A green neon sign reads "Wool Growers Restaurant Cocktails" and features a sheet by a fence.

Neon Sheep! A Giant Shoe! And More! Exploring Bakersfield’s Americana Gems

May 19, 2021, 4 Comments

As mentioned in my last post, Bakersfield has a lot of vintage neon still out in the wild, plus a few pretty amazing backlit plastic signs, which was one of the reasons we wanted to visit. And boy did we find some great signs, plus we stumbled upon some abandoned locations as well. “John’s” 14441…

Visiting Merle Haggard’s Home and More at Kern County Museum

May 17, 2021, 4 Comments

Being vaccinated means I feel a bit more comfortable going out and doing some things, and I’ve been itching to get on the road for a little day trip. I recently heard that Bakersfield had a wealth of great neon signs, which are a favorite subject of mine, including an entire courtyard display dedicated to…

Myself in front of a pale yellow church with zig-zag roof that juts out over the doors, the underside painted turquoise. The sign reads "First AME Church" holding a sign that reads "#PaulRevereWasHere"

Paul Revere Was Here

May 11, 2021, 2 Comments

Earlier I wrote about the LA Conservancy’s campaign on African-American architect Paul Revere Williams, Paul Revere Was Here, and the variety of panels they are offering to celebrate the amazing work of Williams. One of the offerings is a virtual tour of places that were a part of Williams’ life in and around LA. The…

Our completed yard, a patch of green goes from the sidewalk to a rock edge pathway, past it features warm, decomposed granite and a variety of cacti. Text overlay reads "Our 1954 Home Front Yard"

Our 1954 Home: Front Yard

May 5, 2021, 2 Comments

Patrick and I aim to do one or two big house projects each year, and we were on the verge of rebuilding the wall between the living room and office, with a list of contractors to call for estimates and then the pandemic hit. While construction is of course an essential business, it wasn’t like…

On the left a blue and green map of Los Angeles, with the silhouette of a man walking, black text reads "Paul Revere was Here On the Trail of L.A.'s Legendary Architect Paul R. Williams" and on the right a photo of the Beverly Hills Hotel's green side with white script reading "Beverly Hills Hotel" and tall palm trees stretching toward a blue sky.

Celebrating the Life and Work of Paul Revere Williams

April 14, 2021, 2 Comments

It’s no secret I love a good building. Los Angeles is filled with many beautiful buildings of both the private and commercial kind, and in a wide variety of styles. One person who embodied Los Angeles architecture was Paul Revere Williams, and recently the LA Conservancy teamed up with the National Organization of Minority Architects…

A group of guests look over a pool that has a steep slide, which an alligator slides down. Text across a roof in the background reads "Alligator Farm." Red text in the upper right of the postcard reads "Entertaining guests at the California Alligator Farm, Los Angeles."

Sights and Souvenirs from the California Alligator Farm

March 10, 2021, 6 Comments

As mentioned before I’ve been watching a lot of TV since I’m not going anywhere thanks to COVID, and I recently binged the entire first season of HBO’s new interpretation of Perry Mason. Early in the show Mason handles a taxidermy turtle and small alligator, both which feature a paper label reading “Los Angeles Alligator…

Sitting on a blanket in front of my orange tree, wearing a white sweater, with two orange brooches, and a skirt featuring various California landmarks, while reading.

California Dreamin’ is Becomin’ a Reality

February 10, 2021, 5 Comments

Since moving to California I had dreamed of having my very own orange tree. I imagined the joy of stepping outside, plucking an orange off the tree for fresh orange juice in the morning or for an afternoon snack. When we moved into our house a little over three years ago I hemmed and hawed…

Audrey Hepburn: More than an Icon Review & Giveaway CLOSED

January 13, 2021, 16 Comments

Recently I was contacted to do a review and host a giveaway for a documentary and book about Audrey Hepburn. Hepburn was an icon for me in high school, I had multiple posters of her in my room, watched her films religiously, and had several biographies on her. So, of course I leapt at the…

Naughty & Nice: Ode to Haddon Sundblom, the Man Behind Pin-Ups & Coca-Cola’s Santa

December 17, 2020, 3 Comments

Santa Claus. How do we describe Santa’s appearance? White beard. Red Suit. A bit on the portly side perhaps? An icon of Christmas, Santa has seen many different interpretations over the years, but today we all pretty much agree on his appearance here in America, and there is an urban legend that the modern appearance…

A buffet piece sits on the back wall of the dining room. Atop the buffet is a diecut owl, cat atop a skull, a skeleton wearing a pirate costume, in the middle a spirit board themed to the House on Haunted Hill, with a woman screaming, skeleton, and Vincent Price, to the right of it a plastic jack o'lantern with a black party hat with an orange cat atop it, and next to it a diecut skull. Hanging above all of it are themed framed pieces. On the left is a framed segment of a paper table cloth featuring an illustration of a haunted house. In the middle framed witch and skeleton, on the right a framed segment of a paper table cloth with witches and pumpkins. Sitting atop each frame is a diecut black cat.

Halloween is Creeping in Early

September 16, 2020, 6 Comments

Normally I don’t share my Halloween decor until early October, because despite decorating mid-September, I tend to spend the remaining weeks of September combing antique malls and flea markets for fresh vintage finds to add. But, this year obviously is much, much different. I’ve taken COVID-19 extremely seriously, and despite many antique malls reopening, and…

Atomic Redhead

1950s

Neon Sheep! A Giant Shoe! And More! Exploring Bakersfield’s Americana Gems

Visiting Merle Haggard’s Home and More at Kern County Museum

Paul Revere Was Here

Our 1954 Home: Front Yard

Celebrating the Life and Work of Paul Revere Williams

Sights and Souvenirs from the California Alligator Farm

California Dreamin’ is Becomin’ a Reality

Audrey Hepburn: More than an Icon Review & Giveaway CLOSED

Naughty & Nice: Ode to Haddon Sundblom, the Man Behind Pin-Ups & Coca-Cola’s Santa

Halloween is Creeping in Early