Clear out a shelf in your lighted curio cabinet or rearrange the decorative needlepoint pillows on your bed to accommodate the greatest sale on Gilt Groupe ever, Madame Alexander Collectible Dolls! Including three kinds of Scarlett O’Hara dolls AND A RHETT BUTLER DOLL.
WHAT AM I DOING BLOGGING ABOUT THIS RIGHT NOW WHEN I DON’T EVEN HAVE A TARA DOLLHOUSE YET?!?!?
Previously: St. Patrick’s Day, again??
Simon Doonan and Barneys have nothing on the window dressers working Dowtown. And we’re not talking about the glorious old Rich’s at Christmastime. We mean the religious candle store, and now Park Place Bookstore on Decatur Street.
Park Place Bookstore enjoys a prominent spot on the stretch between most of the GSU classroom buildings and Five Points. The shop has not shied away from spectacle – a live iguana resided in one of the front windows for a while a few years ago – while still sticking to the traditional college used bookstore decor, like hand-written signs that say “LEAVE ALL BOOKBAGS AT COUNTER.”
The iguana’s home has since been vacated (including the branch it sat on and its heat lamp) leaving a blank, high-profile canvas for this retailer’s creative expressions.
What is the world the Park Place window dresser was trying to create when designing this scene meant to lure passers-by into the storefront? What is the imagined setting for this sad tableau that includes cut-out magazine photos of meat and a jar of peanuts?
Oh, now we see!
For those of you not acquainted with the greeting card aisle of this special Cheshire Bridge retailer, you have one week left to learn what’s up and surprise your valentine with a truly unique sentiment, captured on yellowing cardstock.
They add to the merchandise but never shift out the old stuff – it’s a treasure trove of campy cards that probably go back to Poster Hut’s inception (prices not adjusted for inflation, either). They carry a lot by one greeting card company called Aquavision that was made in Baltimore. If you see anything by this brand (all dated 1984), purchase it immediately!
2175 Cheshire Bridge Road
Well, here we are again. Sheer hours away from the high expectations that your peers place on Halloween costume creativity and skill, and you haven’t thought of anything even remotely adequate to leave the house wearing. Don’t even THINK about going to Costumes Etc. at this point unless you have two whole hours to kill waiting in line behind people renting elaborate steampunk evening wear.
Here, we have made a little list for you, like we always do, of things you can be for Halloween. You barely need to make an effort.
via ABC News
Sexy King of Pops – Does that sound redundant? No, go all low-self-esteem-on-Halloween-style on his look. Dress exactly like the King of Pops, but with all the clothing cropped inappropriately short and revealing.
via AJC
Phantom of the Fox – Just throw in a phantom mask to be a little more literal, so you don’t look too much like the nightmare Six Flags man.
Ghost of discontinued MARTA routes- Roam the former bus routes like a lost MARTA soul!
Ghost of Grandma Gordon – What does a vengeful antebellum pecan tree spirit look like? Figure it out yourself. I’m just making suggestions.
Check cashing/payday lending/We Buy Gold/Title Max place – I don’t know, it seems timely. There are so many these days.
bottom half of photo by Jason Travis
Hobo Persona series – What do you carry in your hobo sack/trash bag/shopping cart? Cans of baked beans? Sugar packets? Napkins stolen from fast food places? Human teeth?
We came up with another really good one today but it requires some work and we gave it away to Thomas Wheatley, so you’ll have to stay tuned to see if he manages to pull himself together.
Previously: Your one stop Halloween costume shop
Screw the sad-sack City Hall East rummage sale – the Commerce Club moving sale is really more my scene. Why root through the rusty cast-offs of annexed city paper-pushers in a sweaty basement when I can peruse the finely-upholstered seating accommodations and Waterford chandeliers of the Atlanta’s most powerful business elite in a gently-lit dining hall?
Of course there was a secret pre-sale yesterday so everything at the Commerce Club was really picked over. Also, almost everything I was dying to own was expensive (see the $200 red sherry keg below) or marked as sold, but it was still a worthwhile adventure.
The beautiful map of Georgia’s industries on the outside of the building had already been removed. (And where they could put it on their new location, the 191 Peachtree tower?) Another sad day for Marietta Street’s old institutions, but a great opportunity to root through gravy boats and soup spoons that Atlanta’s most exclusive gentlemen used. 
The sale is still happening tomorrow for you suckers who didn’t know about it today.
Previously: Puttin’ on the Omni
Said the person who spotted this, “He was also carrying three boxes of cookies.”
