Vignettes etc

White Wednesday - Seasonal Change

2009-09-02T08:44:00.001-04:00

Come sit with me on my screened porch. We'll talk and enjoy the view.

We have a little shelter for the birds.

Funny, but this little owl never uses the bird house (not that a real owl would)!

We still have a few white blooms left on our giant butterfly bush, but don't strain your eyes trying to find them!

The nights are colder now and the pots are almost all empty. Our wood pile for the fall and winter is ready in the background.

Nature has another idea for our wood. It's a perfect home for white lichen.You'll have to come back later in the fall when you can warm up by the fireplace.

Enjoy your White Wednesday and see more WW posts by checking out all the participants at Faded Charm today!

Fighting the Bum Foot Blues!

2009-08-31T00:28:00.001-04:00

My last hurrah before breaking my left foot last Tuesday was shopping for the previous weekend's finds at Chartreuse, Lucketts, and a shop in between the two locations, My Wit's End. I've shared pictures at Chartreuse and Lucketts Store in previous posts, so here's My Wit's End:This shop has furniture, smalls, and a couple of outbuildings with items waiting to be worked over or repurposed. I bought a few things here, including some lock and key themed buttons that I'm going to use in crafts. Possibly jewelry. I also bought a vintage chalkware flower basket wall placque in perfect condition. Very bright colors; I'm taking it to Boonsboro Days. Yes, I'm still planning on doing the show that's just 12 days away (I committed to it last Feb. and have been looking forward to it). Yikes!

I only bought two things at Chartreuse this time--a round print of cherubs and a small aqua bottle. The Lucketts fair was going on that weekend and I didn't buy much there, either. Here's what I picked up that able-bodied weekend on those outings.
I'm trying to use some of my now-abundant spare time crafting. I made this out of an antique pink lustreware cup that I bought at a yard sale in between Chartreuse, etc. The cup was missing its saucer and has a hairline. This arrangement looks a bit like a berry explosion! Should I cut back the berry branches?
Here's a little vintage blue bird decoration I pulled together with a blue glass vintage compote from an estate sale last month:I think this is cute, but will it sell? I did well at Boonsboro last year, but that was before the big hammer fell on Wall Street, buyouts, etc. I'm planning to take lots of reasonably-priced items this year, which was pretty much my approach last year!

If any of you sellers out there have tips on how your shows have been going lately, please let me know. Antiques, vintage, crafts. What are people buying? Price points? Shoppers, I'd like to hear from you too! Thanks for any thoughts you might share :)

Even more importantly, thanks to those of you who have wished me well in my recovery and said prayers for my foot!

A Thank You to Joan of anything goes here

2009-08-30T15:56:00.000-04:00

A couple of weeks ago, I was a runner-up in Joan's giveaway at anything goes here. She was giving away some of her linen collection and I was one of the lucky recipients. Look at the cute vintage bingo cards she sent along with the linen tea towel! If you haven't been to Joan's blog before, check it out. She has lots of great craft ideas and fun glimpses of estate sales and more!

My Left Foot--it's broken :(

2009-08-27T17:00:00.002-04:00

I didn't plan it this way, but I missed White Wednesday this week. I had a little accident and broke three bones in my left foot on Tuesday. No fun at all! So I am supposed to be off my feet for awhile. I'm wearing a boot on my left lower leg for now and trying to use crutches, but I've never had crutches before and it's taking awhile to get the hang of it. In my case, they should probably be called "klutzes." Oh, this will be tricky! The kids go back to school this Monday, so the timing is really unfortunate! I'll try to post something in a couple of days. At least I don't need my feet to blog :)

Spatterware

2009-08-22T09:02:00.001-04:00

In some of my earliest blog posts (way back in June), I said that I would talk about antiques, vintage finds, crafts, and road trips. But I really haven't said that much about antiques. I've also said that I have personal style confusion. The problem is that I like so many different kinds of things and some of my collections reflect that. Do you do that, too?

Growing up the daughter of an antique dealer, I had lots of early exposure to auctions, shows, shops, and the gamut. Among Mom's specialties were American art pottery and ceramics in general. At one point, she had a yellow spatterware plate with a blue dahlia painted in the center. She was asking $300 for it. $300! was shocking to me in the 1970s. As a teenager then, $300 for one plate seemed incredible. I loved it, but....

I don't have a picture of Mom's plate (long since sold to some grateful buyer), but I can show you the legacy (some non-spatter items are on the bottom):About 10 years ago I started collecting spatterware when I could find it for reasonable prices. Mom gave me her books Spatterware and Sponge by the Robackers (out of print and $$$ when you can find it) and Homespun Ceramics by the Greasers (OOP also, I think). Yellow is the rarest, which explains the high price of Mom's plate way back when. Today, that plate would be in the thousands.

Among collectors of Americana, spatterware is a favored ceramic choice, even though it was primarily made in England in the early 19th century (really popular about 1830s-1850s). It was very popular and some think that the bright colors and patterns were especially liked by the Pennsylvania Germans. The paint forming the spatter design is thought to have been applied with a sponge or fine-woven cloth to achieve the spatter effect. If the paint was applied only to the rim of the plate or saucer, often a handpainted design was put in the center. These designs usually have a very folky quality. Sometimes, transfers were applied, like the example at the far left on my top shelf. I found that last summer at Upstairs Antiques in Concord, Massachusetts, for a great price! And I didn't expect to come across any spatterware while in New England. You never know.

Rainbow spatter is a piece that has a striped multi-color spatter pattern. There are two pieces on the middle shelf of my hutch. Both have flaws--but I love them! Important to note: condition is a huge factor in price for spatterware, just as with most other antiques. Rarity is another. I've already mentioned yellow is rare; blue, heavily represented in my collection, is the most common. Spatterware has also been reproduced, so beware when shopping for the real thing.

As anyone who collects anything knows, the search is at least half the fun. Do you find any spatterware where you live?

