Rita Hayworth

Glamorous Rita Hayworth was a terrific dancer and actress who was one of the top Hollywood stars in the 1940s.  Rita was born in Brooklyn, New York to a Spanish father and American-Irish mother, both professional dancers who encouraged their daughter to dance from an early age:

“From the time I was three and a half … as soon as I could stand on my own feet, I was given dance lessons.  I didn’t like it very much … but I didn’t have the courage to tell my father, so I began taking the lessons. Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse, that was my girlhood.” Rita Hayworth

Appearing in her first film at the age of 16, Rita changed her name from Margarita Carmen Cansino and dyed her hair red, altering her Mediterranean image before she saw her real success.  And the success was enormous, with Rita securing mass appeal which saw her featured on the cover of Life magazine five times from 1940.

I think of Rita as the epitome of glamour, exuding sexuality and celebrating her femininity.  She was a pin up girl for servicemen during the Second World War and won a modelling contract with Max Factor securing her role as a beauty icon.

Rita was beautiful, but let’s not forget her talent.  She held her own when dancing with Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly and appeared in 61 films in her lifetime.  Pretty impressive stuff, don’t you think?

Ginger Rogers in the early 1030s

At Rose & Co we delight in a little frivolity and celebrate the people who have done the same, so I thought I’d share with you some of people I admire starting with Ginger Rogers.

Ginger was a glamorous Hollywood star who oozed elegance and was an immensely talented dancer.  Have you heard the saying; “Ginger Rogers did everything that Fred Astaire did.  She just did it backwards and in high heels.”

In 1945 she was Hollywood’s highest paid star, and with good reason.  With successes such as Shall We Dance and Kitty Foyle, the latter for which she won Best Actress Academy Award, she took the film world by storm.

If you’ve not seen Ginger Rogers films, or at least not recently, beg or borrow some to capture her charisma and indulge in the nostalgia.

Rose & Patchouli Body Butter

What’s happening with the weather?  I’m finding it impossible to keep up.  I suggest taking a relaxing bath, then afterwards indulging your body to some nourishment by applying our Rose & Patchouli Body Butter.  You’ll feel as though you’ve had a treat and you’re still preparing your skin for summer, which I hope is still on its way.  You want to make sure you’re looking gorgeous for when the sun decides to play and this rich aromatic body butter containing natural oils and butters will leave an exotic aroma and soothe your skin against the chilly temperature.

Pat Rose and Daisy Dog in the Haworth shop

Dearest Daisy is a happy Chihuahua who battles her shyness to come and say hello.  She is currently on a diet and looking wonderfully svelte after some healthy eating and a fitness regime – Doctor’s orders as she has a luxating patella (clicky knee to you and I) which is a common problem with Chihuahuas apparently. You might catch sight of Daisy, Bluebell and Poppy running around Haworth as part of their exercise workout.

Daisy loves Yorkshire Tea

Can I get out now?

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The friendliest Chihuahua

Poppy is the friendliest of our Chihuahuas and she’ll greet you with a wagging tail and a gift… which could be anything from her favourite toy to a dead leaf.  Poppy won’t compete with the others for attention, but will stand back and patiently wait for a quiet moment to have some time, but she finds all the waiting exhausting and may have to saunter off for a little nap. We’re convinced she has a little bit of Pug in her somewhere – what do you think?

Re-launched in limited quantities as Soir de Paris – this classic fragrance is as evocative as ever and has been beautifully repackaged in a unique cobalt blue crescent bottle.

I love the scent of Soir de Paris and people who discover it in our Haworth shop are thrilled to discover it still exists.  If you’re planning to come to the Haworth 1940s weekend, or are just in love with all things vintage, this is the fragrance to be wearing.  Still modern, still romantic… a rare find.

Top dog

Rosie was the first of the Chihuahuas to enter my life and I love her so much that we ended up with six more. She is the princess of the Chichuahua clan and rules over the others as she reigns as top dog.

Rosie’s favourite thing in the world is her green monkey and she takes him to bed with her every night. As soon as she goes upstairs and reappears with green monkey in her mouth I know she’s ready for bed. This is her way of saying “bedtime mummy please”. The other girls are not allowed anywhere near him and they get in to serious trouble if they even look in monkey’s direction.

Rosie with her beloved green monkey

It takes a lot of work to become a friend of Rosie’s.  Even after years of trying, lots of humans have yet to win Rosie over; she’s a tough cookie.

Rosie protecting her favourite toy