As I mentioned in my previous post, it was my birthday earlier this month, which I spent in the south of France relaxing in the late summer sun.  (I think I’m still adjusting to the cold wintery weather in London!)  When I returned, I was treated to some belated birthday presents including some fabulous vintage finds from my mum and dad.

First up was this sweet Stratton vintage powder compact in its original box, which is in surprisingly good condition considering its age.  I’ve been collecting vintage compacts for a year or so and always carry one in my make-up purse.

I really like the Stratton branding – simple and elegant with the pattern on the box matching the gold embossing on the outer surfaces of the compact.

The pale gold colour of the metal is almost flawless and the clasp works well. I like the weight of vintage compacts.  It kind of gives me confidence in their quality! I’m not sure how old my compact is, possibly from the 1960s/70s?

The glass mirror is a little worn with some scratches but it still works quite well, enough to show off my flowers in a little vase that I was using as a background prop for the photo session!

The second of my vintage gifts was this bright red case with black edging.  When I saw it, I assumed that it was a vanity case.

However, the shape didn’t seem quite right and when I opened it up, I realised that it was a carry case for a vintage Pifco hairdryer!  I’d never seen one of these before.

It’s such a cute shape and size. Although it was a little dusty when I took it out of the box, after a gentle clean the white (possibly Bakelite) casing really came up well, with hardly any signs of wear.  The same goes for the black and white flex, which looks like it’s hardly been used.

I was intrigued by the plug attachment, which my dad explained would have been attached to a light fitting!  He remembers his mother plugging various household appliances, including her iron, into a light fitting.

I wanted to see if the hairdryer still worked so gingerly we plugged it into a lamp fitting and to my amazement it started up and blew out perfectly adequate warm air for styling!  However, I don’t think I’ll be using it for my daily blow dry just yet!  For now, it’s going to sit in its box until I find a suitable shelf to display it.

Rach x