Chaps & Chappettes - The Chap Olympiad 2013

Well what sweltering weather it has been here in London.  I'm sat here in my flat eating some watermelons to try and cool down and keeping myself out of the suns rays.  The air is so still and apparently it is going to continue like this for the next couple of weeks!  Amazing when I'm not working, haha.

This Saturday gone was once again that time of year where all (well most) of the chaps and chappettes of London and afar gathered together for the event that always makes it into my diary.  The one and only Chap Olympiads.  There's nothing like it.

I missed a few games this year having only turned up mid afternoon and so didn't take as many photos as I usually would.  It did mean that I spent more time with friends and less time running around.  It was a jolly good time!

Having a good catch up with the lovely Sophie.

The girls with the picnic, the strawberries and the smuggled Gin!

Something was happening with some tarts and knocking them out of the opponents cake slice.

Horse-Play... Make as you will.

My outfit for the day...

A newly acquired vintage hat from Sweden

My again new Match necklace by the fabulous Luxulite

Clear Lucite repro handbag from Miss L Fire

Cropped top from Urban Outfitters

Vintage skirt with plaited red belt

Sunnies also from same Sweden trip

This was the hats first outing and well it was quite appropriate with the sun and I absolutely fell in love with it.  And best of all... It only cost me 20kronos/£2 from the flea market at Live & Rockin' which I visited recently held in Sweden!  It's so versatile as I can adorn it with all kinds of accessories and colours to match my outfits!  Dream hat if ever I had one.

Briefcase Phalanx

Bread-roll Basketball

My attempt at a sneak photo of The Vintage News chaps at work but my parasol got in the way!

I loved that this year they had a vintage photo-booth on site!

Here I am with the gorgeous Alice :) 

The much needed said parasol put into good use.

Of course things got a little pyramidy as the event went into the night...

There were many a photographers there; professional & amateur, as well as plenty of press as usual.  It gets international coverage nowadays you know!  I had my photo taken by several people and found this lovely vibrant copy by Soul Stealer Photography.  Hope he doesn't mind my using it!

I'm already looking forward to next year.  Hope you can join me there in 2014 for what is sure to be a spectacular 10th year anniversary for the Olympiad!

Pip pip!
Alison xxx

Not Here but Elsewhere...

Hello!

So since I have been away and didn't have much time to write I actually took to some other less time consuming web activities.  I Tweeted a bit more, I set up my Miss Cherrylicious Facebook page for my modeling work and I recently made my Instagram public having had it the last couple of years.  I just checked and my first ever photo on there was from May 2011!  No one I knew used Instagram back then and that was one of the reasons I remember for not sharing on it originally.  I have favored between them on and off.  One of the things I missed most on here was writing my outfit posts.  They were fun!  I have tried to do a few more snaps on Instagram recently so thought I would share with you some of the photos which I haven't posted here before.

Full on all-up bouffant which I never usually do but I do occasionally now.

New top from Topshop which could almost be from a repro brand!

Teamed with my Freddies and favourite varsity jacket.

One of my dress-down days.

A-Bombers yeh! Cannot wait to go back this year.

This colour looks great with my skin tone and black hair.

Perfect make-up face. Eyes, brows, lips, everything. Happy.

Getting ready for some Yeah Yeah Yeahs carnage!

Sweet 60s look.

The super-crop... Has a tendency to flash though.

I love my collection of Tara Starlet button-down pencils skirts.

Such a shame they no longer make their clothes in my size :( 

I love doing the heels and socks combo!

Comfort and style... Great for summer. 

It's funny because I had my hair cut quite a bit maybe a month or two ago but you can't really tell in the pics because it grows like a monster!  It's nearly halfway down my back already and I couldn't even ponytail it up when first cut.

I've just had a huge BH weekend of partying and am about to die so this is me for the evening.  I am off to eat cake.  My sisters homemade Chocolate Guinness cake.  Yums!

Tara,

Alison xxx

I Mentioned a Photo Shoot in the Summer...

