You might be stunned to learn that mainstream watchmaker Seiko still manufactures affordable mechanical wristwatches.
Mix tapes seem to carry a weight of almost archaeological significance. They are tiny time machines, placing you right back into the most important periods of your life. If you ever made a mix tape for someone else, you know how painstaking the song selection process was. Each one had to be precise and meaningful. I remember my friends taping songs from old records, using my dual cassette deck to record tracks off my other tapes, or - this is my favorite - taping the radio when I knew a certain song was coming on. It was a labor of love to be sure.
The Mix Tape 64 MB Memory Stick plays off the idea, but this time, you simply use your computer to save songs directly to the memory stick. Then, you can place your creation in that familiar mix tape packaging and bestow it upon the lucky listener. Maybe now the painstaking part is finding that rare track to download.
Having held onto my own priceless mix tapes for years, I think it is nice that they paid homage to a classic.
Buy the Mix Tape Memory Stick at Amazon
Urban Retro Lifestyle Cassette Culture
Mixwit: Swap Mixes Online
Silly Mix Tape Generator
The worst one is this aggressively polyester 70's number. Let's put aside that it's the size of a sleeve, has a plasticky sheen, and that it sports a "Rockford Files hired goon" pattern. Flip it over and you can spot the tie's secret. There's a nude lady with a drawn sword living in my tie, and I can't tell if she's happy about it or not.
If you ever get to see a real
turntablist ply his trade, keep your eye on his fingers. Not only
can you cop some sweet moves for your next turn behind the wheels of
steel, but DJ's have a knack of finding some pretty nice digital
adornments. Here's a handmade ring with a mini turntable on it,
along with a tiny disc of real vinyl. It doesn't play any music, but
it looks like just the thing to wear next time you are. 
It even has circular openings for rolled up bills. So from now on instead of desperately fishing around in your change jar when the tax man is at the door, you can neatly sort your change and bills into a half-dozen categories every night when you empty your pockets.
The Budget Bank remains a good idea. I'm always surprised at how much spare
change I accumulate over a few months, so maybe if I keep it nicely sorted with
the Tudor I'll be able do something meaningful with my legal tender... though one of my slots is definitely going toward my "
Men's fashion is usually pretty samey from year to year, and I've said before that I miss the part of the 80's where guys were trying to look like spacemen. Apparently the futuristic look is back for the boys with shiny fabrics, crazy neon colored patterns, and impractical eyewear like these shutter specs (when is someone going to finally make my 20+ year dream come true, and create a set of these that actually open and close like window shades?).
I don't know if Retro Thing reader Glen Feibich was scanning Craigslist for a fireplace or an 8 track player - but he found both in a unique all-in-on-solution. Airline was a house brand for department store Montgomery Ward, and I've seen countless old turntables & reel to reel recorders released under that flag, but never anything remotely like this!
It's interesting to see just how many bad ideas are in this single piece of furniture. It eats up a lot of floorspace, doesn't actually heat the room, you can't display anything on the mantle and still have access to the hi-fi inside, the list goes on and on...
I'm not much of a drinker, but I've always been supportive of folks having a snort every once in a while. I'll admit that I've been on film shoots in below-zero weather with a flask of rum in my pocket (for medicinal purposes, of course), but there are times when you just can't bust out the booze and take a pull.
Each eyepiece is the screwtop to 8 ounces of drinkables hidden in your field glasses. If you load it up with two kinds of hooch, you can even adlib some mixed drinks for your next impromptu party. What a sneaky way to boost a boring match at your kid's soccer game, or perhaps this could renew interest in birdwatching?
Eventually the red LED indicator comes to rest in one of the six possible outcomes. Unless the answer is "ask again", you can simply slip the Electronic Decision Maker back into your mahogany desk and still make your tee time.
There were countless fun and spooky children's records. I remember that listening to these LP's was like being able to put on my own haunted house anytime. When I listen to this recording today, there is an extra shiver of nostalgia as I remember staring through my neighbor's fence, convinced that the lifeless mannequins had moved a little.
The iPod isn't the only piece of technology to create an irresistible stir in the zeitgeist. These two modest examples celebrate the lightning-in-a-bottle that is pre-recorded music. A stack of records let you program your evening outside the whims of your local radio broadcast. How better to embrace this freedom than a cheap Victrola vase, and a set of record shaped coasters?
It's my birthday next week, so if you're shopping for a gift one of these lovely light-up skulls from 1926 would do very nicely. This seems like a really serious skull for such a novel piece of jewelry. Was it intended for children? Or perhaps it's for 
Since become an apartment dweller, I no longer have to go through the autumnal ritual of taking down the window screens and putting up the storm windows. I remember it being a helluva task, but even worse was putting screens back up in the spring. Even though all the windows were the same, over the years the screens warped and bent to an almost custom fit. The retreat of the snows meant many trips up and down the ladder trying to cajole all of the screens back into place.
I've not seen a modern product like this (what are you supposed to use these days... one of those electronic label makers?), but I guess that screen window technology has moved on to be better fitting. Then again, don't those precision aluminum framed screens look goofy on a gorgeous old Victorian house? If any of you are faced with a similar problem, perhaps the ol' Hold-Tite tacks hint at some innovative solution you can adopt (besides foisting the task onto your children, of course...).
If nothing else, at least you can think about this strong-armed anthropomorphized tack who's entire self-worth is predicated on helping you keep your screens sorted.
