Showing posts with label history. Show all posts
Showing posts with label history. Show all posts
October 5, 2016
August 29, 2016
TCM Film Festival 2016
We highly anticipate the TCM Classic Film Festival held each year in Hollywood! This years theme was MOVING PITCURES...
June 27, 2016
EVENT BULLETIN:: JUNE
It's that time again! The event bulletin is here! Here are two features for the month of June!
June 20, 2013
'What's On the Menu?' A Look at Vintage Menus
Earlier this month, we stopped by an estate sale and discovered a small collection of vintage menus and mementos. The prices were a little steep and bargaining didn't help as much as we had hoped, but we snapped up as many as we could. I did a little research to see if some of the places are still around and tried to find a photo of what the restaurant looked like inside. A tall order (no pun intended), but I had to try!
Welch's of Long Beach
Who can resist a vintage kid's menu?! I was surprised to see this among the other menus. This certainly brought back memories of ordering from the "fun" kids menu. But there was never prime rib or sole fillets on my menu!
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| Maynard L. Parker, Courtesy of The Huntington Library, San Marino, Calif. |
I tried to find out more about this restaurant, but kept getting photos. Click this link to see more pics of the inside!
The Hotel Statler
The Hotel Statler company was one of the earliest hotel chains in the U.S.. Catered to travelling businessmen and tourists, it was founded by Ellsworth Milton Statler in Buffalo, New York in around 1907. Looking at the design, graphics, I'm assuming this menu is from the 1950s. Some of their locations have since been demolished, but others still exist and are being used as offices, apartments, or as another hotel. Apparently, the Los Angeles location where this menu is from was demolished in 2011 and is the site where the Wilshire Grand Tower will be built. Click here to see which ones are still operating hotels!
I can just imagine myself sipping a "Sunnybrook" highball next to this lovely pool under a bright yellow umbrella-after all, it's only 75cents!
Hotel Pere Marquette
The 14-story Pere Marquette was built in 1926 in downtown Peoria, Illinois. It is currently listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The hotel was recently closed for an entire year in 2012 for extensive renovation and expansion into a full-service, upscale Mariott hotel. The year I found for this menu is 1942. I love this blue-on-blue color for a menu!
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| I didn't realize how terrible this pic was--sorry! |
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| Here's a close-up of the "Plate Luncheons" section |
I really like looking at them for authentic design/color ideas. I was suprised that the owner managed to keep them in a safe place. Paper usually somehow gets damaged.
There are a few more coming, so keep an eye out!
-Viola
June 6, 2013
TCM Film Festival 2013- Day 1:The Great Escape
For all you classic movie fans, listen up! Turner Classic Movies has been hosting a 3 day film festival for the past four years--showing many movies in theaters located in the heart of Hollywood. Some films have been restored, others realeased in original 1950s 3D, and some dusted off from the vault shown to the public for the first time since their original release.
Having missed the festival last year, the girls and I were excited to catch it this time around. We were able to go and see The Great Escape (1963) on Friday, Starring Steve McQueen, James Garner, and James Coburn.
Played in the famous Grauman's Chinese Theater, it provided a fabulous vintage backdrop. It was also exciting because we had never been inside before! Viv took some snapshots of the interior of the theater and outside of it amidst the crowds and character impersonators on the iconic Hollywood Blvd. Ben Mankiewicz talked to the film's producer Walter Mirisch before the film began, setting the premise for the film. Over all, it was a fun experience!
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| Inside the theater above the screen |
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| Decor of the lobby |
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| Lobby Lighting |
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| Close-Up of the lobby carpet |
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| Wall art in the lobby |
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| Down the stairs to the Women's bathroom |
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| Women's Sitting Room |
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| Even the heating vents stick to the theme! |
Its been a few weeks since we've attended but we can't wait for next year! We also atttended Sunday, but we'll share that day in another post. Long live the classics!
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| The location of the after-party across the street |
May 2, 2013
Pick a Pretty Petticoat....or Crinoline??
This post was fueled by curiosity--I had to do some research on the difference between a petticoat and a crinoline. On the Internet I have seen these two terms used interchanged with each other and became a little confused. After a brief look-up, I quickly realized that historically a crinoline is cage-like and the petticoat is more like an underskirt-- both are worn for fullness.
The definitions I found explained a petticoat as "a skirt-like undergarment[s] worn for warmth or to give the skirt or dress the desired or fashionable shape" and crinoline as a "stiffened petticoat or rigid skirt-shaped structure of steel designed to support the skirts of a woman's dress into the required shape."
*I also found this interesting post about bustle periods.
The most memorable decades for crinoline-and-petticoat-wearing that stuck out in my mind were:
The 1850s-1870s
The 1950s
The Early 1960s
For some reason, I associate petticoats and full dresses with summer. Depending how hot your summers get, petticoat-wearing can get a little warm-- to say the least. Knowing me, I will probably wear them in the heat anyway! Since this was an interesting topic, and I am sure I'll do more in-depth probing later. Until next time,
--Viola
--Viola
April 15, 2013
Vera's Mod Mondays- GoGo Green
Woo! This is the third Mod Monday! There was a glitch and this wasn't posted yesterday--oh well. Besides that, it's very nice to be back on track with blogging lately, I hope everyone is enjoy it as well.
What is really cool to me about the mod side of the 1960's is the extremely simple lines of dresses. Basic A-lines and streamlined shifts composed the hip scene. Instead of intricately-made clothes, impact was created with bold prints, colors, accessories and make up.
...Modeling also took a bit of a turn. New methods of posing were more rigid and "unflattering" intended to elongate the thin young model. Making everything bold, young and fresh was the mode-completely opposite of the trends that existed 10 years prior.
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| Viola and I had fun messing around with poses |
I've found that it's really quite simple to create a "mod" look with modern clothes, all you need to focus on is the lines of the garment and the accessories. Like with anything the first step is knowing what you are looking for. I think the best way to get a really accurate mod look is to look at photos from the decade to draw your inspiration. Simple lines, shifts and A-line shapes skirts and dress achieve the look, either in a classic bold color or a large geometric pattern. Flat boots are always a stellar option but flats also work too!
dress: JCPenney's boots: JCPenney's bracelet: Estate Sale sunglasses: 99 cent Only Store
Have a great week & thanks for reading!
Sincerely, Vera
April 4, 2013
Vintage Tiffany
Tiffany & Co. is synonymous with
luxury. This well known company has been putting out high quality jewelry,
sterling silver, china, crystal, and fragrances for over one hundred years! Renowned
for their diamonds Tiffany has sold thousands of pieces of jewelry since their
start in New York City in 1837.
Viola and I found this
really amazing book entitled Tiffany in Fashion. It is full of vintage images from the 1930's-1990's- we
couldn't resist sharing a few here on the blog. They are really lovely to
look at; not only the jewelry- but the clothes don't disappoint either.Enjoy!
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| Gorgeous! |
Sincerely, Vera
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