It was a pretty garden....

 the tiny garden on Broadway last spring, March 2010.





My my my...Industrious little daffs......went from this on February 23.......to.......



This on March 1 !!



The pansies and the primroses are spritely !



I adore how this little daff is folded......so much like a butterfly emerging from a coccoon..


Most of the daffs are King Alfred type, but there are a few renegades mixed in.....I wish I'd have planted a bag or 3 or 7 of Poet's Narcissus...they are my favorites of the Narcissus.......I adore the teeny minis also........




So....Before I retell the story of Narcissus....
All things in my funkomavintage....are on sale until March 23.

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Narcissus flowers are named for the son of the River God, Cephissus and Leiriope, a nymph, in Greek mythology.........This boy Narcissus was a hawt babe according to legend. A prophet told Leiriope her son would live long and prosper if he avoided ever seeing himself in a reflection.
The boy had many women and men (this is a Greek legend) fall in love with him as he grew up into a man, but he chose none of them for a lover.

A nymph, Echo, who had her own curse to deal with, goddess Hera made poor Echo repeat again the last words she heard said to her.......loved Narcissus. But he did not have eyes for her!
Ameinias, another hopeful lover was also rejected by the handsome Narcissus, and Ameinias killed himself. Just before taking his life he asked for the gods to punish the sexy beast Narcissus.
The gods then set Narcissus to gaze on his loveliness in a clear pond......He fell in love with himself!
When he went to touch the beautiful image, he fell in and drowned......or he killed himself also....we're not too clear on that.
The gods thought the tragedy (this is a Greek legend) ought to be commemorated......and so named the lovely yellow late winter flower.......Narcissus.
Let this be a lesson to you Pretty People....Love one another....and don't be stuck-up!

Here's a Poet's Narcissus.....

and clicky here for another sassy sweet blog post about Narcissus.......

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American classics, Quality, and Style

 when deciding what to buy for my shop, I always focus on simple, classic, well-designed, and high quality.... this really is what I have in mind with every thing I offer.........

1951 Saddle Shoes on college kids, Life Magazine archive

These days, buying something well-made, that will last, and can then be passed on, if we haven't worn it out, is what funkoma vintage is about.
While my personal style is West Coast, country, California, beach and sailboat, Cowgirl, farm and orchard....I am not so parochial that I ignore all the beauty from ...oh, lets say, Harris Tweed from Scotland, and indigo wax resist batik from Cote d'Ivorie.

I choose items that are fun, well-made, with a great sense of confidence. I live the Vintage Life, and resolutely believe that re-using is important....and vintage is simply better made and meant to last. It's real value for your money.
Authentically handmade by a real person is a joy! The ultimate luxury is an item handcrafted by a person who lives free. 

An American company, Bass, makes the classic loafer, the penny loafer....
"Penny loafer evolved into a symbol of “cool”. In fact, celebrity James Dean was spotted wearing a pair of Weejuns!
 In late 1960's Bass introduces Sunjuns, the soon to be essential summer sandal.
Michael Jackson wore black Bass Weejuns "
 Bass has a new collection, made in a 3rd world factory (booo!) that combine cute calico floral prints with the classic saddle shoe.

Look at the beautiful sole...stitched, with both leather and rubber. Those little hand-written numbers mean this pair was bought at Nordstroms.And, inside it's edged with blue and green preppy Bass satin ribbon...

 A cute pair of vintage 80s calico Mary Janes....based on 80s Doc Martens.

 Above is a pair of Bass Weejuns, and below, a pair of Dexter (another American company) tassel loafers.

I'd always like to encourage all of us to Stake Our Claim on classics, the traditionals, the rustics, the heritages that are usually worn by the capitalists. Those grads of Ivy Leagues, the Rhodes scholars of Oxford, and such. Those kind of people are the opposite of artists and visionaries, unless your vision is nothing but making money off of the working class, and returning nothing.
When we buy well-made, when we buy things that last, we are Being Green in the easiest way. If you can keep and love a pair of shoes for 15 years instead of 15 minutes, you have Not made years of pollution.
Simple, eh!
and what style are these guys wearing.....I rest my case......



Most of what we consider American classic clothes isn't American inventions...but styles based on clothes from the Mother Country...or fashion from Paris when it was the fancy-schmancy decider of All Things Fashion...and maybe all things style.

 But of course, Levi's are an All American invention. True. Levi Strauss started making workwear pants from blue denim instead of off-white canvas, and with the addition of metal rivets at stress points, that Jacob Davis thought of and showed the technique to Mr. Strauss....well the blue denim jeans with rivets is a classic American invention.

From Britian we get the Trench Coat, from Burberry's and from Aquascutum. We get the standard button down oxford cloth shirt... .from England.  Double breasted styles of fastening your jacket closed...yeah, originated from the English Navy's reefer jacket or, better known,  the Pea Coat.

Brown leather rustic Cowboy boots....

Even those boots we call Cowboy...are influenced by the vaqueros of cattle-herding Spain to Argentina's  pampas plains cow herders from about 300 years ago or so.....
Military styles....based on the classics from other countries. I could go on bursting your bubbles for ever in this manner!

 Cowboy Poetry Time in Elko, Nevada!

Next post....More information on my philosophy about why I prefer buying new things from a 1st world, and why new imports are so awful.

Vintage Schwinn Bicycle Time

The days are longer, the days are even getting a bit warmer...it's time to get the bicycle out and go for a ride....
Saddle shoes by Bass, good ol' classic! These are made in Maine, and in other American factories.

A sweet pair of wingtip 2 strap Mary Janes...

Worn with a classic pair of vintage Levis denim jeans........

A great vintage shirt....

maybe a vintage 50s sweater if it gets cold.....

I took a picture of my 30s Schwinn bicycle and turned it into a little picture and made some fabric pins using vintage fabric and little bits of lace...Each one is handmade by me ...mostly all sewn by hand...but all handmade...

(I moved the little lace trimmed one to my funkomavintage shop)

Hey Man, I got some vintage clothes for you

50s workwear pants....act fast ! Deadstock, workwear

Rodeo brand by Hicks-Hayward, made in El Paso, Texas.
Black cotton denim with curved western pockets

and several new vintage shirts......some cotton flannel...always a great choice. Quality...and what a fantastic assortment...whether you like red, navy, camel, tan, gray...yeah....and some sweaters...50s Avalanche wool made by Lasley in Seattle, and a 1970s era Izod preppy style.....and many more.

Lot's of men's vintage in the funkoma vintage shop at etsy....click some links already !

A classy classic 50s rayon gabardine shirt that drapes like buttah melts.....

50s rayon gab...

70s Sears Work wear Large Tall vintage flannel shirt.....great colors !

Wool O' The West plaid shirt...

Military. AAF officers shirt in olive wool.  The first AAF patch with embroidery on felt.

And yes....a 70s Kenworth knit pom pom watch cap...bonus! It's reversible! yeah, I know !