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"It Became A Symbol Of My Freedom" – How A Toxic Relationship Made This Woman Turn To Vintage Fashion.

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According to The National Domestic Violence Hotline, one in three American women ages 18 to 24 have experienced rape, psychical violence, or stalking by an intimidate partner in their lifetime. Women from the ages of 25 to 34 experienced the highest rate of intimate partner violence. 

Women, especially in religious communities, are often told to stay with their abusers. We are told to forgive them for every scar they leave on our bodies, and most importantly, our minds.

While physical violence is absolutely unacceptable in any relationship, I find that when I’m speaking to women, it’s the emotional abuse that causes the most pain.

Physical scars eventually heal, mental scars often never do. Many women turn to food, drugs, or alcohol to cope with their abuser constantly belittling them: “Who else would want you?” “Why are you wearing that? You look like a Slut.” “You can’t live without me.” “No one would believe you over me.”

When you’re told things like that constantly, you eventually start believing them. Because abusers rarely ever cage you physically, but rather mentally.

Think about it, if they just hit you, you’d probably be gone the next day. They slowly break down your self-worth and will even bring up intimate details of your past that you’re ashamed of, and use them against you to manipulate you into believing that you deserve their abuse.

When women leave, they often have to rebuild their self-confidence again. They often make drastic changes to their appearance and lifestyle to symbolize their new-found freedom. That’s how a Pin-up model that goes by the name of Tina De Velours started her alternative fashion journey.

I spoke to her, and asked her for her advice for women who may be going through the same things she did, and for her advice for dressing in pinup style fashion.

According to The National Domestic Violence Hotline, one in three American women ages 18 to 24 have experienced rape, psychical violence, or stalking by intimidate partner in their lifetime. Women from the ages of 18 to 34 experienced the highest rate of intimate partner violence. Women, especially in religious communities, are often told to stay with their abusers. We are told to forgive them for every scar they leave on bodies, and more importantly, our minds. While physical violence is absolutely unacceptable in any relationship; I find that when I’m speaking to women, it’s the emotional abuse that causes the most pain. Physical scars eventually heal. But mental scars often never do. Many women turn to food, drugs, or alcohol to cope with their abuser constantly belittling them. “Who else would want you?” “Why are you wearing that? You look like a Slut.” “You can’t live without me.” “No one would believe you over me.” When you’re told things like that constantly, you eventually start believing them. Because abusers rarely ever cage you physically, but meantaly. Think about it, if they just hit you, you’d probably be gone the next day. They slowly break down your self-worth and will even bring up intimate details of your past that you’re ashamed of and use them against you to make you believe that you deserve their abuse. When women leave, they often have to rebuild their self-confidence again. They often make drastic changes to their appearance and lifestyle to symbolize their new-found freedom. That’s how a Pin-up model that goes by the name of Tina De Velours started her alternative fashion journey. I spoke to her to her, and asked her for her advice for women who may be going through the same things she did, and for her advice for dressing in pinup style fashion. Q: How did you decided that you wanted to start dressing in vintage fashion? A: “When I was twenty three, I was in an abusive relationship with my boyfriend for almost six years. He had control over my entire life, from the people I saw, to the clothes I wore and many other things like the length of my hair which had to be very long to please him. I was struggling a lot with my weight also as he wanted me to stay quite thin. This is when I started to explore more on facebook and came across pictures of vintage models (Acid Doll, Idda Van Munster and Miss Victory Violet were the first ones I encountered). I’ve always been fascinated by the old Hollywood golden era, but never realised it was actually possible to adopt the vintage look for regular women (Because, of course, I knew about Dita Von Teese… But she’s not what I would qualify a regular woman and not someone I could relate to back then). As I got inspired by these wonderful models, I started to change little details to fit more into the rockabilly style, but my boyfriend at the time didn’t like it at all so he restricted me a lot. Until the day he decided to become violent and I decided to run away. Since then, dressing vintage became the symbol of my freedom. I even decided to cut away 35 cm of hair to complete my look and gave it as a donation to an organisation who create wigs for people who have lost their hair due to cancer treatments. From there, I couldn’t stop dressing in vintage style as I finally found a style that suits me and a very loving and fun community I adore.” Q: Who are your style icons? A: “I know it may be shocking, but I don’t really have a style icon as I have a passion for old pictures and regular women of the past fascinate me as much as icons, maybe even more because the mystery of who they were is still intact. If I have to tell you which icon of the past I admire the most, I have no hesitation to tell you it’s Hedy Lamarr because yes, she was gorgeous, but especially because she was a pure genius. I think she should get more recognition for her inventions that literally changed the world.” Q: Where do you usually find your clothes? A: “Like a lot of us, I started by buying reproduction clothes from big companies with a few true vintage finds in second hand shops. But after a few years, I watched the documentary “The true cost” and since then, I boycott all the brands made in Asia or eastern Europe, as it’s very hard to get information about the working conditions of the workers who make the garments. And usually, the working conditions are inhuman and these factories are an ecological disaster. So when in doubt about a brand or company, I avoid shopping. I only buy from brands very clear about these issues and now I buy a lot from friends closets sales, second hand, little creators like Prettie Lanes, Vivien of Holloway, Seamstress of Bloomsbury, Hearst and Found, etc. I also spend a lot of time on Etsy! And I must admit that it limited a lot my shopping habits, I buy less, I use more the same outfits, I buy better quality and made to measure, but I enjoy now how every piece counts as it’s not the shopping orgy every month. I always have something I love to wear now that I have less clothes. And I am glad I spent my money more wisely. I am not perfect and it’s still very hard to buy everything “fair trade”, I still struggle with shoes for example. But I think that it’s not because you can’t do it all perfect that you shouldn’t do anything to change your way of consuming. I also plan on starting to sew my own clothes, like a lot of our grandmas did! What could be more authentic and rewarding than being able to dress yourself? I have a lot of admiration for people who can sew and I hope to learn this skill one day too!” Q: Where are you originally from? How do people react to your style? A: ”I live in Switzerland. (Yes, it’s different from “Sweden” which is a beautiful nordic country.) Here, the vintage scene is quite small. As you may know, my country has four national languages (German, French, Italian, Romanche) and is divided into three big regions depending on the language we speak. I live in the french speaking part of Switzerland and we are not many vintage gals here! The vintage and especially rockabilly community is bigger in the German speaking region though. I usually get a lot of attention as I really stand out from the crowd. I get a lot of compliments from random strangers in the street and especially from women, which is very nice and I always love to engage with ladies. It’s usually very positive, but the people who stare at me when I am out dining with friends are a bit annoying to me as it feels a bit rude. During the vintage meetings and festivals it’s very different as I know I will be part of “the attractions” so tourists will ask for pictures, very, very often. Which doesn’t bother me during vintage meetings, but in the streets when you live your ordinary life, it feels weird and I often decline the offer politely when I am the only one dressed in vintage style. The cutest reactions I got were from little girls asking their parents if I was a princess. It’s just too adorable to see how they look at me, it makes me feel like they just met their favorite Disney princess in real life. I even had to play this role once as the parents of a little girl told her I actually was a real princess and they asked me if I could come talk to their daughter because she really wanted to ask me a question. It was hard to lie but she was so happy it made me feel better about playing a role! To conclude, my favorite encounter happened with an old lady I was buying an ice cream from at the lake next to my home. She was admiring my hairstyle and told me that she witnessed the arrival of american troops in France during WWII as a little girl, and the women she saw back then had the exact same hairstyles. I was honored and very touched to listen to her memories. With all the care I take to create authentic looking vintage hairstyles, it’s still the biggest compliment I ever got.” Q: What is a must-have for your look? A: “Hair accessories! I can almost never go out without at least a pretty vintage flower in my hair or I feel very naked. I create my own hair flowers so I just craft a new one every time I need a new addition to my collection and I am a bit of a hat hoarder I must admit…” Q: What are your vintage styling tips? Q: “It all depends on what style of vintage you are going for! If you are a very modern rockabilly pin up, it will obviously be very different than my style. So I can only speak from my experience and to gals who also try to achieve an authentic looking vintage look. My first tip would be to do your homework! Research, buy vintage magazines, find old tutorials about hair, makeup and style, look at old pictures on Pinterest. It will help you to find your own style and know what goals you are aiming to. Luckily, with the internet nowadays, you can also find a lot of awesome tutorials on YouTube, try them out and keep going until you get the result you want. Vintage styling takes patience and a lot of trial and error until you find the right techniques and products that work for you. Then, once you found what you like, you will need to try to achieve this look on your own. It only gets better with practice. So be curious, try new makeup looks, try a different look to see how it works on you and to have fun too, train your hair and makeup skills by doing it regularly. It’s not an obligation to doll you up every day, but maybe once during the week-end is already very good to progress.” Q: Your hair is always perfect in your pictures. What are your tips for maintaining a vintage hairstyle? A: “Well, first of all thank you very much for the compliment! I must admit, I think that genetics helps me a lot as my hair is the easiest thing to work with: they are thick, hold the curls very well, they have volume and I have a ton of hair. All of these factors help a lot with vintage hair styling. Don’t think that you can expect the same results on your hair than what you see on social media. Hair stylists are smart, they usually use the perfect models, the girls who have the perfect hair to achieve certain styles. It will not look the same on you if you don’t have the same type of hair. But the good news is: it doesn’t matter, because if you find what works on your hair, you can still achieve great vintage looks! The best way to maintain a vintage hairstyle for me is first the hair cut! A horseshoe cut is the best way for me to achieve a vintage look. And please, don’t thin out the ends! Because you need to have volume down there. The products you choose and the techniques are crucial. For my type of hair, a wet set with sugar water and a few other products works best. If you have very thin and straight hair, you may need to use the least amount of products to avoid getting your hair heavy, as it will lead your curls to falling apart. And sometimes, if you have a hard time keeping curls in your hair, maybe try to use only your fingers to style your curls in place, it may work better than brushes in some cases! If you need more information about how I style my hair, it’s a topic I love to talk about on Instagram and I have video tutorials showing you every detail of the styling process on my IGTV. I am also always happy to answer your questions or film a new video to show you how I do certain styles. Finally, my last piece of advice is to work with what you have, especially after a wet set! Work with your hair and not against them. Sometimes it means changing your plans last minute to do another hairstyle than what you had in mind. Be creative and enjoy!” Q: Over all, what’s your advice for women who’d like to dress in pinup fashion? A: “Do what you like and makes you happy! There is no right or wrong way to express your style. If you can do it without harming workers who make your clothes and the environment, it’s even better. If you think little designers are too expensive, buy second hand and true vintage as you can find ‘40s and ‘50s reproductions from the ‘70s and ‘80s quite easily. This tip also works wonders for ladies like me who wear larger sizes. But let me tell you, all the cheap dresses I bought in the beginning I gave them away. Once you try a well made dress, you never go back. I know starting to change your wardrobe is expensive, but it’s even worse when you waste your money on ill fitted and uncomfortable dresses you’ll never like to wear. You pay for what you get. Spend your money wisely on clothing that will last and that you can accessorize to wear very often and feel like it’s a different look. Buy things that work with what you already have, so you don’t have to buy a new dress to go with this new pretty bag that goes with no outfit in your closet. Get inspired by others, wear what makes you happy and do it with other ladies because it’s less frightening in the beginning to go out with another pin up than alone. It’s a lot more fun too! Be mentally prepared to attract attention and if it bothers you, here’s my very easy tip: always sit where you don’t have the view on everyone at the restaurant/bar so you don’t see people staring at you. My friends know and they always think about this parameter before sitting somewhere, giving me the best seat! Let people look at you, talk about you, ignoring them is the best solution if they make you uncomfortable. But don’t let them discourage you to express yourself and show the world how amazing you are.”

