The Ladybug Shops Like It’s 1999: “Vintage – La Moda Che Vive Due Volte” in Reggio Emilia

I know I’ve been very quiet lately… but you know why? I have been crazy busy with some great events (oh yes, work too!) that I’ve barely had the time to write about them. But I am here and you will know all about it!

I left you in Belgioioso, end of April, for the Next Vintage event and I announced a series of vintage fairs that I was planning to attend. The weekend after, indeed, I was heading with some friends to the area of Reggio Emilia to spend a lovely weekend of sport, shopping and tourism!

Romagna Fiere (the organizer of the Forlì Vintage Fair that you may remember because I’ve been there a couple of times) decided to add some more dates to the regular fair in Forlì (probably one of the most famous Italian vintage fairs) and the first weekend of May Reggio Emilia was the center of Italian vintage and retro dealers.

If you’ve been, least once, to the Forlì vintage Fair- it is easy to recognize the familiar atmosphere and style, which I like a lot. The Fair is maybe more sober compared to others (where the location adds a lot to the event), but sometimes I like the typical fair event!

It was an occasion to meet old and new friends: I finally met with Laura from Oggetti Smarriti (one of my favorite vintage eyewear sellers), and with the guys from L’Opposto in Forlì (it was time for my sweet college memories!) and with the amazing hat artist of Stondo from Florence. But I met some new friends and made some good discoveries like: Tabata’, Magnifica Preda or the Silk Ribbon Sisters, an awesome and funny group of burlesque performers with a love for history, cabaret, dance and beauty!

Let me say that I was particularly in the mood for shopping that Sunday… especially because this was the eyewear edition and you know how much I love glasses!

Punti di Vista proposed a very interesting expo on the history of eyewear, presenting some wonderful pieces by decades and I was, as usual, amazed by the ’50s and ’60s frames.

In addition to this beautiful handmade straw hat from Stondo Firenze, I got 4 pair of glasses!!

From L’Opposto, I picked up these vintage inspired frames

and found an amazing Yves Saint Laurent piece from  the ’80s sold by Oggetti Smarriti

and what about these pure 1950s beauties from Tabata’?

It’s obvious my shopping day theme song was “Insatiable” by Prince because I continued my spree during our city tour in the center of Reggio Emilia There I found a quaint vintage shop (“Un altro giro di giostra”) with a lovely owner (Ledi) where I got this TO-DIE-FOR navy leather handbag.

The Ladybug is a Princess in the Castle: “Next Vintage” at Belgioioso

If April is the richest month of events in Milan, it is also the beginning of a nice series of vintage events and fairs all over Italy. I’m trying to do as many as I can between now and September (when the second round starts!) because now that I am closer to all these events it is easier to go around and see what’s new on the Italian vintage scene.

The seasonal chain of vintage fairs started end of April (exactly from the 20^th to the 25^th) with Next Vintage at the Belgioioso Castle, near Pavia. It was the first time for me and before getting there I heard a lot of things about it: it is held generally twice a year and it is considered one of the best Italian vintage events because it puts together the best quality vintage treasures of every kind. From clothing to accessories and prints: two floors of absolutely great vintage stuff, but also handmade and some great used designer (not necessarily vintage)

My friends from Tara Vintage were there, and with them some of the most appreciated vintage dealers in Italy: from A.N.G.E.L.O. to Memory Lane (one of my favorite shops in Milan!), Punti di Vista, Art-House, Dorotea Vintage, Post Post and many others. The quality was quite high (and so were the prices!), but it wasn’t hard to make good deals especially if you were looking for some good used (not only vintage) designer handbags or other accessories.

It was, for me, the endless thought about the right pricing of vintage material. It is correct and I accept that a designer handbag or shoes or clothing piece may cost a bit, especially if it is in good condition and if you prefer, like me, the vintage piece above the new one in shop. But I can’t accept finding a vintage polyester ’70s/’80s dress or bag or whatever- even if in mint condition for 100 euros. I have the feeling that in Italy, vintage is considered for the “elite” which makes the prices increase too much. This is not my vision of vintage. In UK or USA the concept is completely different and this is the reason why prices are very competitive and you can really gain a bargain, which is almost impossible in Italy.

