Vintage Vibe!

What a vintage filled day at The Christmas Haigh Hall Vintage Fair last Sunday! It really got me feeling the Christmas vibe with all the grand decorations and open log fire! Not to mention the mulled wine and the amazing stalls!

This really is one of the best vintage fairs to go to! The setting is perfect and with live entertainment in the form of Bexi owen and Lane Paul Stewart, your £1 entry fee is well spent! Theres the perfect mix of superb vintage, curios, retro inspired crafts and tasty homemade treats to make it an utter pleasure to mooch around the 2 floors of stalls and shop until your heart is content! The fair is organised by Vibrant Vintage who do a fabulous job and really make the event special! Good news too....there will be 5 dates booked for next year so keep posted to find out when the next Haigh Hall fair is! 

On our next vintage travels we will be in Ramsbottom for the Christmas 'Ramsbottom Needs Vintage' fair on the 1st Dec! With over 20 stalls going there will also be live entertainment, vintage fashion shows, make overs, afternoon tea and prizes for 'Best dressed Girl and Guy'! This fair has a great atmosphere and with it being right in the heart of Ramsbottom with the Christmas street market on too, its set up to be a fab retro filled day!

I absolutely love Christmas so please don't cringe too much at my retro song of the week choice! I can't help it! Heh heh. I also do have a soft spot for Rosemary Clooney...and want it to snow. So here's ' Let It Snow' sung by Rosemary Clooney. Enjoy! 


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My Style

Phew! What a few weeks! unfortunately I've been a bit on the poorly side, missed my Halloween party and have not been on any vintage adventures! But we did get featured in The 'My Style' section of The Bolton News and Bury Times last Saturday! Woo Hoo! And have a fabulous mix and match outfit to share with you! 

Check us out in the paper! We were luckily enough to get featured in The My Style section showing our Mix and Match vintage ethos to its best! We love mix and matching vintage with modern clothing for a really unique look!

•  The fabulous 70's dress is straight from our Boutique and one I love! With its bold print and bright yellow buttons it's a real statement piece great for summer and autumn! 
• The jacket is modern and a bargain which I picked up at a charity shop a few years back! It works with so many outfits modern and vintage which is why I like it! 
• The gorgeous green velvet bag is also a bargain piece I picked up at a vintage fair this year, although it isn't vintage just vintage inspired! The gold and deep green work so well together and I love the chain strap!
•  The knee-high boots are my favourite boots I own, the colour, laces and the heel...fab! I got these last year from Dune, and luckily enough in the sale! They should have been £120, but I snapped them up at £45! Yay! 
• Tights/leggings and jewellery are a great way of tying an outfit together, keeping colour coordinated and adding a shot of contrasting colour to your outfit! I chose dark green tights to match the green theme and added a bright orange ring for a bit of contrast!
•  Do any of you love mix and matching outfits? What is your style ethos? Get in touch and share your unique style with us! Drop us an email @ retroqueen@hotmail.co.uk or get in touch via Facebook or Twitter under 'RetroQueenB'.

Our next vintage adventure will be at the amazing Haigh Hall this Sunday! This really is a great fair, with its fabulous mix of vintage, retro handmade and food stalls and its truly vintage setting its a must! We have some fab new vintage treasures coming with us too! With new jewellery and party clothes! So pop along and treat yourself! 

Mix 'N' Match

Hello vintage ladies! Our pop up boutique at The Vintage Fashion Fair at Hartley's Wine Bar in Preston went down a treat! It was a bit of a knees up to with some silly photos and a laugh! It's such a great atmosphere at this vintage fair with some quality vintage traders and the lovely Mrs Dolly Dazzler running the show and dishing out sweet treats! Heres a few photos of the day:

 

 We do a get a tiny bit silly sometimes! Heh Heh

 

 Using vintage and modern clothes, blended seamlessly together to create a unique look is a fabulous way to show off your own style. Mix and matching is the game and we love playing it! Heres one of our favourite mix and match outfits!