White Wednesday

2009-08-18T20:42:00.002-04:00

White in the Past and Present

An old metal planter, still in vogue.
Old books without covers next to new white books. Taken at Red Tree in Baltimore.
Cherubs, a motif throughout art history.
Shells--natural history in our midst!
Any object can represent some aspect of history. Try looking at artifacts in this way and see what new perspectives are open to you.

Click on Faded Charm's picture in my sidebar to see more posts on White Wednesday, as started by Kathleen!

Brunch in Baltimore--and more!

2009-08-16T22:51:00.002-04:00

After church this morning, we decided to take a little drive in the country, but first wound up in the Hampden (pronounced "Hamden") neighborhood of Baltimore. This area is nothing if not bohemian. Time for brunch at Cafe Hon:
"Hon" is a frequently-heard term of affection in Baltimore, so that's the source of the name. The atmosphere is quirky and the food is amazing. Elvis is always seen here.As delicious as the food is, the portions are huge, which means leftovers to take home!

Hampden has numerous specialty shops. We had to stop in the fun Double Dutch Boutique.The extreme Atomic Books:A range of antiques and vintage shops. Take Paradiso: Antique to Modern is its subtitle. More modern than antique, this is the place to go if you like mid-20th century modern. This shop has an organized appearance and prices are reasonable.Or across the street, Hampden Junque:I'm not sure what that cut-out man is--a real one is inside the window fixing something!

A real standout for home furnishings is Red Tree. Their style is a bit anthropologie with some loft and library mixed in.They use a lot of junker's treasures for display. The industrial art little mannequins are great, but pricey ($100 plus).Exposed brick walls are throughout the first floor.

The walkout basement has more furniture and household items.
Some antiques were for sale. This great little shaving cabinet was described as victorian and labeled $225.
I had conflicting feelings about this use of books.While struck by the creativity, it went against my upbringing about how we are supposed to treat books! I wonder if this work is called "Read Tree"-- a twist on the store's name?

Next, we headed to In Watermelon Sugar where we saw more junker's adaptive reuse:
Wonderful original tin ceiling panels still in place!We bought a few little personal items in this shop. We wrapped up our trip to Hampden in about 2.5 hours, including brunch. Everything is so close together and very walkable.

With our driver still looking for a country drive, we temporarily made do with a ride on Roland Avenue and some twists and turns to the Mt. Washington neighborhood. The former Smith and Hawken store is now Gore Dean, which also has a location in Georgetown, Washington, DC. This is a beautiful high-end store loaded with European antiques. The costs of buying trips and access to special quality items are reflected in the prices.

I adored this described 19th century box with 20th century memory decoration:
That's three zeros on that price tag....

More eye candy:

Cute vintage children's watering cans with surprising prices; the green one in the foreground can be yours for $175:Although these are getting harder to come by, I still see American examples around--I'm not sure where these particular watering cans are from.

Gore Dean also shows antique garden furniture in the store's stone courtyard:I am not in the right purchasing bracket to shop here, but what a source of inspiration!

BTW, I sought and received permission from each store where I took interior pictures. Most stores do like free publicity!

At last we took our drive in the country before heading home. We admired this old stone barn and its tidy shutters in Butler, Baltimore County:We thoroughly enjoyed our quick visit in the Baltimore area. Thanks for coming along!

Prayers for Friends

2009-08-13T07:01:00.004-04:00

If you keep a prayer list, please add Ken to it. That's Ken on the right at Boonsboro Days last year. His son (on the left) is my son's best friend.Ken probably wouldn't like this post because he's quiet and doesn't call attention to himself. But I'm sure that his wife won't mind :) He has been living with cancer since 2006.

Ken is a strong example of living a purpose-driven life. He has used his God-given talents as an athlete and a teacher to help others through tennis professionally and his free time. Several years ago he coached a young wheelchair tennis champion. Currently, he teaches tennis as a volunteer to veterans at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. He has touched many lives. Because I believe in the power of prayer, I ask you to pray for Ken and his family.

White Wednesday, or, "mercredi en blanc"

2009-08-12T07:00:00.002-04:00

White Gloves Through the Years "oo la la"
White Tin with That French "je ne sais quoi"
White Basketweave McCoy-like Flower Pot with Lavender "bien sur!"
Enjoy your White Wednesday :) Bonjour!

Serving Up Vintage Finds

2009-08-09T22:08:00.000-04:00

Boonsboro Days is next month (see sidebar). Emma suggested that we have a craft day with Lydia to get us going on making things to sell. So yesterday, we had fun with some of the vintage goodies we've found this summer. My goal was to put together a fruit and flowers arrangement. I started with a red transferware ironstone compote (bought at the DC Big Flea last weekend):
Then I sorted through millinery decorations
and antique and vintage ribbons I've been collecting for a couple of years.
Sometimes I use a few new materials, but usually I stick with antique and vintage things. I often build them onto a small base within the compote, vase, or stand. This time, I just started building directly onto the compote using a hot glue gun. I only put glue on the stems to fasten them. This process can be as quick or deliberate as you like. My approach is always slow--trying this and that until it looks just the way I'd like it to. Here was yesterday's result:I had a glass cloche at home, so I left room for that along the edge of the compote. Otherwise, I would have loaded more things on for a fuller, overflowing Furber look.

While I was working away, Lydia got the girls (Larissa, Saxon, and Emma) going on watercolor bookmarks. They produced some great work!Here are some of Emma's in progress:
Some pretty bling vintage buttons (also found at the DC Big Flea) called out to me to make pins. I also had a stash of yo-yos made of vintage fabric, one old ribbon flower, and a linen flower. With some linen and felt for backing (thanks Lydia!), I sewed some of them together and made these:
Emma made these colorful pins:Lydia was so busy helping everyone else and preparing food that it was difficult for her to do her own art projects! But she started making pretty ornaments using old porcelain dolls and doll parts. Can't wait to see the finished work--thanks Lydia for hosting such a fun day for all of us!

52 FLEA's Great Giveaway (AKA Give Back!)

2009-08-07T11:57:00.002-04:00

52 FLEA: 200th Post Give Back !!!

If you've always wanted your own personal shopper at an antique show, this is your chance to win one in New York state this month! Visit 52 FLEA to register your interest!

