the vintage lady: carat

authentic vintage jewellery could generally be considered to be so if it is older than 20 years, although styles of the 1930's to 1960's are most popular and largely recognized as vintage. much hype surrounds vintage jewellery in the fashion world, so there are a lot of modern pieces widely available attempting to imitate vintage style jewellery. 

Renee Zellweger: vintage Cartier

vintage style jewellery typically features oval shapes, filigree patterning, diamond and princess cut crystals, pearls, cameos and gemstones.

vintage style jewellery has become so popular largely due to certain trend setting celebrities who habitually wear it. among those top trend setting celebrities are keira knightly, kate middleton and dita von teese.

Kate Middleton

kate middleton has quickly become a popular trend setter for vintage jewellery as her style is quite unique, standing out, compared to the likes of most other celebs around her age. kate middleton's style is always lady like, elegant, dignified, timeless and graceful, as most women would like to be perceived, which is why she has become a fashion icon.

Keira Knightly: vintage Bulgari

keira knightly tends to draw on fashions from the 1920's to 1960's, finding much inspiration from her earlier era movies. her style is typically lady like and elegant also but a bit more relaxed than kate middleton, often opting for loose fitting, glowing garments.

Dita von Teese

dita von teese's style is very much defined by classic vintage retro styles and burleque glamour. while dita von teese may be a lesser known celeb, she is originally famous for burlesque dancing and currently more so for her fashion sense which is built on top of that.

fash'on... BAM!

heeling power

stilettos give the optical illusion of a longer, slimmer leg, a smaller foot and a greater overall height. they also alter the wearer's posture and gait, flexing the calf muscles and making the bust and buttocks more prominent. 

to die for or will die in?

a stiletto heel is a long, thin, high heel found on some boots and shoes, usually for women. it is named after the stiletto dagger, the phrase being first recorded in the early 1930s. stiletto heels may vary in length from 2.5 centimetres (1 inch) to 25 cm (10 inches) or more if a platform sole is used and are sometimes defined as having a diameter at the ground of less than 1 cm (slightly less than half an inch). stiletto-style heels 5 cm or shorter are called kitten heels. not all high slim heels merit the description stiletto. 

Alexander McQueen

the extremely slender original italian-style stiletto heels of the late 1950s and very early 1960s were no more than 5mm in diameter for much of their length, although the heel sometimes flared out a little at the top-piece (tip). after their demise in the mid-late 1960s, such slender heels were difficult to find until recently due to changes in the way heels were mass-produced. a real stiletto heel has a stem of solid steel or alloy. the more usual method of mass-producing high shoe heels, i.e. moulded plastic with an internal metal tube for reinforcement, does not achieve the true stiletto shape.

Victoria Beckham in Marc Jacobs

Kate Middleton

for some women, high heels are hard to resist. as a matter of fact, heels finish off every female's stylish outfit. it increases self esteem. but appearances aside, wearing high heels on a daily basis can cause serious long-term damage to the body, especially the legs and feet. though women look lovely in heels, they have to suffer form many of its side effects.

disadvantages of wearing high heels:

high-heeled dangers

a) most of the women suffer from foot pain after walking with high heels. because of high heels the entire pressure of body is concentrated on the feet. the entire weight of the body will be directed onto the ball of your foot, this can be especially dangerous for those who are over weight causing the ball of the foot to experience additional pressure.

b) high heels can significantly affect your natural posture and your spine. it has also been found that wearing high heels can put the spine out of its natural alignment and also the spinal nerves can become pinched and pain, tingling and numbness can occur.

c) one can easily get ankle injuries, hammertoe or bunions if not wearing a comfortable shoe, even end up with a twisted ankle if the straps don't fit properly, holding our ankle in the right place.

sigh, the things that one goes through in the name of beauty.

fash'on... BAM!