I’m always on the lookout for cocktail recipes using lavender or violets. This one, the Paulista , created by Humberto Marques, who tends bar at Oloruso in Edinburgh, Scotland is great!
Posts Tagged ‘Flowers’
Recipe for the Divine Paulista Cocktail Using Lavender Syrup & Blueberries ~ Lady Violette Approved!
Sunday, August 28th, 2011
Palter De Liso Designs ~ Early 1950’s ~ Black Silk Taffeta & Purple Rose “Delight” Stiletto Pumps
Wednesday, July 27th, 2011
The Fabulous Rose Delight Pump by Paler De Liso
In my constant quest for shoes as works of art I recently came across this gorgeous vintage 1950s shoe called the “Delight” designed and made by Palter De Liso. The style of this elegant silk pump is named the Delight and this version is made of black silk taffeta decorated with purple hand painted roses! Beautiful!
This pair is a large size, made for a tall woman. I estimate it to be a size 11, but there is no size label on the shoe. I’ve tried everything to make the shoe fit, but it is just plain too big for me! It is the just the opposite of the story of Cinderella’s slipper! This shoe is actually too large for me! Her glass slipper was actually too small for her stepsisters so they had to search the land for the smaller Cinderella whom it fit. This pair of shoes is too large for me so I must search the land for a smaller pair that actually fits me. I am hoping that the web will serve as a dragnet sweeping the earth to search for a pair of these in my size!
Thinking about this while writing I am reminded of the fact that both Jacqueline Kennedy and Audrey Hepburn were small women, and were both famous for having gigantic feet! They both wore size 11 shoes as I recall! I do not want bigger feet! I just want a considerably smaller pair of these amazingly wonderful shoes in my size. I just wish these were smaller and fit me! I believe in putting the word out that I want them will eventually guide them in my direction. Doing that has worked for me on other really hard to find things in the past! Aren’t they gorgeous? I try not to acquire shoes that don’t fit me, but this pair was such an amazing work of art I decided I had to have it!
I often display favorite shoes around my house so I can enjoy looking at them. I sometimes place one pair on each step of the staircase leading from the first to second floor of my house. That way I can contemplate them and study them every time I go up and down the stairs.
I can also justify owning fine art shoes as beautiful as these for the Lady Violette Shoe Collection which has become so interesting and extensive that I have decided to post it on my blog, shoe by shoe, so that I can share the rare and unusual shoes I have collected with anyone else who is interested in them. I know many other people also love shoes! I have been intrigued by shoe design and history for a long time. Thus, it is my hope that other shoe enthusiasts will enjoy sharing and experiencing my collection in this way. Questions and commentary on the shoes is also welcome. You might well know more about them than I do as I often find them with no accompanying historical information.
The Purple Rose Delight Features a Stiletto Heel
If anyone comes across a pair of these in my size – a 7.5 or 8 M – I would love to have a pair that I could actually wear! Being vintage they probably run small and I could probably wear them in an 8 or even an 8.5. I love the style and the purple roses! These would actually go with many of the clothes I wear. I love both black and purple. I know these would become both a personal style statement and a wardrobe staple for me if I could find them in my size. So, this is a serious call for a pair that will fit! Please please please notify me if you have or find such a pair! And, ah, I should add, I am interested in any Palter De Liso Delight shoes from that era. They were made in many additional colors, fabric, and decorations.
As Lady Violette I have two personal flowers, the purple rose (like these!) and the violet. The roses next to the shoes are from my garden. This particular variety of rose is actually named the Madame Violet! This rose figures prominently in the history of Lady Violette de Courcy! (More about that later!) So it is no wonder I want a pair of these shoes in my size is it? I know that they were made in other sizes because I’ve seen a photo of another pair!
Meanwhile enjoy the shoes! And the Madam Violet roses while they are in bloom!
The Delight - Outer Side & Vamp Views
Placement of Roses
Vintage Shoes of the Week – Little Lady Violette Royal Purple Velvet Shoes!
Monday, May 16th, 2011
Violette Violet Velvet Party Shoes - Royal Purple and Fit for a Little Princess ~ in a Tiny Size 4!
