Sydney's best pin up shop is coming to Brisbane and this Saturday is the Grand Opening of the Chermside store! Your One Stop PinUp Shop is opening a second shop in Chermside, on Gympie Road, just a couple of minutes walk from Westfield!

LOOK AT ME I'M ON A POSTER!

There will be free makeovers by The Lindy Charm School, gorgeous pinup model Miss Elixir Black will be signing prints and there will be lucky door prizes from the ladies of Galmatic.

Cruzin Magazine will be in attendence so you never know if you'll end up in the pages of a glossy magazine and Masterchef contestant Danielle Dixon will be bringing along her divine petit fours and mini cupcakes! There'll also be HUGE sale prices and some cool cars. And yep, you guessed it - little ol me will be there too!

This is an event not to be missed - I hope to see you there! Or not, you know...to keep all the cheap pretty dresses for me.

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My brother-in-law showed this to me yesterday and I cried as I read it. I warn you now, it’s a very sad story but it spreads such an important message that I had to share it. I know it’s a bit long but PLEASE read it to the end, it’s SUCH an important message.

When I was a puppy I entertained you with my antics and made you laugh. You called me your child and despite the number of chewed shoes and a couple of murdered throw pillows, I became your best friend. Whenever I was ‘bad’ you’d shake your finger at me and ask “How could you?” – but then you’d relent and roll me over for a belly rub. My housebreaking took a little longer than expected because you were terribly busy, but we worked on that together.

I remember those nights of nuzzling you in bed and listening to your confidences and secret dreams and I believed that life could not be any more perfect. We went for long walks and runs in the park, car rides and stops for ice cream (I only got the cone because “ice cream is bad for dogs” you said) and I took long naps in the sun waiting for you to come home at the end of the day.

Gradually you began spending more time at work and on your career, and more time searching for a human mate. I waited for you patiently, comforted you through your heartbreaks and disappointments, never chided you about bad decisions and romped with glee at your homecomings and when you fell in love. She, now your wife, is not a ‘dog person’ – still I welcomed her into our home, tried to show her affection and obeyed her. I was happy because you were happy.

Then the human babies came along and I shared your excitement. I was fascinated by their pinkness, how they smelled, and I wanted to mother them too. Only she and you worried that I might hurt them, and I spent most of my time banished to another room or to a dog crate. Oh, how I wanted to love them, but I became a ‘prisoner of love’.

As they began to grow, I became their friend. They clung to my fur and pulled themselves up on wobbly legs, poked fingers in my eyes, investigated my ears and gave me kisses on my nose. I loved everything about them and their touch, because your touch was now so infrequent, and I would have defended them with my life if need be. I would sneak into their beds and listen to their worries and secret dreams and together we waited for the sound of your car in the driveway.

There had been a time when others asked you if you had a dog, that you produced a photo of me from your wallet and told them stories about me. These past few years you just answered “yes” and changed the subject. I had gone from being ‘your dog’ to ‘just a dog’ and you resented every expenditure on my behalf.

Now you have a career opportunity in another city and you and they will be moving to an apartment that does not allow pets. You’ve made the right decision for your ‘family’ but there was a time when I was your only family. I was excited about the car ride until we arrived at the animal shelter. It smelled of dogs and cats, of fear and of hopelessness.

You filled out the paperwork and said “I know you will find a good home for her”. They shrugged and gave you a pained look. They understand the realities facing a middle-aged dog, even one with ‘papers’. You had to pry your son’s fingers loose from my collar as he screamed “No, Daddy! Please don’t let them take my dog!” and I worried about him and what lessons you had just taught him about friendship and loyalty, about love and responsibility and about respect for all life. You gave me a goodbye pat on the head, avoided my eyes and politely refused to take my collar and leash with you. You had a deadline to meet and now, I have one too.

They are as attentive to us here in the shelter as their busy schedules will allow. They feed us of course, but I lost my appetite days ago. At first, whenever anyone passed by my pen I rushed to the front hoping it was you, that you had changed your mind, that this was all a bad dream…or I hoped it would at least be someone who cared, anyone who might save me. When I realised I could not compete with the frolicking attention of happy puppies, oblivious to their fate, I retreated to a far corner and waited.

