Blue hoods take me back to the old days. Have you ever seen Renaissance Cycles? They are in Holland, and have all sorts of 80's Euro cycle gear. They do business in English, and are pretty oriented to American bikedorks. Although the parts you order come from Holland, delivery takes about a week. Try them out at
www.renaissance-cycles.com. I recommend them.
It sounds like you have the bars wrapped right. I have two bikes with bar ends, and the cables don't get in the way. In fact, I left the cables really long on one bike, and I don't mind grasping the cable along with the bar when I'm in the hooks. They don't get in the way of the brake levers either.