She’s blonde and light on her feet! She’s not too tall, not too small and always neat!
Classic and chic, sweet and discreet, our Danish secretary is perfectly neat.
We’ve had a bunch of new Danes in this week, but this one is a real treat.
Wow! What a day we’ve had already!
Earlier this week we sent out an alert to our S.C.VIP’S about our upcoming sale, and apparently it’s caused a bit of a frenzy.
The blogs are a-buzz with excitement for the ONLY-ONCE-A-YEAR reductions on some of our ( and YOUR) favorite pieces.
Check out the LA TIMES ( Thanks Lisa!) and Cactus Creek spreading the word.
APARTMENT THERAPY included us in their weekend sales update- so you know this place will be hopping this weekend!
And don’t worry, we’re not going out of business….WE’RE IN BUSINESS BABY!
Stop by and get the piece you’ve had your eye one before somebody else snaps it up!
The Damned United
Do yourself a favor and go see this movie! Directed by the guy who did Frost/Nixon & The Queen.
It took me right back to the 70’s North of England: Bleak, rainy, 3-day working weeks, Labour strikes, and general anarchy against Edward Heaths Tory government. The only havens left are the pub and football. This isn’t a football movie, in fact there is very little football involved. Instead it’s about blind ambition and fanatical rivalry in the head of arguably the greatest football manager ever, Brain Clough, (pronounced Cluff) and his perceived nemesis Don Revie, the then Leeds United manager.
Shot in a docu-drama reportage fashion, each shot set up like a page in the B.J.P. ( British Journal of Photography) in gritty black and white, or AGFA 6400 ASA grainy color. The director pulls out all the tricks and succeeds: you can taste the beer, smell the sweat, and hear the derivement as Clough rough-shods his way over all and sundry. But then you find out “it’s not all him”, it’s a partnership. He’s the mouth, but who’s pulling the strings?
Peter Taylor, that’s who. His job is finding new (or old ) players, working out positions and plays, and generally running the team, while Clough runs his mouth and subsequently, the show. Michael Sheen is great as Clough but Timothy Space as Peter Taylor and Colin Meaney as Don Reveie are brilliant in football jargon.
It’s a draw! “I wouldn’t say I’m the best manager, it’s just that I’m the number one manager.”, Brian Clough
No matter what kind of football you watch, kick back and relax in this Sergio Rodriguez style recliner!
- The perfect man chair!
944 Art & Architecture Issue
Glossy, black and chic, the Art & Architecture Issue of 944 magazine has hit the stands, featuring an Image section focusing on local Designing Women. No, not Mary Jo, Charlene, Suzanne and Julia, these are local Los Angeles “ladies who craft comfort and class”
And who do you suspect is smiling out at you from page 77 ? It’s Surfing Cowboys owner-ess Donna Gunther! With all the talented women in this town, we were pretty proud that they chose Donna. Known for chunky silver jewelry and a discerning eye, designers and locals have been coming to the shop for years seeking her advice and inspiration for their projects. It was pretty sweet to get this recognition amongst other talented peers.
And who inspires her? She quotes…”The greatest artists I know are those that neither paint nor sculpt, they are artists of being alive.”
There's Donna!
Oh, and of course Wayne, too.
P.S. If you want to get your hands on some great jewelry, check out the vintage collection we’ve got at the shop…
E. Granit Ring
Silver pendant necklace
Silver Cuff bracelet
Wow! If you were out and about on Abbot Kinney yesterday, you witnessed the wind wrecking havoc on our little street! Palm fronds a-flyin’, LACMA banners swinging wildly, our T-Shirts taking flight- Autumn blew into town with ferocity. I started the day in cargos and a tank, and by the end I was wearing not one, but TWO hoodies. (It’s a look, really!)
The cool(ish) weather and crispy nights have arrived, and although the rest of the world may not believe we have seasons, we know we do…it the perfect time for our new selection of gorgeous, handcrafted merino wool blankets.
If you’re not familiar with these blankets, the patterns are custom designed by a local California artist, who works with a group of craftsman in New Zealand who hand spin and dye the merino wool ( same kind as used for your favorite sweater!). The wool is then brought to a family in Oaxaca who have been passing down these weaving techniques for generations- and they bring his designs to life.
The result is a vibrantly colored, incredibly soft, generous blanket that is irresistable to the touch! So as you get chilly and you want to add a bit or warmth to your home, come see these wonderful blankets.
5 X 7 Merino wool blankets
We hear the same phrase from customers ( at least a couple times a week) that always makes us sad…and mildly confused.
” Everytime I come by, you guys are closed!”
And since we are only closed on Mondays… we figure all these folks must be sticking their sweet little noses on our plate glass windows, gazing into the shop with longing and frustration, EVERY Monday.
