Did You Ride to Work Today???

As It Was.....

Mr Chic spotted this image in Redfern this morning - gorgeous reminder.

Ah Cambridge, I Miss You

I have fond memories of Cambridge - a glorious city dominated by students and bicycles.....
Yes ok I wasn't around in 1938 when this photograph was taken but the spirit remains the same.

Thanks to the Sally from the Cambridge Raincoat Company (via Cambridge Bike Tours) for this memory.

Four Cambridge Students Riding Bike Together, 21 June 1938, Cambridge, UK

Image by Hulton-Deutsch Collection/CORBIS

Some Vintage Bike Fun for Friday

If riding your bike doesn't make you sometimes feel like doing this, then you must be doing something wrong!

Sydney Bicycles From Morning to Night

       

Started the day with commuter bicycles on the ferry this morning and ended it drinking with bicycles in the laneway beside Blender Gallery.  Summer in Sydney - hot, hot, hot!

Vintage Cycle Chic - Paris, 1945

More wonderful photographs from US photographer Ralph Morse from the LIFE Magazine archives.  These were taken in post WWII Paris in 1945 and capture a real sense of freedom and independence.  

Much more than just great vintage style shots.  Brilliant. 

Thanks to Richard from US bike blog Cyclelicious for finding them.

Just Some Gorgeous Vintage Cycle Chic Inspiration for the Weekend

Classic Audrey Cycle Chic

It seems all you really need to ride in style is a classic blouson sport jacket, cigarette pants and a pair of loafers.  Add a classic bike and a cute puppy in your basket and you have it made.

Bike Babe Alert - Part 2

Ok so yes the previous pic of Brigitte Bardot shows her on, and I quote, "a noisy smelly obnoxious two-stoke engine sitting up there where any sane person would have a basket." - thanks to our Cycle Chic friend Garry for humorously pointing that out!

So to redress the balance, here she is again, hair in the wind, on a lovely upright bicycle.

Garry I can hear your sigh of relief from here.....

Bike Babe Alert!

Ahead of Sunday's ride, I thought it might be nice to get a little Summer bicycle inspiration.  Miss Eva from Cycle Chic Sundays posted this on her beautiful blog recently and then I came across it again today so just had to share.

some global cycle chic to remind us what's important

It's been a tough week.  What with all the bad press surrounding Sydney's new cycle ways and the narrow minded commentary about Australia's mandatory helmet laws, frankly I'm exhausted.

So I thought it was high time we reminded ourselves of what it is we are trying to achieve.  A bike friendly city where all citizens are respectful and coexist happily - urban dreaming ?????

I'm going to my happy place now..... namely Amsterdam.  Thanks to Marc at Amsterdamize for these great pics !  He has about 5 million more on flickr - truly joyful (especially the last one - I'm in a sentimental mood today)

Sundays with Joni

Well we weren't blessed with much sunshine on Sunday for the second Cycle Chic Sundays Sydney ride so I mostly shot in b/w which kind of suited the monochrome day.
I met up with Miss Sonja in Rose Bay and took the ferry in to Circular Quay, chatting to curious ladies en route who wanted to know what we were all about.  Intrigued as they were, I hope the lady who took my contact details is reading this and gets in touch !!!  We'd love you to join us :-)
(Incidentally, this seems to happen each time I ride my beautiful bike which is damn cool - thanks Velorbis).
So we arrived at Circular Quay to find the lovely and beaming Miss Kerry waiting for us, yellow flowers tied to her handlebars, knitted seat cover and Joni Mitchell playing on her handlebar stereo.  Wonderful.  She had found a link to our site through Bike Sydney and turns out she is a real bike ride veteran - so glad you joined us Miss Kerry !
Next stop the Opera House to collect Miss Bronwyn, then some quick pics before heading up to the Art Gallery for some brunch and art.  Met up with a supportive non-bike-owning friend Miss Gill (got to get you some wheels girl.....) who surprised me with some badges from my twitter pals @RocketFuelStyle that she'd bought from the Finders Keepers Winterland Market at Carriageworks.
Then slowly back down Macquarie Street, missing the ferry home by 2 minutes so Miss Sonja and I killed time at the Rocks market and laughed our heads off outside Royal Copenhagen Ice Cream shop - it appealed to us in an ironic sort of way - then back to the ferry with ice cream for the ride home.

    

    

And a final shot in colour just because I want to share my Grandma's emerald green vintage evening gloves with you - I have unearthed a box of vintage scarves and gloves long forgotten which will be making many appearances I feel.......

Regret of the day - missing a photo op with some half drunk orange clad Dutch guys because we had our hands full with bikes and gelato.  Shame, would have been a good pic.

High point of the day - Joni Mitchell accompanying us.

Here comes the sun

Finally, a few hours of sunshine in old Sydney town and it's like everyone is back out of hibernation.  It didn't last the full day but while it did there were happy faces out in Bondi.  I took Inge down to Jed's for a breakfast quesadilla and a latte and happily we watched life go by with an old skool reggae soundtrack and the faintest smell of the ocean breeze drifting in the warm air.

One of the things I love about Sydney is the cafe culture.  The nonchalant upturned milk crates outside inner-city haunts that burn lines on your arse if you sit too long.  The million new artisan bakeries with organic breads and pies that seem to be springing up on every street corner and the crazy little cafe/bookshops stuffed with piles of books you always buy but never seem to have time to read.

      

I just need some sunshine in my life today

And still it rains........and the streets are empty

I am very happy to see the green lanes slowly appearing around the city.  The times they are finally changing.

Some classic style on a rainy bike free day

It's been raining in Sydney for days but seems like weeks, so little to do but delve deeper and deeper into the blogsphere and feed my bike addiction.

Loving this shot........

Never too young

Felix, aged 3, exhibiting his own natural cycle chicness.