England Swings

The Olympics are Here ! The Olympics are here....

I generally ignore them. I don't really do sports except Giants baseball when I was young, and swimming. always swimming. Archery.
Horseback riding. Canoeing.
Bicycle riding at a comfortable pace. Walking. Climbing trees.
Power shopping in thrift stores. Grocery shopping in record time.
Gardening. Ignoring housework. Reading.
Matching my underwear to my outfit for the day.
Some of these activities are Olympic events.
Still, I'm not interested.

I haven't ignored them. I check the news and I watch videos.

I agree that NBC is a mean-spirited asshole corporation, but what else is new.....

The balance beam ladies are amazing. Sexy men in Speedos. The ladies in bikinis playing Beach volleyball. Yeah, Something for everyone in the family !

This is a pair of Olympics, orange and yellow  vintage aviators sunglasses by B & L  RayBan, the Vagabond model. Awesome, eh?

The best thing about the Olympics are the Swag Bags.  We made about 350. bucks on 2 vintage Nike Munchen tote bags back in the old Ebay days.

It has a story...those Munchen 1972 Olympic bags.  That was the Olympics (this is the 40th anniversary) when the Black September Palestinian militant group killed 11 Israeli athletes in a terrorist attack at the 1972 Munich Olympics.
Back in the 90s we were goofing off on a Sunday afternoon going to estate sales. When we walked in, the gals at the front desk were a bit burned out and smoking. They tried to interest us in Hummels....oh please! so we just walked around...it was empty!
No people were there but us. We loaded up on light bulbs, note pads and envelopes...the usual crap no one thinks about, but everyone uses.
We were about to go back downstairs when we spotted them on a bed......2 plastic tote bags with the Nike symbol, the Nike name, and the Olympics rings and Munchen printed on a typical plastic airline tote bag.
Only later, did we figure out what they might be worth. And the ebay auction was very nice...back in the old days, we'd sit and refresh the screen every few minutes...then every few seconds...at the last hour.....WEEEEeeeeee!

so continuing on the sports theme, the first of the new listings I've done for about a month....Vintage Nike shoes, Vintage Converse, and a tennis themed hanky....

Vintage Swimsuits............

and the wackiest Pidgin Hawaiian dress from the 60s...I love novelty fabrics and the novelty dresses in goofy prints...and this one is wild !!  'As Why Hard!'  'Crack Seed'  ' Time for Au Au'

Roger Miller sings England Swings...

Let's go swimming....

grab your suit and let's go !

Here's a selection of vintage swim wear...from funkomavintage. Or you can just skinny dip. Whatev'

Summer Cook out

Mustard....

1950s vintage Tiki barkcloth Swimsuit shorts, are a hot mustard with lime and black and white in an atomic floral.

Rudi Gernreich rainbow forks potholder is everything 70s....after designing Mod clothes, he retired from the crazy and got into crafting...designs. It was the 70s..

Blue Kool-Aid...

1980s vintage swimsuit shorts, are bright turquoise, hot lime, navy and surf blue nylon.
Inside, they're lined in net made of purple polyester.

Mod midcentury Space Age lamp has amoeba shapes of crushed glass in medieval church colors of turquoise, grass green and aqua blues.

Hot dog Buns...

1970s vintage khaki tan summer Swimsuit shorts, are a creamy tan with an edge of bright orange.
Cut high, they are the shorts that made the 70s sexy.

Superfly big eye aviators in the classic tortoise mottled browns and rust !
Vintage gray colored sunglasses, these 70s aviator sunglasses are glass in tortoise rust and black mottled frames.
Glass lenses in sturdy plastic frames in that classic 70s style...Aviators!

It is time to go jump in the lake or swim in the ocean....

Swimsuits for the ladies....or men who want to look like ladies.....

a maillot, a one-piece swimsuit....the all-in-one bathing costume....so easy.....and everyone looks good!
Add a big towel, the sunscreen, a jug of water, don't forget your sunglasses....bring a good book to read.....
no worries ....and that, is what summer is for, right?



High cut legs, 80s blue and black stripe vintage swimsuit....is ....so.... 80s.

a small - medium, and the pink one is a medium - large.



Pink and black squares Vintage gathered Swimsuit

Perfect playsuit...one piece ultraviolet purple 70s bathing suit

A size Xsmall - small..... and the blue one is size large.


Tiny flowers knit has a deep neckline, and a gathered skirt that has Shorty Shorts..one piece 70s bathing suit

This suit has a deep neckline, and a gathered skirt ....a one piece 70s bathing suit is quite sweet!

Blue with white flowers is a medium  , and the polka dot one is a size small to medium.