(BTW, the picture in my banner is the view from Olana, looking west across the Hudson River. Taken on vacation last summer.)

White Wednesday

2009-08-04T21:13:00.001-04:00

White in the Past
Ephemera, lace, and silk bows from the Snowden family of Baltimore, Maryland.

"A Brilliant Formula: Ammi Phillips's Women in White"A fascinating article by Joan R. Brownstein and Bobbi Terkowitz, The Magazine Antiques, November 2007, pp. 152-161.

White in the Present
Vignettes indoors and out:

Paper, fabric, ceramic, wood--I value them all. Thanks to Faded Charm for giving us White Wednesday!

The DC Big Flea

2009-08-01T18:47:00.019-04:00

It isn't as big as I hear Brimfield is, but it is pretty big! Today, we paid our second visit to this show, which is held several times a year. There are hundreds of dealers inside two buildings at the Chantilly (VA) Shopping Center. All of the booths pictured here were in the South Building. We ran out of energy before we got to the other building. Although we cut short our visit, we had fun and made some great buys.

We met artist Stacey Bear. I was normal until I found out who she was and then I gushed about how wonderful she is. Thoroughly embarrassed Emma.... Here are some glimpses of her booth with Deborah Hartwick showcasing antique and vintage sewing notions and other items like the millinery decorations we bought. They have a new blog, Truffle Pigs Sewing Room.

Great vintage buttons:

Sewing antiques and new artwork:

Both artists are friendly and down to earth.

We ran into Marie of Savage Mill's Treasure Trove (MD), too. We have bought antique and vintage ribbons (mostly) from her over the last couple of years. The beautiful early bonnet pictured on my sidebar is from her. Marie is a wealth of knowledge and as kind as they come. Her specialties are linen and lace.

I failed to get the names of the dealers for the next 3 booths pictured, but wanted to include their things anyway. I bought a great vintage box at this booth; also saw several nice tole trays:
This booth had a variety of fun vintage items.
This booth was here in March when I first visited. Nice things both times (the next 2 pictures were taken today).

This last picture is of the gorgeous booth of Allmond's Antiques (717-270-9014; l.allmond AT verizon DOT net).Just beautiful!

There were so many other nice booths and some that weren't of interest to us, but there is much to see. Prepare yourself for the abundance :)

Yard Sale Groove

2009-07-29T21:21:00.008-04:00

The other day my husband had a hankering for a bookcase so off we went to an estate sale.

On the way there, we happened upon two elderly women parked on the roadside selling things on the grass and sidewalk. They just picked a well-traveled spot to set up shop. Their sale was a funny mishmash of things--half home office supplies and half gifts never used and some odds and ends (that doesn't add up to 100% does it?). I picked up a wooden office in-box, packages of unused post-its (almost time to buy school supplies), two pads of paper, and a very tarnished silver meat fork. My total investment was about $5 in 5 minutes.

On to the estate sale. The house was an adorable modified Cape Cod and needed a little TLC. It turns out that a 92-year-old widower recently moved into an assisted living facility and he didn't need the house or its contents any longer. Somehow I tend to think of Mufasa's voice from heaven in The Lion King talking to Simba about the cycle of life, but then I stop feeling wistful and get on to the goods!

Here's what we picked up (minus the bookcase-we found one, but it dwarfed everything else):This house had lots of books. Scary topics like calculus and probably quantum something (note my earlier math problem). I gravitated to topics I understand, which is why I bought the homespun and painting by Churchill books. Yes, the PM was a painter. We found a very nice linen runner with faded pink embroidery, a large roll of ivory ribbon, ironstone butter pats (I should have bought all of them), a couple of mini vases, etc.

Feeling good about finding the bookcase and our other finds, we headed home. Not two miles from the estate sale, we came across a yard sale. Hit the brakes! That's where I found the red flowered cross between a hat and a headband from the 1950s. The woman said it had been her grandmother's. Instead of asking her, "why are you selling this," I asked, "how much?" Sold for one dollar. Truly, one woman's trash is another woman's treasure (for crafting in that case).

A successful estate sale stop is one thing, but a street-side sale and a yard sale to boot? That's what I call Yard Sale Groove....

Leesburg, VA--The Grand Tour

2009-07-26T19:50:00.018-04:00

This morning, the girls headed to Leesburg, Virginia. I hadn't been there in years. To many residents of Maryland, driving into northern Virginia is not for the squeamish. There is the capital beltway to negotiate, lots of traffic, and an occasional semi that tips over with lots of messy cargo. But a Sunday late morning seemed like a good time to go. The boys (with a friend along, too) were heading for other amusements. Leesburg was ours!

Leesburg is west of Washington, DC. It's quaint with well-maintained historic buildings lining the streets. All shops we visited are either on or adjoin Route 15 (AKA James Monroe Highway). Some of them have blogs that you can access via their web sites. I know that you're dying of suspense, so let's take a look at some of the goodies we brought home.I was pretty tired when I took this picture and it shows!

Our first stop was The Cottage. This shop is in an old house with two floors of charming rooms decorated with vintage pieces in different themes and colors. Really cute. We bought a piece of ironstone, a small handpainted china dish, and some great lotion and other sundries. This was on the second floor:I loved the colors in this room.

We stopped next door in Rose Cottage (I think this is the right name!). We met the nicest lady there; she recently moved her business from Great Falls to Leesburg. Very pretty things here, too! She had a to-die-for gold-painted chair with a gorgeous green toile cushion, but it was out of my price range and it wasn't quite the right style for my house. Still....

I'd given Sue of Vintage Rescue Squad an e-mail alert that we were heading over to Leesburg. We missed each other last week at Chartreuse, but we met today! Here she is foofing her boof (this is Sue-speak) at Leesburg Antique Emporium:She is extremely nice. To me, she's a blog celebrity and has been blogging and selling her fun finds for a couple of years. Sue has two spaces in this mall; the newest is VRS al fresco. Very cute garden-related things. I bought a brown transferware ironstone platter from her.