Q: How did you decide that you wanted to start dressing in vintage fashion?


A: “When I was twenty three, I was in an abusive relationship with my boyfriend for almost six years. He had control over my entire life; from the people I saw, to the clothes I wore, and many other things. Such as the length of my hair. (which had to be very long to please him...) I was struggling a lot with my weight as well as he wanted me to stay quite thin.

This is when I started to explore more on facebook, I came across pictures of vintage models (Acid Doll, Idda Van Munster and Miss Victory Violet were the first ones I encountered). I’ve always been fascinated by the old Hollywood golden era, but never realised it was actually possible to adopt the vintage look for regular women such as myself (I knew about Dita Von Teese… But she’s not what I would qualify a regular woman and not someone I could relate to back then).

As I got inspired by these wonderful models, I started to change little details to fit more into the rockabilly style. My boyfriend at the time didn’t like it at all, so he restricted me a lot. Until the day he decided to become violent, and I decided to run away. Since then, dressing in vintage fashion became the symbol of my freedom. I even decided to cut away 35 cm of my hair to complete my look; I gave it as a donation to an organization who create wigs for people who have lost their hair due to cancer treatments. 

From there, I couldn’t stop dressing in vintage style. I had finally found a style that suited me and a very loving and fun community I adore.”

Q: Who are your style icons?

A: “I know it may be shocking, but I don’t really have a style icon. I have a passion for old pictures: Regular women of the past fascinate me as much as icons, maybe even more because the mystery of who they were is still intact. If I have to tell you which icon of the past I admire the most, I have no hesitation to tell you it’s Hedy Lamarr. She was gorgeous, and she was a pure genius. I think she should get more recognition for her inventions that literally changed the world.”

