Big eyed waifs & breezy women

Some retro kitsch prints encountered at Op Shops over the past few months. While not precisely my thing they were interesting enough to snap some pictures of:



Above left: Big eyed waifs of the 1960s by F. Idylle. There seems to have been quite a market for images of disadvantaged or suffering children back then, and the whole vintage "Big Eyed" genre is quite collectible today.

Above right: "Jaqueline" 1977, by Sara Moon. These breezy women (frequently in hats) first appeared in 1976, and marked a shift from the bold and bright decor of the early 70s, to a more subdued look in general by the end of the decade. The original Sara Moon was actually a male commercial artist named Bijan. The line continued being produced into the 1990s, with some in the early 80s also done by another artist called Christian.

Happy New Year!

2011 has started well for me, with these recent finds over the holiday period. A vintage Titoni Airmaster Automatic watch and cigarette case, both from the 50s/60s.

Left: Mens 25j Swiss Titoni Airmaster watch ($30 eBay) and West German made chrome cigarette case ($5 St Vincents Op Shop Daylesford)

Ghosts of Christmases past

Hi, back from a blogging hiatus here's something for the holiday season. Children's Books and Annuals are an old-school Christmas staple, here's some from the 1950s seen recently at a local Op Shop.



While these are before my time, I do remember getting annuals myself like "The Thunderbirds" and "Shiver and Shake".

Stationery Pursuit

I know someone that collects writing materials (letterheads, journals, pens, etc), so every time I travel I feed their obsession by souveniring the complimentary hotel stationery.

Here's what they got from my recent trip to Sydney.

Brief respite from the cold

I don't often get to travel for work, but was sent to Sydney this week to enjoy some balmy weather at my employer's expense. After weeks of bitter cold in Ballarat a day of 22°C humid warmth was a pleasant change. With a busy round of flights, taxis, hotel, & meetings there was no time for leisurely pics of the city, but here's a few from the comfortable room at the Sofitel Sydney Wentworth where I spent Wednesday night.

Colorfone 801

My third vintage telephone purchase in less that 12 months, one of the first generation all new designer colour plastic handsets from the early 60s. A working Colorfone 801 for $20 from the Mill Market last weekend. Here it is with the later model Colorfone 802 I picked up last year.

Left: "Light Ivory" Colorfone 801 (c1962/3), Right: "Topaz Yellow" Colofone 802 (c1970). The familiar old telephones of my suburban childhood (thanks to the Mill Market staff for letting me crawl around under their desk in search of a phone socket to test it).

In Your Face!

Lucky as we are to be home to the oldest and best regional Art Gallery in Australia, I'm always slow getting to the special exhibitions. The current "In Your Face! Cartoons about politics and society 1760 - 2010" exhibition closes this Sunday, 8 August 2010 ...so last chance this weekend to see it.