Navy with white vintage polka dots this swimsuit is ready to jump in the lake....or the pool, or just hang around with denim cut-offs.

Sparkle one piece bathing suit shines like the sun!
Bronze and gold metallic sparkles swimsuit is a nice change and a different one from patterns and solid black. Reminiscent of those glamorous suits in the 50s....that were all about laying around and looking fantastic!

It's a size medium to large.

water........and......sky.......

Am I blue....

when the long hot days of summer are upon us......
blue....and white are the colors I turn to for some psychological coooollling off....
Blue, being the color of the sky, reflecting on the big water...well, we humans know that water is Life.

I always long to go for a swim in a lake, a pond or a crispy river. On Yountville Cross Road is a stone bridge ....and running under is it is a small trickling part of the Napa River. This is one of the cold lanquid swimmin' holes I jumped in and splashed around in my young days.
Across the street, just before the bridge, as you are leaving Yountville and heading towards Silverado Trail, is an Ecological Reserve. It wasn't there then, but it's there now and when I go for my next visit home, I will surely make the drive out there.

I remember one blistering hot August day so clearly......I was living on Monroe St, my 16th summer....a group of my friends dropped by and picked me up in an old truck and crammed about 6 of us in the open back.
The pretty girl, Adrian, I think her name was....got to sit in the front cab with the driver....She was so busty and so tan and so pretty with her dark curly hair and pearly white teeth. She smelled clean and fresh and seemed so much more mature than us. I knew somewhere there was another world...cold, clear and stunning.

That day at the River, I swam in my Levis cut offs (I still have them) and a tshirt...I layed on my back on the rocky beach and smelled the dark moss, the water and looked up at the wide blue sky through black branches of a tall oak. Soon, the cheap wine was passed around and the breeze was cooler. When it was time to go, Adrian sat in the back with us and different girl sat up front.
Fame is fleeting, but memories last a long long time.

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Some beachy things from etsy sellers.......
I want to smell like this! Salty Mariner Perfume from solsticescents.



Sea glass necklace from lalucita.



Octopus t-shirt from Caustic Tee.





In my etsy shop, if you search 'blue'...you'll come up with quite a few blue things...
A psychedelic waterfull vintage Hawaiian dress...




If you're gonna get pushed in the pool, be wearing this!



Cool cotton and fresh soft florals in an easy fitting dress....




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Now, of course the Napa Valley is packed full of pretentious douchebags...and real people like me are in short supply. The native trout runs have been reduced because of "diversions"...ie:Wineries are sucking the water out of the Napa River,& its creeks and streams. I suppose wine is more important than the natives.

From a report in 2005, titled Historical distribution and current status of steelhead/rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) in streams of the San Francisco Estuary, California---
"Assessment: In 1962, DFG called the Napa River “the most important steelhead stream in the counties bordering San Francisco Bay” (CDFG 1962, p. 1).
Steelhead historically reproduced in most of the tributary and headwater drainages of the Napa River,although they now are reduced substantially in abundance. We are not aware of recent estimates of the size of the Napa River steelhead run. However, previous estimates place the historical run in the range of 6,000 to 8,000 individuals (Anderson 1972;
USFWS and CDFG 1968)......

Water diversions from the basin that affect over-summering habitat in quality or extent, therefore, would be expected to directly impact the Napa River system O. mykiss population. In 1963, DFG noted, “With the increasing water development in the
drainage, nursery areas are disappearing fast” (Robinson 1963, p. 1)."

On sultry days...my alyssum and stock intoxicate

the passersby of my tiny messy garden.
I see them walking, and they turn their head towards the wafting sweet scent...
Are they thinking "Did I just smell something sweet?"


floral and Persian rug patch print 60s vintage dress in a size L+




Summer florals on a darling vintage romper sunsuit



Maybe they notice a tiny messy garden on their mission to get from one place to another.
I hope so.
I hope it sticks in the back of their mind as they go about their day.
Maybe it's a spark of a reason to be a bit more grateful, to straighten their back, to make a good choice and live well.


Luscious full blossom vintage romper jumpsuit in a large size


Ferns on a silk Vera vintage scarf



I've just put some nasturtium seeds in a can with water to soak overnight. And tomorrow I'll pull the weeds, and poke small holes and put the very plump seeds in my secret garden.
In a month and a half from now, there will trailing pepper-tasting leaves and sweet orange and gold and yellow nasturtium flowers for the passersby.


Full blossom roses on a full skirt vintage sundress


Square bodice, puckers and a full skirt vintage sundress




Precious pen and ink floral on a summer sky blue vintage dress


White posies on black vintage dress