According to The National Domestic Violence Hotline, one in three American women ages 18 to 24 have experienced rape, psychical violence, or stalking by intimidate partner in their lifetime. Women from the ages of 18 to 34 experienced the highest rate of intimate partner violence. Women, especially in religious communities, are often told to stay with their abusers. We are told to forgive them for every scar they leave on bodies, and more importantly, our minds. While physical violence is absolutely unacceptable in any relationship; I find that when I’m speaking to women, it’s the emotional abuse that causes the most pain. Physical scars eventually heal. But mental scars often never do. Many women turn to food, drugs, or alcohol to cope with their abuser constantly belittling them. “Who else would want you?” “Why are you wearing that? You look like a Slut.” “You can’t live without me.” “No one would believe you over me.” When you’re told things like that constantly, you eventually start believing them. Because abusers rarely ever cage you physically, but meantaly. Think about it, if they just hit you, you’d probably be gone the next day. They slowly break down your self-worth and will even bring up intimate details of your past that you’re ashamed of and use them against you to make you believe that you deserve their abuse. When women leave, they often have to rebuild their self-confidence again. They often make drastic changes to their appearance and lifestyle to symbolize their new-found freedom. That’s how a Pin-up model that goes by the name of Tina De Velours started her alternative fashion journey. I spoke to her to her, and asked her for her advice for women who may be going through the same things she did, and for her advice for dressing in pinup style fashion. Q: How did you decided that you wanted to start dressing in vintage fashion? A: “When I was twenty three, I was in an abusive relationship with my boyfriend for almost six years. He had control over my entire life, from the people I saw, to the clothes I wore and many other things like the length of my hair which had to be very long to please him. I was struggling a lot with my weight also as he wanted me to stay quite thin. This is when I started to explore more on facebook and came across pictures of vintage models (Acid Doll, Idda Van Munster and Miss Victory Violet were the first ones I encountered). I’ve always been fascinated by the old Hollywood golden era, but never realised it was actually possible to adopt the vintage look for regular women (Because, of course, I knew about Dita Von Teese… But she’s not what I would qualify a regular woman and not someone I could relate to back then). As I got inspired by these wonderful models, I started to change little details to fit more into the rockabilly style, but my boyfriend at the time didn’t like it at all so he restricted me a lot. Until the day he decided to become violent and I decided to run away. Since then, dressing vintage became the symbol of my freedom. I even decided to cut away 35 cm of hair to complete my look and gave it as a donation to an organisation who create wigs for people who have lost their hair due to cancer treatments. From there, I couldn’t stop dressing in vintage style as I finally found a style that suits me and a very loving and fun community I adore.” Q: Who are your style icons? A: “I know it may be shocking, but I don’t really have a style icon as I have a passion for old pictures and regular women of the past fascinate me as much as icons, maybe even more because the mystery of who they were is still intact. If I have to tell you which icon of the past I admire the most, I have no hesitation to tell you it’s Hedy Lamarr because yes, she was gorgeous, but especially because she was a pure genius. I think she should get more recognition for her inventions that literally changed the world.” Q: Where do you usually find your clothes? A: “Like a lot of us, I started by buying reproduction clothes from big companies with a few true vintage finds in second hand shops. But after a few years, I watched the documentary “The true cost” and since then, I boycott all the brands made in Asia or eastern Europe, as it’s very hard to get information about the working conditions of the workers who make the garments. And usually, the working conditions are inhuman and these factories are an ecological disaster. So when in doubt about a brand or company, I avoid shopping. I only buy from brands very clear about these issues and now I buy a lot from friends closets sales, second hand, little creators like Prettie Lanes, Vivien of Holloway, Seamstress of Bloomsbury, Hearst and Found, etc. I also spend a lot of time on Etsy! And I must admit that it limited a lot my shopping habits, I buy less, I use more the same outfits, I buy better quality and made to measure, but I enjoy now how every piece counts as it’s not the shopping orgy every month. I always have something I love to wear now that I have less clothes. And I am glad I spent my money more wisely. I am not perfect and it’s still very hard to buy everything “fair trade”, I still struggle with shoes for example. But I think that it’s not because you can’t do it all perfect that you shouldn’t do anything to change your way of consuming. I also plan on starting to sew my own clothes, like a lot of our grandmas did! What could be more authentic and rewarding than being able to dress yourself? I have a lot of admiration for people who can sew and I hope to learn this skill one day too!” Q: Where are you originally from? How do people react to your style? A: ”I live in Switzerland. (Yes, it’s different from “Sweden” which is a beautiful nordic country.) Here, the vintage scene is quite small. As you may know, my country has four national languages (German, French, Italian, Romanche) and is divided into three big regions depending on the language we speak. I live in the french speaking part of Switzerland and we are not many vintage gals here! The vintage and especially rockabilly community is bigger in the German speaking region though. I usually get a lot of attention as I really stand out from the crowd. I get a lot of compliments from random strangers in the street and especially from women, which is very nice and I always love to engage with ladies. It’s usually very positive, but the people who stare at me when I am out dining with friends are a bit annoying to me as it feels a bit rude. During the vintage meetings and festivals it’s very different as I know I will be part of “the attractions” so tourists will ask for pictures, very, very often. Which doesn’t bother me during vintage meetings, but in the streets when you live your ordinary life, it feels weird and I often decline the offer politely when I am the only one dressed in vintage style. The cutest reactions I got were from little girls asking their parents if I was a princess. It’s just too adorable to see how they look at me, it makes me feel like they just met their favorite Disney princess in real life. I even had to play this role once as the parents of a little girl told her I actually was a real princess and they asked me if I could come talk to their daughter because she really wanted to ask me a question. It was hard to lie but she was so happy it made me feel better about playing a role! To conclude, my favorite encounter happened with an old lady I was buying an ice cream from at the lake next to my home. She was admiring my hairstyle and told me that she witnessed the arrival of american troops in France during WWII as a little girl, and the women she saw back then had the exact same hairstyles. I was honored and very touched to listen to her memories. With all the care I take to create authentic looking vintage hairstyles, it’s still the biggest compliment I ever got.” Q: What is a must-have for your look? A: “Hair accessories! I can almost never go out without at least a pretty vintage flower in my hair or I feel very naked. I create my own hair flowers so I just craft a new one every time I need a new addition to my collection and I am a bit of a hat hoarder I must admit…” Q: What are your vintage styling tips? Q: “It all depends on what style of vintage you are going for! If you are a very modern rockabilly pin up, it will obviously be very different than my style. So I can only speak from my experience and to gals who also try to achieve an authentic looking vintage look. My first tip would be to do your homework! Research, buy vintage magazines, find old tutorials about hair, makeup and style, look at old pictures on Pinterest. It will help you to find your own style and know what goals you are aiming to. Luckily, with the internet nowadays, you can also find a lot of awesome tutorials on YouTube, try them out and keep going until you get the result you want. Vintage styling takes patience and a lot of trial and error until you find the right techniques and products that work for you. Then, once you found what you like, you will need to try to achieve this look on your own. It only gets better with practice. So be curious, try new makeup looks, try a different look to see how it works on you and to have fun too, train your hair and makeup skills by doing it regularly. It’s not an obligation to doll you up every day, but maybe once during the week-end is already very good to progress.” Q: Your hair is always perfect in your pictures. What are your tips for maintaining a vintage hairstyle? A: “Well, first of all thank you very much for the compliment! I must admit, I think that genetics helps me a lot as my hair is the easiest thing to work with: they are thick, hold the curls very well, they have volume and I have a ton of hair. All of these factors help a lot with vintage hair styling. Don’t think that you can expect the same results on your hair than what you see on social media. Hair stylists are smart, they usually use the perfect models, the girls who have the perfect hair to achieve certain styles. It will not look the same on you if you don’t have the same type of hair. But the good news is: it doesn’t matter, because if you find what works on your hair, you can still achieve great vintage looks! The best way to maintain a vintage hairstyle for me is first the hair cut! A horseshoe cut is the best way for me to achieve a vintage look. And please, don’t thin out the ends! Because you need to have volume down there. The products you choose and the techniques are crucial. For my type of hair, a wet set with sugar water and a few other products works best. If you have very thin and straight hair, you may need to use the least amount of products to avoid getting your hair heavy, as it will lead your curls to falling apart. And sometimes, if you have a hard time keeping curls in your hair, maybe try to use only your fingers to style your curls in place, it may work better than brushes in some cases! If you need more information about how I style my hair, it’s a topic I love to talk about on Instagram and I have video tutorials showing you every detail of the styling process on my IGTV. I am also always happy to answer your questions or film a new video to show you how I do certain styles. Finally, my last piece of advice is to work with what you have, especially after a wet set! Work with your hair and not against them. Sometimes it means changing your plans last minute to do another hairstyle than what you had in mind. Be creative and enjoy!” Q: Over all, what’s your advice for women who’d like to dress in pinup fashion? A: “Do what you like and makes you happy! There is no right or wrong way to express your style. If you can do it without harming workers who make your clothes and the environment, it’s even better. If you think little designers are too expensive, buy second hand and true vintage as you can find ‘40s and ‘50s reproductions from the ‘70s and ‘80s quite easily. This tip also works wonders for ladies like me who wear larger sizes. But let me tell you, all the cheap dresses I bought in the beginning I gave them away. Once you try a well made dress, you never go back. I know starting to change your wardrobe is expensive, but it’s even worse when you waste your money on ill fitted and uncomfortable dresses you’ll never like to wear. You pay for what you get. Spend your money wisely on clothing that will last and that you can accessorize to wear very often and feel like it’s a different look. Buy things that work with what you already have, so you don’t have to buy a new dress to go with this new pretty bag that goes with no outfit in your closet. Get inspired by others, wear what makes you happy and do it with other ladies because it’s less frightening in the beginning to go out with another pin up than alone. It’s a lot more fun too! Be mentally prepared to attract attention and if it bothers you, here’s my very easy tip: always sit where you don’t have the view on everyone at the restaurant/bar so you don’t see people staring at you. My friends know and they always think about this parameter before sitting somewhere, giving me the best seat! Let people look at you, talk about you, ignoring them is the best solution if they make you uncomfortable. But don’t let them discourage you to express yourself and show the world how amazing you are.”

Q: Where do you usually find your clothes?


A: “Like a lot of us, I started by buying reproduction clothes from big companies with a few true vintage finds in second hand shops. But after a few years, I watched the documentary “The true cost” and since then, I boycotted all the brands made in Asia or eastern Europe, as it’s very hard to get information about the working conditions of the workers who make the garments. And usually, the working conditions are inhuman and these factories are an ecological disaster. So when I am in doubt about a brand or company - I avoid shopping.

I only buy from brands very clear about these issues. I buy a lot from friends closets sales, second hand, little creators such as: Prettie Lanes, Vivien of Holloway, Seamstress of Bloomsbury, Hearst and Found, etc. I also spend a lot of time on Etsy! And I must admit that it limited a lot my shopping habits; I buy less, I use more the same outfits, I buy better quality and made to measure, but I enjoy now how every piece counts as it’s not the shopping orgy every month. I always have something I love to wear now that I have less clothes. And I am glad I spent my money more wisely.

I am not perfect. It’s still very hard to buy everything “fair trade,” I still struggle with shoes for example. But I think that it’s not because you can’t do it all perfect that you shouldn’t do anything to change your way of consuming. 

I also plan on starting to sew my own clothes, like a lot of our grandmas did! What could be more authentic and rewarding than being able to dress yourself? I have a lot of admiration for people who can sew and I hope to learn this skill one day too!”

Q: Where are you originally from? How do people react to your style?


A: ”I live in Switzerland. (Yes, it’s different from “Sweden” which is a beautiful nordic country.) Here, the vintage scene is quite small. As you may know, my country has four national languages (German, French, Italian, Romanche) and is divided into three big regions depending on the language we speak. I live in the french speaking part of Switzerland and we are not many vintage gals here! 

The vintage and especially rockabilly community is bigger in the German speaking region though. I usually get a lot of attention as I really stand out from the crowd.  I get a lot of compliments from random strangers in the street and especially from women, which is very nice and I always love to engage with ladies. It’s usually very positive, but the people who stare at me when I am out dining with friends are a bit annoying to me as it feels a bit rude. 

