Pan Am!

And this was THE iconic song (and man!) of the days when flying was so luxurious

Is anyone as excited about tonight's premier of Pan Am as ME?!  I'm counting the hours & minutes till boarding time ;- )  So I thought I'd kill some of those hours yakking about those days when boarding a plane was such a luxury and NOT like boarding a Greyhound bus with wings.  No sir!  I remember when Auntie flew off to Europe to be with her dashing Air Force test pilot to see the world.  How glamourous she looked in her expensive tailored suit, gloves & hat and beautiful Pan Am bag that was given to all passengers

This bag was such a status symbol, and in fact a new updated version is still being sold.  I want the OLD one!  Hm, wonder if Auntie still has her's in her attic?

Yes, these were the days of luxury flying and didn't all us dreamy-eyed girls of that era want to be a GLAMOUROUS Pan Am (or any airline) *stewardess*

To travel the world and meet the millionaire man of our dreams?  Of course he would be a millionaire!  What else would a beautiful girl with such a glamourous job find for pete's sake ;- )  I say "millionaire" because I think back then the idea of a "billionaire" was pretty much unheard of so a millionaire would have been just fine.  Yes, I wanted to be one of those women who so graciously served cocktails at the friendly wave of a hand (in fine beverage GLASSES) and who would serve full course prepared dinners from a MENU!  Aren't they just THE very cutest!

One had to meet a certain height & weight "specification" (and I think a "cute" specification too) and as well, no matter your beautiful figure you had to wear a GIRDLE!  Now the thought makes me shutter, but back then girls wore girdles anyway, no matter their figure.  Mom told me without question when I was 13 & started wearing straight skirts that I would wear a girdle so my fannie wouldn't "jiggle" and believe me, she checked my jiggle every morning when I left for school. 

But then, wearing a girdle was a small sacrifice for this working environment

Uh-huh, and this

And you can't tell me these girls weren't having fun ;- )

(Hey!  I do believe that's MY millionaire that got away on the left!)

And these!

(Come to mama baby ;- )  Gosh, I think I had a very similar outfit at one time.
Those were the exciting days of glamour flying, innocence of sorts, and the dreams of young, dreamy-eyed girls.

Oh yes, I belive I'll get out the crystal tonight at 10 p.m., pop a cork & take the champagne flight, reliving the clothes, the hair-do's, the dreams, the excitement, and yep, probably the heartaches of those dreamy-eyed girls who made their dreams come true.  

And, I will definately have a *grin* remembering when my sister & I took a "champagne flight" to Los Angeles and got SNOCKERED by the time we arrived!  Oh no way - NO limits on the champagne cart, a girl had her way in those days!  We had the giggles so bad we could hardly walk - yes, it was the giggles that made us stagger, I'm sure it was!

So grab your girdles and Come Fly With Me, let's fly, let's fly away!

I'm Baaack ~ And Need Some Help!

