Gathering Dust

Let's Hear It For the Girls( it's been a pretty good junking week)

 

Let's hear it for this French boudoir doll.  I've had these fancy French dolls pass through my hands before, but this is the first doll I've had that has BOTH hair and clothes.

 

And the girl/goddess at the center of this chandelier.  She came with one lone prism (up by her arm) but I think I can dig up some more and add some sparkle  her.

I've been to two auctions, one false alarm flea market, several antique stores and a Saturday morning of estate sales and I'm pretty happy with this week's haul.

 

The "false alarm" flea market was Karla and my semi annual trip to the flea markets in White Cloud and Sparks.  I swear when I looked up the dates on the internet, the website said that the White Cloud flea market was this weekend- but after driving through many miles of Kansas farmland, we arrived to a ghost town- the flea market is next weekend.

Can you say "BUMMER?"

We did stop at a few antique malls along the way home and found a few things to scratch the antique itch.

 

I was in a bit of a goofy mood and I bought these old wooden "Bill Ding" blocks (say it out loud).

 

They're supposed to fit together at the notches in the shoulders and the top of the head, but I haven't figured out how to "build" with them yet.  Guess I'll just have to play.

 

I found some old school primers this morning.  I really like this one because it also included the cursive handwriting. 

I scanned the alphabet pages- if you'd like to use them just click on the picture and it will open in a new window.

 

I found this floral landscape print in the basement of a newer house that was full of tole painting books- this seemed a little out of place.

 

It's not in very good condition, but it's so pretty.

 

And my favorite find-  I think it's this pink poodle pin cushion. That's gotta make you smile.

 

It wasn't a flea market find but Karla gave me a beautiful selection of produce from her garden. 

 

Salad for dinner?

Magic Balls of Yarn

 

Look at the ball of yarn in the top right of the picture.  Now, close your eyes and imagine what it would look like knitted into a scarf, sweater or socks.

 

Is this what you imagined?  Me either- it's like MAGIC.

 

Here's the pastel version.

 

I think it's so cool- it makes you look like a knitting genius, but all you've really done is knit a row and then purl a row.

The first yarn is meant as sock yarn, but I have to confess, I'm afraid to try socks.  I haven't come anywhere near mastering the art of balancing yarn on four seperate needles.

I was complaining to my husband the other day that I've been knitting for five years, and I really think I should be better than I am.  I should know more, and have mastered more skills.

He said "I've been golfing for 30 years and I'm not any better than when I started, but it's still fun.  Is knitting fun for you?"

 

Yes, I think it's fair to say that I think knitting is really fun- otherwise I wouldn't have three different scarves in progress and the off white afghan waiting for me to finish it up. 

One Thing Leads to Another and a New (Old) Vintage Wallpaper Book

 

Almost all of the button sorting is done- the buttons that are UPSTAIRS, that is...I still have some in the basement, but we won't think about that right now.

 

All that button sorting led me to start sorting the contents of some of the sewing baskets I've accumulated over the years.

And sort through some more of the paper scraps.  The book in the picture at the top of the post is collaged wallpaper on chipboard coasters.

 

I've packaged up some pretties and added them to my Etsy Shop.  I love the embroidered trim in the picture above- so delicate and intricate.

  

Sorting doesn't really seem like work when you're mixing and matching trims to tags, finding color combinations that work together....I think I've talked about that before- I call it "assemblage without glue".

 

There's something about a pile of lace that just makes me want to dive in.

 

A long time ago I bought a tiny little chest that had belonged to a nun- it was full of religious medals, rosaries, scapular.  One of the most interesting things in the chest was a list of what a novice nun needed to bring to the convent- kind of like a back to school list for nuns- the list wasn't very long and the wardrobe choices were pretty sparse.

  

The medal on the left was in that chest.  It was attached to the little card, and someone had handpainted the delicate little flower in the corner.

