So what is the Fedora Lounge all about?

[CassD]

I was just coming to that.

I've tried not to be personal here. And certainly i had no particular member in mind when writing any of my above comments. I am attempting to deal with trends . . . in the vein of what bartenders asked everyone about yesterday.

bk

I realize that it is wholly unintentional, but some of your comments seem to intimate that you would rather this forum not be frequented by anyone not as deeply interested and knowledgable as yourself. I understand how you feel about people going off topic in topic specific threads, or getting too easily offended by the opinions of others. Sadly, it is human nature. Even you get upset by the opinions of others as you have displayed by noting your anoyance of a "lack of respect" for more knowledgable members. I'm not saying I disagree with your response.

In addition, I admit willingly that I couldn't care less how the blasted dress was made, just that I like the style and the fit a heck of a lot better than modern styles. I welcome advise on the styles of the 40's and I do enjoy history. However, not everyone wants to learn about the construction of a suit in detail. Some people just want to enjoy a good looking piece of clothing. I see nothing wrong with sharing a great, vintage, or vintage style buy. It means that people are enthusiastic.

I know I'm new, and maybe I don't have any right to comment on this thread, but I did.

 

[Quigley Brown]

I feel kind of dirty now for contributing to some of those non-important threads.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

I realize that it is wholly unintentional, but some of your comments seem to intimate that you would rather this forum not be frequented by anyone not as deeply interested and knowledgable as yourself.

No.I dealt with this above. Of course there are people i'd rather not have to deal with, but they exist independent of join-date or knowledge-level.

Even you get upset by the opinions of others as you have displayed by noting your anoyance of a "lack of respect" for more knowledgable members. I'm not saying I disagree with your response.

Did I say that ("lack of respect")? I think i see the comment you're referring to, and i think it's nothing to do with respect. It's about a lack of understanding of how much one knows, and how much one thinks one knows. There's nothing wrong with not knowing. I'm damn sure that there is no member who knows everything. But someone who doesn't know about something, but makes out that they do, will quickly be caught out. So why do some people insist on making seemingly definitive comments (stating something as fact, let's say) about things they have no knowledge of? This is not the same as making conversation, or "joining in", which i think is very useful. Spreading misinformation as fact is one of the biggest issues with the internet and this site is not immune.

But then, that patricular facet of annoyance is peripheral to my main thesis so i won't dwell.

bk

 

[pennycarrol]

Well, I don't know what to say.... I'm a newbie and I love and I'm proud to be part of the lounge!!! I'm a vintage freak, but I have to say that I enjoy the "un-vintage" threads!!! For me the "sandwich thread" is fun because I learn a lot about american culture, it's different from my country so.........
... But I understand, and I'll pay attention now!! Promise lol lol lol lol lol!!!!!!!

 

[Foofoogal]

deeply interested and knowledgable as yourself

I think we can all come to some sort of consensus here really and middle ground for lack of better word.

I came here under a different name of sandysfancy and then changed it to foofoogal when I realized I couldn't note anything about selling which I was ok with but when I changed the name suddenly someone slapped the vendor name on me.
I usually always post on this board when I am working on my stores and photos are uploading.
I have been reduced to posting on the fluff threads or personal threads as I was blacklisted from even editing my posts.
I never needed this place to spam. I do though have lots of experience I could of shared about vintage. I have been an antiques dealer since 1996 and a collector forever. I could of even given free stuff away but cannot as I am not able to post in the classified section.
So maybe many others do have experience they can share but cannot.
Now it is a community to me. I care about Twitch, I care to see Johanna, Lolitahaze and all the other pretty people as I love beauty, I wonder how John is doing since his mothers passing etc.
I will not apologize for caring. I am not in Africa but I care about that also.
Tell me where to post safely and I will.

 

[LizzieMaine]

So why do some people insist on making seemingly definitive comments (stating something as fact, let's say) about things they have no knowledge of? This is not the same as making conversation, or "joining in", which i think is very useful. Spreading misinformation as fact is one of the biggest issues with the internet and this site is not immune.

I think of that as "the Wikipedia effect" -- the idea that facts are something that can be determined by group consensus, the idea that if enough people agree on some point, than that point must be true. This is something I've been fighting for years in the old-time-radio community, and frankly, after years of it, I just got burned out with doing serious research work for no recompense. I think there's very likely the same kind of thing going on here with regard to the trend we've seen in the Lounge -- after a while, it just gets to be exhausting, and even the hardiest contributor has to step back and reassess whether or not it's been worth it.

