Ultra Swank - Retro Adventures

1940s

Looney Tunes – Not Just Merrie Melodies

Watching a modern cartoon and then watching a vintage Looney Tunes cartoon is like eating dinner at burger stand in a town full of steak houses; there’s no comparison. In 1930 Warner Brothers Pictures released the first Looney Tunes cartoon. A decade later or so, Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck are fighting the axis and playing on African-American racial stereotypes. But let’s start from the...

The American Luncheonette
Written by Jessie Desmond in Eatable

The American Luncheonette

“I’ll see you at the luncheonette” is not a phrase most people hear anymore in America and most people wouldn’t even recognize the term luncheonette. A luncheonette is similar to a diner, but is not a diner – the biggest differences being that a diner has a larger range of food and is a full restaurant. The main focus of a luncheonette was to serve...

Avenue of Light – The Lost Underground Shopping Mall of Barcelona

The historically and culturally rich city Barcelona in Spain dates back to Roman times and holds many secrets, but even this one was new for me. Having lived here for quite a few years I thought I knew about most of the well known places from the past, but this lost underground shopping mall just appeared out of the depths one night. Knowing that Barcelona...

Interior Design – A Journey Through the Eras

Interior design is an ever evolving industry. What we know today isn’t the way things have always been. Throughout the years our ideas of home decoration have developed and progressed, but that doesn’t mean you can’t find a little inspiration in trends from years gone by. Much like fashion, interior trends always come back around and right now we’re taking on vintage styles to give...

That Time When Bubble Houses Were the Future

Old house plans are one thing that enthusiasts of by-gone eras always seem to look at. It’s fun to imagine yourself living amongst the lines drawn in your house plan books. Instead of squares and rectangles, what if you were to live amongst circles and round edges? In architectural terms you might label that Googie style. So without further ado, I would like to present...

You are Cordially Invited to a Paris Ghost Apartment

From the street at 28 rue Pétrelle in Paris, passersby have little idea what lies hidden inside other than some unusual furniture placed outside with a card attached to the front door which reads; “Please ring the bell, Magdelena Woll receives from 17h to 21h.” Well, let’s go in an meet our mysterious host. Upon entering we find several candles lit and multiple rooms that...

Skate Crate – Taking Skateboarding Back to the 1950s

Roll down the sidewalk like you own the town with the retro inspired Skate Crate. Modern design meets the roots of skateboarding. Skate Crate takes skateboarding’s original concept of a 2×4 with metal wheels and a fruit crate and fuses it with modern designs and components, creating a smooth ride and stylish mode of transportation. The initial product line includes both easy-to-build and decorate DIY kits...

Get all the goods straight to your inbox