My Shabbi Chic

OMG I'm Becoming My Mother #1 or What the ? With the International Symbols on the Oscillating Fan

2010-08-21T08:58:00.000-05:00

It is truly an infinitesimal moment when you clearly realize you have become your mother. I think I may have had mine this morning. I've had glimpses, brushes with, vague discomfort at possibly sounding like her, but this was a true I am my mother moment.

Another hot summer in Texas with heat indexes nearing and hitting 110 in the afternoons. The a/c works, poor thing, it never stops working, the ceiling fans never stop, but it can still get pretty warm. So the other half brings me a new fangled tower fan. Bless her technology enabled brain, we have the newest cutting edge design in oscillating fans. This morning, about 6 am, after letting dogs in and out and the rest of my morning routine, I sit down with my coffee. It's just a little stuffy, early enough that the temp is probably in the low 70's, the heat index in the low to mid 80s, high humidity but the sun isn't hitting the roof full force yet. The a/c is taking it's one and only break time of the day. It's just a little still and sticky so I decide to turn my new fan on.

This fan has a timer, an ionizer, it oscillates AND it does some sort of pulsing with the air - all of these options are controlled by little push buttons at the top of the fan. All the buttons have some sort of international symbols for their function. OK - the clock button is easy, that's the timer. Now I'm looking for the I and O for off and on - nope, not there. We have all new symbols - they look like astrology mark ups at a psychic fair. What in the sam hill, how do I get this gosh dern thing to work and why in Hades couldn't they have just put what was what in plain old English - if they're want to sell it in America than it needs to be in English!!!

That's it - OMG, I'm my mother.

Stop-Look-Think - A Few Timely Online Safety Tips from the Old Broad

2010-08-14T18:29:00.001-05:00

We older folk seem to be really enjoying Facebook. I know this old broad is! There are some definite safety and security issues though, and not just with FB, but with any online site you may register with. Since Facebook is turning into a stepping stone for many older baby boomers to become truly active on the web, now might be the time to make sure the experience stays good. So here's a few tips to get started with.

TIP #1: NEVER, EVER, EVER sign in with your user name and/or password after clicking on a link in an email. Better yet - my personal advice - never click on a link in an email. If it's a site you go to frequently, use the link you probably have on your desktop or in a file. If it's a site you have seldom or never used, type the basic address into your browser bar (the http: or www. thru .com,net,org, etc.) and visit that way. Your spyware and/or virus protection should alert you if it's a dangerous site (and if you don't have spyware/virus protection, there's some decent free software out there - GET SOME ASAP!!).

I've received emails saying that "so & so" wants to be your friend on FB! They look totally legitimate and are almost exact copies of the legitimate FB emails. For anyone that has spent some time on FB, you do get contacted by people whose name you may not immediately recognize, so it is tempting to click, sign in and "see" who this person might be. Only none of these people are in my Friend Requests when I sign into FB on my own!! Those emails are simply ways to access any information you have entered into FB plus your FB friends list.

TIP #2: When registering with a site, give only the REQUIRED information. Leave all OPTIONAL fields blank, you can always add more info at a later date. If you feel that the site is requiring too much information or don't see why they would need that information (i.e. A forum to discuss organic gardening does not need your SS#, a credit card, or your birth date), DO NOT GIVE IT TO THEM.

TIP #3: Take the time to check unknown or unvisited urls/addresses out. Simply copy and paste them into a search engine like Google or Bing, and see what comes up. Lots of gobbly-gook entries that make no sense? or just chains of words alphabetically related? Sounds like a phishing site to me, at the least it wants to plant a cookie on you so they can follow you around the web, at the worst will go after any and all info it can get. Or there might be results from other searchers that have posted to boards or forums with info that may clue you into the legitimacy or the fraudulence of the site.

TIP #4: Curiousity killed the cat BUT satisfaction brought it back. I'm pretty sure we all have avenues we might want to explore on the web that could put us in contact with some fringe elements. Be it a curiousity about ufo's, singles chat rooms, vampires, corsets, - yes, corsets. Acutally any antique dealer who has done any detailed online research into vintage clothing has probably found themselves clicking into some sites that were by no means educational in a fashion/design/historical sense!

So you want to peek down some unknown alleys? you want to register your email address so you can get thru the door? no problem. That's right - no problem. JUST SET UP A NEW EMAIL ACCOUNT TO EXPLORE WITH!!!! Whether by cable or phone line, if you have an internet provider you have 5 to 10 available online email addresses. That's not counting all the places you can set up free email accounts - gmail, hotmail, yahoo, aol. Open a new email address and explore - you can always go back and re-register with your legitimate account if you like or become involved with a site. And it a site turns out to be a real horror story - I registered for one site and the next morning had 150 emails waiting - you just cancel that email account. I probably opened and closed about a dozen or so email addresses in the first few years of wandering online. Never transfer your address book over, set up any profiles or provide any of your own personal links when setting up these addresses. Remember - surf safely.

TIP #5: Be aware of Facebook apps!!! and what they do!!!! Every "heart", "teddy bear", "dragon", "mafia", "game", "iq/personality quiz", etc. that shows up on your FB page from a friend - every one, when you click it - EVERY ONE has this little disclaimer saying that accepting this gift, joining this, whatever, means that you ALLOW THIS APP TOTAL ACCESS TO ALL THE PEOPLE ON YOUR FRIENDS LIST AND ALL THE INFO THEY ALLOW YOU TO SEE. I'm glad they let you know, I just don't know how many folk read and understand that little disclaimer? In any case - I say no to apps that are going to crawl thru my friends list; you, as well as me, are none of their business!

TIP #6: Do you use tabs? I use them like crazy and recently read a warning concerning them. If you are at your bank, Paypal, broker, or other online financial site, be wary of opening new tabs, even within the site. A way to "get into" open tabs not in use, has been used by hackers. Say you sign in to your bank account, then you want to check something out under History. If you are like me you are lible to just right click on History and then click Open In New Tab, find what you're looking for, close the tab and still have your home page open. Tabs are safe and fine to use, but it's probably a good idea to not use them on sites rich with confidential info. Windows has issued a patch for this with their regular updates, but the possibilities are still open to questions. Once again - better safe than sorry!

My Assumptions Once Again Remind Me to Get My Head Out of My Assumptions

2010-08-05T09:49:00.002-05:00

The old broad is ranting again! education, academia, the younger generation, and OMG I'm my mother - all wrapped up in one.

Don't ever tell me astrology is a hoax - the only thing that can explain my stubborn idealism is that I'm an aquarian. I'm 60, have no computer training whatsoever, literally finger picked my way around computers and the web and I can do more stuff and comprehend more hows/whys/whats than the 20 year olds I'm talking to who have been around computers all their lives!!
This is the second major pedestal tipping in my lifetime of my obviously over exalted beliefs in education and academia.

For years I was literally in awe of anyone with a college degree. Surely these people were the cream of the intelligent Americans, the smartest of the smart. My regard took a major nosedive after working in an office with about 30 people who all had to have college degrees to be hired for particular positions. Idealist me commented one very frustrated work day on the lack of comprehensive reading ability among these degreed folk - how did they ever get thru college and all the books that had to be read? Two of the vaulted individuals dared me to ask the BA's and BS's in the room if they had ever read a book cover to cover? How many books they read in college? Since college? In the last year? Talk about shock therapy! If I remember correctly, 2 or 3 were the total of people to have read a book cover to cover, none of them read a full book while in college (all cited "lack of time"), none could really remember "reading much" since college and only 1 had read a book in the last year. These people so killed my degree envy, much quicker and cheaper than self esteem therapy.

Now I find myself facing another disappointment. Once again my assumptions are far fetched and fantastical - almost belonging to the scifi fantasy fiction of the 80's. I take it for granted that recent high school graduates, people in their 20's, college students, etc., can step up to a computer and play it, if not like a fine tuned guitar, at least close to a kazoo!! Dumb a** me thought "aha, access to young folk = access to more computer knowledge". So sorry. If it's not downloading a video, or playing some sort of game, they have very little usefule computer knowledge that I can see. So far, in my experience, most of them never use (and didn't even know it was there) the advanced options on search engines (major crawlers or site specific); have no knowledge of html or any of the other codes used to create content (don't know how to find a page's code, can't write any type of code, have no idea that you can sometimes tweak code provided); are, like, totally, surprised at the idea of legal share ware, or free ware of excellent programs from the creative to the elementary; and way, way, too many of them profess to "not writing that well" and/or "don't really like to read that much" (which seem to equate to anything longer than a couple of sentences), so they really don't use the international communication possiblities; their laptops are constantly stalling out while they give you blank stares when queried about disk cleanup or defragging; and after downloading (they know that button!) and clicking on every "neat" looking thing or site they run across, they just "can't understand" how they got that virus/spyware/crummy cookies.

