A commercial that promotes the worst of today

[Edward]

I also love avocado green.

Paired with dark brown shag carpet? That's how it was done over here!

I actually happen to like Marigold, green and blue bathrooms that were fashionable through the 70s.

I like some of the coloured stuff I've seen in old fifties pictures. Seems to me that coloured porcelain came in then. I could definitely go for the same baby blue shade as Fender's Sonic Blue. I'm going to be redoing my own bathroom over the next year, and I'll probably stick with white, though as I'm aiming for a more late forties look. That and the sort of styles I like are infinitely more available significantly cheaper in white.

Sadly many homes are "updated" before going on the market. Little do many sellers know that in some instances those vintage fixtures and decor make their home more valuable to some buyers.

Certainly true, though probably that would still be a niche market. All the advice over here is if you want your property to be valuable, don't do anything whatever to personalise it. Sad, but the sales figures don't lie.

Anyway, again, I loathe the message that anything old is putrid, while new, now and on your credit card is the only reasonable option.

Absolutely a fair point, though in a capitalist economy I can't blame the companies for trying to sell things that way.

I grew up in the '70s and my mother managed to bias me against avocado green very early on. When someone was vulgar or showy, my mother would say: "I'm sure she has an avocado toilet." I still get that gut reaction to it (but these days she says "I'm sure she likes shabby chic" or - which is the worst she can think of - "I bet she has 'Amor Vincit Omnia' written on the bedroom wall").

lol

Not only that, but what Lowe's is selling - DIY renovations for the latest in home decor - differs very little from commercials for the same thing in the 1950s. The postwar blues gave way for new styles, new colours, new equipment... and best of all, you could do it yourself! Who cared if your old bathroom still functioned perfectly well, you needed a shiny new one!

Personally, I prefer the decor of the 50s. However, style is literally the only difference between midcentury home improvement advertisements and those, like this one, of today.

Plus ca change....

 

[PrettySquareGal]

Paired with dark brown shag carpet? That's how it was done over here!



I like some of the coloured stuff I've seen in old fifties pictures. Seems to me that coloured porcelain came in then. I could definitely go for the same baby blue shade as Fender's Sonic Blue. I'm going to be redoing my own bathroom over the next year, and I'll probably stick with white, though as I'm aiming for a more late forties look. That and the sort of styles I like are infinitely more available significantly cheaper in white.



Certainly true, though probably that would still be a niche market. All the advice over here is if you want your property to be valuable, don't do anything whatever to personalise it. Sad, but the sales figures don't lie.



Absolutely a fair point, though in a capitalist economy I can't blame the companies for trying to sell things that way.



lol



Plus ca change....

Oh no. No no no. No brown rug!

Yes, same here. The Realtor showing us the house thought that the vintage cosmetics were a deterrent!

 

[LizzieMaine]

When I bought my house the fact that it *hadn't* been structurally updated was the main reason I wanted it. And it was a lot cheaper than it would've been if some ham-fisted remuddler had had his way. And since I had to sell it and am leasing it back, the fact that I make no demands whatever on my landlord for "upgrades" keeps my rent low.

Of course, when I first got it, there *was* brown paneling and brown shag carpet in the living room, reeking of cigarettes, beer, and dog pee, but it only took a day to get rid of all of it. I didn't go at anything with a sledgehammer like the skinny gal in the commercial, but I did enjoy myself.

 

[Flicka]

My sister's house is a little over a hindred years old and someone had gone over it with a sledgehammer and cheap DIY. She and her husband (he should be on here - he's crazy about vintage things and still uses some of the suits his great-grandfather who was a tailor made) are doing their best to return it what it might once have been. It's going to be really nice one it's done.

 

[Noirblack]

Two things:

1. Perhaps the argument is to simply not purchase anything at all; i.e. to make do and mend. Often, purchasing some thing is an end in and of itself. The anti-consumerism talk that is bandied about here often highlights this notion. Should we discontinue buying things? Perhaps. Why not?

2. The benefit of buying an antique over buying a new item is not always apparent, but depending on the manufacturer, the item and condition the item is in at the time of purchase, it is safe to say that many antiques are of far better quality - mass produced or not. I have a 1950's GE metal desk fan that is as solid as a M4 Sherman (I found it near a dumpster). Likewise, I have a 20" Holmes box fan I bought from Walmart in 2001. The GE is humming away nicely, still oscillates, still does a fantastic job of moving air. The Holmes...well, you knew where this was going.

To point 1, if we stop buying things it won't be long before everyone is out of work. That's just economics.

