Girls, My Grandmother And Great Moments In Time..

So I've been slacking on the blog front lately, and here's my excuse. SomersetJane has taken even more of a turn for the fabulous, and has been putting huge demands on my time, especially weekends. I've had a string of dancing competitions to prepare for, have been sick on and off for two weeks now and with sales doing well, direct from the SJ studio, I can barely keep up with replenishing stock and keeping my designs ever new and up to date. But it's going so well I've just kept my head down saying 'thank you' prayers and holding thumbs for the required stamina. I've also had my Grandmother from Cape Town staying with us which is always a good time being three generations of girls all together. The good times we'll surely have together are consolation enough for being removed from my bedroom and sleeping in the heap of clothing and shoes I like to call my dressing room. On top of all this, somewhere in the last three weeks I've managed to fall in love.. It's also the kind of real love that you just want to climb inside and switch off from the world around you! Need I say with the expected sarcasm, fabulous timing..

It's all brought me to this moment now. Where as I've taken the afternoon off and am trying to get some rest and recover I've been searching for inspiration for designs from the comfort of my couch. With a fashion show, a 'Summer Style' event coming up and prospective buyers all waiting in the wings I need to keep up my game and be sure to impress. SomersetJane is a brand with major retro roots so I'm always looking for a good dose of 'golden-old' inspiration. I have a cute collection of pics on the wall above my bed. Pics of myself and friends and then two of my fave pics, one of my mum and one of my gran in their younger days. I don't know why I've never thought to get inspired from my own family photos but I searched a little through my mum's files and was super delighted at what I found. Looking through, it gave me a moment to slow down, get a little nostalgic and remember why I love all things retro and how excited I am about designing for a 'vintage inspired' Summer and how much I look forward to one day when I'll look back on all the looks from my twenties and hopefully inspire my own daughter or granddaughter..

 My mum at about 18.. 

 Brenda - My Gran's sis

 I love this print! This is my gran staring at my mum when she was still a baby. It's my mum's fave just to see how her mother looked at her..

                                Are these sunnies not exactly on trend right now?! Love it..



 This one's not so much for the fashion than I can't help but totally 'heart' the rock 'n roll dance moves going down.. Such a moment in time.. (That's my mum as a toddler with her grandmother in the back)

                       This is one of the pics above my bed. My grandmother, I'm in love with it..



 My young granny and her friend - 1957

                            Taken in Zambia, my mum still has this camera from her parents.



Matchy-matchy at the beach!  

 

To my gran I'd just quickly like to write, that if anyone taught me about style and being a woman and dressing up it's her. How lucky I am to have both my mum and her and that we can all be women together. In this picture above, the print on the skirt with the sail boats reminds me of fabric I've already got in the new collection. I've always loved this pic for this print specifically and now I've just thought of a name for my Summer collection, the 'Gillian', after my grandmother. She'll be the heart within my 'Vintage Summer'..

xoxo

Melissa Jane