I'm sorry folks, but I really thought that a generation raised on and with computers: 1 - would have some basic computer knowledge that would enable them to find and communicate with like minded folk everywhere be it art, music, comic books, model kits, sports, gaming, etc. 2 - make research fun and easy, with images and videos even for the non-readers 3 - with international communications available, international communing would be common place 4 - everyone would have a "site" or "pages", pretty much as a matter of course, cheap and easy constant access for communication, "tweaked" or personalized by the owner to suit their life style.

To end this rant - insert small scream here "eeeek" & "omg-omg-omg", insert laugh, sniff, laugh, then, "I'M MY MOTHER!" ranting on about the "younger generation" = uh ohhhh.

I Have a Stalker and She is SMOKING - Get Thee Behind Me Cigarette Sin

2010-07-30T13:51:00.000-05:00

Ms. Pearl Aufrere, pictured to the left, 1915, is thought to be an ex English chorus girl who traveled to America, was widely photographed, graced many cigarette cards, was engaged to royality at some point and is thought to have married "very well" and thereafter blended herself into the obscurity that the "very well" of the time demanded. Would that cigarettes and their devious hold on me fade as obscurely and as well! Lawsy - I still want to light one up.

It's ridiculous, I know I'm past the physical addiction, the hard part is over with. And still, I want a cigarette - knowing what one would lead to. When I first whined about my angst with quitting - a friend emailed me that tobacco was like a stalker girlfriend. You knew she was a psycho, - a negative balance in your life, your bank account and your sanity. With the loving support of friends, you cut her out of your life. But she makes sure you know she's still there, wanting you, always ready, and although you can never publicly admit it without being the fool, there are moments when you long for her too. Thanks to Wet Linda - you know who you are - for giving me the analogy, cause even when they are darkly attractive, I've never been able to stand a stalker's controlling ego - so it's helped me want to continue kicking it's nether regions.

Worry beads do help! Thank you Preston for that hint! And to be honest, as I get more active and spend less time chair or bed bound, the urge recedes. The monkey was riding me hard today though, it's been a slow day with my body, giving me too much time to get in trouble. Perhaps I should just blog something everytime I feel tempted to smoke?

Old Broad Attitude - Positives and Negatives of Facebook

2010-07-30T13:20:00.000-05:00

2009 was the year I ventured into "social networking" with Twitter and Facebook. Going into 2010, the old broad already has some attitudes - big surprise there, right folks? - about both. Going to talk about Facebook today and will save Twitter for later.

Facebook could turn into a real love hate relationship for me, can see it already. It has reconnected me with some dynamite people that I'm really happy about being reconnected with! From the 1970's thru the last few years. We haven't become born again bff's, but it's been great to touch base, see where life has taken them and maybe, build on foundations already in place.

On the otherhand, my old hippy idealist side is a bit aghast again.
Facebook reminds me of my first big aghast response to the internet. That one was over email. With shining eyes I took to the web as every flower child's dream of world wide communication for everyone! We could all stay in touch and share our knowledge by hitting a key. We didn't have to rely on phones - ROTFL, literally! phones for another post though - calls at awkwarad times, scheduling time to return calls. No more. Now we could pick a time that was convenient for us to both read and write. We could keep up with each other and share information. I even started a monthly newsletter to all my email list.

And then the fwd's started to roll in. I got very few real responses but boy did I get fwd's. Poems, cute animal photos, chain letters, unsupport dire warnings on everything from my deodorant to my cereal, letters about people dying, kidnapped or walking five miles in the snow to school. If the person sending the fwd wrote anything at all, it was something like "thought you'ld like this". Since these usually arrived after being forwarded thru several people's extensive email lists, it was hard to tell who said that! And was anyone on these fwd lists realizing how many people were getting some great mailing lists for spam and possibly worse mischief?

Facebook seems to be following this path with it's Smiles, Hugs, Hearts, Whatevers. Personally I'ld rather read "Having my coffee. Headed for work. Another day another dollar.", then get generic "xx sent you a teddy bear, click here to send one back". For gosh sakes folk - communicate! that's what it's here for. Even if it's just once a week, say something about yourself! Even if it's just "Hi everyone, how are you doing?".

Plust there's something else to think of with these neat little easy, as in not having to say a word yourself, tools. Too many of these "click here to send one back" seem to allow a certain admittance to your info. Now as one who has been pretty dern skimpy with her info to start with, I don't have too many worries about people getting too much from Facebook. BUT I SURE AS HOOT DON'T WANT THEM GETTING MY EMAIL. Which seems to be a big possibility

Thank You Joseph Heller for Writing "Catch 22"

2010-07-08T09:37:00.002-05:00

It is one of those books I am seriously glad to have read when younger. The more years that go by, the more appreciation for the book and it's message. It really helps to see the absurdity right off the bat and be able to enjoy the actual silliness all along, rather than suffer all the negative emotions from running in circles or hitting brick walls.

A good laugh is so much better than the grinding of teeth or clenching of neck muscles. I firmly believe that reading Catch 22 helped me develop a sense of humor that acts as a cushion when dealing with any type of authority. It also helps keep me grinning cheerfully while filling in all the slots correctly, no matter how redundant or unnecessary.

Is it governmental? Is it bureaucratic? If the answer is yes, open that door and enter with the mind set of Alice walking thru the looking glass or of someone able to step into an Escher architectural drawing and make their way around.

Buddy Guy and Muddy Waters Sounding Good - Must Be Getting Better! Finally!

2010-06-12T09:07:00.000-05:00

Don't know about you but the music playing in the background says a whole lot about my mental and physical health. Lately it's been a pretty continuous backdrop of low volume big band, elevator light jazz, or generic oldies. Translation = either the pain meds are keeping me in a nice unfeeling limbo or I'm trying to keep myself there while biting the bullet.

While cruising around my little internet radio this morning, found myself turning up the volumne on Buddy Guy's "She Got the Devel In Her", then a bit more for Muddy Waters "Rollin' and Tumblin'", then cranked it up some more for Popa Chubby doing "San Catri" - who I'ld never heard of but wow, that's some nice guitar playing - and now am drifting on Aynsley Lister doing some pure blues with "Need Her So Bad".

Okay - finally - back to my Montana Radio Cafe and, as they say, "we play the music you won't hear anywhere else" and all my other off the wall stations! I must really, really, finally be getting better - can tell by the music!

And in case you'ld like to check out the station mentioned above? Here's the link - !

http://www.montanaradiocafe.org/

My First "John Wayne" Moment - A True Sign of Getting Old?

2010-05-26T07:38:00.002-05:00

The news this morning has hit a depressing milestone for me. For goodness sake - the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, if thought about for any length of time with even minimal intelligence, should be enough to shut down anyone's sanity all on it's own! Never mind the other tidbits all the tv stations have thrown out for nibbling on! So I wildly punch the remote, hoping for some hidden pearl. A 10 year old antique roadshow? An arts documentary? Some religious, historical, conspiracy threaded piece of fluff?
An obscure classic film now recognized as Camus influenced? Something to allay the guilt for not being able to handle the news? Something I can convince myself I really shouldn't miss?

That may have been nice but what is showing on the screen across the room is classic in it's way, but not on the arty or intellectual wavelengths. It's John Wayne in 1932's "The Big Stampede". He's so young he glows. And he's such a good guy, of course! And so - finally - my first John Wayne moment! I feel better, safer, more secure, and yes, infinitely more stupid! but still - sitting here watching him round up the bad guys in an old b&w western!!

Hip Replacement Update from a Vintage Cyborg Old Broad

2010-05-23T07:47:00.001-05:00

Figured I better play a bit of catch up here. About one month since surgery and 3 weeks since leaving hospital. Just had my last in home therapy session - one step finished!! Start out patient therapy this week and am looking forward to that. If nothing else, it will get me out of the house 2 or 3 times a week!!

The hip replacement appears to have gone well - so far so good. My delay in recovery time is not from the hip but from having to repair damage done to nerves and muscle by the hip being bad for so long.
Do admit to some frustration when these folk keep making comments about major problems from long term damage - where were they when I was telling doctors in the 70's about the shooting groin pain that made me see stars? the ones that doctors said were probably just some occasional pinched nerve pain from pushing myself too far? while making me feel like a big sissy for complaining. I mean, no one even suggested taking an x-ray. Anywho - seems the darn thing was going bad back then. Guess that partially explains why and how it went from being a little sore to the hunch-back of Notre Dame in what I thought was a six month downfall. It was actually 30 plus years of damage that pushed me over that edge.