 

 Autumn colours are my favourite especially dark oranges and tan, so when I spied this fab vintage jumper at a fair recently I couldn't resist! I love jumpers that give you a shape not just keep you warm and the sleeves are so cute! The blouse was an absolute find! I found it in a local charity shop for the bargain price of £3!!!! I fell in love with the detail on the collar and knew it would be perfect for autumn! The denim skirt Is a classic cut and style that I've had for a few years so definitely money well spent there! The orangey tights are a sale item from tesco, and again the colour drew me and made me buy them! And I was lucky enough that it all matched by Brogues!! My whole outfit cost less than £25 and is totally unique and totally me! Wearing vintage is such a great way to express yourself and I just love the fact that no one else will be wearing what I'm wearing! Get out there and mix and match!

We have no vintage fair this weekend! I'm actually getting a weekend off! Phew! I get to go to a Halloween party, full costumes, so will be posting photos, as I get to wreck a real full on wedding dress and become a corpse bride! Heh Heh Keep posted to find out where our next vintage adventure will be next week!

 

 Our song of the week is a compilation of spooky Halloween songs from the 50's and 60's! It's a great mix and will get you in the mood for the fright night......with a vintage twist! 

Halloween Vintage 

Fairs and Fashion!

We had a fab time at The Kings Arms Vintage Fair in Salford last weekend! It was a bit different as the vintage stalls were spread out through the pub, which made it a good one to browse through working your way to the top for more vintage finds! There was Oodles of vintage treasures and the chance to sit outside in the garden and have a drink or too! Fab! Here are a few photos of the day!  

 Our next vintage adventure is this Saturday at The Dolly Dazzler Vintage Fashion Fair in Hartleys Wine Bar! A very nice bar, good for having a few cheeky cocktails in and they serve food too! Plus plenty of vintage treasures for your wardrobe just waiting to be found! See you there!

 We are loving this fabulous 80's retro blouse! Arriving this weekend in our Vintage Box! The colours are amazing and it's a great, unique addition to your A/W wardrobe! Just worn with skinny jeans and some statement boots is all it needs! Perfect! 

 

Here's one of my favourite 80's songs for you this week! I love the video as well! Check it out and sing along!

A - Ha: Take On Me 

Autumn Treats!

Well autumn is in full swing, my favourite season of them all! I love getting all my scarves, boots and winter coats out, the special days of Halloween and Bonfire and all the yummy foods that go with them! But most of all I love the colours! I am definitely an autumn chick! Burnt orange, greens and purples with a dash of blue! Here are some of my favourite pieces from our vintage box for autumn! 

 

Pride of place is the beautifully patterned vintage circle skirt! It's a great length for autumn and the colours are just lovely! Feel pretty and feminine while banishing the cold by adding some layered jumpers and knee-high boots to this glorious skirt! Next up is the statement 80's evening dress! The photo just doesn't do the colours justice! It's shimmery and silky and lovely to wear. Long sleeved and medium length but centering around the waist to give you a flattering shape! And last but by no means least is the classic velvet blazer! A must have piece for your wardrobe that's timeless and can be worn season after season! Add a sparkling top, skinny jeans and heels and you've got a simple yet retro look. Any of them catch your eye? Well check them out in our Vintage Box! 

 

Well we had a retro filled day at The Valley Needs Vintage Fair on Sunday! And totally fell in love with this coat! It's now on my christmas wish list! The colour is fab and I love the silhouette it creates! It's surprisingly heavy though! Heh heh 

Next on our vintage travels we will be at The Kings Arms Fair in Salford on Sat 19th! Very excited! I have heard fabulous things about this fair, plus they sell beer too! Yay!! Hope to see you there!

Our retro song of the week is of course autumn themed! ( Cheesy I know!) It's beautifully sung by Doris Day and is from 1956. It's a staring out of the window, while drinking hot tea kind of song! Enjoy!