Adjoining Leesburg Antique Emporium is Four Shabby Chicks. Nice things to tempt you here, too, like the pink wooden basket and two new toile-patterned storage doohickeys we bought (to organize our craft supplies we rationalized). I began thinking I was going to be out of money before I got back home. And we had a few more places to hit. We asked for a recommendation for a good place to eat lunch (as it was midafternoon) and these nice ladies recommended South Street Under, which was just a few blocks away. Our sandwiches were wonderful, but we did pay a tiny premium for not having McDonalds instead (we actually never saw a McDs)!

Before we left downtown, we stopped in Ekster. This shop has had a lot of press and we thought it was a cool place. Very European. The clever check-out area:
Dining ideas:
Garden delights:
We drove on to our next stop several miles north of town--On a Whim. They didn't allow photographs there, but go to their web site for a look. The pink silo with black polka dots is a great landmark (maybe that depends on your point of view). It saved me from flying right by. Inside, we found an antique oval picture frame with old portrait and the very fun vintage tin with handles. I have to admit: seeing the tin was an OMG moment and the price was right.

Last, but not least, on this Grand Tour was Lucketts Store. This place is amazing and overwhelming. The main building is a three story house with warrens of rooms. I was dizzy with the views. Beautiful colors here, too. We bought a few small pieces of ironstone, two small glass domes, and cold drinks. Outside are numerous small buildings loaded with more stuff. It began to sprinkle and purplish clouds were in the west, so we conceded that it was time to head home.

The boys loved the rollercoasters and we loved our country ride. With that, I could face the laundry ahead :)

Heirlooms

2009-07-21T22:02:00.010-04:00

My mother-in-law died 5 years ago today. We still miss her terribly. Elaine was an incredibly generous lady and dearly loved her seven grandchildren. But since my children were 6 and 9 years old at the time, their long-term memories of Marme (as they all called her) may be hazy. What she gave us in life and what she left behind are tangible pieces of her and her memory that my husband and I are keeping in trust for our children.

When we became engaged in 1990, we received a beautiful heirloom that had been in my husband's family since at least the 1850's--a large coin silver spoon signed S. Kirk. It had the monogram of three couples on the front and two couples on the back. Ours was the last set. Wow. This was something.Steve's parents had four of these spoons; as each of their four children became engaged, the new couple received a spoon with their initials added on to the previous four generations. Steve's father had died in 1986, but Elaine carried on the tradition of presenting a spoon to us.

Over the years, we have used the spoon for every special occasion meal and we were glad to have had Elaine there for many of those gatherings. She gave us other pieces of family silver over the years, but the initials spoon always seemed most significant.
When Elaine died, her four children, their spouses, and the grandchildren went to her place to be together (there were four sets of viewings at the funeral home, then the funeral); we began the process of going through her things (which took awhile).

We didn't take many belongings with us at first. I think that we were too sad and unfocused. But among the things we did take home were more spoons--these humble kitchen spoons--a circa 1950s ice cream scoop and a set of measuring spoons missing some of its mates.I guess we took them because they're useful, like our fine spoons, but also because they were hers. Elaine was a great cook. She'd probably had these spoons since she got married and she used them. So to us, the kitchen spoons are in every way heirlooms, too.

Our Backyard Garden

2009-07-19T18:06:00.019-04:00

Like making lemonade when life gives you lemons, turn a few hours of weeding into an opportunity for a blog post! Among the features that we really love about our house are the screened porch and its view of the backyard. They are an extension of the home in so many ways. Walking out on the screened porch, it seems like you are enveloped in greenery and privacy. You can see one of our two ponds in the lower left of this picture:
When you step off the deck steps and turn into the yard, you are in shade and feel like you are moving into a new, expanding space. Early in the summer we had lots of rain, but lately it's been dry. The lonely sticks of grass under the trees are now a memory.The metal bench is a favorite spot in the shade across from the sugar maple and next to the Japanese maple.

We have several small concrete and stone garden statues/figures throughout the yard. This little bunny sits on a faux bois tree stump next to two mushrooms. These things don't have to be proportional, do they??Further away, you can see the urn and column (the latter we bought last year from Jeannie Trammell) that we love.

We have spiderwort growing around the upper pond (our yard has a slant). We find that the blooms get heavy for the stalks and they gradually fall over from the weight. The colors are purple, magenta, and white. The little praying cherub, like the previously-mentioned urn, are from Surreybrooke Gardens in Middletown, Maryland. At their home page, click on the "gardens" link to see many beautiful pictures.
Our ponds have fascinated us every year. Usually, we have goldfish, shubunkins, comets, fantails, and other fish, but they have always been too attractive for great blue herons. The herons had never completely wiped them out until last fall. I miss our fish! Meanwhile, we are enjoying our developing amphibious life. On the leaf is the tiniest baby frog I've ever seen. Its length is about the diameter of a dime or nickel.In the water you can see other frogs in their tadpole/pollywog progression.

A couple of chairs are always welcome for sitting and just staying put--especially after weeding, hacking branches, and other gardening duties.Here's to rest and enjoying the results!

Another Successful Outing--Chartreuse and Co.

2009-07-18T19:48:00.015-04:00

Today, I was fortunate to find more antiques and vintage stuff--pretty ironstone and painted metal! I also picked up 2 new cloches, 2 moss balls, and a wire mannequin to hold jewelry. I thought that was it, but we went back in after taking all these things to the van.Should have known I'd find something else; an old, white painted ice cream parlor chair called out to me. Another exchange at the checkout counter and the chair made it into the van, too.

Chartreuse is a winner to add to the list of super stops! My friend Lydia told me about this place some time ago; it is a group shop in a few buildings behind a private home out in the country. Open once a month for a weekend, my junior shopper and I finally made it over to a sale today.

In a way, Chartreuse reminded me of a hybrid of a couple of shops we went to a week ago. The outside has a mix of cottagey furniture and salvage materials and the insides of the main building and the little cottage are very put together and inviting. In other words, something for everyone.

