The first post

The first post is always the hardest. I am so excited about creating this blog and have so many things that I want to share but getting things organized and set up is the hard part. The next challenge will be sticking with it!
I'm not setting a lofty post-everyday sort of goal, nothing crazy like that, just want a place to gush about my new obsession.... Vintage hard-shell suitcases.
More specifically, American Touristers, but more than likely my fascination will expand to reach all the brands.
I guess I'll start at the beginning.
It was about 10 years ago when I was at my grandma's house being nosey and opening all the closets in the upstairs part of the house that no one used anymore.  There were three bedrooms up there but unlike modern homes, you couldn't stand completely upright in all the spaces and it has these really strange, short closets that follow the roof-line. I always loved to look through the stuff up there because my grandma was so stylish and had the neatest things.  Those rooms were barely ever used, so they tended to be the place where the stuff that no one used any more, but no one wanted to throw away ended up.
I discovered a hot pink Samsonite hard-case suitcase and fell in love.  I pulled it out and opened it to find another, smaller one inside.  How neat!  I was a full-grown adult at this time, mind you, but I'd never noticed how cool these things are before that day.  I grew up a military brat, so we traveled.  We always had suitcases.  Just never any suitcase that actually had enough character for me to take notice.  After having this epiphany, I realized that my own parents had been using a set of avocado green hard shell Samsonites just like this set forever!  All through my childhood and I never noticed!  I guess the color is why I never cared before.
Grandma's suitcases were HOT PINK.  That is awesome!  At some point in the last 10-years modern suitcases have begun to be more colorful again, but at around the turn of the century, it seemed that every suitcase you saw was solid black or a gray/black combo.  I just had to have this HOT PINK luggage!
I ran downstairs and asked if I could have it.  Because I only saw Grandma, maybe once a year or once every other year and I am number 12 of her 14 grandkids, she usually said yes when I asked her for things.  This time it took some begging.  *remember... full-grown adult at the time* She finally gave in and let me have the whole set.
Did I mention that the insides had polka dots? oh yes, polka dots.
I no longer have this set... another story... another time.  But I found some like them on eBay for a visual.

Photos credit: eBay seller 440slapstick