369. Scenes from the final big Sears catalog, part 1 (1993)

The short-lived Sears cosmetics counter entry from a few weeks back had me thinking.

When it was announced in January of 1993 that the classic “big book” Sears catalog was folding people flipped out.

(That was pretty much 9 year old me upon reading the news back in 1993. My mom is Dr. Hibbert. I am Bernice Hibbert always.)

It was like a member of the family died, which I guess its understandable. The big Sears catalog came two times a year, then the WishBook with the toys would come in the mail in late August. So its like a relative coming over to visit several times a year. I know the catalog was a big part of my household. I seem to remember flipping through it a lot when Murphy Brown was on? Just randomly flipping through it, not even looking at toys, looking at fridges and cameras and wondering what’s it like to have a professional camera with that little puffy cleaning brush that probably didn’t do anything:

I think that Sears abandoned their catalog way too early. They really should’ve stretched the catalog out to at least ‘99, right before the internet and online shopping became more common in homes. However, according to articles I’ve read, the catalog had been flailing around for years prior:

It was yet another boneheaded move by Sears.

In wake of the catalog being discontinued, people stocked up on extra copies, hoping it would become a collector’s item (spoiler alert: it didn’t really). 2 I think after a while, steep discounts began on items in the catalog, and I remember my mom being put on hold for ages when she tried to order things once the sales began.

(imgur user juice06870 )

One thing she bought me was a t-shirt with the members of the 1992 Olympic Basketball Dream Team.

If your local public library has an account with ancestry.com, you can look at these old Sears catalogs. You have to be in the library to use the system, however. Fortunately, I work at a library, but unfortunately, I work at a library and I don’t have hours to look at Sears catalogs. I could only like, glance five pages at a time while I cataloged James Patterson’s 50th book this year. To find them, search for, “Historic Catalogs of Sears, Roebuck and Co., 1896-1993″

So Sears was pioneer in vanity sizing.

This outfit is the best outfit in the women’s section. It’s on page 7. The best outfit was on page 7. It’s all downhill from there.

See?

I feel like they used regular sized models to model these maternity swimsuits, and just stuffed them full of newspaper.

While Sears did make some boneheaded decisions, one great decision was to offer swimsuits for mastectomy patients with natural looking padding.

1. Strom, Stephanie, “Sears Eliminating Its Catalogues and 50,000 Jobs,” New York Times, January 26, 1993. https://www.nytimes.com/1993/01/26/business/sears-eliminating-its-catalogues-and-50000-jobs.html

2. Silverman, David, “$5 CATALOG IS SUDDENLY A COLLECTIBLE,” Chicago Tribune, January 27, 1993. https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1993-01-27-9303172618-story.html

1993 the 1990s 1990s fashion 1990s clothes sears sears catalog

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369. Scenes from the final big Sears catalog, part 3 (1993)

(part 2)

So, the Sears where I grew up closed on January 6th.

I feel like I had the leggings in that black and white flower pattern. Those ruffle shirts look real familiar too.

The color blocking!!

Aw, baby talk show hosts.

Look at these amazing collage shirts with matching shorts.

This was an outfit back in 1993. Almost everybody had one. So much woosh-woosh noises when you walked.

I didn’t know that British Knights were still a thing in 1993. I always associate them with the late 1980s, and that they were always a prize on that kids game show Fun House.

They’re still being made! How?? They’re so ugly…except for these:

I’m going to give Sears another point for having women’s work clothes back in ‘93. You so know they didn’t sell them in store though.

There’s this phrase I see sometimes called “t-shits”, for a tacky t-shirt. I think these qualify.

The 90s was the best era for ties. I want to imagine the slightly hot civics teacher who wore these back then.

That nightgown, however, is not hot.

So much to unfold on this page:

-the note about “modeling for Sears catalogs”. Did aspiring models send their headshots to Sears??

-The gift wrapping sets. Too much.

-Prodigy. Prodigy was an internet service back then. Sears was a big backer of it. You could order from the Sears catalog using Prodigy! I was a little kid with no computer when Prodigy was at it’s height, so here is a good article about the history of the service.

The Dark Green Queen (that’s me, lover of mid 90s dark green anything) is in love with this arrangement.

Dark Green Queen approves of this too! I had a similar bedspread back in 1995, bought at Hills.

This however. This does not belong in 1993.

This doesn’t belong in 1993 either! This is a very 80s print.

