Today's New Item Additions:

Just uploaded - Brand new handbag styles from Lux De Ville:



Also, keep an eye out for new Eldorado club jewelry in coordinating styles, coming later this week!

Sailor Jerry for Guys & Gals

So, I've finally gotten through the nearly 1000 images shot by Octavio on the 18th, and edited them down to 100 images or so. And the new Sailor Jerry collection is finally up on the site!



Daniel and Angelique did an amazing job. I am really happy with the way these shots turned out!



We just received a bunch more Sailor Jerry stuff, so I think we'll be shooting again really soon.

New Additions - July 4th

I've never been a big fan of the 4th of July holiday - too many loud noises. So, I thought I'd try to make a dent in the mountain of work (I'm only a third of the way through the nearly 1000 images shot by Octavio that I spoke about in the post, below) that needs to be done, and upload some new shoes!



Yay, Shoes!




Now, I'll add some more hair flowers, and some nifty wallets and flasks from Mobtown. So keep and eye out for those!

Teaser from the Sunday shoot with Octavio:

Models Angelique and Daniel, Shot by Octavio at Saints & Sinners



We shot brand new stuff from Ed Hardy, Sailor Jerry, and Beauty Fiend. Angeligue and Daniel are both amazing models, and the photos turned out awesome!

But don't expect to see them up on the site for at least two weeks - Octavio shot almost 1000 frames, and I need to spend this week and next editing them down and resizing the final pics.

Once we've got all of the new items added, I'll post a notification here!

Of thongs, invite only parties and secret Mexicans; the Vegas lingerie show

I'm in Vegas with Laura, her husband John and our
friend Tony. We're shopping for panties and interesting clubwear as well as saying hi to established suppliers. We're staying at a big suite at
Mandaly Bay, in a tower overlooking the Strip. We feel
quite swank with it all. We have marble tubs and TV sets seem to be on every flat surface and wall. There are 5 in our suite. We're overlooking the entire Strip and it really is beautiful in a very loud glowing way.

We take a cab to the Rio and I am scolded by the cabby for not giving him a 100% tip. I come really close to losing my shit but decide to just go and enjoy the show.

The show being held at Rio is quite appropriate as the show is a
damn carnival. Naked, half naked, feathers, whips, panties and strap-ons. It is not for the timid. It is loosely organized into areas of toys and
paraphenalia and areas of clothing. It is not a huge show, having only about one hundred vendors, so we walk it all.

In toys we see art glass dildos from Phallix like a
Venetian glass blower's wet dream near booths selling
firehose length rubber two headed dildos that look, and are about as appealing, as rubber novelty dogshit. We suck on lolli-cocks and toss the lube samples into our show bags. Tony drools over the roses made of black feathers. I like the bikini made of the same candy they use to make candy neckalces but we all
agree that you would get sticky.

In clothing high end silk lingerie mingles with
stockings that go to an 8X. An 8X? There is no human
alive and capable of having sex that wears an 8X and I
suddenly fear for the livestock of America. Then I
fear for myself because I can think of such a thing.

Buyers ask if the boots will fit a male calf as well
as a female because drag queens need a perfect fit
too. Light up shoes with dice embedded 8 inch platforms
catch your eye until you notice the ones with glitter
filled liquid, like a snowglobe. Audibly tan models
pose with their asses hanging out of badly constructed
underwear, smiling thinly at the innuendo laced
comments of the male buyers.

We find excellent club wear. We find dresses that are fresh and interesting. J. Valentine has big puffy outfits with hearts that will make strippers look like elves, always an excellent thing. We see the rainbow Brite costume in person; Laura does not like it but I tell her she has to order it. We're not the target market for it but those crazy kids will like it. All of the things we wind up buying will sell like crazy but Rainbow Brite will wind up being a runaway seller
at Halloween.

We also find stupidity. Someone who Laura had advised about the clothing business has repaid her by copying her clothes and by hiring the same photographers and
models. She has done her best to copy it but she still gets it all wrong. The shoes are off, the props are from the wrong era and almost all of the clothing is
bad.

We stop by the booth and we are cattily sweet "Ohmigoodness. Look at this! Just like the dress you did two years ago." Tony and John practically blush at
how over the top we are in being nice in that bitchy way women have. We deconstruct the catalogue as we walk away. It's crap. It's crap in a way that only a
purist would understand but Laura's customers are purists.

