Thursday, May 30, 2013

Scintillating Sears Sleepwear - Part 2

"What's this?" you ask.  "Didn't we just have a post on 70s sleepwear?"  Well yeah, but I figured that we needed some shock treatment to bring us out of the Plaid, Plaid World of last week's post and back into some kind of normalcy.  I thought some sleepwear from the Big Books would be just the ticket...

You have got to be kidding me!  More plaid!  Now with all dimensionality gone, the plaids are bleeding into other posts!  Will this plaid madness ever end!?!?!  What, oh what, will it take to snap us out of this plaid nightmare and back to our own reality?????????  Some kind of super-high-tech time machine?? A magic spell???  An elixir of unimaginable power?? What, pray tell, will end the madness????


She's got it, Yeah baby she's got it.... Wow! Kathy is a short pink nightie!  That'll do the trick.  Now hopefully that will cure us of plaids for the time being.  You've got to love the bouquet of flowers thrown in - so random.  As a bonus we also have Dottie Harris (1) is a long pink nightie and a bonus pic of her in the lower right.

Kathy and Kay with some kind of weird marionette, puppet thing going on.  As a bonus, in the small insert pic, we have all four of the K Clubbers in one shot (along with a couple of others).  Despite their dominating the catalog world during the 70s, it's actually fairly rare to find all four of them together.

Another rare pic of all four of the K Clubbers!  Colleen has got some serious 'tude going on there.  It is easy to find pics with any combination of  two or even three of them in it, but here we have another with all four (along with another model). (2)

Whimsical says it all.

A bonus pic of "Embroidered Sleepwear Coordinates".  The model on the right (top and bottom) is Pam Erikson.  The mystery model is in the middle - still haven't found out what her name is.

So it looks like the Scintillating Sears Sleepwear has dealt the Plaid, Plaid World a final death blow.  And good thing too!  After all what could be worse than plaids?

Stripes! Now the plaids themselves are fading out leaving only stripes!  At least they are monogrammed!

Say, the concept of 70s stripes is giving me some ideas..............

footnotes:

(1)  Dottie Harris had the misfortune (at least as far as this blog is concerned) of not having her name begin with a hard K sound.  Thus, while she isn't officially part of the K Club, she is an honorary member.  She, along with other honorary members, will be featured in upcoming posts.

(2) Even rarer is to find a pic where all four K Clubbers and ONLY them are in it.  Still looking for one of those!

Thursday, May 23, 2013

It's a Plaid, Plaid World!

Oh no!! Once again the writer for this Aldens page has written the title of a future internet post!  Just like with the "Hot Pants - Kicky!" post last year we are forced to come face-to-face with a time travel paradox:  the past writes to the future which then writes to the past!

Friends, have we entered an infinite loop of time causality from which never to return? (1) Well we'll see.  Perhaps the plaids (2) will help us straighten out things....

It's a Plaid, Plaid World for sure here in this Aldens internet post, errr, I mean catalog page (see what I mean!  Which is the past? Which is the future? And where, oh where, is the present in this plaid madness?  Arrggghh).  Plaid pants, plaid jacket, plaid vest, plaid skirt, yikes!  Of course it is for "Snappy Young Separates".  Huh?  Are they talking about the clothes or the people?  Oh I see!  It refers to the people who are "separates" in the sense that they are locked in a time travel loop thus "separated" from the conventional arrow of time!! (or am I reading a little too much into that?!?!).

Just in time to save us from a complete plaid slam, we can find solace in the "fake suede fun hat" that Kathy is wearing.  I'm not sure how fake suede can be considered "fun", but there it is.

Surely that is it for this plaid induced nightmare from the past, er, present, er, future?  Oh whatever...

Double Yikes!!  Now we've added plaid knit hats, plaid scarfs, even (gasp) a plaid poncho! Is the very fabric of space-time being ripped apart and plaid rushing in to fill the void?  (Maybe the criss-crossing lines of the plaid itself represents this rift in our universe!)

Kathy in the upper left pulls off the super cute look.  Is that Karen Bruun in the middle?  Can't really tell.

This plaid aided destruction of causality cannot continue!  Can it?........

Triple Yikes!!! Kay is in all plaid from head to toe.  She obviously thinks something is funny.  Hey there! You may lost in a plaid induced time loop, but here in the present, the very fabric of reality is being shredded into plaid madness.  That's nothing to laugh about!

Things are looking grim for us in the "Non-Plaid World" or what's LEFT of it!  Can it get any worse?....

Quadruple Yikes!!!!  "What's Next" this post, errh, catalog page asks.  How can they even say that?  Next to what?  The past has become the future making the present undefinable!!!! There is no "next" to even talk about!!!!  (As a bonus, check out the groovy collar on that yellow shirt!)