Dark Green Queen approves of that cranberry toilet, since cranberry is dark green’s mid 90s friend.

You know what I miss? Color blinds.

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367. When Sears tried to get into cosmetics (late 1990s)

(my photo of the Sears in Hampton, VA)

As we all know by now, Sears is pretty much on death’s door. They can close stores all they want (including the one in my hometown which is finally closing after nearly 44+ years of being open) but guys, they’re dead.

My most vivid memory of Sears during my teenage years in the late 90s is that they tried to get into the cosmetics department. My mom was always at Sears in the late 90s, using her Sears card. Finally one day in late 1999, there was something for me to do while I waited for her: a help-yourself cosmetics counter, with samples.

(http://gaus212.com/Sears.php) Ours in Hampton looked kinda like this? It was white that’s all I remember. White and long.

I’m mad that I don’t remember the brand names of the cosmetics sears carried at my store, they were not the brands that were in usual department stores, like Lancome, or Clinique, Sears in the U.S. couldn’t get those names. I just primarily remember Circle of Beauty, Sears’ in house brand. I remember all the shades being totally unflattering. I got a couple of things when Sears shut down their cosmetics counter in 2001, and the blush had no pigment, and the foundation felt like paint.

There were several other brands that catered to younger women, that I had a couple of items from. I think one brand was Studio Essentials? I had a white sparkily powder, that I put all over my face, because I didn’t know what highlighter was back in ‘99, 2000. I’ve looked all over for something about the brand, but all I find is the stuff dumb dumbs buy thinking its real MAC. The compact was square and black, and the font for the brand was something in the lucinda console family.

\edit\

I found a Pic I took 12 years ago of my embarrassing makeup. Guess who was there. The brand was called “studiomakeup" :

Clearly I could not afford makeup back then.

Also, it was an in house brand for Sears, according to the Paula Begoun book “Don’t go to the cosmetics counter without me” (2001 edition) 1:

Chicago Tribune:

Now Sears is rolling out a new line called Studio Makeup to attract a younger, edgier set of customers. By design, Studio Makeup resembles MAC, a line of highly pigmented products popularized by professional makeup artists. “We’re looking to be hip but extraordinarily more affordable,” said Mark Cohen, Sears senior vice president of merchandising in charge of cosmetics and accessories. 2

Another brand whose name I have completely forgotten, but they made lipsticks in tiny silver tubes, and at the top of the tube was the letters “FX”. The lipstick I wore to my high school graduation (hot pink, crunchy sparkles) in 2001 came from them. Solar FX?

(source)

I originally learned of Smell this perfume though the Delia*s catalog back in the late 90s. I flipped out when I saw that Sears had a small section of it in their new cosmetics department. I got Soda Pop Fizz and Canned Peaces for Christmas. I still have them! Of course I never use them because there’s only a drop left of each, but they still smell the same after nearly 20 years. I got Iced Tea to wear at high school graduation right before Sears stopped selling cosmetics. This is my most missed perfume line of all time. There’s absolutely none of it left online, except for some scant bottles of cookie dough lotion. ew.

I forgot that Sears also ~~sold~~ had on the shelves a lot of The Healing Garden. I only liked the one in the dark blue packaging for when you had a cold, the menthol one.

Time Out - when I think of the term “Time Out”, I think of a stressed out mom yelling “TIME OUT!” –not relaxing . This was Sears’ bobo answer to Bath and Body Works. This strawberry one STUNK. I remember getting a free set of it one year while back to school shopping. I still remember how crappy the bottle tops were, how they would leak all over the shelves at Sears.

1. Begoun, Paula, “Don’t go to the cosmetics counter without me : a unique guide to over 30,000 products, plus the latest skin-care research,” (Seattle: Beginning Press, 2001), 825.https://archive.org/details/dontgocosmetics00bego/page/824

2. Chandler, Susan, “Following the Scent,” Chicago Tribune, October 11, 1998. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1998-10-11-9810110471-story.html

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Update on the Sears cosmetic counter entry from a few days ago

Hi everybody,

I have an update on the Sears entry. I found the name of one of the products I was looking for, turns out it was a Sears house brand:

http://saleintothe90s.tumblr.com/post/179197173314/367-when-sears-tried-to-get-into-cosmetics-late

Thanks for the notes on that last post, everybody.

sears cosmetics old cosmetics 1990s makeup

saleintothe90s

371. Seventeen, December 1987 part 2

saleintothe90s

(part 1)

My mom had these, she bought them from the Sears catalog. They did not work.