Laura explains that she is not mad that the clothing is almost identical to her previous seasons. She had told the woman what photographer she used. SHe gave her advice of all kinds.

What gets her is that she specifically asked her not to use the same model
for at least a year so it would not look so similar. She didn't listen and made a point of getting that model. The catalogue just makes us realize that imitation may be the most sincere form of flattery but you should try to at least imitate it well.

This is a much smaller show than the gift show but it is draining in a
different way. There is a weird undercurrent to lingerie and the spin-off world of porn and sex toys. Anyone can carry a purse but how will the sexy pirate
costume look on a woman who is not 5'10 with ass cheeks as big as a clenched man's fist?

There is also more after hours fun planned than at the
LA gift show. This is Vegas-the ads say that we have to get
wild and crazy and it all stays here. Invites are
being thrown about, plans to meet in bars and rumours
abound about the party ... we had better go find Anwar.

How to describe Anwar? Joyous letch springs to mind.
He delights in seeing how far he can go with you but
would probably die of shock if someone took him up on
his offers. Then he would come back to life to take
you up on it. He tells us that Mike is throwing a
party. Mike is a very tall burly guy with long blonde
hair who is strutting the show in full lingerie clad
drag. His nails are as impeccably manicured as mine.
Laura chats with him and we make plans to go to his
party.

We get there fairly early and the party is already
packed.There are guards in the halls checking our
creds out: who exactly do we know? We squeeze in-the
suite has so many people crammed in it that I can feel
the floor move. We walk through, noting the sex hobby
horse device and the bondage set up and have just
noticed the girl on the couch with no pants when the
party is over. It's been less than a half hour.

We quickly discover that what happens in Vegas stays
in Vegas because nothing actually happens inVegas. It
is all sound and fury signifying nothing-parties are
shut down quickly by casinos intent on keeping you in
their bars and on their gambling floors. The house
always wins.

We go down to the lobby. Everyone is in the lobby
intent on making something happen but nothing does. We
get a drink and watch half the bar try to pick up Penn
Gillette of Penn & Teller. He and I make eye contact
in the way that really tall people do. I say I think
he is cute and someone next to me tells me he is
really into bondage. So not my thing; I sigh and we decide to go.

We get into the cab and ask the cabbie to take us to a
liquor store. We go in, leaving the meter running, and
buy booze. We get back into the cab and continue our
conversation with our driver. I am in the front; the
others are in the back.

Our previously pleasant and normal chatty driver begins to talk
about the changes in Vegas while we are stuck on the
Strip. He blames it all on the damn Mexicans. I stifle
a laugh and make eye contact via the rear view mirror with Laura.
Laura begins to egg him on by answering everything he
says with "Damn Mexicans." He says that they paint
their houses like Easter eggs and take all the jobs.
Laura continues to echo him, asking him about the
colors, while John and Tony busily poke her in the
ribs. For the record John is half Mexican/half Dutch
and Tony is half Mexican/half Apache. We're beaneros or beanero lovers all.

We finally get to the hotel and tip less well than we
would have if he had not turned into a racist. As I
get out of the cab I look at the driver and say
"Mexicans. Secret Mexicans."and I point at them. I
see something dawn in his eyes and I think he flushes.
I hope he flushes.

Laura and I leave early the next day to go to the show
and to finish placing orders while John and Tony try
to go to the aquarium in Mandalay Bay. We try to get
on the road early but fail . Our reward is to promptly
get stuck in a 5 hour traffic jam due to a big
accident. We put the car in park on the freeway and
doze.

The teddy bears have flower heads; a series on the fun to be had at trade shows!

By now you now know that Laura is the founder of PinUpgirlClothing.com. It says so right here. She founded the company about 7 years ago and has worked like a woman possessed to make it into what it is today: a standard bearer for all things pinup, the kawaii and the kakooii.

Laura started by making dance wear at clubs. As she expanded her designs and scope with PUG, she decided to specialize in something that she loved; the pin-up.

We heart pin ups. We’ve been collecting them and emulating them for years. I purchased my first one in 1984, an Elvgren print, when I was still in high school. Back thenI ran around in angora sweaters and patterned capri pants with vintage purses and neon earrings and cellophaned hair. Laura had a skinhead’s crew and danced on stage at CBGB’s with ska bands. Her vintage style came later when she worked as an artist’s model and posed and performed burlesque with tassels and wigs and big feather boas. We met in 1988 and had sympatico styles from the start; people often mistook us for sisters. We ran around NYC in vintage dresses, tatty bowling shirts, big shoes and fishnets and generally enjoyed the hell out of ourselves.

