Thankyou, and I really mean it

[Deleted member 12480]

Forgive me if i have put this in an unecessary place, but i wanted to share something with all the ladies on FL.

I actually think this forum has changed my life.

You see, i'm only 15 and being a teenager i'm insecure about the way i look. However i've spent a great deal of my life hating how i looked, thinking i was too fat and how ugly i was.

But, i think probably over this past week my whole life has changed. I certainly haven't been a member very long but after finding the post on pin-up i looked at myself differently. I spent probably two hours just reading everyones replies on that thread and looking at peoples beautiful pin up pictures. I looked and i thought, hey, these women aren't stick thin and yet they are so beautiful. You all looked so happy and confident and it really changed my mind.

I love that everyone on this forum is so lovely to each other and its like one huge (excuse the hideous cliche) happy family. Some of you complete strangers yet you all share parts of your lives with each other and you are just so FRIENDLY.

Now when i look in the mirror i don't obsess over how my shoulders are too broad, or i could just lose that 'flab' off my tummy or my thighs are wobbly or so on.

Now i look and i think, actually, i'm beautiful.

And after thinking about it i'm pretty sure its thanks to every single beautiful lady here in The Powder Room,

(as well as some cool guys from the other areas!)

so,

sorry for being all horribly gushy or whatever but i guess i just mean

Thankyou!!


<3
Annie 'Pancake'



xxxxx

 

[LizzieMaine]

Gee whiz, that may be the nicest post I've ever seen here, and whenever I find myself getting frustrated or annoyed at all the work we have to put into keeping things running smoothly, I'm going to come back and reread it. I think I speak for all of us here when I say thank *you* for posting it.

 

[Foofoogal]

it is so sweet....

You see, i'm only 15 and being a teenager i'm insecure about the way i look.

Just want to state that probably every teenager feels the same way.
So glad you did find the FL where being a bit different is celebrated.
Always love yourself and believe in yourself.
Like lovely flowers we are all very different indeed.
No telling what you will look like when you get older or where you will live or countless other things.
Life is so much about change.
Hold your head up and carry on.
It is exciting to me that you are learning from many qualified vintage lovers here. Study and keep notes. No telling how much you will learn and know from many older than you one day.

 

[Deleted member 12480]

most of the kids my age spend all night on their butts, browsing the internet but i'm not sure any of them spend hours scouring a forum on the golden era for things to just 'learn'!

xx

 

[Foofoogal]

Looking forward to your book or movie or show come 2025. lol

Soak it up. This is how I learned about antiques and make my living.
Reading, reading, walking thru tons of shops which you are able to do from your chair.
Study, study, study..take notes, etc. If you truly love it it will work.
Good for you..

 

[texasgirl]

Beautiful on the inside as well as the outside!

And so smart to learn these things the rest of us didn't figure out until we were in our 30s!

 

[Audrey Horne]

Thanks so much for posting this, you sound sweet. I agree with Foofoogal, I think everyone feels out of place when they're 15. Welcome!

Oh wouldn't it be fun to dig up pictures of our awkward 15 year old selves?

 

[Deleted member 12480]

aaah you all make me smile so much when i read your replies!

i think that'd be interesting just to see what you were wearing. i may still be a kid but pictures of me as a LITTLE kid were SEVERELY uncool.

baggy jeans with a sleeveless roll neck anyone? *shudder*

 

[bettydarling]

Thats lovely Annie, its so refreshing to hear a teenager like you with such a positive body image and attitude, thank you for the dose of inspiration! :eusa_clap

 

[Inky]

Thank YOU Annie for those kind words about the Lounge. I know that the Lounge and it's ladies (I don't spend much time where the gents are) have helped me immensely on my own vintage journey with their knowledge and sharing (and that dreadful enabling they do so well!).

I would never have known you were 15 - you are a very mature and well spoken young lady.

It's a pleasure to have you here.

 

[jetgirl]

I looked and i thought, hey, these women aren't stick thin and yet they are so beautiful. You all looked so happy and confident and it really changed my mind.

I love that everyone on this forum is so lovely to each other and its like one huge (excuse the hideous cliche) happy family. Some of you complete strangers yet you all share parts of your lives with each other and you are just so FRIENDLY.

Now when i look in the mirror i don't obsess over how my shoulders are too broad, or i could just lose that 'flab' off my tummy or my thighs are wobbly or so on.