This sounds really, really, lame. I know that’s a hot take, but Gone With the Wind at 3:30 am?

I always asked for a flashlight for Christmas growing up. I … don’t know why? I know when I was in middle school, I could never sleep so I always read magazines in bed at night or wrote stupid stuff in my journal or listened to the radio on my walkman so I def. needed a flashlight for that. One of my favorites was that light blue flashlight down at the bottom.

This is a comic from Mimi Pond, yes that Mimi Pond from the very first episode of Simpsons!

When I was in early Elementary school and just heard of Dep, I thought it had something to do with Johnny Depp. Like he had something to do with the company.

Oh. Here we go. Everything looks late 1980s normal if you scroll from the bottom up, until you get to that tuft. Remember when Rob Corddry first started on The Daily Show back in 2002 and he had that tuft?

I guess stiff stuff died when women stopped wearing their hair stiff around what? 1992? Except for those Tonya Harding style bangs:

I guess this was Timex’s answer to Swatch watches.

I think one of my favorite photo captions from now on is, “twins alternating as the baby”.

Ha! I found one in use! I failed to realize his mouth moved!

Don’t worry, its faux. I remember these big white faux coats everywhere back then. Now you can’t find em?

These are both ads for Montgomery Ward. Which kinda blew me away, because Montgomery Ward was not hip at all back then.

BABIES and girls wearing grandma sweaters. The lil white Maltese dog
looking dog is my favorite.

The red TV! Why can’t TV’s be red again!

wow

what does a tacklebox painted in concrete-look paint on her head have to do with Pebbles Flintstone??

At least give the model a bone like Sideshow Mel:

Aw I want that skirt, but I have a big butt. Can’t wear these, my butt would look like it was four feet wide.

Hey, look its Tiny Whisk from Binging With Babish.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen these at thrift stores through the years. These nasty looking bottles full of like red peppers and 25 year old olive oil.

I miss all the flavors General Foods International Coffee used to come in, right? It used to be a real treat, now is just nasty sugar stinky powder.

THE ALF CALENDAR NEEDS TO MAKE A COMEBACK. PLEASE.

saleintothe90s

Hey everybody,

When I saved this the other night I accidentally published it! So I had to make it private for a few days until I finished it D: whoop.

371. Seventeen, December 1987 part 2

(part 1)

My mom had these, she bought them from the Sears catalog. They did not work.

This sounds really, really, lame. I know that’s a hot take, but Gone With the Wind at 3:30 am?

This is a comic from Mimi Pond, yes that Mimi Pond from the very first episode of Simpsons!

When I was in early Elementary school and just heard of Dep, I thought it had something to do with Johnny Depp. Like he had something to do with the company.

I guess stiff stuff died when women stopped wearing their hair stiff around what? 1992? Except for those Tonya Harding style bangs:

I guess this was Timex’s answer to Swatch watches.

I think one of my favorite photo captions from now on is, “twins alternating as the baby”.

Ha! I found one in use! I failed to realize his mouth moved!

Don’t worry, its faux. I remember these big white faux coats everywhere back then. Now you can’t find em?

These are both ads for Montgomery Ward. Which kinda blew me away, because Montgomery Ward was not hip at all back then.

BABIES and girls wearing grandma sweaters. The lil white Maltese dog
looking dog is my favorite.

The red TV! Why can’t TV’s be red again!

wow

what does a tacklebox painted in concrete-look paint on her head have to do with Pebbles Flintstone??

At least give the model a bone like Sideshow Mel:

Aw I want that skirt, but I have a big butt. Can’t wear these, my butt would look like it was four feet wide.

Hey, look its Tiny Whisk from Binging With Babish.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen these at thrift stores through the years. These nasty looking bottles full of like red peppers and 25 year old olive oil.

I miss all the flavors General Foods International Coffee used to come in, right? It used to be a real treat, now is just nasty sugar stinky powder.

THE ALF CALENDAR NEEDS TO MAKE A COMEBACK. PLEASE.

seventeen magazine 1987 december 1987 alf general foods international coffee binging with babish tiny whisk betty boop the flintstones the jetsons stiff stuff montgomery ward rob corddry diane keaton

294. “Clunky and Funky” Newsweek, January 30, 1995.

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369. Scenes from the final big Sears catalog, part 2 (1993)

(part 1)

I’m getting total Sweeney sisters vibes from the pink and white dresses.

