Vampy the Bat

I was driving up to Wisconsin a few days ago and in a bit of a rush. But as I passed a certain store visible right off the exit I had a peculiar, premonition feeling come over me, so I quickly did a U-turn. Entering this small establishment certainly paid off, and within the first 5 minutes inside I had found an affordably gorgeous nude art deco statue, two different complete decks of 60's adult playing cards (that I surprisingly didn't already have), a super 70's Frederick's of Hollywood catalog, and this gem of a late 50's / early 60's Collegeville Halloween costume-- VAMPY THE BAT! Researching Vampy online shows that Collegeville clearly loved the name of this costume, because they released it over and over again in the following years but with different bat designs. I dig how colorful this one is though, looking more like an evil Japanese demon oni mask than anything else. The frock smock design is pretty cute too, but over the years the glitter coated fabric has become a bit brittle and needless to say, I'm still finding glitter everywhere (and on me even!) 2 days later... 

47 days until Halloween!

This Magazine is Crazy

A totally koo-koo assortment of excerpts from the July 1957 issue of This Magazine is Crazy Volume 3 #2. This was Charlton's attempt at doing the wildly popular 'ol MAD Magazine imitation thang, and for the most part it's fairly successful in its own way with the silly satirical spoofs 'n gags, and funny illustrations... unfortunately, the series only lasted 7 short issues.

Peepshow Picture Frame

Another recent find to scratch off my velvety, Victorian era checklist, is this lovely double-door easel picture frame. Decent condition, the soft red velvet is noticeably worn in a a couple of spots, and a few threads are unraveling inside, and around the door edges. Something weighty must have been stacked on top of it for a spell as well, as the two ornate door handles are slightly bent inward. Originally behind the glass inside was a photo of a smiling elderly woman from the late 1800's. I removed the back from the frame to see if the picture contained any writing on the reverse, only to find the woman's funeral mourning card unfortunately, and unimaginably, snapped in half inside to create the extra padding needed within the framework to keep the photo from slipping off center. Wah! Too brittle to even attempt a fix / re-assemble, I went ahead and replaced granny with an early era penny arcade pin-up postcard from my collection. 

Aladdin Polish

Back in May I showed you a gorgeous antique Reducing Lotion bottle label design HERE, and now today I have another one that might be even more magical than that one. Koester's Aladdin Polish and Cleaner, manufactured in Des Moines, Iowa in the early 1930's, was a "modern miracle worker", made to prevent rust and tarnish for: wood, metal furniture, floors and woodwork, autos, rough glass, and tile etc. But what it likely really did for buyers back in the day, more than "keepin' things shining", was blowing people's minds with that incredibly beautiful bottle label design. I mean seriously, just look at that stunning illustration and all of the perfect hand lettering on the front and back! Name one product today that has a label that comes even half as close. It's in great condition too, not to mention the bottle is still more than half full of original cleaning fluid!

TO: Glamour Pusses & Nature Men

It's totally weird but I have a wildly large number of friends, both male and female, with birthdays in September. Keeping them all straight is a real work load though, and sometimes I fail. So please allow me to state right here and now that I am covering every single one of you up front with these two naughty 70's birthday cards, because like me, --you're all a bunch crazy pervs too!

Happy Birthday, one and all! 

Coppersmith Dracula

Dug up this cool Aurora Coppersmith pressing of Dracula today. These were created with a plastic craft form kit from 1970, —you placed a thin sheet of pliable copper over it and did a rubbing that made the image appear in 3D, similar to a gravestone rubbing on paper. There were also ones for Frankenstein, Wolfman, and the Creature from the Black Lagoon.

The Fairy Tale Art of Lungers Hausen

I've been a huge fan of Lungers Hausen art for many moons, so it was a real thrill to stumble upon these antique wooden stacking / nesting toy blocks from 1930's - 40's Germany recently. All sides are covered with beautifully rendered imagery: mostly animals and random objects, and lots of super cute children playing. But the real gems to me are of course Hausen's terrific flair for fantasy fairy tale art, highlighted by his gorgeous girls and endless eye-popping detail and color combinations. I've showcased a few of my faves below, but there are lots more... Googling "Lungers Hausen Fairy Tale Art" will most certainly make your day if you are not already familiar with all of his wonderful work, utilized in a variety of compelling, playful ways. And for those curious, the blocks are open on the bottoms so they can nest inside one another (see last image below), the stacking comes into play when you place them on top of one another-- natch!