Our shared style eventually led us to share a business. About 12 years ago, we had the precursor to the alt-chick strippers and pinups of today. Our LA based company was Girl’s Night Out. Our dancers wore vintage lingerie and clothing, were tattooed and edgier looking overall than the dancers of the time. We would get it if you asked up for Louise Brooks as Lulu or wanted a Russ Meyers vixen. We catered specifically to a gay and alternative clientle and they loved how the dancers looked.

Flash forward to 2003 GNO is gone, too far ahead of its time, gone before lesbian chic hit the world like a ton of hot pink bricks. Laura and I had been out of touch for a few years. I am on-line looking for thigh high garter belt stockings and I come on to an excellent website, a website that feels oddly familiar. I notice dresses named after people I used to know and I see things that hook me visually. I look for a name. I find it and see that is my long lost girl. I e-mail her and we fall into a conversation about design as soon as we catch up with the missing years.

I went to her store and I saw the pin-ups we bought together a decade earlier, the autographed Tempest Storm photo from a long ago Eroticon. I see her work with an excellent photographer, Octavio Arizala of Winky Tiki Pin-Ups, to create modern twists on old ideas. Ideas began flooding my head and we began to talk using a shorthand of shared experience and design knowledge.

Shortly after, I attend my first trade show.

Until you go to a trade show, any trade show, you really have no idea how much crap there is avaible to the average American consumer. I see you disagreeing. You say “I’ve been in malls. I shop teh internets. I know.”

You do not.

I have used up easily a week’s worth of vacationeach year for the past 3 years attending these things, slogging down aisles full of some of the most hideous things you have ever seen to help bring you the gems. It is a cross I bear gladly and stylishly.

My first show was the LA gift show held at the LA convention center. It is utterly massive, with several halls packed with things.

We get our ID badges, after a grueling line and interaggation process. Many shows have the public trying to get in, often by using a friend’s resale number. This is often a waste of time for the vendors. These people are not looking to buy for a store; they just want wholesale prices. They can actually cause something of a log jam in the halls. They are unfamiliar with the process and try to buy this and that, often creating minor scenes when they are told of minimums or the need to buy a case of a thing. Show organizers attempt to keep this element, this riff raff, out by asking for pay stubs and business cards. We talk my way in there and take the escaltor to the main hall.

Picture the warehouse from the end of the first Indiana Jones movie but fill it with rhinestones, bobble heads, art glass and logos as far as the eye can see.
Now imagine 5 halls like this and you get an idea of the size of it. The first hall dazzles me. I see the stunning art glass of Correia art glass next to a booth specailizing in fancy menorahs and mezzuzahs; they both face a wall of rhinestone encrusted purses. Laura looks at me and smirks “Yeah. It is amazing isn’t it?” I nod, already raring to go and see it all.

We decide to be orderly and start on one side and work to the far side. As a rule of thumb,you do not have to do the entire show because you might not really sell a certain thing as a rule. The flip side of this is that you might miss the perfect thing for your customer base because someone might be in the wrong area. We opt for thorough.

We start to walk the show and it settles into a fast routine.
.
We both look ahead and scan booths and suddenly tug at each other.

“3rd booth up, the earrings. The pink ones!”

“Left side. The purses shaped like voodoo drums with grass fringes.”

I quickly pick up Laura’s lead. She goes in and looks and I answer all the annoying sales questions and try to keep the sales people from annoying her. This is easier said than done, even for me.

“Hi. Where are you ladies from? Have you been in business long? What do you sell? Have you seen this; it’s our top seller.” Repeat this several dozen times and you begin to understand why buyers do not make eye contact with the sales people. I have a better ability to deal with the annoying sales patter from my job. I let Laura focus but occasionally pick a thing up and hand it to her or point while I schmooze.

The best part happens when a booth is spot on, perfect in aesthetics and style. Lucky Loo Loo is one such booth. We see them and squeal like idiots and run over. We begin to pass things back and forth, while throwing compliments to the startled owners.

“This! With the polka-dotted dress!”

“Totally. Shoot it on a blonde with an updo, so you get the detail.”