This is maybe the reason why I ended up only buying this lovely vintage hat-brooch for 5 euros (the bag is mine… I got it in London for almost the same price… you see what I meant earlier, right?!), even if I was tempted to bring with me a beautiful red Balenciaga Motorcycle Le Dix handbag for almost 500 euros!!

As usual, Tara Vintage had the best stall (in my opinion): their vintage finds (especially Chanel and Hermès) are to-die-for and even if I never told this to Luigi… I am sure that I’m going to buy the vintage 2.55 Chanel that I mentioned in my blog’s “About” from them sooner or later!

I also enjoyed Arte Club’s stall, a beautiful vintage boutique from Genova, with amazing dresses and handbags that I may visit one day. This was the first time I’ve had the pleasure of meeting them.

Two other things that I really appreciated about the event were: a) the location: I had never been to Belgioioso’s Castle before and I was really amazed by how great it is to host vintage events. b) the small expo about Giorgio Armani’s sketches, with a selection of 50 original sketches signed from him spanning from 1969 to 1985. They are almost always accompanied by a piece of the original fabric of the clothes. It was also a way to see the evolution of his fashion and fashion in general over two decades.

The Ladybug’s Dream of Being “The Little Black Blogger”: Covering The Little Black Jacket…

I understand that I am very excited about something I’m going to write about when I don’t know how to start my post… like now!

When I read that the most interesting and exciting photography expo was coming to Milan, after traveling with huge success around the world (New York, Tokyo, Paris, Berlin and London) I immediately called my friend to go see it with her because she’s the only one I knew who shared my excitement about it! I am talking about the famous “The Little Black Jacket,” an itinerant expo of pictures taken by Karl Lagerfeld in Cannes, Paris and New York under the stylistic direction of Carine Roitfeld (also pictured in the first image that opens the expo). These pictures are now not only one of the most acclaimed fashion expos of the last year, but they’re also a beautiful book.

The focus of the expo is very simple: it’s centered around one of the most iconic pieces created by Coco Chanel. No, not the Little Black Dress. And not my adored quilted 2.55…  It’s The Little Black Jacket.  Like the LDB, it’s worn by many celebrities from movies to fashion, but unlike the LBD… (well, with the exception of Marc Jacobs) it’s also a staple of men and women and it crosses different cultures and backgrounds, everyone bringing their own personality and style to this amazing piece. I have been told by some visitors, who didn’t know about it, that they didn’t realize they were all wearing the same jacket (only Keira Knightley and Kirsten Owen are wearing the white version). Which means that, despite the boring concept, the result is quite amazing! And believe me, it is!

The expo is now in Dubai for its last date, but if you missed it- I’m sharing here some of my favorite pictures.

Let me say a few words about the location: the expo was held at the Rotonda della Besana, one of the historical places in Milan but maybe one of the less known and this is a real shame. It is a wonderful park surrounded by arcades where we enjoyed a nice walk after the expo. There’s what used to be a church in the middle, which is now used for expos or cultural events. I also enjoyed the inside lighting and space which, I think, gave more importance to the exposed images because of how the light was directed.

Another little idea that I liked: not only was the expo free, but there were also free posters of some of the pictures from the expo for all the visitors… classy! Oh, I forgot… during the days of the expo, a selection of the S/S 2013 Chanel collection’s jackets were exhibited in the Milanese boutique in via S. Andrea… classier!

The Ladybug in Milano-land: Pinocchio’s Personal Tour of Fuorisalone During the Salone del Mobile

As announced last week: April is, for sure, a very interesting month in Milan- when the entire city warms up after a long and cold winter.  So it shouldn’t be a surprise for you to know that I too am coming out of hybernation and am nearly delerious sometimes from lack of sleep because I’m living the moment and taking it all in, even if I still need and love my beauty sleep.

