Tuesday 13 October 2015

Miss Bamboo and The Real Housewives of Cheshire

Miss Bamboo loves an adventure and this was a little more unusual than normal, working as Stylist for the TV show 'Real Housewives of Cheshire'  during the summer.

Model and 'footballers wife' Tanya Bardsley, one of the key characters in the show, decides to do a Charity Calendar with a '50s theme' and invites old modelling pal Strutters along for a days filming and test shoot.
Tanya Bardsley- Model and star of The Real Houswives of Cheshire

 Tanya and Strutters were lovely to work with and while these thoroughly modern ladies are used to contemporary style, it was great to give them this 'taster' of vintage style glamour.




 Outfit 1 - Trashy Diva's Honey Dress and Lena Dress in Coral both available in Americana section at www.missbamboo.co.uk, vintage hat and purse from Miss Bamboo's own collection, (shoes Model's own, preferring to keep their modern high heels for a 'sexier' feel!)
Lena Dress in Coral

Honey Dress in Jade Watercolour
On to the second outfit and a vintage nautical look....





Outfit 2 - Pencil dress and flared bow dress by Tatyana.  Vintage 1950s purses from Miss Bamboo's own collection. Bamboo parasols from Miss Bamboo.  Shoes models own.
Pencil dress now out of stock but get the look with the  'Deep Water Dress' also at www.missbamboo.co.uk
Deep Water Dress

The outfits were perhaps not what the girls had expected, no polka dots and petticoats here(!!) but they actually really liked the looks that were put together, showing  in their own inimitable way how vintage and modern can marry for a fabulous look.

Miss Bamboo with Tanya and Strutters, was lovely to meet you!

Series 2 episode 6 was aired on 12th Oct 2015 on ITV Be and has a variety of other showings....



 


Sunday 19 April 2015

Help Find Frank! All the fun and fiasco at Colin and Sarah's Wedding!

Saturday 11th April 2015, the date of Colin the shoemaker and Sarah's wedding in the wonderful city of New Orleans. Miss  Bamboo as 'Chief Bridesmaid' and Big Bamboo Best Man!

This however, was not to be a smooth affair! It was touch and go as to whether the bride (and groom) as it transpires would make it! This is the girls tale though!

The day went well, Miss Bamboo and Sarah had a lovely pre wedding lunch and drinks and gave themselves plenty of time to get ready.



We had been told it would be difficult to get a taxi because of the French Quarter Festival and various roads being closed but organised for the hotel to get us a taxi for 5.15 pm.  Plenty of time to get to the paddle steamer, Creole  Queen by 6pm for what should be a 15 minute ride away.

However, as we left the room, the heavens opened. Now, when it rains in New Orleans it sure does rain!! The hotel front desk staff then told us the taxi would not come for us because of the Festival. A taxi outside also  refused to take us with Miss Bamboo hammering on the window in the rain "She's getting married", to no avail.  There were no other taxi's to be seen, poor Sarah sheltering from the torrential downpour under the girls' one umbrella and Miss Bamboo sacrificing her own hair for the cause!!

Panic set in, there was literally a 15 minute slot to get married in or no wedding. As Chief Bridesmaid Miss Bamboo could only do one thing....run into the road like a crazy thing, throw herself on the bonnet of the nearest car and beg the strangers to take us:- " Please take us, she's getting married and been let down" Miss Bamboo cries, "We'll pay you, we beg you!!"

Enter Frank and his wife, Rave DJ's and organisers  on an RV road trip, minus the RV at this point in the proceedings, I hasten to add! Having a nice little drive round the French Quarter, they had been unable to park but were just having a mooch about when the crazed Miss Bamboo landed on their bonnet!! "Jump in" they cry.

Well, between the girls on the back seat was a shovel and a pack of  surgical gloves. Was this comedy of errors turning into a standard American horror movie,  no "we're from Winsconsin" Frank explains! (mmm something to do with lots of snow in case you were wondering!!)

These guys were crazy, brilliant and amazing. Much chaos ensues, dangling mobiles out of windows to get sat nav signals, swearing at the traffic, various mad manouvers to avoid roadblocks and turning down 'no turn' roads. The girls by this point are stressed, hot and slightly hysterical in the humid Louisiana heat. The traffic is chaos, what with the rain and the festival road diversions and closures. Miss Bamboo maintains her bridesmaid duties by fanning the bride!!

In back of Franks car, more stressed than we look!!

Come on Sat Nav, get with the programme...

Frank and his wife save the day, our heros!

 Over half an hour later, at just gone 6pm, we make it, but only just. The girls teeter through the shopping centre, behind which the Creole Queen is supposed to moored. They run through the doors in their high heel mules and breath a sigh of relief at the sight of the paddle steamer. A bit more teetering ensues, up the gang plank and they are on!



