Children of Sphere: Lenovo Goes Space Age
This post brought to you by Lenovo. All opinions are 100% mine.
When absorbing retro style into your home, there are usually two ways to go: Hide everything creatively or score some vintage electronics from yesteryear. That Japanese travel alarm is so fetching hiding inside a cuffllink box or Aunt Millicent's tea cozy. The tube socks strewn around the room stretegically hide power cords…that is if you are set dressing for a television special on the early 80s teenager.
Unfortunately, you won't find a 1940s iPod doc. If you fast forward your look into space age retro, the Weltron 2001 "Space Ball" radio was made in the 70s, but somehow it looks just as cozy in swanky 60s decor to a retro 80s flashback. Unfortunately, they didn't make computer implements.
But what do you do with your computer peripheries?
Luckily, there is a Lenovo speaker that looks like the long lost son or little sister or brother of the Sphere, and has that classic retro-astronaut helmut silhouette
They have spooled cords so no tangled bird's nest. All periphery equipment has been switched to spooled cords in lieu of finding a faux telephone cord around the Vintage Abode. Too many wires catch all the cuban heels, platforms, cowboy roper boots and stilettos worn by various members to relax in the morning. A USB cord is all that is required for their 4 watts of sound.
They come in any color you want, so long as it is red. What's more is that through 5/21, which is this coming Monday, you can take them to your leader for $11.99 straight from Lenovo. After that, they return to their vintage April 2012 price of $29.99.
(Wetron photo compliments of AntiqueRadio.org)
Virtual Production Meetings
This post brought to you by Gorilla Conferencing. All opinions are 100% mine.
"What if I made this cut and draped the fabric like this?"
"Like what?"
"Let me Skype you."
"Wait a minutes, then you have to show Beverly and Karlo."
"Then I'll Skype them next while I'm on the phone with you."
"Hold up that drawing a little closer. Is that a line or shadow?"
"I'll email it to you."
"Wait a minute. Okay. Then I'll look at it and then print it, and then make some changes and scan it again and send it back?"
Skype may be the cheap way to collaborate in real time when you are designing your spring collection or when you are redesigning your wardrobe. After all, there must be an attractive way to DIY all the clothes that you still have before you amazing weight loss. In practice, it just doesn't work when there are more than two parties involved or when holding up precise drawings.
Good old fashioned conferencing, such as what Gorilla Conferencing offers, has come a long way. No longer do you have to take your group down to Kinko's to be seen on the screen to your colleagues. The idea of video conferencing may seem so behind when anyone can webcam, but when you can share white boards, invite folks sitting at multiple locations, share documents and more, it makes communication much more efficient when the info is important, especially if the project is frought with miscommunication or involves a profit…or at least preventing a loss.
Have you tried video conferencing for your collaborations? Did it clear up murky areas and get the project on track?
Gather Your Paparazzi
This post brought to you by POWOW Messenger. All opinions are 100% mine.
(At left: Choose your own adventure.)
It is quite tedious to send off a missive via text while holding opera glasses with one hand, while attempting to politely tap your palm to express satisfaction with the other… or to hold that of your sweetheart in the other. A Gent or Gal just needs at least four hands. Now, you can send a Huzzah to a whole group of scenesters at once without accidentally texting your stalkers your whereabouts, your tailor or your parents' Tuesday night backgammon and historical revisionist-leisure suit deniar's club (Who by proxy might not have believed Tom Jones nor hipsters existed.)
If you download POWOW Messenger for Android (one "W' in the middle, mind you), you can send a note to preselected circle of folks at once. No tediously hunting and pecking for each one. After all, you wouldn't want to give up at the "M's" and then have cousin Tad hear from Aunt Myrtle in telegram and feel snubbed.
The application gave a little bit of lip at first, constantly crashing. At first it seemed like a little bit of spunk, but after repeated crashings it was either a sign that it abhorred my grammar or that my phone and it didn't play nice. It is recommended and best works on phones preinstalled with Ice Cream Sandwich. The Ice Cream Sandwich update just has not been issued for my phone yet, but it is promised soon. My phone and Froyo didn't like eachother. Gingerbread involved two days of a dropped network. Finally when that was all settled, I am bracing myself firmly in my suspenders.