According to The National Domestic Violence Hotline, one in three American women ages 18 to 24 have experienced rape, psychical violence, or stalking by intimidate partner in their lifetime. Women from the ages of 18 to 34 experienced the highest rate of intimate partner violence. Women, especially in religious communities, are often told to stay with their abusers. We are told to forgive them for every scar they leave on bodies, and more importantly, our minds. While physical violence is absolutely unacceptable in any relationship; I find that when I’m speaking to women, it’s the emotional abuse that causes the most pain. Physical scars eventually heal. But mental scars often never do. Many women turn to food, drugs, or alcohol to cope with their abuser constantly belittling them. “Who else would want you?” “Why are you wearing that? You look like a Slut.” “You can’t live without me.” “No one would believe you over me.” When you’re told things like that constantly, you eventually start believing them. Because abusers rarely ever cage you physically, but meantaly. Think about it, if they just hit you, you’d probably be gone the next day. They slowly break down your self-worth and will even bring up intimate details of your past that you’re ashamed of and use them against you to make you believe that you deserve their abuse. When women leave, they often have to rebuild their self-confidence again. They often make drastic changes to their appearance and lifestyle to symbolize their new-found freedom. That’s how a Pin-up model that goes by the name of Tina De Velours started her alternative fashion journey. I spoke to her to her, and asked her for her advice for women who may be going through the same things she did, and for her advice for dressing in pinup style fashion. Q: How did you decided that you wanted to start dressing in vintage fashion? A: “When I was twenty three, I was in an abusive relationship with my boyfriend for almost six years. He had control over my entire life, from the people I saw, to the clothes I wore and many other things like the length of my hair which had to be very long to please him. I was struggling a lot with my weight also as he wanted me to stay quite thin. This is when I started to explore more on facebook and came across pictures of vintage models (Acid Doll, Idda Van Munster and Miss Victory Violet were the first ones I encountered). I’ve always been fascinated by the old Hollywood golden era, but never realised it was actually possible to adopt the vintage look for regular women (Because, of course, I knew about Dita Von Teese… But she’s not what I would qualify a regular woman and not someone I could relate to back then). As I got inspired by these wonderful models, I started to change little details to fit more into the rockabilly style, but my boyfriend at the time didn’t like it at all so he restricted me a lot. Until the day he decided to become violent and I decided to run away. Since then, dressing vintage became the symbol of my freedom. I even decided to cut away 35 cm of hair to complete my look and gave it as a donation to an organisation who create wigs for people who have lost their hair due to cancer treatments. From there, I couldn’t stop dressing in vintage style as I finally found a style that suits me and a very loving and fun community I adore.” Q: Who are your style icons? A: “I know it may be shocking, but I don’t really have a style icon as I have a passion for old pictures and regular women of the past fascinate me as much as icons, maybe even more because the mystery of who they were is still intact. If I have to tell you which icon of the past I admire the most, I have no hesitation to tell you it’s Hedy Lamarr because yes, she was gorgeous, but especially because she was a pure genius. I think she should get more recognition for her inventions that literally changed the world.” Q: Where do you usually find your clothes? A: “Like a lot of us, I started by buying reproduction clothes from big companies with a few true vintage finds in second hand shops. But after a few years, I watched the documentary “The true cost” and since then, I boycott all the brands made in Asia or eastern Europe, as it’s very hard to get information about the working conditions of the workers who make the garments. And usually, the working conditions are inhuman and these factories are an ecological disaster. So when in doubt about a brand or company, I avoid shopping. I only buy from brands very clear about these issues and now I buy a lot from friends closets sales, second hand, little creators like Prettie Lanes, Vivien of Holloway, Seamstress of Bloomsbury, Hearst and Found, etc. I also spend a lot of time on Etsy! And I must admit that it limited a lot my shopping habits, I buy less, I use more the same outfits, I buy better quality and made to measure, but I enjoy now how every piece counts as it’s not the shopping orgy every month. I always have something I love to wear now that I have less clothes. And I am glad I spent my money more wisely. I am not perfect and it’s still very hard to buy everything “fair trade”, I still struggle with shoes for example. But I think that it’s not because you can’t do it all perfect that you shouldn’t do anything to change your way of consuming. I also plan on starting to sew my own clothes, like a lot of our grandmas did! What could be more authentic and rewarding than being able to dress yourself? I have a lot of admiration for people who can sew and I hope to learn this skill one day too!” Q: Where are you originally from? How do people react to your style? A: ”I live in Switzerland. (Yes, it’s different from “Sweden” which is a beautiful nordic country.) Here, the vintage scene is quite small. As you may know, my country has four national languages (German, French, Italian, Romanche) and is divided into three big regions depending on the language we speak. I live in the french speaking part of Switzerland and we are not many vintage gals here! The vintage and especially rockabilly community is bigger in the German speaking region though. I usually get a lot of attention as I really stand out from the crowd. I get a lot of compliments from random strangers in the street and especially from women, which is very nice and I always love to engage with ladies. It’s usually very positive, but the people who stare at me when I am out dining with friends are a bit annoying to me as it feels a bit rude. During the vintage meetings and festivals it’s very different as I know I will be part of “the attractions” so tourists will ask for pictures, very, very often. Which doesn’t bother me during vintage meetings, but in the streets when you live your ordinary life, it feels weird and I often decline the offer politely when I am the only one dressed in vintage style. The cutest reactions I got were from little girls asking their parents if I was a princess. It’s just too adorable to see how they look at me, it makes me feel like they just met their favorite Disney princess in real life. I even had to play this role once as the parents of a little girl told her I actually was a real princess and they asked me if I could come talk to their daughter because she really wanted to ask me a question. It was hard to lie but she was so happy it made me feel better about playing a role! To conclude, my favorite encounter happened with an old lady I was buying an ice cream from at the lake next to my home. She was admiring my hairstyle and told me that she witnessed the arrival of american troops in France during WWII as a little girl, and the women she saw back then had the exact same hairstyles. I was honored and very touched to listen to her memories. With all the care I take to create authentic looking vintage hairstyles, it’s still the biggest compliment I ever got.” Q: What is a must-have for your look? A: “Hair accessories! I can almost never go out without at least a pretty vintage flower in my hair or I feel very naked. I create my own hair flowers so I just craft a new one every time I need a new addition to my collection and I am a bit of a hat hoarder I must admit…” Q: What are your vintage styling tips? Q: “It all depends on what style of vintage you are going for! If you are a very modern rockabilly pin up, it will obviously be very different than my style. So I can only speak from my experience and to gals who also try to achieve an authentic looking vintage look. My first tip would be to do your homework! Research, buy vintage magazines, find old tutorials about hair, makeup and style, look at old pictures on Pinterest. It will help you to find your own style and know what goals you are aiming to. Luckily, with the internet nowadays, you can also find a lot of awesome tutorials on YouTube, try them out and keep going until you get the result you want. Vintage styling takes patience and a lot of trial and error until you find the right techniques and products that work for you. Then, once you found what you like, you will need to try to achieve this look on your own. It only gets better with practice. So be curious, try new makeup looks, try a different look to see how it works on you and to have fun too, train your hair and makeup skills by doing it regularly. It’s not an obligation to doll you up every day, but maybe once during the week-end is already very good to progress.” Q: Your hair is always perfect in your pictures. What are your tips for maintaining a vintage hairstyle? A: “Well, first of all thank you very much for the compliment! I must admit, I think that genetics helps me a lot as my hair is the easiest thing to work with: they are thick, hold the curls very well, they have volume and I have a ton of hair. All of these factors help a lot with vintage hair styling. Don’t think that you can expect the same results on your hair than what you see on social media. Hair stylists are smart, they usually use the perfect models, the girls who have the perfect hair to achieve certain styles. It will not look the same on you if you don’t have the same type of hair. But the good news is: it doesn’t matter, because if you find what works on your hair, you can still achieve great vintage looks! The best way to maintain a vintage hairstyle for me is first the hair cut! A horseshoe cut is the best way for me to achieve a vintage look. And please, don’t thin out the ends! Because you need to have volume down there. The products you choose and the techniques are crucial. For my type of hair, a wet set with sugar water and a few other products works best. If you have very thin and straight hair, you may need to use the least amount of products to avoid getting your hair heavy, as it will lead your curls to falling apart. And sometimes, if you have a hard time keeping curls in your hair, maybe try to use only your fingers to style your curls in place, it may work better than brushes in some cases! If you need more information about how I style my hair, it’s a topic I love to talk about on Instagram and I have video tutorials showing you every detail of the styling process on my IGTV. I am also always happy to answer your questions or film a new video to show you how I do certain styles. Finally, my last piece of advice is to work with what you have, especially after a wet set! Work with your hair and not against them. Sometimes it means changing your plans last minute to do another hairstyle than what you had in mind. Be creative and enjoy!” Q: Over all, what’s your advice for women who’d like to dress in pinup fashion? A: “Do what you like and makes you happy! There is no right or wrong way to express your style. If you can do it without harming workers who make your clothes and the environment, it’s even better. If you think little designers are too expensive, buy second hand and true vintage as you can find ‘40s and ‘50s reproductions from the ‘70s and ‘80s quite easily. This tip also works wonders for ladies like me who wear larger sizes. But let me tell you, all the cheap dresses I bought in the beginning I gave them away. Once you try a well made dress, you never go back. I know starting to change your wardrobe is expensive, but it’s even worse when you waste your money on ill fitted and uncomfortable dresses you’ll never like to wear. You pay for what you get. Spend your money wisely on clothing that will last and that you can accessorize to wear very often and feel like it’s a different look. Buy things that work with what you already have, so you don’t have to buy a new dress to go with this new pretty bag that goes with no outfit in your closet. Get inspired by others, wear what makes you happy and do it with other ladies because it’s less frightening in the beginning to go out with another pin up than alone. It’s a lot more fun too! Be mentally prepared to attract attention and if it bothers you, here’s my very easy tip: always sit where you don’t have the view on everyone at the restaurant/bar so you don’t see people staring at you. My friends know and they always think about this parameter before sitting somewhere, giving me the best seat! Let people look at you, talk about you, ignoring them is the best solution if they make you uncomfortable. But don’t let them discourage you to express yourself and show the world how amazing you are.”

