I love seeing modern music videos that carry a retro twist. The artists always seem to have so much fun and introducing new audiences to retro fashion and culture is never a bad thing.Those of us interested in dressing up in retro fashions might find it too expensive or too difficult to locate the items to do so, but we can always live vicariously through the magic of the music video.

My first entry is thanks to UK girl group The Saturdays. These lovely ladies covered Depeche Mode's 80's hit "Just Can't Get Enough" making this a Retro-Retro tribute video. Watch the girls prance around in pinup-style clothing as the infectious song plays in the background--it's sure to become your earworm for the day.

All of the great pinup styles are represented in this video; from the boudoir babe to the armed forces cutie, making sure the male readers of Ultra Swank will enjoy the fashion post as much as the female readers will…but for different reasons of course. One thing though; as an 80's baby should I be concerned the 80's are now considered retro as well? Hmm. Enjoy the video, Ultra Swank readers! If you want more of The Saturdays, here they are covering the 60's hit "Please Mr. Postman."

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If you have been craving a well-written period murder mystery, then look no further than Radley Metzger’s The Cat and the Canary. However, if your tastes tend toward lush murder mystery musicals, then take a look at 8 Women. 8 Women has plot twists galore, and since I’m not one to spoil, this review will be short.

Set in 1950s France, Suzon (Virgine Ledoyen - La Ceremonie, The Beach), returns home to her family’s countryside estate while on Christmas vacation from school. In short order, Suzon greets her mother, Gaby (Catharine Deneuve - Repulsion, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg), her Aunt Augustine (Isabelle Huppert - La Dentelliere, The Piano Teacher), sister Catherine (Ludivine Sagnier - Water Drops on Burning Rocks, Swimming Pool), housekeeper Louise (Emmanuelle Beart - The Story of Marie and Julien, Mission: Impossible), maid Chanel (Firmine Richard - Romuald et Juliette), and grandmother Mamy (Danielle Darrieux - The Earrings of Madame de…). Later in the film, we are treated to a guest appearance by Fanny Ardant (Vivement dimanche!) as Aunt Pierrette. Shortly after arriving, Suzon’s father, Marcel, is murdered. There are eight possible suspects in the house – all women. Eight women. The murderer could be any one of them, and paranoia quickly sets in as the women accuse each other of committing the murder.

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Twiggy, born Lesley Hornby, is without a doubt one of the biggest fashion icons to emerge from the 1960's. Her thin frame and big blue eyes became the envy of fashionistas everywhere. The look of drawn on lashes (anything to make the eyes look bigger) and pale lips became a Twiggy staple as girls copied her look to fit in with Swinging London and everything Mod. The geometric patterns and straight cuts of fabric in 60's fashion fit the Twiggy's frame as clothes did in the sketches fashion designers put down on paper--making her the perfect model. In a way, Twiggy and her "twig-like legs" (as you'll see in the video above) brought designs to life in a way other models hadn't done before.

Twiggy took her style around the world, landing numerous jobs in Europe, the US and Asia. Her success also came with numerous awards including being named "The Face of 1966," "Woman of the Year," and a variety of Vogue covers. While the 90's ushered in the era of the supermodel, including fellow Brit Kate Moss, I think it's safe to say Twiggy revolutionized the British modeling and fashion scene and inspired girls across the globe to cut their hair short and challenge their own sense of style.

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Dishwashing liquid commercials vary in their subject matter. Either they take an eco-friendly approach, tug at your heartstrings by demonstrating how they save animals affected by an oil spill, or they show the product’s grease-cutting power. The Palmolive brand has come a long way from its origins as a beauty product.

The above ad from the 1950’s pushes Palmolive as a beauty product promising better skin for all ages and skin types. In current times, where skincare is usually sold as a complicated system featuring many products for day and night, the original Palmolive bar advocated simple “soap facials” that would “bring new complexion beauty to 2 out of 3 women.” Today, most beauty magazines caution women to avoid soap all together, warning of their harshness on the skin and problems that could arise with residue the soap bar leaves behind. But in the 1950’s, where efficiency was key, the little green Palmolive bar was pitched to members of the entire household. There were smaller-sized bars geared toward the women using it for their skincare, and larger sizes of the bar for use in the family bath.

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For some people, the term Burlesque is something that is associated with a exciting, stylish and perhaps also a little more innocent time. But as many things from the past it is being revived and has for the past years made a grand return with lush sets, glamorous costumes, swinging music, cool lighting and of course luscious women moving in rhythm to the crooners' finger snaps. Meet Gentry de Paris, Burlesque performer, fashionista, entrepreneur and director of the Gentry de Paris Revue in... yes you guessed it, Paris, France. Ultra Swank sits down to talk with her to find out more about how she is bringing back the style of times gone by.

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