So, due to public demand, it will be a BLUE MONDAY NO MORE.
From here on out every Monday we are going OPEN 11:00AM- 7:00PM as per our usual hours, for your shopping, browsing, inspiration-absorbing pleasure. Hooray for Monday! Now you can visit us EVERY SINGLE DAY from 11:00-7:00. How great is that?
Two more things that will make you smile…
Fresh organic veggies from the Gunther's Garden
Original folding Z chairs, perfect for watching your garden grow
You may have noticed that Wayne and Donna’s vans have been making laps around the shop this week… and that I’ve been marching a variety of chairs, tables, bookcases, surfboards, skateboards, sculptures… everything but the kitchen sink, in our skinny little door! (Grill, yes. Kitchen sink, no.)
We’re getting ready for the BIG ONE!
That’s right! Oh yes! We love it!….
The Abbot Kinney Festival is this Sunday, and we’re stocking the shop chock-full of coolness. We save up some of our best stuff to share with the throngs that descend upon our sweet little street every year. The store is practically bursting with new design pieces, awesome oddities and killer boards.
But wait, that’s not all! You loved our Peace Flag T-shirt last year? This year we will be premiering two new designs: a limited edition Charlie Don’t Surf, and a new creation inspired by a tee Wayne rocked as he surfed his way around the world. It’s message is as classic as it is epic, timely and timeless, with authentic vintage graphics. The T-shirt reads:
oh…. yea right! I’m not gonna tell you what it is…. that wouldn’t be any fun!
You’ll have to swing by the shop, set down your drippy ice cream/soft taco/meat-on-a-stick/frozen lemonade/drink with a lid(yes, even if it has a lid)/grilled corn/tamale/deep fried snickers and come see for yourself. They are limited edition, so get here early to get yours!
See ya SUNDAY!
Deep fried Snickers? really?…. hmmmmm
September 2009
A Surfing Cowgirl!
This week, the latest issue of Coastal Living showed up in our mail slot and what do ya know?!? We’re in it! Not only is there a great mention of the store, there is a really cute picture of writer Carolynn Carreno trying on some of our vintage cowboy boots. She just happens to be sitting in a chair of our own design, which collapses for shipping and has cushions in a great bold shade of red. If you haven’t been in lately, there are some good boots in right now- it’s the perfect time to grab a pair before everyone starts getting their Fall shoes together.
Thanks Carolynn for stopping by, and paying us a visit on your Abbot Kinney expose.
If you want to check out the other chair of our own design, visit our seating page, it’s in their amongst all the good vintage chairs we’ve got right now.
My Freedamn! 8 featuring Pearl Harbor
We got a visit from one of our favorite people yesterday…author, photographer, American vintage expert, surfer, explorer, and all around wonderful guy, Rin Tanaka. Rin has just released the latest book in his My Freedamn! series, My Freedamn!8 1960’s Pop Fashions. He dropped off a bunch of fresh copies for us, and restocked us on all the My Freedamn! books we’d sold out of.
If you haven’t seen these books, they are such a treat! Rin approaches the history of American pop culture with unbridled enthusiasm, and attention to detail. He drinks in what we usually take for granted, and shines a vibrant light on counter-culture revolutions, and the soul of street fashion. As you turn the pages, you can feel the pure joy he puts into searching out and documenting rare items: from one-of-a-kind hand-drawn graphics on a military T-shirt, to”Twiggy” stockings from the Warhol era, each piece has a story.
There is human inspiration behind each book – this one dedicated to the motorcycle legend Bud Ekins, who passed away in 2007. Inside there are more icons, some known, some in the making, all inspiring and part of the colorful fabric that makes the world so (damn!) interesting.
If you’re new to My Freedamn! It’s time to stock up… numbers 2 & 3 have sold out completely! If you’re building your collection, you know you gotta grab’em fast. Check out the site for a peek inside the pages and to order your copy.
A sneak peek,
We’ve got some pretty creative customers here at Surfing Cowboys, and we always get excited when we have the chance to see our favorite pieces in their new homes!
This past Friday, we dashed out of the shop at 7:00PM, waded through the First Friday crowds on Abbot Kinney, and headed down to our pal Bruce’s housewarming party. He has a wonderful open space overlooking Abbot Kinney, and in the expansive living room is a KILLER bar.
Now the bar was fully-stocked and tended by lovely ladies, but that’s not what made it so irresistible…it’s the fact that it was built from a vintage paddle board- one from OUR STORE! The paddle board was perfectly positioned and just the right height and length, with people bellying up to the “board”, it was the epitome of Venice Beach cool.
Thanks for the great party Bruce, we had a lot of fun- and the place looks great!