So now I have to get some muscles to not only work again, but do so correctly. Gotta' try and get the left leg as "straight" as possible, then rebuild the hip strength - all so he can remove the right one asap before it falls out as bad as the left one did.

While progress appears unbelievably slow to me - there has been progress. A 4" kick off the floor doesn'tseem like much till compared to 3 weeks ago when the foot couldn't even get up off the floor by itself - that kind of thing. I'm standing a bit straighter and standing and walking a bit further and longer - still not much more that across the yard and into and out of medical buildings - but it's getting easier to do that each time instead of harder!!!

What it all boils down to at this point in time - am in much less pain than I was before the surgery, posture is better, still not much mobility, but am seeing slow improvements. Have to stick with my exercises and hopefully they'll approve me for at least 3 weeks of pool therapy, fingers crossed, knock on wood, cause I think that will really help too. Also still haven't smoked a cigarette - know the physical addiction part has to be over but the mental is definitely still a bitch singing to me at all hours of the day and night! Do feel better and heart doesn't pound quite so hard after hauling my fat ass across the back yard and into the van. One month smoke free with one new hip - so far, so good. And having to face the fact that a walker is going to be a permanent part of my life for the next six months or so and it or a cane will probably be a part of my life for a while, if not forever.

Guess that's about it at the moment. Wanted some positive stuff to share before writing and being me, since I wasn't ready to walk a mile or two, didn't think progress was being made. Only progress is being made, am better than I was - it's just not going to happen overnight and a total return of mobility, as in easily walking 2 to 5 miles in a day, may not be a realistic goal - or perhaps needs to be a more long term goal. And hopefully, will be able to cut back on some of the pain meds, or at least the more mind stupifying ones. One of the main reasons you do not hear more from me. For once, I am in thrall of pain meds cause all those joints that my advil or motrin kept unswollen and pain tolerable - well they've been totally cut off from any anti-inflamatories except for tylenol. For the first time I have learned the wisdom of "stay ahead of your pain, take your meds on time". I kept trying to "cut back" until the time I almost literally couldn't move because of the pain - duh!!!! okay, so I gotta' learn the hard way.

Been brain dead a good part of the time. Just now finally got the book finished that had started before surgery - a month to read a book - me??! duh - what did I just read? who shot who? who's the good guy?gal? duh? and forget reading any cyber punk or steampunk scifi - I can't keep up with regular day to day reality never mind alternate realities operating on different time planes!!

And I refuse to be one of those doddering old gals that can only talk about her latest surgery - which is what I've just done - but had received some "so what in the sam hill is going on" emails and figured I better talk about it enough to say - yeah, I'm still alive.

More Old Broad Attitude - The Good Old Days? Bah Humbug!

2010-01-23T07:35:00.001-06:00

I always enjoy the "remember when", "the good old days", "the golden years", threads on forums. Usually baby boomers post with their memories of growing up in the 1940's, 1950's, and 1960's. They always make me smile as I think "oh, I remember that", but, to be totally honest, there is always a part of me that wants to slap a few faces and say "wake up".
Yes, there are many things I miss and remember with nostalgia. I loved playing jacks, making my own 'fashions' for paper dolls, Saturday afternoon matinees with 2 movies, cartoons, corny educational short and year old world news all for 50 cents. Walking to the drugstore in the early evening for a real ice cream soda in a big beautiful fancy glass, going to the library once a week for new books to read and librarians who helped you find them. Getting all dressed up, gloves, hat, anklet socks with lace trim and patent leather mary janes, to go downtown shopping on a Saturday afternoon. Dimestores and their lunch counters with open face turkey sandwiches! Numerous good memories.

But, sorry, there are things I don't miss. In my personal opinion, one of the reasons it was a "simpler time" was that people totally ignored and refused to acknowledge anything that wasn't nice and simple. Some of the things I remember from our sweet days of youth that counter balance the good memories, in my book anyway.

A child abused by either or both parents had no one to turn to. If they told someone, that person would immediately contact the parents; and from then on the child would be considered very strange for having told such stories.

Hearing whispers about a woman who was raped and not sympathetic comments either. More along the line of "well she must have done something that asked for it" or "you know things like that don't happen to 'good' women".

Having a friend who was lucky enough to escape with just heavy bruising from a man breaking into her apartment and hearing the police ask her "were you undressing in front of your window" "do you like to think of men watching you in your windows".

Seeing women with heavy make-up over black eyes and stories about walking into doors and falling down stairs; and no one ever thinking to question them about being very accident prone on such a regular basis. Seeing the police cars at a house down the street after hearing screams and breaking glass; seeing the wife standing in the door with a child in one arm and holding a towel to her bleeding face in the other; seeing the police laughing with the husband at the curb by their car and them slapping him on the back before they got in and drove away. Hearing my mother say "I wonder what she did to deserve that?"

One man being able to whip up a whole country into a witch hunt for commies, ruining peoples' lives, while we watched on tv.

Wondering where several of the girls in my classes at high school had gone. They'ld just disappear and no one would ever mention them again unless you heard a whisper about "one of those homes, you know".

Trying to understand why a guy who slept around was considered king of the hill and a girl who slept with one person was trash, and most of all, where those guys were finding those girls to sleep with since we were all good girls, so it wasn't any of us.

Little girls told that their options in life were being a wife and mother, and if they wanted to achieve anything beyond that, well a teaching or nursing degree was okay for a woman.

Being told by parents and teachers that sometimes a little girl shouldn't want everyone to know how smart she was.

Not being allowed to take any of the shop classes in high school as an elective. They were for boys only. Girls could take home ec or art.

Remembering 3 of my friends' moms "going away" for a month or two for a "rest" because of "the change". They came back rested alright, in fact they never seemed really awake after that.

Personally, I think the present is a hell of a lot better than "the good old days". I'm going to quit before I just rant on and on. But I do feel better and have managed to get some of that "golden years" sweet taste out of my mouth!

Antique Vintage Dealers!! Collectors!! Have you read this book?

2010-01-18T10:37:00.001-06:00

Antique, Vintage and Collectible dealers and collectors - Have you ever read Cadillac Jack by Larry McMurtry? If you haven't, you should. My neighbor and friend Denice turned me on to it and now I want to share. A good book on a subject you've actually lived to a certain degree, is always a good read.

As a thank you to Denice, here's a link to her shop on etsy http://www.blogger.com/www.etsy.com/shop/VioletCrownEmporium

It's a very different book for Mr. McMurtry, but as he states in the forward, he wanted it to be.
One thing for sure, if you're a dealer or a collector, you'll recognize parts of yourself and all the other folk you mingle with in the trade. It's also a great read for the thrill of the treasures he finds. And, if you're a avid follower of politics or had a special interest in the Regan era, you should be able to place some of the characters with real people.

The hero is a high end dealer/picker who cruises America in his Cadillac with tire rims once owned by Valentino. Buying and selling from yard sales to major flea markets and auctions, he knows, and is known by, folk from Maine to LA. In the book, Jack ends up spending some time in Washington DC, hobnobbing with the very IN politico crowd of the 80s. The atmosphere he finds himself in sets off a career crisis that is so severe, he can't even get excited about the behind the scenes selling off of the Smithsonian treasures he stumbles into. Now - that is severe for a dedicated dealer!!

No opinions on the literary value of the book, okay? It's just a fantastic fun read for those of us who have arrived at flea markets so early it's still dark out and have been known to crawl under tables in barns to check out boxes.

A tip of the hat to steampunk.

2010-01-13T16:36:00.001-06:00

Please keep in mind that I'm an old broad, okay? Going to be 60 shortly, and am the first to admit that I am no longer up to par on the major interests of the youth culture. Not really sure I was all that up to date on it when I was one of the youth culture! Found myself mingled in with the hippy flower child wave and must admit that parts of it were a very comfortable fit. Have the feeling though that the way my mind tends to work, in other generations the labels might have been bluestocking, bohemian, witch or even village idiot.
That's my disclaimer in case I say something really stupid about the steampunk genre. From what I've glimpsed of it, this is just a few personal old broad observations.

First off - Kudos to steampunk for being the first and only folk to revive Victorian style. Although the bits and pieces of Victoriana may be prized, the over all style of the era has never been revived. Perhaps this is because it was such a combination of overdone styles or because it was such a, for lack of a better word, fussy style. Steampunk has managed to take it, relax it a bit, allow touches of humor and allow combinations that would have probably gotten you shunned from good society in the true era. Fashion and home decor is definitely styled after the period, but allowed to be skewed into the today, and to me, the result is a wonderful, recognizable style with a touch of Dali or perhaps Ken Russell.

