Grapes and Flowers

I guess those are grapes. Not sure what else they could be. However, the flowers are more grape colored than the grapes themselves, which are more of a silver gray color than seems natural. Oh well, at least the leaves are green. And the flowers ARE a fairly spectacular shade of blue. Blue IS my favorite color, after all.

This is the last of the four ties I got on eBay a few weeks back, for $2.00 plus $4.00 shipping. Quite a bargain, I think. Since then, I've bought several more batches of ties the same way, albeit for a bit more money, most of which will undoubtedly end up here on this blog eventually.

This beauty is fully 4 1/2 inches across at its widest point. No extant labels to transcribe, unfortunately. I love that word, "extant," don't you? Here's one definition I found:

Still in existence; Currently existing; not having disappeared.

Did you know that one of the easiest ways to get a quick word definition is via Google? Just put "define:word" (without the quotes, natch) into a Google search box (note: no space between the colon and the word to be defined). And Google will display any definitions it has found on the web. Very handy, and if not ALWAYS 100% accurate, it's pretty close.

Well, I see I've wandered well off topic, which means it's probably time to close this blog entry. I mean, what can one really say about a tie like this that the image of the tie itself hasn't already said better? This is one of those cases where a picture is definitely better than words. Of course that never stopped me from blathering on. It's one of my specialties. Until next time, then . . .

A Little Red for Valentine's Day

This is the best I could do for Valentine's Day this year. I only own one vintage tie that relates to this occasion, and I posted it already last year, so you'll have to go back and revisit it, if you want to see a vintage tie with hearts.

So this year, I just hunted over my rack of red ties until I found one that I hadn't already posted, which was difficult, as there are only a few left unscanned and unheralded here on the blog.

I can't say as this tie fits the theme of Valentine's Day very well, but at least the big red block in the center of the tie has a pointed end, like an arrow. Of course, one COULD say that it is a pointed end, like the end of the tie itself. And one could point out that there is another block, gray in color, pointing right back at the red one.

The geometric aspects of this design are actually more reminiscent, in my view, of a tie I posted back in July of 2007, aptly titled "Orange Geometrics." Had I not been stretching things to make a barely justified connection to Valentine's Day, I might have called this tie "Red, Burgundy, and Gray Geometrics."

The tie has no surviving labels, and shows its age with some staining. No brocaded fabric, either, which makes me think it might have been less expensive than some. But the design is very nice, quite striking in its own right. A very nice tie, whether or not it fits the season.