Gathering Dust

A Semi- Homemade Craft Show

 

A few posts ago, I mentioned I was doing a craft show this weekend, but I hadn't had time to really put together a whole booth full of stuff.  What I did instead was take a few things I had already made, made a few more things, and then took some supplies and did some simple things to "pretty" them up.

Like my cigar box full of ribbon wrapped Bingo cards- of course, the ribbon looked pretty nice pre Bingo card, too.

 

Aged and stamped some tags, glued on a button- so easy.

More playing with tags.

 

Lace wrapped around stamped tags.

If I was stranded on an island, I'd want Diet Coke, microwave popcorn, tags & a glue stick. 

Wait- if I don't have a microwave, let's skip the popcorn and substitue Chex Party Mix.

 

I love buttons, and buttons on cards, so I made a few of my own.

 

Do you sense a theme going on here?  A vintage sewing theme? 

 

I'm bringing a vintage wire dress form to display my tags- I'll use clothes pins to clip them to the wires.

 

And just to break up the sewing stuff- I've got a fish bowl full of little bottles.

 

I hope I remember how to make change....I hope I sell enough that that's an issue!

Restocking the Antique Mall

 

Yesterday, in exchange for going to the Junior League Boutique show with her, I got Karla to help me redo my booth at the antique mall. 

I was kind of surprised when Karla asked if I wanted to go to the Junior League show- but I had heard a lot about it, and was a little bit curious.  The Junior League show is 300+ vendors selling new jewelry, new clothes, and lots of dip mixes and jams and jellies- nice stuff, but not the kind of place you'd expect two gals who like estate sales finds, dumpster diving & thrift stores.  We felt like strangers in a strange land. 

Turns out, Karla thought we were going to the Antique & Garden show.  We made the best of it, marveled at the $98 t-shirts and $300 coats and ate as many sample pretzels dunked in party dip and crackers spread with hybrid jellies like huckleberry jalapeno and pumpkin persimmion to skip lunch and dinner.

By far, our favorite booth was Curious Sofa- a great mix of old and new with a refreshing mix of  shades of tan &  ivory.

So, after the Junior League show, Karla helped me rearrange my booth.  My

 

sales always go up after Karla rearranges- it helps to get a second set of eyes on "the junk".

I went back today and added some new finds...and took some pictures.

 

Moo Cards (in the bowl) next to a metal box with a Florentine box and crochet pin cushion.

 

Silverplate bowl with enamel plaque, lace & wooden stylus pen.

   

Lacy dress on a padded hanger with a mix of pearls.

 

Transferware butter pat.

 

A parking meter- a great bookend, maybe- but not a great bank, the money falls out the bottom.

 

Crazy quilt displayed hanging on the wall.

 

Peacock compact from my last post.

While I had my camera at the mall, I took some pictures of some of my favorite vignettes. This is just a beautiful mix of gilt and age.

 

 

Love the sculptural quality of the wooden wheels mixed with these worn shoes.

I used to have a collection of these beaded flowers- and I still like looking at them.

 

Yeah, I'd have to say I'm more comfortable in an antique mall than a chic boutique.

 

Ladies and Gentleman Step Right Up

 

...to try your luck at spinning the wheel.

I've wanted a carnival wheel for a long time- an old wooden one - and last night I found one at an auction.  I love the colors- the mustard and brick red colors would work really well in my living room...but I bought it with the idea of selling it...

 

My carnival wheel will go nicely with my mini collection of carnival sticks- the sticks the barkers used to point at the game as they beckoned "Step right up".

As much as I complain about how busy I am- computer conversion at work, getting ready for a show, keeping my house spotless, I always find time to do more junkin'.

Can't resist a scary/cute doll- which one frightens you the most?

 

I picked up a pretty peacock compact- and some fancy blue beads.

 

And I can't resist a camera with fold out lens.

 

I got (just a few) more things, but I'll have to stop, now- got to keep that house spotless!

It's Show Time

   

I haven't set up for an arts & craft (or antique) show in a long time.  My friend Lucy has been doing The Crafty Chicks show for years, and invited me to share a table with her. 