Now i look and i think, actually, i'm beautiful.

Wow, what a fabulous thing to write. The Fedora Lounge is actually good as a self-esteem builder! Throughout my life, all my girlfriends who had men trailing behind them all had one thing in common, they had the confidence to exude their own style. I hope you carry this with you always.

 

[Deleted member 12480]

Thank YOU Annie for those kind words about the Lounge. I know that the Lounge and it's ladies (I don't spend much time where the gents are) have helped me immensely on my own vintage journey with their knowledge and sharing (and that dreadful enabling they do so well!).

I would never have known you were 15 - you are a very mature and well spoken young lady.

It's a pleasure to have you here.

thats such a compliment!
I grow up surrounded by chavs (do they exist in the US? if not, probably otherwise known as walking billboards.) so i do my best!

 

[cherry lips]

Thanks so much for posting this, you sound sweet. I agree with Foofoogal, I think everyone feels out of place when they're 15. Welcome!

Oh wouldn't it be fun to dig up pictures of our awkward 15 year old selves?

This is true. I found myself fashion-wise thanks to FL, it was like coming home ( I think I was 26). You are a sweetheart, please stay that way even when you grow up!

 

[SayCici]

Annie I'm with everyone else, thank you for posting this!! I have to admit I got a little misty eyed. I wish when I was a teen (okay, still am one for another month, but my past angsty teen-self) I had the FL, but instead of pin-ups I had this:

and it did the same thing for me in a different way! I'm really happy for you that you can love and appreciate yourself and your body now! Keep it up!

 

[23SkidooWithYou]

Annie,

I'm sitting here trying to figure out how to reply to you. You are such a beautiful young lady. I can see that from your avatar. I can hear that in your posts. To think that there was a time you didn't see it yourself sort of makes me sad. I'm so glad...no, THRILLED, that you are beginning to appreciate yourself!

The good thing is that your experience with the way you used to feel makes you more aware of others that are going through it themselves. Perhaps that's why the FL ladies are so supportive of each other. We've all probably felt not-so-hot at one time or another. That's probably why the ladies at FL choose to celebrate each other and build each other up instead of tearing somebody down. I'm so glad you've felt the positivity and embraced it! I know I have too.

You're comments were so nice...I think we should start calling you AnnieSWEETcakes!

 

["Skeet" McD]

From the other side of the aisle....

Dear AP,
Welcome, and thank you for your charming letter. You will find many kindred souls here. And you'll fit right in.

Be true to yourself; think about your choices, listen to what others have to say--but, at the end of the day, make sure you are comfortable with yourself.

You're off to a great start!

Sincerely,
"Skeet"

 

[bettydarling]

Thats lovely Annie, its so refreshing to hear a teenager like you with such a positive body image and attitude, thank you for the dose of inspiration! :eusa_clap

Correction: I really hate the word 'teenager', I hated being called that when I was one!! I shouldn't have said "teenager like you", Inky put it much more eloquently, "you are a very mature and well spoken young lady".

I was just telling my Mum about your post and she thought it was fantastic. We both wish we'd had your insight at 15!

 

[Deleted member 12480]

i'm sort of taken aback!

Aah you're such a gorgeously lovely bunch of people! Xx

 

[Jennifer Lynn]

Annie - You are a gem. And I'm surprised your in your teens, your writing style is very mature (a big compliment). I hope venturing 'round these threads you'll continue to find a lot of inspiration for creativity and positive reinforcement of things you enjoy.

 

[Amy Jeanne]

Annie -- you are so NOT ugly!!! If that is you in your icon, you remind me of Joan Blondell:

That said -- I totally know what you mean because I've had the same thing happen to me -- AT AGE 34! It was seeing all the beautiful women on this forum and seeing them smiling and being incredibly confident and rockin' the style!!!

They come in all shapes, sizes, and ages. A woman's "shape and size" used to be the first thing I would notice, but now I find myself not even noticing it! I notice the style, the hair, the makeup, and the "glow." The "glow" is what does it.

You are so lucky to have TFL and Internet access at 15. I was 15 in 1990 -- I had "Kelly Bundy" as the beauty standard and it was something I never related to and knew I could never achieve (mostly because I didn't want to!) So I turned to what was available at the time -- Siouxsie and Marilyn Monroe! To have "regular" gals would have been so great for me, too.