Previously: Lighten up, it’s just fashion!
Not three days ago I was begging a resident of upstate New York to email me photos of her fall foilage. But now we’ve had legitimately crisp days right here in Atlanta, GA and the weather forecast confirms it’s not a fluke! Cancel my pathetic order!
Only – why is Weather.com being such a frail old lady about the change in seasons? I need to consider cold-related pain tomorrow, when the temperature peaks in the low eighties? I need to start preparing for SAD on sunny Saturday?
I know that we Southerners get super sensitive about snow and ice in the winter but we LIVE for the first full weekend of zero percent humidity. Everyone breaks out their wool blazers and favorite argyle items as soon as temps dip below 87° – it’s a fact! That’s why it’s so sad when inevitably a three-week humid heat wave comes in October and no one wants to put sensible cotton short-sleeved attire back on. Lots of moist people in sweater vests and Glen plaid dragging themselves through the dying strains of Atlanta summer – frankly, it’s just embarrassing for everyone.
Come abrasive February when your toes feel like they might break off like little chickpeas, you better remember how you insisted on wearing riding boots on a brilliantly sunny nearly-summer day! You remember that!
In other words, looks like tomorrow’s the perfect time to break out the old black tights and elbow-length gloves again!
Rich's Fall Hosiery Show, October 1950 (via GSU photographs special collections)
Previously: News you can use
Best hair: John Portman and Maria Saporta
via Wikipedia and Atlanta Business Chronicle
Best hair in HD: Thomas Wheatley
via brookehatfield
Best Marietta lady hair accessory on primary election night: Marie Barnes
via AJC
One of the many things that John, owner of My! My! My!, is a master of is mannequin arranging. I thought no one could make me appreciate a mannequin display since 1987/Andrew McCarthy – until I gazed upon the likes of these dramatic poses, right on our very own Peachtree Street. Other things John and his associates are skilled at: making you spend your entire lunch break trying on hundreds of pounds of beads and shoulder pads; reminding you that every price tag in the store is negotiable.
What are you wearing to Designing Women Live? It’s Wednesday night already and you haven’t even thought about it yet, have you? That’s what I thought. Well, I think you know where to go. (After buying tickets here.)
I should also add that My! My! My! also has a wonderful array of subtle accessories and sweet little summer dresses (both vintage and new), so don’t let me characterize it as just five sizes down from a drag queen’s spare closet.
“I never use catalogs. I’d rather go in the store and see all the salespeople groveling and sucking up to you.”
- Suzanne Sugarbaker, on buying local
900 Peachtree Street, Suite 100A (they’ve expanded!) (Midtown)
Previously: Baubles, bangles, and beads
Atlanta’s dry cleaners know exactly what my business casual and wedding fashions look like, and that is why I trust them to properly clean my stylish attire. I have twice as many blazers that need to be cleaned and pressed each week because I always wear one on my person while rakishly tossing the other over one shoulder. I guess you could say that’s my “thing.”
What I like about Sig Samuels is they don’t need flashy, modern graphic design, like that shown above, to flaunt their capabilities, except for the occasional Vernon Jones for U.S. Senate sign. These Southern gentlemen trust the combined powers of fierce loyalty and word of mouth, and they believe in customers to pay them back when they don’t have sufficient cash or a handy checkbook to pay the cleaning bill (no credit cards accepted*). Here’s another anecdote about them: once I got a text message from a friend that read, “I am one of five men in Sig Samuels right now, but I am the only one without feathered hair.” And here’s yet another: if you go in there between Thanksgiving and New Year’s, every fourth item hanging in plastic to be picked up is a Santa suit. It’s INSANE.
906 Monroe Drive, NE (Midtown)
I started to fill out my Creative Loafing Best of Atlanta ballot but had to stop because I am SO OVERWHELMED by all these categories on which I have no opinion. I immediately forgot all the things I do feel strongly about that I wanted to be sure got recognized. So I am just going to write little posts over the next weeks about each thing I intend to be sure I vote for, in case you might be inclined to patronize these establishments, real or virtual, due to Pecanne Log’s powerful influence over your decision making.
First of all, let me say that this place is a real class act before I talk about the things I’ve actually bought there. The owner has a French bulldog and there are always real interior designers stopping by. It smells so great and everything is so perfectly curated and arranged. The window display is just a work of art. I really hate to use the A-word on such a thoughtfully designed store, so I won’t name that chain store that everyone compares anything that’s the least bit charming these days. And don’t you dare either, because Providence is so much better! Keep in mind the “Antiques” in the name isn’t fully accurate in case you’re one of those people who gets overwhelmed by the traditional concept of an antiques store – there’s a complementary mix of new and old.
