Volkswagen Westfalia Campers

This is a cliche but nevermind, a Westfalia is a real cult object.

This is a cliche but nevermind. A Westfalia is a real cult object.

Hippies used it in the late 1960’s and early 70’s to go “on the road” and to realize the aphorism Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg and the other beatniks taught them.

Westfalias have been made by Volkswagen and converted camper vans since 1951. Early models were built until 1967, then Volkswagen introduced the bay window in the 1968 model.

The old model is sometimes called a “Kombi”.

Ray-Ban Wayfarer sunglasses

80’s model

Wayfarer sunglasses are an object that pactically never left the fashion history of the second part of the 20th century. They were designed by Raymond Stegeman in 1952. The new shape was revolutionary, very different of the classical models at that time. It has been especially famous during the fifties ans the sixties but there has been a revival in the eighties and the 2000’s. Wayfarers are still considered as fashionnable.

These sunglasses have known a huge popularity, in particular among celebrities, including Madonna, Michael Jackson, Elvis Costello, Blondie, Johnny Marr, Jack Nicholson and others.

Zippo

Zippo Manufacturing Company was founded in 1932 and its first lighter was made in 1933. It is refillable with petrol, so the flame does not light off. Thousands of different styles and designs have been created since its birth and thousands of imitations too.

A legend says the zippo was invented during the Vietnam war, so as the Marines could light a cigarette while holding their M-16. What is sure to be true is that, during the World War II, all the manufacturing was dedicated to the U.S. military.

The classical model

Another famous thing about Zippos is the way to open it. There are hundreds of ways to do it and people who own one often liketo show youhow they are incredible magicians…

This is not a matter of smoking! Ok, maybe it will be a bit less useful if you don’t smoke. But a Zippo is originally a matter of style, just like the Borsalino.

Borsalino

In the 1930’s, gangsters knew how to recognize the other crooks : they wore a Borsalino on their head. This is an Italian brand (created by Giuseppe Borsalino) of hat made of rabbit fur, made for the first time in 1857.

A film entitled Borsalino was released in 1970, starring Alain Delon and Jean-Paul Belmondo and dealing with bands of bandits in Marseille.

This is a luxury object, worn by Micheal Jackson, Peter Doherty, Alain Delon or Johnny Depp.

Record player

The less the sound is compressed, the better it will get. For instance, a mp3 format song suffered lots of compressions. Much more than a CD, which was much more compressed than a vinyl, which is, obviously, so very much more compressed than a live show.

But unless having the money to make play any artist or a personal orchestra in your living-room whenever you want, the best way to listen to quality sounding music is to possess a record-player.

Detractors are quite predictable : “You can’t listen to your music everywhere you go”, “You can’t switch from one song to another”, “You have to change the sides”, “This is so troublesome”. And this very precise thing seems to be commonly accepted : “Do you realize? You have to pay for music!!”

Alright. First, to make live artists and so let them create, they will need money. Simple as that. And nobody would like to work as hard as some of them do without being able to lead a decent life. About the other arguments, music, like everything, is way nicer when you don’t get around with it everywhere, everytime, with anybody. Listening to an entire record, from the beginning to the end is, in fact, the real and only way to understand and feel pertinently the work that it is.

Vinyls are fashionnable again, more and more stores sell classic rock, pop, indie, jazz, rap, afrobeat music etc… And technology can satisfy everybody, some new record players can transfer the songs of a disc to a computer

Vinyls are, without any doubt, the best way to listen to records at home.

Neil Young agrees.

Harley-Davidson Sportster

Last year, on my way walking to the highschool, every morning I saw a Harley-Davidson Sportster parked at the same place. And each day, seeing the machine, I dreamt of riding it over miles and miles across cities and countryside, just like a kid. Moreover, this was just the last object I needed to complete the look I got with my brand new perfecto jacket. And this motorcycle is not the cliche you would think about when you hear “Harley-Davidson”. But the incredible intermediary between sobriety and sophistication, retro and modern, sporty and city-looking.

One day, going to the same place and crossing the same road, I saw its owner start up the engine. I was just blown away, I caught a deep, low and agressive sound in my ears that gave the desire to leave to make trips through infinite deserts, dark forests, immaculate seasides…

Instant camera (Polaroid)

What makes vintage an object is obviously the fact that it is old but fashionable. But the reason why it still exists after years and years is definitely its charm. This leads to instant cameras, beacause of its way of creating an atmosphere, thanks to the specific tons of colour that appear on the photograph that comes out of the device.

Polaroid One Step

The firm Polaroid Corporation gave her name to the most popular self-developing film. But the invention of the first modern instant camera is credited to Edwin Land.

Perfecto jacket

The Ramones in 1976

Here is one of the most famous pieces of clothing ever made. It has a great history and is still worn today, being a reflection of personality of anybody who possess one.

Let’s begin by telling from where this object comes from. First, Perfecto is a registered trademark under the property of SCHOTT BROS., the very well known American clothing brand, who created the jacket in 1928. It was the first real leather, tear-proof jacket especially made for bikers. Its style has changed over the decades and so every different model has got his proper name : 613, 618, Beck 333 Northeaster, 118. The 613 and 618 Perfectos have been produced for more than fifty years and are the archetypal vintage objects that are difficult to find today. The style of this jacket is imitated by lots of other brands, that is why, in the common opinion, a Perfecto is more a style of jacket than a unique model.

Everybody saw someone wearing a Perfecto. At least once in his life. Because it has been an element of culture since it was created for motorcyclists, who are themselves an important component of American culture. But it really became famous when Marlon Brando wore a 613 Perfecto in the 1953 movie The Wild One. In parallel with the bikers, the Perfecto is a symbol of rock’n’roll way of life, maybe known as much as Elvis Presley (who wore Perfectos too). Still in rock music, it became the object that could not be ignored in the punk movement : The Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Ramones were rarely seen without it ; as if the rule was Perfecto or naked. Today, the double style leather jacket is still a strong representation of counterculture even if some brands imitate it, making it more and more generic.

Perfecto was the name of the Cuban cigars smoked by Irving Schott.

Hello world!

Welcome to WordPress.com. After you read this, you should delete and write your own post, with a new title above. Or hit Add New on the left (of the admin dashboard) to start a fresh post.

Here are some suggestions for your first post.

1. You can find new ideas for what to blog about by reading the Daily Post.
2. Add PressThis to your browser. It creates a new blog post for you about any interesting  page you read on the web.
3. Make some changes to this page, and then hit preview on the right. You can always preview any post or edit it before you share it to the world.