If the first week of the month was all about contemporary art, museums and galleries, it lived only to set the stage for the second week, which is the most important one.  A week when every night and in nearly every area of town there’s a blossoming of parties, expos and a lot of people around from all over the world…

The “Salone del Mobile” week, it’s one of the most loved events in Milan! The main event is the Furniture Fair. It’s one of the biggest in the world and brings the latest creations and “news” about design, furniture and what I call “home-art” in general to Milan! But, if all this stays in the big Fair area, what happens in town is even more interesting. Milan becomes a furniture fair in all its areas: Tortona is full open air design expos and parties all around, and even other areas are now becoming more and more “design-forward!” Furniture shops stay open until late and they offer special views of their insides and often free drinks! There are expos and design-related events everyday almost everywhere for a week. The entire world is represented, so it’s a great time to get out, have fun and meet new people. Especially since everyone, and I do mean everyone, floods the streets to see what happens outside the Fair for what’s come to be better known as “Fuori Salone,” literally meaning outside the fair. I must say that I didn’t go inside the Fair, but what I saw outside was really awesome!

One of the events of the Fuori Salone was organized by the Marc by Marc Jacobs shop in Brera (still one of my favorite spots in Milan), where Danish artist and designer Nina Tolstrup in collaboration with 19 Geek Street and Marc Jacobs, presented her expo Ricreare: Life After Catwalk to celebrate Marc by Marc Jacobs official launch of the Re Imagined collection. It is a wonderful chair and furniture collection created with fabrics of previous Marc by Marc Jacobs’ collections as exposed in the shop windows.

What I loved about it was the central importance given to the values of craft, up-cycling and sustainability: “Re Imagined is a project born out of an understanding of the importance of resourcefulness. It builds upon the designer’s interest in usefulness and re-using the existing, and speaks of her ability to see potential in the overlooked and forgotten.” (more at www.re-imagined.co.uk)

Soul Sunday with KNAGUI: Tell the DJ to Put a Nickel on the Needle Because It’s Record Store Day 2013

When I was in college, I learned about Sweetest Day from a girl I was dating.  She explained it to me as “Valentine’s Day for guys.”  …Yeah; never heard of it before… But it was cool because it was my day to be catered to.

Since then, more and more “days” seem to find their way on the calendar.  Some are really cool and thoughtful like Earthday (which is tomorrow), Honesty Day (April 30th) or funny like Talk Like A Pirate Day.  But then there are the ridiculas ones like Lost Sock Memorial Day and If Pets Had Thumbs Day.  These days there seems to be a day for everything.

Well on ThrusDAY I heard about the upcoming DAY for SaturDAY and it was… Record Store DAY… YEAAAAA!  …No really, yea!!!  I immediately reaching out to The Ladybug to ask her if she knew about it (because she knows everything)- low and behold; she didn’t!

In short, the idea of the day is to (and this is me adding my two cents to the “definition”) go to a local “Mom & Pop Shop” and support/learn about some grass-roots movement music. …And with my beloved Ultrasone Signature Pro headphones in tow, that’s exactly what I did!

Bill’s is quite possibly the largest of Dallas’ local independent record stores, but I didn’t have the time to go there and to Good Records on Lower Greenville so I made a decision to go see my good friends at Good Records.

Good Records is a cozy shop with a wide range of new and used vinyl & CDs.  They also have a small stage for artist showcases.  I first leaned of this shop when I graduated from Jarvis and moved to Denton.  I used to go into Deep Elum often and the store was there.  It was the “home” of a group called The Polyphonic Spree.  I remember seeing other Dallas based groups there and just chillin’ in “my element.”

My visit was pretty early in the afternoon, but I still had a chance to meet some cool people, eat a little treat by Sugar Derby and flick through a few hangers of clothes on The Vintage Mobile.

