1940's Everyday Wavy Hairstyle Trial

Some of you may or may not recall when I first started my blog I confessed that I am horrible at doing my own hair. Looking back I still feel the same but honestly I think the majority of the reason I am is because of circumstances. I think that if I did have more women around me growing up I probably would have embraced it more.

As a pre-teen and teenager I would from time to time practice doing my hair. No one told me to do it or encouraged or discouraged. I just did it on my own and my dad purchased my first foam rollers for me when I was twelve.

Now as an adult, its been something I have wanted to conquer. This time around to learn how to do some 1940's hairstyles on my own hair. I haven't made much time for practice but recently I decided to try once a week to do a hair trial based on tutorials from Youtube, Vintage Blogs, Films, or Books.

This hair trial is a 1940's everyday wavy hairstyle. I followed a tutorial from Elegant Musings. Its pretty simple to follow--I like this tutorial!

First, please forgive how I look. It was literally 11pm and I have to do these trials usually late because the munchkins are sleeping and hubby is home to help take the photos. LOL So, I set my hair with my hot rollers and I finally got roller clips for them because those flimsy wire ones were NOT holding my hair at all!

This is how my hair looked afterwards. I left it "dirty" but learned that two days is too much since the top part starts to get oily, so next time I will do my hair trials just one day after I have washed it. I also realized that I have way too much hair for ten hot rollers and I added another set of rollers and clips on my amazon cart. I look forward to getting more because I feel like I could have achieved a lot more waves and hairstyle could have looked better. But you decide....

Okay so I have no products in it since it was late at night, but I got the gist of how to set it to achieve the 40s waves and I look forward to practicing this hairstyle a bit more. I love my hair this length, I think it suits me a lot better than the short middy I had a year ago.

I will be posting more 1940's hair trials shortly. If there are any that you think I should try, let me know! I would love to try them all at least once until I find the ones that work best for me!

xox

Documentary: Top Secret Rosies

Did you ever wonder where the term "computer' originated? Would it blow your mind away to learn that the first known use of the term "computer" in the 20th Century was directed to female mathematicians? Well, it blew me away!

There are so many, many heroes from World War II. So many that were not in the forefront of the war but were quietly doing their part in the war effort. Every little bit helped. Every sacrifice brought us closer to victory.

During the war, female mathematicians were recruited from all over the United States to work as computers for the U.S. Army. Their work was top secret and literally helped change the course of the war.

Many of these young women were just graduating from High School and with sheer luck were called to become a part of this secret program. They not only developed ballistics tables  but also  programmed the first electronic computer designed to improve Army efficiency.

Their biggest job during the war was to use mathematical calculations to figure out where a bomb  or bullet would land if it was directed at a certain target. They also calculated the distance, how it was going to get there, and where it would end up. When in battle the men wouldn't have the time to figure things out, as one can imagine it was an intense environment to be in. Figuring out those marks helped soldiers know where to aim and that was crucial during battle.

Because doing the calculations by hand took such a long time, although they were effective they were introduced to a Bush Differential Analyzer. At the time in 1942 it was considered state of the art technology and only five existed in the world.

There were six female computers that were chosen to run ballistics problems on that machine. Using that machine to calculate would take them 15 minutes to figure out a 60 second shell trajectory compared to the 40 hours it took to do so by hand.

Eventually many of these females computers went on to becoming the first computer programmers in the world! 

After the war, six of the original female computers were asked to learn how to work and program the ENIAC, which was constructed during the war and financed by the U.S. Army.

It began being constructed in 1943 and was completed in 1946. It was in service from 1947 to 1955 continuously. This machine was massive! Great credit goes to those early programmers who unfortunately did not get the credit they deserved by journalists, reporters, and magazines. The original photo above that was printed in a magazine about the ENIAC only include the two men above.

In 1997, the six women who did most of the programming of ENIAC were finally recognized and inducted into the Women in Technology International Hall of Fame. As they were called by each other in 1946, they were Kay McNulty, Betty Jennings, Betty Snyder, Marlyn Wescoff, Fran Bilas and Ruth Lichterman. You can view this Documentary on Netflix as it is on streaming now or view their website here.

All of the female computers and female programmers are heroes to me because they showed themselves and the world that a woman's role is multifaceted. They showed the world that we are beautiful in other ways other than physically. They showed the world that women can fight and be brave and contribute great things to humanity. That being a wife and mother is an incredible honor and gift but that we are capable of just about anything.

I dedicate this post to those great women. Thank you for paving the way.

xox

Etsy Shop Spotlight: Hollie Point Vintage

I know most of you have Etsy accounts and have already experienced shopping on Etsy. It is always fantastic when you find a great deal or an item that fits perfectly on your figure or even a great addition to your vintage wardrobe.

I came across an amazing shop called Hollie Point Vintage run by a sweet gal named Jennifer. Here is an interview with Jennifer about her fantastic vintage shop:


When did your love of vintage begin?

It's really hard to pinpoint just when my love of vintage began. As a child I was fascinated by the costumes in old movies and I was obsessed with Tom Tierney paper dolls, the Vivien Leigh and Grace Kelly dolls were my favorites! I was also very much influenced by my grandmother's clothing that she'd kept from the fifties. She would occasionally let me look through her old jewelry boxes containing rhinestones and retro modern treasures, which was always such a delight! 