I like the literature that comes under the title too. Although I do think there are some great books out there written well before the word was coined that were exploring the vision. I just finished Sideshow by Sherri S. Tepper published in 1992 which to me falls in that category. And I keep thinking of Dhalgren by Samuel R. Delany. Epic steampunk? or am I missing the whole picture?

Paula's Perspective of New Year's Resolutions

2009-12-31T09:36:00.000-06:00

To celebrate my first year of "social networking" I've decided to share the same resolutions I make every year. And yes, I do have a pretty good track record of keeping them. Not perfect, but decent. They are easier than diets and work out plans, they only take a few seconds a day, and they don't cost anything. They do take a bit of commitment and effort in the beginning but they soon become natural. And best of all, they're usually fun and they make me feel good!

Paula's Perspective on New Year's Resolutions:

Smile at people. Most of them will smile back. Besides, if you're the first to smile and they respond, it makes you the alpha!

Laugh first thing in the morning. Smile for tomorrow last thing at night.

Do one nice thing, no matter how small, for another person AND for yourself each day.

Give a compliment to someone AND to yourself every day.

Learn one thing or try something new every day. Look up a word, ask old ladies in supermarkets how to cook something, read an article in a section of the paper you never look at, watch a show on one of the documentary channels, listen to music by someone you've never heard of, sign up for ballroom dance lessons, try sushi - anything!

Put a dollar in a jar every time you say "I can't", "I will never", and "I don't like that" (when said in reference to something you've never tried).

Once a day, each and every day, stop for one moment and think of what you have to be thankful for. From the basics of a roof over your head, food to eat, clothes to wear, a car to drive to the unbelievable advances in technology and science. Compare your life to others in the world and/or to how your life may have been 50 years ago, and say thanks.

Oh - and one more for this year - to write in my blog more often!!

Proudly Introducing My Bonanzle Widgit as the Newest Addition to My Blog! Thank you boyz!

2009-10-02T17:52:00.000-05:00

See my widgit? It's on the right under About Me. I'm tickled pink and ready to pass out cigars.

I'm not going to tell anyone that it only took me all day to do!! Making it was easy, the boyz at Bonanzle got it set up to where it's literally a couple of clicks to accomplish and then they give you the code to copy and paste.

Figuring out how in the sam hill to get the thing on here was the hard part!!!! For the other tech challenged, middle aged computer befuddled, and hot flashing with minimal patience folk out there - go to your Dashboard, then Layout, then click on Add a Gadget, then under Basics, click on the HTML/Java Script one, put in a title - I used "A Peek at My Bonanzle Booth", paste the code you copied from bonanzle in the content block, hit SAVE and voila - you got a widget, I got a widget - everybody got widgits!!

Ron McCoy's Antiques Newsletter, Flicker and the Library of Congress

2009-09-29T11:20:00.000-05:00

One of the few regular newsletters that I receive is the Antiques & Collecting Newsletter, Ron McCoy, editor. It comes once a month and rather than articles about what is this, how much is it worth, what is this mark - Mr. McCoy offers a variety of interesting and very eclectic links to sites that folk interested in antiques, vintage and collecting, might find fascinating. Since these same folk tend to think a bit outside of the box, the sites offered are the same. A selection of original pin-up girls painted on World War II planes, mens' tie fashions over the years, Route 66 history with photos, various strange landmarks or man made oddities found off the beaten track, vintage TV collections, etc. Even if you're not a dealer or a collector, if you like the unique to the absurd, you'll enjoy this newsletter! You can check out past issues, read some articles or sign up for the newsletter here: Ron McCoy Newsletter

Awhile back he posted a link with some info about a large collection of of old photographs from the archives of the Library of Congress now being shared on Flickr.com. This is a pilot project begun in 2008 to share some of the most popular images from the Library with a wider community and to encourage actual interactions among viewers. The photos come from the Farm Security Administration, Office of War Information, Bain News Service, selected panoramic photos, and other photos from different collections. Most of the photos range in age from the late 19th century to the middle of the 20th century. The photos have no known restrictions on publication or distribution and they have high resolution scans. Here are a few that I really like. I've added names to these because they were available either in the photo, from the Library's notes or from added comments from others.

Library of Congress on Flicker Many came to the Library with no descriptions or background, and the Library encourages tags, comments and any identifying information. Warning, you can get lost in there! The range of photos is fantastic, and reading some of the comments makes them even better. People are actually identifying many of the people in these photos as family members or long ago local celebraties, politicians or characters still remembered in their communities. Even some of the unidentified photos, like the ones taken of female carnival performers from the early 1900's, have started online conversations about the emotions and thoughts the photos stir in people.And you can search for different types of photos, women, fashion, cars, sports.

Vintage Aluminum Ware or More Correctly, Antique Aluminum Ware

2009-09-29T11:09:00.001-05:00

Aluminum was discovered in 1845 and for a few years was valued as and used as a fine precious metal. In 1886, all that changed. Electricity had made the extraction process quick and inexpensive and aluminum became everyman's metal. Designers from all styles loved it. The arts and crafts people made tree branch handles, hand hammered utilitarian pieces, and placed decorated sheets on wood furniture; the art nouveau group swirled it, vined it and flowered it; the deco crowd loved the simple angles and curves easily obtained, and the matte to shiny surface options especially for dining, cocktail and entertaining pieces; the modernist and bauhaus designers jumped on it creating tubular furniture and solid pieces in waves or with sharp angles. Barclay McClelland was producing colored "spun" aluminum decorative serving pieces before WWII. The war slowed down the decorative and housware production, but after the war, the new colored ware with smooth or brushed surfaces became very popular. Granted there are some very generic aluminum pieces, especially those produced during the depression as a poor man's replacement for silver. But there are some truly fantastic pieces also, highlights of their particular design period from the late 1800's to the present.

Meissen Dancing Girl and Made in Japan Lady with Parrot Porcelain Figurines

2009-08-19T09:51:00.000-05:00

This dancing girl is so finely made she appears to be ready to step off the base and skip across the table. A lovely Meissen piece from the 18th or 19th century I believe. Not being an expert, I'm not sure how to date her, but her marks and her quality, establish her as Meissen. Although I'm not particularly drawn to figurines, the movement in this little lady drew me from across a room. She was tucked in the corner of a large case used to display jewelry at a local thrift and she caught my eye when I walked in the door.

But, have to admit that the following lady also caught my eye. Another thrift, another day - but she grabbed my attention in the same way.

Made in Japan by Trico, Nagoya, Japan, she's rather crude compared to the Meissen piece. What should be a hair comb is painted the same color as her hair and you can almost imagine the color of her gown was chosen so they could paint the parrot and her gown all at once! She may be no match quality wise, but I find her just as charming. Her original mold was done well catching her perfectly in a small step forward, almost as if she was attempting to hear something or looking to see who her visitor was. And strangely painted hair or not, the fact that she's a red head makes her rather unusual.

These ladies are why I will probably never be a serious antique dealer. Definitely have the "eye", but that same eye is just as drawn to the low end treasures as it is the high end ones!

Antiques Vintage Collectibles - Where Are the Buyers?

2009-07-19T11:11:00.000-05:00

I see this question constantly in the Bonanzle forums and every other forum, board, network, etc. I visit/participate in concerning on-line sales of antiques, vintage, collectibles on the web. And since this is my blog and I get to say what I want - I'm going to tell you what this old broad really thinks the answer is.

Again, this post has to do with selling in the Antique, Vintage and Collectible categories.

Ninety percent of the time when this question or one similar is the lead post, I bite my tongue - or should I say my fingers? - and leave the thread without posting. Why? Well, mainly cause I always go to the poster of the question's store or booth and guess what - there's not much there and what is there isn't presented very well either visually or verbally. Sorry but it's often the truth. Just because stuff is old - just because you saw one sell on ebay 3 years ago for a lot of money - just because your friend after his 4th beer said he'ld pay a bunch of money, if he had any money, for one like that - just because you saw one in an antique store "just like this one" for a 3 figure price tag - DOES NOT MEAN THE ONE YOU HAVE IS WORTH ANY MONEY!!!!! And if it is worth money - no one is going to give you that money until you have shown them a picture of every surface, plus the interior if possible and close-ups of any marks. Good clear photos not one fuzzy shot taken from across the room. There needs to be a description that includes colors, materials, measurements, condition, condition, condition!! And close-up photos of any flaws!