To backtrack a bit: that relationship didn’t survive the 8 months between the elaborate Valentine’s Dream Den of Love Day a brotha spent a month of work-study pay on and this contrived promissory Sweetest Day… but now I have Record Store Day.  And this “Music Lovers’ Christmas” may only come around once a year, but the cool thing is: you can have as many of them throughout the year as little heart desires!  As a matter of fact, I encourage it!  And to help, here are a few cool apps:

The Vinyl District to check in and inform a community of music enthusiasts of the 5 double-U’s
Vinyl Tap to add some of that classic click & pop
iCrates for a butt-load of information (from collector pricing to liner notes)
Band of the Day is a great way to put new artists on your radar

Oh, I almost forgot: you know I couldn’t walk away without buying something…
I found these two albums to satiate my inner “Blatalian.”

See you “next Sunday.”

[photo credit: Stephanie Hays]

The Ladybug’s Artistic Buds Bloom in Milan: Visiting the MiArt Fair 2013

April is, by definition, one of the busiest month in Milan’s cultural and artistic background: the feeling that the city is waking up from a grey and cold winter is not only a weather-related concept; spring comes in April and with the sun blooms the most interesting and involving events in town.

As for the first Sunday of sun, I was curious to visit the MiArt which as the biggest and most known of Milan’s art fairs was celebrating its 18^th birthday. I read a lot about it on the Internet and newspapers. It seems that this last edition was defined as the most successful one. More than 137 galleries from 15 different countries exposed their art and the new “layout” of the Fair deserved important comparisons with the Paris’ FIAC or the famous Art Basel in Switzerland.

MiArt is a great opportunity to find and buy art, but it’s not only about the commercial side of art. It’s also a true expo for visitors not interested in buying but just, as I was, in looking for what was new and interesting on the artistic scene. From paintings to sculptures, from new emerging design to old classics, MiArt was definitely a very interesting way to spend a Sunday with my friends!

I picked here a couple of my favorites, including a beautiful Basquiat painting that was for sure my favorite “find” of the fair! Jean-Michel Basquiat was probably one of the most celebrated artists of the fair from the most innovative artists exposed there… how could I not love it?

As it happens often in Milan, especially for big events, the main event is often related to a chain of other events in town: many galleries and museums offered special events and were often open until very late during the days of the Fair. The Museo del Novecento, the Fondazione Prada, the Hangar, the Triennale, the Pac were just a few of the many that participated in the related events with expos, talks and interviews with artists and curators, live art, design and much more.

The Fondazione Trussardi was part of the event, with a kind of “after-party” (called here dopo-fiera): every night during the fair a real festival was on at the Teatro Arsenale with music, live art, experimental shows, DJ sets and much more.

One of the biggest components of the MiArt was its technological support: from “Miartalks,” a new platform created  for conferences with interviews and talks via the mobile app. This year was one of the most multi-media driven of the fairs, where artistic and technological innovations were the only keys to open Milan’s heart!

The Ladybug Takes London…Again pt. 1: Peregrinating The Pop Up Vintage Fair at Old Spitalfields Market

It has been a bit more than a year since one of my best blogger experiences: the Pop Up Vintage Fair in Hampstead, London, happened.

When I say best blogger experience, I don’t only mean the fact that I loved being there- the stallers, the finds, the whole vintage fair thing, but mostly I’m referring to the personal part of it. I met wonderful people who are now my vintage BFFs and who are a beautiful part of my real life: I met Maxine, Daisy and Salina there for the first time last year and our friendship has been growing since then!

Daisy and Salina came to Milan in September and we keep sharing not only our love for vintage (and cakes!) but also our personal life events and feelings.

We decided that it was time for another London reunion and we took the occasion of another amazing Pop Up Vintage Fairs to make it happen. We picked up the Saturday fair at Old Spitalfields, one of my favorite markets from my London years, and one of the most iconic London markets ever, the weekend before last.

I flew to London on a Friday night and on Saturday morning we were ready for the big event! After a bit of shopping with Daisy at Traffic People in the market area (good excuse to dry off from the rain while waiting for Salina!… Btw; aren’t those flats and headscarf lovely?? And on sale!!) and a quick brunch at the Giraffe in Old Spitalfields, we were ready to start the shopping and to meet Maxine!

