Thursday 26 January 2012

Inspiration of Wallis Simpson

With the new movie "WE" making its appearance, thanks to Madonna, the style and life story of Wallis Simpson comes to the fore, once again.  If, by any chance, you don't know the story, Edward VIII abdicated the throne of England in order to marry the woman he loved, the divorcee, American Wallis Simpson.  Well, wasn't that a scandal?!  A romantic notion, if ever there was one!

So, Wallis, who reportedly said that you could never be too rich or too thin, became a figure of hate and distain.  But there was no denying her style!  There is a good write up on Wallis and the movie "WE" in today's issue of the Telegraph:  http://www.telegraph.co.uk/ under culture.

This salamander reminded me of some of Wallis's jewellery, in that she too, liked animal shapes encrusted with  diamonds. OK, so mine are rhinestones (let's not be picky.)  There is a romance element to this brooch as well, in that when we were out shopping, I spotted it and Gorgeous Husband volunteered to buy it for me. This might not seem like such a big deal, except that no one ever has bought me things that caught my eye in a shop except my mother, and now GH.  In fact, the first time that he did it, I knew he was "the one."

The coat is fanastic lime green swing coat with 50s styling, although it is not vintage.  The label says "the only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about" which I liked.

Apparently Wallis is quoted as saying," I am not a beautiful woman so the only thing I can do is dress better than anyone else."  I wouldn't say I dress better than anyone else, but, like her, I do realize the value of looking as good as one can!

9 comments:

The Style Crone said...

Gorgeous combination! Lime green, animal print and a rhinestone salamander. What could be more stylish? Your husband is not only gorgeous, but generous as well!

Rosemary the Shopper said...

Thanks Judith! The salamander wasn't all that expensive. About the cost of 3 coffees at Caffe Nero. But it does show generousity of spirit which is priceless!

Catherine, Not Dressed As Lamb said...

Hi Rosemary - thanks for your lovely comments on my blog! I too always say that expression about not being talked about... And I remember being fascinated by Mrs Simpson's salamander brooch when I was a kid, and I lived in Canada when I was little - what lovely coincidences!!!

Catherine x
http://notdressedaslamb.com/

claire loder said...

Hello Rosemary, thanks for dropping by at mine! Good to see you here....I like the pic of you over at thatsnotmyage. yes - I've been working hard at producing something mysterious!

Rosemary the Shopper said...

Many thanks for the comments! It's so great to see someone is reading this!!

Rosemary

Unknown said...

Rosemary, I've read some about Wallis Simpson and I think you're right about that quote. But how savvy of her to play to her strengths, eh? That's so sweet about your husband to get you the pin at the drop of a "hey I like that!"...you've got a keeper! So glad to "meet" you! ~Serene

Rosemary the Shopper said...

Thanks Serene. Yes, he's a keeper, alright. After 33 years, I think we might stay together!

Cheers,
Rosemary

Unknown said...

Love the little salamander, it's lovely and could go with som nay things, too!

Kathleen said...

I have a soft spot for Wallis movies as well.