Arthur...

Everything in life has a cause and effect, whether it is actions, the people who surround you or the decisions you make!

Of course we all know the people who influence our lives the most are our family. Their traditions and values shape who we become and ultimately who our children become.

In my family it was music, whenever I look back to my childhood there was always music filling the spaces otherwise filled with chatter and food. Arthur my grandfather played jazz piano and his brother the saxophone, my mother played both piano and 12 string guitar and growing up I was either playing clarinet, guitar or singing at one stage or another.

Arthur was a gentle mannered man from what I remember, he passed when I was 12 but I still have a very vivid memory of him! He wanted to be a pilot but being colour blind meant he was unable to do so, he worked on aeroplanes his whole life and he knew every make of plane possible even having an uncanny knack of hearing it fly above the clouds and knowing exactly what make and type of plane it was…just by the noise it made!  

My earliest recollection of jazz music was dancing in the lounge room with my grandfather and my sister to Twist Again by Chubby Checker…to this day it is still one of my favourite songs. Little did I know at the time that one little song and a whole lot of old age influence would an obsession with vintage begin!

At about 18 I started listening to Frank Sinatra because it reminded me of my grandfather and all the happy times surrounding the music and what it meant to my family, Then my Jazz music obsession snowballed into a love of the fashion, romance and lifestyle of the 50's which would mean i slowly started dressing and styling my hair to reflect the era, I guess it takes time to realise how much of an influence your family actually have but I think its pretty amazing and humbling at the same time.

This photograph is one of my favourites, It was taken whilst my grandmother and grandfather were on their second date I was told that there would always be photographers taking snaps of couples walking around town during the evening and I love how candid and happy they look...love it!

So there you go, a little sneak peek into my family history, id love to hear how you all became equally obsessed with vintage I am sure you all have some fascinating stories!

Xx