Vintage 1930's Overcoat

I was recently up in the Peak District and whilst there I popped into a couple of charity shops as the father in law wanted a 'Crombie' for the winter for when takes a 'constitutional' to the local hostelery.
I saw this hanging on the rail in the very first shop after a quick check over I tried it on, basically to fit the father in law it had to be tight on me and a bit long on the arms, sadly for him it fit me perfectly...his loss my gain!...anyway it was/is probably not 'Crombie' enough and a little too ostentatious maybe for him?

The weight, quality of the cloth and fitted 'nipped in' cut of the coat plus a quite a bit of research have convinced me it's from the c1930's period, here's a few shots...sadly when photographing black clothing it can often look washed out, this coat is in fact very fresh looking indeed only having very slight wear on small areas of the 'leading edges' and a couple of small bits of stitching needing attention inside to the lining seams.

Front

Back

Inside pocket detail

Cuff button detail

Inside rear vent closure detail

Hanging strap with tailors details that I can't make out!!!

Exterior detail of rear vent closure

It's obviously a well made and I think bespoke coat with lots of hand finishing evident in it's construction.

It's since had a good brush and has come up a treat... a dry clean and getting the sleeves taken up and inch will see this one ready to wear, it'll be great for winter weddings etc.

If anyone can make out or recognises the tailors label please leave a comment or get in touch.

Seasons Greetings!

A bit belated but here's to Christmastime and all it entails.

 

Your blogger outside 'the local' on Christmas day after sampling a couple of the fine English ales on offer, 1950's-60's ginger tweed suit by Mairi Macintyre of Oban- Fort William, waistcoat a Gurteen item, 'Four Way' tie retailed by E & G Wilson, Killin, Scotland, Bedale brogue boots by Loakes.

 

 

Myatt Vintage Open Comb Razor

I bought this off Ebay a while ago, the picture wasn't the best but I took a punt and was pleasantly surprised.
On arrival it was in better condition than I expected though it obviously needed a good clean and sterilizing.
Here's the before pictures;

As it arrived in a '7'o'Clock razor Bakelite box.

out of the box in it's component parts and not looking too bad.

and the reverse side with makers marks.

In it's box after a thorough clean and polish along with some unopened 7 'o' clock blades.

cleaned component parts.

front view

back view

top view, the handle may not be correct? the overall weight is good and it's one of three daily razors that are used in rotation, it actually shaves really well as many 'open comb' razors do.

Myatt were a Birmingham based manufacturer, W. J. Myatt & Co. Ltd. of Graham St who appeared to cease trading around 1947? 

Vintage Pendleton shirt

I've long had a liking for 'Western' style shirts,  usually fitted with two pockets and 'pearl' snap fastenings they are an easy shirt to wear and the double pockets are very useful.
This woollen 'Pendleton' shirt I found a short while ago in a local charity shop, condition is /was excellent..in fact I seriously doubt it had ever been worn more than a couple times if at all.
Generally I can't wear wool next to my skin because the bloody stuff itches me like mad so it's handy that this shirt is big enough to wear a cotton undershirt, together in the cold weather they provide plenty of warmth- the colour and pattern also make it a good shirt for dining out, especially if you're eating anything with a tomato sauce base!!!

Front view showing double flapped pockets and 'pearl' snap fasteners.

Rear view showing 'western' shoulder yoke.

Collar detail showing pearl snap fastener.

Collar button with hand finished button hole.

Fastener detail.

Pendleton label, made in USA from 100% Virgin wool so post mid 1960's.

Dry cleaning label, you can see the satin edging this is also inside the collar but not inside the cuffs.

Vintage Tuxedo

A nice and very recent find at a steal of a price, discovered in my lunch break...I spied the 'look' of the piece from a few feet away and the feel of the cloth and weight told me straight away that it had real age.
A good check over and a close look at build quality and tailoring told me it was very well made, the label inside told me that it was made just a hundred yards or so up the road from the charity shop that it now hung in!
My original thoughts were that it was a 1950's piece but further research and suggestions from several experts pointed it firmly in the 1940's...which was nice!

