During our short but intense vacation last week, I was taken over by a vintage wave. Probably because I dove in deep both in the Aegean Sea and in Ines de la Fressange’s Parisian Chic: A Style Guide. Ines has been my favourite Frenchie for years. She is so natural and open and amusing, and seems so approachable and easy going. In addition, she is super tall just like me, so her style is something that I could copy to the last button (I would never do such a thing, Ines, of course. You could be copied by the entire female population, but your style would only be as unique as yourself.). 
So, after reading her Guide three times over one and a half days, I started seeing things I would not normally notice:
Like interesting jewelry in the otherwise too small, crowded and utterly claustrophobic little shops in the Greek village where we were staying; scarves that I all of a sudden felt I could find a million uses for; I even fell in love with the traditional Greek leather sandals that they sell to tourists in every souvenir shop in Kavalas. I did not buy any this time, but during my next vacation there in late August, I promise I will. 
In addition, I reconfirmed my love of flats, which I shall continue to foster and enhance more and more through every season, because this is what I like and this is how I feel best, despite the sky-high heel fashion that is now drowning all shops and streets in Sofia where I live. I don’t care, just as I promise myself never to in the future. I am a 6 ft tall girl that likes flats. Besides, I simply can’t hear what people are saying to me when I wear heels.
Here's some free tribute to Roger Vivier because Ines has been such an inspiration. (Ines represents Roger Vivier, if you don't know.) Besides, I am still under the impression of the lazurian sea, so these are well fitting here.
But back to vintage: there is something like a flee market here, in the centre of Sofia, that is such a tourist place that no actual Sofianites would visit it. It is right next to the square in front of the St. Alexander Nevsky cathedral, and it comprises of a few elderly gentlemen selling antique and/or vintage watches, war medals, badges, tea pots, etc. You also have the inevitable artists who display their paintings and other artifacts, but again, we Sofianites, never stop there. And we definitely should as the place is pretty and peaceful.
So off I go today, I’ve decided, to look for a beautiful men’s vintage watch to turn into an indispensible bijou for myself after I have fully transformed it with a fashionable brand new, but distressed looking, genuine leather band (hopefully I will be able to find a double twisting band somewhere). Here’s another thing: because vintage is so not into fashion in Eastern Europe (where everyone is still interested in looking new and rich), I do not even know if I will be able to find a proper watchmaker to be my accomplice into this adventure.
We’ll see. Stick around for developments from my vintage quest today.
Au voir!