The other ten percent of the time the people have wonderful items for sale. Once again, often there is only one photo (which always makes me wonder why you don't want me to see the rest of it), no measurements, a one or two sentence description that says nothing, and no photos or details of any marks, lettering, etc., none of which makes me feel secure in buying something from you. Then there are those that do have great photos and descriptions but the titles and set up aren't search engine friendly or optimized for search. Beautiful Vintage McCoy Vase With Flowers Like Grandma's as a title isn't going to get you too many hits because your only good keywords are mccoy vase and even using advanced search (which many people still don't), there are 194,000 results! But, using advanced search, blue handles iris "mccoy vase" turns up only 140 results. Chances are a buyer is going to have a much better chance of finding your vase among 140 compared to 194,000.

Serious collectors and dealers are getting very savvy about using search. Give them what they are looking for and they will find you! And read google's policies, help pages, tutorials and all the help available on Bonanzle's forums. Titles entirely or with words in all caps will not do well, symbols like !?*"':; will not do well - and yes that means you actually have to type the word inches instead of just adding " to the number. Putting Free Shipping in your title or the first part of your description will not get you noticed, it will get you spit out of the search engine!

So where are the buyers? My personal opinion again - They are where they have always been - out looking for things to buy. If you've got the same thing everybody else has, yours had better look better and seem better than the rest. If you've got unique higher end pieces, they should be standing out of the crowd not lost in it. If you want to sell your stuff, you'll do what every salesperson has done since retail started, you'll figure out where your market goes to shop, you'll make sure they can see your stuff when they get there, you'll present your merchandise in the best possible light, you'll know your merchandise in order to present all the points being sought after, and you'll work to make the shopper feel safe and valued.

As sellers we need to learn how to best optimize our merchandise for feeds to search engines. We need to read more tech and business articles about how on-line shopping is changing. We need to listen to the people we know who do shop on-line. We need to keep the selling venues of our "old stuff" up to date. Basically, we need to do what we've always done: figure out where the serious, good buyers are going to shop, make sure we're noticed positively when they get there, present our wares attractively, and be knowledgeable dealers who value their reputations. Fifty years ago a shopper might look under Antiques in the yellow pages, then call around to see which shops carried items of interest to them. Back then, you spent time and money to make sure your shop was listed and stood out in those listings. Now shoppers go to the internet and immediately shop for a specific item. The good news is that unless you pay someone to do it for you, getting your inventory into the searchable listings is free. The bad news is that those listings are also open to everyone else in the world and their inventory. You have to spend the time to learn and the time to actually do what is needed to come out in front of the pack.

Paris Apartment Paris Apt. - Search Keywords I Love When Shopping

2009-05-05T09:43:00.000-05:00

Here's a link to a Hand Picked List called Paris Apartment Accents that I put together on Bonanzle. The link will only be active until June 4, 2009. Will try to keep it in my menopausal memory bank to come back and replace it with some photos then.

http://www.bonanzle.com/hand_picked_lists/18538

Paris Apartment or Paris Apt., are keywords occasionally used to describe a certain "look" and "feel". Like shabby chic, it got way overused at one point with the resulting search results overwhelming you with stuff that in no way related to what your were looking for. Unlike the example used though, it seems to be quietly making a return and lets hope it stays quiet! Since I don't think I have many readers here, am going to say that searching Paris Apartment is becoming interesting again.

I know that interior designers and decorators often use it to search for accent pieces, and I know that some buyers use it. How do I know? Because some of my best repeat customers found me thru those keywords. BUT before you use them, be as sure as you can be that your item would be considered Paris Apt. decor. Those same buyers will probably never look at your items again if they click on one by the sound of the title and the item itself is not true to the keywords.

This is a tricky one because it can be used for Asian made and Asian inspired, overdone rococo and vintage industrial, deco, nouveau, Victorian, Edwardian and folk art, and so forth and so on. Antique and vintage items are preferred but there are new, contemporary ones that also fit. It really is more of a feel than a look on the deciding end.

I always try to imagine myself as a person living in Paris sometime between 1920 and 1960, there to pursue the arts and literary energy, past and present, that the city is known for. Somehow, it is my dream after all, I am invited regularly to salons, dinners, teas, cocktail parties and other social events held at the homes of people with their thumbs on the pulse of Parisian intellect and arts. Then I ask myself: Would this item look right in one of those homes?

It makes sense to me and actually works for me. But - my thought processes, as the other half tries to occasionally remind me, do not work along the same lines as the majority.

My Shabbi Chic has a booth on Bonanzle! Finally!

2009-04-30T07:25:00.000-05:00

My booth is open with 69 items listed so far. I'll be adding more items every week. Spent several months checking out, watching, and getting a feel for all the new selling sites on the web. With a large number of former ebay sellers, especially those selling antiques, collectibles and vintage clothing/accessories/jewelry, looking for a 'better fit' for their treasures, the market for selling sites has expanded and is still growing.

Bonanzle is the one I chose for me. One of my first priorities, wrong or right, was how the homepage looked and how the category pages were presented. Bonanzle has a clean, professional look with no pop ups, no adds with large bosumed ladies wanting to talk to lonely people, and NO ads or links to other sites. Just the Bonanzle logo, their rallying cry of "everything but the ordinary" and, on the home page, an ever changing grouping of photos chosen from actual items found in the booths on the site. These are called hand picked lists and are created by Bonanzle members. The lists are put together around a theme and the best are chosen to rotate on the home page. There are usually up to 25 different lists rotating every day. If you don't do anything else on Bonanzle, go to Bonanzle.com and check the lists out - you can see the different ones by clicking on the logo in the upper left corner. Some are based on colors, eras, seasons, categories; some are classy; some are tongue in cheek; some are plays on words; and all of them are really attractive!

The owners of Bonanzle, Bill Harding and Mark Dorsey, wanted to create a site for people wanting to sell unique or one off items rather than wholesale, 1000 to a box, inventory. There are new items to be found there, but on the majority you'll find antiques, vintage, collectibles of yesterday and ones that will be tomorrow, and some great bargains on gently used but still good merchandise. Every seller has an opportunity to fill out a Profile and a More Booth Details section. Thru these you can see where the seller lives, how long they've been on Bonanzle, any feedback received, and information about what they sell and why. And there's a real time chat box in every booth! So if the seller is online and you have questions or want more info on an item, you can just type it in. Even if the seller is listing or elsewhere on the site, they'll be notified that someone has posted to their chat box and can get with you very quickly. Payment options are up to the seller, so checks, cash, money orders, Paypal and Google Checkout are all found and some sellers even process credit cards on their own.

Here's the link to my booth: http://www.bonanzle.com/booths/myshabbichic

And here's the link to Bonanzle's home page: http://www.bonanzle.com/

Please come visit me or just visit Bonanzle. I'll be posting more here as I add more treasures. May not have been selling much online the last few months but that doesn't mean I haven't been treasure hunting! and I have some really neat stuff to share!

What Does a Maven of Vintage Clothes, Accessories, Style, Designers and Fashion Wear?

2008-11-10T08:06:00.000-06:00

I love clothes. Quality material, detailed construction and good design can make me quiver. There are large plastic bins stored here full of cocktail dresses, gowns, lingerie, dresses, blouses, coats, etc., - some designer, some just superbly made, very stylish clothing. Vintage silk hand rolled scarves with descreet designer names in the corners, vintage purses from chainmail to wood and plastic to petit point needlework, and vintage hats from the truly absurb little caps with 12" or more bobbing things to the wide brim with hat band accented by a small gemmed pin. Clothes and accessories enough to carry you thru any occasion, taken from the decades between 1910 and 1970.

So you would figure I'm a walking fashion plate right? wrong! What do I build my daily wardrobe around? Long, large denim jumpers with lots of pockets - and by the way, the pockets are deal breakers. These perfect fashion finds are the ultimate necessity to me. In the summer they are worn over tank tops and when the weather gets cooler, short to long sleeve tops or dresses (also long and cotton only).

Why are pockets deal breakers? Cause I can fill those pockets and keep myself hands free. When working at home I've got discs for my camera, gel ink pen, pencil with eraser and fine point marker, metal pull out measuring tape, small magnifying glass, reading glasses, index cards, iphone and possible munchies all tucked about my person, easy to find and get to. When shopping, replace the discs with cash, the index cards with a small notebook, and I'm ready to go junking.

These denim life savers are almost totally impervious to staining, so all the different goos and glops I use to clean little treasures with can dripped, spilled or wiped on myself with impunity. I can grab a bit of my jumper, do a quick rub and polish on something and not worry about ruining my apparel. Best of all, while eating, I can read, surf the internet one handed or carry on a convesation with lots of hand gestures without worrying about the salsa or whatever drips - it will wash out!