The reunion was amazing and nearly everyone in the market felt the energy from the excitement that we shared! It was time for laughing, shopping, cakes (not only Salina brought her amazing freshly baked red velvet ones, but we stood at the Flavourtown stall for a while, trying all their amazing cupcakes! This Guinness and Bailey’s St. Paddy’s edition was to die for!), a lot of fun and pictures!

I liked a lot the idea of mixing the typical Old Spitalfileds’ market stalls with the vintage stalls from the Pop Vintage Fairs: it was an occasion to cross-pollinate the beautiful buyers and sellers of mainstream and handcraft designers markets with the amazing world of vintage.

We did a lot of shopping and I found some new interesting “faces:” I bought a lovely ring from Leyla Cemal (www.leylacemal.com) and I am still upset that I haven’t bought some more handmade jewels from her (for example a lovely skull necklace that I’ll try to get from her site soon!) because her creations were really lovely.

Also, as I often do when I go to London- especially at the Pop Up Vintage Fairs, I decided to offer my hair a vintage treat by getting some awesome victory rolls from Candypout! Roxana did a great job with my hair and I really decided that I have to try making victory rolls myself!

When the fair closed we were still hungry for shopping, so we decided to head to Collectif in the market area. If you’ve never heard about it, you should definitely have a look because its ’50s inspired pin up clothing is really lovely! Salina tried on half of the shop (the other half was modeled by Daisy and I!). I left with this lovely Pan Am inspired red hat that I’m sure my SoS will love!

Still thirsty for shopping; we moved to the near Brick Lane, one of the best vintage areas in London, where the shops were closing and leaving space to thousands of Indian restaurants!

We still managed to find Rokit open and I bought this lovely red daisy dress!

On the way home, Daisy and I stopped for our usual fish and chips dinner- even if we were tempted to have a sadity meal with Salina at Poppies in Hanbury Street… a retro-American inspired fish and chips restaurant with a real vintage jukebox and 1950s styled waitress uniforms!

For the day I wore a pencil skirt and white shirt from Zara, with my vintage fur, my brogues from Shoegasm in NYC, Max & Co messenger bag and a the funniest handmade bow tie from Bizzaria (www.bizzaria.com).

If you want to attend one of Maxine’s wonderful Pop Up Vintage Fairs in London, visit (and like!) their facebook page: www.facebook.com/popupvintagefairs and get all the information you need.

The Ladybug’s Lessons For a Better You: Releasing My Burlesque Goddess with Miss Polly Rae

You may know now that I am a very curious girl. I enjoy new experiences and since I am in Milan I must say that the occasions to do something new and different have increased incredibly.

In the last few weeks I have been looking for a couple of new things to try… like yoga, or burlesque! I had been looking around until I found this very interesting advert on Facebook from the Voodoo de Luxe Agency and the burlesque teacher Milena Bisacco in Milan. It was about a two-hour workshop in Milan with… Miss Polly Rae!

I am sure many of you have already heard of her… She is one of the most talented and influential burlesque artists in the UK and when I saw her name I understood that I really needed to go there for my maiden voyage into the burlesque world! Since she was in Milan for the show Les Follies Burlesque, she was invited, for the first time, to give a short clinic on burlesque.

Milena was a wonderful host, and Miss Polly Rae was absolutely amazing! Not only is she a wonderful performer, but she is a lovely, funny and prepared teacher.

I had the chance to talk with her before the class started, about her great hairdo, her experiences and about the fact that I was a complete beginner with very poor self–confidence… a desperate case! If burlesque was about feeling fabulous and sexy I was probably the most challenging pupil in the room! I let you imagine my face when I realized that I was the only “burlesque virgin”! I felt completely out of place for a moment, but let me tell you that Miss Polly Rae did a great job even with me! After a short presentation about what she does (she is one of the most appreciated burlesque performers in the West End in London and her show “The Hurly Burly” has been touring with huge success)  and what she thinks of burlesque (every woman should try it, not only because it is sexy but mostly because it helps releasing the funny, silly, fabulous woman that is inside of us), she promised to give us two hours of real fun!

