Kina Wicks . Photography with Elegance . Chicago & Worldwide

This love story starts a long time ago.  I was a very little girl when my affair with vintage kitsch started. I was a little bit of a nerd I think, and most certainly a bookworm.  I would haunt antique stores and decorated my bedroom in what I considered the height of Victorian vintage back then which was white wicker furniture, a Laura Ashley comforter, and old tea cups.  My favorite authors were all women; Lucy Maud Montgomery, Elizabeth George Speare, Louisa May Alcott & Maude Hart Lovelace, and there was one common thread.  The stories were all of eras gone by.  I loved the romance of the heroines and would sketch what I thought they looked like in great detail.

Though I grew up and developed a more keen sense of modern style to mix with my vintage love roots, I never lost my passion for “old” things.  I feel like vintage accessories mixed with modern elements are the perfect things to make a timeless portrait.  A work of art.  I hope in this series of articles, you are able to find some inspiration from something I’m very passionate about.  Maybe it will give you the gumption to try something new, or just give you a sigh as you remember the things that make you smile!

Lace, Ruffles & Flowers… yes, this is part one of Vintage Chic.  Before I went full time with my photography, I was a manager at a well know Chicago bridal gown shop.  Every time a new designer’s line would come in for a weekend trunk show, I couldn’t get enough of the fine fabrics, the details… the lace, ruffles and the flowers. When it came time for my own wedding, my dress was a simple a-line boat necked gown, but there was this Enzoani belt I HAD to have on it.  And… you guessed it; it was made of lace, ruffles, and flowers.

There’s just something so feminine and timeless in these details.  This is why they are “101″ (in my humble opinion) in modern vintage fashion.  Lastly, a big thank you to my beautiful model, my sister Sabrina, who agreed to pose for the first of the articles in the Vintage Chic series. Isn’t she stunning?!