Damn, I missed a good on on eBay… A 1950’s loop-stitch motorcycle back-patch set.
Monthly Archives: October 2012
Spook Show Season
I posted a huge bunch of Spook Show posters over on my Paper Madness blog. I collect and admire. Here is a sample:
For the rest jump on over to Paper Madness…
The Art of Derek Nobbs
The plight of the independent artist is a difficult one. Anyone with a pencil and a crayon considers themselves to be an artist these days, and now with Etsy if they sell a piece they are a professional artist to boot. The reality is that most aren’t really that good and should have their crayons taken away until they take a few art classes. Then you have the flip side of that coin; a really talented artist that sells their work for accessible pricing as they try to get their name out there and break into the big time (which is what all artists would like to achieve, regardless of how many tell you they don’t want to “go mainstream”). One such uber-talented artist is a fellow by the name of Derek Nobbs. Derek works primarily in watercolor and gauche and paints old world images that even I, who doesn’t have a tattoo, am tempted to ink. I encourage you to check out his work and you just might lay down some cash for a piece or two now, before he blows up. I am probably doing myself a disservice, as I don’t own one yet and y’all are probably going to keep me from doing so as you buy them all up. Check out his work at dereknobbs.com. There is a link to his gallery rep on the main page of the website so you can buy up his work. If you can’t afford an original yet, there is a company in the UK (of course, because once again American Companies don’t sell the best duds…) called Sacred Stitches that is making great Tees of his work.
Once A Jolly Swagman Poster
I recently discovered a film about flat-track racing that I should have know about years ago called, “Once A Jolly Swagman”. If you haven’t seen it I encourage you to check it out. Coincidentally I just acquired a half-sheet for the film, which was retitled, “Maniacs On Wheels” for the American market.
Road Trip Finds
I just spent 5 days and 800 miles in the car with both my wife and my parents… and we survived. Along the way we hit every antique store we could find and came up miserably thin in great finds. The future of antique stores is grim, I am afraid. It seems that the internet has finally put a wooden stake in the antiques market, with anything great either super highly priced or not in stores at all. They all seemed to have nothing but the leftovers and LOTS of glass and dishware. Even great furniture was rare to find. I did come away with these 3 gems:
An Amazing Portland Raceway Motorcycle Races Poster from the 1950’s. I paid alot, but I was so happy that the guy dragged it out of the basement, and his personal collection, and then was willing to part with it after owning it for more than 30 years.
A fantastic 1940’s Pontiac Service back-patch for a servicemen’s jacket. It is 13 inches in diameter and all loop-stitched. I will have to find the perfect vintage jacket for this one.
An 18″ Heineken Bar Back in chalkware.
Finding these gems broke the depressing cloud we had hanging over our heads from striking out so many times. There were still some inspiring objects out there, it just seems I am going to have to find a way to make bucketloads of money to afford the good stuff. And to think that I can’t sell great items in Casarama at half the price…
Johnson Motors Rocks!
Ohhh, I heard the UPS truck coming up the street and I new it had to be my care package from Johnson Motors, Inc. If you haven’t checked out their Made In The USA by way of LA goods then you should do so here.
When they issue new styles they don’t last long, as they are all made in small runs. It is for this reason I bought two each of the JMMC Bandanas:
They made them in blue and red and they will be gone soon. I also snatched up one of their duffles for those short rides on the Cafe Racer Project:
And if that wasn’t enough I found a little “thanks for being patient” McQueen gift in my box, as the duffels took longer to produce than they expected. That is the way these classy guys roll!
Get on over and get yourself some goodies. Most importantly, get on their mailing list so you have access to new releases before they get gobbled up.
Vintage Menswear – Must Have Book!
My copy of Vintage Menswear arrived last week and it has taken me this long to stop looking at it every spare minute. It showcases pieces from The Vintage Showroom in London.
You can get the book through Amazon. I suggest you get it quickly, before it goes the way of Heller’s Cafe – King Of Vintage 1, which is now selling for upwards of $250.
The Vintage Menswear book is a similar format to Heller’s, with examples of vintage men’s clothing that are rare gems and solid examples of style from days when clothes were made to last. A couple of excerpts from the book:
The Vintage Showroom in London is another reason, besides seeing an Arsenal game, that I need to schedule a little foray to London. Until you get to London you can keep up with The Vintage Showroom over at their blog.
Now, go out and get that book before it is gone…
There are also still copies of Heller’s Cafe’s King Of Vintage 2 & Queen Of Vintage out there, which every vintage-o-phile should have on their coffee table.
Vintage OCD 