Shopping Vintage ::: The Best of Bad Taste.

I have been shopping vintage since I was about 13 years of age (long long ago). During a high school camp I just had to duck into a thrift shop and buy a 1960's silver necklace...I was ridiculed mercilessly for it.

Morons.

They mocked I very quietly felt smug. I didn't care - they didn't get it and I had a unique piece. I was hooked.

Fabrics prints and cut - I don't care where its from how little or how much it cost if I love it I must have it. I am no designer snob. Sure I understand fine fabric and garment construction but impact for me wins every time!

Years spent trawling through peoples off casts gathering things I just simply adored, whether it was to worn or not has amassed me quite a collection. I may have to cull it soon with a sale but I doubt it, they are irreplaceable. Somethings I buy just because, I have a vulgar collection of hideous 70's kitchenware, a truly beautiful collection of mid century ceramics - not huge but every piece to me divine, fabulous hats mostly 1950's some I have worn but all of these things I am proud to own.

My advice for collecting is...If it makes you smile - get it. If it makes no sense at all but you love it - have it. Life is far too short to edit. Live it, make your heart sing!

Sometimes I get to pull out an item I've never worn but have harbored for years - they are the things that other people comment on and say they wish they could wear. I got this little number recently it was far too short and far too big till I took it in and thought of teaming it with Opaques.

What can I say...Who doesn't want to look like vintage wallpaper?

Another fascination lately has been boxy vans...don't start me. The flatness of the front, the side mirrors are industrial art not design, the trim...garhhhh drool.....

How cool is this ride and how much fun could a night out with the gang be in this machine? 

Get the music thumping...

Anyone interested in a vintage shopping tour? Hmmm...

Some advice before we begin.

CARS, BABY CARS AND THE LOVELY MR IMPERIAL

Once upon a time when I was young, foolhardy and far too young to drive I fancied one of these. A giant boisterous cruiser.

Classic and Vintage cars have always been something I have appreciated my entire life but lately they keep me up at night. They call and tempt me I am flushed with compelling desire and its all about chrome, head or tail lights, streamlining and paintwork. Dashboards and instrumentation feature heavily. I imagine the luxurious interior, the possibility of pinhole vinyl, leather quilting, mahogany inlays or a faux timber veneer its all good as long as its not rigid formed plastic like the cars of today.  I really should avoid car shows and put blinkers on while I drive.

Sexy tail lights, like fluttering lashes to me.

Check out this loveliness!
Faux timber 70's dash inlay....ahhh and check the tail.

Now while my expectation may have not been met I did love my first car...

Ahh she handled like a giant majestic tank, slow and heavy on the ground, ahh the 3 on the tree gear lever, ahh the huge square red leather seats, the stunning mahogany dash - she was a gentle wide beaut! After much time and money though the 1965 Humber Vogue had to make room for a very practical substitute and so its been ever since.


Now call it madness but I have a thoroughly divided and intense band of focus it involves the following.

The small fugly car. The kind of car I never really understood - they made me snigger Escorts, Cortinas, Datsuns etc. I didnt get the guys that loved them in the 80's dropped an oversized or rotary engine in them spent a fortune on wheels and pimped them, I thought they were small comical cars - a tall woman unfolding from an acorn of a car...not me.

I have actually seen cars like this with roll cages and racing harnesses namely in the northern suburbs but really as a concept what's with that? Where are you going? Whats going on? I simply did not get it at all. Please don't mention Calder please or use the word 'Drag' as in racing - cringe shudder.

But now my cynicism has waned and I see an altogether design before me. This genre of car to me is a unique and fascinating anomaly - they are actually quite cool. Now I must state however my preference is for cars on their original state...strictly production line. I like the Venetians, original interiors and colours.

 

Note the 'Fastback'!

Look at this dignified 1963 Cortina  the grill and lines are quite beautiful for a compact car, they are seriously starting to fascinate me.

Moving right along...

Recently I met and made visual and tactile love to Mr Chrysler Imperial

All it took was one look...

'Hi I'm Chrysler Imperial, pleased to meet you'...swoon. Sounds like a really sexy guys name. Where do I start? Long, lean, streamlined, flamboyant yet elegant and tasteful, like a really classic suit design. I love the badges, I love the chrome, I love the lines of theses vehicles. The little boy in this image with me was a delight to chat to. His grandfather owns the car I was so happy to experience this machine it was truly magnificent. I better go lay down.

IT WAS THE SEVENTIES>>>>>>>

The early seventies...and I was a small child.

Now I may have worn short shorts called hot pants at the age of 4 but only with long sox and sandals. Except when I was swimming in them.

Kids wore kids clothes and once over 28 the adults dressed like codgers...done - that was it your time had passed. I have vivid memories of my primary school teachers that looked like they were dressed as old men and women even though they were only 30 or 40 years of age. Now I am not saying wavy hair and side parts are the way to go but it was a very different time, the media was a very narrow band that we all took in at face value, TV was a pretty metered out event, it wasn't constantly on and there were only 4 channels.

Now there is a plethora of media feeds and options that has splintered off into so many targeted segments and markets but predominantly spawned the birth of the all powerful machine known as Pop Culture.

Thinking about this made me question what was pop culture when I was small wearing my long sox and all ... 3 and 4 year olds now crump with the pelvic thrust that would once make us all blush, now from a small child its permissible, cute even.

Now there are beanie babies, slutty dolls and vagazzaling your cha cha...whats going on? Who is beating this drum? Its the media tarts, the role models, the 'it' people of the moment. Is it Paris daughter of the Hilton empire mogal falling out of a car with her inner labia on show, is it Lindsey Lohan and her shift from Herbie to Cocaine addiction, or is it the latest celebrity in rehab vomiting into a toilet on reality TV or the latest idol contestant?

So in the 70's who were our role models...pull up a seat.

Liberace

Sometimes Liberace the penultimate pianist and flamboyant showman would do an appearance - always memorable.

He liked long sox too.

Dig the decor.

Then there was Evel Knievel dare devil extraordinaire, he jumped cars, buses, canyons, flaming rings, he crashed stacked and hacked his way through so many stunts that every kid on his or her dragstar tried desperately recreate with a fence paining and a few bricks, or Masonite, chip board or plywood if you were lucky, maybe a milk crate if you worked your way up to it. Many a plaster caste prevailed as a result.

He did have style for a real life action hero, white leather - stars and stripe - rockin' threads!

Benny Hill was a very popular comedian of the time with a bevy of supporting characters and my favorite 'The Ladybirds' the female singers on the show. You can find a lot of Benny's work here.

Then there Demis Roussos the singer, looks like we took people at face value back then and noted their talent most of all. Greeks were very exotic back then.

The Harlem Globe Trotters were a sensation to behold those tall  blokes with basket ball tricks that would make our mouths gape and break many a spirit with vain attempts to emulate there effort less style.This 'clip' demonstrates their lightening moves -forgive the poor quality it was shot on super 8 grainy goodness.              

Obviously these celebrities were individuals with no interest or access to, stylists, hair straighteners, shampoo not always conditioner, cosmetic surgery and dentistry looking back it was a weird time but at four I didn't question anything it would be nice if children still had that luxury today.

 A bit like this t shirt

or this Calendar "here".