 

Some poinsettias from the craft store made a perfect hair piece. 

Retro wrapping

I wrapped my first Christmas present of the season for my dear friend Martha. And I was so pleased to use my vintage wrapping paper for the first time. 

Plucked from a garage sale where everything was in original 1950s packaging, the box boasts 400 inches of paper. I swear that's about 4x more than wrapping paper today. Sometimes I get three presents out of one of those cheapy rolls. This vintage multi-colored paper could last me 2 Christmas seasons. And it's thick! Have you ever wrapped a present only to have the corners rip when you try to make a neat fold? Not this paper! 

For more vintage Christmas flair, I spent an hour at RiverTown Antique Mall. It's 3 stories!! I carefully flipped through dozens of Christmas cards, passing over the discolored ones or ugly graphics. I found the cutest ones, and sprinkled them around my house. They were about 50 cents each. 

Merry Christmas!