This Saturday I woke up nice and early to catch the train
into Newtown for the Fabric-a-brac pop up shop.
Newtown is one of those special places in a big city. You can dress as you wish and no one will blink an eye. It's the alternative centre of Sydney and you'll find many shops to
support people's love for vintage clothing or mid-century home wears as well as
piercing and tattoo parlours, cyber Goth outfitters and plenty of hairdressers
who will style your hair to match your outfit. In international terms it could probably be compared to Camden Town in London or Portland, Oregon. It's become very popular
for upper middle class families and lots of high end boutiques have moved in
lately, but that's ok. Its underbelly is still owned by the weird and wonderful!
My friends and I Ioved it so much as teenagers we would
replace the words of Petula Clarks Downtown
with Newtown and sing it on the train
on the way there!
So because I was going to Newtown I decided to put on my
most colourful 60s outfit.
This is what I wore;
.JPG)
Dress – Self made
Tights – American Apparel
Shoes – Top Shop
.JPG)
Rings in order left to right
ASOS, Penny Moon x 2, Lovisa x 2
On the way to my train station I drew open mouthed gapes
from the girls in the hairdresser and awkward stares from the people on the
train station. It can be uncomfortable but by the time you’re in Newtown,
suddenly you’re the one under dressed!
Fabric-a-brac turned out to be a pretty good event. I
assumed that it might just be a few tables with some scraps for sale but a lot
of vendors were selling meters of lovely fabric, patterns and notions.
.JPG) |
| This lady was selling the best vintage notions |
.JPG)
Here's my loot
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
4 meters of Teal silk for $10
7 meters mauve fabric (not sure of the mix) for $8
3 meters of a lovely printed flannel
1 meter of 60s floral cotton for $14
2 x button making kits
Belt making kit
Pleat making kit (who knew these existed!)
5 meters of lace trim
Style 2810 from 1970 - actually a maternity pattern but
I'll sort that out...
.jpg)
So overall a pretty good day of shopping and scaring the locals
Do you have a favourite place to hang out and be yourself?
Cat xoxo
Sounds like a great event, and I love that bright purple and white printed fabric that you got. Gorgeous dress too, I love it.
ReplyDeleteThanks lovely! It's great isn't it?! I wasn't all that keen until I got home and held it up in front of the mirror to see the full pattern
DeleteWhat a cool event. Your mustard tights are wonderful. Your dress is very pretty.
ReplyDeleteThanks! It really was. Hopefully it gets bigger next year!
DeleteLiverpool is pretty open minded place to hang out in my vintage dresses. Well how could it not what with it being the birthplace of the Beatles ! Your dress is beautiful nice contrast with the tights.
ReplyDeleteLiverpool! I love any Merseybeat bands. Ill have to go there one day. We have a Liverpool in Sydney but its not as great as its namesake
DeleteThanks! xo
Hi, Cat! You look fab in your colorful 60s outfit. It brings back memories of Goldie Hawn and many girls I knew and dated back then. For the last 30 years I have been living in Florida where comfortable, casual and period apparel is more widely accepted than certain other parts of the country. It was nice to learn about the Newtown district of Sydney and I can imagine you and your friends singing "Newtown" to the tune of Pet Clark's "Downtown." I see by the World Time Clock that it is 8pm in your part of the world, dear Cat, and so I will bid you a good night.
ReplyDeleteThanks Shady Del Knight. Goldie Hawn is such a doll. I used to have her pixie crop hair-do!
DeleteFlorida sounds great! Certainly not as conservative as the other southern states. I hear the vintage shopping there is the best?
I live in the Tampa Bay area in west central Florida where there are many vintage and consignment clothing shops. Tampa's historic cigar factory district, Ybor City, reminds me of your Newtown. Ybor is a cultural melting pot with Cuban and Italian festivals and parades throughout the year including a pirate festival parade and a massive Halloween block party. You can imagine the lavish and quirky costumes worn by the thousands who participate in these events.
DeleteYour replies to my comments mean a lot to me, Cat. They distinguish you as an outstanding blogger and I appreciate your friendship. Good night to you in Australia!
Somehow i missed this reply! Sorry!
DeleteYbor sounds very interesting - I would like to see more Spanish/ Hispanic festivals in Australia. (We tend to have more Greek and Italian immigrants) The food is so delicious! For example, Sydney is only just becoming used to the idea that Mexican food does not equal Nachos! And there are some great little Colombian and South American places popping up slowly
Sweet lilac dress !
ReplyDeleteThank you! and thanks for following my blog!
Delete