During the vintage meetings and festivals it’s very different as I know I will be part of “the attractions” so tourists will ask for pictures, very, very often. Which doesn’t bother me during vintage meetings, but in the streets when you live your ordinary life, it feels weird and I often decline the offer politely when I am the only one dressed in vintage style.

The cutest reactions I got were from little girls asking their parents if I was a princess. It’s just too adorable to see how they look at me, it makes me feel like they just met their favorite Disney princess in real life. I even had to play this role once as the parents of a little girl told her I actually was a real princess and they asked me if I could come talk to their daughter because she really wanted to ask me a question.

It was hard to lie but she was so happy it made me feel better about playing a role!

To conclude, my favorite encounter happened with an old lady I was buying an ice cream from at the lake next to my home. She was admiring my hairstyle and told me that she witnessed the arrival of american troops in France during WWII as a little girl, and the women she saw back then had the exact same hairstyles. 

I was honored and very touched to listen to her memories. With all the care I take to create authentic looking vintage hairstyles, it’s still the biggest compliment I ever got.”

According to The National Domestic Violence Hotline, one in three American women ages 18 to 24 have experienced rape, psychical violence, or stalking by intimidate partner in their lifetime. Women from the ages of 18 to 34 experienced the highest rate of intimate partner violence. Women, especially in religious communities, are often told to stay with their abusers. We are told to forgive them for every scar they leave on bodies, and more importantly, our minds. While physical violence is absolutely unacceptable in any relationship; I find that when I’m speaking to women, it’s the emotional abuse that causes the most pain. Physical scars eventually heal. But mental scars often never do. Many women turn to food, drugs, or alcohol to cope with their abuser constantly belittling them. “Who else would want you?” “Why are you wearing that? You look like a Slut.” “You can’t live without me.” “No one would believe you over me.” When you’re told things like that constantly, you eventually start believing them. Because abusers rarely ever cage you physically, but meantaly. Think about it, if they just hit you, you’d probably be gone the next day. They slowly break down your self-worth and will even bring up intimate details of your past that you’re ashamed of and use them against you to make you believe that you deserve their abuse. When women leave, they often have to rebuild their self-confidence again. They often make drastic changes to their appearance and lifestyle to symbolize their new-found freedom. That’s how a Pin-up model that goes by the name of Tina De Velours started her alternative fashion journey. I spoke to her to her, and asked her for her advice for women who may be going through the same things she did, and for her advice for dressing in pinup style fashion. Q: How did you decided that you wanted to start dressing in vintage fashion? A: “When I was twenty three, I was in an abusive relationship with my boyfriend for almost six years. He had control over my entire life, from the people I saw, to the clothes I wore and many other things like the length of my hair which had to be very long to please him. I was struggling a lot with my weight also as he wanted me to stay quite thin. This is when I started to explore more on facebook and came across pictures of vintage models (Acid Doll, Idda Van Munster and Miss Victory Violet were the first ones I encountered). I’ve always been fascinated by the old Hollywood golden era, but never realised it was actually possible to adopt the vintage look for regular women (Because, of course, I knew about Dita Von Teese… But she’s not what I would qualify a regular woman and not someone I could relate to back then). As I got inspired by these wonderful models, I started to change little details to fit more into the rockabilly style, but my boyfriend at the time didn’t like it at all so he restricted me a lot. Until the day he decided to become violent and I decided to run away. Since then, dressing vintage became the symbol of my freedom. I even decided to cut away 35 cm of hair to complete my look and gave it as a donation to an organisation who create wigs for people who have lost their hair due to cancer treatments. From there, I couldn’t stop dressing in vintage style as I finally found a style that suits me and a very loving and fun community I adore.” Q: Who are your style icons? A: “I know it may be shocking, but I don’t really have a style icon as I have a passion for old pictures and regular women of the past fascinate me as much as icons, maybe even more because the mystery of who they were is still intact. If I have to tell you which icon of the past I admire the most, I have no hesitation to tell you it’s Hedy Lamarr because yes, she was gorgeous, but especially because she was a pure genius. I think she should get more recognition for her inventions that literally changed the world.” Q: Where do you usually find your clothes? A: “Like a lot of us, I started by buying reproduction clothes from big companies with a few true vintage finds in second hand shops. But after a few years, I watched the documentary “The true cost” and since then, I boycott all the brands made in Asia or eastern Europe, as it’s very hard to get information about the working conditions of the workers who make the garments. And usually, the working conditions are inhuman and these factories are an ecological disaster. So when in doubt about a brand or company, I avoid shopping. I only buy from brands very clear about these issues and now I buy a lot from friends closets sales, second hand, little creators like Prettie Lanes, Vivien of Holloway, Seamstress of Bloomsbury, Hearst and Found, etc. I also spend a lot of time on Etsy! And I must admit that it limited a lot my shopping habits, I buy less, I use more the same outfits, I buy better quality and made to measure, but I enjoy now how every piece counts as it’s not the shopping orgy every month. I always have something I love to wear now that I have less clothes. And I am glad I spent my money more wisely. I am not perfect and it’s still very hard to buy everything “fair trade”, I still struggle with shoes for example. But I think that it’s not because you can’t do it all perfect that you shouldn’t do anything to change your way of consuming. I also plan on starting to sew my own clothes, like a lot of our grandmas did! What could be more authentic and rewarding than being able to dress yourself? I have a lot of admiration for people who can sew and I hope to learn this skill one day too!” Q: Where are you originally from? How do people react to your style? A: ”I live in Switzerland. (Yes, it’s different from “Sweden” which is a beautiful nordic country.) Here, the vintage scene is quite small. As you may know, my country has four national languages (German, French, Italian, Romanche) and is divided into three big regions depending on the language we speak. I live in the french speaking part of Switzerland and we are not many vintage gals here! The vintage and especially rockabilly community is bigger in the German speaking region though. I usually get a lot of attention as I really stand out from the crowd. I get a lot of compliments from random strangers in the street and especially from women, which is very nice and I always love to engage with ladies. It’s usually very positive, but the people who stare at me when I am out dining with friends are a bit annoying to me as it feels a bit rude. During the vintage meetings and festivals it’s very different as I know I will be part of “the attractions” so tourists will ask for pictures, very, very often. Which doesn’t bother me during vintage meetings, but in the streets when you live your ordinary life, it feels weird and I often decline the offer politely when I am the only one dressed in vintage style. The cutest reactions I got were from little girls asking their parents if I was a princess. It’s just too adorable to see how they look at me, it makes me feel like they just met their favorite Disney princess in real life. I even had to play this role once as the parents of a little girl told her I actually was a real princess and they asked me if I could come talk to their daughter because she really wanted to ask me a question. It was hard to lie but she was so happy it made me feel better about playing a role! To conclude, my favorite encounter happened with an old lady I was buying an ice cream from at the lake next to my home. She was admiring my hairstyle and told me that she witnessed the arrival of american troops in France during WWII as a little girl, and the women she saw back then had the exact same hairstyles. I was honored and very touched to listen to her memories. With all the care I take to create authentic looking vintage hairstyles, it’s still the biggest compliment I ever got.” Q: What is a must-have for your look? A: “Hair accessories! I can almost never go out without at least a pretty vintage flower in my hair or I feel very naked. I create my own hair flowers so I just craft a new one every time I need a new addition to my collection and I am a bit of a hat hoarder I must admit…” Q: What are your vintage styling tips? Q: “It all depends on what style of vintage you are going for! If you are a very modern rockabilly pin up, it will obviously be very different than my style. So I can only speak from my experience and to gals who also try to achieve an authentic looking vintage look. My first tip would be to do your homework! Research, buy vintage magazines, find old tutorials about hair, makeup and style, look at old pictures on Pinterest. It will help you to find your own style and know what goals you are aiming to. Luckily, with the internet nowadays, you can also find a lot of awesome tutorials on YouTube, try them out and keep going until you get the result you want. Vintage styling takes patience and a lot of trial and error until you find the right techniques and products that work for you. Then, once you found what you like, you will need to try to achieve this look on your own. It only gets better with practice. So be curious, try new makeup looks, try a different look to see how it works on you and to have fun too, train your hair and makeup skills by doing it regularly. It’s not an obligation to doll you up every day, but maybe once during the week-end is already very good to progress.” Q: Your hair is always perfect in your pictures. What are your tips for maintaining a vintage hairstyle? A: “Well, first of all thank you very much for the compliment! I must admit, I think that genetics helps me a lot as my hair is the easiest thing to work with: they are thick, hold the curls very well, they have volume and I have a ton of hair. All of these factors help a lot with vintage hair styling. Don’t think that you can expect the same results on your hair than what you see on social media. Hair stylists are smart, they usually use the perfect models, the girls who have the perfect hair to achieve certain styles. It will not look the same on you if you don’t have the same type of hair. But the good news is: it doesn’t matter, because if you find what works on your hair, you can still achieve great vintage looks! The best way to maintain a vintage hairstyle for me is first the hair cut! A horseshoe cut is the best way for me to achieve a vintage look. And please, don’t thin out the ends! Because you need to have volume down there. The products you choose and the techniques are crucial. For my type of hair, a wet set with sugar water and a few other products works best. If you have very thin and straight hair, you may need to use the least amount of products to avoid getting your hair heavy, as it will lead your curls to falling apart. And sometimes, if you have a hard time keeping curls in your hair, maybe try to use only your fingers to style your curls in place, it may work better than brushes in some cases! If you need more information about how I style my hair, it’s a topic I love to talk about on Instagram and I have video tutorials showing you every detail of the styling process on my IGTV. I am also always happy to answer your questions or film a new video to show you how I do certain styles. Finally, my last piece of advice is to work with what you have, especially after a wet set! Work with your hair and not against them. Sometimes it means changing your plans last minute to do another hairstyle than what you had in mind. Be creative and enjoy!” Q: Over all, what’s your advice for women who’d like to dress in pinup fashion? A: “Do what you like and makes you happy! There is no right or wrong way to express your style. If you can do it without harming workers who make your clothes and the environment, it’s even better. If you think little designers are too expensive, buy second hand and true vintage as you can find ‘40s and ‘50s reproductions from the ‘70s and ‘80s quite easily. This tip also works wonders for ladies like me who wear larger sizes. But let me tell you, all the cheap dresses I bought in the beginning I gave them away. Once you try a well made dress, you never go back. I know starting to change your wardrobe is expensive, but it’s even worse when you waste your money on ill fitted and uncomfortable dresses you’ll never like to wear. You pay for what you get. Spend your money wisely on clothing that will last and that you can accessorize to wear very often and feel like it’s a different look. Buy things that work with what you already have, so you don’t have to buy a new dress to go with this new pretty bag that goes with no outfit in your closet. Get inspired by others, wear what makes you happy and do it with other ladies because it’s less frightening in the beginning to go out with another pin up than alone. It’s a lot more fun too! Be mentally prepared to attract attention and if it bothers you, here’s my very easy tip: always sit where you don’t have the view on everyone at the restaurant/bar so you don’t see people staring at you. My friends know and they always think about this parameter before sitting somewhere, giving me the best seat! Let people look at you, talk about you, ignoring them is the best solution if they make you uncomfortable. But don’t let them discourage you to express yourself and show the world how amazing you are.”

