1952 Spring Break Wardrobe: Vintage Jantzen Lastex-Powered Swim Suits

I work at a university, and this past week the talk among the students was all about - "So where are you heading for Spring Break?"

Whether the destination is Cancun, Key West or Montego Bay - here are the perfect swimsuits to take along to wow your friends...

Jantzen swim suits advertisement - Life magazine, June 9, 1952

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Love this vintage ad copy.  "Figure shaping genius...frankly alluring lines...Jantzen streamlining...the most exciting swim suits in all the world." 

Isn't the heart shaped bodice and the shirring on this brocade Delilah swim suit fabulous?  Her suit is laton-powered - his is lastex-powered...

In the 1980's Real Men Didn't Eat Quiche - and they probably didn't in the 1950's either.  But real men of the 1950's were apparently wearing skimpy Jantzen swim trunks like these.  

Jantzen has named these red trunks: "Daredevil."  An appropriate name considering a guy would have to be pretty daring to go out in public with this peek-a-boo criss-cross design on his hips - don't you think?

Love this Jantzen ad, but I was lucky enough to own some real live 1950's swim suits for a short time...

This past summer, I found a group of three vintage swimsuits - two Jantzen, one Catalina - tucked away in the zippered pocket of this suitcase.

The thing is - when I bought the suitcase at an estate sale for a couple of bucks, I hadn't bothered to investigate the inside of the suitcase thoroughly - and apparently neither had the estate sale pros.  What a nice surprise I had waiting for me when I came home and pulled a family's trio of swimsuits out of the pocket!

Here's Junior's suit - a pair of boy's size 12 black swim trunks with a colorful striped band, and a Jantzen label inside.

The Mrs. wore this buttery yellow 1950's swimsuit with a Jantzen label and "diving girl" emblem.

It's hard to tell from the photo, but it's a rather sexy swimsuit.  The cups have a pretty pleating, and have boning to help hold it up when the straps are removed!

This suit deserved a curvier bosom than mine - so I decided to put it up for bid on eBay last summer.  It was popular with the bidders ($92), but not nearly as hot as the men's swim trunks that Dad wore...

These vintage 1950's swim trunks have a Catalina label inside that says - "Styled for the Stars of Hollywood."  

I love the five bold brown and orange sharks swimming from back to front!

Apparently eBayers liked the sharks too:  these trunks sold for $142.  

Note the elastic around the legs.  Like the swim trunks in the 1952 Jantzen ad, these Catalina trunks show off a bit more leg, etc. than American men these days are generally comfortable with. 

But Spring Break is a good time to be a bit of a "Daredevil" and let it all hang out (figuratively speaking, of course).  So guys, toss a pair of trunks like these into your backpack before you head south. No question, you will impress the ladies when you step out onto that beach.

Better yet...

...make sure you bring along a pipe.  That will impress her for sure.  :-)

To Be, or Not to Be...

Sorry for the long absence. Like Hamlet, I've been caught up in an internal debate...

Hamlet has been filmed many times, but few can hold a candle to Sir Laurence Olivier's portrayal of the Danish prince in 1948.

My dilemma is (thankfully) not quite as serious as deciding whether to live or to die, but rather...

To Blog, or Not to Blog? That is the question.

Whether 'tis nobler to keep my blog alive, even if it suffers terribly from neglect.
Or simply end it - so that I can focus all my energies on my latest passion of selling on eBay and Etsy?

I know that many of you have faced this same dilemma.  So what do you do when something important comes along that steals away all the time that you used to spend on blogging?  The easy answer is - Well, just stop blogging!  Or - just blog occasionally whenever you have the time...

But it's not that easy for me. When I truly care about something, I want to do it well.  My blog is my baby!  I gave it life, nurtured it, watched it blossom!

And these past few weeks, while I've been devoting all of my time to my antique business - I can hear it calling out to me in the night, like a child....

Feed me! I'm hungry for attention!

So I'm torn between two loves right now. And I'm not quite sure what the future holds for "A Sip of Sarsaparilla." I know that for at least the next month or so, I will likely be visiting your blogs less often (which makes me sad), and my posts will be sporadic. And then maybe after a little break, I might find a renewed energy for blogging. Or this could be my last post...

