Item(s) of the week

You might as well call these the misunderstood sequin tops.

This style is often attributed to the '70s. Being the glitzy disco era that it was, surely something of this amount of "sequinage" must be disco, right? Aha!! OK, I did have to double check this one with my felow vinties at the VFG, but it confirmed the suspicions. This style was all '80's...'85 to '86 to be exact. A few of the more mature VFGers even recalled seeing them in shop windows then! Being a newly minted teenager, I'm sure my mind was elsewhere then, or I would have noticed it myself.
Recently, this style has seen a come back, worn well with a tight top underneith and skinny fitted jeans, with the butterfly top off the shoulder in true slouch style.

Mall hair optional this time around.

Check them out on my site: http://www.hatfeathersvintage.com

Just couldn't be more proud.....

If you watch the show America's Got Talent, you get to see the wide (and odd) array of entertainment talent in America..and some that, well, have the spirit but not the talent to back it up. Not the case with a bit of last night's show, for me at least. The Zooperstars were on, and made it to the Vegas callbacks!
Here's the bit of the show last night:

What's a Zooperstar? Well, they are a group of entertainers that utilize special suits made by my friends Signs & Shapes International. http://www.signsandshapes.com/ These suits, called Walkarounds, are really ingenious little creations, made in all sorts of nifty character shapes from something as generic as Uncle Sam to as recognizable as Lil' Red (go Huskers!) and Chester Cheetah. The operator wears a special blower belt that inflates the shape from inside. I spent a little time in a Chester Cheetah suit once, picking up a little extra cash at a Walmart grand opening, and I have to tell you, what the Zooperstars folks do in these suits is just amazing. I was doing well to wave at little kids and bounce around a bit. I was absolutely wiped out after a 4 hour stint of walking around and waving. I most certainly wasn't trying to do anything athletic!

So, hooray for the Zooperstars, and hooray for the designers, patternmakers, seamstresses and painters that do the work to bring these and other fun shapes to life at Signs & Shapes. After all, if you can't laugh at a big wobbly dude, then what point is there to life?

OK, well, this looks interesting! You can't beat the cast, and hey, it's summer...why not?
http://www.drhorrible.com



Teaser from Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog on Vimeo.

Item of the week

Vested Gentress had the whimsical print thing down pat, and this fun example is no exception.
The crisp white dress is covered with Morning Glory vines in blues and greens. How fun!
Dresses like this offer a fun alternative to the Tshirt and shorts routine, just pair with a pair of sandals and go.
Find this and more fun stuff at http://www.hatfeathersvintage.com

Retro to me, new to the kidlet...They Might Be Giants

They Might Be Giants....but for my kid? You bet your bloomers!
My son (age 6) has a new obsession, and who would have thunk it!? It's They Might Be Giant's two DVDs "Here Come the ABCs" and "Here Come the 123s", a collection of witty, quirky, and (don't tell) a little bit educational video tidbits. We got hooked on it when Disney and Noggin started playing the video for "Zeroes" in between shows. I know neither of these discs is particularly new, but they're worth seeking out...and those of you without kids may not have seen this new venture, so here you go.
If I stop to think about it, it really does make sense, since TMBG was doing quirky, thought inducing music even back in the 90s when I was listening to them in college. It relays nicely to the kid scene, and gives Mom something fun to listen to with the wee one. I've posted three of their video tidbits above, so enjoy them with someone you think is nifty.

Spring Thoughts

Spring has sprung here at the Hatfeathers studios...more like sprung a leak! This has been one of the wettest springs in recent memory, but, in between sprinkles there has been some planting going on. Being a Midwesterner, we have to choose wisely when planting. Our garden friends have to be tough enough for 100+ degree heat and dips down to below zero, rain in buckets and months without. We manage, though, and if you can, so should you.

In a recent newsletter from the National Gardening Association, I read this interesting tidbit:

"Researchers at the University of Virginia found that air pollution from power plants and automobiles is destroying flower fragrance and making it harder for bees to find flowers when foraging. The result is that bees visit fewer flowers and gather less nectar. Researchers found that scent molecules could travel up to 1200 meters in the 1800s. However, with pollution, today’s scent molecules travel only 200 meters. When the scent molecules bind with common pollutants, such as ozone, hydroxyl, and nitrate radicals, the flower’s aroma gets destroyed. The bees can’t find the flowers so they go hungry and the flowers don’t get pollinated. "

So what's a vintie gal to do? Why, plant some flowers! Easy grow "old school" flowers like daisies, coneflowers, bees balm (monarda), any type of mint, coreopsis and black eyed susan will give the bees and butterflies something to enjoy. You'll love it, too! The rewards of gardening are many; there is the physical aspect of getting out and moving, plus the beauty of the flowers in your yard. Also, a good sized flower bed cuts down on mowing time, reducing the polutants and cutting down on gas use!

Don't have a yard? How about looking for a local garden club that does public garden projects? Perhaps your local retirement or nursing home could use a hand brightening their landscaping. Does your apartment building allow window boxes, or is there a small green space that needs some work? Even a small herb garden can be grown in an old bucket. There's just no reason not to have plants around.

Hooray for flowers!

Item of the Week

Vintage 60's "Big E" Levis Jeans

OK, they aren't the fanciest named-label dress, nor are they really that much different than the Levis jeans we could go to the mall and buy today, but I still love to find a pair of Big E jeans.
The Levis company has been around since the 1800s, originally just to produce sturdy jeans for minors to wear that wouldn't wear out fast. Little did Jacob Davis and Levi Strauss know, but people would be wearing jeans as their main clothing item-from fashionable dress to work attire- well over 150 years later.

One time, while considering the jeans industry in church (appologies to God for my wandering brain) I decided to count how many people were in jeans as compared to anything else, as they walked by at communion. I lost count, and it's not a big church.

So, this item of the week is featured not only as just a neat thing to find, but as a salute to the jean itself. Wardrobe staple and a favorite clothing item for anyone from New York fashionistas to midwestern moms to hard working blue collar folk.

See them this week only at auction on ebay: http://cgi.ebay.com/Vintage-60-s-Big-E-Levis-Denim-Jeans-501-Redline-42W_W0QQitemZ360050659896QQihZ023QQcategoryZ52401QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem