Acrasy

F Shadow boxing in the dark, then you came and lit that spark

2010-05-10T20:45:00.000-07:00

I love finding a new thrift store, especially one that is hidden away. I used to drive by one every once in a while on my way to work, depending on my route, and it took me almost a year before I noticed it. Finally, when I was just about to quit, it caught my attention and I wandered in.

The store was small and quite dense. It was filled to the brim with a lot of the usual stuff, but what I found most impressive was the collection of books. I had never heard of any of them and they were all strangely peculiar. I ended up taking several but my favorite was a book with silhouettes.
Since then, I’ve tried going back to the store but I can’t find it. I can’t even remember the name. Sometimes I feel like it never existed or maybe it was an enchanted thrift store that only existed for a moment. Who knows?

Whoa Big Pics/The Price is Right?

2010-04-23T18:28:00.000-07:00

How much do you think the music box below is worth? It is a Porter Music Box, handcrafted in Randolph, Vermont and the
largest disc style music box in manufacture today.

This thing is massive. See the CD case sitting next to it? The music box easily dwarfs it.

The sound it produces is crisp and sparkly, almost magical. Want one yet? Well, a small one will set you back around 300 bucks. And this one? The price is at the end of the post...

12,000 dollars!!

But I did see one online for the reasonable price of 7,000 dollars.

Marilyn

2010-04-22T18:47:00.000-07:00

For a teenage boy, my brother has great taste. After we watched The Seven Year Itch, he said that I needed a white dress like Marilyn’s. Amazingly, he found it before I did and gave it to me for Christmas.

It’s so gorgeous. I only wish I were better at wearing white. I’m so clumsy that it’s only a matter of time before I spill something.

Long Beach

2010-04-20T18:29:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend, we went to see a movie down by Long Beach. When I was younger, I used to sneak out at night on a semi-regular basis and walk along the seashore and marvel at the view of the Queen Mary and the trading ports. It’s my favorite place to go at night. You feel as if there is no one else in the world. For some reason, it’s also very romantic.

Anyhow, this time I got to see my beloved view from a different angle and it was equally as captivating. Everything was closer and right across the small harbor there was Shoreline Village and a gorgeous lighthouse.

On our way back to the car, we walked by a dazzling ferryboat that was also a restaurant. Apparently, they have murder mystery theatre shows there from time to time. I’ve wanted to go to one so badly so I’m sure I’ll be heading back there soon.

Curly

2010-04-19T18:42:00.000-07:00

The results are in! The winner of the first giveaway is:

Lilji Love

Congrats friend! Just go ahead and leave me your email or send me an email with your address and I'll mail it out.

Until I master pin curls, this will have to do. My hair is naturally curly and pretty long so to get it to fall into graceful waves I need to blow-dry it until it’s most of the way dry and then pin it so the curls can cool and dry the rest of the way.

My natural curls are cooperative most days but they aren’t especially vintage-looking. If any of you have any advice for pin curling naturally curly hair, please tell me. I can already set the pin curls up nicely, and I can get them to dry in spite of the length with my vintage hair dryer. I run into problems when I try to brush out the set and sculpt the style. At that point, the texture of my hair changes from smooth and supple to frizzy and kinky.

Could it be the brush I’m using? Or maybe the product I’m putting in my hair? I don’t know what it is so any advice you have would be sincerely appreciated.

Nicole Katherine Designs & Drape Shapes

2010-04-14T20:42:00.000-07:00

At Viva Las Vegas, there were two designers that were having their first public appearance. Nicole Katherine Designs dressed the girls and Drape Shapes by Pachuco Jose dressed the guys.

This dress was one of my favorites. I could picture wearing it to go have tropical cocktails near the beach.

This dress was one I would love to twirl in. The skirt is made with a bountiful amount of fabric. Isn't it just lush?

This outfit was another one of my favorites. I don't own anything that really means business and I really want something that's perfectly tailored and crisp.

I love large bows that make a statement.