Let's face it folks, time (whatever that word even MEANS now) is running out for us in the real world!  We are at the end of all existence.  Is there any hope left?.......

That's it!!! Obviously the entire universe has collapsed back into an infinitesimally small point of infinite mass - void of all dimensionality!  No longer referred to as either "plaid" or "tartan", these criss-crossing lines of non-existence are now called "Cinnamon Toast N' Honey".  Huh?  Have words lost all meaning in this bizzaro alternate universe?  And how bizzaro is this brave new world?  Well for starters, Kathy is wearing a black wig!

I may have just given up any hope of finding meaning in this new Plaid, Plaid World!  Maybe, just maybe we can have one pic of Kathy and the gang in non-plaid outfits....

Nope!


footnotes:

(1) Listen everyone, I don't want the comments to delve into that whole Block Universe model (aka the eternalist model) of time versus the Augustinian model (aka the presentist model) of time debate.  I mean those arguments and counter arguements have been going on for centuries.  There's no reason to hash them out here.  Besides, obviously from the tone of this post you can tell I'm on the Block Universe side so you presentists will just have to grit your teeth and go along.  Okay! (Besides your model of time is obviously WRONG anyway).

(2) I hate to get all technical and everything, but the words "plaid" and "tartan", while often used interchanbably, actually have different meanings.  Tartan refers to the entire class of fashion while the word "plaid" is used when refering to a specific tartan pattern used by a Scottish clan.  Of course "It's a Tartan, Tartan World" wouldn't quite have the same catchy cadence so we'll let it slide this time.






Sunday, May 12, 2013

Random Weirdness Part 3: Crazy Stuff You Could Buy from a Catalog

Okay, this week we're going to do something completely different.  As you know by now, we focus on Kathy and the other K Club models and their friends.  However, now we're going to take a look at some of the other crazy things one could buy from a Big Book catalog back in the 70s besides the groovy fashions.  After all, as we'll see in this age before the internet and Walmarts, the Big Book catalogs covered EVERY aspect of consumer wants and needs.

For example...

Just imagine your neighbors turning green with envy when that big Penneys truck pulls up to your house and delivers that (wait for it, wait for it!) BRAND NEW SAILBOAT!!  (Some assembly required).  Yes, you'll be the talk of your little corner of suburbia as you head out to the lake in this babe magnet (babe not included).

Okay that is good for outdoor fun, what about the indoors, you ask?

How about "modular convertible furniture"?  I originally chose this pic because Kathy is in it (this is the Kathy Loghry blog, so I had to include at least one pic of her).  However, upon closer inspection I began to realize just how randomly weird this is to have in a catalog.  Let me explain.

You see these pieces are for "immediate seating.." (hint, hint) and come in "easy care vinyl" (beginning to get the drift).  "Convert them to loveseats, sofas, chairs, loungers - tables too" and they are the "now" furniture for "young moderns" (wink, wink, nod, nod). Once again, models are NOT included (1).  Pretty crazy if you ask me.  Like I said at the start, the Big Book catalogs covered ALL your outdoor and indoor entertainment needs.....

Speaking of randomly weird furniture...

Nothing says 70s style and class quite like inflatable furniture that looks like suede (again, model not included).  I admit that as a young lad, I always thought about outfitting my future shagadelic, groovy-baby bachelor pad in funkadelic furniture like this.  I know, I know, I dreamt big as a young lad!

Once our "young modern" couple has progressed from the carefree days of sailboats and inflatable furniture, it is time to get down to some domestic chores...

Oh how politically incorrect! A sewing machine complete with table and accessories!

But don't worry, the guy doesn't get off that easy...

A mixer! Try buying that at Walmart!  I bet he's saying "What happened to my sailboat?  Oh yea, we sold it at a garage sale".

And finally, as long as we are on domestic chores....

Yep, it starts out as a relaxing day on the JCP sailboat, but several years later it comes down to this - painting your new JCP shutters for the domicile (Yes, that is Kathy. That is about as casual of dress as you'll see her in these catalogs).  Oh well, that is the arc of life.  No need to worry, no matter what stage of life you were in - the Big Book Catalogs had you covered!


footnotes:  (yep, still got those going on)

(1) For those of you new to this site, Kathy is the model in the bottom part of picture.  Anyone know the blonde on top?  Whoops, I meant to say the blonde in the top part of the picture (Sorry about that slip up.  I guess the "modular furniture" concept has got me distracted).

Thursday, May 9, 2013

Sizzling at the Shore in Sears Swimsuits - Part 3!

Yea!  Yippee!  It's that time of the year. As the last blast of winter FINALLY gives way, it is time to FINALLY put away the winterwear (fetching examples of which we have seen earlier), and time to break out the Sears swimsuits.  Back in the 70s, Kathy and the gang showed us how to hit the beaches in the latest styles!