Did you miss me?  (Don't everyone yell at once ;- )  I've been remiss since the last post I know, but my poor old scrambled brain just couldn't get anything together.  Not for a lack of ideas - I'm never at a loss for words for sure, but just couldn't get motivated to get it out here!  Anyway, the past week I have spent at THE most GORGEOUS coastline in the entire world (yes, I am prejudice) - the beautiful North Coast of California.  It's where I go to re-charge my battery & get at least a few of my remaining marbles back.  I'm going to write much more about it later when I get all my photo's arranged (yes, you do have to look at vacation pictures :- ) but for now I want to show a few pics of my new nostalgia room that Ranchie got me started on.  But first here's the CALL FOR HELP!.... I'm going to start an Etsy store.  I've been thinking about it for a while & after purchasing the adorable "Little Lady" ad from the very sweet Paris at My Attic's Charm (on Etsy) I decided to go for it.  I've got so darn many little things sitting around the house that there's no room for at the store so this may be a good way to move them.  I don't have it set up yet but I am going to work on that today, but here's the catch......I can't think of what the heck to call it!  I've wracked my poor old tired out brain & can't think of ANYTHING cute or clever.  So....to all my millions of followers (*snurk*) - from reading the description of me on the right side of this page, as well as seeing some of the pics I have posted of my stuff (maybe some of you have even looked at my photo album), maybe you could help me by suggesting a name for my store.  Honest, I really do need help with this so any helping hands would be VERRRY appreciated.  Now on to the nostalgia room.  I started with pretty much a blank canvas.  The walls are very light lilac & I had my grama's bed & two dressers.  So here's where it's at: First, I want to show the Little Lady ad I got from My Attic's Charm on Etsy.  I was going to mat & frame it but I found this darling frame at the thrift store for a buck seventy-five & thought it would be so cute with the picture.  Maybe later I will hang it but for now it's on Grama's dresser    Here's the bed (stuck in center mode again).  I found the Ralph Lauren down comforter & shams at the thrift store for 5 dollars!  Already had the black silky bedskirt & comforter & I love pink & black together so I just rolled up the comforter & left the bedskirt Here's a little vanity chair (I pick them up incessantly because I seem to always need one for a vanity I'm re-doing & they seem to never have the original stools).  I collect "Frog Prince" stuff because I DEFINATELY kissed A LOT of TOADS in my day! So it's coming along!  (Hm, back to left align again - I'll get this figgered out someday!).  And here's a little sneak peek at some of the treasures I found on my 600 mile pick-a-rama on the North Coast!  I spent hours washing & scrubbing and I need to get everything photographed (today) so I'll be back to feature some of my favorite finds.  Heck they're ALL favorites!  What to choose, what to choose!   (Haha!  Back to center align again - *sigh*) So that's it for now my friends.  I'm NOT glad to be back from the coast (to ONE HUNDRED degrees in good ol Sacto CA) but so glad to be back here to yak and visit with you all at your sites.  Till next time....Cheerio!

Budweiser Tribute - Respect

Dancing Cheek-To-Cheek

Sitting here listening to my own music & wishing I were dancing cheek-to-cheek to it with my 8th grade beau Harry Walter.  (Yep, that was my first love's name :- ) & could we cut a rug together!  I so miss that great old, cooshy, mooshy, lovey-dovey dancing!  Don't you???

Happy Weekend & may all your dances be cooshey-mooshey-lovey-dovey ones ;- )

Meet My Furchildren, Lucy & Duke ~ And Other Great Finds

Lu is my big girl.  She adopted me when she was 9 months old & on her way to death row because of high energy (she was only a pup for pete's sake!) as well as a lack of social skills.  The monsters (I hesitate to call them people) that owned her gave her no love or attention & kept her confined alone in the backyard.  Duke, well, his monsters just didn’t love or care for him & he ran loose in my sister’s neighborhood.  So I snagged him one stormy day as he was running frantically from door to door looking for shelter & he adopted me too.  I call them Duke & Big Lu and what a pair they are!  The loves of my life I tell ya!  I’m a HUUUGE dog/animal lover and my “secret crush” is Cesar Millan.  I would be at the local shelters weekly if Big Daddy didn’t keep ME on a short leash!  I believe there is no truer friend than your canine one & my life has been blessed with many of THE finest friendships on earth ~ the love & loyalty of my furchildren.  (Ok, I do have other “loves of my life” ~ kids, grandkids, etc but we’ll go there another day :- ) 

Lu occasionally drops in for Happy Hour at the Coo-coo's nest

Duke's more interested in dog toy carnage than Happy Hour

Whata pair eh!?

And, since I'm such an animal NUT, I also love animal figurines.  I've had to cut down on my collections here at home so I've continued my love of collecting them at the store where the shelves, furniture & anywhere else I can find to display them, they will be found.  Here are a couple of beauties I found pre-deathbed a couple of weeks ago.  I adore them and can hardly bring myself to take them to the store, but.....

This is a gorgeous piece.  It has no markings so I know nothing about it but I love the tender beauty of the deer & fawn.  If anyone knows anything about this, let me know.