So, though I have sold Ceil Chapman cocktail dresses, vintage Pucci prints, Hermes scarves, Chanel clutches and have more to offer up to the fashion conscious online buyers, I myself usually look like the Queen Mary decked out in denim, floating by. Add old lady comfort shoes and you're got a pretty good idea - I'm the Queen Mother hippy style. The purse and jewelry are the only real hints to the fact that I might actually have some taste and you'ld probably have to be detail oriented to notice them.

Of course none of the above excludes me from being harshly critical, cuttingly derisive and horribly snobbish about how everyone else dresses! Major pet peeve regarding the younger generation's style - those low riding jeans, no matter how young you are or how nice your figure over all, only look good on about 1 out of a 1000.

Shopping Tip No. 2

2008-09-22T11:14:00.000-05:00

Junk Shopping - Tip No. 2

There is one refrain I hear constantly from the people who know me, "How do you find that stuff? I go to the Goodwill, the Salvation Army, yard sales, and I never find that stuff.". This remark is often accompanied by a look that says "you must have other places to shop, you just won't tell anyone about them". Sometimes it is even accompanied by a verbal, "come on girl, tell us where you really find the goodies". Sorry everyone, but we do shop in the same places but we shop very differently. My personal observation is that it is not where you shop, but how you shop.

Tip #2 - How to junk shop. Most experienced junkers combine necessity shopping with the treasure seeking. Necessity shopping needs no tips. You know what you need so that's what you look for. My taste in clothing and accessories still does not match my budget, and probably never will! The majority of my exterior wardrobe has been second hand since 1970. Finding home office supplies like notepads, printing paper, index cards, etc. can save me $20 to $50 a month. The same for many housewares, business display items and other continuing expenses.

Looking for an antique, art piece, vintage designer label, or other treasure discarded as worthless, that is a different type of shopping. For this type of shopping you need knowledge, gut reaction or "an eye" and timing.

Knowledge: If you are a beginning collector or dealer, go to shops that sell the types of items you would like to find. Look at them carefully and if possible, touch them, pick them up and smell them (yes, smell them! certain materials have distinctive odors), get an idea of the texture, the colors, the "look". Go online and research them. Study the photographs and read any relevant text even if it is an auction or store description. As an example, let's say you have decided to collect vintage California dinnerware. When you're looking at three 20 foot long display racks with three shelves each, all piled up with plates, glasses, bowls, etc., it will help to be able to recognize glazes, colors, texture. Narrowing your search to 20 possible pieces is a lot easier than picking up every single one and looking at the bottom for a mark!

The ones who ask questions, go to shows, galleries, museums, read books, do some research, and spend some time learning about their particular love are the ones who usually find the treasures.

Personally, because I love all types of decorative items, my knowledge is thinner on specifics and broader on a greater range of types. I have learned how the base of a 19th century glass vase will look compared to the base of a contemporary reproduction piece; how different types of prints look under a magnifying glass; how the texture of the material, the way it was cut and put together looks on a 1930's day dress; how the hinges, finish, corners of an old box will look; and many more bits of information. In other words, I may not immediately recognize a 19th century ceramic bowl by it's maker or pottery but I will recognize the age.

My tip here is obviously to spend some time learning about the treasures you hope to find. Even if you just want to shop for "old stuff" in general, you should do some research. What types of materials were used in certain eras? What do the different era styles look like, i.e. deco, nouveau, arts and crafts, Edwardian, Regency? What "true age" signs to look for? What should be hand made and what is fine if machine made?

Gut or "Having an Eye": Look at things that draw your interest. I don't care what it is, look at it! You will often hear a collector or dealer talking about themselves or someone they know having "an eye" for particular items. This "eye" did not come with detailed knowledge and footnotes! The fine tuning comes from years of learning, the origin of the "eye" comes from what literally draws your eye. Most of the ability in my opinion comes from a natural appreciation of the item. People who love pottery usually have an already built in good eye for glazes, types of clay, and design. They may not know the verbage for these things or the technical aspects, but they know that they like it. They find it attractive and it calls to them in a way they can't describe. That is what attracts them to pottery in the first place and that is having "an eye".

If it catches your eye, your inner self likes it and it's affordable, buy it. As simple as it sounds, that is basically how I shop. Granted, there are probably subconscious triggers from the part of my brain storing the knowledge discussed above. I have to give my gut credit where credit is due though. Some of my best finds have been items that were a total mystery to me. Their only qualifier was the gut feeling they gave me. One of the great things about true junk shopping is that you can give in to your gut at a very low monetary cost. You find a bowl that for whatever reason you just love. When that bowl costs $1.99 or less, buy it. Buy what you really love and can afford. So what if it turns out to be a made in China repo? You like it and you've bought a nice home decor item for a great price! Then again, maybe it will turn out to be a nice 1950's California pottery piece or maybe you've hit the jackpot and it's 17th century Chinese export porcelain. Whatever it turns out to be, you are enjoying it, possibly learning from it, and it's easy on the budget.

Sometimes that initial attraction departs quickly when I get closer or once I'm holding it in my hands. Then there are the times it stays even when I don't like it! Some of my best "finds" have been things that I personally did not find especially attractive. I bought a 1970's 1980's southwestern style pottery wall plaque once for $2. There is a photo at the beginning of this post. That era of faux adobe with color schemes in turquoise and pink is just not one of my favorites, BUT it caught my eye for some reason. The quality of the work was outstanding, this was a piece made to last and it was signed. Because of these things, because it caught my eye and mainly because it gave my gut a twinge - I bought it. Researched the name, Vera Russell, found out this was a desirable item with a solid collector base and sold it for $140 at an online auction.

Then there are the times that the attraction stays even though I have no earthly idea what this thing is. My guilty secret is that these are my favorites. I love researching these mysteries and get my money's worthy from the fun of solving them. Invariably I learn something, not only about the item itself, but other bits of interest for use elsewhere or in the future.

Note of warning: If everything catches your eye, this won't work for you. And you probably won't do well at collecting or dealing either - just a quick heads up.

Timing: The early bird gets the most worms at yard, garage, church, school, estate type sales. They do not necessarily get all the worms, so don't blow a sale off because it's been picked over. Excellent finds can get passed over in the initial rush. Sometimes there is such a quantity of stuff that it's impossible to see everything and sometimes people just don't see what's right in front of them. I can not tell you the number of times I've been the last in a group of avid dealers perusing a sale and still found some great stuff. Plus its fun when you're in line to pay and those who were first to shop are asking you "where did you find that?!"

When shopping in thrift shops, if you specialize in collecting or dealing certain items, be it glass, vintage clothing, or snuff boxes, then there will be certain areas of a store you will peruse carefully. My tip here is to not forget the rest of the store. I've found pieces of clothing and accessories like scarves, hats, ties, purses, mixed in with tupperware and books. Found a large old Redwing Pottery jug at the end of a clothing aisle and found some nice framed seriographs sitting on a shoe display shelf. Spend the majority of your time in the section of the store that should have what you are looking for but allow for a careful walk thru of the whole store before leaving.

We are a very nomadic society in many ways. People are no longer grow up, marry, raise children and age in the same house, or even city, they were born in. Most can not move several generations of belongings with them every time they change residences. We are also a throw away society, constantly replacing the old with something new and better. For those of us who appreciate the old, these two conditions provide unending inventory.

When people ask why you love to dig around in all that weird stuff, just tell them that you are helping to save the past and recycling style.

Victorians - Death Chic - Mourning Jewelry, Basic Black Dress, and

2008-08-23T09:06:00.000-05:00

Queen Victoria lost the love of her life, her consort Albert, and so great was this woman's influence that she took her whole country into mourning with her. Black reigned supreme in the well dressed Englishwoman's wardrobe for more seasons than would seem possible. Unless you were a young, unmarried female, your formal day and evening wear was all in classic black. Granted, if middle, upper or titled, the material range, velvet, organdy, satin, heavy to gossamer silk, fine wools, serges, crepe, garbedine, gave you some options but not many.

Even jewelry was influenced by the mourning of their queen. Locks of hair would be cut from the dearly departed and woven or braided into intricate designs. These fantastical creations were made to fit into glass framed lockets, pendants or brooches. Jet , a fossilized coal, was used to make shiny black stones and beads. These were made into jewelry and used to accent clothing or accessories.

Some women even took daily doses of arsenic to give them pale, translucent skin so conducive to a melancholy air. In other words, the whole style became so popular that you not only dressed as if in perpetual mourning, you also wanted to physically look the part.