As for point 2, I'd say it depends on the product. On older fan that works is great. If you can find one, go for it and make use of it. But if I decided that the Victrola was the farthest I wanted to go with audio equipment, well, let's just say my musical choices would be limited. Some of the earliest cars were steam powered. While it would be fun to pull into a gas station to try to buy wood or coal, I don't think it is a practical option.

 

[PrettySquareGal]

I personally have nothing against consumerism when it's responsible, and by that I don't mean when people buy according to my taste.

 

[LizzieMaine]

"Responsible consumerism" is one of those phrases like "military intelligence." Consumerism doesn't mean buying and using the things you need. Consumerism is buying and using things you don't need because the Boys From Marketing have convinced you that you do need them. It's a delusional need, not an actual need.

All my music comes from 78rpm records, and I don't feel limited in my musical choices in the least.

As far as bringing down the system goes, I've been wanting to see that happen since I was old enough to understand what the system was. There's got to be a better way, and this ain't it. Or as my grandmother used to say, you can't make an omelet unless you break some eggs -- there's never going to be any positive improvement until the mess we've got now is swept away. That's what skinny-gal-with-the-sledgehammer ought to be swinging at if she really wants some improvement in her life.

 

[PrettySquareGal]

"Responsible consumerism" is one of those phrases like "military intelligence." Consumerism doesn't mean buying and using the things you need. Consumerism is buying and using things you don't need because the Boys From Marketing have convinced you that you do need them. It's a delusional need, not an actual need.

All my music comes from 78rpm records, and I don't feel limited in my musical choices in the least.

I am a consumer of vintage goods. I don't need half the stuff I buy but I love it and I only buy what I can afford and I'm not filling landfills with garbage. What is that called? I need a word for it...

 

[ButteMT61]

Well, when you can get The Beatles master recordings on 78's I'll join you...
Not everyone can live like that. Well, not everyone wants to live like that.

 

[Mark B.]

+1

"Responsible consumerism" is one of those phrases like "military intelligence." Consumerism doesn't mean buying and using the things you need. Consumerism is buying and using things you don't need because the Boys From Marketing have convinced you that you do need them. It's a delusional need, not an actual need.

All my music comes from 78rpm records, and I don't feel limited in my musical choices in the least.

As far as bringing down the system goes, I've been wanting to see that happen since I was old enough to understand what the system was. There's got to be a better way, and this ain't it. Or as my grandmother used to say, you can't make an omelet unless you break some eggs -- there's never going to be any positive improvement until the mess we've got now is swept away. That's what skinny-gal-with-the-sledgehammer ought to be swinging at if she really wants some improvement in her life.

 

[William Stratford]

I am a consumer of vintage goods. I don't need half the stuff I buy but I love it and I only buy what I can afford and I'm not filling landfills with garbage. What is that called? I need a word for it...

The boundaries are a little fuzzy, but consumerism is based much more on expressing your own individual tastes, as opposed to traditionalism which is about receiving tastes from a previous generation and holding to a role of custodian of tastes that were appointed for you rather than being the arbiter of taste by your own declaration. :-/

 

[PrettySquareGal]

The boundaries are a little fuzzy, but consumerism is based much more on expressing your own individual tastes, as opposed to traditionalism which is about receiving tastes from a previous generation and holding to a role of custodian of tastes that were appointed for you rather than being the arbiter of taste by your own declaration. :-/

I am not a traditionalist. I am drawn to the things I love because I love them. It's my taste....declared by me.

 

[William Stratford]

"Responsible consumerism" is one of those phrases like "military intelligence." Consumerism doesn't mean buying and using the things you need. Consumerism is buying and using things you don't need because the Boys From Marketing have convinced you that you do need them. It's a delusional need, not an actual need.

Indeed. The prime purpose of consumerism is to get you to treat durables as consumables, because industrialisation needs a constant demand of goods to keep going (and that needs invented obsolesence - whether in "fashion" or in shoddy workmanship). If consumerism did not exist, industrialisation would collapse and we would return to a primarily artisan economy.

I am not a traditionalist. I am drawn to the things I love because I love them. It's my taste....declared by me.

Then don't you think that this is the same as people typically behave towards modern goods, just that you choose a different product range? Not that traditionalists dont love the things they own, but they love them because they are traditional, with the tastes being something bequeathed to them, rather than because they have declared the objects worthy. A traditionalist is a custodian, keeping a trust that is passed down, whilst a consumer is a user, seeking expression of their individual identity through their consumption.