I heard her footsteps as she came for me at the end of the day and I padded along the aisle after her to a separate room. A blissfully quiet room. She placed me on the table and rubbed my ears and told me not to worry. My heart pounded in anticipation of what was to come, but there was also a sense of relief. The prisoner of love had run out of days. As is my nature, I was more concerned about her.

The burden which she bears weighs heavily on her and I know that, the same way I knew your every mood. She gently placed a tourniquet around my foreleg as a tear ran down her cheek. I licked her hand in the same way I used to comfort you so many years ago. She expertly slid the hypodermic needle into my vein. As I felt the sting and the cool liquid coursing through my body I lay down sleepily, looked into her kind eyes and murmured “How could you?”

Perhaps because she understood my dog speak she said, “I’m so sorry”. She hugged me and hurriedly explained it was her job to make sure I went to a better place, where I wouldn’t be ignored or abused or abandoned or have to fend for myself. A place of love and light so very different from this earthly place. And with my last bit of energy, I tried to convey to her with a thump of my tail that my ‘how could you?’ was not directed at her. It was you, My Beloved Master, I was thinking of. I will think of you and wait for you forever.

May everyone in your life continue to show you so much loyalty.

- Jim Willis, 2011

This is the composite story of millions of formerly owned pets who die in animal shelters each year. One of the main reasons dogs are abandoned is lack of information and knowledge prospective buyers have.

Another reason is because owners fail to obedience train or have unrealistic expectations of their pet. So please, make sure you know enough about the breed’s basic characteristics, temperament, requirements and basic training before buying that cute little puppy that will eventually grow into an adult dog.

Bringing home a pet is a lifelong responsibility and commitment, please make sure you consider this before buying or adopting.

While Roland, Oliver, David and Martin of Mars Attacks were in Australia for Garterbelts & Gasoline, I caught up with Martin to get the low down on all things out of this world.

Sheri Bomb: Is this your first time in Australia?

Martin Telfser: Yes! For all of us! That’s why I didn’t want to miss the chance for some sightseeing before the shows.

SB: What are you most looking forward to about your visit down under?

MT: To play here for an audience that probably never seen us ‘live’ before, and also to see what the scene is like over here.

SB: How did the band first form?

MT: Back in 1998, all of us had bands we played in, but we were all looking for something exciting, new, fresh...something like "wild and authentic rockabilly". A much overused term just a bit later, so we just call it "outer space rockabilly" now, since we have many influences and many original songs.

SB: Do you have a favorite album out of the five you’ve released?

MT: Mmm, always the latest I guess ! That's "Recaptured!" Though I like all albums :)

SB: How do the songs on ‘Follow Me!’ differ from your older material?

MT: There’s some faster material on it, and it's probably the opposite album to its predecessor "Circle of Love" which was more relaxed, and -from the recording- "cleaner" than the sometimes tube overdriven "Follow Me" album.

SB: Where do you draw your influences from?

MT: Well, different influences for all of us; speaking of myself, my main influences are guitar players like Grady Martin, Scotty Moore and Carl Perkins.

Roland likes Elvis a lot, and David is influenced a lot by Jazz players like Buddy Rich and  Gene Krupa.

As a band, I guess we all like stuff like Johnny Burnette and Carl Perkins’ music but there’s a lot more than that.



SB: What is your songwriting and recording process like?

MT: We are lucky to have three songwriters in the band. Sometimes we just write what crosses our minds, and sometimes it’s more focused, for example the ‘Circle of Love’ album was more a concept album or "Nice Mr. Heavyweight", which I wrote for a friend by request.

For the recording process we usually only have one or maximum two weekends to record. All released records so far were recorded live in the studio with nearly no overdubs. Usually we used some vintage gear and on most records everything is recorded on two track tape recorders in mono. Until 2010, we recorded in the Blue Lake Recording Studio, after that with Little Big Beat.

SB: In April of 2011 you released a 26-track compilation of re-recorded tracks - what makes this record different?

MT: It’s the first time we re-recorded stuff, and I think the songs are now really sounding the way we sound live. It felt good to play material we were familiar with and it was the first time in a different studio and with a new engineer.

The ‘Recaptured’ idea was born, because our very first label didn’t reprint the first two albums, and also an EP. So we took the songs from that period (1999-2003) that we liked the most, added two bonus songs, and had a 26 track album!

