Gathering Dust

*Sighs* from the Antique Show

 
 
The Old Summit Country Antique show has so many wonderful dealers and displays that I walk around sighing  "oh, oh...." at so many different things.

Like tomato pin cushions...

 
And more tomato pin cushions in non tomato colors.

 
...and even more pin cushions.

 
...next to a bowl of egg darners.  My love of vintage sewing is showing.

 
Of course, groupings of just about anything stand out- with antique displays, more is more.

 
Tarnished silver piled high in an old garden urn.

 
Lots of displays had a patrotic theme looking towards Independence Day.

 
 
 
 
These are some  beautiful crafty book pages from Ginger Schrader.

 
 
And of course, I had to get some pictures of my favorite "low color" displays.

 
Low color primitives.

 
Low color wedding photos.

 
Baby shoes {smile}

 
Even I wouldn't kill bed springs planted in an urn.

 
If I could have had my pick of things to take home- I would have bought this shield shaped laundry sign with nail head trim- and that Texas Star in the center because I {heart} Texas.

Old Summit Antique Show Rocks!

 
The Old Summit Antique Show that I sold at yesterday was fantastic.

 
My sales at the antique mall have been slow- and I've been wondering and worrying:

"Are antiques going out of style?"

"Has Ikea made furniture from antique stores obsolete?"

"Have so many shows like Pawn Stars, American Pickers, Storage Wars etc saturated the air waves to the point that no one is interested anymore?"

or

"Is it just me, maybe it's just my stuff that is passe?"

...and if it is, what will I do because I still want to buy this weird old stuff, but if no one wants to buy it, will I just become like the Collyer Brothers?

(I have a tendency towards catastrophic thinking.  When I was five and starting kindergarten, I was so paralyzed with fear that I might not remember my locker number that I almost couldn't go.  When I start to overthink a situation, my mother can shake me out of it by asking "What was your locker number in kindergarten?" I'll answer "eight", and she'll say "this will probably be ok, too")

 
 But I've wandered away from my point- the antique show was very well attended, people were buying and "a good time was had by all"- or at least all that I talked to.

 
 
My booth looks kind of messy in pictures- partially because it is messy, and partially because its picked over.  My hope is that in person when people see it, they think, "There has to be something good for me in that mess".

 
 The scissors I showed in my last post were very popular- I think I was left with only three pair- I had no idea how many scissor collectors there are.  And some ladies wanted to buy smaller scissors that they could take along on a plane. 

 
Of course, even though I sold a lot, I have a lot left- and it's my hope to get some listed in my Etsy shops- I have listed a few things in SugarPinkMoon.

 
Once again, the antique show had some wonderful booths, dealers, and one of a kind merchandise and I went shopping with my camera- I'll show you what I "got" in my next post.

Paper Cowgirl Crafting Round Up

 
One more post about Paper Cowgirls- I have to show you all the crafty goodness that was going on- that's the whole basis of art events like this- even though just like school- you remember as much about what happened outside of class as in class.

I signed up for the Altered Apron swap.  My partner was the Queen of Crepe Paper Ann Denise Anderson.  Not only did she make me a beautiful apron, but she use over the top packaging.  The apron was packed in a cute vintage sewing box with these two pretties on top.  One is a paper clay doll with bendable arm and legs and the other is a corsage.

 
This is the apron Ann Denise made for me- layers and layers of pink crochet doilies. 

 
This bling studded flower was at the center of the apron.

One thing I noticed in Texas is how many women have clothes made from crocheted pieces- vests, sweaters and wraps that look like they were pieced from vintage runners or doilies.  It's a really romantic look.

 
My birthday was the Monday after Paper Cowgirls, and Lisa gifted me with this wonderful collage.  She had shown it on her blog, and I noticed that it had a woven background like the kind she taught in her Bird Song class.

 
Lisa also knows how much I love my dogs, so she searched high and low to find this vintage book about dogs.

 
The book is full of wonderful illustrations.

 
The first class I took was Jennifer Stewart's Once Upon Season.  The basis of the project was garden edging- each piece decorated for a season.  The class kit was packaged so cleverly.  Inside, besides color pictures and instructions, were five paper bags, and each bag had the pieces that fit on that season's panel.

 
I followed the directions, made my first panel, and decided I liked the "low color" look, so I followed it on the rest of my panels.

 
The panel on the right is a Christmas card circa 1961 with a picture of baby me.

 
The garden edging fence is such a great idea- you could use it to show off school pictures, family portraits, vacation pictures- or just use stranger's pictures like I did.

 
My other class was Lisa Pace's  Pieces of Time project.  The shadow box was from Maya Road, and the background was pieces of an old quilt.  Once again, I went with the neutral colors and added a Frozen Charlotte that Karla had given me.

 
One of the great things about taking a class like this is that you have all the materials right in front of you.  I know when I create at home, I can spend more time looking for the tiny flower, right sized button or perfect trim than I actually do crafting.