After my patience was truly worn and threadbare, I tried Powow again and saw all the smiling faces. You can easily organize admirers into groups and text not just "all" or "one," but everywhere in between. If you like, you can even organize groups where folks can become members and receive the updates amongst themselves. Like having your own little pocket posse.
The interface is similar to sending a text, but there is a bit more ease. No more "type the caption" then "type the message" and then live in murky uncetainty which one will show up. You can add videos, pictures, audi clips or slideshow – instead of a self photo in the mirror, you can send the view of the catwalk – live.
Have you tried Powow? What did you think?
Gather Your Paparazzi
This post brought to you by POWOW Messenger. All opinions are 100% mine.
(At left: Choose your own adventure.)
It is quite tedious to send off a missive via text while holding opera glasses with one hand, while attempting to politely tap your palm to express satisfaction with the other… or to hold that of your sweetheart in the other. A Gent or Gal just needs at least four hands. Now, you can send a Huzzah to a whole group of scenesters at once without accidentally texting your stalkers your whereabouts, your tailor or your parents' Tuesday night backgammon and historical revisionist-leisure suit deniar's club (Who by proxy might not have believed Tom Jones nor hipsters existed.)
If you download POWOW Messenger for Android (one "W' in the middle, mind you), you can send a note to preselected circle of folks at once. No tediously hunting and pecking for each one. After all, you wouldn't want to give up at the "M's" and then have cousin Tad hear from Aunt Myrtle in telegram and feel snubbed.
The application gave a little bit of lip at first, constantly crashing. At first it seemed like a little bit of spunk, but after repeated crashings it was either a sign that it abhorred my grammar or that my phone and it didn't play nice. It is recommended and best works on phones preinstalled with Ice Cream Sandwich. The Ice Cream Sandwich update just has not been issued for my phone yet, but it is promised soon. My phone and Froyo didn't like eachother. Gingerbread involved two days of a dropped network. Finally when that was all settled, I am bracing myself firmly in my suspenders.
After my patience was truly worn and threadbare, I tried Powow again and saw all the smiling faces. You can easily organize admirers into groups and text not just "all" or "one," but everywhere in between. If you like, you can even organize groups where folks can become members and receive the updates amongst themselves. Like having your own little pocket posse.
The interface is similar to sending a text, but there is a bit more ease. No more "type the caption" then "type the message" and then live in murky uncetainty which one will show up. You can add videos, pictures, audi clips or slideshow – instead of a self photo in the mirror, you can send the view of the catwalk – live.
Have you tried Powow? What did you think?
Tutors on Call
Tutoring is an accepted and proactive idea when your child is struggling in math, but what about if you yourself are working through a core subjects course, struggling in drawing a line between the influence of dorics and ionics on early 20th century design or the influences of 1920s bohemian fashion on the fashion designers of the late 1960s?
You just might find an on line tutor on Tutorhub. Interesting to find the history teachers as well as instructors who have a creative background.
Can you name the teacher, at left In “real life”, she wasn’t a teacher. She was an actress who played one. Can you name her or her character? I cannot fathom how she remained patient with her pupils, considering that parent-teacher conferences didn’t seem to happen when you had a student apparently emancipated from parents at age 8. Or maybe not, but we just never saw them.
Uncategorized | Comment (0)One of Our Favorites from Sears
I sold this suit two years ago, but it is in our “short list” of favorites. It was (is) a metallic suit from the late 60s. Although it is from the tail end of the decade, it has major mod sensibilities with its Italian cut and slim collar placement that we would place just a couple years earlier.
Tailor tags can be very important in dating menswear, especially because the classic suit doesn’t change as rapidly as ladieswear and is sometimes harder to pinpoint in less than a 5 year period even if one is very knowledgeable. Of course, there are “of the season” cutting edge looks available for the fashion forward, but for the average man, a suit is an investment piece. They want to be stylish, but they don’t want to look dated the next year, especially if their employment or social outings do not require a suit for daily wear.
This particular suit came from Sears. The tag is not specifically a tailors tag of a custom suit, but the date the suit was altered for the original buyer. Unlike high fashion magazines that show what the designers introduced each year, the Sears catalog was a very good record of what the average person was actually wearing that year, just like the paint colors represented what was actually in the average homes of America. It may not be nearly as exciting as haute couture, but is invaluable for historians, re-enactors, vintage lovers, and costumers alike.