With all those sublime tokens and international antiques, there are still always some little items that are a bit rebellious and/or creepy, like this x-ray of a monkey I got a friend for her birthday gift.
I also got a great detail of an etching of Botticelli’s The Youth of Moses – the part of his childhood where he’s staring off next to the tiny chihuahua. It hangs prominently in my bathroom.
Both of these were in a stack of constantly-revolving sale items. I think most boutiques will, of course, have those very exclusive and expensive items for people with a dedicated decorating budget to spend (or no budget at all), but a truly great boutique will also have smaller treasures that are just as special but easy to drop pocket money on. You can buy cheap mass-produced crap anywhere that anyone else can find in any other city, but a mindful shop owner will find items in a wide range of prices so that most patrons can find something beautiful to take home, or at least something freaky.
The other great thing about Providence is that it stays open later than a lot of comparable boutiques. There’s a good chance she’ll still have the door open while you’re running into Movies Worth Seeing.
1409 N. Highland Avenue (Morningside)
“VMC vs. the Radio Star”
Even though Downhome Traces is a blog operation run by a real documentary film professional, he still needs your approval for the things he does. (Perhaps you remember his “Better Know a Neighborhood” series.) You should vote the short documentary “Video Music Channel vs. the Radio Star” for best YouTube video. It’s about Atlanta’s scrappy little music video channel. I know, I know – it’s really more Vimeo material as it’s shot in shockingly high quality and doesn’t involve humiliation, but whatever. Best YouTube – do it. Here are both parts. (more…)
PonyUp! Vintage‘s first-ever trunk sale is today at MINT Gallery from 2-8 pm! (Although they did have a sneak peak of a few pieces at Artlantis a couple weekends back.)
Marji and Jacqueline always know how to dress in jealousy-inducing getups, and now they are finally taking their finds to the streets. In addition to awesome (and even INTERNATIONAL never-before-seen-in-the-U.S.) clothes, the girls made sangria and ice cream cupcakes to get you flushed with excitement and loose with your money. Get on that – and if you mention BurnAway they will give you 10% off!
Here’s the Facebook invitation if you can’t do anything until you’ve RSVPed for it on the internet.
684 John Wesley Dobbs Avenue, NE, Unit B
(at Sampson Street NE)
As I promised, I’m going to now tell you about my trip to the DHS Sell-Out Center. Have you guys been there? First of all, let’s deal with the parking lot.
The parking lot at the Moreland Shopping Center is insane. I know I say things are insane all the time, but this time I really mean it – that parking lot is literally mentally ill. Even in the shopping plaza’s heydey the parking lot size was completely unnecessary: (more…)
Thinking about Chef Luna’s comment on the earlier post about Lunacy Black Market led to my big, really obvious idea for sustainable small business development in Downtown, Sweet Auburn, or Old Fourth Ward: Fly By Night Row.*
Renovate a series of storefronts within a couple of blocks of each other. Suit them up very basic retail fixings. Rent them out by the day, week, month, whatever for pop-up shops. An individual or business comes in, sets up shop, and peddles their wares for a set period of time, and then vacates for the next short-term retailer. These could also be temporary satellite locations for existing businesses that operate in another neighborhood or city or country.
a) This gets people downtown on a regular basis to see what’s new in those stores.
b) Would-be entrepreneurs or small businesses are more likely to try out running shop for a few days to see how it goes before taking the full, risky plunge into a venture.
c) Longer-term businesses would want to open up around this area.
d) Pop-up businesses eventually become long-term businesses.
e) No pre-paid mobile phone businesses allowed.
There’s already an existing stream of potential customers with GSU students – they’ll be around no many how many office buildings foreclose.
Bam. YOU’RE WELCOME.
More on pop-up shops: Forbes, Business Week, LA Times, Time, Times
*I am not a marketer. Someone else come up with a better name. Ephemeretail?
(Photo, of course, from Atlanta Time Machine)
I always wanted to get them done. Always. I’m not ashamed. I mean, dang. Do you remember the teachers who would slip a Glamour Shot into the yearbook as opposed to the regular old “picture day” photo? I wish I had been there to overhear that conversation between said teacher and the yearbook staff. “Um, yeah, it’s just that I was sick on picture day, and on retake day, but luckily, I have these professional photos just laying around, so I was thinking these might be OK!” Then you get the popped collar on the acid-washed denim jacket, streaks of fushcia blush, and if you’re lucky, a Kennesaw Claw to top it off (I would give you a nice link to a nice version of the Kennesaw Claw here, but I don’t want to hurt any feelings).