   

I almost bowed out because I didn't think I had time to get enough ready, but then I started to look around and realized I have plenty.  I'm going to focus on a mix my own paper art, and fun supplies- like the bakers twine at the top of the blog, and seam binding wrapped around spools.

I worked on wrapping the seam binding at Karla's last week and one of my clever crafting friends said "you should finish the ends of your spools with circles of wallpaper."  Pretty cute idea, huh?

   

I'll also be bringing an assortment of vintage shoe store tags to the show. It seems like everyone likes the look of a vintage tag.

 

I've got some of my own creations to bring, too.  You may have seen some of these before on my blog, I've been posting them as I make them, and then storing them in a tote bag.

 

I was surprised when I dumped the tote bag to find so many of my "pattern girls"- collages made with images from vintage patterns.

 

The illustrations from old sewing patterns seem to have a universal appeal, too.  Maybe they remind us of our mom's sewing for us, or taking Home Ec- or maybe some of you really did learn to sew and you just enjoy a vintage reminder. 

 

I remember spending hours with those big patterns books in the fabric store, trying to decide what to buy.  The big three were Butterick, Simplicity and McCalls- Vogue was too expensive and too sophisticated.

For all the fabric and patterns I bought, and the time I spent sewing, I actually made very little that I ever wore.  But I just kept trying because I wanted to be creative and I didn't know about scrapbooking, and collage and paper arts.

 

I'm also going to bring a big tray of old black & white photos. People always have fun thumbing through them.

Before I put them I'm out, I'm going to go through them and look for pictures to add to my "collection".  I've been gathering "girlfriends" pictures- I'm not sure what for, but maybe someday they'll be the inspiration for a project.

 

I try to stick with girls looking they are having fun- like these two- maybe the original Thelma and Louise?

 

I stay away from pictures like these- ladies that look like they really didn't want their pictures taken.

 

I'm also going to try to make some jewelry for the show, I haven't made any in over a year- I didn't remember that it was so .....HARD.

All I have so far is a not quite ready necklace and a bunch of trinkets.

 

I have BIG plans for other goodies, but only time will tell- at least I feel like I've got a start.

Craft Day and a Buddy Update

 

Karla hosted a craft day on Tues.    Shawn, Marilyn  and Shawn's cutie little girl Bethany and I made stuff, had a great lunch, giggled and inspired each other.

 

Bethany is only 3, but she knows how to craft- and was making goodies for us all day.  Bethany, I'm sorry your picture is blurry.

 

I didn't take pictures of anything we made, but Marilyn and Shawn came with gifts for everyone.  On the left is a quilted Halloween album that Marilyn made (and she actually SEWED it).  It's full of fall color pages for pictures.  Shawn made the frightening spooky lady ornament- it kind of cracks me up to see the lady's stern face.

I did take advantage of all of Karla's pretties being displayed for her Silver Bella preparations.  Most of the items on the buffet in the picture at the top of the blog will be for sale at the Silver Bella Vendor Faire.

I don't think this stuff is for sale- it just looked awfully pretty.

 

 

And now will you indulge a proud pet Mommy and let me show some pictures of my new boy Buddy.

Buddy is the fastest moving, highest jumping dog I have ever had.  It's hard to get a picture of him that isn't just a blur.  He's  the first dog I've had that will jump over the BACK of the couch to get to the other side.

   

He's also the first dog I've had that buried things.  I've had dogs that dug things up- like trees, shrubs, flowers- but Buddy is a hider.  See that yellow and brown clump at his paw?  That's a chew strip that Buddy hid outside, dug up, and then chewed on again with the same mouth that he uses to kiss me.

When Buddy is standing still outside, it's usually in one of the most unattractive places in the yard...because that's where the rabbits and the squirrels are and Buddy waits for them like Sam Spade tailing a suspect.  And as Buddy told me "They must be stopped".

My favorite pictures of Buddy are after a hard day of hunting, tailing, burying and chasing, when he curls up on the couch for a snooze. (Or maybe he's just planning his next adventure).

