Free Pattern: 1950s Vampy Babushka scarf knitting pattern

I am so in love with this 1957 scarf, that dramatic widow's peak is begging to be done in black and red or metallic sparkly yarn. I hope to see several of you ladies rocking these on Instagram this winter! I know I will! See my free patterns page for more vintage knitting, crochet and sewing patterns.

Friday the 13th Novelty Brooch

Tomorrow is Friday the 13th, the only one we'll get this year so I'm planning to wear my DIY Friday the 13th brooch. This brooch is inspired by a spectacular vintage Bakelite brooch with several cute bad luck charms.



Fork and knife:
A crossed fork and knife in some parts of the world shows that you are not finished with your meal. In others, it's bad manners. An old superstition is that a crossed fork and knife symbolizes a cross and
represents death.
8 ball:
to be behind an 8 ball means that you're in a bad spot or experiencing bad luck
black cat:
If a black cat crosses your path, they say you'll have 7 years of bad luck
Ace of spades:
In fortune telling, the ace of spades is the Death card
match sticks:
during WWII, a superstition held that if 3 soldiers lit their cigarette from the same match, one of them would be shot or die in battle. This was known as “3 on a match” or “the unlucky 3rd light”

I've included the templates and full photo tutorial for this brooch in my e-book, Pins for Pinups: DIY Brooches for Retro Girls. This brooch uses printable templates, which are cut out of thin rolled clay, so there's very little clay working skills needed. (Trust me on this, I tried to sculpt one by hand and it was a mess!)

Pins for Pin-Ups includes 11 other step by step tutorials for vintage inspired novelty brooches, using a lot of materials from your recycling bin or things that you already have around the house. This ebook is delivered automatically via email in PDF format, so you can read it on your computer or any device with a PDF reader! 

Celebrating Vintage Mamas

Motherhood is what ultimately turned me on to wearing vintage. I was wearing pajamas, sweat pants and ugly maternity clothes for so long, I wanted to wear something beautiful and unique and take time to fix myself up a bit. Now that Olivia is in school, I'm getting pictures drawn of us at school, me in a dress with bright red hair and bright red lipstick and sometimes she borrows my brooches for special days at school. Someday, if she likes vintage too, I'll pass on my collection to her!



With mothers day this past weekend, Daffny from A Vintage Nerd and I are celebrating some of our fellow vintage mamas.

blogger, Molly Maka shares her life as a vintage mom and some tips for us!

Molly Maka says "I'm a 1940s girl at heart and am actively seeking publication of my World War II romances.  I'm also a proud volunteer of our local Honor Flight hub, serving as one of their two Bombshells.  I'm the mommy to a three and a half year old little boy.  He's our miracle child and we are so blessed to have him in our lives."

Molly Maka and her sweet boy

Q: Do you have any struggles as a vintage mama?

"I don't get to dress vintage and 40s everyday as I would like.  But, when I do, it is a struggle because it means I have to get up even earlier than our early wake up call to ensure my hair is dry and brushed out, make-up done and look achieved all before getting The Boy (as he has come to be known on social media) up and ready for the day.  Honestly, the hardest part for me and the reason I don't take the full plunge is my hair.  It's stick straight and I have a lot of it.  It takes a long time to dry as well.  So, I need to make sure I have the time devoted to how long it takes to set my hair adding in time under the bonnet dryer in the hopes that it will be completely dry by morning.   My normal everyday style has a very retro feel to it,  so I don't feel as bad that I can't dress how I would like.

When I do doll myself up, my son already knows that we don't touch Mommy's curls and he has been known to ask me, "Mommy, are you wearing red lipstick?"  When I say yes, he responds, "You can't kiss me."  The way he says it always makes me laugh.

Q: Do you have any time saving tips for other vintage moms? 

The big ones for me are to set my hair after my son goes to bed and make sure I'm as ready as I can be before getting him up.  I also try to have everything set out to wear the night before, making sure it is comfortable to move in, especially when chasing a pre-schooler.  Worst case, I sometimes just dress the front of my hair and throw a snood on.  Or on days when I can't do my hair, I have what I call my faux-40s look.  It takes me about 2 minutes to throw up and looks okay with straight hair.

Q: What are your favorite shopping spots for vintage moms on a budget?

 I'm always looking for a deal.  I try to keep an eye on Etsy, the local vintage shops (of which there aren't many) and the Ooh La La group on Facebook.  I'll also watch for sales from some of my favorite repro/retro designers and snag things as I can.  Otherwise, I just look for retro looking items at regular stores.

Ella @uptoongirl on Instagram, shares some sweet pics of her and her with her little lady:

she says "Vintage parenting is hard but cocktails help!"

"She has been coming along to my swing dancing sessions since she was born"

"She has absorbed it all and can join in the Shim Sham at the drop of a hat"






See part two of Celebrating Vintage Mamas with more tips and peeks into the life of other vintage moms at A Vintage Nerd.  Thank you to all who sent in their photos and stories!