Autumn Leaves - Doris Day 

 

Retro Revival!

Well we've been to many fab vintage fairs over the past month! And have many more planned! Yay! Here are a few photos of our vintage adventures!

 

 What a day at 'Vintage By The Sea' held at The Midland Hotel in Morecambe! It was über busy and filled with oodles of vintage treasures! We were lucky enough to get a snap with that fab vintage motor before the day kicked off! I loved it! The carnival cut outs were great fun too! There were loads to choose from! The fabulous couple all dressed up were awesome! I'd met them before at The Vintage Village In Stockport and they had come for the day and were lucky enough to be staying over at the Midland and had tickets for the evening do too! jealous! It had a buzzing atmosphere all day, the setting was perfect and it was one of my favourite fairs! Check out more of our photos of the day on our Facebook page Retro Queen B.

 

 We were at The Retro Revival Festival this weekend just gone and loved it! A day filled with vintage fashion and amazing swing/jazz bands all day and night! Unfortunately we didn't get to do much dancing as we had our pop up shop, but still loved the day! Next year we may just go for fun and dance the night away! 

 

This Autumn Goddess dress (as we have named it!) is one of our favourite vintage pieces this season! The colours are just amazing and we love the pattern! The cut is a classic 80's style, giving you a flattering shape centred around the waist! It's a fab length for when the weather gets chilly, just add your favourite boots and fitted coat and you've got yourself a unique vintage look this autumn! Check it out in our Vintage Box!

 Our next vintage adventure will be at 'The Valley Needs Vintage Fair' this sunday 13th October at Haslingden High School in Rossendale BB4 4 EY on 11am till 4pm! Pop down for a fun-filled retro day and grab yourself something unique for your A/W wardrobe! See you there!

 As we have been to the Retro Revival Festival this weekend we are filled with a need to swing dance! We love 'Hooked On Swing By Glenn Miller' but we've picked 'Sing, Sing, Sing By Benny Goodman' for sheer 'makes you want to dance immediately' value! Get your dancing shoes on! Enjoy! 

Sing, Sing, Sing - Benny Goodman 

Retro Fresh

We have some new Retro Fresh additions to Retro Queen Boutique! Our Retro Fresh section shows you our latest items all ready to go and funk up your wardrobe! Here are some of our favourites!

 We love this fabulous 80's dress! With its beautiful floral/butterfly design and flattering cut, it's a winner for us! It's elegant and so easy to wear! Dressed up or down your sure to look amazing in it! Size: 12 - 14 and £16.99.

 The classic white pleated skirt! So many ways to wear it, so little time! We love the clash of fabrics in this look. The contrast of the floaty skirt to the solid look of the denim shirt just work together so well making this a statement retro look! Both are available in our 'Vintage Box'!

 Now this is totally gorgeous! The colours, the pattern and the cut are all spot on for us! It's bold yet delicate and is sure to make a statement when ever you wear it! I particularly like the purple buttons and the shoulder straps, I love how they curve around your shoulder for an uber flattering and elegant look! It would look great worn with a fitted jacket or cute cardigan for when it gets a bit cooler! Size: 12 and £16.99

 Our next vintage adventure will be at The Dolly Dazzler Presents Vintage Fair this sunday! We will be bringing lots of new vintage treasures to update your wardrobe ready for the Autumn season! Very excited to spread the vintage love!

 This week we are going for an old school classic for our song of the week, from 1941 which is one of our favourites! It's such an endearing song with beautiful melodys! And I happen to actually have green eyes too! Heh Heh Enjoy! 

Green Eyes - Helen O' Connell & Bob Eberly with The Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra 

Fairs Galore!

Fairs galore! We have been out and about the past few weeks spreading the Vintage love, meeting fab new people and selling some of our über cool new vintage pieces! Some of which will be arriving in our 'Vintage Box' very soon! Excited!! Here's some pic's of where we have been on our vintage travels!