Summertime, and the livin's easy... Whoops, this is JCP, not Sears, and we're chillaxing (1) by the pool, not the shore.  But you have to admit these three ladies are still sizzling!  All of them have that odd stare off to their right.  Huh?!? Still the swimsuits rock!

In the summer time when the weather is high, You can chase right up and touch the sky.  When the weather's right, You got women, you got women on your mind.... Now that's more like it!  Karen, Kathy, and Colleen in Sears swimsuits and by the shore (looks a little bit of a rocky shore there).  Still these gals look great in this collection of Sears swimwear.  Colleen has a bit of that Daisy Duke look happening (2).  Kathy has the halter look going on, while Karen is in the traditional bikini.


Little surfer, little one. Made my heart come all undone ... How sweet, flowery prints!  Perfect for hitting the waves at the beach and turning heads!  Kathy has the wind in her hair and that smile that just makes you want to take up surfing (I tried it, and it is harder than it looks and it looks plenty hard!)!


Kay and Karen!  Why are they looking down and smiling?  Another one of those odd catalog poses I guess.  Also, they are not at the beach or pool.  It looks like a marina of sorts (trying to come up with a song tie-in for that, oh well).


Wow! Kay, Colleen, and Kathy (with her trademark smile) to say goodbye on this third, but far from last, look at 70s swimwear!

footnotes:

(1) Yea I picked up that word from my kids.  Now that the parents are using it, I'm sure that the word has lost its "cool" factor.

(2) Oh my, the Daisy Duke look drove many a red blooded male absolutely crazy!  Anything close to that was eye-popping!

Thursday, May 2, 2013

That's So 70s: Jumpsuits

Once again, dear readers, we boldly explore one of those odd little fashion mini-trends of the early to mid-70s: jumpsuits.  Now, mind you, when you heard the word "Jumpsuit" what do you think of?  Perhaps a military outfit like a flight suit?  Perhaps some kind of exercise gear?  Perhaps a lounge-around outfit while watching TV?  Well in this case, these were intended to be worn, well, like normal clothes?!?!  Let's check them out, shall we....

We'll start with a couple of fairly standard type jumpsuits.  In the photo above, the model on the right seems to be staring down on a diminutive Kathy (or perhaps the other model is a giant!)  Okay, okay enough about the odd posing positions of the models - back to the subject at hand.   Both jumpsuits featured here have that kind of athletic warm up suit feel, and both feature the rope belt.  Kind of standard stuff that you'd expect from the 70s.  But wait, there's more...

Pretty in Pink Part 1 (yea, there's a Part 2, no peeking!).  A jumpsuit in pink corduroy worn by Kathy! Wow, that's not something you see everyday!  I suppose this is an outfit that one is supposed to wear out on the town??  Still, it is fairly tame.  Now that we've had a mild introduction into the fashion of 70s jumpsuits, it is time to move into some of the more extreme examples of the form.


Ready to go on safari?  Kathy has just the outfit in a khaki jumpsuit complete with oversized pockets on the pants (perhaps that's where the machete goes?)!  Perfect for trips into the backcountry or just for going to the local supermarket, nothing says 70s style like this jumpsuit worn over a long sleeve shirt (check out the groovy socks as well).

But jumpsuits weren't only for outdoorsy activities.  On no, they could be formal wear as well.....


Kathy looks ready to dance the night away at the country club in that stylish jumpsuit on the left while Kay, well, while Kay, uuhhh.  I don't know what to say except that red and white outfit is really "crossing" me?!?!?  (Bad pun I know).

I have noticed that Kay often got to wear some of the more outlandish examples of 70s fashion such as....

Strolling by the pool?  Why not do it in a green jumpsuit complete with wildly oversized bell-bottoms?  Kay's outfit is one mean-green-machine that is sure to turn heads!  In fact, Colleen is looking at Kay with an expression that seems to say "You've got to be kidding me!"  The green jumpsuit is so eyecatching that you may not have noticed what the model on the left is wearing.  That's a pretty outrageous creation itself!

So Kay, how can you top that?  Oh, glad you asked.....

Pretty in Pink Part 2?  That's a whole lot of pink.  If you want to stand out in a crowd, that'll certainly do it!  Upon seeing that example of 70s jumpsuits, you'd be forced to say:  That's sooooo 70s!

One question just occurred to me.  Would one ever wear a bodysuit under a jumpsuit?  Now that could be the height of 70s fashion impracticality!

One final note.   I normally don't give hints about next week's post (thus to heighten the shock of various examples of 70s fashion).  However, this time I just can't resist.  Let's just say next week's subject is "Sizzling".