That having been said though, I'd suggest that the Powder Room is still working to maintain much of the spirit of the Old Lounge. There are plenty of threads where the foundation laid by the old guard is being built upon with good solid information -- the stocking thread, for example, which has been going on for over three years now with new and useful facts and advice still being added.

I'll also suggest that many of us here are interested in not just the clothing of the Era but the culture and society that *produced* that clothing -- and, again, speaking as a member, I think that discussions of how people lived in the Era -- what they ate, what they drove, how they furnished their homes, what they saw at the movies and listened to on the radio, what they felt about the issues of their time, what they believed as they went about their lives -- are every bit as essential to the Lounge's overall purpose as analysis of box pleats or how-to seminars on properly turning a collar.

 

[Hemingway Jones]

Dear Friends,

I think it's more about balance; there are lighter getting-to-know-you threads, which are fun and necessary and fit nicely into the OB, and there are educational and informative threads. The balance of late has tipped in the getting-to-know-you threads' direction, if fact, it is getting-to-know-all-about-you sometimes, getting to know entirely too much about you, which sometimes make you cringe! lol

I invite people to post their best. Remember, one person can make a huge difference around here, remember Marc Chevalier? Of course you do!

We're moving ahead in a very positive direction.

 

[CassD]

Dear Friends,

I think it's more about balance; there are lighter getting-to-know-you threads, which are fun and necessary and fit nicely into the OB, and there are educational and informative threads. The balance of late has tipped in the getting-to-know-you threads' direction, if fact, it is getting-to-know-all-about-you sometimes, getting to know entirely too much about you, which sometimes make you cringe! lol

I invite people to post their best. Remember, one person can make a huge difference around here, remember Marc Chevalier? Of course you do!

We're moving ahead in a very positive direction.

I think that's a fantastic way of looking at things. I appreciate feeling welcome by the "New Ladies and Gents" introduction thread. That helped me to get the courage to actually start posting and it is a getting-to-know-you thread, but I also greatly appreciate the help that I've recieved from all the ladies in the Powder Room with hairstyles.

 

[reetpleat]

Dear Friends,

I think it's more about balance; there are lighter getting-to-know-you threads, which are fun and necessary and fit nicely into the OB, and there are educational and informative threads. The balance of late has tipped in the getting-to-know-you threads' direction, if fact, it is getting-to-know-all-about-you sometimes, getting to know entirely too much about you, which sometimes make you cringe! lol

I invite people to post their best. Remember, one person can make a huge difference around here, remember Marc Chevalier? Of course you do!

We're moving ahead in a very positive direction.

Well, if the lounge changes it is due tto the desires of the community. If all the information sharers have left it is because no one seems to be seeking their knowledge or adding to it.

It would be a shame to lose anyone, but if the majority does not want to talk about that, then the lounge is no longer about that because every lounge is bigger than it's creators.

If you wre to shut down all but the information sharing threads, most would leave and you would once again be a small community of a few people sharing their knowledge. If that is what is wanted by the powers that be, fine. But if they actually wanted to create a golden era themed place for people to congregate, then mission accomplished.

My friends formed a motorcycle club. It grew to about fifty members and one was upset it was no longer what they had in mind. I explained to him that it was now a community that was bigger than him and his intent. If he wanted to have what he had in mind he would have to form a new club and see who wanted to join. But the same thing would probalby happen again.

 

[CharlesB]

Well, if the lounge changes it is due tto the desires of the community. If all the information sharers have left it is because no one seems to be seeking their knowledge or adding to it.

It would be a shame to lose anyone, but if the majority does not want to talk about that, then the lounge is no longer about that because every lounge is bigger than it's creators.

If you wre to shut down all but the information sharing threads, most would leave and you would once again be a small community of a few people sharing their knowledge. If that is what is wanted by the powers that be, fine. But if they actually wanted to create a golden era themed place for people to congregate, then mission accomplished.

My friends formed a motorcycle club. It grew to about fifty members and one was upset it was no longer what they had in mind. I explained to him that it was now a community that was bigger than him and his intent. If he wanted to have what he had in mind he would have to form a new club and see who wanted to join. But the same thing would probalby happen again.

Oh the joys of path dependency theory...

 

[Tango Yankee]

Dear Friends,

I think it's more about balance...

We're moving ahead in a very positive direction.

Spot on, Mr. Jones!

I've been a member for a bit over a year now. During that short time I've noted the balance tipping ever faster towards those "getting to know you" types of threads. As has been mentioned here and elsewhere it seems that the "informative" types of threads has slowed.