This was at Beesley Green Community Centre in Worsley at 'A Vintage Afternoon Tea' by Lavender Cottage Cakes! A beautiful place next to a bowling green, it was a really nice sunny day, lots of vintage and craft stalls and proper homemade afternoon tea in one! Fab! We will definitely be going there again!

 This was the fab day at Kenyon Hall farm Vintage and Craft fair, with a family fun day too! Candy floss stalls, fruit picking, ice cream and much more! And of course a whole barn full of vintage and crafts! I did have to don my wellies for a bit packing up as we got a down pour later in the day! Didnt quite go with my dress but very much-needed! Heh heh

 These were taken the Sat just gone at The Dolly Dazzler Presents Vintage Fair in Fulwood, Preston! What a gorgeous place too! There was a pop up tea shop in the middle of the hall and then oodles of vintage and crafts around the outside! Met the fab lady in the pink dress who was totally rocking the vintage look! I wanted her whole outfit! We also met the über cool Miss Sitting Pretty who has a Fashion/Beauty/Lifestyle blog! Check her out @ www.sittingprettyatmydesk.com

 At the Fulwood fair I tried some peanut butter flapjacks from a cute little stall and totally fell in love with it! So I decided to have a bash myself (in-between measuring and prepping some fab new vintage pieces, writing this blog and day dreaming....) and here's how it went!

It went well! Heh heh You can use your favourite flapjack recipe and just add the peanut butter or follow mine, but either way its delicious! The recipe I use it soooooo simple and healthy: 450g Oats, 375g Agave Nectar (available from supermarkets!) and almost a whole tub of peanut butter! And thats it! Really!! Just mix the oats and Agave together, press down half of the mixture into a cake tin (what ever size you have) add the peanut butter and try to spread it around (this can be a little bit tricky) and then top with the rest of the mixture! I oven baked mine on 150 degrees for 20/25 mins, then allowed to cool and tucked in! Using the Agave Nectar makes this a low sugar snack or breakfast! Would be great topped with melted chocolate though! Heh heh Enjoy!

Our next vintage fair will be this Sunday (11th Aug) at The Vintage Village in Stockport! It's a Toggery themed fair which means 60's fabulousness! yay! Hope to see you there! Keep posted for updates on when our new vintage pieces are arriving too!

Now to the song of the week! Since our minds on the 60's with the coming fair and it is in honour of The Toggery Five, we have picked one of theirs from 1963! Enjoy!

The Toggery Five - Dance With You 

Busy Vintage Bee!

Busy Vintage Bee indeed! We have been showing off our Vintage and Retro treasures at The 1940's Event held in Westhoughton on Sat 6th. We were at the Candy Peel Goes Vintage Fair in Lymm last Saturday and managed to squeeze in at The Razzle Dazzle Vintage Fair on Sunday! Phew! Retro Queen is on a roll! This weekend we have no fairs on, but we are off on a treasure hunt to bring you lots of new vintage goodies to be loved again! Here are some photos of the fab events we have been a part of!

 The 1940's Event in Westhoughton Market was a great day! We were raising money for our local Help the Hero's fund and sharing our love of all things vintage! Who could resist charming gentlemen in waistcoats and uniform? Eh?! Heh heh. The 3 women in the photo were so amazing too! They came in singing and laughing and just generally having a great time of it! Loved it! And over £800 pounds was raised on the day! Woo Hoo!

 The Candy Peel goes Vintage Fair was fun! With lots of cool craft and vintage stalls, a pop up tea room and gorgeous surroundings it was great! Had to get a few pics outside too as it was so sunny! How amazing is that 'Candy's Tea Room' sign!? I love it! Handmade by the lovely Michelle in the photo! Getting in the TePee was a must too! Hee hee.