Not having to spend time looking for materials allows you to just relax and enjoy the creative process.

 
If you're on the fence about going to an art event or taking a class, I'd really recommend you just go for it- the boost of creativity you get from crafting with other like minded people is priceless.

What I Like About Selling Antiques

 
 
The shopping, duh.  It's really all about the shopping.  I also kind of like arranging my booth at the mall or at an antique show, and I really like when I can sell something for more than I paid for it, but mostly....it's the buying.

 
I've been pricing all day, getting ready for the Old Summit Antique Show next weekend. 

Pricing really isn't one of my favorite things- it wouldn't be so bad if I could just slap some masking tape on things and write a price on with a Sharpie, but no one else does that, and I'm really more of a follower than a leader.

 
I was lucky enough to find an awesome estate sale on Sat- it was the fourth day of the sale, but the house was still packed.  I spent two hours at the sale- that has to be a record for me- I'm usually a fast shopper- gotta get on to the next sale, you know.

 
Here's some of what I got.

 
 
Cute old coin purse with four compartments and a yellow checkerboard tape measure.

 
Celluloid calendar and a really interesting pair of specs.

 
The gold circle pins onto your blouse, and has a chain attached to the glasses.

 
When you need to take a closer look at something, you can just pull on the chain, and bring the glasses up to your eyes.
 
Cool old hard plastic finials.

 
These didn't come from the estate sale, but I'm selling my scissor collection at the show, too.  Did you have any idea there were so many different looking scissors?

Most of these are for clipping threads, and are made in the US or Germany.

 
These are thread clippers, too- I love all the detail on the body, and how the screw is the bird's eye.

 
These are buttonhole scissors.  I'm not sure exactly how they worked, but the idea is you could set how far they would open with the screw and be able to cut a buttonhole open.

Well, back to pricing, because I have to price to sell, and I have to sell to keeping buying....and like I said... buying is what I really like to do.

Bird Song Nature Journal Redux

 
(cover made by me)

In looking at my blog for the past two weeks, I realized I have five posts in a row that start with "Paper Cowgirls". I guess that let's you know how much fun I had.

I still have another Paper Cowgirl's post in me, but I thought I'd take a break to show you a book that some Bird Song girls put together.

 
(Cami)

I hosted a Nature Journal swap for the Birdsong event.  The journals turned out great- nice and chunky with a lot of different styles.  Karla said she wished she had joined the swap.

 
(Debra Conley)

Laurie had the idea to get everyone in the swap to make a page for Karla, so she could have her own journal.  Laurie did all the organizing, and had everyone mail their page to me.  I made a cover and put the book together.

 
(Hope Ellington)

 

(My page)

 
(Kathy Hoylman)

 
(Laurie Jackson)

 
(Lisa Stanton)

 
(Sharon Morrison)

 
(Sherry Williams)

 
(Suzanne Wingfield)

 
(Tami Hacker)

I gave the book to Karla right before we left for Paper Cowgirls- she wasn't having a very good day- frustrating computer problems and too much time spent with the Geek Squad.

 
But after she opened the book, she was all smiles.

Great idea, Laurie and thanks to everyone who made a page.

 

Paper Cowgirls Parking Lot Sale & Vendor Night

 
Lisa and Mr and Mrs Talking Trash  started what could be a great addition to Paper Cowgirls- a 2 hour pop up sale in the parking lot of the civic center.

 
As cowgirls walked from the hotel to their classes, they had to walk through the sale- and how could you ignore good junk like this?

 
Luckily, most folks still had cash left for vendor night.

 
Here's part of my vendor table- pictured borrowed from head cowgirl Cindy.

 
Karla's handmade books.

 
Beautiful lace lampshades by Plain & Fancy.

 
Crepe paper ruffles from Ann Denise's Whim and Fancy Designs.

 
Mendy's  Pink Suitcase.

 
An artful arrangement of cigar boxes from my vendor night neighbor Deb (aka Mrs Talking Trash)- I kept making her move until she showed up in the mirror.

 
Another pic of Deb's stuff- can you tell she has a little bit of a sense of humor?  A sense of humor = good neighbor.

Paper Cowgirls Miscellanea

 
I haven't been able to figure out how to tell the "Paper Cowgirls Chronicles" in an organized way- should it be divided by category- crafts, parties, sightseeing, antiquing etc?  Or should it be chronological?  I don't know, so I just picked some random pictures I thought were fun.

First, I had to show one of the MOST amazing creations I've ever seen- Ann Denise Anderson's luscious frothy concoction of crepe paper, coffee filters, tissue paper, butcher paper and a lot of time.  Several times during Paper Cowgirls, I found myself just staring at it in amazement.

 
Dawn's shadow box collage and Dorthe's doll (all the way from Denmark) were raffle prizes.