Hello Hello!  Hope you are all good and looking forward to your Christmas and New Year holidays?  I myself am working the whole of Christmas with only the actual Christmas Day off.  I shall be travelling back to good ol' Surrey on the night of the Eve and back up to London again Boxing morning.  It's not too bad really as I do have four days off over the countdown to NY.  Nothing has been planned party-wise yet as I shall either be moving to a new abode or back homehome to my sisters.  I am having no luck at all with finding a new flat to move into.  It's very bad timing I know.  Shall keep you all posted as I'm sure you would like to see some party frock action; if I get some party action that is!

So I thought I would try and warm you all up a little by bringing a bit of sun (or a reminder) of the sun to your screens.  Way back in September I spent a morning in front of Satin Paula Kopczynski lens whilst I was having a holiday out in Calafell for High Rockabilly.  I met Paula the previous year when we were both at The Hot Rod Hayride.  Paula travels around to all the festivals and is constantly shooting at events, for magazines, clients and her own collection of course.  It was great fun to incorporate a photo shoot into my HR visit.

I have posted a few here for your delight but you can see more over on my Miss Cherrylicious page where you can find many other photo shoots too!  Hope you like :D

© Satin Paula Kopczynski

© Satin Paula Kopczynski

© Satin Paula Kopczynski

Paula has set aside a few of the images to use in her next book, hopefully out next spring/summer.  I have not seen these photographs yet but she promised she would show me them once the ball starts rolling on the creation of said book.  That's rather exciting news!

I may not be back with a post before Christmas so I will say my well wishes now.

Christmas kisses to each and everyone of you.

Have a fantastic holiday and may all your wishes come true ;)

Santa knows if you've been good...

Take care,
Alison xxxxx

Pin-Up Assistant

Hello!  Sorry I've been a bit quiet of late.  If you read my last post you will know I have been a busy bee doing stuff.  Stuff I can write about too but it has also meant I've had no time to actually write them up.  So I thought I would tease you a little with this quick update.

A couple of weekends ago Miss Cherrylicious did a stint at It's Something Hell's owned by Mr. Ducktail and Miss Betty.  I was their attentive Pin-Up Assistant for the day!  Something a bit different for me as I am usually the one with the assistants.  I had rather a lot of fun and met some lovely people and Miss Minna popped by to see me too.  She did end up having a quick trim on her bangs.

It was in a way a wee bit nostalgic but just not as glamorous.  When I was at school I did two weeks work experience at my local hair and beauty salon.  It's funny because I had a crush on this boy in my class and his sister was one of the hair stylists at the salon.  I found out a few things about him.  He was definitely a sweetie.  I remember I really enjoyed myself.  Painting my nails, getting my ears pieced.  Working too of course  but it was a good memory.  Shame I didn't follow it through as I love doing all that hair and make-up girly fun these days.

Anyway, here's a couple of pics taken on the day...

You will find me sporting this little number around town proudly! 

This was short but sweet.  More posts soon.  I promise.

Tara for now,
Alison xxx

This, Last and Next...

Weekends that is.  I did some fun things and will be participating in some other fun things before Christmas really kicks in.

Last weekend was a lot of plans and un-plans.  Realising I didn't have to work and that some of my friends were going to the sold out second Halloween Torture Garden night I tried to get my hands on a ticket.  Since that wasn't going too well I decided to have dinner and drinks with a friend.  That was until Saturday morning when she told me she could only go for one.  One!?  I decided to postpone and headed back to Surrey to hang out with my baby pups.  This worked out quite well because I had planned on going back the next weekend but something came up, which I will write about next. Anyway, I headed to the suburbs with some goodies in hand.  Goodies to do my hair with!

I had called ahead to make sure my sis would be in so that I could rope her into doing my hair for me.  Hehe.  I had been considering going the full head of turquoise but knowing how busy I would be in the coming months I decided against it.  I wouldn't have the time to maintain it.  So I opted for an alternative.  1/3 turquoise!  Plus the front section I kept because I love how my rolls look with it.

The front re-done

My triangle of blueness :D 

I'm loving it!  Except my scalp hurts a bit from the bleaching.  I will try and show you another photo soon when I fashion it into some style or up-do.

This was my Saturday night in well spent.  The only thing was.  Two hours after arriving a friend knew a friend who had some tickets going for TG.  Typical.

