Bitten by the vintage bug

Is the vintage bug something that is inherited or is it a gene that exists in our dna?

We moved from the East coast some years ago and I still have some items in boxes. Oh, OK, I'll admit, lots of items in boxes. Some items I have decided no longer fit my decor and thinking of selling.

When he was a little boy, my son and I loved shopping yard sales almost every weekend. I can comfortably say we replaced almost every piece of poorly constructed furniture with sturdy well made antiques. Many pieces we still own.

Yard sales upstate NY were much different than ones in NYC and on our way home we'd make a quick stop at the farmer's market and fill our baskets with fresh fragant fruits, vegetables and warm blueberry pie fresh out of the oven. On one of those trips we made friends with a farmer's son, his name was Kenny. Turns out Kenny was a mechanic and worked on our car for years.

Some of those farmers got hit very hard recently due to Tropical Storm Irene.

The Gill Farms were one of those places we shopped.

Farmer's Markets in NYC were non existent back then. My son, who works in NYC shops them now, he gave me a cloth shopping bag from The Amish Market in NYC not too long ago. NYC Farmer's Markets will feel the effect of the storm. Sometimes we forget, or take for granted, how something that happens to someone so far is able to still affect us directly.

Going through one of the boxes recently I felt a familiar long cilindrical shape with a cobalt blue sphere at the top wrapped in paper & bubble wrap. I remembered the Art Deco shaker we found at one of our many yard sale jaunts. We couldnt have paid more than a couple of dollars for it. It would match an Art Deco sideboard we found only a couple of weeks prior for $20.00. The sideboard lives in my dining room today.

Where ever we lived we always displayed the shaker in a cabinet with the rest of the nicer glasses we only used when company came. Some of those glasses were from the Depression era.

I often wondered if the lone shaker belonged to a set.

It took me about 30 years to find out.



When I unwrapped the shaker I placed it on my coffee table thinking maybe to sell or donate. My son spotted it and asked if he could have it for his 'man cave.' He informed me he has been in search of a small Mid Century Buffet bar as well. The shaker would be the first item in his collection and of course I was so happy to let him have it and keep it in the family.

Here is a stunning image from the auction.




A close up of the mark at the bottom of the shaker.



The type of bar my son is in search of.






I saw one listed locally for a song some time ago! I contacted the seller for measurements but because I had no idea my son wanted one I passed on it, I just didnt have the room in my place. Talk about non buyer's regret!



I hope to find another.

At least trying to shop for him for Christmas or Birthdays will be more fun than shopping for sweaters, slippers or socks.

I still dont have the answer to the original question but I hope it is something we can pass down to our children and those who touch our lives.

Vintage Fashion Expo

Oct. 15th & 16th, 2011
at The Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in Santa Monica, CA







My pulse just skipped a beat.

Disappointment Playboy Club Cancelled

Announcement.

"Despite having relatively tame content, the show wasn’t helped by conservative group the Parents Television Council vehemently protesting the show. The PTC released a statement saying they were pleased with the cancellation:
“Bringing The Playboy Club to broadcast television was a poor programming decision from the start. We’re pleased that NBC will no longer be airing a program so inherently linked to a pornographic brand that denigrates and sexualizes women … we hope other broadcasters heed the important lessons of this programming debacle.”

Seriously? No one dragged, forced... women to work at the Playboy Club, or pose nude for that matter. Many women who worked at the club were married helping bring in a second income for their families and working on their careers. The Playboy Club was the spring board of many successful carreers for women when 'the establishment' was not giving them the chance to break through the glass ceiling.

The show was aired at 10PM. Chidren are supposed to be in bed by then. I'm so tired of a handful of prudes trying to control what everyone watches, listens to. This is the reason so many networks are dying & quality programming runs to cable.

Playboy Club's writing was much better than Pan Am's, so far has not been able to 'hook me'. The only interesting thing about Pan Am is the Christina Ricci character. I was looking forward to writing my little review of the last episode where they had a pretty cool night club scene and the one where the girls were in the house singing in their vintage lingerie...then a news bulletin announcing the show's demise popped my balloon.

Buck up Pan Am or you will be next.

Please check out my initial review of the show The Playboy Club

Playboy Club A Pleasant Surprise.

Fairy Tales Do Come True

Dress made from recycled children's books






Seen at one of my favorite Green websites ecouterre.

Designed by Ryan Jude Novelline

Shows us how it was done!

Amazing!

The Playboy Club, a pleasant surprise

Dad collected Playboy Magazines and was a member of the NYC Playboy Club. When I was a little girl my parents punished me because I thought it would be cute to go out on the porch and pose for my young neighbor after looking at dad's magazine. Wonder if I was imagining hearing him chuckle as mom frowned at him.

Dad didn't leave his mags laying around the house or anything like that but kids will get into EVERYTHING. My son confessed how he opened and re - taped Christmas presents I thought I had hidden so well.