 The Razzle Dazzle Traveling Vintage Fair is held at Cedar Farm Galleries in Mawdesley, which is a beautiful place filled with funky cafe's, handmade galleries, studios and a farm where you can feed the animals! Again the sun was out and über warm, oodles of vintage and collectable stalls, delicious coffee and fab customers made it great day! 

One of the things I love about doing the fairs is getting the chance to wear some of my many vintage clothes! And they are ever growing! Depending on the venue, the weather and my inclination, I can play around with my outfit and make it a real talking point at the fairs! The dress I wore to the 1940's event is a new addition to my wardrobe, I had intended to sell it but now I just can't part with it! It's so feminine, super comfy and has little pockets at the front too! Heh heh I have fallen head over heels! The next dress (yes I do have a thing for dresses!) I wore at the Candy Peel goes vintage fair. This was a great bargain buy at a vintage fair last year for only £8! Amazing I know! Again its very easy to wear, comfy and I just love the pattern and the detail on the top of the chest! It works great accessorizing it with similar soft colours as I did at that fair, but it also works really well with bright red accessories which give it a different look!  At The Razzle Dazzle Fair I wore one of my favourite dresses! This was a gift from my lovely Grandma last year, and what a gift! She bought it in the early 70's to wear to a fancy summer evening do, wore it once then carefully packed it up and put it safely in the wardrobe never to be worn again...untill me! Heh heh. It's such a statement maxi dress, great for wearing casual with flats or dressing up for a night out! I absolutely love the colours, it gives you energy just looking at it! Bold, bright and beautiful! Even more so knowing it came from my grandma with love!

We will have lots more vintage treasures coming to Retro Queen Boutique soon so keep posted for new items and our next vintage fairs!

As we are being a super busy vintage bee at the moment this song springs to mind for our song of the week! Enjoy!

Queen - Don't Stop Me Now

Vintage Adverntures

Well we've got a busy few weeks coming, starting with last Sunday when we were at The Haigh Hall Vintage Fair. We had a fun, retro filled day, we sold lots of great vintage pieces now off to new homes to be re worn and loved again! We listened to the beautiful and talented Bexi Owen and Lane Paul Stewart who were dressed up to the nines in vintage gear and sang some classic retro hits! The fab Brookes Cupcakes and The Urban chocolate company were there too, supplying their delicious and naughty treats of which we rather over indulged in! Ooops! You only live once! That's my excuse! Here's a few photos from the day!

Our next vintage escapade is @ The 1940's Event being held at Westhoughton Market this Saturday! It's all to raise money for the local Help The Hero's fund! There will be vintage fashion and collectables, crafts and local food stalls! Live retro music, and much more! All the stall holders are dressing up in their best 1940's gear so feel free to don your vintage dresses for the day!

The weekend after on the 13th July we will be at The Candy Peel Goes Vintage Fair at The Lymm Village Hall in Sale! This is a new venue for us so fingers crossed we will share the vintage love and meet some fab new people! Check out the leaflet below for more info!

 

 Our 'In The Spot Light' product this week is this lovely green waistcoat. The button's are gorgeous and we love the colour! This is such a great vintage piece for all seasons. It looks great over a summer dress and will take you right into autumn and winter worn with a jumper or shirt underneath! Try layering it up, add some long necklaces and cute head band for a unique retro look! Check it out in our 'Vintage Box' under 'Tops'!

 

Our song of the week is by the fabulous Caro Emerald! We love her retro vibes and her new album 'The Shocking Miss Emerald' is out now too! Click on the link below to hear one of our favourite songs by Miss Emerald and prepare to want to swing dance!

That Man - Caro Emerald

80'S Vibe!

Our next Vintage Adventure will be on 30th June at Haigh Hall Vintage Fair! We are really looking forward to this one as the setting is beautiful and it's just the perfect place for a vintage fair! The building dates back from the 1850's and was previously the home of The Earl of Crawford and Balcarres! It creates such a great atmosphere and day out!