When you enter the main building, grab a wicker shopping basket and see this:

Upstairs in the barn loft of the main building:And this is only part of what there is to see.

The darling kitty who is at home everywhere:A very sweet experience all around. You, too, can be part of this if you're in the MD/VA/DC/PA area. Check it out!

Christmas in July!

2009-07-15T21:01:00.001-04:00

You'd think that I'd have been satisfied with the trip to St. Michael's last Friday, when what did I spy in the area classifieds, but a yard sale the very next morning at 3 Chevy Chase Circle. What?! That's All Saints' Church, where I was married a number of years ago. All Saints has a thrift shop and they were putting on a yard sale. Had to check it out.

So daughter and I high tailed it over to the sale Saturday morning. As you might expect, there were women's clothes, household linens (nice ones), the ubiquitous baskets from years of floral arrangements, toys, and-- hold onto your Easter bonnets-- VINTAGE miniature Christmas decorations and assorted other dollhouse furniture and accessories. Multiple baggies full of them!Some decorations were MIP (mint in package for those who don't follow collectors' acronyms). Not everyone's cup of tea, but we found some little gems in there. I was salivating; they gave me a box to load everything in.

My favorite is the little bag of Santa's surprises circa 1950s. It took awhile to actually get the bag's opening loose, but what a thrill to find inside: wood and metal harmonica, metal clackety toy, plastic whistle, wooden yo-yo, play money, and plastic charms. Love those fab cat-eye glasses!When I first saw all this, my thought was, "lots of crafting potential." But, how can I break up Santa's surprise bag? Seems wrong after those mini toys being together for so many years! Plus, there are tiny candy canes, felt tree skirts, a tiny bottle brush tree with its own tiny tree skirt, mini stockings, tiny wooden snowmen, and more. I have a feeling that I have the makings of an elaborate Christmas shadowbox in my future.... And if that doesn't pan out, Emma actually has a large dollhouse that we got a few years ago at the Pink Cabbage (where else?)!

Last but not least, we found a couple of other worthies at the All Saints sale. We loved this vintage tin and really vintage deck of child's size playing cards called "Fauntleroy."

What great graphics these cards have! Look at the back with the picture of "The Earl." The deck's missing just one card-a joker! It's finds like these that are so unexpected and fun. Another great time on the yard sale circuit!

A day in St. Michael's - a vintage treat

2009-07-11T15:03:00.017-04:00

If you haven't been to St. Michael's, Maryland, before or in a long time, try to visit. This is the home of the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, restaurants featuring crabs, and shops galore! Our purpose yesterday was shopping, although we were there all day, so meals were also on the agenda....
First stop, Antiques on Talbot--sorry for the blurry picture. I hadn't been here in 2 months; didn't find anything I had to take home with me this time, but I'll be back.

Bags Aloft is a long-time St. Michael's shop that I've visited many times over the years. My son still uses a duffel bag we bought there at least 10 years ago. This time, we were tempted by Vera Bradley!

New discovery--Take Me Home. My first reaction on entering this shop was "OMG!" Regina has had her shop here since February and I don't know how I missed it on my last trip to this town. It is a beautiful, restful shop, with great things, including one of my faves-garden furniture. Calgon, take me away! (Only ladies of a certain vintage get that one :))

The blue stool with the glass top went home with us!Run, don't walk, to this store!

An interesting visual counterpart (in every way) to Take Me Home was Oak Creek Sales, a short drive from St. Michael's in Royal Oak, Maryland. We found this complex (it's 2 jam-packed buildings with spillage into the yards) on the way to the Bellevue/Oxford ferry and made a stop. The girls found some small treasures for craftmaking inside, while our driver had a refreshment at Bella Luna next door (more on that later).
Waiting for the ferry in Bellevue at the tiny beach:Oyster shells in abundance!

Cute little replica building on the other side of the ferry in Oxford:
We only took the ferry one way and drove around Oxford. So many charming homes for sale that it was shocking. Too bad we're not near retirement! We drove back to Royal Oak and ended the day with a wonderful dinner at Bella Luna Restaurant and Market:
Everything was delicious! The bruschetta was especially memorable.

So get out your planners and schedules and find a way to fit this area into your vacation time. BTW, I offer all this information free and without obligation to the places mentioned!

Recent Vintage Finds

2009-07-08T22:32:00.008-04:00

While in Ohio, I made a little time for some antique and vintage hunting. Here are my finds:In the last few years I have developed an interest in painted vintage hangers, hat stands, and paper-covered boxes. I've loved antique Christmas ornaments for years, especially the mini ornaments for feather trees.

A close-up of the Christmas ornaments:Aren't they cute?

Our northern Ohio destination was Cedar Point, oldest amusement park in the country (I think). After two days of rides, we got a little wanderlust and drove around. One of the towns we visited is Milan, Ohio (pronounced MY-lan; almost nothing in Ohio that exists as a name somewhere else is pronounced the same way--Versailles is VER-sails-no kidding; New Concord is New Con-CORD, etc.). This is fairly amusing for my east-coast husband! Milan is the birthplace of Thomas Edison, so naturally we had to pay a courtesy call. How adorable is this house?
We discovered some antique shops on and near the village square. I found the pink hat stand at Milan Inn-Tiques. Then we found Sights & Sounds of Edison:This shop had the round paper-covered box and the Christmas ornaments. If I'd had more time, I could have spent hours in that shop. It was a curious mix of Edison memorabilia and American antiques. I didn't notice that the two shops are apparently owned by brothers! I picked up the business card at each shop and both are owned by couples named Gfell. Milan is a nice little historic town--check it out!

We also spent a day at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland. This was my second visit--it's a great place. We saw a beautiful sunset over Lake Erie. The R&R Hall of Fame is the triangular shaped building to the left of the sun.Lots of great ephemera on display that would make great art projects--ha!

Happy Independence Day - Folk Art and a Parade!

