Trudy Cooper

I might not be outgoing, drive a sports car, or have my pilots license and Trudy Cooper might just be my opposite in every way possible but when it comes to her simple fashion I am happy to oblige myself in copying the things she wore.

I don't know if any of you are familiar with the recent abc mini series Astronaut Wives, but I have absolutely fallen in love with the show, and sadly its last episode will be airing this week (sniff). However, I must say that apart from the fashions of the show (totally swoon worthy) the general story line is quite gripping. From looking at the lives of the astronauts wives and all they go through, to witnessing the retelling of America's space history, this show is inspiring in more ways than one.

 Before I go on with today's post however here is a short synopsis of the TV show: 

ABC's new television drama series based on the book by Lily Koppel, "The Astronaut Wives Club" focuses on seven women who were key players behind some of the biggest events in American history. As America's astronauts were launched on death-defying missions, the lives of their young wives were transformed, seemingly overnight, from military spouses to American royalty. As their celebrity rose, and tragedy began to touch their lives, they rallied together. abc.com

Okay....okay...now I know that you all have been anticipating a post that I have been hinting at and excitedly mentioning over the past couple of weeks (plus a treasure I picked up on my trip last week), well......this is it!!! Now, from your perspective it might not seem like that exciting of a post so let me give a little back story as to why this post is so exciting for me :)

First, as I mentioned before I have fallen on love with Astronaut Wives Club for more reasons than one but one of the biggest is the fashions. The series spans from 1959-1971 so you can imagine the evolution of fashion and style throughout the show (utterly breathtaking!!). Second, one of my favorite characters is Trudy Cooper. As I also mentioned above she is my TOTAL opposite in every way! She has a pilots licence for one thing, she drives a sports car while all of the other wives drive station wagons, she is quite independent and outgoing, and she hardly ever appears in a dress (capris and slacks most of the time). However, I absolutely love all of the 50's-60's capri outfits she sports throughout the show and while I was at Goodwill a few weeks back just happened to find this sweater top and pair of capris . Lets just say I was dancing around in the changing room and thinking "OH MY GOSH......I look like Trudy Cooper!!!!!" and already planning a post in my head (plus the sweater top is mustard yellow....bonus). 

Top: Thrifted; Pants: Thrifted (Talbot's)

Now you are probably wondering: 

"But Madison, you said you picked up a treasure while on your trip and were going to share it on the blog???"  

Okay, now I am getting to that :) What was the treasure you might ask? Well......first off for those of you who follow me on Instagram, you might remember a picture I posted two weeks ago featuring a DIY LIFE magazine Here. Well, when I was first planning the post I wanted to use a magazine as a prop and thus endeavored to make my own LIFE magazine with the original Astronaut Wives Cover. However, that brings me to my treasure......while antique shopping last week I just so happened to find a stack of magazines at an antique store (the first store) in Gruene Texas and was perusing the covers looking for anything interesting. Well, I just so happened to come across a LIFE magazine (I have been wanting one for awhile) and looked at the date which said 1962......then I read the cover title......I couldn't believe it.....the cover story was the orbit of John Glenn, the first American to orbit the earth as part of NASA's group "Mercury Seven."  John Glenn is just one of the seven astronauts in the TV Show but the fact that I found a life magazine from 1962 with the article was beyond me......I was FREAKING OUT (as you can imagine). What are the odds that I would be planning a blog post inspired by the TV show Astronaut Wives and then find a LIFE magazine with an article about one of the astronaut's orbits and his family, particularly his wife Anne who was another one of my favorite characters!!!! (Side Note: for those of you who have seen the movie BELLE, the actor who plays John in the movie plays John Glenn in Astronaut Wives....just FYI) What is even cooler (back to real life) is that after his time as a Test pilot with "Mercury Seven" John Glenn went on to become a Unite States Senator (he is now 94). 

And before I stop myself from rambling to long about the Glenn family, I must say a few things about Anne Glenn :) First off, as I noted before I loved her character in the show. She is very supportive, a great friend, and very quiet. When you first meet her in the show she doesn't every say a word and come to find out she actually stutters, but that is what makes me love her even more because she doesn't ever let that stop her from supporting her husband and friends. Okay, I am done :)

Shoes: Charlotte Russe ; Shades: Forever 21 ; Magazine: Antique Store

Toby makes a good prop too !

Now, what more can I say in this post.....hmm.......I could go on a on about so many things so let me talk a little more about the shows costumes and about my ensemble. As I have said the show spans from 1959-1971 thus throughout the episodes we witness full skirted 50's dresses, to tailored and printed 60's dresses and jacket sets, then towards the end moving into brighter colors and crazy prints of the 70's. If you ever need inspiration for the 50's-60's this show if full of swoon worthy ensembles. Which brings me to what I am wearing in today's post. While my ensemble might not be identical to anything that Trudy actually wore in the series it is definitely something that she would have been happy to wear on a daily basis. 

Usually I am not one to wear many pants or capris (to me skirts are more comfortable) but when I found this pair of Talbot's capris at Goodwill I was happy to try them on and thrilled that they fit! Most often on the blog you readers see me wearing ensembles inspired by the 40's or 50's but I must say I am really LOVING this 1960's capri look.......super comfortable, especially with this Rayon/Nylon blend sweater that I picked up at Goodwill that same day. All in all I was so excited to work on this post and bring to life the inspiration I drew from a character in Astronaut Wives (maybe we will see a few more insp. posts from characters???). Also, can I just say that it is so exciting when you discover a new way to do your hair! I wanted to copy Trudy's hair to the best of my abilities and while the picture of Trudy below is a shorter curl, most often in the series Trudy sports a looser wavy curled style (which I tried to copy). Lets just say I think I know how I will do my hair for the first day of the Fall semester. 

Trudy vs. Me

Me as an Astronaut Wife

Sometimes it is fun to do something a little different than just an ordinary outfit post. Thus for someone (me) who tend to freak out, critic, and copy costumes/outfits from movies and TV shows this post was right up my ally. 

I hope you all enjoyed a little something different with all of my enthusiasm, rambling, and excitement! 

Have any of you seen The Astronaut Wives Club?

Would you wear a 1960's capri ensemble? 

Have you ever found any great LIFE magazines?