SB: What do you think sets you apart from other bands in your genre?

MT: I think the songwriting, the live shows, the trumpet...well maybe that’s a question that should be answered by the audience...come out to our shows and judge for yourself!

SB: You’ve had your songs featured in the movie ‘Zombies From Outer Space’ – what was this process like?

MT: It was actually very easy, because we’d just been to the studio for the Recaptured record and there was no other recording date in sight and no time to write and record a song for them, so we gave them a song from that record ‘Rocket in the Sky’.

SB: Do you have a lot of support back home? Where are you finding your music is most popular and does this surprise you?

MT: We are actually playing a lot out of our home countries Austria and Switzerland. Not because there’s a lack of support, more due to their size. We toured most of Europe and the USA so it’s very hard to pick a favourite....with a good crowd we always have fun on stage!

SB: What has been the highlight of your music career?

MT: Hmm...every good show is a highlight! But of course we very much liked festivals like the Rockabilly Rave UK, High Rockabilly Spain and Green Bay USA.

SB: You guys have been playing together for almost 15 years now, what’s your secret to a long and successful band relationship?

MT: Regarding both success and band relationship: I think we always kept it interesting. We constantly had new goals, wrote new material, had new countries to conquer and constantly released new CDs. I also think we worked hard to constantly improve.

SB: If the band had not been successful, what do you think you would be doing instead?

MT: Even though we all actually still have day jobs, there’s nothing else we could imagine doing. Even if the band hadn’t been successful I think we would still all play this kind of music.

SB: What do you hope the future holds for you guys?

MT: We just recorded a new album, should be released later in 2012 on a new label and we hope it’s gonna lift us up a bit...we wrote some nice songs for it, and will play some of them on this tour already.


Keep your eyes on these guys, it was great to be introduced to their music at Garterbelts & Gasoline and as I can vouch from being front and centre, THEY ROCKED! I'm really looking forward to the new album and hope that Mars Attacks makes it back to Australian shores real soon!

'It's not where you take things from,

 it's where you take them to'

- Jean-Luc Godard

But lets start with which brands I love and make up my wardrobe...

Brands

Hell Bunny

A little bit cute a little bit evil, this brand is renowned for its cute and kitschy prints on retro and lolita inspired shapes. Offering a few key styles to choose from, find the perfect one to suit your body type and get it in a huge range of colour, trim and fabric choices for the perfect fit and look everytime.

Heartbreaker

Made with love and no regrets, the name says it all really! You'll be breaking hearts wherever you go in the classic shapes and sweet tones and textures of these made to order fashions all designed and manufactured in-house to ensure quality, durability and a true representation of 50s, 60s and vintage fashions.

Collectif

40s and 50s vintage inspired pin up style and alternative clothing with the London look. Flared and fitted dresses, tops, skirts, playsuits, jackets, coats and accessories are all available in quality fabrics designed to flatter your assets and hide your imperfections in a range of vibrant colours and prints.

Pin Up Girl Clothing

Specialists in the highest quality vintage inspired fashion, shoes and accessories for women of every size! Their original designs are cut to flatter your curves and make you look as beautiful as you feel, at prices to fit every budget. Word to the wise, there's no vanity sizing here ladies so if you're in between sizes, in most cases you'd do well to take the size up.

Bernie Dexter

Make up artist come pin up model come vintage enthusiast come fashion designer, Bernie has created her very own range of women's fashion proudly made in the USA to cater for the pin up princess inside all of us. Dresses, skirts, tops, pants, rompers and more are all available to drool over. Again, size up if you're in between.

Stop Staring

They won't be able to in these threads! Creating clothing inspired by original vintage and retro chic to flatter, embrace and celebrate the female form, these dresses and separates cater for timeless and classic styles at a mid-range price point. Created by a true vintage lover, fine attention to detail results in beautiful retro-contemporary fashion.

Bettie Page

Giving you the opportunity to recreate the style and look of this 50s icon and pin up queen, Bettie Page dresses and separates are made from rich, quality fabrics and stay true to the classic vintage styles with an eye for detail and the perfect finishing touches at a reasonable price point.

And where can you get all these amazing frocks from?