If you have the time (its only an hour) take a look at this documentary on how PR and Business changed the way that we purchased goods as a means of expressing an inner identity: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=9167657690296627941

 

[Noirblack]

The boundaries are a little fuzzy, but consumerism is based much more on expressing your own individual tastes, as opposed to traditionalism which is about receiving tastes from a previous generation and holding to a role of custodian of tastes that were appointed for you rather than being the arbiter of taste by your own declaration. :-/

This raises so many good questions. With traditionalism is there no room for divergence in tastes? Who appoints the tastes for us? Why are the tastes from the 20th century better than the tastes from the 16th century? Or are the 16th century tastes superior to those from the 20th century? Whatever happened to free will? Choice? Is there no subjectivity? Can no good come from individual expression? Isn't art an endeavour consisting of individual expression? Should we ban art? Should art be regulated? And by whom?

 

[John in Covina]

If someone bought a 300 year old barn and wanted to level it to put up a pool and cabanas woul it be considered a loss or a gain?

 

[Noirblack]

If someone bought a 300 year old barn and wanted to level it to put up a pool and cabanas woul it be considered a loss or a gain?

Depends on the barn, depends on the pool, depends on who you are asking

 

[PrettySquareGal]

Then don't you think that this is the same as people typically behave towards modern goods, just that you choose a different product range? Not that traditionalists dont love the things they own, but they love them because they are traditional, with the tastes being something bequeathed to them, rather than because they have declared the objects worthy. A traditionalist is a custodian, keeping a trust that is passed down, whilst a consumer is a user, seeking expression of their individual identity through their consumption.

No. I do not destroy things in good working order to replace them with new, trendy things that I can't afford that would require me to buy on credit.

I admit to being very confused how you believe that modern consumerism is a form of individuality? And how is it that loving things from an earlier era is somehow devoid of individuality?

 

[Undertow]

To point 1, if we stop buying things it won't be long before everyone is out of work. That's just economics.

Certainly, if we stopped buying things indefinitely, there would be a few folks out of business. But, for the sake of argument, let's say we didn't buy something to replace something else, or just because our old model was outdated, or because a new product looked nice, or made us fit in. What would happen? Would the wheels of industry grind to a halt?

Here's an example of a need that can be filled cheaply as opposed to spending entirely too much: I find that these Mach 3 and Fusion 4, and blah blah whathaveyou razors do me no favors - they cut my skin, they leave me feeling raw and they cost a fortune. So one day, I stopped into a downtown antique store, purchased 1 screw-top double edged safety razor for $3. I then popped into Wal-Mart and picked up a 10 pack of double edged razors for $1.50. For a grand total of $4.50, I can get at least 10 great shaves that don't leave me miserable. For $6, I can get 20 or more shaves. Or, for the going rate of 12 Fusion cartridges at $36, I can purchase 120 blades.

Now if everyone suddenly stopped purchasing the ridiculously priced Fusion razors and replaced them with the cheap double edged razors, would industry decline into a sad-faced clown party? Or would Gillette perhaps consider selling cheaper razors to meet demand?

Simply purchasing based on need, rather than boredom, does not ruin an economy. It makes it stronger.

 

[William Stratford]

This raises so many good questions. With traditionalism is there no room for divergence in tastes? Who appoints the tastes for us? Why are the tastes from the 20th century better than the tastes from the 16th century? Or are the 16th century tastes superior to those from the 20th century? Whatever happened to free will? Choice? Is there no subjectivity? Can no good come from individual expression? Isn't art an endeavour consisting of individual expression? Should we ban art? Should art be regulated? And by whom?

With traditionism, tastes change gradually, organically, over generations rather than within them. With consumerism, they change within the generation (so that children become divided from their parents by developing different tastes that express their "individual inner self"). Traditionalism breeds social cohesion, whilst consumerism breeds social disintegration. The tastes in cinsumerism are "appointed" by previous generations who we inherit them from and acquiese to.

As for freewill, that is far too complex a subject for tonight but the long and the short of it is that we both and do not have it.

 

[William Stratford]

No. I do not destroy things in good working order to replace them with new, trendy things that I can't afford that would require me to buy on credit.

I'm not suggesting that you would. :-/

I admit to being very confused how you believe that modern consumerism is a form of individuality? And how is it that loving things from an earlier era is somehow devoid of individuality?

Consumerism is sold on the notion of expressing your individual inner self, rather than receiving and being custodian of an identity from your forebears. We can express consumerism through "vintage" goods by taking the same "discard what came before" stance ourselves (and indeed encouraging it then in the next generation who are told to discard what you offer them as they "express their own individual inner identity".

Consumerism works on the basis of getting each generation to invent its own identity anew and afresh.