2009-07-04T11:09:00.012-04:00

Happy Fourth of July from the midwest. I'm here for my 30th high school reunion. Before we left on the trip, I took a picture of our 8-foot wooden flagpole and 48-star American flag to commemorate this day!
Some festive pictures from the local parade--
My adorable 2-year-old nephew, Cam:
The living American flag a la central Ohio:
A wacky patriotic spectacle:
It wouldn't be complete without a festive pink vintage car:
With a nod to Dorothy and tornado country, the parade's theme, "There's no place like home...."There certainly is no place like Upper Arlington!

Enjoy your holiday, your freedom, and your family :)

Shabby Chic, Primitives, Vintage, Garden, or what?

2009-06-28T21:46:00.013-04:00

My son's middle school PTA used magazine subscriptions as a fundraiser. Two of my favorites were Cottage Living and Country Home--both of which have ceased publication in the last several months, along with Mary Engelbreit's Home Companion, which I usually bought off the newsstand. What gives? The downward spiral of the housing market led to a downward spiral of advertising in said magazines. Maybe the prevalence of home design blogs was a factor, too. (Chicken? Egg?) Without my magazines (oh, I still receive Country Living and the resurrected Victoria), I have been trying to get a handle on blogs and style.

The kids have complained that I have an art gallery in the powder room. We had some really dated pseudo-stencil primitive wallpaper in there when we moved in. After awhile, I convinced my other half to strip off the wallpaper and paint. Unfortunately, the shade of green we picked had a few more neon notes than we anticipated. But we're stuck with it for awhile.A small space is an ideal place for small pictures that could otherwise get lost in a larger room.

Great little mirrored shelves from the Pink Cabbage:The shelves hold a vintage chalk bird (bought at a nearby church yard sale) and an antique chalk box bought at Thoreauly Antiques in Concord, Mass.

I love the 19th century schoolgirl pencil drawing in its original frame. The dealer I bought it from in New Market said she got it on Eutaw Street in Baltimore. There is a girl's name written in script on the back of the frame's edge. She appears in the census in Baltimore in the late 19th century. It's great when you can connect these dots!
Being able to learn something about the person who created a picture or object is rewarding. You can enjoy a picture for its own sake, but the personal story makes it even better. What I collect fluctuates a little; I tend to go to all the styles mentioned above. Maybe these are Victorian Vignettes in their own way on a life-size scale!

Wild ponies at Assateague, Maryland

2009-06-23T21:18:00.014-04:00

I hope that you enjoy these pictures we took at Assateague in early April. While we were driving through the Assateague Island National Seashore, a baby pony decided to stand in the middle of the road and take a nap! Everyone stopped to admire the pony and take pictures. Mother pony was at the side of the road.
After we drove safely past the mother and baby, we had to drive back to get another look. Guess who's standing in the middle of the road!
Mom to the rescue! Now we have two ponies in the road....
Baby decides he's hungry and starts nursing! All humans watch and wait.

Finally, baby's had enough of being watched. He lets out a huge "waaahhhh!"
The kids asked for one more pass through. This time, both ponies had moved to the other side of the road. Show over; no curtain call :)
It was a beautiful and unexpected start to our spring break! No one could resist these intriguing wild, free animals.

From a kid's eye view- antiques and vintage shops

2009-06-21T21:19:00.005-04:00

It's Emma the youngest of the flock. My brother would not post anything on my mom's blog for a million bucks so this whole section will be written by me (and edited by my mom). A good thing I learned from my mom is that you have to know the value in an object. One of my mom's biggest shopping pet peeves is brand new furniture made yesterday painted or distressed to look like an antique or vintage. Also having a good eye is a good quality when shopping. My mom and I share a lot of interests so shopping together is never a hard thing. We have a lot of favorite shops and we've decided to share:
- R. Trammell & Sons; Old Bowie, MD
- The Pink Cabbage; Rt.144 and Triadelphia Rd., Ellicott City, MD
- Lucy & Ethel's; Savage Mill, Foundry St Savage, MD
- The Vintage Shoppes; Main St., Ellicott City, MD
- Steele's Country; AAA Mall, Freestate Dr. Laurel, MD
- Antiques on Talbot; Talbot St., St. Michael's, MD
- Antiques Emporium; E. Patrick St., Frederick, MD

Those are all the ones that come to mind at the moment but there will be more. [Note from Mom: I love Jeannie Trammell's shop in Bowie for antiques. I'm a long-time customer-about 18 years. She has great taste and good things. Back to Emma.] The Vintage Shoppes and The Pink Cabbage have to be our favs (vintage). Very girly, prices are reasonable, and there's something that comes out with us every time! My mom and I recently did a yard sale at The Pink Cabbage called Strawberry Days from 8-5.

I'm really starting to enjoy doing yard sales and craft festivals/shows. Back in Sept. '08 mom and I did a show near Hagerstown called Boonsboro Days:
It was supposed to be a two day event but the Saturday was rained out by heavy rains by hurricane Ike. There was nothing else to do because we were an hour and a half away from home and we were staying with my brother's friend's family who lived 5 minutes away from the show who were also doing it. It was raining really hard and I was really bummed so mom and I found ourselves spending the majority of the afternoon at an outlet mall some 20 minutes away. Then the next day it was sunny and the skies looked really good so we did it. We shared a booth with the friend we were staying with. Our crafts are called Victorian Vignettes and hers were called Lydia Oh Lydia! Her blog is called " Beauty will surely save the world". So we are doing Boonsboro Days again this year because of all the fun we had last year and this year we have our own booth 10x10' under a tent! Wish us luck! Arrivederchi!
In the interest of equal time, even though he wouldn't blog himself, here is something about my son. He doesn't do much shopping. He'll help at a yard sale, but won't shop too much at one unless I'm there selling. And that can get old fast. His long-time interests are playing soccer and art. The mandala mounted with a yellow mat (pictured below) was on exhibit in the observation deck gallery at Thurgood Marshall/BWI International Airport last year. It was quite an honor to be among the middle schoolers in Maryland whose art was selected.
This year, his silk painting of an orangutan was on display at Columbia Mall. I love this painting! This was his third time participating in the annual exhibit of Howard County students' art at the mall.Hope you enjoyed learning a little about my children :) We'll have more to say about yard sales and antiquing in future posts.