Extra Special.

I can still smell these. Anybody else have to wear these for baton classes growing up?

Life before Spanx. (although I think S, T, and U are back braces?)

Why so many bows on maternity clothes back then?

Why were maternity clothes so … babyish back then. Those overalls are embarrassing. Those Keds can’t be good on those swollen feet.

A room perfect for Baby Sinclair. I’m old as dirt and I still want that lamp.

I’m not a baby person at ALL, but I’m impressed by this Paddington room.

I don’t know which one I like more, Joker or Taz.

These dresses look like womens’ dresses, but shrunk down. That fruit dress looks SO familiar–I feel like I had it?! I mean, it did come in Pretty Plus….

445. Noise Magazine, December/January, 1999

Good news, there’s a new post. Bad news, is that Tumblr was acting up at 3am this morning when I couldn’t sleep and was working on this entry. So I wrote it on the Wordpress Backup.

[so I had to watermark everything because people on the TikTok love to lift magazine pages from people’s websites – aaand I accidentally put my etsy shop or the oher tumblr a couple of times, way2go, dummy]

Noise was a magazine given out by JCPenney in the late 90s. I can’t remember if I got it in the mail because my mom subscribed to the JCPenney catalog, or I picked it up in the juniors department in JCPenney – which probably not because I was a fat kid and couldn’t shop in the juniors department. We moved from my Childhood home in the Summer of 2000, and that’s when I stopped seeing it.

We all know just by looking at this that this is def. just a youth-ed up JCPenney catalog. I mean, there’s a article about … lamps.

Man, i think that “is there any downsides…” question kind of forecasted things, didn’t it?

Here’s some ugly late 90s jeans. Don’t bring these back, kids.

… like I said.

Everything back in ‘99 came in a tin, including this two pack of Arizona brand underwear. I remember seeing fleece jackets sold in paint cans at Peebles around this time. Stila used to sell collections in paint cans around this time too.

Anybody else remember these bracelets? I don’t think the bracelet I got from Marshall’s junior year of high school gave me any powers. Powers to fail math, maybe.

~the future~

Official outfit of every jerk boy in high school circa 1999.

Remember this soap was a thing? Soap with other soap shapes inside? There was a gift shop near me 20 years ago that had giant blocks of these. One looked and smelled like German chocolate cake!

Please help me with this. Is the magazine suggesting that the Backstreet Boys use these products?

Soon, I’m going to devote a post to ridiculous gift suggestions magazines gave us. What kid has $245.

Why would you give a present to the creepy guy in your math class. Come on, now.

Here, have a phone that will fall apart after a month.

Man, the rolling backpack kids. Or, if you were in community college like I was, the rolling suitcase adults.

We dressed like this for school.

Utility vests were a dark time in fashion.

“'hit him, you sissy!’, yelled the bear.”

Here we go everybody, it’s the lamp advertisement/article I mentioned in the beginning.

Believe me, I know from experience, your mom isn’t going to let you hang plastic bottles from your ceiling.

I remember those translucent flower candleholders being everywhere!

I always associate those Silver Tab jeans with the late 90s and the late 90s only.

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Seventeen, March 1997 - part 3

(part 2)

This dress is so unique, definitely one of my favorite ones from this issue.

There’s that big curly hair I love so much again.

I didn’t know that that the nightgown look was still a thing in 1997. ‘Thought that was more of a Courtney Love/1995 sort of thing.

I love how this issue is prom prom prom, and then … potatoes.

This was part of an advertisement for post prom breakfast? Nobody is awake enough to make this after prom. Your date isn’t going to want to high five a pb&j with you.

aw, this was one of the final Airwalk ads I remember that was like this.

Really, Tom Selleck?

1997 1990s seventeen magazine 1990s prom 1990s fashion prom dresses

495. I watched Ghostbusters II, and I have questions

Hot take: I loved it.

When they fell on hard times in those five years, it made them more interesting to me. Although, it was never revealed what Winston did in those five years other than appearing at kids birthday parties with Ray. I know Red Letter Media didn’t understand why Ray and Winston dances to the Ray Parker Jr. Ghostbusters theme, but I totally get it. My theory is that in the Ghostbusters universe, that song was totally a novelty song that only played on NYC radio stations. My theory is proven more after I saw Frozen Empire and Paul Rudd’s character references it.

I do, however wonder why the kids wished He-Man was at their party instead .. I thought that Masters of the Universe/He-Man was more of a mid 80s craze?