“Look. She’s got it displayed on a vintage turntable like mine. So cute!”

Laura orders pretty much everything they have. The owners are beaming. They have an order that will pay for much of their show costs and heaps of praise for their merchandise. Show vendors may be using all their energy and capital to get to these shows. If they fail to sell, they may not get another chance. This is one of their first shows and their vision is confirmed, backed up with a signed business deal that is the kiss of fortune

We might walk past a booth and be appalled at the contents only to hear the same squeals we just made at Lucky Loo Loo as a delighted buyer descends. There is truly something for everything. I admire some purses and Laura tells me that the supplier has shafted her before, taking her order and then not delivering or even calling to explain why they are not filling the order. We take the chance and place an order; months will go by and they will repeat their error.

We walk and buy, walk and buy. We stop for overpriced sandwiches with wilted lettuce. We gripe about the cost but have no problem paying for the equally pricey beer. We know the fuel we need. We organize paperwork into gimme swag bags and discuss what we still need to find. Laura cannot believe how much she has bought but I am convinced it is all good. It all clicked with us.

The orders will begin to arrive over the next few weeks and prove us right. Lucky Loo Loo is hugely popular. The art stationary flies out of the store. My taste is confirmed as being road trip worthy enough to go to the lingerie show in Las Vegas.

Next week: lingerie show in Vegas, baby.

Photo Shoot!!!!

I am very excited!

Sunday, we shoot photos with Octavio - and that's always a good time!





Here, we see Octavio showing us his leopard print silk boxers - as if there was any doubt to his underwear choices.



Anyhoo, Octavio is awesome and takes awesome photos and we love him.

One of my favorite things about Octavio is how he will get a model to do a certain pose by demonstrating it himself, first. Which means I get to see him straddle the hood of a car with his butt sticking out while he makes a kissy-face, and to be honset, there's literally nothing more entertaining than that. Nothing.

This Sunday, we're going to be shooting a whole mess of Sailor Jerry clothing, as well as some brand new Steady and Ed Hardy with our favorite guy model Daniel, and a brand new female model, who will have to be a surprise for you guys, because we're keeping her under wraps - we want her all to ourselves for at least a couple of weeks! She's just that awesome.

Well, that's it for today, but stay tuned - we will have a guest blogger over the weekend to regale you with tales of trade show fun!

New Stuff - Added June 15th

Hello Everyone,

Just got finished adding a few new things to the site.

Like Some fabulous chrome ID/Cigarette Cases from Mobtown:




We also have belt buckles, necklaces, keychains, lighters, wallets, and flasks in coordinating designs for all of the Mobtown ID cases. The complete collection will be one the site by the end of this week.



We also just added awesome rock & roll bracelets made from genuine vintage buttons:




I totally had that button in 7th Grade. Sigh...I'm old.



And last but not least, we've got two fantastic cotton hoodies from Dragonfly:




Coming Soon: More hair flowers from The Diva Pinup and new Eldorado Club and Classic Hardware necklaces and bracelets

Private Sales, Shoe Shows, and Halloween

So, right now we've got a private sale going on. It's going on until June 16th. All of the people who know about the private sale have a fabulous code they're entering at checkout to get 20% off their entire purchase.

"How do I get to participate in this private sale!!!??" you ask?

Simple - sign up for the newsletter. We send it out only once a month. And each month, we give you a sale code that lasts for three or four days, generally.

So, if you haven't signed up for the newsletter yet, you have, sadly, missed this month's sale. But - there'll be another sale in July!

If you're worrying that you'll give us your email address only to be inundated with spam emails from us - don't worry. Hell, you're lucky we get around to sending a newsletter once a month! We have to put notes on the calender here at the office - "Send Newsletter!!!!"

Honestly - we're too damned busy to spam you.


In Other News:

My assistant Tiffany and I went to a shoe show today. Shoe shows are the best thing ever. Shoes as far as the eye can see - and you buy 'em by the dozen!!!

I love shoe shows because they carry no "shopping guilt" for me. Everything we buy there - actually, everything we order; everything ships later - is for the site, so I don't feel bad about purchasing too much!

But, I have trained myself to follow the "hundred percent" rule. This applies to everything we buy to sell on the site, actually. If we're not "100%" - if we don't absolutely love it - we don't buy it.

Are the straps/trim/heel wrong? Rejected! Are the polka dots not quite right? No sale!!