Crafting with family history ephemera

2009-06-19T06:34:00.013-04:00

My father's mother was the daughter of Swedish immigrants. That's Grandma as a baby (ca. 1904) on my great-grandfather's lap (with apologies for the strange angle and lack of focus-the picture is in a frame and I was trying to avoid flash glare).

Meet the Johnsons of Jamestown, New York. In addition to my grandmother Ruth on Peter John's lap, see Ambert, Stanley, and Rudolph (Grandma's twin brother) on my great-grandmother Sanna Matilda's lap. Standing in back are Florence and Elmer. Both my great-grandparents had been to the United States and worked before they eventually left Smaland and immigrated with Elmer, Florence, and Ambert. Stanley and the twins were born in Jamestown, where they made a new life with other Swedes.

When Stanley was elderly, he gave me his mother's papers. He and his late wife had never had children and he knew I was interested in history, so he offered them to me. Almost everything was in Swedish, but I had taken one year of Swedish in college and wanted to give it a try. Several letters begin, "Min kara liten Tilda" (My dear little Tilda).

Recently I looked at all of her papers and marveled at how beautiful they seemed. Most of the papers were letters she received, but some of the items were things often described as "ephemera." She had two small engraved invitations to weddings in San Francisco. The couples were Swedish; Matilda had worked as a maid in SF before she immigrated. She also saved several small cards bearing congratulations-for what, I don't know. I wanted to use these in artwork, but I wasn't sure how.

I decided to copy these on my home printer and work with the copies to preserve the integrity of the originals. I strongly encourage this, as you don't want to damage the original items (especially family pieces). Then I used Mod Podge to fasten them onto papier mache boxes. After letting them dry thoroughly overnight, I covered each box inside and out with a clear acrylic sealer. The process worked pretty well. What do you think?

The box on the left is covered entirely with paper; the text was among Matilda's things. The pink scrolled paper is by Anna Griffin. I left the box on the right partially uncovered. I chose not to paint it before applying the copies, but that is an option.

Matilda was a very nice woman, who spoke perfect English (read, no accent) according to Grandma, while her father never really spoke English. By the things she kept, we may infer that she treasured her friends and her memories. I never had any indication that my grandmother was similarly inclined. She had some real tragedies in her life, including the deaths of her father and twin brother in the same week in 1937 and the death of her mother, Matilda, six months later. After Grandma died in 1992, we found a few things that we hadn't expected her to keep--she was sentimental in her own way, after all.

It's kind of funny to think about these decorated boxes as commemorative family mementos because they're functional. You can use these on a desk, dresser, or anywhere. They hold up pretty well with use. At the same time, the boxes are conversation pieces and add a pretty touch during your day.

Do you have family papers that you have used in art? If not, think about giving it a try. It's time-consuming, but fun and well worth the effort. Lycka till!

Winterthur and the Brandywine River Valley

2009-06-17T22:07:00.010-04:00

If you live close enough to pay a visit, go to Winterthur and see a fine exhibit this summer, "Who's Your Daddy?" http://winterthur.org/calendar/needlework.asp. It's a small exhibit, but loaded with rich needlework documenting families, handed down through generations. It's going to be up until August, so try to fit it in with your summer plans if you love needlework. Winterthur is a great place and one of a kind. The gardens are fabulous, too, if you prefer being outdoors! Nearby other sites are Hagley Museum, Nemours, and Rockwood--all in Delaware. Close by in Pennsylvania are Longwood Gardens, the Brandywine River Museum, Chaddsford Winery, and more. We've been to all of these over the years and our visits are always fun. Yes, we have dragged the kids with us, mostly with success. (My parents indoctrinated me, therefore I must do the same to the next generation.)

I have to put in a plug for an antique shop I visited when we made a trip to Winterthur last month. Take a detour a few miles north along Route 52 to Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania. Go to Springhouse on US Route 1. It has a bit of the French country flair, with some garden things, porcelain, a nice mix in all. Unfortunately, there isn't a web site for the shop, but check it out in various online business sites. We discovered that a shop we liked in Centreville, DE, had closed. The Windles had great early things. It's always disappointing when a good shop closes--they seem to get fewer in number all the time!

Dumb encounters at yard sales...

2009-06-16T19:16:00.008-04:00

Last Saturday I went to a community yard sale not far from where I live. Only about 8-10 homes were participating. Most had things I was not interested in like baby items (been there) and books (I have plenty at home that I haven't gotten to yet). If I bring something home, I try to get rid of something else so it has to be worth it (or take up very little space).

One house was busy with several adults trying to pull things out of boxes, the garage, and the house onto the long driveway. I was thinking that this was a bust, too, when I noticed a man unpacking some china. At the bottom of his pile was an antique oval ironstone transferware vegetable dish. The transferware was teal and very pretty. I asked, "how much," and he asked his wife, "what do you think, $20?" She said "yeah." I said "oh, thanks anyway." It's not that it wasn't worth it. It's just that I didn't want to pay $20; I would have paid $10. Only a few weeks before I found a less wonderful, but nice, ironstone piece at another sale for 50 cents (way cheap--I took that one home). Besides, they said it was a piece from the wife's family. So my feeling was that they really didn't want to sell it; I didn't counter offer. When I'm out, I don't want to irritate anyone with a low-ball offer.

I did spot 2 small galvanized steel topiary pots for 50 cents (the pair). Sold! I'll craft them into something.

When I've been on the other side at my own yard sales, which usually are held not in my yard but at other sites for charity (your registration fee goes to the PTA, American Cancer Society, whatever, and you keep the proceeds of your own sales), I've been amazed at some of the things people say. A couple of years ago at the sale at the kids' elementary school, I had an old print among my things. Most of the stuff I sell hovers around $1. A shirt-$1. A hardback book-$1. Etc. So I didn't see the harm in bring a few things that went a bit beyond $1. Most people are very friendly, but there are exceptions.

