Seeing as “they” are predicting Snow this weekend it’s time for an emergency reassessment of the footwear situation.

You have a nice smart coat, a hat or two and a selection of gloves to complete your vintage winter ensemble. But what about your poor chilly tootsies? Your sensible Autumn footwear will see you through a lot of the winter, especially if you have room for a pair of toasty fleece insoles, but for REALLY cold days it’s nice to have some boots in reserve.

If you prefer a lady like or vintage look then choosing winter boots can be a tricky balance of budget and style. Depending on how authentic you want to be your best bet is probably just to look for less clunky “delicate” boot with a low heel or wedge and a rounded or almond toe that won’t look out of place with a skirt or smart coat.

These pictures (found on the Fedora Lounge) are 40s and 50s catalogue or advert scans. As you can see original 40s and 50s winter footwear seems to be generally along these lines, lace up or zipped ankle boots, possibly with a fur lining.

Boots are one of those things it’s tricky to get on a low budget (I know, I spent a day last September nearly in tears as I couldn’t find anything on the High Street), but I’ve done my best to find you some boots to suit all budgets and styles that won’t look out of place with a vintage ensemble.

Fur Lined Fancies

Miss L-Fire Ellison Sheepskin Heeled Ankle Boots – £110 ASOS

Gorgeous little leather boots with a fur collar and practical stacked heel. These look so cosy!

KOALA LACE UP BROWN LEATHER – £98 Office

Available in black and brown with a sensible stacked heel and a higher lace up.

Fold Down Lace Boot – £29.99 New Look

In “leather look” so should be suitable for those who don’t wear leather shoes, they’re a little chunkier, but look like they’ve got some good grip on the soles for slippy pavements!

Lady Like Lace Ups

Shellys Montgomery Lace Up Suede Heeled Ankle Boot – £75 ASOS

Suede isn’t always the most practical winter fabric, but in black, properly protected I think it’s probably fine for normal days without torrential downpours.

ALPINE Block Heel Brogue Ankle Boots – £45 ASOS

These are patent finish PU boots, so again, maybe suitable for the non leather wearers. The dark red also makes a change from brown and black.

Red Level Radio – £32 Brantano

The most bargainous pair of boots I could find and the shape looks like a dead ringer for some in the vintage scans. These are also non leather, and although they look like lace ups they actually fasten with a zip, making them far less faff to get on and off than they look.

Functional Flats

KORR LACE UP BROWN LEATHER – £95 Office

Mostly I can manage with a small heel even in snow, but if you prefer a sensible flat then these are toasty sheepskin lined in sturdy leather. Also available in black.

Dartmoor Boot – £80 Draper of Glastonbury

Very much like the zip up booties in the 1950s catalogue scan above. Fleece lined and toasty with a non slip rubber sole.

Kimono Collar Lace Ankle Boots – £64.99 Schuh

A nice classic lace up boot. Also available in Black.

Final thoughts….

There are many things I completely fail to understand why we, as a society, stopped using over the years. Refillable make up containers, plastic rain hats and setting lotion just to name a few in the women’s grooming category. I really, really have to add over shoes to this list.

These have hollow heels so they fit over your regular shoes for rainy and snowy days, and on arrival you just take them off, saves carrying extra pairs of shoes around with you, fabulous!

Searching eBay for galoshes brings up a few vintage pairs, but I don’t know anywhere you can buy modern versions.

For a modern alternative when you need your shoes waterproof I like the Vivienne Westwood Melissa flat ankle boots on eBay or from Sarenza.

Finally, if you’re really on the hunt for a bargain then try searching eBay for terms like “granny boots”, but prepare to be patient to grab a bargain.

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Today I’m going to finally get around to reviewing a book that I first saw on Diary of a Vintage Girl when Fleur De Guerre wrote about the books launch party.

Style Me Vintage is a book of step by step photographic guides to creating vintage hair styles, and at under £7.50 from Amazon I thought it had to be worth a try even if I only got one new hair style out of it!

The book itself looks beautiful. It has a nice matt textured cover and the background illustrations inside are taken from vintage fabrics. As well as step by step guides to several vintage hair styles it also has extra tips on tying vintage scarves, creating padding for and pages of “essential equipment” for creating the styles inside.

The styles it covers are Finger Waves & Pin curls, Forties Waves, Victory Rolls, The Poodle, Fringe Roll, Fifties Set (The Marilyn) Quiffs, 2 different variations on a Beehive, the Bouffant and the Barbarella.

I already did most of these, or variations of them, on my own hair, but I was interested to see if there were any hints and tricks I could pick up, and I’ve never managed to master finger waves, so I was really keen to have a go at them.

Really the only way to review a book like this was to have a go at the hair styles. My first attempt was finger waves (you can see the results here!) and I was quite pleased. I found it a little tricky to get the technique right, but with practice I think they’ll definitely improve. I only waved the front of my hair, and I think it’s unlikely that I’ll ever manage the back on my own, but to be fair the book does suggest you may need the help of a friend!