   

I'm off to do some more sorting---silverplate this time- I'm getting it ready for a trip to the antique mall.

Button Redux

 

I haven't done a post about buttons in awhile.  I think that's probably because I haven't gotten any really great buttons in awhile- these things seem to go in streaks.

But really, I have plenty of buttons to play with.

 

I've been sorting buttons (and jewelry and other doodads) into these hardware bins.  I know, they're kind of obnoxious- but I'm having fun sorting.  My masking tape labels look kind of sad- maybe I should get one of those high tech label makers and be REALLY obnoxious.

 

I had forgotten how much fun buttons can be- here's my favorite pink button.

 

Green buttons- I'm not really strict about my color sorting- anything from lime to olive to forest green is fair game for the "GREEN" drawer.

 

Black glass- I labeled this drawer jet, but technically I think jet is a special kind of black glass.

 

This one is kind of different- I believe that's the Capitol.

 

And what's in the drawer marked "Special"?  Well, pretty much anything that I couldn't figure out where else to put it.

 

Humpty Dumpty and Old King Cole.

 

Here's a sampling of "special" buttons- these have kind of a "fall" theme- leaves, acorns and fall colors.

Thanks for sharing button time with me.  Any appearance of dog hair is strictly a bonus.  It's not intended to deceive anyone into thinking it's necessary to store your buttons in dog hair.

And now, I'm off to buy a new belt for my Bissel Pet Hair Eraser Vacuum Cleaner.

Antique Booth Redo: Before and - Sorry, No After

 

I've sold several larger pieces at my booth at the antique mall, and I had several pieces that kind of all went together to replace what I'd sold- so I thought a booth redo would make a good post.

 This is the before picture.

 

Pretty neglected looking, huh? ( And I really don't like the way those BIG white price tags stand out.)

 

So, I got almost everything "just so" in my booth, and before I could even take pictures, I sold the pieces of furniture that were the basis of my redo- but that's really not such a bad problem to have.

And that's why my pictures are of other people's booths.

  

Thanks for all encouragement with learning to crochet.  I've done a whole bunch of DC (double crochet) and even made this little wrap.  It's not quite perfect, I still have to work on the tension and counting my stitches, but I'm having fun.

 

On the junking front, I made a pretty good score of vintage wrapping paper.  I was at an auction, and before it started, the auctioneer said, "Hey Beth, do you have a minute?  I have some old paper stuff in my truck to show you."

 

Well, to me, that's kind of like hearing "Little girl, would you like some candy?"

 

Fun stuff, some still with its original  25 cent Hallmark wrapper.

 

This one is a little disturbing-it says "for Daddy" but it doesn't seem appropriate for Father's Day.

 

Thanks for all the Etsy love and orders.  I've got more trims and trinkets to add to my shop. 

 It looks like it's going to rain today so it'll be a perfect day to put on some Law & Order reruns and sit by the computer and list. 

Handmade Books, Journal Books, Ephemera Books... and a Magazine

   

I'm really getting into these "making your own book" projects.  There's no proof reading, no dictionaries, no outlines- just scissors, paper cutters and some glue.

...and in the case of the book above, some barkcloth and lace.  I started with a small ring binder that I got at an estate sale.  I covered the outside with barkcloth and tried to hide the fraying edges with old lace.

 

Then, inside I added a bunch of pages  of paper "too good to throw out". 

Really, I had a whole Rubbermaid tub of assorted paper that I knew had some purpose, it was just too cool to throw out -I just hadn't found its destiny yet- and then the bright idea to make a book similiar to Mary Green's ephemera books hit me.  My  binder has magazine pages, old wallpaper, some newer wallpaper, old letters, prints, ads from magazines- and other paper desperately looking for a home.

 

 

My other book is another "starter journal"- pages with some decorations, but ready for more to be added, and some blank pages for fresh starts.

 

I used a photographer's folder as the cover, and then made a signature  from my "good enough for family"  stationary and sewed it inside.

