The (dog) House

Returning once more to my adage that it’s not just vintage houses and decor that can be fun, but vintage living in them as well…..I just got back from a trip and was unpacking when I realized I had not yet blogged about my retro travel bags, and they are truly worth the honor – being humble, inexpensive, practical, fun, and carrying a little je ne sais quoi all at once. With these bags you can take your mid-century fancy right along with you.

Of what do I speak? Simple. Pan Am travel bags! Yes, you can find the real vintage ones and pay a fortune for bags whose smell you really don’t want to know – or – you can buy retro ones that retain an air of authenticity about them because they are actually made by Pan Am. Yes, Pan Am stopped flying in the 1980’s, but the company survives making luggage among other things. Their stock fluctuates, but the basic items are pretty affordable, made of tough vinyl, and just the right size and squishability to fit into any overhead compartment (including tiny Scottish or Czech airlines!).

Can’t you hear the tiki drums a-calling from far off Fiji?

This little guy is great for a weekend, but not longer. Remember, jet-setting was a luxury back in the day and people did not carry wheeled 'steamer trunks' onto planes the way they do now!

Ah; here's the happy couple now. Welcome aboard our flight to Bora-bora! Take a seat, buckle up, and I'll be in to serve you Mai-Tai's in a moment.

This bag is not big, what would now be called a 'weekender', but I've travelled to Europe for a week with just this and my over-the-shoulder bag no problem. I have to pack lightly, but I'm grateful when I'm stepping others' clunky wheeled monstrosities and zipping past the baggage carousel with this carry-on.

Tags: airline, pan am, retro, travel bags

This entry was posted on Wednesday, June 3rd, 2009 at 9:48 pm and is filed under @ Home. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.