Leather Jewelry Boxes

Mannequins have been around for thousands of years but their use in store display is more recent. Kings and Queens who were concerned about their appearance, like the ancient pharaohs, would have a dress form made to their body dimensions. The court dress maker or tailor would use the ‘dress form’ to display and make the clothes thus avoiding any royal embarrassment during the course of a fitting.

The evolution of this ancient crude dress form through the middle ages and up until just before the industrial revolution is unknown because there are so few written records and no museum examples to study. Wickerwork mannequins were certainly around in the late 1700s and were probably filled with stuffing and leather. Wire-framed versions came into existence in 1835 but mannequins were still not in use for store display. The invention of plate glass, the filament lamp and the sewing machine were the catalysts that put mannequins in the store.

In the 1880s window panes began to be installed in retail establishments and street lights started to appear. The improvement of sewing machines enabled ready to wear clothing to be made in large quantities. The industrial revolution also created a new middle class with money to spend on what was previously only available to royalty and landed gentry – fashionable clothes! More retail stores opened and the store owners needed mannequins to display the latest fashions.

These early mannequins were made of wax, wood or heavy fabric and because they needed to stay upright their feet were made of iron. To give them shape papier-mâché and sawdust were used. Consequently the result was an expensive, hard to maintain and very heavy object. However such was the interest in fashion that by the turn of the century the mannequin was already the center of a fledgling industry called ‘window trimming’ which later became known as ‘visual merchandising’.

The advent of the department store with its large show windows, behind which mannequins bearing the latest fashions could be admired by the crowds, encouraged window trimmers to be artistic as well as practical. Mannequins slowly developed from being just a simple prop to display the merchandise towards a more realistic form. Mannequins with glass eyes, real hair and facial expressions began to appear.

The First World War sent millions of European men off to fight and left the women at home to do the men’s jobs. This change brought about a revolution in women’s clothing, they shed their bustiers and crinolines and adopted a more fluid line of clothes. Mannequins gradually became more lithe and realistic to reflect these changes but never could they be mistaken for the real thing. Not until the 1930s and Lester Gaba did realism become ubiquitous.

Lester Gaba was a soap sculptor in New York and was asked by a large department store if he could produce some mannequins in a more stable material with the same detail and quality that he could get with soap. He created six astonishing specimens from plaster that become known as the ‘Gaba Girls’. They were each given names and a party at a prestigious hotel where they were dressed in fine clothes and jewels, New York high-society loved them! The socialites also loved Lester Gaba who had taken to the eccentric habit of going everywhere with a sitting mannequin called Cynthia. Cynthia, elbow on her knees with a cigarette in hand, traveled by taxi and appeared with Lester Gaba in a box at the opera, the Stork Club and many other famous venues. The publicity was enormous and stores could not get enough of the Gaba Girls or their imitators.

The depression and the Second World War brought about shortages and shop windows became rather somber with the mannequins of the day looking slightly melancholy and concerned. However it all changed when the war was over and by the late 1940s mannequins looked happy and prosperous, some of them even wore a radiant smile. Male mannequins in particular looked relaxed and some even had holes drilled between their lips for inserting pipes!

In the 1950s new materials became available and by the late 1960s the true mass production of fiberglass and then plastic mannequins became a reality. Advances in technology have continued so that mannequin artists can now manufacture any conceivable design and are bounded only by the limits of their creativity.

The popularity of a mlb team’s merchandise is directly proportional to the size of its fan base. Little wonder that the Boston Red Sox have such a great history of merchandise sales. The team’s fans are legion. Not only are they one of the most successful teams of the decade, having won two World Series Championships in the last four years (for a total of seven as a franchise), they are also one of the teams most steeped in history.

The Red Sox have been in existence since 1901, far longer than any fan can remember. The team was there from the beginning of the league, being one of the eight charter franchises. During those early years, they were the dominant power in baseball. They took the first World Series in 1903 against the Pittsburgh Pirates and again four more times before 1919. However, after that came the longest drought in league history. Oh yes they came close many times, but only in 2004, more than 80 years after their last win did they again recapture the World Series Championships. And of course, they did it again last 2007 and even today figure to be one of the top contenders.

Boston Red Sox Gifts
The enormity of the Red Sox fan base is such that you would certainly easily find someone you know who is a fan of the team to some degree. This enormous fan base has given rise to the manufacturing of many gift items targeted at these fans. Little wonder then that if you do know a Red Sox fan, it’s bound to be quite easy to find a gift item for him or for her. All you have to do is click on an item online and you’re done.

Here are some gift suggestions you can consider as gifts for die hard Red Sox fans:

Topping the list of potential Boston Red Sox Gifts you can buy are memorabilia items such as replica mini helmets and Red Sox team trinket boxes. However, for more serious fans, there are high value minted commemorative coins as well as limited edition photo mints of prominent players, both active and those already in the hall of fame. There are also limited edition commemorative coin sets that celebrate important Boston Red Sox milestones, which are sure to become important and valuable collector’s items in the years to come.

