Miss Subways

Many of us love beauty contest!  And the Miss America and Miss Universe are the most popular ones that we all know about. But in New York there was a beauty contest that was truly unique for that city in particular. The name of that beauty competition was "Miss Subways!" Isn't that swell!

To be eligible for the contest, a woman had to be a New York City resident and ride the subway herself. The winners were usually chosen by telephone-based voting, from among a group of contenders whose photos were all placed on the subways. The woman who was accorded the title "Miss Subways" appeared on posters placed on New York City Subway trains, along with a brief description of her.

This beauty contest which ran from 1941 to 1976 saw a reflection of the evolving role of the all time American girl. For instance from 1952 to 1962, the contest featured schoolteachers, stewardesses and suburban housewives. However for the next 10 years saw secretaries and airplane pilots.





For the past five years photographer Fiona Gardner has spent tracking down the women in the posters and traveled across the U.S. to photograph 41 Miss Subways.

Her book Meet Miss Subways: New York's Beauty Queens 1941-1976 is being featured as an exhibition at The New York City Transit Museum. The exhibition will be on until March 25th 2013.

For more information about the exhibition visit: The New York City Transit Museum.






Copyright © 2008-2012. Time Warp Wives. A Retrotimes Productions Website. All Rights Reserved. Research Information: Research: Euronews, Wikipedia, The New York Transit Museum, Barnes & Noble, and Fiona Gardner's website. Video from Youtube.

Monet's Garden / The New York Botanical Garden

Monet, right, in his garden at Giverny in 1922.

Claude Monet's nature paintings are known all over world for its colorful palette and dreamy scenery. And if you love this artist beautiful paintings you are going to love what The New York Botanical Garden has in display.

Yes, for the very first time at the botanical garden you will get a chance not only to see some of Monet's paintings but you will also have the great opportunity to walk through a breathtaking replica of Monet's own garden!

What a wonderful opportunity to bask in nature through the eyes of this renown artist and enjoy the simple and beautiful things of life!

Monet's Garden exhibition started May 19, 2012 and will continue through October 21, 2012 at The New York Botanical Garden.







Copyright © 2008-2012. Time Warp Wives. A Retrotimes Productions Website. All Rights Reserved. Research Information: The New York Botanical Garden, ARTINFO video from Youtube, and Wikipedia.

Jane Austen’s Turquoise Ring Up For Auction!

"My dear Caroline. The enclosed ring once belonged to your Aunt Jane. It was given to me by your Aunt Cassandra as soon as she knew that I was engaged to your uncle. I bequeath it to you. God bless you!"

This note was written by Jane's sister-in-law, Eleanor Austen, to her niece, Caroline Austen, in November 1863. The ring was given to Eleanor by Jane's sister Cassandra.

The beautiful  oval shaped  turquoise and gold ring that once belonged to Jane Austen came directly from her own family is being auctioned, along with the note,  in London on July 10,2012 by Sotheby's for a handsome amount of around 20,000 pounds to 30,000 pounds (about $31,000 to $46,000). We could only dream!

This story, I might add has become so fascinating! Is like reading a page straight from one of Jane Austen's own novel.

The intriguing part of the story is who gave the ring to Jane Austen in the first place?

Well, Dr. Gabriel Heaton, who is Sotheby's literature expert said there has been much speculation about who gave Jane the ring.

"We took it to Dublin and showed it to people there, and a lot of people were saying it must have been given to Jane by her Irish lover, Tom Lefroy." Lefroy was the "Irish friend" of whom Austen wrote to her sister Cassandra: "Imagine to yourself everything most profligate and shocking in the way of dancing and sitting down together."

It has been thought that Tom Lefroy could be the origin for the character of Mr. Darcy. This story get's more interesting by the minute!

Dr. Heaton is more inclined to believe that the ring was given to Jane by her brother Henry. "The ring is in a box fashioned by a goldsmith in the City of London, and Henry worked as a banker there so would have been in the right place and had the money to buy it," he said.

