Swimming in style

After a winter hiatus I'm finally back to visiting my favorite second-hand stores regularly. On a recent thrifting expedition, I snagged this treasure. Isn't it a beauty?

The combination of red piping and with the vibrant blue color of the fabric can only be described as eye-catching!

Based on the color scheme, the type of fabric used, and the bust shape, I suspect this swimsuit comes from the late 60s. Can any of you readers with knowledge of vintage garment construction methods verify or modify my guess?

Even though a suit like this certainly needs no accessories, I will still be wearing it with my natural rubber swim cap.

Interested in developing your own retro bathing style? You should look into buying your own swim cap. I started out with a tiny white thing from Speedo, but the shape and pronounced logo placement did nothing for me, so a little while back I finally ordered a new cap in an old-fashioned style from the Vermont Country Store. Right now they appear to be all out of my style, but you can still order two whimsical floral versions: style 1 and style 2.

Seaside fashion from the 50s

Source: plakatauktion.de

Hello, all you lovely readers! I'm finally back from from an extended trip to lovely the lovely city of Hamburg. As an apology for not posting anything the past couple weeks, I'm bringing you some photos of 1950s bathing suits on exhibit at the Hamburg Museum.

All four bathing suits were on display in a glass cabinet located at the end of a long hallway connecting a series of rooms with a variety of garments from the mid-18th century through the 1970s. I could have easily spent the whole day in that hallway alone!

Free embroidery pattern: vintage picnic girl

I have a special treat for all my dear Hausfrau Journal readers: a free embroidery pattern!

Fashion brochures at the Görlitzer Warenhaus

Over the summer I had the pleasure of traveling to Görlitz, a city in far eastern Germany whose small size is disproportionate to its magnificence. Among the city's many architectural treasures is a department store building (Kaufhaus or Warenhaus) built in the German equivalent of the Art Nouveau style, known as Jugendstil.

The Görlitzer Warenhaus in the early 1950s
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