In the fall of 1968, the year of this suit, though the Brits had moved onto more fluid lines, American Mod was still showing an influence on American fashion and was interpreted in a little more of a relaxed fashion.
At the tail end of the 60s, because of the new synthetics, shades that could never be achieved before were everywhere. I have seen quite a few menswear in the jewel tone blues, greens, and teals during this time period in many eye tricking fabrics and hues that begged the question “Is that blue or is that green? Greenish Blue?”. I have often needed a second or third opinion myself!
Having a specific date always makes me wonder if the date had been around a special occasion. I always imagined with the suit being tailored in proximity to Halloween, that perhaps someone bought it who went to an alternate event. They might have gone to a performance at a concert hall instead of a costume party that night. Or maybe it was just a coincidence, just another day.
Fashionable Driving Tunes (Without The Sticky Vinyl Interior)
This post brought to you by Kia Rio. All opinions are 100% mine.
When I was a tot, and when I became a teen to parents who suddenly decided to go frugal and buy a 12 year old car with only an AM radio, our only listening choices to blare on a summer's day on the freeway were Chuck Mangione's "Feel So Good," an instrumental version of "The Girl from Impanema" and the bumps in between segments on WLS in Chicago. I will note that we did not live anywhere near Chicago, nor in Illinois.
It's one of those spring days with sunshine and a sudden heatwave that summons the 62 Chevys and vintage cafe racers out of the garages and barns. Will it be a false start, with the sunny day bookended by frost and torrential rains? March and April sometimes throw a speedbump into the wind. But honestly, despite my love for vintage mobiles, the above listed songs only make me think of sticky red vinyl, side panelling – and definitely not in a good way.
Now that you are thinking if raindrops would smudge your Chevelle, Kia and Spotify are asking for submissions for their "Best Songs with your Windows Down" playlistt. The list is crowd sourced on Facebook. You can add your very own submisson
If you want to see all of the submissions from others, click on "View Playlist." A dialogue box will ask you which application to open the songs in and will give you the opportunity to download Spotify.
The submitters have not disappointed me. I searched for the most obscure and oldest turns and many astute listeners selected Beethoven.
No Gregorian chants yet, however. I decided to be a bit mirthful in my suggestion:
According to KIA, listending in the car is much safer these days when you can voice activate your entertainment system. So, play on with your Spotify playlist in the house, on the phone, and in your vehicle.
What are your favorite summer driving tunes?
A Bit of Bubbly…
It’s quiz time. Which one of these gentleman doesn’t belong?
Julius Caesar
Christopher Columbus
Benjamin Franklin
Michaelangelo
Genghis Khan
All gentleman had some very distinctive fashion statements for sure. Ben Franklin rocked the Windsor glasses, Caesar wore sheets with confidence and Michelangelo promoted..well…the birthday suit. Genghis Khan’s leather armor and Christopher Columbus’ plumed mariners hat that is copied by many in the Order of the Knights of Columbus today.
The answer? Benjamin Franklin. Why? Our dear friend Ben was the only one to have champagne wishes. The presence of caviar wishes is merely speculative. Champagne was a happy accident in the 1600s, just a bit too late for the other gents who made the fashion statements of dictatorship, leadership and art.
Read below for the fantastically fashionable voyage of the high class drink. There might be a quiz later.
Brought To By wine.com, Purveyors of Fine Wine and Champagne
Durable Dazzle
Rhinestones stud many a period appropriate bracelet, and encrust the occasional cufflink. While rhinestones add dazzle where diamonds are impractical or unobtainable, the challenge often lies with durability. The foil backings cannot be immersed in water and must be cleaned extremely delicately. That works or gentle use, but not if the item is your “go to.” Most of the time, depending on the application, it is more practical to just simply replace them.
If you are making a new custom set of cufflinks as a “go with” rather than aiming for historical accuracy, obtain a quantity of Swarovski crystals. They are available with flat backs, in novel shapes and also in adhesive and sew-able forms. The Swarovski Rose is a popular round shape that can fill the holes where round cabochons once flourished. If you run a tailor or seamstress shop, they are more durable and easily cleanable for your creations. Swarovski crystals may be cleaned with a soft cloth, or with mild soapy water. Of course, any findings, fasteners, or backing fabric must be considered when attempting to clean any item, but the crystals themselves clean easily.