Perhaps we will never really know who gave the ring to Jane Austen.
At the end it would be interesting to own though a piece of history from one of the world's most popular and talented novelist.






Copyright © 2008-2012. Time Warp Wives. A Retrotimes Productions Website. All Rights Reserved. Research Information: Guardian and Yahoo News.

Photographs of the Month: Nicole Kidman in WMagazine

WMagazine will be featuring both Nicole Kidman and Clive Owen in their May 2012 issue. These gorgeous photographs of Nicole are so beautiful that I had to share them with you!

Nicole is wearing an Oscar de la Renta silver pleated lamé mousseline gown. Van Cleef & Arpels platinum, pearl, and diamond necklace; Tiffany & Co. platinum and diamond bracelet; Neiman Marcus for Forevermark platinum and diamond ring.


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Here Nicole is wearing a Carolina Herrera white and black embroidered silk organza dress. Dior black and beige straw coat. Tom Ford sunglasses; vintage Halston scarf; Marni bag; Carolina Amato gloves; Falke hosiery; Louis Vuitton shoes.


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And in this last photo Nicole has on a Rochas off-white silk organza dress. J.Crew off-white cashmere cardigan. Van Cleef & Arpels 18k yellow gold and diamond necklace; Seaman Schepps 18k yellow gold and pearl bracelet, Neil Lane Jewelry 18k gold and diamond bangle (from top); Harry Winston platinum and 18k yellow gold and yellow diamond ring; Carolina Amato gloves.

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Besides her stylish outfits and accesories. I love what her hair stylist did with her hair, which really completed that retro 60's look. I think I am ready for a new hair cut myself!

Nicole was styled by Arianne Phillips
And all these Photographs are all by Emma Summerton.



Copyright © 2008-2012. Time Warp Wives. A Retrotimes Productions Website. All Rights Reserved. Research Information: WMagazine.

100th Anniversary of The Titanic/ Movies, Books, & Exhibitions

On April 15, 1912 marks the 100th Anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. Like many of you I have been fascinated by the Titanic story. I have always wanted to find out more about what really happened to this luxurious ship. And I especially wanted to learn more of those who survived the Titanic and those that lost their lives that day.

The New York Herald Newspaper April 16, 1912

For seven decades many expeditions were made to locate the infamous Titanic ship but they were all unsuccessful. Finally in 1985, explorer Bob Ballard and a French-American team located this luxurious vessel after much painstaking research and hard work. These men have brought back a bit of the history of the Titanic to the surface for all of us to explore.


This is a photograph of Violet Jessop who was an ocean liner stewardess. She happened to be working in the Titanic when it sank. What is amazing about Violet's story is that she not only survived the Titanic, but she  also survived the sister ship the Britannic when it sank in 1916. At that time Violet was working as a nurse during World War One.

Violet happened to also be working on the Olympic in 1911 when it collided with the old protected cruiser HMS Hawke off the Isle of Wight.

Friedrich Nietzsche once said: "That which does not kill us makes us stronger."

Violet had a remarkable life despite the experiences she had on the rough seas.

Below are several personal items that belonged to some of the passengers, This exhibition is from the Titanic The Experience Museum located in Orlando, Florida.

All Things Titanic

Now that the 100th Anniversary of the Titanic is here there are movies, books, and exhibition about the Titanic that are quite fascinating and very informative.

Movies:

*Titanic (1997 film).

*Titanic (2012 Miniseries) Now coming to ABC on April 14 to April 15 2012.

Books:

* Titanic Survivor, a memoir by Violet Jessop.

* Titanic in Photographs, by Daniel Klistorner.

* A Night To Remember, by Walter Lord. (First published in 1955. Great reviews. Needs some updating since new information about Titanic came to light).

Exhibitions:

 * The Titanic Museum in  Indian Orchard, Massachusetts.

*  Titanic Museum in Branson, Missouri & Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.

* Titanic The Experience in Orlando, Florida.

* Titanic Belfast in Ireland.

* Southampton’s Titanic Story at The SeaCity Museum in Southampton,Uk.