Sunday was lovely and went as pre-planned for once.  It was absolutely freezing here but we holed up in new Dalston drinking/stew house The Dead Dolls Club for my favourite; Sunday Roast!  It was so lovely, cosy and warm in there.  We didn't want to leave for fireworks.  But of course we did.  Not before we squeezed in some crumble for desert.  Even if we were about to burst due to yummy roast goodness.  In a very good way.

The Duke

Guy Fawkes. Happy to say that my pups don't get distressed by this. They just carry on as normal.

Onto This coming weekend... On Saturday I shall be working, but not at my usual job.  Nope.  You will all be able to swing by to It's Something Hell's Rockabilly Barbers to say a little hi.  I shall be bringing out Miss Cherrylicious guest pin-up assistant to Mr Ducktail for the day.  My lovely friend Sharon of Minnie Moons is their regular pin-up assistant.  Why not come and get a kut or pick up a tee whilst I'm there?  I will make sure you get taken care of!

Finally the Next weekend.  You shall find me hanging out at Old Spitalfields Market on Saturday the 17th.  No not to shop, but to curate.  There will be a Pop Up Vintage Fashion Show and yours truly will be up early and down there styling some outfits along with a handful of other talented people.  More on this soon.  On the Sunday I will be heading west by invitation to visit a lovely luxury lingerie boutique to meet with the owner.  I will keep you posted on all things frilly and lacy.

Well, that's the weekends sorted.  In between all this and more I will be squeezing in an attendance at a magazine launch, writing up an interview, DJing at an event, more drinks and dinner with friends and starting a new job.  A new job for the same company.  I have been promoted at work so a new title and at a new location :D  I shall be very busy indeed.

Hopefully I will be back on here with more updates very soon.  So much to write about!

Until next time, toodles!
Alison xxx

I Am Miss Cherrylicious

Hello :)

This is just a swift blog post to tell you all that I have finally set up a page for my pin-up modeling work over on Facebook.  Not really sure why I never did it before or why I have done so all of a sudden.  A friend of mine gave me a little nudge and after a think over it I realised that over the years since I started, I have modeled more this year than any other single year.  It seems strange that this should be but I think it is.  It would be lovely if you would join me over on Facebook and gave me a wee like if you so desired :D  I do so appreciate all your support; reading and following me.  I really enjoy writing these posts and am considering doing some other writing too.

I shall hope to update my Miss Cherrylicious page with new photos and have already uploaded a selection of older ones which I have not posted on here before.  I have three shoots from earlier on in the year which I am yet to receive photos for so they will probably go up soon.  There is talk of possible modeling for an exciting new brand.  If that goes ahead I shall be shooting before Christmas too.  Unfortunately I cannot seem to locate all of my photographs from over the years.  Some may be lost forever unless I come across them online.  I have changed computers a few times and probably didn't save/transfer everything over.  Oopsy.

Here's a little teaser of what's over there...

I'm in midst of writing another post so will be back shortly!

It's gone 4am here in Blighty and I should really be getting some shut eye.

Nighty night for now,

Alison xxx

The Un-Dressing Parlour

Hello everyone!

How are you all on what has turned out to be a lovely(sunny) morning so far?  This is just an in-between post to tell you about something new I have set up.  I have become increasingly obsessed with looking through Tumblr of late.  Not that I don't already save and search for endless images anyway.  But so much so it only made sense for me to start my own.  I don't think I have time to write two blogs and Tumblr is ideal in many ways.  My initial thoughts were to blog about Mens style/fashion as I work with them nearly everyday.  A well dressed dapper gent turns my head more so than a lady ever does.  This is partly because it seems to be a rare occasion and you have to take it in when you get the chance.  It's almost like fresh unpolluted air.

However when signing up to Tumblr that idea all changed.  I thought to myself, what am I obsessed with more than most things (apart from shoes)?  Lingerie and tattoos of course!

So from there on The Un-Dressing Parlour was born...

How do you like the name?!  I thought it very fitting to call it that.  It is only in the beginning stages but with most things I'd love for it to fruit!
I hope you can come and join me there.  Please link me to all your wonderful postings too :D


I'm off now to celebrate my sisters birthday.  Have a lovely weekend one and all!