The silk/satin lined jacket is cut from a medium/heavy weight wool and has a double breasted front 1 button closure with crosgrain silk lapels, jetted skirt pockets, a welted breast pocket  and unvented rear, cut slightly short as was fairly common for the period.

The unvented rear of the jacket, the waist is slightly 'nipped' in but is not apparent from the photographs.

The 'crosgrain' silk peaked lapel detail.

Four button cuff.

Hand finished shoulder detail.

The single inside pocket and original makers label, the lining is a medium/heavy weight black satin-silk with the sleeves linings in white.

The full cut trousers are ever so slightly too big on the waist and will need taking in an inch or so, they do have side adjusters but nominally are 38" and when pulled in to my 36" waist they bunch a little on the side.

The right side pocket detail showing the silk trouser stripe and just the edge of the front watch pocket visible top right.

One of the side adjusters.

Internal brace buttons and silk-satin waistband with heavy cotton pocket linings.

The three button fly.

and one of the two 'HOOK-FLEX' fasteners.

Condition is just about mint with just one or two extremely minor faults that I only found by going over it with a very fine toothcomb, luckily none are visible when worn even at a foot away, no moth nips tears or holes and it still has a very good 'nap' on the cloth.

All in all I doubt it's been worn more than a couple of times....so Winner, winner chicken dinner!

Vintage Shaving Kit

As a collector you often find 'precious things' and realise you 'need' them before you really have a genuine need or use for them!
The above happened to me a few months back when at a car boot sale I purchased an old travelling shaving set in a leather and cloth case.(Sunday, 19 May 2013)Sunday, 19 May 2013)))0)It was an old set but not that old, so I then 'needed' an older version.... a bit of Internet based research later into such things opened up a whole new world of possible collecting interests of shiny things!
Being of a curious nature I had to try out the Gillette Tech razor with one of the unopened but old blades, having used it once I decided it was easy enough to get on with so bought some brand new blades off of a well known internet auction site and yes surprisingly they do still make them!
With the new blades(Astra's or Derby's IIRC?) I found I could get a shave every bit as good as a modern cartridge system razor at a fraction of the price though you have to shave slightly more frequently.
As for the shaving experience, well compared to squirting gunk out of a can onto your face and then flicking a 3 or 4 bladed modern techno razor over your chin or hot flannelling  your face then lathering up your face with a bristle brush and some Arko soap or similar and then using an aesthetically pleasing 60 year old weighty vintage razor ...well for me it's no contest....the constant lure of trying out all the various blades still available from all over the world wins hands down and it's good bye 2013 hello 1950!

Here's a few pictures of some of my rapidly growing 'vintage' shaving stuff.

 

A 'Rolls' razor on it's honing stone

 

A 'Rolls razor travelling set in it's mock crock leather case

 

Two Rolls razor sets, the leather cased set is alloy bodied from around 1948-ish, the one behind is a silver plated 'Imperial' from around 1938.

 

A 1950's leather cased travelling shaving set

 

and it's as new contents with a 'ball end' Tech.

 

A Gillette later 'Tech' razor c 1960s

 

A Gillette 'Flare Tip' Made in England c 1960's, these give great shaves...the knob at the end of the handle twists to open the 2 'silo' doors on the head so you can insert a blade you then twist it shut and shave away!

 

A Cussons 'Chubby' shaving soap container.

Vintage Raleigh 'Sports' Bicycle c1932

I haven't posted in a while due to work, a fairly long holiday and family events, however I recently dug out my old faithful Raleigh 'sports' c1932 ready for a local 'tweed run' in a month or so.
I bought the bike locally a year or two ago and though it looked ok-ish it actually required quite a bit of work.....it needed the wheels rebuilding, the gears setting up, 'new' head and bottom bracket bearings as well as a general tidy up.
Here's a few photo's;

The Raleigh just prior to a local 'Cycle in Style' event.