IF this does turn out to be my last post...this is the dress I want to be wearing when my blog is laid to rest...

A beautiful ivory Edwardian era lacy dress...worthy of its own Shakespearean soliloquy or sonnet...

"Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?

Thou art more lovely and temperate..." 

I discovered this antique dress at a high-end estate sale last summer - and my heart stopped when I saw it!  I paid $70 for it - quite a bit more than I spent on any other vintage purchase all year.  But I think it was worth every penny, and more! 

Look at these romantic bell sleeves...

And the variety of laces and pleating and embroidery...

I think it's almost more beautiful from the back view... 

These photos were obviously taken months ago, before winter settled in.  Ah...green grass, and sunlight shining through the airy lace!  Can't wait for spring!

Lots of snaps on this early 1900's dress - years before zippers were used in clothing...

I hope you enjoyed the dress - because I enjoyed sharing it with you!

You know, I'm pretty sure I'll be back. 

In the meantime, warm spring wishes to you...

Susan

Lipstick on Your Collar...

All of you Mad Men fans out there are probably familiar with the Clorox ad that was created for the show’s second season DVD. The ad features a lipstick mark on the collar of a Draper-style white shirt. The headline says Clorox has been "getting ad guys out of hot water for generations."

Well, back in 1959 Connie Francis had a hit song about a guy who was in hot water because of a telltale lipstick stain...

Here's adorable Connie and "Lipstick on Your Collar." Sorry the sound quality is occasionally spotty - but I thought you'd get a kick out of seeing Connie singing live.

I haven't been running into very many men lately who have inspired me to leave my own lipstick mark. But a girl's gotta be prepared for that possibility down the road...

I adore the vintage lipstick case I currently own (a $1 find at an estate sale) - mainly because it's so practical. The enamel decoration has a texture that makes it easy to find in an overstuffed purse. But it's definitely seen better days.

I deserve something a bit more glamorous - don't you think?  So, I did a bit of shopping on Etsy and eBay, and discovered a wonderful world of vintage lipsticks, cases and vanity holders.   If money were no object, here are a few that I'd be drooling over.

Ornate Vintage 1950's Vanity Set, Lipstick Holder - Etsy: ShesFancy

Vintage Florenza Vanity Set - Lipstick Holder and Match Holder - Etsy: EyeCandyAntiques

Vintage Josef Original Young Lady Lipstick Holder - eBay: MauiGirl

2 Vintage Lipstick Cases, Red, Gold, Black Design (Made in Italy) - Etsy: LucillesAttic

SALE Vintage Rhinestone Lipstick Case with Beveled Mirror and Coty Lipstick - Etsy: SugarPopVintage

Vintage Nite Club Lipstick in Box, Tempting Red, J.R. Watkins - eBay: Suvee77 

Vintage Lipstick Tube Container Lot Revlon Coty Bishop - eBay: T-Time2005

Rare Purse Set by Ann Jackson Originals -1950s - Etsy: MomsVintageTreasures

Fabulous Vintage Ciner Compact and Lipstick Set Lots Of Rhinestones - Etsy: Compactastic

Princess Pat Vintage Lipstick Attached to Selling Card - eBay: Lonestar1845

Vintage Enesco Teen Girl on Phone Lipstick Holder Figurine - eBay: Vintage_Vanity

Lipstick Hanky with Kitty - Etsy: CarpeBellus

>Vintage Revlon Cosmetics Advertising Pin - Etsy: BunnyRabbitVintage

So...are you drooling yet?  Which one is your favorite?

My favorites: the Revlon Advertising Pin!  Also the lineup of Revlon, Coty and Bishop lipstick tubes.  Why? Because I can imagine an intriguing collection of vintage lipsticks displayed on a pretty shelf above my bedroom vanity - and at just $7.99 (opening bid) this would be a thrifty way to get started on the collection.   But I'm not planning to bid - so grab it for yourself if you'd like!