Alison xxx

Ps. Does anyone know how to create a button for Tumblr to put onto here please?  I can't see anything in the help section.

My High Rock-A-Billy Style

Heyhey!

Carrying on from my last post on High Rockabilly I thought I would do a separate one of my wardrobe.  These seem to be my most popular write-ups along with my photo shoot posts and it did take me quite a while to pull my outfits together.  Don't you just hate not having your full wardrobe on access when you need it the most?!

Here is a list of my entire luggage... 5 Dresses, 2 Two-Piece sets, 7 Tops, 3 Skirts, 6 Shorts/Pants, 2 Playsuits, 17 pieces of Lingerie, 4 sets of Bikinis, 7 Handbags, 6 pairs of Shoes, 5 Head Scarves, 2 Sarongs, 2 Fans, a Belt, lots of Hair Flowers & Accessories, Tongs & Rollers, 3 pairs of Sunnies, some Jewellery, a Parasol and heaps of Cosmetics/Products!

This happily came in under my luggage weight allowance.  I was pretty pleased with what I had achieved.  There wasn't too much I didn't use and I needed the choice!  Unfortunately I didn't photograph all my outfits so there are a few missing but there are still plenty here to show you.


Wednesday - Day of arrival

A quick freshen up and change of outfit after landing for our first night out.

Simple wife beater and high-waisted denim shorts with my tiki wedges.

Thursday - First Day of the Festival!

No capture of my beachwear but here I am for the pool party.

This two-piece is another of my tailor made outfits. Nice and bright!

In the evening I wore my Vivian of Holloway favourite blue Hawaiian sarong dress.

This was teamed with my Miss L Fire clear lucite handbag.

I wore a lovely up-do for this outfit.

You can't quite see the two rolls at the front here.

Friday - Day of Photo shoot

In the morning I went off to do a photo shoot by the beach.

Later for the pool party I dressed-down. It was so so hot and I was a bit tired!

One of my all-time favourite tops from Mode Merr.

Parasol became pool parties best friend...

In the evening we went out for an Indian meal before partying.

I wore my bespoke Leopard print Cheongsam dress.

Saturday - Hillbilly BBQ

Attending the Hillbilly BBQ in some leopard print hotpants and an off-shoulder top.

The party was by the pool but I'd feel odd eating a BBQ in my bikini!

This chair was surely designed for pin-up posing no?

My poolside attire - half bikini, half hot pants since I don't actually swim.

I managed to wear two of the bikini tops with shorts. Not bad.

(Apologies for the bathroom pic) I didn't get a full outfit shot by the pool.

There were definitely some mixed reactions to my hot pants.
Not sure why as we were by the pool. Haha.

In the evening I broke out one of my favourite pieces of vintage.

You may recognise this dress from my feature in a certain book ;) 

Teamed with my "new" handbag purchased at Old Style Weekend.

Sunday - Flea Market Day and the Last Day :( 
I don't seem to have any photos of my daytime outfit again.  It was the cutest little vintage top and circle skirt.  My apologies... but I do have the evening outfit!

One of my favourite made to measure two-piece outfits from a vintage pattern.

This is the second time I have worn it out and the crazy amount of compliments I get!

With my Vivienne/Melissa mules & newly purchased handbag from the flea earlier.

I really liked my hair that evening.

Veronica Lake style waves pinned to one side.

I hope you enjoyed my outfits for High Rockabilly.  Some of which you may recognise if you are a regular reader of my blog.  Going on two summer vacations this year has meant less clothes shopping for me.  Although pretty much everything is new-ish (if not new) having only worn them once or twice before.  Thank goodness I have a general addiction to shopping!  There are quite a few outfits missing from my trip, but mostly daytime ones.  I am quite excited to hopefully see some photos from the shoot I did soon.  I shall of course make a post on them.

I want to say a big hi to everyone I met.  It was lovely to meet those of you who read my blog also.  I thought that was really fun!  I will be back with an overview of High Rockabilly next time.  For now, I am thinking about Thursday when I shall be making a visit to The Vintage Patisserie head quarters!


Much love,
Alison xxx