To some the Victorian era of style is one better forgotten. Furniture
incorporated design details from several centuries the result was mostly overlyornate pieces with no style of their own. To top it off, it they weren't even comfortable to sit on. Decor tended to be in umber shades with dark, dark jewel tones. Too many, too much of, too fussy, and too totally overdone were the catch phrases for
interior design. Fashion was elaborate both in style and in the number of things one ended up wearing to be properly dressed. The saving grace was that, as noted above, almost everything was in black. Which backs up my belief that if you have quality wardrobe basics in black, you can get thru anything, even a fashion era as bad
as the Victorian one.

There are three results of that era I really like. Number 1, they made something for everything. For every single thing you might use or eat, they had a dish, serving utensil, box, holder, and so forth. These "things" were often quality made, with fine attention to detail. Seen standing alone, relieved of the Victorian clutter, they are often beautiful. The Victorians made fantastic smalls and I love smalls -
you got to give credit where credit is due. Number 2, they loved gadgets, simple things compared to today, but you could consider them the first techies. If it was mechanicized, they wanted one. Even though it took longer and was more difficult than doing it manually!

Number 3, they were the founders of goth fashion. I am not a goth myself, but like the style. Using the basic colors and theme of constantly acknowledging death introduced by the Victorians, it has evolved a much more attractive look. Like the Victorians, it incorporates other eras. Unlike them, it has restraint. And I hate to keep beating the same drum, but I'm back on the black basics of quality theme. Think about it. Those who go thru a Goth phase and do it well will have a lot more wardrobe items that will turn out to incorporate well into any new look. I mean, how much of that hip hop, rockabilly, emo, grunge, surfer, hippy, leather studded stuff hanging in your closet is going to look good at the office?

Junk Stores, Thrift Shops, Garage-Estate Sales, Flea Markets - Shopping Tip No. 1

2008-08-12T11:39:00.000-05:00

Now if you've got any smarts at all, you know that many of the items sold in antique stores, vintage boutiques, and even at well known auction houses, were found at one of the shopping venues in the title. Granted, this may not hold true for the higher end auction houses as their items often come from private collections or high end dealers. But, many of those items, if traced, would be found to have similar backgrounds. Hand sewn quilts, embroidered samplers, hand carved dough bowls, were all items that could be bought cheaply at flea markets and yard sales 50 years ago. Many collectors became enthralled with and started purchasing items long before popular interest made them valuable.

Dealers who have brick and mortar stores usually don't have the time to do their own "junk shopping" so they often buy from "pickers". Pickers are people who will shop any venue with low prices, looking for anything that looks old or unusual. They then bring car, van or truck loads of items around to people who buy those types of things. Pickers do not always have detailed knowledge concerning age, marks, material, etc., nor do they spend time trying to attain that knowledge. Acting as the "middle man" for many dealers, they buy cheap and turn their inventory quickly. The good ones with "an eye" do very well.

Then there are those of us who are as addicted to the "find" as we are to the item itself. We just love to junk shop and the treasures we locate have extra value to us personally. It's not just the fact that we picked up a gorgeous piece of Italian art glass worth $325 in today's market for $2 at a yard sale. Though it can't be equated into dollars, the "find" itself gives us a thrill that more than doubles the profit albeit not literally. Going beyond the resale value, we also delight in finding useful and decorative items for our own personal use at a fraction of the going retail price in which ever market it would normally be found in.

So - whether you are already hooked into junk shopping, are just beginning to explore the joys of it or are thinking about trying it, here are some suggestions from one who has been going at it for 40 years.

Prepare and keep in your car the following. Find yourself a tote bag with lots of pockets, preferably something made of soft, padded or quilted material. In your bag, keep a magnifying glass or jewelers loupe, some small screwdrivers, some packs of cheap wet wipes, a pair of garden gloves, a notebook with a pen, small bottles of glass cleaner, wood soap, and a gentle detergent mixed with water, and last but not least, a small purse with a long strap you can wear diagonally across your shoulders. The purse needs to be big enough to hold money and a magnifying glass. Depending on how often you shop, the small bottles of cleaner may need to be emptied and refilled occasionally.

Now find two boxes, one from a liquor store with cardboard dividers where the bottles were and one just a regular box. In the undivided box put some used bubble wrap, unprinted newspaper or butcher type paper, or those small plastic bags of air. Roll up some discarded t-shirts, towels, etc. and put them in the slots of the liquor box.

With the above items stashed in your vehicle, you are ready to stop at a moments notice at any type of sale that looks like interesting. The magnifying glass will help you look at marks, check for chips and flea bites, get an idea of what type of printing process was used, if there are real brush strokes, if signatures are real or imprinted, check glazes, etc.

Small screw drivers will let you check to see if loose parts can be tightened, if they have a different color underneath the screw head, etc.

Wet wipes are for your hands if not wearing gloves. Also, if shopping a large spread out area, the individully wrapped ones will fit in your small shopping purse and are great for spot checking items when carrying around your bottles of cleaners would be a hassle.

Garden gloves for digging through boxes that might have broken glass, sharp edges, nails, etc. Getting a cut or puncture, even a tiny one, around a bunch of dirty stuff isn't a great idea!

Notebook and pen for the obvious - phone numbers and names of people who might have more items you want to see, who have information on items you're interested in, who sell in different places, who have info on different places to sell. What I find really handy is making notes on things I've bought, makers' marks, color, patent numbers, company names, old addresses, etc., especially when I'm having a good day and finding numerous treasures. When I get home, some quick research can be done without unpacking everything. A big glass of ice tea, take my shoes off, turn on the laptop, put my feet up and see if I can add even more zest to the thrill of the hunt!

The cleaners help to check whether those stains and discolorations are just dirt, mold or permanent, clean framed glass to get a good look at what's underneath, see if a mirror or piece of glass is permantly clouded or just way dirty, same with wood items and leather - warning! just do small spots to check and do further thorough cleaning at home carefully and with the proper products.

The small purse is an easy and safe way to carry your money, magnifier and wipes while keeping both hands free. On those occasions that a really good find is spotted, purses can be set aside and ignored while you hold and check out your prize. Large shoulder bags can make slipping thru narrow aisles or bending over to dig under tables difficult. I found one of those small rectangular shaped used Coach bags at one of my stores. It has a long strap, the front flap has a turn closure and underneath is a front pocket perfect for my iphone and enough room in the purse itself for a small magnifier, a zip change purse and an extra pair of reading glasses (one of those pairs that come in a small tube).

The boxes are pretty self explanatory. I love the liquor boxes for small items. They can be safely stored in separate sections. On a big shopping trip or extremely lucky one, more than one item can be placed in each section using a small piece of cardboard or some wadded up paper between items. Try to avoid using printed newspaper as it will discolor or stain some items. If you buy something wrapped in printed newspaper, discard and rewrap as soon as possible.

If you are shopping or on the look out for large items such as furniture, lamps, wall hangings, etc., then keep some old blankets and some larger screw drivers handy. If you buy mirrors or items framed with glass, do not lay them flat, place them on their sides with material or cardboard between them and place them so they can not fall over once the vehicle is moving. Transporting flat sheets of glass, even just one mirror for example, laying flat is asking for cracks or breakage.

Additional info - The soft tote mentioned above - mine is a used, of course, Vera Bradley with 6 pockets stitched to the interior sides. I keep one or two empty at all times for things like jewelry and super small smalls. When looking for liquor boxes, check out the larger stores as they will have a surprising variety of sectioned boxes. Good quality pints have some sturdy small rectangle sections, better quality brands have thicker dividers, sections can be 3x3 inches to 6x6.

Remember - this is what works for me. There are probably a wealth of other suggestions out there. Keep an eye out to see what other shoppers are carrying or using. If you find yourself thinking "I wish I had a - fill in the blank" more than 3 times, then figure out a way to carry one or improvise one. Happy hunting!

Bras, Girdles, Feminism, and Science Fiction

2008-08-01T07:59:00.001-05:00

I never burned my bra, I just quit wearing it. I had left home and found an apartment in Ghent, an old Norfolk, Va. neighborhood. At the time, late 60's early 70's, rent was cheap for turn of the century apartments and older homes converted into apartments. The hippys, the art community, the musicians, the ODU students, and young sailors from all over trying not to stand out with their military haircuts, they all converged on the area to rent apartments, studio space, and businesses. Small bars with live music were packed every night and little corner deli's were wall to wall on Sunday mornings.

