..."Unanchored ships, that blow and blow
Sail to and fro, and then go down
In unknown seas that none shall know,
Without one ripple of renown;
Poor drifting dreamers, sailing by,
That seem to only live to die. ~Joaquin Miller

It was the Great Depression and with little hope of finding work, some people chose to travel on freight trains without a ticket, trying their luck here and there and developing a "hobo" culture that inspired music, poetry and a code of hobo ethics that made allies, if not friends, of other gypsies of the road.

A few of these travelers were women and they were as brave, tough and feared as any man. The mythic heroine of the female hobo was Boxcar Betty, probably inspired by Bertha Thompson and other daring "hoboettes". Betty hopped freights and bounced from boxcar to boxcar. She was, according to a depression era book by C. James, "a railroad tramp's worst nightmare and most delicious dream".

Our version of "Betty" was photographed beautifully by our fantastic photographer, Tim Kennard, now of L.A. Our lovely and tireless models, Ashley and Katie, were brought into the era of Prohibition by Alanna of Smoke Show Makeup Artistry ...many thanks to all.

Take Note: Our designs for winter 2011 are being made in very limited quantities and when they're gone they will become a part of history....not even a Time Machine will bring them back...!

View the Gypsy Moon Winter 2011 Collection, A Postcard from Hobohemia.

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