Wednesday, July 20, 2011

What makes something "Vintage"?

I've been doing some shopping lately...who are we kidding I'm ALWAYS shopping and I have come across the word vintage a lot. Everyone seems to be following a vintage trend lately going to flea markets, pawn shops and thrift stores, looking for vintage items. In my case, I was looking for a vintage clutch (purse), when it hit me.

What does vintage mean? and why am I willing to pay more for it?

When retailers slap vintage in front of the description, doesn't it make you feel like its automatically a little more valuable? Well I did some research. If you want to know what vintage is, check out my descriptions below and shop smarter.

First and foremost, here's the dictionary definition of Vintage:
vin·tage (vntj)
noun
1. The yield of wine or grapes from a vineyard or district during one season.
2. Wine, usually of high quality, identified as to year and vineyard or district of origin.
3. The year or place in which a wine is bottled.

Informal
a. A group or collection of people or things sharing certain characteristics.
b. A year or period of origin: a car of 1942 vintage.
c. Length of existence; age.

Adjective
1. Of or relating to a vintage.
2. Characterized by excellence, maturity, and enduring appeal; classic.
3. Old or outmoded.


Here are some generalized and more common descriptions that I have run by for various categories, beginning with fashion, since that's the one I'm most interested in.

Fashion & Jewelry
Some say vintage is anything made between the 1920's to 1980's. Other sources say that vintage can be anything from a previous era or 7 years or older and difficult to acquire. With this definition I would definitely land in the vintage category.

I think I will stick with the more widely accepted between 1920's to 1980's, anything made before that is considered antique.

Furniture
Vintage furniture applies to many types of furniture, the most important qualities being those that show age and high attention to detail.

Antique furniture is another story. Antique furniture is made at least one hundred years before it is purchased. This definition is often stretched by retail stores and many times when you arrive at antique store, you will see items that are only 50 to 60 years old, which mostly refers to the quality than the age. Then they upcharge you.

Vehicles
Cars are a different story however. For Cars, Motorcycles or Aircrafts something vintage needs to be at least 25 years or older, antique is anything 100 years or older.

You generally see vintage/antique car enthusiasts huddled in front of Denny's on Sunday or in Long Beach, in front of Frisco's.

Perfume
Perfume from the 1900 to 1980s is considered vintage unless it is discontinued, renamed, re-released or reformulated.

Wine
Any wine with a date on the bottle, with wine, Vintage only refers to the year it was made.

So, my advice to you is, before you go buy something "Vintage" make sure what you are getting and why it is considered "Vintage" to the seller, unless of course it's totally obvious.
Happy Shopping!

Monday, July 18, 2011

5 months and counting...


The wedding is getting closer and my anxiety and stress levels are rising. For some reason, I don't think that Beno really has these same issues. I am excited about everything and most everything is planned, but there are still details to tighten up. We are getting married on Decemeber 31, 2011 at Recreation Park Golf Course in Long Beach, really cute lil' place.


Our wedding is small, just how I like it, with closest friends and family. Since it's on NYE, only really close people would probably show up anyway. Here's a list of things we still need to do:

- Meet with the florist
- Get a band/DJ
- Meet with the jeweler
- Confirm a 'priest'
- Get our clothes (we are getting these in October)
- Figure out decorations
- Plan the pre-wedding family events
- Plan the parental meet and greet on Beno's bday
- Send out the invitations

WOW that seems like a lot. Well the venue, food, cake, photographer is taken care of. Technically so is the florist. We just have to tidy up some of the other details. Oh yea and the HONEYMOON, can't forget that. We are still wavering, but feel like we'll probably head down to the Dominican Republic for our getaway. Although there's a lot going on with Thesilvertelegram.com, I am still totally stoked about this whole event and getting more glad that it's on NYE.

The band isn't really panning out, it's almost as much as the total wedding venue. I am contemplating an iTunes playlist instead, between the two of us, we definitely have enough family/wedding friendly music and we can create the mood ourselves. I dunno. Decisions, decisions...

Monday, July 11, 2011

Simple Pleasures

- Riding my bike to Trader Joe's
- SoCal in the summer time
- Playing football with Chaka
- Trying a new recipe
- Fresh-squeezed Watermelon and lime juice

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

MOVIE REVIEW: Larry Crowne


The first mistake I made before going to see this movie was reading the reviews. I didn't mean to, they just pop up when you're looking for movie times. My fiance picked this movie which caught me off-guard actually. Anyway, we headed to see Larry Crowne and from the reviews I had pretty low expectations, which probably helps this review.

If I had to choose one word to describe Larry Crowne: Delightful.

It was a really pleasant movie about a guy that gets laid off because he didn't go to college, a reality in times of recession, like we just had. He was going through a divorce that cost a lot of money and had to change to accomodate his new life. It wasn't a sappy love story, love was really just a side note in the whole thing. I can't say much more without giving away the movie, but it was pleasant. It's a feel good movie with a quality cast. Could I have waited to see it as a rental? Probably, but it was better in the theater.

My recommendation is to go check out Larry Crowne on a lazy weekend or weekday night if you are looking for a casual outing. It's not intensely thought provoking, but just a nice movie to watch.

My rating: 4 out of 5 stars