The sailor suit in the above pic is darling. I just wasn't able to capture a good picture because the model was posing too fast!

For the grand finale, Pachuco Jose came out and did a little dance as the models walked out. No one dances like Pachuco.

The Rhythm Shakers in action

2010-04-13T13:04:00.000-07:00

I've seen this band play at the Airliner in Los Angeles before I saw them in Las Vegas. The first time I heard the Rhythm Shakers play, I stood in awe. Not only was the lead singer, Marlene, stunning but she also had a voice built for the blues. She really took me off guard. She also had the swagger and the sass to give her a commanding stage presence.Throughout her performance, she really enjoyed herself and engaged with the audience. Take a look for yourself...

I apologize for the sound quality, I guess I was too close to the speakers. I couldn't help it, I love being close to the action. It was also very exciting to feel the floor beneath me pulsing with the beat. It's amazing what an enthusiastic crowd in a full ballroom can do. The pulsing made me feel as if the room was alive and enjoying itself just as much as I was.

I really encourage all of you to check them out and please support your local musicians. Hell, support local artists of any kind. Homegrown art is of a different quality, don't you think? I think, in many cases, it's better because it's made with more love.

Ode to a dress

2010-04-12T21:29:00.000-07:00

To don a dress seems like such a simple thing. For the wearer, donning a dress is something that is usually done on a whim...or is it?

A dress can be tremendously powerful if used a certain way.

-It can alter a mood from "I don't feel like going anywhere" to "look at how great I look"

-A dress can be symbolic, and I don't mean as a symbolic containment of the feminine mystique either. It can be a symbol of defiance, if say, a man chooses to parade in a dress. Sometimes where the dress is worn can be a symbol of defiance. For the woman sitting in a board room full of men in one of the top floors of a skyscraper, who wears a dress, not to assert her femininity or seduce her superior, but to broadcast to all that she is different from the others and she is proud of the fact.

-A dress can be worn in an obnoxiously bright color at a funeral, not to offend, but to defy tradition. A wedding dress can be tinted a different hue as well. Not to cover up premarital trespasses but to celebrate the occasion in all the glory and splendor that the occasion truly warrants.

Seen above is one of my favorite dresses. I have worn her on dates; I have worn her to work. I have worn her when I am happy; I have worn her when I was miserable. This dress has turned heads and earned me respect. She is oh-so-powerful and I love her for that.

I don't usually use my dresses to assert my femininity. I use my dresses on dates to inspire romance. I wear my dresses (one at a time, of course) to run errands so I come across as polite and proper. I wear a dress when I convention dictates that I should wear pants, because, well, I want to. Not because convention tells me to.

So tell me, dear friends, why do you wear your dresses?

How do you wear your dresses?

And what does a dress mean to you?

Car Show

2010-04-08T22:14:00.000-07:00

At Viva, it was a great day for a car show. The weather was on the cool side and the wind didn't pick up until the very end. It was a perfect day for a big floppy hat (and bananafish.)

Also at the car show was the lovely Dita Von Teese and she was looking as gorgeous as ever. I'm so nervous and awkward when it comes to meeting my heroes so I chose not too. Just seeing her in person was enough for me. :)

I also got to play pin-up for the first time. I'm usually too shy but this time I wasn't for some reason. Maybe it was the wine...

Perfume Bottle Giveaway

2010-04-06T18:43:00.001-07:00

Now my lovely ladies and any gentlemen, the part you’ve all been waiting for…my first giveaway!

Before I continue on, I want to thank you all for taking the time to visit my quaint little blog and I look forward to your comments, suggestions, and readership. I vow to not abandon my dear blog and I hope that you grow to love it as much as I love all of your blogs out there.