Boston Red Sox Jewelry
Another category that has enjoyed an upsurge in sales is the Boston Red Sox Jewelry category. The section contains a lot of items to choose from, starting with casual wearing silver earrings made in the likeness of the Red Sox Logo, logo shaped pendants, rings, and logo embossed watches.

Boston Red Sox jewelry is best worn casually, especially if you are able to complete a game time ensemble that combines team apparel and matching jewelry. You will surely be the best dressed die hard Red Sox fan at the stadium. However, you can also wear your Red Sox themed jewelry at the office, as some of the bracelets and necklaces, and even watches are so well crafted that they complement office attire pretty well. There are watches of every make, every model, and every size – for men, women, and kids too. There are leather strap watches, chronographs, classic silver strap watches and even Velcro strap models that cling to your wrist no matter how hard you swing a bat.

Wearing team-themed jewelry is a good way to break the monotony of office wear, without compromising dress code. It may even be a way for you to start a conversation among fellow Boston Red Sox fans at the office whom you never knew to be fans.

Boston Red Sox Home Decor
Last of the list of top sellers is Boston Red Sox home décor. There are two possible explanations for this phenomenon. It is either Boston Red Sox fans really just love their team so much that they are willing to populate their home with team-themed furniture, or second, the furniture really just looks great and are comfortable to use. Of course there could be a third explanation – which is that fans do love the team, and the items really are of high quality and are quite comfy too. The sure money is on the third.

You can get Boston Red Sox Home Décor for your living room, bedroom, TV room, – and yes even the bathroom. The living room will look good with a Boston Red Sox video chair or two near the TV, and maybe a red Sox Big Daddy recliner a little to the side. There are also Red Sox kitchen utensils, placemats, salt and peppershakers, and serving trays. The bedroom could even be improved by several Red Sox pillows here and there and maybe a Red Sox headboard, which will surely have you dreaming of more pennants and World Series wins while you sleep.

When a team has as much sustained success in a decade as the St. Louis Cardinals have this past decade, you can expect the fans to reciprocate by snapping up any and every piece of team merchandise they can get their hands on. Though they’ve won only that one World Series Championship in 2006, they did come close twice, and have consistently won the National League Central Division, and even posting several 100 win regular seasons.

And of course, let us not forget their deep push into the playoffs year after year. Winning tradition such as that the Cards have displayed is deeply appreciated by the fans, thus resulting in most St. Louis Cardinals merchandise selling like hotcakes. Some of the more popular categories of Cardinals team memorabilia include the gifts category, the jewelry category and the home décor section.

St. Louis Cardinals Gifts

Like any good fan, Cardinals fans relish receiving gifts that bear their team’s colors, uniform, and logo. That makes it easy for gift givers, as there is a wide selection of Cards gift items available in stores and online, if you know where to look.

For the working man who spends a lot of time at the office, there’s the Cardinals Replica Mini Helmet display – to remind you that you should not neglect having fun. For the sports apparel nut, there’s Cardinals Logo Baseballs, and Cardinals 3D Logo Ornaments. If you need to find a gift for a young Cards fan, there’s a Cardinals Lunch Box available. The options are many, if you know what to look for.

St. Louis Cardinals Jewelry

Another popular section is St. Louis Cardinals Jewelry. No, this is not a jewelry store like the one where you got your fiancée’s engagement ring (nothing as snobbish as that). This section is mostly dominated by fun and casual jewelry such as Cardinals Snowman Baseball Earrings with a snowman and Cards logo. There are dangle earrings, Cardinals logo pendants in the shape of the team’s logo, as well as Cardinals flashing pins and pendant.

Fans can complete the jewelry ensemble and come to the games sporting everything from toe rings to pendants, to bracelets and rings. They also make great gifts for your girl if she’s also a fan. The jewelry is made of fine jewelry grade silver most of the time, but due to the sporty designs, they are better used for casual occasions.

However, if you look hard enough, you’ll be able to find some gems that you can wear even to the office as well as some black tie events. These nice little numbers are usually found in the watches subsection of the jewelry section. Here you can find Clip On Sport Watches, Agent Series Watches, Cardinals Chronographs, and leather strap wristwatches. Some watches are not overtly noticeable as baseball jewelry, and only have a small logo of the team in the dial, but are conspicuous enough that they can easily tag you as a fan, perfect if you want to spread the word just how much of a Die Hard Fan one is.

St. Louis Cardinals Home Décor

Home décor scores highly in any fan’s team merchandise wish list, especially during the season and most definitely during the playoffs. Home decorations are the perfect way to show your support for you favorite team. There are Cardinals Double Sided Window Light-up Player displays, Cardinals Tabletop Snow Snowman, Cardinals themed table runners, Cardinals logo mantle clocks and more. If you suddenly have the need to make your home conspicuous and ready to spot – perhaps the product of a post game party you planned after a team victory – there are many options available. There are Cardinals Mailbox Covers and Flag Kits to tell everyone they’ve arrived. There are also the Cardinals 12 inch Art Glass Clocks, or the Cardinals Dual Lit Accent Lamp, and Cardinals Art Glass Frame.

Adding these display pieces into your home not only make it more colourful and filled with team spirit, it makes it more comfortable as well, especially if you g et any of the available recliner chairs and ottomans found via the home décor section.