Our featured product this week was going to be this fabulous vintage umbrella (below) in peaches and pinks as we love it so, but it's sold already! Phew!

 

 So instead we have gone for a mix of items to show our love of the 80's!! In the photo below we feature one of our favourite dresses on Retro Queen! The '80's Mixed Blue Shirt Dress' is definitely a Stand out and Be Loud look! Works great dressed up or down for a super retro and unique summer look! The classic 80's court shoe's are a great addition to your wardrobe! A neutral colour but with a bit of cheeky gold detail! The stripy red dress is a cool look this summer, it's a really light weight dress so not only will you look cool but feel it too! The button detail on the neck is lovely too! Would look great with some long gold necklaces and bangles! And now for the awesome 80's Bomber Jacket! We looooooove this so much! What a statement look! Add a pair of skinny jeans, boots and shades and your on to a winner! I guarantee you no one is going to be wearing what you're wearing! This jacket does come with a caution: Contains large shoulders pads......requires large amount of confidence to pull off! Heh heh! You can find all these items in our 'Vintage Box'!

 Now for our song of the week! It has to be an 80's one of course! We have picked one of our favourite songs, and one we just can't help singing along too! Its 'Sweet Dreams' by the Eurythmics. Click on the link below, and fall into sweet dreams!

Eurythmics - Sweet Dreams 

 

Retro Summer!!

Our latest vintage adventure was @ The Kenyon Hall Farm Vintage Fair on the 2nd June! We were in a really cool barn that had hay as walls! Not good if you have hay fever though but otherwise cool! We sold some lovely vintage pieces including this fab purple summer dress! And our vintage 1935 type writer was a big hit too! So many people saying how they used to have one and having a little type! Nostalgia! 

 We had a bit of cheeky candy floss too! Couldnt resist!

 

 The featured product this week @ Retro Queen is this fabulously coloured 80's Maxi Dress (below)! It just gives you that holiday feeling and is so feminine yet comfy! It's a real classic vintage piece for your wardrobe that you can bring out every summer and look amazing in! Add some easy gladiators or go high with wedges, head band and bangles and you're a Retro Summer Goddess! Find this fab maxi dress in our Vintage box @ www.retroqueen.co.uk!

Our song of the week and one that goes perfectly with our featured product is 'Summer Breeze' by the Isley Brothers. The weather has been spot on and we are totally feeling the vibe of this song! Click on the link below, sit back and reeeelax!! 

'Summer Breeze' - The Isley Brothers

Welcoming all Retro Queens!

We were formly known as Heart - A Unique Boutique and have taken on a retro transformation over the past few months into Retro Queen! Have a mooch around the new site and explore the new and improved shop! Feel free to leave a post in our guest book and let us know what you think of the new look!

All things vintage and retro make us happy and we want to share that with you! To keep you topped up, our blog will be weekly and have new featured products, 'how to wear' features and just generally containing all things retro bliss!  Check out our Gallery page too to see RQ at vintage fairs and previous fabulous items that just have to be seen!

Our featured product this week is the funky 'Carnegie of London' 60's/70's dress (below)! This is one of our favourite items on the site at the moment. It's such an interchangeable item, easy to dress up or down for a über retro look. In the photo we are wearing the dress with a petticoat underneath to add a cheeky 50's feel to the dress, add killer heels and a matching waist belt and you'll be a knock out! It's such a flattering shape and surprisingly comfy! Equally it would look fab with a thin brown or cream belt, chunky knee highs and a cardigan for a cool retro day look! Once you've got a timeless piece like this dress in your wardrobe it's just about having fun with accessorising and letting your creative side flow to create your own unique look! That's one reason why vintage/retro is so much fun! There's so many eras to pick from and as I often say 'It just totally depends what mood I'm in that day!' heh heh

 Our song of the week and one that we are totally loving at the moment is 'Slip' by Stooshe. Click on the link below, have a listen, a dance and get in to that retro mood!

Stooshe - Slip