She also encouraged us to feel free, to let ourselves go, to really enjoy our bodies and our femininity with no worry about the others in the room: that was the only way for us to get what we paid for!

I decided then to follow her advice and enjoyed myself (literally!) for real: from simple burlesque tips (like eye contact, facial expression, isolating body movements and removing gloves… loved that part!) to the secrets of tease, shimming and bump and grind… those two hours passed by very quickly and with more fun than expected!

I managed to let my fears fly away and I started enjoying watching myself in the mirror and feeling great in my skin. Is it a miracle? No, just a burlesque class!

And here we are, after the class… thank you Miss Polly Rae… it was much more than dancing and routines… and you are such an inspiration!

The Ladybug Jilts Milan Fashion Week to Play the Field in Rome pt. 2: Never “Off-Sides” in the Game of Vintage!

I must be honest, the main reason why I left Milan during the Fashion Week for Rome was not related to vintage at all.  It was for a sporting event… more precisely, rugby!

I know this may surprise you in many ways, but I am a very sporty gal! Not only do I like participating, but I’m also a big game watcher. I love the smoky pubs with a lot of beer to watch football or many other games!

Being Italian, I can’t deny that I am a soccer lover- even if I am a big fan of Chelsea!! I know, don’t ask… it must come from the time that I’ve spent in London! But when I was a teenager I used to play rugby, probably only to mark a difference compared to all the other girlie girls who preferred volleyball!

Since then, even if I don’t play anymore, I enjoy watching rugby and I must confess that in the last few years, due to the increasing success of the Italian rugby team, many Italians are more and more interested in this sport.

When some friends of mine from Naples called me to invite me to join them in Rome to watch the Italy vs. Wales rugby match for the Six Nation Competition at the Olympic Stadium, I accepted enthusiastically! Of course, it was also an occasion to browse the vintage areas in Rome!

But before getting some information on the vintage side, I went online to know more about the Six Nations Championship and I found out that it is a very vintage event!

This European rugby competition among Italy, Ireland, France, England, Wales and Scotland began in 1883, but it was called Home Nations (involving only Scotland, England, Ireland and Wales). In 1910 it became the Five Nations Competition and in 2000 it became what we see today.

The Olympic Stadium (proof of the increasing love of Italians for rugby!) was almost full; even if there were a lot of Walsh supporters who came to see their team, it was the first time for me and I was really pleased and surprised about the completely different atmosphere from a soccer match: not only is hate completely banned, but it seemed to me that the atmosphere was more like an internationally painted party, inside and outside the Stadium! A sort of funny playful scrum!

For sure I can tell you that I spent an afternoon full of beer, fun and testosterone (I can’t tell you how greatly shaped those players are!!), even if we miserably lost against Wales, the current title holders.

Soul Sunday with KNAGUI: Happy NAMM Year!!!

Every year for four days in January, I take an incredible and exhausting trip to California for NAMM.

NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants) is America’s largest music trade show, and it’s poised at the top of the year to showcase what most companies will roll out as their newest and most innovative products.  I’m always excited to see the latest of the latest and even more excited to make some great deal or relationship for the artists that I represent.

This year while on post during a couple of Mark’s performances, I noticed a booth that I’ve seen years prior, but this time I couldn’t stop looking at it.  I told the Ladybug about a month ago that I’m so much more aware of vintage and vintage things now that she’s turned me on to it as a lifestyle.  So based on my fixation on this booth, I decided to compose a post that would showcase some of the vintage inspired ideas found at this year’s NAMM.

I’ll begin at what was the beginning for me… The Souldier booth.

The booth was mad busy and the owner; although she acknowledged me and posed for a photo wasn’t able to talk, so I simply asked for some lit and went on my quest (since I changed the entire idea of this year’s first SSwK post completely in 13 seconds) to gather photos and information.  She asked me to come back to talk and maybe she wouldn’t be so busy.

You won’t believe all of the vintage inspired things you’d see here in this “music geek cave” of innovation, but there was a lot and I didn’t even scratch the surface.