Now one lucky reader will receive a vintage perfume bottle. It’s incredibly easy to fill and the little pump is fully functioning. If you would like to welcome it home just leave a comment below. Best of luck to you all you have until Wednesday of next week. :)

Bettie B. Dangerous Swimwear...don't mind if I do

2010-04-05T20:33:00.000-07:00

The fashion show was one of my favorite parts of Viva. First up was Bettie B. Dangerous swimwear. According to the designer Nikki Betlazar, the collection was inspired by Rita Hayworth, Mae West, and of course, Bettie Page but with a modern twist.

I really enjoyed that the models throughout out were beautifully styled. I also really liked that they were not bone ass skinny. They were also very radiant and sometimes I didn't know what I liked more, the outfit that they were wearing or the sass that they exuded.

Love the hat

Just so you know, I am not endorsing the swimwear above. Not that I wouldn't, but I can't form an opinion if I don't own one of their swimsuits now can I? Either way, the models looked great.

Viva Las Vegas

2010-04-05T20:11:00.000-07:00

Sorry to have been away, but I had to. How could I miss Rockabilly weekend in Las Vegas? Needless to say, it was glorious and you know the old adage, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas...well not in this case. I have loads to share.

First, let me explain to you what Viva Las Vegas actually is. It is a pilgrimage of sorts where vintage/rockabilly people from near and far come together. There is a car show, a pool party, a fashion show, burlesque shows, dancing and bands playing; This year Chuck Berry, Wanda Jackson, Pachuco Jose y los Diamantes, The Rhythm Shakers and others were on the bill.

Every car needs a model to jazz it up a bit no?

The World's Largest Thermometer from a car window. At 134 feet tall it signifies the record high temperature in the US, in Death Valley. The record was 134 degrees Fahrenheit in 1913 or 56.6 degrees Celcius for my metric-system friends.

View of the Vegas strip from the top of the Rio hotel

Carmen San Diego

2010-03-27T19:36:00.000-07:00

I don’t know about all of you, but I give names to all of my favorite things once I determine what kind of personality they have. I know it’s absurd, but since I was a little girl, I’ve been terribly attached to some of my things. Therefore, it’s only fitting that they have names.

Her name is Carmen SanDiego after the cartoon Where in the World is Carmen SanDiego. For a while there, she would go everywhere with me mainly because she was my school bag. Since I go to a music school, everyone assumed it was a snare drum case and always asked why I carried one around randomly.

I haven’t taken her to school in months because I didn’t want to ruin her but to this day people ask where my little hat box has gone. So there you go. Since then, I’ve also gotten her a sister who goes by the name Little Carmen and if I ever come across another one, I’ll add it to my collection.

New girl in town

2010-03-24T22:34:00.000-07:00

So I’m sitting here thinking about how to start this little blog. I mean, it’s not like I’ve done this before. Oh wait, I have. None of those other blogs made it though.

You see the problem with me is that I have so many interests so I’ve had a hard time determining what kind of blog this would be exactly. Well, after much deliberation and introspection, I have determined what the underlying thread in all of my interests is.

I’m drawn to novelty and peculiar things. I always have been, since I was a wee little girl. My search for all things out of the ordinary is why I’m drawn to vintage, and why I took a detour in my career path. Rather than being a doctor as I intended, I went into the music biz. I love finding artists and bands that aren’t afraid to be highly original. Besides talking about vintage in this blog, I’ll also be talking about music here as well.

Did I mention where I’m blogging from? I live in beautiful Bellflower, not too far outside of Los Angeles, CA and I spend my days in Hollywood. I spend a lot of time exploring LA as well, since I’m easily bored. You’d be surprised at the things you can find in your own backyard, right under your nose. I’ll share those moments as well.

So yes, that is what this blog will be about…VINTAGE, MUSIC and LOS ANGELES and where they all intersect. I hope you’ll join me. As an incentive, (or a bribe, depending on how you wanna look at it) I’ll be having a giveaway each week for four weeks. See, I have thought this through.

Also, I’m an avid blog reader, so please introduce yourself and your blog if you have one. I’ll be officially launching this baby on March 29th and posting regularly thereafter.

Till then, I wish you blue skies and green lights!

-Felicia