Because I jumped into this new life feet first and ready to be free, man made plus natural substances were a part of the new me. Consequently my memories of my first year or two tend to be in vivid vignettes with hazy surroundings. One of the first is of an intense conversation on how women had been totally enslaved by the clothes they were expected to wear. The fact that a man had designed the most popular bra of our mother's era, still heavily influencing the bra designs of ours, was made much of. Now to be honest, I do remember that the conversation involved more aspects of female clothing. It covered the skirt and dress versus the pants topics and it covered the sexual topics of why we ended up being the ones that had to dress to attract when in most species it was the male who had the most sprucing. It spanned politics, social outlook and even touched on economy and skirt lengths.

Having immediately soaked up the ideals of the time, no more hypocrocy, no more ozzie and harriet facades, we are who we are and we're honest about it, I knew after that conversation that I wasn't a feminist and could never claim to be one. I loved clothes and loved the new freedom to wear any type I liked. Long skirts with halters made out of vintage silk scarfs, men's dress vests with blue jeans, big clunky platform shoes with bell bottoms, floaty jackets made of old lace curtains, vintage joan crawford jackets with wide shoulders and cinched waists with elephant leg crepe pants, there was no way I was going to stop endulging my affair with clothes.

The undergarment part of the conversation is what changed my life. My mother and her sister took me on a womanly rites shopping trip when I was fifteen. They bought me several long leg girdles with hidden garter attachments and some cross your heart type bras. I can honestly say that I did not need a girdle at 15. There were also some nicer softer bras but they were all in satin type materials with lace and as a "single good girl", I got white cotton and heavy stitching. My mother was old enough to be my grandmother, she was Portuguese, and she was raised in an old country enclave in New England. A good girl hid any signs she had curves and what body parts she couldn't hide were put in immovable containers.

The girdle and the bra were never worn again. Vintage full slips and camisols took the place of the bra when needed and a lacy garter belt was found to hold up my hose when I wore them. That freedome alone was enough to make me a diehard hippy. But due to the very things I replaced my old signs of female bondage with, I knew in my heart that by the true tenets of feminism in that time, I wasn't one.

About two years into my new life I met two older gentleman who owned a used book and antique shop in the neighborhood. There was a front section of used paperbacks, a back section of 1st editions and rare books and a side room large enough for a few pieces of furniture and a good smattering of decorative arts objects. After several months of shopping for books and checking out the antique shop, they engaged me in a conversation. They weren't known for their friendliness to females, in fact it was a bit of neighborhood lore, so when they spoke to me it was a happening. They wanted to know who I was buying the science fiction books for and when I said they were for me they gently quizzed me to see if I had really read them. I then asked them why they would think I wasn't reading them. They said they had noted that sci-fi was finally reaching a broader reader base but the majority was male and very few females, under 5 percent in their store anyway, were reading it.

Then, the real moment came, one of those vignette memories again. One asked me if I had burned my bra and was I fighting for female equality and freedom. The whole conversation was starting to get my hackles up and I snapped back since I was already equal and free I didn't see the need to fight but did see the need for some changes in the laws, some enforcement of same and some education of those who didn't consider me so. It was the right thing to say. They had a good laugh and I had to join them. Then one told me that believing you were equal and a free person, and living your life as such no matter how others acted, was the true battle, and the true sign that you weren't enslaved or unequal.

After that we became friends or perhaps it would be more truthful to say they became two of my mentors. Another quirk in my life where a conversation about sci-fi and bras led me to meeting two people of my parents generation who gave me hope that: a. Getting older didn't mean you'ld be stuck in a rut of doing things according to the neighbors' opinions. b. Just because I wasn't screaming for equality and freedom didn't mean I wasn't getting it. The way I lived my life could and would have a ripple effect, so I was part of the battle even if I hadn't signed up.

By the way, I still don't wear a bra, still read some sci-fi and still consider myself extremely free and very equal.

Vintage - Things from a simpler time? Bull Hockey!

2008-07-27T07:06:00.000-05:00

There is no such thing as a "simpler time". Take that glow off any dreamer or idealistic images and put it somewhere where the sun does not shine. It's personal opinion time here: the main reason the past appears so charming, so romantic, is that all the bad stuff was carefully hidden and simply not talked about - you put on the right clothes, a face sharing nothing but platitudes and you desparately worked towards the allusion that you were just like everyone else. Abuse, addiction, depression, pure meanness, egos, control freaks, mental illness, ignorance, fanaticizm, it was all there hidden behind the visage of normalcy.

I don't like old things because they make me yearn for a "better" life in the past. As an unmarried, past middle age female with no blood family and no "estate", I would very likely be dead. If alive, I would probably look like I was 90 while selling apples or begging on street corners. No thank you.

I like old things because of the energy they hold for me. The whispers of what they've seen. The reality of the lives around them, the power of the emotions. Things never spoken of have more power to fuel human emotions than anything else in the world. I like old things because every day items, that have become throw aways in our world, are quality crafted, made to last a lifetime and attractive to boot. I like them because to see what a people found attractive, what they chose to decorate their lives with, what they enjoyed seeing, tells you more about who they really were. I like old things because of the perpetual why? why do humans feel the need to decorate? From incised lines in unglazed rough pottery to hand painted translucent porcelain, humans decorate. Not only do we decorate, we seem to change our preference in style of decorations according to the world and its climate, both weather wise and human vagary wise.

That's why I like old things. They fascinate the Hades out of me.

Why My Shabbi Chic?

2008-07-26T09:45:00.000-05:00

I had to come to terms with the nomenclature of My Shabbi Chic before starting a blog. The results of my figuring out how in the sam hill I got myself stuck with that moniker will be the first post to my first blog. The fact that it is my first blog, and my first real stand alone presence on the web, really made me not want this as a blog name. Really wanted something with "old broad" in it combined with "musings", "rants", "chronicles", etc.. You know - mouthy old lady with attitude, heart of gold, philosophical, witty, warms the cockles of your heart while making you snort with laughter. But Google search changed all of that.

It wasn't that the dozen or so fabulous names I toyed with had been taken. It wasn't that the names flagged any obscenity no-no's. It was due to a whim that made me Google myshabbichic and the realization that I already had a web presence. Once I got over the thrill of that - and I'm sorry, it was a thrill for me, so sit on it, I realized the shabbi one was here to stay. A name picked to sell on ebay, chosen partly from pique, partly to save myself from loved one's suggestions for names and partly cause no one else was using it.

The resentment was probably menopausal reaction, but the lady who made all the cash on the whole shabby chic thing? well I had photos of my apartment in the early 70's, all white washed old wood and bamboo furniture with upholstery recovered in barkcloth cabbage roses and tropical ferns, distressed wood and gesso framed mirrors on every wall, candles in unusual glass holders, seashells and quaint old leather covered books laying around - and I didn't make millions off it. Then of course there were the charming names friends and loved ones kept coming up with, from the too cutesy and overly used types like Granny's Attic to the who would want to buy anything from soomeone named junkedouttrasher. With a sniff at English blondes and well meaning buddies, I decided it was my particular brand of shabby as in charming chic style that I was trying to sell - hence, the name.

Whether I'm just a glass half full type or one that always sees the silver lining, the name is finally growing on me. And truth win out - I've surrounded myself, dressed myself, educated myself in, the used, passed on, discarded, items of times past. Even when I don't need them or particularly even like them, I bring them home cause I can't stand to see them just trashed. Style is timeless and I like things with style - I love to dig thru boxes and crowded shelves for those special things that catch my eye - I love saving a beautiful pot or silk scarf from the landfill.

The photo at the beginning is a collage of items I have bought and have or will be selling or bartering in the future. Going from left to right starting in the upper left corner: A Florenza letter holder, an unglazed African folk art contemporary sculpture, a 1940s aluminum perpetual calendar, a Fornasetti box, a marked Mexican sterling silver turquoise inlay question mark pendant, Bjorn Winblad playing cards, a 1950's carpet bag purse, a 1970s 80s Kliban cat coffee mug over a mid century lucite paperweight with a full blown dandelion encased and a one edition 1980s deck of tarot cards, a ceramic spaghetti spaniel made in Italy, three older cameos over a very funky 1920s 30s made in Japan character ashtray, a ceramic sculpture by Fantoni, a handpainted silk tie on the naughty side, a made in Italy with pottery marks rooster pitcher, an engraved metal peacock with a 12 inch clam shell body, a 3D tooled leather purse with cowhide border made in Mexico from the 1950s 60s, a mid-century modern Mexican silver cuff signed, a Nagel mug and last but not least, another Florenza piece, a small double frame made out of an old locket on a stand up base of faux gems.

All in all, it really is a perfect name - my shabbi chic.