Frank and his wife were amazing, the wedding was wonderful but if it hadn't been for them, it would never have happened, well certainly not on this day!


Married on deck by the Captain

Meet the new Mr and Mrs Johnson


A well earned drink after our 'traumas!!'
First dance as Mr and Mrs Johnson


All's well that ends well! Here's to you Frank!
In all the stress we never got their contact details and sadly can't even remember what 'Mrs Frank' was called. We would love to track down these amazing guys to thank them properly. Please help us 'Find Frank' by passing on this blog and through Facebook! 


Saturday 14 March 2015

Miss Bamboo - UK online Stockist of Trashy Diva, for the love!

Miss Bamboo has been a huge fan of Trashy Diva for  well over a decade, having originally come across their New Orleans boutique on a USA trip back in 2002 and subsequently reintroduced to the brand by the lovely Caroline of Rose & Co at  Haworth 1940s weekend  around the mid 2000's.  From this time Miss Bamboo started building up her personal collection of what has become her  all time favourite brand. 


at a 1940's dance with Caroline of Rose and Co ...both in Trashy Diva

...wearing Cinnabar print
'Green Mum's Sweetie' aboard the Queen Mary
'..Time for tea..in a silk Ashley'
Silk Trixie in Asia Holiday print, was perfect for a friend's vintage wedding, regret not buying the Day Dress at the time!

It really was love at first sight! The vintage inspired dresses are  just beautiful, in fabrics such as rayon, silk and quality cotton poplins with the most amazing prints. Many are based on authentic vintage patterns from the 30s, 40s and 50s or  vintage inspired but are all unique creations, made to fit modern figures.

Candice Gwinn designer and owner says  "each piece (is) both timeless and ageless with inspiration taken from antique and vintage clothing with a strong emphasis on feminine styles that flatter a variety of body types. We strive to bring back fine details that are rarely seen in clothing today. Most of our clothing is not “hand made”, but you find that each piece has a one of a kind feeling. You might see the clothing and think “vintage reproduction, but believe me it is most often FAR from the case”. We base many of our styles on vintage, but totally fashion each style to be above all else flattering- which usually means weeks of refitting the garments and recutting patterns."

When Miss Bamboo set up her online boutique www.missbamboo.co.uk in 2011, the first brand she wanted to stock with a passion was of course Trashy Diva. She has since continued to bring the brand to the UK and European market and tends to carry one of the largest online collections as well as taking the beautiful dresses to many 1940s, 50s and rockabilly events within her pop up boutique. Miss Bamboo also sells worldwide of course with very reasonable shipping rates.

Miss Bamboo was thrilled to visit New Orleans and Trashy Diva in 2015, a dream come true.



Some of the dresses Miss Bamboo has stocked and continued to wear herself since the business started...
an all time favourite sweetie in turquoise birds

Tropical print sweetie at Hepcats Holiday
Pearl Harbour print trixie sarong at the hotel Bamboo!

As you can see, Miss Bamboo stocks Trashy Diva for the love, not just because she can....!

So finally here is just some of the beautiful stock currently on our website...

Honey Dress in Jade watercolour (beware of poorly made copies of this elsewhere, this is the original and most beautiful quality) now on sale

Lena dress in Geisha fans - now on sale
Jenny Dress in Deco Daffodil
Ashley Dress in Crimson Clover
Bonita dress, now on sale

Candice Gwinn Lena Dress

Norma Jean -Now on sale

What else can we say except Trashy Diva, we love you!! Oh and my 'desperately seeking' dress is The Day Dress in Asia Holiday size 10 or possibly 8 thank you!!


Saturday 17 January 2015

Miss Bamboo's Airstream Globetrotter Restoration Project

You may not know but about 2 years ago Miss and Big Bamboo bought a 1961 Globetrotter Airstream imported from the USA. Airstream restoration is a rare skill particularly in the UK and we were in a queue for a year just to get the project started. Finally she is finished and well worth the wait!!

In the beginning.....Big Bamboo told Miss Bamboo he had found a bargain and on taking her to view had asked her to keep an open mind as it just needed 'a little TLC', she was met with this........
,

Poor neglected Airstream, but dont worry Miss Bamboo has great plans for you....

However, while Miss Bamboo daydreams of tropical barkcloth soft furnishings, mid century styling, all important details like chevron cupboard handles and vintage parchment shade cone lights,  there are more pressing matters at hand. Big Bamboo insisted on having the boring mechanical and structural work completed first....(it's good to know we're safe though and a girl can dream in the meantime!)