Q: What is a must-have for your look? 


A: “Hair accessories! I can almost never go out without at least a pretty vintage flower in my hair or I feel very naked. I create my own hair flowers so I just craft a new one every time I need a new addition to my collection and I am a bit of a hat hoarder I must admit…”

Q: What are your vintage styling tips?


A: “It all depends on what style of vintage you are going for! If you are a very modern rockabilly pin up, it will obviously be very different than my style. So I can only speak from my experience and to gals who also try to achieve an authentic looking vintage look. 

My first tip would be to do your homework! Research, buy vintage magazines, find old tutorials about hair, makeup and style, look at old pictures on Pinterest. It will help you to find your own style and know what goals you are aiming to.

Luckily, with the internet nowadays, you can also find a lot of awesome tutorials on YouTube, try them out and keep going until you get the result you want. Vintage styling takes patience and a lot of trial and error until you find the right techniques and products that work for you. 

Then, once you found what you like, you will need to try to achieve this look on your own. It only gets better with practice. So be curious, try new makeup looks, try a different look to see how it works on you and to have fun too, train your hair and makeup skills by doing it regularly. It’s not an obligation to doll you up every day, but maybe once during the week-end is already very good to progress.”

According to The National Domestic Violence Hotline, one in three American women ages 18 to 24 have experienced rape, psychical violence, or stalking by intimidate partner in their lifetime. Women from the ages of 18 to 34 experienced the highest rate of intimate partner violence. Women, especially in religious communities, are often told to stay with their abusers. We are told to forgive them for every scar they leave on bodies, and more importantly, our minds. While physical violence is absolutely unacceptable in any relationship; I find that when I’m speaking to women, it’s the emotional abuse that causes the most pain. Physical scars eventually heal. But mental scars often never do. Many women turn to food, drugs, or alcohol to cope with their abuser constantly belittling them. “Who else would want you?” “Why are you wearing that? You look like a Slut.” “You can’t live without me.” “No one would believe you over me.” When you’re told things like that constantly, you eventually start believing them. Because abusers rarely ever cage you physically, but meantaly. Think about it, if they just hit you, you’d probably be gone the next day. They slowly break down your self-worth and will even bring up intimate details of your past that you’re ashamed of and use them against you to make you believe that you deserve their abuse. When women leave, they often have to rebuild their self-confidence again. They often make drastic changes to their appearance and lifestyle to symbolize their new-found freedom. That’s how a Pin-up model that goes by the name of Tina De Velours started her alternative fashion journey. I spoke to her to her, and asked her for her advice for women who may be going through the same things she did, and for her advice for dressing in pinup style fashion. Q: How did you decided that you wanted to start dressing in vintage fashion? A: “When I was twenty three, I was in an abusive relationship with my boyfriend for almost six years. He had control over my entire life, from the people I saw, to the clothes I wore and many other things like the length of my hair which had to be very long to please him. I was struggling a lot with my weight also as he wanted me to stay quite thin. This is when I started to explore more on facebook and came across pictures of vintage models (Acid Doll, Idda Van Munster and Miss Victory Violet were the first ones I encountered). I’ve always been fascinated by the old Hollywood golden era, but never realised it was actually possible to adopt the vintage look for regular women (Because, of course, I knew about Dita Von Teese… But she’s not what I would qualify a regular woman and not someone I could relate to back then). As I got inspired by these wonderful models, I started to change little details to fit more into the rockabilly style, but my boyfriend at the time didn’t like it at all so he restricted me a lot. Until the day he decided to become violent and I decided to run away. Since then, dressing vintage became the symbol of my freedom. I even decided to cut away 35 cm of hair to complete my look and gave it as a donation to an organisation who create wigs for people who have lost their hair due to cancer treatments. From there, I couldn’t stop dressing in vintage style as I finally found a style that suits me and a very loving and fun community I adore.” Q: Who are your style icons? A: “I know it may be shocking, but I don’t really have a style icon as I have a passion for old pictures and regular women of the past fascinate me as much as icons, maybe even more because the mystery of who they were is still intact. If I have to tell you which icon of the past I admire the most, I have no hesitation to tell you it’s Hedy Lamarr because yes, she was gorgeous, but especially because she was a pure genius. I think she should get more recognition for her inventions that literally changed the world.” Q: Where do you usually find your clothes? A: “Like a lot of us, I started by buying reproduction clothes from big companies with a few true vintage finds in second hand shops. But after a few years, I watched the documentary “The true cost” and since then, I boycott all the brands made in Asia or eastern Europe, as it’s very hard to get information about the working conditions of the workers who make the garments. And usually, the working conditions are inhuman and these factories are an ecological disaster. So when in doubt about a brand or company, I avoid shopping. I only buy from brands very clear about these issues and now I buy a lot from friends closets sales, second hand, little creators like Prettie Lanes, Vivien of Holloway, Seamstress of Bloomsbury, Hearst and Found, etc. I also spend a lot of time on Etsy! And I must admit that it limited a lot my shopping habits, I buy less, I use more the same outfits, I buy better quality and made to measure, but I enjoy now how every piece counts as it’s not the shopping orgy every month. I always have something I love to wear now that I have less clothes. And I am glad I spent my money more wisely. I am not perfect and it’s still very hard to buy everything “fair trade”, I still struggle with shoes for example. But I think that it’s not because you can’t do it all perfect that you shouldn’t do anything to change your way of consuming. I also plan on starting to sew my own clothes, like a lot of our grandmas did! What could be more authentic and rewarding than being able to dress yourself? I have a lot of admiration for people who can sew and I hope to learn this skill one day too!” Q: Where are you originally from? How do people react to your style? A: ”I live in Switzerland. (Yes, it’s different from “Sweden” which is a beautiful nordic country.) Here, the vintage scene is quite small. As you may know, my country has four national languages (German, French, Italian, Romanche) and is divided into three big regions depending on the language we speak. I live in the french speaking part of Switzerland and we are not many vintage gals here! The vintage and especially rockabilly community is bigger in the German speaking region though. I usually get a lot of attention as I really stand out from the crowd. I get a lot of compliments from random strangers in the street and especially from women, which is very nice and I always love to engage with ladies. It’s usually very positive, but the people who stare at me when I am out dining with friends are a bit annoying to me as it feels a bit rude. During the vintage meetings and festivals it’s very different as I know I will be part of “the attractions” so tourists will ask for pictures, very, very often. Which doesn’t bother me during vintage meetings, but in the streets when you live your ordinary life, it feels weird and I often decline the offer politely when I am the only one dressed in vintage style. The cutest reactions I got were from little girls asking their parents if I was a princess. It’s just too adorable to see how they look at me, it makes me feel like they just met their favorite Disney princess in real life. I even had to play this role once as the parents of a little girl told her I actually was a real princess and they asked me if I could come talk to their daughter because she really wanted to ask me a question. It was hard to lie but she was so happy it made me feel better about playing a role! To conclude, my favorite encounter happened with an old lady I was buying an ice cream from at the lake next to my home. She was admiring my hairstyle and told me that she witnessed the arrival of american troops in France during WWII as a little girl, and the women she saw back then had the exact same hairstyles. I was honored and very touched to listen to her memories. With all the care I take to create authentic looking vintage hairstyles, it’s still the biggest compliment I ever got.” Q: What is a must-have for your look? A: “Hair accessories! I can almost never go out without at least a pretty vintage flower in my hair or I feel very naked. I create my own hair flowers so I just craft a new one every time I need a new addition to my collection and I am a bit of a hat hoarder I must admit…” Q: What are your vintage styling tips? Q: “It all depends on what style of vintage you are going for! If you are a very modern rockabilly pin up, it will obviously be very different than my style. So I can only speak from my experience and to gals who also try to achieve an authentic looking vintage look. My first tip would be to do your homework! Research, buy vintage magazines, find old tutorials about hair, makeup and style, look at old pictures on Pinterest. It will help you to find your own style and know what goals you are aiming to. Luckily, with the internet nowadays, you can also find a lot of awesome tutorials on YouTube, try them out and keep going until you get the result you want. Vintage styling takes patience and a lot of trial and error until you find the right techniques and products that work for you. Then, once you found what you like, you will need to try to achieve this look on your own. It only gets better with practice. So be curious, try new makeup looks, try a different look to see how it works on you and to have fun too, train your hair and makeup skills by doing it regularly. It’s not an obligation to doll you up every day, but maybe once during the week-end is already very good to progress.” Q: Your hair is always perfect in your pictures. What are your tips for maintaining a vintage hairstyle? A: “Well, first of all thank you very much for the compliment! I must admit, I think that genetics helps me a lot as my hair is the easiest thing to work with: they are thick, hold the curls very well, they have volume and I have a ton of hair. All of these factors help a lot with vintage hair styling. Don’t think that you can expect the same results on your hair than what you see on social media. Hair stylists are smart, they usually use the perfect models, the girls who have the perfect hair to achieve certain styles. It will not look the same on you if you don’t have the same type of hair. But the good news is: it doesn’t matter, because if you find what works on your hair, you can still achieve great vintage looks! The best way to maintain a vintage hairstyle for me is first the hair cut! A horseshoe cut is the best way for me to achieve a vintage look. And please, don’t thin out the ends! Because you need to have volume down there. The products you choose and the techniques are crucial. For my type of hair, a wet set with sugar water and a few other products works best. If you have very thin and straight hair, you may need to use the least amount of products to avoid getting your hair heavy, as it will lead your curls to falling apart. And sometimes, if you have a hard time keeping curls in your hair, maybe try to use only your fingers to style your curls in place, it may work better than brushes in some cases! If you need more information about how I style my hair, it’s a topic I love to talk about on Instagram and I have video tutorials showing you every detail of the styling process on my IGTV. I am also always happy to answer your questions or film a new video to show you how I do certain styles. Finally, my last piece of advice is to work with what you have, especially after a wet set! Work with your hair and not against them. Sometimes it means changing your plans last minute to do another hairstyle than what you had in mind. Be creative and enjoy!” Q: Over all, what’s your advice for women who’d like to dress in pinup fashion? A: “Do what you like and makes you happy! There is no right or wrong way to express your style. If you can do it without harming workers who make your clothes and the environment, it’s even better. If you think little designers are too expensive, buy second hand and true vintage as you can find ‘40s and ‘50s reproductions from the ‘70s and ‘80s quite easily. This tip also works wonders for ladies like me who wear larger sizes. But let me tell you, all the cheap dresses I bought in the beginning I gave them away. Once you try a well made dress, you never go back. I know starting to change your wardrobe is expensive, but it’s even worse when you waste your money on ill fitted and uncomfortable dresses you’ll never like to wear. You pay for what you get. Spend your money wisely on clothing that will last and that you can accessorize to wear very often and feel like it’s a different look. Buy things that work with what you already have, so you don’t have to buy a new dress to go with this new pretty bag that goes with no outfit in your closet. Get inspired by others, wear what makes you happy and do it with other ladies because it’s less frightening in the beginning to go out with another pin up than alone. It’s a lot more fun too! Be mentally prepared to attract attention and if it bothers you, here’s my very easy tip: always sit where you don’t have the view on everyone at the restaurant/bar so you don’t see people staring at you. My friends know and they always think about this parameter before sitting somewhere, giving me the best seat! Let people look at you, talk about you, ignoring them is the best solution if they make you uncomfortable. But don’t let them discourage you to express yourself and show the world how amazing you are.”