I wonder if dad attempted to make up for it, as he rarely if ever, punished me, much later in life when as young aspiring artist I was commissioned to paint one of his favorite centerfold models. Done very tastefully, she was standing sideways wearing a short sheer baby doll nightie. She resembled Marilyn Monroe, about the age MM first posed for the magazine. It is one of the things I wish I had been given after dad passed away but I can almost bet it went to the trash bin thanks to his 2nd wife.

I was actually anticipating Pan Am more than the Playboy Club. I found the suspense plot from The Playboy Club more interesting.

Must note the authentic Playboy Bunny uniforms were cut sexier than those worn on the tv series. Maybe the costume dept had to bend to tv censors?

credit - Glenn Francis

As you can see, by the photo above, the thighs were cut to the waist.

vs the thigh cut in photo below:

credit - NBC

Arent the kiddies supposed to be in bed by 10PM? After all, not to give the plot line away, an extremely violent and bloody scene was allowed. I guess I shouldnt be surprised that we are so desensitized to violence yet prudes to the human body. And while I mention a human body, I would like to say VA VA VOOM! For women with REAL curves just like the actresses of the show and not the stick figures the media and most designers pass as "normal"

credit - NBC

Tails were soft, fluffy, tidy...more like powder puffs.





credit - Bunny PJ

The famous tail was one if not the most important accent of the uniform.

Early Bunnies wore black mesh for years until more comfortable black hose were introduced later in the 60s.

You can also tell, by the 80s uniform above how high those thighs were cut.

credit - History Wired

Update 2.16.2013 As it turns out Huff Po published an article in honor of Black History month about Zelda Wynn Valdes, Black Fashion Designer Who was the original creator for The Playboy Bunny Outfit.

"Zelda was revered for her design talent and best known for her skill in highlighting the female body. Her curve-hugging creations were worn and loved by a host of Hollywood's biggest starlets during the 1940s and 50s, including Joyce Bryant, Dorothy Dandridge, Josephine Baker, Ella Fitzgerald and Mae West. The Pennsylvania-native's key role in glamorizing these women caught the attention of Playboy's Hugh Hefner and he commissioned Zelda to design the first-ever Playboy Bunny costumes. And history has proven, the low-cut, skin-tight, sexy outfits are an iconic symbol of seduction and allure, forever ingrained in pop culture."

Zelda also designed for Marlene Dietrich, Joyce Bryant, Maria (Mrs. Nat “King”) Cole, Edna (Mrs. Sugar Ray) Robinson and later superstars like Gladys Knight and opera diva Jessye Norman.

Here is a link to an article about her in Ebony Style.

Thanks to vintie-loving friend Theresa Gotty for the lead.

On another note, I also remember Playboy mag having great music articles, this was before the days of Rolling Stone and other music magazines.



Singer Jackie Wilson autographs the cuff of a Playboy Bunny at a dinner for the Motion Picture Pioneers Association at the Playboy Club on November 19, 1962 in New York, New York. - credit irockjazz on Facebook.

A vintie-loving friend of ours, Kat Monroe, made further observations [of the show] stating the "dialogue was inauthentic. VIP customer to bunny: 'You are a thing of Beauty'...Bunny's remarks back end with a caustic...'I'm not a thing' "It would simply NEVER happen".

"Also the terms 'street PERSON' and 'Homeless person'...were called 'bums' or 'hobos' in those days. She also noted there was barely any smoking - as in Mad Men where you can clearly tell cigarette smoking took place everywhere, including doctor offices!

She is correct. In those years there was no such thing as PC. We were clue-less about the dangers of nicotine, cigarette ads and commercial were OK. Job security for women did not yet exist. Its great having another pair of eyes.

Fun trivia; Did you know? There is a bunny on every cover of the Playboy Magazine.



Dad & I made a game of Who Could Find It Faster.

Some were obvious;



Others, not so much;







Smithsonian Institute - "In the late 1960s, Playboy introduced Pucci-influenced, psychedelic-print costumes.



70's Bunnies Great Gorge NJ. Left one most probably Pucci uniform.

credit - Christian Montone




Also from Smithsonian - "In the early 1980s, the Bunny Cabaret costume was developed, inspired by Hugh Heffner, complete with Espree mesh stockings, garters and dyed pumps."

Wikipidea - 'The most famous maneuver of all, the "Bunny Dip," was invented by Kelly Collins, once renowned for being the "Perfect Bunny"; to do the "Bunny Dip" the Bunny gracefully leaned backwards while bending at the knees with the left knee lifted and tucked behind the right leg. This maneuver allowed the Bunny to serve drinks while keeping her low-cut costume in place.'

LINK: Marchesa designs for the new Playboy in London opening after a 30 year hiatus.

