remember when we used to rock: pajamas @ parties.

if my memory serves me correctly, pajama parties became popular in the early 90s thanks to the release of the movie, house party 2 (1991). starring 80s/90s rappers, kid n play, play comes up with a masterplan to earn kid's tuition money back - a pajama party where men pay an entry fee and women clad in their pj's enter for free.

i will tell you every tom, dick and harry wanted to throw a pajama party after watching this movie. i wasn't quite in high school yet, but i went to at least two. during that time, dressing provacatively wasn't really our steeze. we still rocked baggie jeans and knee length shorts so no, we weren't wearing lingerie to these parties. we were innocent (ahem, clearing my throat) in flannel (ok maybe polyester) pj pants or shorts and tee shirts. nowadays, these teens ... i can't imagine what they'd rock to a pajama party. enough to make me blush, i'm sure.

check out this scene from the party with toni tony tone singing and a dance off between kid n play vs. tisha campbell (gina from martin) and her friend.

Share

h & m launches shop site.

am i late? or is this new news.

h & m has finally launched a shop site. that's pretty decent news.

http://www.hm.com/

Share

vintage tv: stevie wonder stops by sesame street.

this is classic. one of my buddies on the book posted this and it made me so happy. this first aired in april 1973, 4 years before i was born but i grew up on some sesame street. and reading rainbow. and pinwheel. remember them? shout out to pbs for that good, wholesome programming. and in my best ol' head voice: this is what kids need to be watching today! i said it like i meant it too. steve wonder and his band stop by sesame street and perform the sesame street song with his talk box. scroll to bottom of page and click the music player to mute the background music.

and as an extra bonus, here he is performing superstition on sesame street. check out the kid at about the :40 mark. he knows what good music is.

Share

vintage music: troop - spread my wings.

ahhh the 90s. the era of dance moves with names, coordinated outfits, box hair cuts, gumbies, shags, a little dippity do in your hair to make it look "good", hair cuts with designs, peroxide-dyed hair, actual music groups that repped actual r&b music without underlying wanna-be rapper motives. and so much more. all which you'll see personified in this troop video. troop definitely didn't enjoy the popularity and longevity of ronnie, bobby, ricky and mike (if i like the girl, who cares who you like ... sorry, i couldn't resist) but they made a little noise in the late 80s to early 90s. i loved spread my wings but all i do is think of you (1990) was my song. what?! i used to sing it like i meant it. and i liked i will always love you (1991), too .

yo this is what i miss about music. the genuineness of it. i know i sound like a broken stevie wonder record but you know we rep old school extra hard on this blog. i mean does r&b even exist anymore? you know what would be hot? an old school concert or award show tribute that brought out all these lesser-known 80s/90s groups who we done forgot what they looked liked. right? i'm talking troop. shai. guy. intro. h-town. hi-five. silk. let's not even get into the solo acts.

so little known fact: troop got their break when they won a talent contest on the puttin' on the hits tv show in the late 80s. who remembers puttin on the hits? i do - think along the lines of star search. another little known fact - do you know what troop sounds for? it's actually an acronym for total respect of other people. until this day, that cracks me up for some reason. it's random as heck.

check out the 1990 hit, spread my wings. this video is full of old school trends for him.

Share

halimah + jeffrey = forever. and ever.

i've told you before, i love a jeffrey campbell shoe. the guy's shoes are amazing.

these may not be for everyone but i'm loving them.

buy them here. $139.95

Share

vintage music: she works hard for the money.

shout all to all of my superwomen working hard for their mula ... my fellow lady entrepreneurs, mommies, 9-to-5'ers, bosses, government workers who are happy that the congress folks got it together to avoid a shutdown, bosses ... this donna summer, 1983, grammy-nominated classic is dedicated to all of you.

donna summer came from the 70s disco era and then went on to achieve success throughout the 80s and early 90s. she owns 5 grammy statues and has been sampled a gazillion times by some of your favorite performers.

i love these funny 80s videos. i appreciate a video with a story, these days the videos are so templated. watch:

"so you better treat her right!"

click music player at bottom of screen to mute background music.

Share

gwen does elle.

on whether lady gaga, rihanna, and katy perry have taken a page out of her playbook when it comes to style: “really? i don’t see myself in those girls. i usually put pants on. i see these girls as more going for the sex-symbol thing. i was more, in the band, like a tomboy. of course, i think every girl is sexy, so there’s going to be a little of that. but i see a lot of younger artists going more toward the sexy thing.” love her. dress is givenchy by riccardo tisci / may issue

Share

source

gordon gartelle inspired air questo 2 dunks.

yo. i never watch 106 & park. but love that i turned it on today just in time to hear questlove and jimmy fallon talking about questlove's gordon gartrelle inspired air questo 2 dunks specially designed for nike. quest said his design was inspired by the classic gordon gartrelle episode of the cosby show. in the episode, which is my favorite, denise agrees to make theo a shirt for the prom by the fictitious designer, gordon gartrelle. never seen it? what?! click here now. straight classic.

Share

photo source

remember when we used to rock: grunge.

soon after i noticed kurt cobain as a trending topic on twitter, i realized that today was the anniversary of his death. 17 years ago today, kurt cobain, lead singer of nirvana, died from a drug-induced suicide. as twitter fans remembered him, it reminded me of the anti-fashion grunge trend of the 90s. you remember? the unkempt, i-don't-give-a-%#*$ look that teens clung to back in the mid 90s. cobain epitomized grunge: his band's music was gritty and raw and he certainly didn't fuss over his clothes.

now i can only speak from my own little interpretation of grunge. i realize it may have been different from those who lived it. i didn't listen to grunge music and didn't know much about nirvana at the time other than their popular song "smells like teen spirit" that seemed to cross color lines and appeal to young blacks, too (thanks mtv). with that said, i think it's pretty safe to say that the grunge trend influenced my love for thrifting which later sparked my love for vintage.

back in the 90s, me and my girls jumped on the trend and would catch the 22 or 55 across the city to different thrift stores to pick out the grungiest levi's (the more holes the better) or tops that looked like they could have been worn by any one of the brady's. we made it look flyy. plus, thrift shopping was cheap so that definitely worked for us. although the look appealed to us, those like cobain who pioneered the look, had no intention of creating a grunge trend. grunge was just what they were. years later, you can still catch glimpses of grunge fashion. think the olsen twins. or even denise huxtable. did/do you rock grunge?

Share

while looking for images, i came across this cool blog called fashion. grunge. style. check it out.

teyana "tribal" taylor.

teyanna straight owns this tribal shoot she did for vibe magazine. werk!

Share

source

mr. big stuff.

yesssss! talk about swag. heavy d had it. he put it down for the big boys and was oh so cool. i love this video. it's why i love old school hip hop. back when it was pure and real. mr. big stuff appeared on heavy's 1987 debut album, living large. back then rappers weren't too cool to dance a little. and like a few other rappers of the 80s era, heav' had background dancers who killed the whop and every other 80s dance. i love it. this reminded me of the 80s coca-cola fashion trend. this video is full of old school fashion trends.

click on the music player at the bottom of the screen to mute the background music.

Share