A Perfect Fall Day

 

Recipe for a great fall day- sunshine, temperature in the 70's, a great little estate sale, a nap and then a party complete with bonfire.

 

Obviously, I really don't NEED to be shopping at estate sales, I have plenty- but on Saturday mornings I have that itch that needs to be scratched...

The first sale I went to was my favorite kind- house built in the 50's, probably only had one owner, middle class neighborhood, "L" shaped living room dining room, kitchen with a counter dividing it with the family room, small bedrooms and the wood paneled rec room in the basement- and most important- they KEPT stuff.

Like the doll clothes pattern from 1965 and these old flower covered hats- I think maybe The Hat Whisperer has rubbed off on me.

   

I love the champagne and fawn color of this hat, but I can't imagine anyone wearing it without looking like a mushroom.

  

A sweet little baby gown with pretty embroidery.

I'm not Catholic, but I'm always on the look out for rosaries, prayer cards and statues of my favorite Catholic rock star, The Infant of Prague. I found several Infant of Prague statues a couple of weeks ago at sales- which is strange because I can go a year or more and not see any.  This week I found an Infant of Prague book- along with rosaries and pretty prayer cards.

 

 

Prayer Cards.

 

ILLUSTRATED copy of Alice in Wonderland.

Besides sewing stuff, I always like to look for vintage knitting & crochet books- sometimes I use the patterns & sometimes I sell the them.  I thought a few of these were awfully cute.

 

The heart shaped flyer is instructions for crocheting a majorette outfit for your storybook doll.

Babies are such fun to dress.

I was also able to add a wedding cake topper to my little collection.

 

I don't actively seek out wedding cake toppers, but if I run across them for a few dollars, I'll buy them.  That's how a lot of my collections have started.

 

After a Saturday afternoon nap, we headed to Karla's Cottage for a fall party.  I so wish I had my camera with me.  Karla set a beautiful outdoor fall banquet by mixing and matching smaller tables and putting them end to end and covering them white tableclothes.  Every few feet she had a different centerpiece- real pumpkins, glittered pumpkins, fresh flowers, coleuss leaves.

(Karla emailed me some pictures after I posted this- so I'll borrow them from her)

It was kind of like those pictures you see of Martha Stewart's outdoor parties, only better because everything wasn't all matchy matchy, and you HAD to look at every arrangement on the table because they were all so interesting.  Imagine a table about four times this long.

Everyone brought a side dish, and Karla's DH grilled the best salmon- I told Karla I didn't like salmon, and she would have to make something special for me ( I was teasing of course, I'm not a salmon fan, but I wouldn't ASK my hostess to make something different for me) - but Karla convinced me to try the salmon and it was DELISH and her husband is the Salmon King.

 

Wallpaper that Karla gave me- just put that in there as a visual break from my pictureless story.

After dinner, as it began to get dark, we heading down a stone path glowing with twinkling lights to the bonfire pit. 

 

There was  a beautiful 3/4 moon peeking through the trees and Karla had marshmallows to roast and glow sticks for the kids (but the grown ups ended up wearing them, too). 

The highlight of the night was when Karla threw an Adirondeck chair on the fire. 

It used to be a tradition for Karla to have a bonfire party at her house after one of her big house sales, and she'd always burn a piece of furniture that she couldn't sell. 

Then the kids would chant around the fire "Fur-nit-ture, fur-nit-ture".  Is this sounding like a weird pagan ritual?  It wasn't, it was all in good fun, and the chair that burned was falling apart and not long for this world.

Check Karla's  blog for pictures- she had her camera out- but if she's cleaning up after the party, it might be awhile. You know that any party that includes chair burning probably has some clean-up issues- and I know I was a bad guest and didn't help with the dishes...

 

How to Sort Dice & Have Glue, Will Quilt

 

Last week, Karla was at my house, and saw all these dice on the kitchen table and said "You should do a post on how to sort dice".  But I don't know how to sort dice, I only knew how to collect them.  