 

I added neutral papers to some of the pages and the inside back cover is part of a page of  Spencerian Script from an 1890's business book.

 

The Spencerian script (my favorite image) is on the far right.

My magazine news is that a piece I made for The Vintage Workshop was published in the Aug/Sep issue of Simply Handmade magazine.

  

I printed one of The Vintage Workshop's images onto their linen fabric and then added the picture and some embellishments to a vintage baby slip.  Step by step instructions are in the magazine.

If you'd like to try to make one yourself, I've added some baby slips to my Etsy Shop.  And you can find the books I made in my Etsy shop, too.

Pages That Inspire

 

Do you keep a notebook of magazine clippings, pictures and ideas?  I used to keep ALL my magazines, but eventually space gets to be an issue, so I've started just tearing out the pages & pictures I really like. 

I file articles in a sheet protector and keep those in a three ring binder.  I actually have THREE different binders- one for decorating, one for crafts and one for recipes.

Sometimes before I fall asleep, I like to look through a magazine for a little inspiration "to sleep on".  Unfortunately, it seems like magazines are in short supply these days, so I went back to my notebook to find something sweet to dream about.

I'm not sure what magazine the red toile bedroom came from, but I'm guessing its at least 10 years old- but I still like it.  My tastes haven't changed a lot, and I guess a classic mix of a brass bed, toile and an embroidered sampler will never go out of style.

 

This is one of my all time favorite articles- this page and the picture below are from Country Home sometime in 1999.  I could move right in.

(If you click on the picture it will open up larger in a new window.)

 

I find myself looking over and over again at the collections on the shelves- I love the neutral colors that stay interesting because there are so many textures- nubby books, suitcases, wicker, pottery, leather- and all those little drawers! 

On the crafting front- I'm still working on that dc (double crochet)- but I've found some time for paper crafts, too.

Karla and I had a craft day on Friday.  It was suppose to be an estate sale day AND craft day- but there wasn't a lot out there for estate sales and we were home in about two hours.

I finished up a "starter journal".  It's a journal that has a mix of blank pages, finished pages and partially filled pages.  If you're intimdated by starting a journal- because there are too many BLANK pages- you just need a "starter journal". 

 

 

 

"A Starter Journal- it's like training wheels for journaling."  What a slogan- worthy of Madison Avenue....

 I used some of the Logomachy images I got from Mary to make this banner- and then Karla helped me figure out how to hook the letters together- baker's twine.

"FLY" seemed like a good word to go with the birds.

  

  

All this and more, in my Etsy Shop.

I'm Just Tickled Pink- Confessions of Slow Learning Crocheter

 

Last night, the pieces FINALLY came together, and I was able to wield a crochet hook and yarn long enough to get more than a half inch of twisted knotted yarn.  I know, the piece in the picture doesn't look like much, but I've been trying to learn to crochet for almost a year and this is so much farther than I've gotten before.

I'd like to take a moment and thank the people that have helped me along the way.

*Shawn, my first teacher- together we found out that left handed people shouldn't try to teach right handed people.

 

*My mother in law Leota.  She also taught me how to catch a football. She's pretty spry for an 80 something lady.

 

*This 1971 Coats & Clark's Learn to Crochet pamplet.

 

You better believe you'll be seeing me in a granny square poncho come fall...

...even if my arms fall off like this poor girl.

* The videos at Nexstitch.com.   We spent many a late night together.

*And of course, The Happy Hooker  herself. 

  

Wow- it really does take a village to learn to crochet.

Of course, I'm sure I'm forgetting to thank someone- my agent, my manager, my record company---wait, wrong thank you speech.

I have no idea why it took so long for me to learn such a simple thing, or why I kept at it for so long.

Or why I'm so optimistic that I'll be able to crochet more than pink ruffle things eventually.

But I'll try- and I'm going to attempt a dc stitch tonight.  (dc = double crochet stitch)