Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Who Are you gonna be?

when Shayne was either in 5th or 6th grade, I made him a full complete Pink Panther costume....and he wore it. oh yes. I don't know where the Pink Panther body is...but here is the head...saved for posterity and for blogging purposes...



I love tradition....



still time to get some goodies for fun and games.......
crinolines, black stripes and corsets....
funkomavintage lingerie




Alice In Wonderland dress, vintage red satin showgirl tap dance costume....steampunk stripes.... pirate blouse...and a 40s inspired sailor girl pin up swimsuit ! 
vintage goodies...









Tall Pirate boots...long laces...and huge cuffs to turn down....or not....



and if you still aren't feeling halloweeeenie....go visit here....
BOOO !!
fantastic images from ....vintagehalloween.com





The Mad Hatter ...Alice In Wonderland ....the Red Queen....Cheshire Cat....Tea Party of smart people....happening in NYC. from buzzfeed.


 On Saturday afternoon, New York's Tompkins Square Park turned into a massive "Alice In Wonderland" reenactment.






It was the third annual Massive Mad Hatter Tea Party. The White Queen !!


Alice was there, of course.



Alice !!


 A number of women were on stilts.

Saturday, October 20, 2012

Sundress over. Sweater Time!

as much as I whine and I do whine with that cheese...I do like fall...not so much winter, but you have to go thru winter to get to spring, and then comes summer, and then fall again....and it is like that every damn year!
So, a passel of fantastic sweaters, lots of warm socks, a great pair of LL Bean boots, and gloves...that's what I'm in 24/7 all during the cold cold wet wet dark dark days.

I don't do Polarfleece. except for slippers, maybe. ick. mats up, pills up, garish colors. I love wool, I like acrylic....and OH Boy Cashmere! Nothing is better than vintage cashmere for warmth, a classy look that's great for everyday and every way.
Cashmere for everyone!

these are in my thatyountvillegirl shop on etsy.....

cashmere mitts


a cashmere and barkcloth hat....



the undies....




a scarf with a little tab to pull the end thru....



and I don't often see fashion I like. fashion I can wear. Being comfortable and warm really isn't anything you're gonna find on the runways of the Big People In Fashion.
I don't do Fahshun....I do awesome!

but I do like these....thanks Honestly WTFblog!!
Maison Scotch Fall 2012. Check it out. 

Big scarf. Check.
Big sweater. Check. (I had that sweater in the 80s)
Big boots. Check.
Skinny pants. Check.
Warm cool coat. Check.







And more good fall goodness...although............ some of the pants...are kinda weird once they get beyond skinny.....





.....like baggy in the crotchal area.... not a good look....But the rest is BAM!!

Friday, October 19, 2012

Vintage Style ...Cold Windy Weather Wear...

Time to toss on a cool vintage jacket...how about a motorcycle jacket...a cozy sweater...a vintage fedora to keep the brain warm and the rain at bay....Classic Harris Tweed jacket, a vintage US Navy pea coat, or a leather jacket. Military N2 B. Lots more fall and winter wear coming up to funkomavintage ....

oh, did I mention vintage boots....we got that too! 














Need a vintage pea coat? These 2 are coming to funkomavintage on Oct. 19th....


Thursday, October 18, 2012

America, home business, and Beistle!


Shayne made me this big stuffed Jack O'Lantern when he was a wee child...he stuffed it with newspaper...from The News Tribune, Oct. 5, 1983 ! That was right before his 9th birthday, if I did the math right. I haven't uncrumpled the papers inside to read them....though I love reading history...because Shayne crumpled them with his little hands....I'm sentimental like that.

From time to time, I'm gonna highlight some Made In USA products!
As a vintage dealer I get to see, fondle, buy, own and sell......the best of American ingenuity. About 10% of the vintage I buy to sell, was made outside the US. It used to be...almost everything was made here, and very little was imported.
I've been encouraging folks to shop for the USA labels since the early 80s, because buying products made overseas destroys factories here, sends jobs away, but buying American protects our economy. Sadly, far too many people started shopping at WalMart and Target, and not giving a thought to this.......everytime you buy something new, made in China or wherever, from  a country that doesn't pay living wages...you are weakening the American economy.

One of the many reasons I'm proud to be a vintage dealer....I get to highlight the mid-century goodies that gave us a great economy until Geo. Bush the Lesser was appointed by the Supreme Court.





Here's a few of my Beistle Company Halloween decorations.
Beistle decorations have always been made in the US, and are made in Pennsylvania!!
Beistle was founded in 1900 in Pittsburgh. Martin Luther Beistle used to make decorations for hotel lobbies with his family company, working from his home basement. He worked his day job as a calender salesman until his Halloween decor company could stand on its own.
Mr. Beistle ended up buying the calender company, and Beistle Co. grew and grew, and he moved the large successful company to Shippensburg PA.

Happy Jack!
This is marked (c) Beistle Made in USA, and that makes it pre-90s.









my vintage Beistle cat sitting on the crescent moon's nose!




Vintage Beistle  skeleton....and a few of my Big Eyes....



In 1910, Beistle bought the means to make honeycombed tissue, which used to only be made in Europe and Japan.
No product was made during WWII, but afterwards....full steam ahead!
***********************
This witch isn't Beistle, but we love her anyway!
No markings on her, but I'm gonna guess Dennison. I bought her at a yard sale from  a retired teacher, back in the late '90s.



She's taped and stapled together....She's got a big skull medallion necklace that looks kinda gangsta...







Beistle used a few different trademarks.....Copyr H.E.Luhrs, the name of a son-in-law, and The Beistle Company, Beistle Diamond, Bee-Line with a bee, and Art Tissue Westminster Bells, the well-known honeycomb tissue bells at all those weddings in the 50s and 60s..and beyond!

Want to know more about Beistle..... clicky here!!
and if you want to see their repros from their vast archives.....go here!!
 This crazy cat is marked (c)1990 so it's a Beistle reproduction. The plastic pumpkin is probably a Union blow mold lamp. go here to read a blog post I wrote about plastic blow molds.


I had my yard all lit up with the pop-up...but the winds made me take it down...but ...it lives on in my heart!




Here's my Bela Lugosi.........
his back.....


and his face ...Booo !!!




Of course, my favorite plastic skull......
it stars in my handmade necklaces....






here's the Halloween festivities around the pad....




yummy !! 
clicky for the story and the recipe.... 










and Squash....I love it!!