Like the Baron and others I've also noticed a decrease in the number of informative posts by members who used to provide a lot of valuable information. I'm just theorizing here, but some of that may be because they've already said most of what they feel they have to say; some may be because they've found themselves repeating themselves in an attempt to clear up erroneous perceptions and are getting tired of fighting that "Wiki effect" that Lizzie describes so well; and some of the decrease may be due to getting tired of being dealing with negative responses to their posts by some that don't know as much as they think they know trying to cut the poster down to size, so to speak. And no, I'm not going to go digging out examples--this is just one person's impression.

I would certainly like to be more of an information contributer than I am. The thing is, most of what I know about vintage hats and clothing comes from here. For various reasons I've not yet delved into learning the intricacies of hat construction that I've been planning on. When I do so I intend to photograph and share what I learn if I feel I can do so without it being overly repetitive and if I think it will be genuinely helpful.

Along those lines I do have one hat that has some unusual trim construction that I promised both Dinerman and Art photos of months ago--I've not forgotten, gentlemen!

I would like to state for the record that this forum is partly responsible for the fact that when my daughter-in-law decided our son needed another shirt/tie combo for his suit (he had only one dress shirt and tie) for Christmas she turned to my wife, who recommended they come to me and ask me to be the one to make the selection.

This forum is also almost fully responsible for my brother-in-law observing that he'd never seen me talk about anything for as long or as in depth as I did once in a discussion about hats! lol In other words, I've learned a lot here and hope to learn more.

As for whether or not this is a community... well, for me it's more of a community than the one I physically live in! I live in a rural area. I've met only a few of our neighbors in the two and a half years I've lived here. I have nothing in common with them. Of course, that in itself isn't unusual for me. I've found that I usually am the odd man out in most groups-the offices I've worked in, the places I've lived. This forum is a place where I can listen in on a variety of interesting discussions, sometimes chiming in if I think I have something worthwhile to add. I like that.

In summary, I'm glad to hear that I'm not the only one who has felt that the Lounge was drifting off it's path and that course corrections are to be implemented. I'm looking forward to seeing what comes next!

Regards,
Tom

 

[Feraud]

It would be a shame to lose anyone, but if the majority does not want to talk about that, then the lounge is no longer about that because every lounge is bigger than it's creators.

An interesting point. Part of this public discussion is to raise awareness of what we see happening and engage in a conscious discussion of what direction we wish to see the Lounge go.

I would prefer anyone tell me outright they would rather talk about the weather and gawk at the girlie photos than acquire pieces and share, discuss Golden Era society (which I enjoy), and learn more about the hobby.

No one should feel upset over having contributed to any particular thread. We all do it. It is no big deal.

 

[BellyTank]

There are a lot of threads with great info on things which motivated me to research it even more, such as the "Adventuring Gear" thread.

I still see threads like this, but it seem they are fewer.

Vladimir-
please add all your findings to the "Adventuring Gear" thread.

B
T

 

[Caledonia]

Here's what the FL is to me, for what it's worth. Before I start, "guilty as charged, m'Lud" on all counts of off topicness and other alleged offences. As Feraud says though, no biggie we've all done it.

The FL was to me when I joined, the primary source to help me understand the fashions, style, and lifestyle of the Golden Era, which was a very new but looks like longterm interest. I will never forget the enlightening moment of finding out about high cut armholes on a jacket - simple, unforgettable, eminently useful.

The FL and my burgeoning library are still that primary resource. Yes, it is now harder to sift through the threads in the OB, and sometimes there isn't much of a Golden Era feel, and sometimes in the other forums the plot gets a little lost, and definitely the informative contributions have dropped, and yes I have been bored (and have bored to boot, but fairs fair). However, this is a transitional time for the FL. It has grown, and everything that grows goes through phases. Inclusiveness is rarely a bad thing, but the more people that come through the doors, the more regulation is needed. Heaven forfend we need to start dealing with Health & Safety and fire escapes, or we'll never get anything done!

If the FL were bricks, mortar, and a deco facade started in the Golden Era, and managed not to get bought over by a developer and turned into an internet cafe, it would change, modernise, but under proper management would always retain the essence of the FL'ness, would be known for the resource it is, and that resource would be easily accessible. As Mr H Jones says, its about balance.

Bartenders, live, prosper, and tend the bar as you always do.

Loungers, lounge informatively when you can, face down in your G&T when you can't.

Me, I'll see if I can't start dropping in a bit of what I've learned over the years, even if most people probably think I don't know my Fath from my Piguet! (Actually I think I just spelt that wrong )

 

[Brinybay]

No one should feel upset over having contributed to any particular thread. We all do it. It is no big deal.