Our main man Howard Barnett gets to work on the chassis and belly pan. This guy is skilled!

Ok enough of the boring stuff and on to the interior...
Miss Bamboo has always grappled with the dilemma of mid century modern styling versus tiki. Her home, Casa Bamboo is what she would class as 1950s mid century with tropical and tiki influences and this is what we would try to replicate in the airstream.  At first, Miss Bamboo (by name and by nature) had the idea of  an actual bamboo cocktail bar in the corner. As small as this bar was, (the second smallest of her 4 bamboo bars), realistically this was going to mean no bed for Big Bamboo and she reluctantly conceded this was not a feasible option! A 'Cocktail corner' would have to suffice!

Miss Bamboo decides on a 50's mid century 'youngstown' feel for the kitchen with chrome boomerang cupboard pulls from the USA and high gloss ivory cream units. The curved end shelves will make a good decorative area for 'cocktail corner'. The cabinetry begins to take shape...




Sadly Formica had discontinued their coral boomerang formica so ruby red sparkle gloss was chosen instead. Chamfered cupboard and drawer doors, chrome boomerang cupboard pulls, trim and poles give an authentic 50s  feel. The original fridge was no longer an option but we tried to disguise the modern but spacious fridge in the sparkle gloss and added a vintage badge salvaged  from the old kitchen appliances. The sink and hob are modern but inoffensive as they sit neatly under glass covers to create a streamlined work surface. Cocktail accessories to follow in what is now fondly known as 'cocktail corner' and to add that extra bit of tiki!

On to the Dinette area. While some airstreams had Dinettes, Globetrotters only had end bench beds. Miss Bamboo far prefers a cute dinette area and this was created to convert nicely into her bed at night! An original chrome dinette pole was salvaged from another airstream. Miss Bamboo had already bought her coral coloured 'bird of paradise' tropical barkcloth from Honolulu a couple of years back.







Big Bamboo, being 'Big' needs his own spacious bed so the bench seat converts nicely into one for him, everyone is happy!!! This will of course sleep two if the mood takes ;-)





So on to the bathroom...

Miss Bamboo has a 'thing' about 50s pink bathrooms. Have you seen some of those bathrooms in the time capsule houses in the States, wow!! There is even a group in the USA called 'Save the Pink Bathroom'. While the airstream walls are a pale green, she decided to keep these within the bathroom for consistency but had the original bath remoulded in, yes you've guessed it 'pink' - hurrah! The pink sink is then placed into a cream vanity, again with boomerang handles. Pin up girl shower curtains give a sweet retro feel.
The toilet is another story - the search for the cream coloured 'thetford excellence', one of the only 'round' and better quality porta loos . Miss Bamboo discovered you could only get boring white in the UK. After much perserverance she eventually found a random cream one that had been wrongly delivered to a UK company, phew result!! The central section was a nasty brown but this was no worry, she had it sprayed pink!



Atomic starburst toilet roll holder, mid century fabulousness!! (Miss Bamboo's commitment is second to none, we had to get this shipped to a friend of a friend in the USA and on to the UK!)

Other details of the interior included sourcing  original vintage airstream interior lights from ebay, decorative pieces such as the Hawaii pictures. Double wardrobes for Big Bamboo's shirts and Miss Bamboo's dresses, a vintage 50s folding table for guests to enjoy a cocktail, recovered in red sparkle gloss laminate to name but  a few...

In terms of the exterior an extensive polish brought up our gorgeous Globetrotter almost as good as new. Custom made gas bottle cover disguised what would otherwise be an unsightly vision and we finally got to place our 'Rhythm Riot' tag topper in its intended place.





The restoration team brought in a professional photographer Paul of 'Visual Impact Photography', here are some of his lovely pictures at the end of this journey but the start of many adventures to come.....










And with accessories added.....



Miss Bamboo will be found at many 40s/50s events over the coming year including Atomic Vintage Festival, Twinwood 1940s Festival, Rockabilly Rave, Rhythm Riot and more! Why don't you pop along to check out her pop up boutique and enjoy a cocktail or two in the airstream! In the meantime have a peek at www.missbamboo.co.uk for more mid century and tropical styling, clothing wise of course!!

A massive thank you to everyone involved in the project.

Restoration Team and Companies



Howard Barnett  Leisure Vehicle Maintenance - Team Leader and Engineer

Colin Heyes CNA Servicing  - Engineer

Miss Bamboo - Interior Design and Chief Mitherer!

Big Bamboo - Head of technical and safety 'requirements'

Other Companies

Tag Topper - Rhythm Riot 

Photography - Visual Impact Photography

Boomerang handles and atomic starburst bathroom accessories - Rejuvenation