My Vintage Black Platforms

Well, here they are....

I mentioned this pair of shoes before in this post. Yes, these are the ones I wore back in high school. I found them!

And they were looking pretty bad, too. I didn't even think they were going to be salvageable - but they cleaned up quite nicely! They do need a visit to the cobbler shop downtown - their insoles curled up and came off long ago. I stuck some Dr. Scholl's "Sole Expressions" inside of them for now. I'm just not sure that I could even still WALK in them ! I was surprised that they still fit. They look a bit like these, from a 1939 advertisement to me.Well, kind of- if they were all black, and had the platform on the bottom?
And they're also similar to the brown ones in the ad below - which is actually from the 70's, at least the same era:
I still love those darned black shoes - but I don't really want to break my neck. I'm just not used to wearing shoes like that anymore!
You know how I am about parting with things, though....

Herb Alpert and The Tijuana Brass

LOVE their sound, love their music! I remember Daddy really liked them too.
I have been lucky to find some of their albums at thrift stores recently:
I mean, Herb Alpert is just COOL - right? I have always thought so. Oh, yeah- and talented, and handsome:
Now THIS album, below? Didn't have to buy this one - there were two already here in the house! And Daddy had this one, too:
(Did every man have this one?) One of ours had this great original record sleeve still inside - I even like IT!
And on the other side - as you can see, I don't have ALL of their albums yet...
...but I'm still on the lookout for them.

Kitchen Stuff

I've shown you my Ransburg canister collection in lots of other posts - but I do have some other types, too:
I guess I like yellow.
But then, I'm a total sucker for bright and pretty vintage kitchen wares in any color!

Summer Fun - Don't Get Burned!

Ohhh, no - here's an advertisement from a 1968 issue of Seventeen magazine:
Don't do it, girls! We all know that's not a good idea, right?
Yes, her tan looks gorgeous - but it's a better idea to protect yourself! Bonne Bell (and Cheryl Tiegs) say "save your skin":
Coppertone "gives you a better tan" - but they make products for protection, too.
Well, if you do get a sunburn (and I hope you don't!) , you can always try Solarcaine, I suppose:
Or, like "The Barbecued Set" in this ad, how about soothing it with Noxzema?
I think I probably did use Noxzema for that, too, years ago - but mostly I washed my face with it. Yes - only EVERY morning for , oh, at least THIRTY years. Seriously.
I use something else now - but that's a subject for another post....

Shirley Temple (Yes, Again!)

Yes, again - because I truly do adore her! And I know I have told you this before. You don't mind, do you? I have collected books, too, over the years. These are just a few of them. The Littlest Rebel:
Heidi (of course!)
Rebecca Of Sunnybrook Farm:
A mystery:
And, naturally, I have to have her music, too! Because I LOVE listening to her sing. I will never tire of her:
And I have this wonderful vintage box. It once held a Shirley Temple Doll outfit. My sister gave it to me for Christmas a couple of years ago, because she knew I would love it! And I do:
Now, I realize that I didn't look anything like her - but at least I understand now why the photographer who took this photo years ago asked me to hold my finger up like that!

Amber's Birthday

Wishing my dear niece a happy birthday today with this post....
This is a picture of the two of us about 28 and 1/2 years ago! (That skirt is another Gunne Sax - told you I was a fan.)
She is the closest thing I will ever have to a daughter,
...and I love her to pieces! Here is a current picture of her with her son Robby:
Happy Birthday, Amber! Hope you have a wonderful day!!
With love, Aunt Heidi

What's Penny Wearing? #5

Today, Penny is wearing another vintage Gunne Sax (by Jessica McClintock) dress. Made of gauzy peach-colored cotton, it didn't come with a belt, but it looks better belted, so I simply added a length of ribbon around Penny's waist.
A closer look at the bodice:
I was BIG Gunne Sax fan back then!

MAD Magazine

When we were growing up, Daddy either had a subscription to Mad magazine, or he bought it nearly every month at the store. We enjoyed reading it, too - and it was part of our childhood! I especially liked the take-offs on movies and TV shows, and "The Lighter Side Of..", and so many other regular features! I don't have any of the original magazines, but I did get these books:
....because they were the closest thing I could get! They are really great, actually - LOTS of content straight from the original magazine pages ( things that I even remember!) inside:

I had to have all three of them - not sure if there are any others, but I'm good with these three.
The "Mad Fold-In" pages at the back were another particular favorite of mine.
Do you remember them, too?
I must confess that the thing that inspired this post was the Chef Boyardee advertisement below. I've mentioned before how fascinated I am by advertising - old and new, either in print or on-screen - wherever.
(Sorry I did not do a perfect Fold-In job on this, but you get the idea.)
Clever, huh?

Just Some Things I Like

SpinArt Painting! I saved these, probably from a booth at the county fair years ago. I haven't seen one of those booths for a long time.
I want to do it again! You can bet that if the opportunity presents itself, I will create another "work of art".
This is a card my mom gave me - I'm assuming it's from when I graduated from high school. I'm certain she bought it because it reminded her of Peter Max's artwork. It opens up to be 33 inches long and says CONGRATULATIONS! It would look great hung up as a banner.

Thanks, Mom.

Farm Journal Cookbooks

I have mentioned this fabulous series of cookbooks before. We grew up with the older ones in our house. Some of Mother's favorite recipes were contained in these volumes. My parents had a subscription to Farm Journal magazine, and I'm sure that is where she first learned of their cookbooks. They also belonged to the Farm Bureau, and I have fond memories of the potluck meetings we attended and yummy food! When I grew up, I set out to amass my own collection of the cookbooks. This was their first in 1959:
The Freezing and Canning Cookbook, 1963:
Farm Journal's Complete Pie Cookbook, 1965:
Let's Start To Cook, 1966 - we sisters cooked a lot out of this book!
Cooking For Company, 1968:
Homemade Candy, 1970:
And Homemade Cookies, 1971:

That is just a few of them. They continued to publish more books through the years; my collection now numbers at least twenty!
Like I said before - those farm ladies really knew how to cook!

Summer Fun - Barbecues

Just thought I would share some great vintage images of one of America's favorite summer pastimes today. First up - this vintage Durkee advertisement featuring Gene Kelly (I loved him, too, by the way!):
Outdoor cooking at it's best- with the family:
Chicken on the grill - looks good!
On the patio:

And don't forget: with your barbecue, "Have a Coke and a smile!"