Not so vintage

What I'm wearing:

Jeans (yes, actual jeans!) - hand-me-downs

Jumper - H&M (on sale for £3 in the children's section - the boy's clothes still fit me!)

 As you probably know quite well by now, I love to dance. Swing dancing is a particular passion of mine, and for the past couple of weeks, I have been unable to go. Why is that, may you ask? Because I may have broken my foot. It's really not as serious as it sounds - the problem is most likely a stress fracture - but it is still a bit of a pain (literally...). I haven't been having a great couple of weeks, either, but hopefully things are changing, and I am looking forward to a holiday coming up in a couple of weeks.

I have also found that I am a little more interested in mixing up my style a bit. I won't be posting wholly vintage outfits right now, because I don't feel like dressing in wholly and accurately vintage outfits. It is important to be comfortable in your own skin, and I've reached a point where I feel I need a couple of nice jumpers and the odd day when I can wear jeans and sit in the coffee shop with my crossword and a hot chocolate! I'm getting another haircut soon, and am thinking of doing something a bit wacky, so keep an eye out!

In the few weeks since I have last posted, I have finished the first series of 'Hannibal', which I thought to be absolutely astounding. I will definitely be re-watching the whole thing again soon. It introduced me to the books by Thomas Harris. 'Hannibal' was by far my favourite, and I found the final part of the novel utterly gripping. I finished the book and just sat there for about 20 minutes, not quite sure what to do with myself.

But with any good television show comes a handsome villain, and in 'Hannibal's' case, a true homme fatale in the form of Mads Mikkelsen. Thorough Mikkelsen I have become interested in Danish films, and Scandinavian culture. My current reading surrounds the Danish monarchy in the 18th century, particularly King Christian VII, his wife Caroline Mathilde, and the royal physician and Caroline's lover, Johann Friedrick Struensee. Their story is a fascinating one, and the book I am currently reading, The Lost Queen by Norah Lofts, does not quite do it justice. You should definitely watch 'A Royal Affair' (yes, Mads Mikkelsen is in it...) and read The Visit of the Royal Physician by Swedish writer Per Olov Enquist. I find it to be a very interesting story indeed.
Here's the trailer for the film, although it doesn't quite do it justice; the trailer focuses very much on the Struensee-Caroline affair, whereas the film is more inclusive of Christian and other goings-on around this remarkable period:

I have also become interested in Scandinavian cuisine, so expect some photos of some culinary attempts soon! I am still aiming to cook my way through the Hannibal series, although I am having a little trouble locating some lungs to make sausages/bourguignon...
The latest thing I have made is Janice Poon's pork loin with french beans and a cumberland sauce. Unfortunately, I served up at 10pm so the photo quality is atrocious. It was a great success, though, so I'm hoping to make it again and do it some better photographic justice!

  
 What else have I been up to? Working, something that I don't particularly like doing; drinking whiskey, something that I enjoy a lot; and eating lots of Smørrebrød.

Some other jumpers I bought today - left, from the children's section of H&M for £3, and right, from the retro charity shop Really Me, £6

I found this for a whole 55p in the charity shop and plan to make it over the course of the week. I love the Vasa and visited it two years ago - expect a nostalgic look back to Sweden soon!

Jess xx

A Night at the Theatre

As I have very little in the way of a life, you may be surprised to hear that I went out this evening; and as I decided to write a blog post about it this evening, indeed an hour after getting home, you can see I haven't deviated far from my usual level of sophistication.
Tonight I went to see the London Swing Orchestra with my friend Alex - who was impeccably dressed as always - at the Theatre Royal in Windsor. The theatre itself is very beautiful and deceptively small, and the building itself, along with the history of theatre in Windsor and Eton, which you can read about here. The building that you can see below (unfortunately not my photograph) was completed in 1910 and was opened that December. It (only just) survived talkies coming into fashion and a variety of things, but is still here and more popular than ever.

The London Swing Orchestra (formerly Graham Dalby and the Grahamophones) were absolutely brilliant, and the worst bit of the night was not being able to get up and dance, which was lamentable indeed! They played us through a whistle-stop tour of the history of swing from the turn of the 20th century from Benny Goodman to Nat King Cole, Irving Berlin, Glenn Miller and Frank Sinatra.

I went for a... sort of forties-fifties look, although I don't really know what it resembles... As always my bedroom is in a sorry state. It'll be cleaned up nicely soon - once I've written all of my letters and sorted through the mountains of records - so you'll have to excuse its rather dishevelled appearance.

Blouse/top: Topshop hand-me-down

Jumper: charity shop (originally Edinburgh Woolen Mill)

Skirt: charity shop (part of a set I bought last week that I'm not sure if I love or hate)

(And if you're feeling particularly intimate - and if not, shield your eyes! - my lingerie is all from WhatKatieDid)

And last but not least, I'm sure you're dying to hear what the LSO sounded like, so here are a couple of pieces, the Tiger Rag, and 'Jeeves and Wooster' from their CD:

Hope you all had a fantastic weekend celebrating the Welsh rugby win and St. Patrick's Day, and aren't dreading the return of the Monday morning too much.

Jess xx