It goes without saying that one wouldn’t strip Grandma’s entire demi parure or Great-Grandpa’s tie tacks with crystals, but if you come across a piece that is merely an empty stoneless shell destined for the scrap or crafter heap, it is a thought to consider to gussy it up for everyday use.
modern fashion | Comment (0)The Days of "Smile and Wave" Lawn Care is Back
This post brought to you by Scotts®. All opinions are 100% mine.
Caring for one's yard was much more fabulous in the 50s. The clothes were gingham picnic blanket fabulous and you just passed over the trimmings with the push mower once. Then you had lemonade, unless you were Mr. Wilson and Dennis the Menace was bothering you again. After I stopped watching reruns and had a real lawn to take care of, I realized the attire was not so fabulous, neighbors were not as cheery and the lawn took all year to plan.day
The other alternative is to hire a company to come along with the
The Scotts® Snap® Spreader System is promising to bring back the days of pushing a non-motorized item on a stick back and forth across the lawn and waving at neighbors.
You can "like" Snap perks on Facebook to qualify for rewards and prizes, or you can butter up your popcorn and learn more about how it works with this little morsel of cinema.
Now, get ready to rosin up those hands and practice your Queen of England wave if you are a female person and your jaunty two fingered brow salute as you pass by your laboring neighbors and looky-lou passersby.
My daughter
Author: Isiah Williams
My daughter has recently gotten really into fashion so I went to http://www.tvbydirect.com/ to get some extra channels for her to watch some of her favorite fashionista shows. She really likes that show How Do I Look? And pretty much everything that comes on the Style Network so I think it’s going to be a really good compromise for her to have some additional channels since that’s all she wants to do. It’s definitely going to save me money over having to take her to the mall every time she wants to look at clothes or learn more about fabrics and fashion!
I’m hoping when she graduates we have enough money to send her to fashion school because I know that surgery but I guess we’ll have to wait and see what kind of scholarships she gets. She’s a really smart girl and she keeps her grades up I think she can do it without much of a problem at least I’m hoping so!
Uncategorized | Comment (0)The Oscars: Like Buttah!
This post brought to you by I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter. All opinions are 100% mine.
=Who comes to mind when someone yells, "It's like buttah!?"
The woman(man) who uttered it and the man who couldn't believe it wasn't. Or neither? For those of you who didn't watch television during the 1990s, the popular answers would be Mike Meyers as Coffee Talk's Linda Richmond or Fabio, Romance Novel Cover Art model and I Can't Believe It's Not Butter! Spokesman.
Above: Butter? How about butter colored metal?
It's Oscar time and another gold colored item is saluting the gold statuettes.
If you are working late or otherwise cannot sit and watch the television for the red carpet festivities, tune on to Facebook for Toast to the Red Carpet – LIVE, presented by I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter! on their fan page. Even if you can, you can be one of the folks watching both the internet and television at the same time to not miss a thing. The ICBINB fanpage will also have celebrity recipe pairings inspired by the Best Picture Nominees.
As far as the red carpet fashions, no one did it like good old Archibald Leach, known to you and I as Cary Grant. The gent probably was born with a tuxedo glued to his body. It was a medical oddity. Of course, in the 1930s-1950s, stars had publicists that never allowed photos of their stars to be published that included any hint of a fashion or social faux pas, unless of course it matched their image.
Unfortunately, impeccable fashion sense is not something that can be magically bestowed. You can't bottle it. You can't win it as a prize.
But what CAN you win?
"I Can't Believe It's Not Butter!" has personally provided a special certificate for one reader of VintageGent's Menswear Daily to receive a tub of I Can't Believe It's Not Butter!"
There is no guarantee it will give you hair like Fabio, nails like Buttah like Streisand or the fashion sense of Cary Grant, but your cholestoral levels and heart may thank you.
To win a tub to slater over your next bowl of movie watching popcorn, comment below and tell me who your Oscar picks are! Retweet this post for an extra entry! Entries close on February 26th at 11:59 PM Eastern Standard Time! The winner will be chosen at random. So prepare your speech.
Clip Me!
For those early adopters eagerly clipping and snipping at clipix on the web and on your iPhone apps, a "clip" button has been conveniently added so that you may easily paste this clipboard. In the right hand side bar, you can tweet as well as clip with only one slight, almost imperceptible tremor from your mouse button.