 
Karla dressed up for the Paper Cowgirl's Prom.

 
Lisa, not dressed up for prom.  ( I didn't dress up either, we both dressed for shopping.)  In the background you can see other Paper Cowgirls shopping the streets of Waxahachie- what a darling town- and a lot of the stores stayed open late for so the Paper Cowgirls could shop.

 
There were a lot of great prom dresses, but Kristi's has to be one of my favorites- the skirt has cabinent cards under the tulle- kind of like a walking portrait gallery.

 
My two roomies, on their way to the prom- if only we'd had a fairy godmother to turn that luggage rack into a coach.

 
Lisa's shoe collection- not counting the ones she was wearing, because everyone knows that you need at least five pair of black shoes for a two night stay in Waxahachie.

(I hope that pictures doesn't put me on the banned for life roommate list.)

More pictures to come- of classes, crafts, swaps and the vendor night.  Can you tell I had fun?

I {Heart} Texas (and Paper Cowgirls)

 
The Paper Cowgirls art retreat was great.  I swear, people in Texas are the friendliest people on earth.  Cindy, Jennifer and Ann Denise did an incredible job of putting together the event and making everyone feel so welcome.

 
But before Karla and I went to Waxahachie, we stopped in McKinney Texas to do some shopping.

 
McKinney has so many of the qualities that I love about Texas towns- quaint old brick buildings, ornate public buildings, outdoor cafes and a lot of charm.

 
I've got a lot more pictures and stories from Paper Cowgirls, but first I thought I'd show you some of the great vignettes from antique stores in McKinney- it seems like Texas antique dealers are born with a green thumb for great displays.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
More about Paper Cowgirls later in the week.

Paper Cowgirl "Flair" Nametags

 
Head cowgirls Cindy and Ann Denise have come up with a cute idea for the Paper Cowgirls name tags.  At the first event, the "meet & greet", everyone will get a badge like this.

 
Of course, the badges will have our names on them- these are pictures I borrowed from Cindy.

The idea is that everyone that wants to will bring a little something to the meet & greet to add to everyone else's badges- a ribbon, a sticker, a charm.

 
Exchanging charms and doo dads is a nice ice breaker, and by the end of the evening, your badge might look something like this one that Cindy made.

The idea kind of reminds me of the movie where Jennifer Aniston is a waitress at TGIFridays.  The wait staff are supposed to personalize there uniforms by adding "flair"- pins and buttons... and Jennifer gets in trouble for not meeting the minumum "flair" requirements.

 
These little pins are my "flair".  I ordered a domino collage sheet from Etsy and printed it on glossy transparent adhesive backed paper.

After I sprayed the sheet with Workable Fixit to keep the ink from smearing, I cut the images to fit my game tiles, pulled off the backing paper, stuck them on the tile and burnished them down.

 
I added a little ink to the edges of the tiles...

 
...glued on a pinback, and SHAZAM I'm ready for Paper Cowgirls... other than hemming my skirt for prom, pricing stuff to sell at vendor night, packing my craft supplies...you know, all the little last minute minor details.

Paper Cowgirl Prep

 
Next Thu, I'm headed to the Paper Cowgirls art event in Waxahachie TX.  I'm a newbie to the event, but I remember after reading about it last year on blogs, I thought that it sounded like fun.  The event organizer, Cindy of Yapping Cat Studio was one of my first blog friends.  I'm going with Karla, meeting up with Lisa and will have a chance to see new friends I met at Karla's Bird Song event.

 
One thing that I'm always a little "iffy" about at art events is swaps.  I always hesitate before I sign up because I'm not sure what I make will be good enough, or what if I don't have time, or what if I don't know what to make...the excuse list could go on and on- but once I get to an art event, I'm always glad that I signed up because a) it's fun to feel like a part of something; b) getting your swap is just like getting a present.

 
I signed up for the vintage apron swap.  After emailing my swap partner Ann Denise and finding out that she likes pink, lace & ruffles, I decided to use my niece's prom dress as my inspiration.  My niece, Claire, is on the right.  I thought she was pretty brave to pick a short dress for prom.

My Dad (her Grandpa) and my brother (her Dad) both asked her where the rest of her dress was---isn't that typical?

 
After looking at pictures of her dress and my apron side by side, I bet you can guess who went to the Mall of America to get their garment and who went to basement to scavenge up a hostess apron, a piece of a table cloth, a sheer drapery panel and some Fabri-Tac.

 
I did find a cute hand painted silk hanky for the apron pocket.

 
On the subject of apparel, Friday night is Cowgirl Prom.  I was going to pass on up dressing up for it, but I found a great skirt at an estate sale this morning that'll go with my estate sale cowboy boots from last summer.  You know what they say- never wear a silk skirt unless you've got boots to go with it; and never miss a chance to wear your red cowboy boots.

( I don't think anyone says that, I just made it up.)