Here's looking at you kid

Casablanca turns 70 this year. I watched it yesterday and cried yet again. It's such a treat - snappy dialogue, Ingrid Bergman looking luminous, Bogart world weary yet sentimental at heart and every secondary cast member is a winner. And then I noticed this outfit...





Is that not very similar to this...


... now on its way to me from etsy. My first cinema inspired outfit.

The house of sad

Things are pretty sad and lonely here at Chez Chairman. We miss our Jack cat. Though the big cats are being extremely loving and that's been wonderful. Attempted heartsease: frocks. This is from the Fall Sears catalogue of 1940.











And I learnt a new word - midgie - a short sleeved fitted cardigan. I'm planning a winter wardrobe. Most of it won't work out - we are supposed to be saving after all - but I'm trying to be more organized rather than being swayed by fabrics in Spotlight. - Toodle Pip!

A fine old gentleman

Our dearest Jack died today. He took a tumble down the stairs and busted his lungs. The little bugger fought on to the very end. Stubborn old coot. I can not say how much we love this cat. We've been very lucky to have had him in our lives for so long. Teary.

So sensible

My fur cape pattern arrived today. Despite having thought about this all week, researching sewing with faux fur and basically getting all excited I've decided against making it this season. In a startling act of maturity (one that won't be repeated!) I realized that it was going to be an expensive proposition for something that's not exactly a wardrobe staple. There will be capes in the future! Besides, we've just booked an apartment in Berlin and we'll need all our pennies to pay for the train fare to get us there. Old Jack cat doesn't feel well. Zero purrs. - Toodle Pip!

And Timmy the dog!

Orangeade, camp fires, smugglers, gypsy caravans, strange lights signalling in the night…


This year marks the 70th anniversary of the Famous Five! I don’t care what anyone says about Enid Blyton. Yes, she apparently was a nasty piece of work. Yes, the books aren’t exactly literature. Yes, they contain outdated opinions and attitudes that may be considered offensive – the whitewashing of such in recent reissues being a touchy subject. But how great where the books when you were growing up?! I absolutely devoured them. I wanted to be George, marry Julian, have a loyal dog and would happily have eaten cold tongue sandwiches with Dick and Anne. Apparently the supposed library bans are a furphy – never happened. One of the more amusing summations of Blyton’s work is by the BBC, who frequently rejected her submissions to broadcast her work: Her capacity… [to churn out mediocre material] amounts to genius...anyone else would have died of boredom long ago. - Toodle Pip!

The other side...

I spent Saturday entertaining the troops in South Melbourne so I was looking forward to a jaunt on Sunday. I woke up pretty convinced that I needed a faux fur cape. We headed over to the other side of the river to Brunswick Street. Ostensibly I was there to do some canny off season linen buying but it's hard to stay excited by something you won't be sewing for 6 months. And after my morning fur epiphany I easily got side tracked by this: I didn't buy any - this time. It's not part of my winter sewing plan and it's pretty exxy. But it's been on my mind ever since we left the store... As for the rest of Fitzroy, you can keep your over priced 70s furniture, drunk koories and 80s 'vintage'. Le crap. - Toodle Pip!

Traveling abroad

We've booked our tickets. Me and my honey are off to London, with side trips to the Continent. A pretty scary amount of money spending is coming up! - Toodle Pip!