Next, perhaps I should add a button to automatically send you a pair of socks color matched to a hue harmonious to both your shoes and socks (not white), and a slick and frothy concoction from a creaky and musty copy of Old Mr. Boston's bartender's guide; perhaps something in the manner of a Mamie Gilroy or a Hot Brandy Flip. It would be on me.
Aside form the obvious digression, the button adds this site to your Clipix clipboard to remember for later or to share with your friends. The sidebar button does not allow you to clip individual pages, but that is being worked on behind at the 'Daily by many cobbler. Organizing a fashionable life is a snap. Or a zipper. or a cinch.
Right now, I am compiling a clipboard for each decade's trends that we are seeing now repeated in stores, as well as a Fashion Faux Pas gallery of mishaps, which can be shared across the web as single items or an entire collection. They are good planning boards for collecting thought patterns for future posts. The "lists" are just not visual enough.
What are you clipping today? Or do you still prefer creating ink drawings and sloper-based fashion sketches to remember the websites you have visited? The Google homepage would look a little funny that way.
Promoted Post
Brainstorming Trend with Clipix
There is a new timewaster/timesaver in Enchanted Closet. Clipixis a web based clipboard style website that allows users to compile bulletin boards for different interests and brain storming ideas. Similar sites seem to be cropping up like the shoes in Imelda Marcos' estate. This one is a bit different. A link is added to your Bookmark Toolbar, and every time you see something you like, you "clip." A small dialogue box pops up and lets you add the web page to the clipboard you want, and lets you thumb through the photos on the site to choose a thumbnail. Obscure books on etiquette? Check!
The picture isn't just save – the entire link is.
Lately, I have been compiling brainstorming clipboards of blog topics, fashion choices and most recently, questionable trends. They are great conversation starters. Yes, those are Smurf Village baggy pants and drop crotch blue jeans, which are almost as wince inducing as jeggings. When I find something more scrutiny inducing, one can simply be replaced with another without hunting through all of my bookmarks. The while board can easily be shared on social media or can be emailed to friend or foe.
The folks at clipix have kindly made an instructional filmstrip on how to use it, featuring a very Vintage Retro Universal human symbol – the stick figure. Yes, the stick figure who has defied and transcended all trends of masculine and feminine fashion and style through the ages. Sign up and join the fun (or the serious trouble to your bank account when you buy everything you've clipped.)
Promoted Post
Out With Thee, Ripe Sneaker Smell: 30 Day Guarantee
This post brought to you by Triad Retail Media. All opinions are 100% mine.
Heirloom tennis shoes with a "patina" around the edges…
A tin can with lid artfully angled at 33 degrees. A half a smear of tomato sauce looming at the bottom…
A kitchen trash bag, lassoed around three corners of the wastebasket, but dangling off the third….
Are we at the performance art exhibit? Or are we at a 22 year old's bachelor pad?
Now, the proverbial horse can only be led to water, but perhaps if everything smelled better, it could lift your spirits to another realm – the realm of getting things done. While scents like Orchid Elf Dust and Dustruffle Daffodil may make your place smell like your Great Grandmother's Bridge Club chums, there is a new Glade® Expressions™ fragrance mist, tastefully scented of Pineapple and Mangosteen, a classic energy drink/infused water combination. Nothing says "I am a happening man on the go" like a dwelling with the subtle scent of perhaps Vitamin Water. Glade® understands guys. Just spray and go.
The scents are also available for the new Glade® Expressions™ oil diffuser. It does not require electricity, nor a candle – perfect for preventing forgetful accidents. Simply fill the oil diffuser with any Glade® Expressions™ (except Cotton & Italian Mandarin, which is only available in the mist form).
Take advantage of a $1.50 coupon from Walmart to soften the wallet (Just click on this link, and then select "Get a Coupon."). Luckily for Hector the Collector, there is a 30 day satisfaction guarantee. Within 30 days of purchase, send the UPC symbol along with THIS FORM to the company. They are that serious it will transform your nose.
There is such a fine line between Bohemian Artsy and Hoarder as far as apartments go. Have you tried to transform with the art of smell? If so, How did it work for you? Do the sneakers look cleaner?
Uncategorized | Comment (0)