'MARCHESA FOR PLAYBOY
17. 05. 2011
Marchesa designers Georgina Chapman and Keren Craig have taken on the daunting task of revamping the iconic Playboy Bunny costume. The high-fashion redesign is to celebrate the reopening of the new Playboy Club which will open in London on July 4th after a 30 year break.

“The Playboy brand is about fantasy and escapism, which are elements embodied in our Marchesa collections" explains co-designer Georgina Chapman of the somewhat unusual pairing.

"We've taken our inspiration from the original costume but added Marchesa's signature details, such as hand draping and embroidery, while staying true to the Playboy Bunny's classic corset silhouette. The result is a modern, yet feminine interpretation of this legendary look," said Chapman.

"I recently discovered that both Lauren Hutton and Debbie Harry were Playboy Bunnies in the Sixties," continues Chapman. "They would've been perfect; they are so fun and daring in their style.”

The one-off Marchesa piece will be auctioned prior to the Playboy Club reopening, on May 26th on to raise money for Breast Cancer Awareness.



LINK: THE BUNNY IS BACK - THE WALL STREET JOURNAL.

Pan Am 'glossy but not yet polished'

If you read my previous post about Pan Am, I was looking forward to the premier on ABC. Marked on calendar & anticipated watching real time.

After my first time seeing Mad Men, the show who's HUGE success I'm sure isnpired Pan Am, my initial reaction...would I miss it if it had been pulled? Yes.

Premieres are supposed to hook you.

I thought the plot line of the rivaling sisters was OK but still not quite buying the espionage plot, because of the fumbling, spilling. Its been done.



My parents lived the Cuba Bay of Pigs. From the stories they told us I believe it should have been worthy of suspence building for, at the very least, an entire episode not just a few seconds.

Will Bridget be the new "Lost"? A mistery that is exploited with every episode? A pining jilted pilot who flies the skies in search of his missing love? Should I care?

According to some of the reviews the morning after jury is still out.

"glossy but not yet polished" ,

"more interested in surfaces than emotional interiors",

"Whereas "Mad Men" stews in morose melodrama, "Pan Am" serves up a cheery slice of retro pop culture pie. "Mad Men" mocks the antiquated mores of the past, while "Pan Am" romanticizes them. - ibtimes"

Adam Barken, tweeted: via ibtimes "Every scene in PAN AM is like the last scene of a big movie - but without the buildup or character development."

I was hoping to identify with the little girl's dreams watching glamorous stewardess passing by, as I wrote in my previous blog --- a scene shown last night, several times. Perhaps I held unrealistic expectations.

I am looking forward to be dazzled by Pan Am's script and substance not only by its surface veneer.

Valley of The Dolls

Its the 45th anniversay of the novel that sold over 30 million copies and 44 years since the cult campy movie Valley of the Dolls starring Susan Hayward, Patty Duke, Sharon Tate, Barbara Parkins & a brief speaking role with a young Richard Dreyfuss who played the part of an Assistant Stage Manager. The movie opened in 1967 in USA theaters.

Jacqueline Susann was the chic lit writer of the Groovy era, long before Jackie Colins came along. Susann was known to wear Emilio Pucci.

I was under age when the book and movie came out, all my girlfriends were talking about it but my parents would not let me see it. One afternoon I sneaked into a Manhattan movie theater. I think this is the movie that inspired me to raid vintage stores in the Village for Pucci & gave me the inspiration to sew.

Last night I found it again playing in one of the retro or classic movie channels.

Id forgotten some of the ridiculously campy scenes, like the one where Susan Hayward as Helen Lawson, performs 'I’ll Plant My Own Tree' in front of a huge psychedelic rotating mobile that could only have been conjured up from a bad 60s lsd trip.

Hayward was one of mom's favorite actresses, one of the great beauties of her time, she replaced Judy Garland in the role. According to wikipedia 'On July 20, 2009, Patty Duke appeared at the Castro Theater in San Francisco with a benefit screening of the film, and said that director Mark Robson made Garland wait from 8am to 4pm before filming her scenes for the day, knowing that Garland would be upset and drunk by that time.'

My favorite character of the movie was Barbara Parkins's Anne.

Here she is wearing Pucci.

There was something about Sharon Tate, she was not only a stunning woman but there was something so innocent and sweet, much like Marilyn Monroe who also died tragically and too young.

This is my favorite outfit that she wore in the movie, it consisted of a jacket with big buttons and slacks, when she walked into the pool area she removed the jacket to reveal a bikini. Bikinis were just becoming popular in the 60s.

My favorite mod mini dress of the movie is this one worn by Patty Duke's character Neely.

You could tell the 70's were quickly approaching by the avocado and orange sofa in the background of this scene.

This is a link to a youtube video that begins with the famous Neely and Helen cat fight.

I think the movie is still charming and campy after all these years, definitely worth checking out.