When did you begin selling vintage?

I began selling vintage by selling to local stores. Anytime I found a vintage piece in a thrift store or at a garage sale I bought them just so that I could study them and enjoy them for a little while.
I ended up with pieces that didn't fit or that weren't my style so I eventually wanted to pass them on to someone who could use them. I think my Etsy shop grew out of my desire to collect as 
much vintage as I could possibly get my hands on! 

Why do you love vintage?

I love vintage because it tells stories. There is something almost mystical about a garment that has been worn and loved. Old dresses provide subtle clues about the lives of the women who wore them. My job often gives me the opportunity to learn more about these women, sometimes by speaking directly to them or to their friends or relatives and it's always so thrilling when I can learn that a particular dress was worn to a particular event on such and such a day. Clothing is a very effective memory cue so when people speak about clothes that they have worn it can elicit very strong emotions, usually very positive emotions.

Tell us more about your shop and why you love selling?

Collecting and selling vintage is my all-consuming passion. I try to think of my shop as more than just a clothing store. It's like my own temporary museum that gives me the opportunity to both teach about and learn about the history of dress and the history of women. I also love that my job allows me to make other vintage enthusiasts happy. It is always such a thrill to hear from a customer who is delighted with her new dress or accessory.

Here some of Jennifer's amazing dresses that are in her Etsy Shop now!

Hollie Point Vintage carries dresses from the 1920's to the 1970's as well as, skirts, suits, gowns, tops, jackets, coats, hats, purses, and jewelry. There is just eye candy everywhere!!! And best of all is that there is a wide range of prices as well depending on your budget, so there really is something for everyone.

I just adore this seller. Aside from the fact that she is selling beautiful vintage items, what is best of all is that she is so very nice. There is nothing better than purchasing something from someone and getting the best customer service EVER. It is something that is special to find in any shop you enter, even a cyber one.

So stop by and check out Hollie Point Vintage. Let me know what pieces are your favorites. You can also help me spread the word on this wonderful shop by sharing her items in your Pinterest boards. 

I hope you enjoyed this spotlight on Hollie Point Vintage and that you find some amazing pieces to add to your vintage wardrobe. Happy Shopping!!

xox

My Birthday Boy!

I normally don't post too many photos of my children and as of late I have-unfortunatly I will be posting less although as a proud mama I want to share with the world all my beauties but I have to think safety first. So this will be the last for a while to come.

I felt compelled to share today but it is today, two years ago that my life really changed forever. I was already a mama of two but when I heard my youngest sons cry I just knew I was complete. He completes our family and I knew then that I was happy and fulfilled being a mother of three. I will always welcome children into my life but it felt good to know that I was done. And no regrets-I didn't want to ever feel like I wasn't finished having children, but having my baby boy, I knew and I felt my soul was filled. Gosh, I must sound so sappy to you all, but I can't lie. Its true.

I was just about two or three weeks away from giving birth in this photo. I was all belly! I swore he was going to be ten pounds but he surprised me by weighing the same as his brother, 7 pounds and 9 ounces. I called him "My Pumpkin" when he was inside of me and his baby shower was pumpkin themed, of course hehe

He is just about a day or two old here. It felt so good to leave the maternity room knowing I wouldn't be back. And I don't mean that in a bad way, it was just good feeling like that part of my life was finished and I would begin a new part by being a mother to three babies...ahhhh

I love snuggling and every one of my babies basically spent their first year on my chest. There is no other place a baby wants to be than with their mama. It got a little trickier when number three came into the world, but they all seemed to find a place on me hehe

Oh my little monkey boy! This is my son at almost a year old with his hair before his first haircut...wild and curly and blue eyed...who knew I'd have a blue eyed baby LOL

He is the happiest person I know. Loves to laugh and play and eat and eat and eat. Such a boy! Happy second birthday to my angel!

xox

Halloween Memories

Halloween has come and gone! I am just so grateful that my children were able to go trick or treating. Due to the storm things are in a bit of a chaos at some places. Luckily my block and around me are pretty good-just some loose shingles on the side of our house. Otherwise we are good and hope everyone else who experienced the storm is good as well.

School is closed all this week for my daughter so I didn't know if people in my neighborhood would be up for trick or treating, but in true New York fashion people were out and about and doing their thing.

My daughter dressed up as Princess Merida from Disney's Brave and my sons were Captain America and Spider Man hehe They were all so cute. Its the real first time my eldest son got into trick or treating and my youngest it was his first time going up the steps of people's houses and collecting his goodies in his pumpkin. It was a lot of fun and I am just so happy they have those memories. Afterwards I had a little party in my home, my father and his wife came over to see the kids which I really appreciated because they live in another borough. I had my niece over so it was a blast. It was supposed to be on Tuesday afternoon with some of my daughter's school friends but again, due to the storm things changed.

All in all it was a great day and night. My babies filled their bellies with goodies which they don't do so often. I hope everyone had an awesome Halloween. I am defiantly going to be thinking of a vintage inspired costume for next year for me because I do like to dress up. Any suggestions?

My kiddies and I before we went trick or treating!

My Halloween party decor and some brownie fingers my sister n law made for us!

And now that we are into November, this pinup mama is going to start putting my head in the Christmas state of mind. Yes, I said Christmas LOL Hope you enjoyed the photos!!

xox