We've found that if we break the Hundred Percent Rule, we pay for it later - as we watch the items collect dust on our shelves. So, it's 100% - or nothing!!

We went to the Jeffrey Campbell booth and tried to order more of these shoes, but alas! They are no more!!!




We were very sad. Thank God I grabbed a pair for myself before my size ran out!!




In Even More News

You crazy people are already ordering Halloween costumes! Oh My God!!!!!

I guess I should explain.

I have Halloween Season Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

I don't mean to cheapen this condition for people who have actual PTSD, but holy crap. You guys would not believe what happens here during the Halloween season.

On one hand, we love Halloween. Why? Because we sell costumes like mad. And who doesn't love selling stuff like mad?

But, being the owner, that means that when we get loads of orders, and everyone starts working overtime to make sure we ship everything on schedule, I show up and work the night shift, usually for 16-20 hour stretches.

It sucks, but it needs to be done. I've done it for three years running, and I'm pretty sure I'll do it this year, too.

"Why don't you hire more people??" you ask. Well, we do. And each year, we get more orders than we dreamed we would, and we all end up working like monkeys on speed for 6 weeks straight.

And each year, people start buying earlier and earlier.

Now, I actually prefer that customers buy costumes in June and July. It's a fabulous wonderful thing! You're assured that your choice is in stock, and that you'll get it before Halloween. Believe me when I say it's much better then ordering a popular costume five days before Halloween, getting the "sold out" email, and flipping out. Nobody wants that. Advance planning is key for a happy Halloween.

I'm just getting a little nervous at the fact that the orders are starting so early this year. I'm still not over the trauma of last year!

But this year, we've instituted a few new bells and whistles that we think will make Halloween a lot easier for both us, and our customers. But we can't tell you what they are because we want to keep a leg up on our competition. I'm all for competition, but I won't let you copy my homework, if you know what I mean.

OK, that's it for today, I'm off to bed.

Tomorrow, I'll talk about some new stuff we'll be adding to the site soon!

Pinup Girls Clothing Brand Directory - Pinup Girl Clothing

Brand Directory: Barware Beauty Fiend Clothing BeadHead Pajamas Belt Buckles Belts Blue Q Bath & Body Products
Checkbook Covers Classic Hardware Jewelry Clubwear Creepers
Cufflinks Dickies Girl EC Star Clothing
Ed Hardy Clothing Ed Hardy Shoes Eldorado Club Jewelry Exotic Dancewear False Eyelashes & Fake Eyelashes Flip Flops & Thong Sandals
Flasks Flirty Lingerie Free Shipping Gifts For Guys Glenda Gies Purses Go-Go Boots
Hot Sauce Style Clubwear J is for Jewelry J Valentine Clubwear Jewelry
Keychains Kustom Voodoo Hair Accessories L Erickson Hair Accessories Liquor Brand Clothing Lingerie Lucky 13 Apparel Lucky LooLoo Jewelry Lucky Lou Shoes
Lux De Ville Purses Men's Clothing Mis Cositas Purses Money Clips NYX Cosmetics Oilcloth Alley Retro Aprons Pantyhose Paper Doll Productions
Pinup Couture Pinup Couture Retro Dresses Pinup Couture Retro Swimwear
Pinup Girl Clothing Pinup Girls Clothing Models Pinup Hair Accessories Platform Shoes - Chunky Heel Poison Candy Fashion Popular Naughty Tees
Punkrose Shoes Punk Tees Retro-a-go-go Jewelry
Retro Card Cases Retro Clothing
Retro Dresses Retro Shoes Retro Swimwear Retro Tee Shirts
Revamp Productions Purses Rockabilly Clothing Roma Clubwear Sailor Jerry Clothing
Sexy Halloween Costumes Sexy Lingerie Sexy Shoes Sexy Swimwear
Sheer Lingerie Shrine Clothing
Soak Bath & Body Products Socks Sourpuss Clothing
Steady Clothing Steady Men's Clothing
Stockings Stripper Shoes & Exotic Dancer Shoes Summer & Casual Shoes Sweet Romance Jewelry
Switchblade Stiletto Tattooed Steel Jewelry The Diva Pinup Hair Flowers Tokyo Bay Purses Tough Luv Clothing Trashy Diva Dresses
TUK Shoes VaVaVa Voom Hair Accessories Volatile Shoes Wallets