Ultra Swank - Retro Adventures

1970s

Let’s Play Swinging JiveCat Voodoo Lounge – A Retro Board Game

Game designer Seth Roback was raised in 1970s southern California and was considerably influenced by Disneyland, Googie architecture, and Jay Ward cartoons. Today, Roback resides in Seattle and has taken his love of mid-20th century pop culture and turned it into his first board game, Swinging Jivecat Voodoo Lounge, which is currently crowd-funding on Kickstarter. Here’s what he had to say when he discussed his...

Luggage: From Ocean Liners to the 1960s International Jet Set

Look back at the 20th century and you’ll struggle to find a moment where the world was not in a state of flux. From the Titanic to the two biggest wars in human history; the invention of computers to nuclear fission, the 20th century is peppered with transformative events and technological developments which ushered in massive changes to our way of life. One of the...

What Airports Looked Like in the 1970s

I have always felt that there is something cosy and homey about the color schemes of the 1970s. Dark and powerful earth colors dominated the design of the corporate, home and commercial western world. From shopping malls, to the basement den to the airport. So, follow us as we visit some airports of the period to experience what checking in was like in the 1970s....

Monty Python And The Holy Grail – A British Film Icon

In what became one of the most iconic comedies in film history, the British comedy crew known as Monty Python takes on the legends of King Arthur and his knights of the round table. Charged by God (who appears as a cartoonish animation in the clouds) to locate and obtain the Holy Grail, King Arthur (Graham Chapman) must gather a team of loyal knights to...

Alaskan-Style Midcentury Packaging Art

Midcentury advertising art isn’t usually synonymous with Alaska. Manufacturing and production in the largest state of the Unites States of America has never been on the same level as the other states, partially due to a short growing season and partially due to the high costs of shipping. Nonetheless, Alaska has produced some goods for consumers that included: canned fish, ice cream, milk, and batteries....

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...

The Beatles Fifty Years Later
Written by Patricia Greenwood in Music

The Beatles Fifty Years Later

With the 50th Anniversary of the British invasion of America via the Beatles upon us, I thought it apropos to take a walk down Memory Lane, remembering the highlights of Beatlemania in my own life. When the Beatles hit the Mainland in 1964, I had just turned six years old and my whole world was getting through 1st grade without getting my knuckles rapped by...

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