I wanna know who Sigourney Weaver had ‘dat baby with! Was it the guy who was jealous of Peter in the original film when he waited for Dana outside of orchestra practice? I bet it was him.

Egon wanting to do a gynecological exam on Dana as part of the investigation. Egon totally did it with that slime.

No more smoking! I kinda miss the smoking. I loved in the original that the boys pretty much welcome Winston in by lighting up a cigarette for him in the basement while they discuss Twinkies.

Peter MacNichol! I didn’t even realize it was him until I was like forty minutes in. I love him, the only shining light from Ally McBeal! Did I miss why Dana was restoring paintings now instead of being in the orchestra? I guess it was because it was a day job so she could be with baby Oscar at night? I know at one point she tells Janosz that she’ll be leaving soon since the baby is getting older?

They are cute as buttons in their suits fighting those death row ghosts in court.

Speaking of cute as buttons, Janine’s glam makeover! She got that “return of Ghostbusters” paychecks now.

It’s weird that New Years Eve is brought up, and is a giant part of the plot, but other than them wearing the Santa hats in the montage, and the aluminum tree in Peter’s awesome apartment, that’s all the Christmas we get. Did the entire movie take part in that week between Christmas and New Years? This video tries to figure it out.

Ooo the green dress. Winston saw it in a deleted scene, and said “[Peter’s] not coming”. Was that dress in the suitcase Peter brings over from Dana’s apartment?

Speaking of the suitcase, that apartment scene before their dinner date, that scene felt like it was ten minutes long! I like Peter’s apartment, so I’ll let it slide.

Winston being scared of the ghost train is one of the best most overacted scenes ever. What was up with all the beheaded heads at the old Subway track?

Why did that scene involving Louis and Janine at Peter’s apartment awake something in me? I do have a thing for guys like Louis. I need to put those feelings back away. Y'all know I gave up on dating!

I mean THIS?! With the earmuffs?! I need a minute. Even if Louis thought he had to save the Ghostbusters, I think him and Janine did some things first.

When that cop said “the Titanic just arrived”, I felt the emotion in that line. He said it like it was real deal this really happened breaking news. Better Late Than Never.

Bobby Brown’s sad cameo where he just opens the door at Gracie Mansion and asks the boys where he can get some ghostbusters stuff for his brother. Yes his song “On Our Own” (which I LOVE) is playing in the background.

I don’t care about the Vigo stuff too much, the baby’s acting makes the scene bearable however. Those twins who played Oscar were really good baby actors!

Them controlling the Statue of Liberty with the positive slime and the big flat Nintendo controller is silly as heck, and I am here for it.

Now, I know the movie got a cool reception when it came out in June of 1989, especially since it came out the weekend before the biggest movie of the year, Batman. Ghostbusters II made the biggest three day box office record at the time – but Batman beat it the following weekend. I wanted to read some critic’s initial reactions to the movie.

Vincent Camby of The New York Times almost gives away the entire movie’s plot! I agree with most of his points, except for him saying the original was “overproduced and sloppy” the effects were made in 1984, what do you expect? On Christmas of 1988, NYT almost gives away the plot again in an article about the behind the scenes process of the film. (gift article)

I think Al meant a “junky” effect when he was referring to the Statue of Liberty walking around instead of a “junkie” effect, but I get what he’s saying, even if I loved the scene for its silliness.

(My local paper ran this review too, so that’s why you don’t see one from my paper. ) I saw Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire the other day, and I feel like this was finally Ernie Hudson’s chance to shine after being just the fourth Ghostbuster so so long. To me, each Ghostbuster has their own movie now: the original was Ray’s, Ghostbusters II was Peter’s, Ghostbusters: Afterlife was (ghost) Egon’s, and Frozen Empire was Winston’s.

I even found a newsgroup review from June of 1989. That is baby internet! Here is the archive, because I just feel like google groups is going to shut down the old newsgroup archives any day now. Wait, I just found another one (archive).

Here is an article about the press tour held at the newly renovated Plaza hotel in New York City. The press was already clamoring for a third movie. Of course, we wouldn’t get that until 2020, 2021, of course.

In closing, never forget the Hardees promotion, with the noisemakers that were recalled almost immediately because lil kids ate the batteries. I remember being about six? and was terrified that my parents were going to take away my Ghostbusters noisemaker.

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See, that’s what the app is perfect for.

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