I decided to try a couple of the up dos, “The Poodle” and the Victory Rolls.

And here are the results. (Please excuse the terrible Hobgoblin T Shirt, I put it on to put my foundation on to protect my clothes and then never thought to take it off before I did the hair and took the photos, rest assured I didn’t leave the house in it!)

I already do Victory Rolls, but the instructions in the book are for a slightly more elaborate version where the fringe is rolled separately in the opposite direction. I’ve always thought it looked amazing but didn’t know how to acheive it. I followed the instructions to the letter, but still found it a little complicated to get the sections to match up and it took some time to finally get the effect above which I was quite pleased with for a first try!

The Poodle I found far easier, however I think you can see from my face in that picture that I’m unlikely to be making it part of my regular hair repertoire. I never liked it on Lucille Ball so I don’t know what possessed me to think it would look any better on me!

Generally the instructions are clear and easy to follow and the pictures are well chosen to illustrate tricky points or areas of confusion.

The only problem, of course, is that everyone’s hair is different. Different lengths, textures, layering and thicknesses require slightly different techniques, and while the step by step guides are an excellent starting point you do have to be prepared to adapt slightly. I know, for instance, that were I to use the Forties Wave technique described in the book I would very soon have completely straight hair as it just won’t hold a curl without a wet set with setting lotion.

Each style section starts with pictures of the style being worn by vintage stars and a more modern interpretation along with a little history of the style (meaning I finally found out the difference between Marcel waves and Finger waves. A Marcel wave uses heat on dry hair, there you go) and a list of the things you’ll need to complete the style.

If I have a minor criticism of the book it would be the 2 page list of “essential equipment” at the beginning.  The list includes, among other things, 4 different types of brush and 3 different types of hair clips. Whilst the styles are probably easier with these things I have been managing to style my hair for over a year with nothing much more than a handful of kirby grips, a brush, a comb and some hair spray, so don’t let a lack of the “right” stuff stop you having a go!

I’m always disturbed by anything that implies you need a vast range of elaborate equipment to acheive decent results. I had a similar fit of rage when Jamie Oliver published a list of “bare minimum” essential kitchen equipment which included items like microplane graters, NESTS of mixing bowls and cast iron casserole dishes costing lots of money, all of which I had been happily managing to cook meals without for years.

Anyway, I digress….

The other thing that may have been handy to include is a section with more detailed instructions on basic techniques. If you’ve never rolled your hair before, or seen anyone else do it, then it could be rather difficult to try an interpret from the books descriptions and pictures. This is a minor thing, though, and I’m sure most people can probably get the hang of it after a few tries.

Overall the book is beautifully illustrated, easy to follow, and for £7.50 an absolute bargain! It definitely gets the Retro Chick seal of approval.

*shameless plug* Don”t forget, if you do want some in person tips on vintage hair you can pop along to the Vintage Hair Styling evening at Flint! *shameless plug*

The book is available in my book shop, along with the others I’ve reviewed in the past, or you can click the link below to go to Amazon.

Note: I am an Amazon affiliate, if you buy the book through one of my links I’ll earn a few pennies. It costs you nothing and in no way affects my opinions on this book!

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Just because the weather is chilly doesn’t mean it’s time to move into trousers and stay there till Spring.

Lengthen the sleeves, add some thick stockings, and, if it’s really cold, a vest and slip and dresses are still the one stop easy way to get dressed in the morning even when the weather is freezing.

Today’s Friday Frock Love has the pick of some nice warm frocks, complete with sleeves and sensible hemlines, available around the interweb.

Belted Vixen Dress Tara Starlet – £68

Stretch Fabric and a side zip mean this is a full on tight wiggle dress, yet sensible styling means it’s smart enough for work.

Belted Vixen Dress - £68

Harriet Dress Cath Kidston – £48.75

An easy to wear dress with simple but slightly retro styling. And even better it’s on sale, normal price is £65

Harriet Dress - £48.75

Jackie Dress She by Cindy – £97.88

Another bombshell wiggle dress. Very Joan from Mad Men. Custom made to your measurements so it will fit perfectly and in a range of colours.

Jackie Dress - £97.88

Jersey Tie Front Dress Biba – £70

A relaxed and flattering style from the new Biba range at House of Fraser.

Biba Dress £70

Vintage 60s Key Hole Dress Retro Chick £17.99

Yes, that’s right, this is from my shop. More authentic than the Biba and cheaper too! I’ve actually got several nice sleeved dresses in, so go look!

Vintage Keyhole Dress £17.99

All the content in this post belongs to Retro Chick. If you are seeing this post and it is not in your Feed Reader, then it has probably been stolen by some unscrupulous person.

If you would like to repost my content, please contact me via my website and I'll be happy to dicuss it, really!