Q: Your hair is always perfect in your pictures. What are your tips for maintaining a vintage hairstyle?


A: “Well, first of all, thank you very much for the compliment! I must admit, I think that genetics helps me a lot as my hair is the easiest thing to work with: they are thick, hold the curls very well, they have volume and I have a ton of hair. All of these factors help a lot with vintage hair styling. 

Don’t think that you can expect the same results on your hair than what you see on social media. Hair stylists are smart, they usually use the perfect models, the girls who have the perfect hair to achieve certain styles. It will not look the same on you if you don’t have the same type of hair. But the good news is: it doesn’t matter, because if you find what works on your hair, you can still achieve great vintage looks!

The best way to maintain a vintage hairstyle for me is first the hair cut! A horseshoe cut is the best way for me to achieve a vintage look. And please, don’t thin out the ends! Because you need to have volume down there. 

The products you choose and the techniques are crucial. For my type of hair, a wet set with sugar water and a few other products works best. If you have very thin and straight hair, you may need to use the least amount of products to avoid getting your hair heavy, as it will lead your curls to falling apart. And sometimes, if you have a hard time keeping curls in your hair, maybe try to use only your fingers to style your curls in place, it may work better than brushes in some cases!

If you need more information about how I style my hair, it’s a topic I love to talk about on Instagram and I have video tutorials showing you every detail of the styling process on my IGTV. I am also always happy to answer your questions or film a new video to show you how I do certain styles. 

Finally, my last piece of advice is to work with what you have, especially after a wet set! Work with your hair and not against them. Sometimes it means changing your plans last minute to do another hairstyle than what you had in mind. Be creative and enjoy!”

