Packed and Ready for Fort Worth's Music 4 Mutts Festival

We're as nuts about animals as we are about everything mid-century. That's why we're so excited about a certain outdoor party next weekend right here in Fort Worth. It's called Music 4 Mutts, and it's a music festival aimed at raising money for local dog & cat rescues and Fort Worth's only public low-cost spay/neuter clinic.

While everyone's having fun and listening to local bands, we'll also be raising awareness for the need to spay & neuter pets, adopt from rescue groups and showcase local businesses that invest in our community. There'll also be pet adoptions, a costume contest for the doggies, food and beverages (alcoholic and nonalcoholic), and a silent auction.
Here are the deets:
Saturday, Oct. 23
9 a.m. - 7 p.m.
2301 Scott Ave., Fort Worth
(I-30 & Beach Street, just east of downtown.
Look for signs at the intersection.)

Admission's $15 for adults, but it's free for everyone 18 and younger.
If the price bugs you, think about this: Fort Worth kills about 60 dogs per day due to space constraints in our shelters. We can begin to stop this by getting more dogs and cats spayed and neutered, helping local rescue organizations get these babies out of the shelters, and educating our community.

These are the groups who will benefit from Saturday's shindig:
Canine Soulmates Rescue (based out of North Richland Hills)
Cattailz Rescue (a low-cost spay & neuter program for feral kitties in Aledo, Willow Park, Hudson Oaks, Weatherford, Brock, and Fort Worth)
Homeward Bound Animal Rescue (in Bedford)
Texas Low Cost Spay and Neuter (the Texas Coalition for Animal Protection)

Hope to see you and yours there!

Fort Worth 'Mad Men' Fans, Start Your Bidding!

Dashing Don Draper and his buddies didn't steal EVERYTHING when they left Sterling Cooper -- their awesome office furniture stayed behind, and some of it is up for grabs on eBay!
Sure wish the Peter Hvidt chairs in Don's office were among the goodies, but there's still lots of cool stuff to choose from -- everything from Pete Campbell's office settee (surely the one on eBay is too small to be the one in that very special scene with Peggy) to the fantastic abstract art in the conference room (top photo) to the numerous black chairs on casters in "the bullpen" (below).
Oh, yeah, and vintage clothes aficionados will be salivating over this: Three dresses worn on the show are also up for bid. How cool would it be to catch Los Noviembres at Scat Jazz Lounge decked out in the outfit shown here, the one that Betty wore to the Stork Club. Just go easy on the champagne, OK?
To add to the temptation, shipping for many of the sofas, desks and other large furniture pieces is FREE. The 10-day charity auction ends Sunday, with proceeds benefiting City of Hope, a medical and research institution dedicated to fighting cancer.

Pink Enamel Midcentury Appliances

I love Craigslist. RetroMania posts lots of things there, and last summer I stumbled across some to-die-for appliances on the freebies listings and -- Bonus Round -- also came to learn about a wildly talented local man, the late Wayne Grubb. Here's more about the appliances and Mr. Grubb.

Oh-so-smart little midcentury credenza

So often, each vintage credenza we find is as long as a city bus -- which can be a good thing, depending on your space. This retro baby is in fantastic shape, and it's a great size: 63 1/2" long, 29" high, with interior space that's 15 1/4" deep. Two drawers and two levels behind the sliding cabinet doors. So many possible uses! Of course, as with most midcentury furniture, it's built to last -- waaaaay past any wackiness 2012 might bring (aren't those Aztec calendars cool-looking, though? Dig the green-turquoise color!)