Music:

* Titanic Requiem: Robin Gibb and RJ Gibb with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, commemorating the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. (Don't Cry Alone is one of the most beautiful songs that I have ever heard).

 Fashion:

* Past & Present Creations: Outfits inspired by the movie Titanic.

* Titanic Stories: Titanic Fashion.



Copyright © 2008-2012. Time Warp Wives. A Retrotimes Productions Website. All Rights Reserved. Research Information:Wikipedia.  RMS TITANIC, INC. Titanic Historical Society.

A Retro Twist on Social Media

You no doubt have heard of: Twitter, Facebook, and Skype. Even if you are in or not into these types of modern communications you are most likely familiar with what they offer.

What if these tools were offered back in the old days. How would they have been promoted? Well these swell retro posters from the most popular social media sites could give us an idea how.

                                                           Twitter
                             The Sublime, mighty community with just 140 letters!

A virtual reality with a wide assortment of people. That's Twitter! A notorious new mechanism that lets you  maintain virtual contact with family and friends no matter where they are. By following or being followed, you will enjoy previously unimagined privileges like sharing incredible amounts of information including videos, photographs, etc. Twitter is a truly magnificent tool!

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                                                          Facebook
                                        Striking, miraculous social team-up!

Share abundantly your photographs, experiences and stories with your friends and families. For leisure or labor Facebook is the enhancement "next look" in social team-ups. Eloquent economical and modern examples of communication adequate for our times.




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                                                               Skype
                        The fabulous voice system able to put your family together.

Skype has the finest quality for you and your relatives to communicate via internet. The healthiest, and most economical and secure way to keep vigorous family bonds miles away. It's more than a telephone. It's a real audio-visual miracle that will put you in contact with a brand new world.




Copyright © 2008-2012. Time Warp Wives. A Retrotimes Productions Website. All Rights Reserved. Research Information: Promotional Retro Posters by Twitter, Facebook, and Skype.

The Two Faces of Modern Technology

Mark Davids The True Gentleman

The past century was known as the birth of modern technology. We have come a long way since the telegraph, silent movies, and steam engines. When we thought that we have seen it all we have been struck again by an explosion of modern technology and innovation beyond our wildest dreams.

The internet has no doubt been one of the most important invention of the 21st Century. Some believe that the internet will one day replace television.

And what about the cell phones? You can call, check your emails, text message, surf the internet, and take a picture all from a cell phone. Who would have thought that this little gadget would have change the way we communicate with the world around us.

Some of us can't live without these modern conveniences. One such person is Paul Hek. This self-proclaimed tech junkie can't live without his modern gadgets. On the other hand Mark Davids believes that a lot of people are being controlled by modern technology.

What do you think?

Find out more about the two faces of modern technology:


 




Copyright © 2008-2012. Time Warp Wives. A Retrotimes Productions Website. All Rights Reserved. Video: The Whole Story from Youtube. Picture Source: Mark Davids Flickr's Photostream

Retro News: 19th Century Dress Unearthed by Builders

Emma Lloyd, 13, wearing the Victorian dress found by a builder

While renovating a cottage in the City of Sunderland, England near the Penshaw Monument a builder unearthed a 19th Century dress that might have belonged to Lady Lambton.

You can imagine how excited Fawn Cheyne was when the builder brought into her vintage shop the box which contained the dress, along with two matching jackets, and a leather-bond photo album, which by the way shows an image of Lady Lambton wearing what seems to be the same dress.

When Fawn first saw the dress she thought that it was absolutely fabulous. She also pointed out that the dress was in immaculate condition. She added, "I just can’t believe that someone had thrown it away. The dress has so much history – it belongs in a museum. You couldn’t put a price on it.”

Since the news spread about the dress, many museums and theatre producers have shown interest in this historic dress. But Fawn has no interest in selling the dress. At this time the dress is on the window display inside her Ding Dong Vintage shop for everyone to enjoy.


Copyright © 2008-2012. Time Warp Wives. A Retrotimes Productions Website. All Rights Reserved. Research Information and Photos: The Northern Eco & the Journal Live.