One woman approached me holding the old print and asked nicely, "how much for this?" I said, "Oh, I'd like to get $15 for that." She blurted out at me, "I just BET you would!" Then she turned and stormed off. Another woman looking at my magazines said to me, "well, that was weird!" My daughter, who was probably 9 at the time asked me what was wrong with her. Couldn't explain that.

Last year at the same school sale, a woman wanted to pay $1 for my son's Yugioh (sp?) thousand plus card collection. He was only asking $4. He worked with her to get a small number of cards for $1. She was so cheap about it, but he didn't let her have the whole thing for her price! Then some younger boys came along and bought the rest for $4. He came out ahead on the deal and the other boys were thrilled.

Usually when people low-ball the prices, I balk. If it's marked $2 and someone offers 25 cents, I say no. But other times I'm a wimp. At the Pink Cabbage sale last month, I was asked if I would take $4 for an item marked $5. Not really a low-ball offer, but $5 was the price I had paid--what a fool I was-should have marked it $6 for some wiggle room. I caved only because I wanted to move things out of my house. Overall, the sale went well and I sold a lot.

I'm signed up to do another yard sale for my son's soon-to-be high school at the end of the month. We seem to have an endless supply of saleable junk!

On developing an "eye," or, how antiquing can make you a basket case

2009-06-10T19:19:00.009-04:00

Any time we antiquers, yard-sale followers, and all-around shoppers for a good buy venture out in search of something, we are training our eye. Unconsciously over time, we learn to identify what is good or excellent and what to dismiss. I was subjected to this early in life as the child of an antique dealer (Mom) and her willing accomplice (Dad). My sister, brother, and I were hapless participants in such diverse experiences as driving through eastern countrysides to the other extreme of visiting Parke-Bernet and Fred Silberman's shop in Manhattan (I'm sure they thought were hayseeds right off the turnip truck). And some places were practically in our back yard, like Garth's Auctions (http://www.garths.com/). This was the 1970s: Parke-Bernet is now Sotheby's, and Mr. Silberman and Garth's are still going strong from all accounts.

So my parents liked Art Deco and art in general and I liked primitives and folk art. Go figure. The early indoctrination worked. Which is why I find myself going to antique shows when I can. One near me twice a year is the Mid-Atlantic Antiques Market. Last year, I spotted this great basket in the booth of dealer Judy Welton:

I really liked the top; it was so unusual and I hadn't seen anything like it before.
Ms. Welton told me that the man she bought the basket from said it had been made by a man in Delaware named Miner, probably early 20th century. I decided to buy the basket, took it home, and it rests to this day on top of our old cupboard. A few months later, we were visiting relatives in Massachusetts when the kids wanted to go to the beach. I encouraged them to go to one near Essex so that I could make a side trip to Cogswell's Grant. Funny, but none of the adults wanted to go with me!

Cogswell's Grant was one of the homes of Bertram and Nina Fletcher Little, who were experts in American antiques and folk art (see sidebar for link to more information). The tour I had there was fantastic. I was the only person besides the guide, who humored me for 2 hours with an in-depth look at the Littles' house and their collection. Early in the tour I spotted a basket that looked something like mine, or so I thought: This picture, and the one that follows of the bottom of the basket, were later supplied to me by Cogswell's Grant--no pictures were allowed on the tour. Nina Little had a habit of putting jelly jar labels on many of her finds. This basket was apparently Shaker and from the community at Enfield, NH. I think that the CG people thought I was crazy, but they were incredibly helpful. When they saw me foaming at the mouth gaping at their basket, they knew they just had to help!When I asked the folks at CG about the basic technique of a Shaker basket being so similar to my Delaware basket, they pointed out that basket making has variations, but a lot remains similar. The techniques persist over time and space. Always ask questions if you have them. Visiting treasures like Cogswell's Grant are golden opportunities. It's fun to keep working on your "eye."

Victorian vignettes &c

2009-06-07T13:51:00.010-04:00

This is my first post on my blog--welcome! I make crafts that I have been referring to as Victorian Vignettes, but I have just learned that another blogger goes by that name. So the name of this blog could change. But this blog will be about the crafts and all kinds of other subjects-mostly related, but some probably not.

I work full-time, so craftmaking is a part-time thing for me. My primary home activities are dictated by my children's schedules--soccer, Girl Scouts, choir, and anything else they do.

Meanwhile, my crafts use vintage millinery flowers and fruit, ribbons, fabric, antique bottles, vintage porcelain figures, ephemera, and other items to make a picture. These are based on Victorian crafts like nature and flower shadowboxes or still lifes under glass domes.

This all started as a winter project with my daughter Emma in 2008. We would go looking for vintage items to use for crafts and then trying working on some shadowboxes together. Initially, Emma made lots of tags--really nice ones.

Then last September, we helped my friend Lydia at Boonsboro Days. She's an artist; we shared a booth selling artwork, vintage smalls, and antiques. The first day of the show was rained out by Hurricane Ike (yes, even in western Maryland), but the second day brought sun and crowds. We did well so we're doing Boonsboro Days again this year.

The shadowbox in the upper right sold at Lydia's Home Show last fall. Then I traded the one on the lower left with a fiber artist.

I participated in the Pink Cabbage's (http://www.geocities.com/thepinkcabbage/ ) 4th annual Strawberry Days Yard Sale last weekend; it's a fundraiser for the American Cancer society. The shop invited its customers to sell household things, their own crafts, or whatever! Here is a picture in our booth taken by one of the shopkeepers--thank you-I am flattered--of some of the crafts we showed:

We sold one shadowbox and one other craft. Most of the public took this show at its word-Yard Sale! So we sold lots of our house things--miscellaneous stuff that just seems to accumulate and multiply :) Emma and I have a lot of fun with this. I spend some of my free time scouting out more vintage things and antiques. And I'll share some of those adventures on this blog. I'll post when I can. Thanks for visiting!