Isn't this just THE cutest!  The only mark on this beautiful pair is some numbers on the bottom ~ I'm going to assume it is a made in Japan piece.  Again, if anyone can identify - please do educate me!  I'm not in any way a "makers mark" snob - if I like it, I buy it.  But I know people do appreciate whatever information is available, and again, the education part is very interesting to me.  Sooo purrrr-ty kitties....

And the other great finds!

I ADORE all this garish old goldie stuff!  And this was a find I was thrilled with.  These are vintage Matson USA jewelry box and perfume decanter.  The box is slighted bent but not a detraction.  After all, when one is vintage, one doesn't have to be perfect, right? ;- )  I always like to picture or imagine the gracious, fine lady whose boudoir these pretty pieces graced.  (The box is actually quite large - probably a good 8 inches in diameter)

Another treasure from Auntie's attic.  Have no idea who the subject or artist is but absolutely love this gorgeous lady.  Perhaps she owned similar pieces to the above in her boudoir?

(Well, it appears I got myself stuck on the center align, so bear with me...)

And one last sweet treat

I don't know about you, but finding a full set of anything isn't always easy ~ one or two is always missing ~ so I was thrilled to find this complete set of Shafford Japan hand painted Cafe AuLait set.  How sweet it is!

(Voila!  I'm back at left align!  How'd that happen?)

Well, I guess that's enough for today.  Hope y'all have a GREAT & lucrative picking weekend!  I'll be off to Second Sunday in Sacto ~ a HUGE antique/flea market & hope to come home LOADED down with treasures!  Can't wait to see your booty of treasures next week.  Cheerio!

  



 



Auntie's Attic

I didn't want to take things from Auntie's attic.  That means she's getting older & thinking about "going through things".   But she told me she had these great old shoes I must have!  Well, see, she is my "Auntie Mame" - if you ever saw the old movie with Roz Russell then you'd know my Auntie.  She's all that and more, and we've had a love affair since the day I was born.  She was (& still is) a glamour girl for all time.  A wild-child who did all things a girl of her time wasn't supposed to do but that others secretly wished they could. As a teenager she ran off with a circus performer!  She entered beauty contests, and saw the world with a dashing rogue air force jet pilot.  She bought me my first bikini!  The first two-piece anything I'd ever worn & if you knew a bikini in the early 60's, it wasn't too daring, but my bellybutton did show!  Mom wasn't thrilled I tell ya!   Did I mention she was beautiful?  Oh she was a show-stopper when she entered a room.  Men's eyes would bug out of their heads & she could have her pick of them all.  I wanted to be her.  Our love affair continues to this day & will for always & forever.  So, I did go to collect some of Auntie's treasures, and here are some of them.  Some will be beautiful additions to my nostalgia room, others may go to the store. 

Auntie's Shoes ~ So glamourous & stylish and of course a matching evening bag

Another pair of shoes & a GORGEOUS beaded evening bag

My grama's purse & a pretty little lucite light switch cover

And a great old 60's pole lamp.  I didn't crop this picture for a reason....note the table lamp to the left on my table?  Note it has a price tag hanging from it?  Brought it home from the store cause I LOVE it & just HAD to have it.  Just forgot to take the price tag off of it!  I guess I could call it my Minnie Pearl lamp?! 

So those are a few of the treasures from an Auntie who is a treasure to me.

Goodbye Chicken Soup!

Hello LIVING again!  I'm back in the groove & boogyin down so come on, get on down & join me!  (Come on now - don't be shy.  Y'all remember this :- )

Now didn't that feel good! 

I remember in grammer school on special occasions when the whole darn school (including Mr. Stewart - the principal) would gather on the playground & form an enormous circle and do the hokey pokey - what a fun treat that was!  Oh, and the bunny hop too!  But I think I'm not up for that one anymore.  On second thought - one might try anything in one's old age.  I've got a few things planned to blog about in the next few days including a few treasures I'd found pre-DEATH BED.  So come on back, hopefully my thoughts will be worthy of sharing.  I still have to practice making my photo's as interesting as Heidi Ann's - she really sets the bar HIGH - (unfortunately right now all I know about setting the bar is how high the stool is!  Haha! ;- )  Cheeio!  It's good to be amongst the living again!  Now get up & put that right foot in!