Thanks, I needed that. FWIW, I like forums that give you the ability to edit or delete your own posts, even though it's only up to a certain time point on FL. There have been a few that I posted and then woke up the next morning with a "What was I thinking?! Way TMI!" feeling and just deleted my post (although it has already gone out by e-mail for those that choose the subscription option). I sometimes get the same feeling just a couple hours later.

On the subject at hand, there is a scuba diving forum that I post on frequently also. The subject matters are pre-defined by the board administrators. They have one area that is specifically for "Non-Diving related subjects." You can post whatever you like in there, but they still have strict rules about no politics, religion, porn, spam, or flame wars.

Edit: Reading this again, my point wasn't clear. My point was to suggest an area that is clearly for "Non-Vintage" related suject matters. It works well in the diving forum I frequent in keeping diving threads on-topic.

FL is not alone with the concern over off-topic related subject matter. I was just on the diving forum I speak of and saw some new non-diving threads that were just totally silly, imo. BUT, they were in the NON-DIVING area, so I didn't have to wade through them to get to diving stuff.

 

[BAZ]

Erm...as a fairly new "arrival" I think I approached this , I guess, with a different view.
It's called the Fedora LOUNGE. Now, by it's very name, to me it conjures up visions of a welcoming communal society of like-minded individuals. With mahogany panelled walls and deep leather chairs!
If it was called the "Fedora, Suit and clothing discussion forum" that would be another story.
And I probably wouldn't check in so often.

 

[Brad Bowers]

What we're now doing on the Lounge is gratifying our basest impulses and neglecting our starved intellects.

Lately the OB feels like a MySpace cesspool, which is what MySpace is supposedly for.

I'd rather feed my intellect, thank you very much.

Brad

 

[Justdog]

Raise a glass

Here is to the thread which instructs advanced search options for the Lounge.
I was having a bit of an issue navigating to past specific knowledge and did not want to post endless redundant threads which waste time from reading the basics. Already was able to find four answers using it. Wormser, Suspenders under vests, single breasted wide lapels and avatar posting.

Cheers!

 

[rubyredlocks]

I'll admit it. I'm here for the fluff.
I work on my feet all day,take care of my 1 year old,and my husband,and the housework. When I finally get a chance to myself every once in a while I check in with the FL and I'm not up for any type of deep thought provoking discussion.
Doesn't mean I don't read them,but do I contribute? Heck no.
So,what do I contribute? An occasional pretty picture,a compliment or 2.All the hair questions seem to have been discussed before.Which is my expertise.
All those early contributors did provide such a wealth of knowledge,what else is there to add?
Does my lack of contribution make me unwelcome?

 

[HungaryTom]

What we're now doing on the Lounge is gratifying our basest impulses and neglecting our starved intellects.

Lately the OB feels like a MySpace cesspool, which is what MySpace is supposedly for.

I'd rather feed my intellect, thank you very much.
Brad

Brad,

It is true that saying welcome and making compliments is not highly intellectual, but it is necessary.

I also agree that 'Lookie here everybody - what nice stuff I have shopped lately?' is also not quite academic but it makes people feel better to get positive feedback at least from the Lounge. On the home front you don't get namely the same reaction all the time...

I just don't know why people feel it is necessary to start a new thread each time for the sake of a 20 dollars hat or other thrift store find. Individualism? This is why I like COMMUNITY threads like Irvin nuts, Art Fawcett Hall of fame, Panama Canal, Show us your Art, Show us... etc. Surely you are only one out of the many contributors, but people find stuff and photos easier on such reference threads. Ladies seem to have the same with focussed topics about hair, makeup and dame styling.


BUT intellectual topics like politics are banned-which is naturally not true if the pople keep the basic rules with their contributions...Otherwise the bartenders should be 7/24 professionals and read through every post all the time-time which they dont have since you also have to make a living and lead a real life sometime. And also it is not paid - it would be difficult to moderate a non-payable forum by people with salaries.

Architecture, science, history, environmental protection, climate change, energy problems, space research, recession/economy, consumerism, etc. are off-topic because not strictly about fashion and the Golden Era. Most of the off topic takes place in here, the observation bar. WW2 is covered - but frankly it is only a fraction of history.

Most of the things people do know about is contemporary: I mean normally folks are better informed of today's things than about events from 80-50 years ago.

Intellectual topics are there - but they are marginal. They have always just a few (dozen) replies a few hundred viewings and than they are gone.