Enjoy your weekend!  And don't forget - Valentine's Day is just around the corner... 

Make sure those luscious lips of yours are ready for a little action. :-)

Trumpet Advance Lip Flexibilities - Etsy: AnotherWomansTreasur

The Color of Love

It's a lazy Sunday afternoon (probably shouldn't be, but I've chosen to make it that way) and I've been having some fun collecting vintage fashion images that make me smile.

In honor of Valentine season, I bring you...
The Lady in Red

Vogue - January 1953

- from a 1959 issue of Vogue,  herecomesthesky

1940's Carnival Chalkware - Snow White  (from my collection)

Pictorial Review magazine, April 1933  (from my collection)

Late 1950's "Plastichrome" Postcard    (from my collection)

Illustrator, Gil Elvgren - via Coca Cola Art Gallery

Vintage Coca-Cola ad - via PictureStore

sparkling vintage Coca-Cola ad, via The Mad Jewess

Hope you all have a little red dress, or a little red something that makes you happy when you wear it...

Have a lovely week,

Sarsaparilla

Sears Roebuck 1938 Catalog...Glorious Colors "Good Enough To Eat"

Last week I promised you that my next post would bring you some SPRING - and I am a woman of my word!  

The Sears Roebuck 1938 Spring & Summer Catalog is bursting with glorious colors, prints and springtime fashions. 

Silk Print fabrics are featured above...and a variety of Rayon textures & weaves are pictured below...

Look at all of the varieties of "Celanese Rayon":  Sharkella, Sharkskin, Faconne, Pebble Crepe, Crepe Romaine, Satin Crepe...and "Sweet As Sugar"!  Wouldn't it be fun to have a few samples of each - so that when you came across a vintage dress you could say with confidence, "Aha! This must be Sharkella!"

Have any of you started a collection of vintage fabric samples?  Finding different samples would be challenge enough - but I would think that figuring out exactly what it is that you've got would be much trickier!  

Another fun research project:  identifying what colors & color names were popular, year by year...

 

These two "Ice Cream Color" dresses were photographed in black & white...

...but they came in four ice cream shades: "Pistache" (Lido Aqua 901); "Strawberry" (Pink 525); "Vanilla" (White); and "Lemon Ice" (Maize 705)

Isn't that long zipper in the second dress fun? It begins at the neckline and goes all the way down to the hemline!

The first dress not only comes in four ice cream shades, but also two choices of fabric: Celanese Rayon Sharkella and "Star-Shan," a shantung effect spun rayon.

That year - 1938 - Sears included a Color Chart in the back of the book - so that a potential buyer would know what the clothing color names looked like:

These six "Mediterranean" colors highlighted in the corner of the chart were hot that year...

And these are the four "ice cream" colors available in the dresses above:

basic "Vanilla" (white), and...

"Pistache" (Lido Aqua 901)

"Strawberry" (Pink 525)

...and "Lemon Ice" (Maize 705)

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I'm not sure I'd find a bowl of ice cream in those colors all that appealing - but the fashions are certainly yummy!

Here are four more dresses in the Sears 1938 Spring/Summer Catalog - and these were photographed in Glorious Color!

I've said this before...  I enjoy the colorful "vintage" language used in the catalog descriptions just as much as the vintage fashions.

The dress above is shown in one of the ice cream colors - Lemon Ice (Maize 705).  Can you imagine this two-piece dress for just $2.98!  And it came with a scarf too!

Buttons & Bows, Flowers & Lace, all in one perky dress!  It makes me smile...

More bows and buttons in this "corselet" dress!  I like the Wine and Aqua color contrast.

The first dress in the black & white "ice cream" photo above was available in "Star-Shan."  Well, this dress fabric is called "Sun-Shan"!  I love the names they gave to fabrics back then...

Here's a full length illustration of each of the four dresses modeled above - plus another view of the hats.  Which dress do you like best? 

I'm partial to the first one in Lemon Ice. And I want the whole outfit - 2-piece dress, scarf, striped purse & hat!  I'm going to fill out that Sears order form right now...

Isn't it fun to dream?