Stockists

Hoola Hoop Classic Clothing

Tattooed Zombie Accessories

Your One Stop Pin Up Shop

Currently based in Sydney there is also a shop opening up in Brisbane in just 2 weeks!! That's music to my ears but if you can't make it to either store the Facebook page has plenty of great deals on men and women's clothing, swimsuits and accessories. I can't wait to check out the new Brisbane store!

Punkabilly Dolls

Gasoline Queen

Ruff N Ready

Faster Pussycat

Atomic Cherry

Bluebird Retro Rags

MisKonduct Klothing

Created BY a dame who loves to wear pretty dresses FOR dames who like to wear pretty dresses! Based in Newcastle you can shop in store if you're lucky enough to be local or shop online from anywhere else. Locals are also spoiled by the uniqiue 'My Dressing Parlour' option of booking an appointment only session to shop, try, be fitted and styled in a gorgeous private room.  

So there you have it! All my favourite repro brands and where you can get them from. There is a lot of fun to be had with repro clothing and fellas, I'm sorry I've only covered brands for the ladies but check out those stockists too as most of them cater for you as well!

At the moment I'm all about high waisted shorts, capris and pants at the moment...so many colours and styles that I want! Perhaps I'll spoil myself a little in a few weeks for my birthday ;)

So, what repro are you lusting after?

Asking for something. At times it can be difficult. Help. Support. Charity. Affection. Ask and you shall receive. Or so they say.

But is it wrong to not want to always have to ask? To want that thing you need to just be given to you? Granted people aren't mind readers, but sometimes things can mean so much more unprompted.

Is it unfair to hope someone would just know, just do?

It's not like you blame these people, feel as though they SHOULD know and do. But this little part of you, just quietly secretly hopes that they will pick up on something. A tone. A gesture. And suddenly it all becomes clear.

Of course that's what they need. Here I come to their rescue.

It might not even be a 'thing' you need. Just a chance. An open line of communication. The opportunity to purge emotions. Like a big deep exhale. Releasing those inner feelings, sending them on their way into the breeze.

You and them, both now free.

Sometimes there's things you want to say but you don't know how to start or bringing it up is difficult. Start a conversation with someone today. Despite how things may seem, not everyone can be strong all the time. Make sure you're not expecting them to be.

Make sure you're not expecting yourself to be.

On Saturday I had a very fun morning taking my big sister to get her very first tattoo. She’s wanted one for a while now, especially as she saw me getting more and more over time. But even she admits that she’s a total wuss and it was her abject fear of pain that had been holding her back.

After talking about it for a long time, asking me lots of questions and umming and ahhing over the design, she finally summoned the courage to get it done. She decided on a Celtic tree of life, a dedication to a very close friend who has passed and a symbol of her love for my brother-in-law.

This was her 'trying not to freak out' face

Not really my style of tattoo, I respect the meaning behind it. Not normally Mimsy’s style either, she did us both a big favour by agreeing to tattoo it. Afterall, I think Mimsy is the only tattoo artist who would have been willing to put up with my sister! :P

Aside from being terrified that she’d cry or wouldn’t be able to keep still or wouldn’t be able to handle the pain and would end up with a half-finished tattoo, she mustered up the courage to attend her appointment on Saturday (although I did take her there – there was no getting away!)

Mimsy gettin it done

I’d like to say she was brave…well, she managed to get it finished so that’s something I guess! It was a real roller coaster ride of emotions as she blinked back tears as it came time for the moment of truth where needle was to pierce skin (just breathe).

Which quickly turned to shock as she realised it didn’t hurt near as much as she thought it would (told you so) to constant yelps of pain as the calligraphy style of the design called for a thicker needle (that’s the one I get ALL mine done with ya big sook) to complete and utter relief and pride when it was all over (sorry for laughing at you so much, at least I didn’t post the sneaky video I recorded)

In the end, it's ALWAYS worth the pain

She was equally better than I thought she’d be and worse than I thought she’d be at times and Mimsy was extremely nice and very patient (and probably very glad it was a small and simple tattoo!) Even though she didn’t handle it with quite as much restraint as I had expected, I’m so proud of her for facing her fears to get something she really wanted.

Seriously though, this is the same girl who shaved her head for a cure a few years ago! Now THAT takes balls…I could NEVER do that! So I guess we’re even(ish) in the chicken stakes.