A Seventeen Spring

As much as I love my vintage Back-to-School Seventeen’s, when April comes around, I like to pull out my handful of spring numbers.

Seventeen makes even dull rainy April days look like fun.  In fact Yardley Slicker lipsticks were often illustrated with “rainy day” ads mirroring just how “wet” Slickers swiped on the lips could be, as in my March 1973 issue.  But in nearly every spring issue there is a pretty model with a yellow rain slicker or a shiny grass-green raincoat with a fetching matching rain hat.  Thanks to Seventeen, girls knew just how to dress for April showers (which sometimes turn into May or June showers).  And so many perfume ads in my Seventeen’s portray couples splashing about in happy drizzle under umbrellas.  I never knew how romantic an umbrella could be until I noticed a charming ad for Chanel 5 perfume with a laughing couple skipping over puddles together, he gallantly holding a polka-dot umbrella over her pretty head.  June 1970.

But what about sunshine, especially for these rain-soaked days of spring 2019?  There’s plenty of bright and sunny in my spring Seventeen’s.  In June 1972’s “Little Things Mean A Lot” I spy a pair of bright yellow leather clogs just like the ones I wore with a purple broadcloth dress with cherry red rick rack encircling each entrancing puffed sleeve.  And how could I overlook the handsome young sun-kissed Nick Nolte seated on a log of driftwood with a lovely girl who just colored her long tresses with Clairol’s Summer Blond?  June ’72 again…

Now May 1972 Yardley (again!) teaches me to “Make the most of what you have” with Rainbow Eyes Brush-On Sigh Shadows in yellow, green and blue replete with instructions for spring-pretty eyes.  Nothing says spring is here like rainbow colors captured after  afternoon showers.  Further along, “C for Color” shows how to accessorize with primary-color headscarves and flower power wash-off tattoos of pop-art flowers in discreet places.  So refreshing.

Still this issue, Bobbie Brooks gives me clothes with jaunty nautical themes that could be worn today.  I am struck by the optimism of stripes in red, gold, and navy, all in swirling upbeat patterns.  Who could be sad wearing these stripes in spring?

In April 1971’s issue, I can’t get past the delightful ad from Pandora with primary-color tee shirts and matching sou’wester canvas hats and stretch knee socks.  Each shirt appliqued with a luscious fruit or vegetable, stating “a carrot a day keeps the doldrums away!”.  Indeed.  It takes a happy face to pull off these looks…

And Maidenform “Color(s) Me Pretty” in clingy little intimates to wear under each and every outfit.  In 1971, we had a choice of banana yellow sets, hot-pink, or Pucci-like printed psychedelia.

In May 1972, Lemon Up Shampoo Concentrate shined our hair with the juice of “one whole lemon” in each cartoon-bottle and I can just about smell it still.  The little scratch pad on the page retains a faint citrus scent that slowly wafts its way to my nostalgic nose.  On the next page, the forest-green pools in an Herbal Essence bottle explodes with fanciful blooms spreading across the centerfold.  Both shampoos had a place on my shower shelf in 1972 and this issue reminds me of the fragrant ways I cared for my hair in spring.

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The point being, spring is a marvelous time to revisit an era when our senses were alive with seasonal newness and excitement.  I get immersed in the kaleidoscopic colors that make me want to toss my blacks and greys to the back of the closet, I re-engage with the fruity and earthy smells of hair care and cosmetics, test the fresh new hues of makeup and lingerie, make thoughtful and fun rain gear choices, and slick on pretty new lip glosses.  All in rainy spring, 2019.