According to The National Domestic Violence Hotline, one in three American women ages 18 to 24 have experienced rape, psychical violence, or stalking by intimidate partner in their lifetime. Women from the ages of 18 to 34 experienced the highest rate of intimate partner violence. Women, especially in religious communities, are often told to stay with their abusers. We are told to forgive them for every scar they leave on bodies, and more importantly, our minds. While physical violence is absolutely unacceptable in any relationship; I find that when I’m speaking to women, it’s the emotional abuse that causes the most pain. Physical scars eventually heal. But mental scars often never do. Many women turn to food, drugs, or alcohol to cope with their abuser constantly belittling them. “Who else would want you?” “Why are you wearing that? You look like a Slut.” “You can’t live without me.” “No one would believe you over me.” When you’re told things like that constantly, you eventually start believing them. Because abusers rarely ever cage you physically, but meantaly. Think about it, if they just hit you, you’d probably be gone the next day. They slowly break down your self-worth and will even bring up intimate details of your past that you’re ashamed of and use them against you to make you believe that you deserve their abuse. When women leave, they often have to rebuild their self-confidence again. They often make drastic changes to their appearance and lifestyle to symbolize their new-found freedom. That’s how a Pin-up model that goes by the name of Tina De Velours started her alternative fashion journey. I spoke to her to her, and asked her for her advice for women who may be going through the same things she did, and for her advice for dressing in pinup style fashion. Q: How did you decided that you wanted to start dressing in vintage fashion? A: “When I was twenty three, I was in an abusive relationship with my boyfriend for almost six years. He had control over my entire life, from the people I saw, to the clothes I wore and many other things like the length of my hair which had to be very long to please him. I was struggling a lot with my weight also as he wanted me to stay quite thin. This is when I started to explore more on facebook and came across pictures of vintage models (Acid Doll, Idda Van Munster and Miss Victory Violet were the first ones I encountered). I’ve always been fascinated by the old Hollywood golden era, but never realised it was actually possible to adopt the vintage look for regular women (Because, of course, I knew about Dita Von Teese… But she’s not what I would qualify a regular woman and not someone I could relate to back then). As I got inspired by these wonderful models, I started to change little details to fit more into the rockabilly style, but my boyfriend at the time didn’t like it at all so he restricted me a lot. Until the day he decided to become violent and I decided to run away. Since then, dressing vintage became the symbol of my freedom. I even decided to cut away 35 cm of hair to complete my look and gave it as a donation to an organisation who create wigs for people who have lost their hair due to cancer treatments. From there, I couldn’t stop dressing in vintage style as I finally found a style that suits me and a very loving and fun community I adore.” Q: Who are your style icons? A: “I know it may be shocking, but I don’t really have a style icon as I have a passion for old pictures and regular women of the past fascinate me as much as icons, maybe even more because the mystery of who they were is still intact. If I have to tell you which icon of the past I admire the most, I have no hesitation to tell you it’s Hedy Lamarr because yes, she was gorgeous, but especially because she was a pure genius. I think she should get more recognition for her inventions that literally changed the world.” Q: Where do you usually find your clothes? A: “Like a lot of us, I started by buying reproduction clothes from big companies with a few true vintage finds in second hand shops. But after a few years, I watched the documentary “The true cost” and since then, I boycott all the brands made in Asia or eastern Europe, as it’s very hard to get information about the working conditions of the workers who make the garments. And usually, the working conditions are inhuman and these factories are an ecological disaster. So when in doubt about a brand or company, I avoid shopping. I only buy from brands very clear about these issues and now I buy a lot from friends closets sales, second hand, little creators like Prettie Lanes, Vivien of Holloway, Seamstress of Bloomsbury, Hearst and Found, etc. I also spend a lot of time on Etsy! And I must admit that it limited a lot my shopping habits, I buy less, I use more the same outfits, I buy better quality and made to measure, but I enjoy now how every piece counts as it’s not the shopping orgy every month. I always have something I love to wear now that I have less clothes. And I am glad I spent my money more wisely. I am not perfect and it’s still very hard to buy everything “fair trade”, I still struggle with shoes for example. But I think that it’s not because you can’t do it all perfect that you shouldn’t do anything to change your way of consuming. I also plan on starting to sew my own clothes, like a lot of our grandmas did! What could be more authentic and rewarding than being able to dress yourself? I have a lot of admiration for people who can sew and I hope to learn this skill one day too!” Q: Where are you originally from? How do people react to your style? A: ”I live in Switzerland. (Yes, it’s different from “Sweden” which is a beautiful nordic country.) Here, the vintage scene is quite small. As you may know, my country has four national languages (German, French, Italian, Romanche) and is divided into three big regions depending on the language we speak. I live in the french speaking part of Switzerland and we are not many vintage gals here! The vintage and especially rockabilly community is bigger in the German speaking region though. I usually get a lot of attention as I really stand out from the crowd. I get a lot of compliments from random strangers in the street and especially from women, which is very nice and I always love to engage with ladies. It’s usually very positive, but the people who stare at me when I am out dining with friends are a bit annoying to me as it feels a bit rude. During the vintage meetings and festivals it’s very different as I know I will be part of “the attractions” so tourists will ask for pictures, very, very often. Which doesn’t bother me during vintage meetings, but in the streets when you live your ordinary life, it feels weird and I often decline the offer politely when I am the only one dressed in vintage style. The cutest reactions I got were from little girls asking their parents if I was a princess. It’s just too adorable to see how they look at me, it makes me feel like they just met their favorite Disney princess in real life. I even had to play this role once as the parents of a little girl told her I actually was a real princess and they asked me if I could come talk to their daughter because she really wanted to ask me a question. It was hard to lie but she was so happy it made me feel better about playing a role! To conclude, my favorite encounter happened with an old lady I was buying an ice cream from at the lake next to my home. She was admiring my hairstyle and told me that she witnessed the arrival of american troops in France during WWII as a little girl, and the women she saw back then had the exact same hairstyles. I was honored and very touched to listen to her memories. With all the care I take to create authentic looking vintage hairstyles, it’s still the biggest compliment I ever got.” Q: What is a must-have for your look? A: “Hair accessories! I can almost never go out without at least a pretty vintage flower in my hair or I feel very naked. I create my own hair flowers so I just craft a new one every time I need a new addition to my collection and I am a bit of a hat hoarder I must admit…” Q: What are your vintage styling tips? Q: “It all depends on what style of vintage you are going for! If you are a very modern rockabilly pin up, it will obviously be very different than my style. So I can only speak from my experience and to gals who also try to achieve an authentic looking vintage look. My first tip would be to do your homework! Research, buy vintage magazines, find old tutorials about hair, makeup and style, look at old pictures on Pinterest. It will help you to find your own style and know what goals you are aiming to. Luckily, with the internet nowadays, you can also find a lot of awesome tutorials on YouTube, try them out and keep going until you get the result you want. Vintage styling takes patience and a lot of trial and error until you find the right techniques and products that work for you. Then, once you found what you like, you will need to try to achieve this look on your own. It only gets better with practice. So be curious, try new makeup looks, try a different look to see how it works on you and to have fun too, train your hair and makeup skills by doing it regularly. It’s not an obligation to doll you up every day, but maybe once during the week-end is already very good to progress.” Q: Your hair is always perfect in your pictures. What are your tips for maintaining a vintage hairstyle? A: “Well, first of all thank you very much for the compliment! I must admit, I think that genetics helps me a lot as my hair is the easiest thing to work with: they are thick, hold the curls very well, they have volume and I have a ton of hair. All of these factors help a lot with vintage hair styling. Don’t think that you can expect the same results on your hair than what you see on social media. Hair stylists are smart, they usually use the perfect models, the girls who have the perfect hair to achieve certain styles. It will not look the same on you if you don’t have the same type of hair. But the good news is: it doesn’t matter, because if you find what works on your hair, you can still achieve great vintage looks! The best way to maintain a vintage hairstyle for me is first the hair cut! A horseshoe cut is the best way for me to achieve a vintage look. And please, don’t thin out the ends! Because you need to have volume down there. The products you choose and the techniques are crucial. For my type of hair, a wet set with sugar water and a few other products works best. If you have very thin and straight hair, you may need to use the least amount of products to avoid getting your hair heavy, as it will lead your curls to falling apart. And sometimes, if you have a hard time keeping curls in your hair, maybe try to use only your fingers to style your curls in place, it may work better than brushes in some cases! If you need more information about how I style my hair, it’s a topic I love to talk about on Instagram and I have video tutorials showing you every detail of the styling process on my IGTV. I am also always happy to answer your questions or film a new video to show you how I do certain styles. Finally, my last piece of advice is to work with what you have, especially after a wet set! Work with your hair and not against them. Sometimes it means changing your plans last minute to do another hairstyle than what you had in mind. Be creative and enjoy!” Q: Over all, what’s your advice for women who’d like to dress in pinup fashion? A: “Do what you like and makes you happy! There is no right or wrong way to express your style. If you can do it without harming workers who make your clothes and the environment, it’s even better. If you think little designers are too expensive, buy second hand and true vintage as you can find ‘40s and ‘50s reproductions from the ‘70s and ‘80s quite easily. This tip also works wonders for ladies like me who wear larger sizes. But let me tell you, all the cheap dresses I bought in the beginning I gave them away. Once you try a well made dress, you never go back. I know starting to change your wardrobe is expensive, but it’s even worse when you waste your money on ill fitted and uncomfortable dresses you’ll never like to wear. You pay for what you get. Spend your money wisely on clothing that will last and that you can accessorize to wear very often and feel like it’s a different look. Buy things that work with what you already have, so you don’t have to buy a new dress to go with this new pretty bag that goes with no outfit in your closet. Get inspired by others, wear what makes you happy and do it with other ladies because it’s less frightening in the beginning to go out with another pin up than alone. It’s a lot more fun too! Be mentally prepared to attract attention and if it bothers you, here’s my very easy tip: always sit where you don’t have the view on everyone at the restaurant/bar so you don’t see people staring at you. My friends know and they always think about this parameter before sitting somewhere, giving me the best seat! Let people look at you, talk about you, ignoring them is the best solution if they make you uncomfortable. But don’t let them discourage you to express yourself and show the world how amazing you are.”

Q: Over all, what’s your advice for women who’d like to dress in pinup fashion?


A: “Do what you like and makes you happy! There is no right or wrong way to express your style. If you can do it without harming workers who make your clothes and the environment, it’s even better. If you think little designers are too expensive, buy second hand and true vintage as you can find ‘40s and ‘50s reproductions from the ‘70s and ‘80s quite easily. This tip also works wonders for ladies like me who wear larger sizes. But let me tell you, all the cheap dresses I bought in the beginning I gave them away. Once you try a well made dress, you never go back. 

I know starting to change your wardrobe is expensive, but it’s even worse when you waste your money on ill fitted and uncomfortable dresses you’ll never like to wear. You pay for what you get. Spend your money wisely on clothing that will last and that you can accessorize to wear very often and feel like it’s a different look. 

Buy things that work with what you already have, so you don’t have to buy a new dress to go with this new pretty bag that goes with no outfit in your closet. 

Get inspired by others, wear what makes you happy and do it with other ladies because it’s less frightening in the beginning to go out with another pin up than alone. It’s a lot more fun too!

Be mentally prepared to attract attention and if it bothers you, here’s my very easy tip: always sit where you don’t have the view on everyone at the restaurant/bar so you don’t see people staring at you.

My friends know and they always think about this parameter before sitting somewhere, giving me the best seat! Let people look at you, talk about you, ignoring them is the best solution if they make you uncomfortable. But don’t let them discourage you to express yourself and show the world how amazing you are.”
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