Here is an amazing pair of royal purple velvet shoes lined in bright lime green satin and decorated with rhinestones that I found in a flea market this weekend. Another amazing thing about them is the size! They are a small size 4 like a little child’s shoe size! They are made in Korea. I paid $3.99 for them! Plus tax.
They are beautiful little costume shoes. They don’t fit me! I wear a comparatively gigantic size 7.5! The heel is 2″ high and they are perfect for dressing up in as a princess. I decided to buy them because of the lovely and highly unusual color ~ a true dark royal purple ~ and use them as a work of art for my Lady Violette blog post of Vintage Shoe of the Week. I will save them for Coco to wear with one of her princess ball gowns when she is 7 or 8 years old and they will probably fit.
I had a 7 yr old girl who was shopping try them out for me and they did fit her! I would have let her have them, but her grandmother said, “NO! She will break her neck!” I have just the opposite philosophy! I believe little girls should play in high heels to learn to walk in them properly from an early age. And it is much safer to wear heels that actually fit your foot than to play in fancy shoes that are way too long for you! All little girls put on their mother’s high heels for dress up and try to walk around in them. That is a classic rite of passage into womanhood!
I realize the background of my piano leg table is not the best for this photograph, but I was anxious to get them up and show them off. It at least illustrates how dark the purple color really is. I’ll photograph them again soon against something lighter. But aren’t they beautiful?
I think they would look lovely worn with a Johnny Jump-up color inspired formal gown in dark purple with accents of yellow silk like the flower petals of the little Elizabethan viola known as the Johnny Jump-up! I’ll try to find a piece of fabric in the correct shade of yellow to photograph them against. So adorable! They also remind me of the dark purple, almost black, velvety petals of the dark purple nearly black pansy! This photo is true to the color of the dark purple outside velvet and the inside green satin lining of these princess slippers ~ like the little pansy flowers and their fresh light green leaves. Possibly the flowers inspired the person who designed them.
More photos of these to come when I find a nice yellow piece of fabric to shoot them against!
One of Lady Violette’s Favorite Violet Quotes from William Shakespeare
Saturday, May 7th, 2011
Grace Kelly in Vintage Furs with Flowers Charmingly Demonstrates Dressing Appropriately For Cold Spring Weather While Still Looking Like it is Spring!
Thursday, May 5th, 2011
Exquisite Fur Stole & Flowers!
My favorite - Fur Coat & Spring Hat!
It’s supposed to be spring! Pretty spring fashions – that means pastels and flowered dresses are featured in every shop. Flowers are blooming, but it is so cold out it is hard to get in the mood to wear them! I have a closet full of vintage coats – several furs, a few stoles, and short fur capes and cashmere coats with fur collars. All pretty and feminine. Many in soft spring colors like champagne and pale blue, ecru, pearl gray and beige.
I love vintage furs, especially the coats from the 50’s and 60’s. They are well made, full enough to fit over suits and full skirted dresses, flattering and above all, warm! I absolutely hate being cold. I do not feel pretty or attractive when I am frozen.
The other day I was reading about Grace Kelly and the author said she always dressed weather appropriate which meant warm enough to be comfortable. That made me like her and respect her fashion sense even more than I did already. So I decided to see if I could find some pretty examples to emulate. And, Voila! I did! Here are two of my favorite photos. Aren’t they exquisitely romantic?
I imagine she is wearing a pretty spring dress or suit ~ that matches her hat ~ under the cozy fur coat. She looks warm, lovely, feminine and happy! Because she isn’t cold! I am inspired to dress this way for the next few weeks. Probably until the Fourth of July the way it is going around here! A quick check of the weather worldwide tells me it is the same in a lot of other places ~ Vienna, Paris, London, Moscow, San Francisco, New York, Tokyo and Seattle are all cold today and it is May 5th!
I don’t know when these two pictures of Grace were taken, but they look like April in Paris in the 50’s to me. I do know the one on the right, in the fur coat, was taken after she became Princess Grace of Monaco. And that is all the explanation I need to be inspired by them! From now on I say furs worn with flowers as accessories are in for spring! The dainty gloves are charming too and serve the purpose of keeping your hands warm. And I love the hat with the flowers cascading over her forehead.Dressing like this epitomizes fashion as a feminine art. Just lovely!
