On Sunday I went to bag myself some vintage goodies at Lou Lou’s Vintage Fair, which was being held at The Albert Hall, Nottingham.
According to their website Lou Lou’s Vintage Fair is the leading vintage fair for the UK and winner of ‘Best Vintage Fair in the UK’. They currently organise fairs at 39 different locations around the UK, plus vintage wedding fairs in addition to this. All this expertise really had me raring to go, and I was quite excited by the time the fair came around.
You don’t have to be a fashion expert (which I most definitely am not!) or a cool kid (even more not me!) to know that vintage has been becoming more and more popular over the last few years. News articles back in 2012, like this one from the BBC and this one from the Guardian, were already questioning when the popularity bubble of the vintage scene was going to pop, but it doesn’t seem to be going anywhere yet. In fact from what I have seen it is still going from strength to strength, with vintage style cafes and beauty-salons now popping up everywhere. Plus when it comes to clothes, more and more businesses are creating new pieces styled on classic vintage designs, often adding a new twist to make their items really unique.
Now it would seem that not all vintage is, well, vintage.
I was hoping to find some of these newly-made clothing retailers at the fair, as sometimes I find vintage fairs and shops a bit like a charity shop that has been a bit over-zealous with the pricing. You may criticise me in choosing style over substance – and this is one occasion you can actually say that about me – but I’m not one to buy any old piece of clothing in the name of buying something vintage. I want something a bit different, something that fits properly and most of all something that looks good. I am not too bothered about the age of it either way.
Unfortunately there weren’t any new clothing retailers, however, the second-hand retailers that were there did have some lovely bits so I didn’t stay disappointed for long. I had to put quite a few dresses back on the rack or my baby would have been without nappies for the month, but it was a close choice at times! There was a nice, wide selection of clothes, and it was good to see a big selection of things for men too.
As good as the dresses were, it was the jewellery that nearly undid me. There was a lot of jewellery and other trinkets, e.g. compacts. Some of it vintage in the traditional sense of the word and some vintage styled new pieces, but lots of really gorgeous bits. I could have spent a small fortune. One particularly good stall was Madame Cherry, which was full of beautiful, and some quite unusual, pieces of jewellery.
I was genuinely surprised by the high level of the majority of the stock, though that is not to say there were no questionable items there. I guess it is all a matter of taste.
In addition to the clothes and jewellery, there was also a lady doing fantastic things to people’s hair for a small fee. I wasn’t convinced you could have even got a brush through mine after getting caught in the wind earlier, so I steered clear, but from what I saw her do to other people she was a master of her art!
The location of the Albert Hall was perfect for the fair. It is in the city centre and close to all the transport links so was easy to get to. For those that had driven there was ample on-street parking around the venue, which on a Sunday (as long as you park in the right zone) is a £1 flat rate for the day.
It is a beautiful building, and the architecture really lent itself to the atmosphere of the event. Plus with the high ceilings in the main room you didn’t feel boxed in at all by the rails of clothing as can sometimes be the case. They also had some stalls selling homewares and collectables set up in the foyer, along with a larger stall selling hot drinks and baked goods with a seating area, which meant you weren’t confined to one room.
By the time we got around to the refreshment stall though they had unfortunately sold out of all the baked goods except for a few cookies. With another hour left before the fair closed we thought we had better leave before the riot started due to the lack of cake.
Laura Stevens 
First of all I want to say fantastic blog! I had a quick question in
which I’d like to ask if you don’t mind. I was curious to know how you center yourself and clear your mind before writing.
I’ve had a difficult time clearing my mind in getting my thoughts out there.
I truly do take pleasure in writing but it just seems like
the first 10 to 15 minutes are wasted just trying to figure out how to begin.
Any ideas or hints? Many thanks!
Thank you so much. I’m glad you like my blog.
As silly as it sounds, the only way I can get in the right frame of mind to write, is by actually starting to write. Without thinking about it too much I get pen to paper/start typing and, even if it is a list of topics I want to cover or some half-formed sentences, it helps me develop an idea of what I’m doing and where I want it to go. Then I go back through and build on what I’ve done, or use it to structure what I’m going to write. I find if I think about how to begin too much I can’t get anywhere.
I hope this helps you. Good luck with your writing!
Laura