Anyways, I recently went for the awesome version of Glamour Shots. Not the real Glamour Shots, which is apparently still around and no longer providing sequined outfits for all the models. I went to PinUpGirl Cosmetics over in Grant Park, and got the hair, make-up and photo shoot treatment. It was spectacular. As a mom (this is where some of you realize that it is mamalikey writing this post, and not Christa, so I’m pausing while you remember that I am that deadbeat contributor who never writes entries any more) who usually looks frumpalicious from day to day, just having someone paint my face and touch my hair was pretty amazing. The best part: they totally touched up my photos and made me look much much much smaller from the neck down. So now I have proof of what I would look like if I went to the gym. It hurts. But it makes a great gift for my husband! I highly recommend going, even if just for one of their hair and make-up specials. You will feel like a real pin-up. Valentine’s Day is a great excuse to blow money on things like this. You get to make yourself feel really pretty and awesome, but you can tell everyone that it wasn’t really for you. It was for your significant other. Obviously.
My! My! My! opened this past fall in a Peachtree Street storefront that has never seen a successful business as long as I’ve been walking by there. Nothing’s ever made for long there because they never sold anything interesting. But when I first saw the dramatically sequined mannequins in the window dressed to attend the 1992 Daytime Emmys I was so pleasantly surprised – most Midtown clothing stores opening these days seem to just sell $300 men’s Oxford shirts with French words screenprinted on the sleeves. I was intimidated to enter for a couple of months but finally made it in to dig up something flashy to wear for New Year’s Eve.
Daily Candy has the full My! My! My! story here, but basically all you need to know is that John, the owner, is friends with someone who does costumes for soap operas in L.A. and gets some unbelievable pieces. There’s also a TON of jewelry and other accessories that are a little more acceptable for the days you have to go sensible business casual instead of Suzanne Sugarbaker at the Governor’s ball.
(more…)
Christmas in Atlanta; there’s nothing like it! Let’s put on our fur muffs and wool capes and take the streetcar down Peachtree Street to the magnificent Rich’s department store and ride the Pink Pig and see the lighting of the Great Tree! We’ll visit the live reindeer! We’ll look at all the glamorous holiday window displays and the glove counter to find out what all the latest fashions are this winter! We’ll use our nickels we saved up working at the soda counter and selling copies of the Atlanta Journal to buy Mother those Ferragamo suede Cuban heels she wants so dearly! Nothing is more beautiful and sophisticated in this whole wide world than downtown Atlanta at Christmastime! Nothing can top it, y’all!
We really do need a store like Rich’s these days, one that will take cotton as scrip instead of U.S. currency so we can finish our Christmas shopping.
The inscription inside my copy of Dear Store* reads: “For Marianne, With gratitude for so-o much help & inspiration — as well as the grandest party ever. Love, Celestine Sibley Jan. 27, 1967.”
The grandest party ever.
*I definitely saw a copy at A Cappella Books the last time I was in.
(P.S., you can now subscribe by email to this blog using that thing in the right column that says “Subscribe”. This is useful for all of you who don’t use some sort of RSS feed and then get your panties in a twist when you check our blog 17 times a day waiting for a new post. Not that we mind the pageviews!)
Holy crap! I didn’t even know these exist! I guess no one I knew in 1996 was fancy enough to have anything nicer than a giant collection of limited edition Olympic pins.
Here’s a slightly more affordable tortoise shell version.
Previously: All your Christmas shopping in one fell swoop
Oh, look, it’s October 29 and you still haven’t thought about your Halloween costume! And Halloween is on a Saturday night this year, so that’s a lot of pressure! You’ve probably spent the last month telling everyone that you are going as [insanely conceptual and timely costume joke idea] to get a rise out of your friends without actually having to exert the effort of putting a memorable costume together. It’s okay, though! We got creative for you, and all these costumes will please the locals!
- Paul and Annabelle from TBS’s old school “Dinner and a Movie“: This is a cop-out costume since all you have to do is dress like it’s the year 1999 and wear oven mitts or something, but everyone will appreciate it. Bonus points if you worked for TBS back then and got one of these Dinner and a Movie aprons.
- Hologram preacher: Yeah, you thought when you watched Will.i.am on CNN’s election night coverage that this was the first time hologram technology had been used like that in real life? But you were wrong! This has been going on for years at a megachurch in Buckhead and Alpharetta!
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