For several years, I've had  a big bowl of dice, game pieces, funky buttons & buckles on the kitchen table- that's a good use of the kitchen table, since we never eat there.  The bowl got to be overflowing, so I decided to get rid of the contents- some has gone on eBay, some has gone to my booth at the antique mall- and some is still on the kitchen table.  

So, how do you sort dice?

    

It's not just dice- there are some Bakelite backgammon pieces, too- and a cute little Merry Christmas pin.  There's an auction I go to regularly, and every year right before Christmas, a gentleman hands out Merry Christmas pins.  Every year, I tell him that he gave me one last year, but he always says "have another"- so now I have a little collection of Merry Christmas pins- the rest are in my jewelry box.

 

A lot of people have asked me if the economy has hurt my business- I'd say it's maybe slowed it down, but I sell things so cheap (cheaper than a Starbucks latte), that people can still afford to indulge themselves a little bit with something fun.  One thing that surprised me though, was NOT selling these millinery flowers on ebay- - they are good size  white roses- the largest are about 3" across, some with velvet trim- and the whole lot of them could've been had for $10.  If you're interested, let me know- they need to go to a good home-shipping is $2.

SOLD-Thank you

 

I went to a fun auction over the weekend- the estate of a watch repairman!  More watches- I got watch faces, dials, pocket watches, gears & more- and a whole box full of cuckoo clock parts.

 

And this sweet little baby plate with kittens and blue birds- it's seen better days, but imagine how much fun it was for some little one to get to the bottom of their oatmeal and find two kittens underneath.

 

Speaking of little ones, Amy at The Vintage Workshop asked me to try making some little art quilts using Vintage Workshop images.  I'm not much of a seamstress, but I do like handsewing and embroidery.  My secret - glue.  I glue the pieces together and then embellish by hand.  Don't tell my mother, the quilter.

And don't tell my Mom about this little hanging quilt- its a birthday present for her.

 

That's a picture of my brother and me about 1964 in front of the Christmas tree with a bunch of toys from Santa that most certainly would be banned today for safety reasons.

 

To finish up my rambling, this is a chair I bought this morning at an estate sale- the paint has worn away and its obviously been repaired, but I just kept coming back to it.  I've tried to stay away from "project" pieces- too much time and work- but this chair kept saying "Beth, Beth- take me home".

 

So I did.  I'm dying to put some wax on it and brighten it up, but I keep imagining taking it to The Antiques Roadshow and having one of those cute Keno brothers tell me "If you had left the original finish, it would have been worth $2000, as it is, it's worth $22". 

Project Update

 

...project update as in updating you on what I've been working on.  I've been working a lot at my "real" job behind a desk working with a computer conversion- but the pictures I took of that weren't very interesting....

• Beth on the phone with consultants.
• Beth on the computer while consultant dials in.
• Beth on the phone AND the computer.
• Beth looking at the multiple stacks of  bills, folders, checks & spreadsheets, wondering where she put her special blue pen.
• Beth looking at the multiple stacks of bills, folders, checks & spreadsheets, wondering where she put her lunch.

So, what does a girl do to relax?

 

I've been sitting in the sun on my new deck, knitting a little bit.  I finished this afghan that I started last winter.  It's made of scraps leftover from other projects- eyelash yarn, boa yarn, velour yarn- all yarns with some nice textures.

 

I got a fun surprise in the mail from Laurie of Charming Designs.  She sent me a soldered charm with a nest, a coaster with a hand painted nest and a handpainted one of the muslin bags that  I posted about earlier.  My picture really doesn't do them justice, because all the pieces have beautiful sparkling colors.

 

Laurie also sent one of Karen of A'musements Bewitching Slippers.

   

Karla came over this afternoon to craft and brought green apple licorice and blue cheese straws- great colors of food to craft by.  I worked on some Halloween tags.

 

As I finished my tags, I clipped them to the bird cage that's in front of my work table.  It's nice to see your progress.

 

But sometimes, its more fun to just throw all your tags out on the table.

 

Except for that rogue pink angel tag that has nothing to do with Halloween.