First I came up on and amp and effects pedals company called Burriss.  Robert Burriss had some beautiful gear.  In talking with him, I learned that he has been in the repair business for many years… working on some of the greatest equipment ever (a lot of which is now considered vintage).  His line is inspired from the coolest things he came to know and love in vintage equipment.  He’s been hand building his line of amps since 1995. One of his greatest passions behind his brand is the desire that someone build heirloom worthy devices that are well priced.

I also checked out Vintage Vibe pianos.  These keyboards pay homage to the Fender Rhodes.  Very well built and super sexy!!!

Guitars are plentiful at NAMM, but earlier in the day I couldn’t help stopping by Italia Guitars to see in person what I’d salivated over in print.  And can I tell you, they are BEAUTIFUL!

There was also Jay K. Co. guitar strap company and Gretsch, which is one of the oldest drum & guitar companies out there. This year they are celebrating 130 of being in business and one of the artist who endorses their guitars is a wonderful vintage expression artist named Lynda Kay.  I love the photos on her site… and the music is good too.  And I can’t forget about Ayin Aleph, whom I actually shot while she was playing yesterday because of her slick vintage look.

On the basement level of the convention center, you’ll find many of the acoustic stringed instruments and the pure genius (this product will be your grandchild’s new hotness), along with the completely obscure… and that was the case with the Wheelharp for Antiquity Music by Jon Jones & Sons.  No one playing on it knew how to play it, so I won’t say anything about the sound, but it looked interesting.

There was also this string of booths that seemed to all be strung together like a chain of analog modular synth scientists sons’ bedrooms with a “Keep Out” sign on the door.

Also downstairs I witnessed the musical mind of Don Lewis with LEO. “WOW” is all I can really say.

There was even a company there selling a product that was designed to speed up the “vintage process” by aging the tone of your instrument called Tone Rite.

But by far my best and most friendly “vintage find” of the day was the inspiration that sparked this post.  With tired legs and mind that were asking my body to walk out of the door, my heart returned me to the Souldier booth which was still in high hustle.  I took advantage of the wait by taking in the array of products and a seat in an open chair.

I watched, in admiration, Jennifer Tabor (company founder and President) and her trusted staff sell strap after strap to everyone in their full booth.  She moved nearly 30 to a guy before my very eyes.

When we finally got a chance to sit down to talk, I learned that the company is based on the west side of Chicago (Ukraine Village) and it was started 7 years ago.  She simply made a few gifts using seat-belt material and vintage fabrics for the guys in her band, each one receiving something to fit their different personalities.  They encouraged her to make more to sell at their gigs and it quickly grew from being something you could only get at a show on a weekend night to merchandise sold in 200 stores within a year.  …And did I mention that she was teaching at the time?  She’s a cellist who taught kindergarten – 8th grade orchestra for ten years.

Jennifer has taken the time to find old non-existent fabrics from the ’60s & ’70s and put them back in demand by creating products that are chic and reminiscently recent. Something I found intriguing is that for her, the word “vintage” was nearly a bad word regarding a certain demographic of her customers. This is why she uses the term “original fabrics” for her Rock n’ Roll Lifestyle brand.

Since I had a chance to talk with Ms. Tabor about her business, I figured I’d ask The Ladybug’s famous question… “What does vintage mean to you?”
It’s funny how this question can sometimes stop people in their vintage tracks, but Jennifer pulled through with a very nice response. “Vintage is my childhood… It’s what we’re drawn to as adults (for example: the things we like now that we didn’t like then) because they bring warms memories from our childhood.  It also has to be offset by 20 – 30 years [so none of my childhood memories are vintage yet... they're just "original"].”

I had my eye on this bag… I loved it so much that I picked it up and put it on.  I wanted to buy it!!! So I opened it up to find out what was in it to make it so heavy… “Umm, somebody left their stuff in my new bag.”  I guess that would have worked if it wasn’t the president’s bag. LOL

See you “next Sunday!”

To see more great pix and videos detailing my experience at NAMM, visit my facebook page: www.facebook.com/knagui