Tuesday, May 31, 2011

The things you can learn from Dr.Seuss.......

I am loving my sons interest
in finally sitting still long enough to read...
and I am so excited that right now his favorite books
are written by that genius of a man
Dr.Seuss

Green Eggs and Ham
The Sneetches
The Lorax
The Grinch
The Cat in the Hat
Oh, The places you'll go!
and take an aspirin before you read
Fox in Sox...
I'd forgotten how tongue twisting,
silly,
sincere,
and profound
these books are.
I think some of life's most important lessons can be learned from
these books...
Believe in yourself...
Try new things....
Have fun and it's o.k. to be silly no matter your age...
Love your neighbor..
Respect our planet...
Don't discriminate....
Good friends and a loving family are life's greatest treasures....

One of my favorite quotes :
Be who YOU are and say what YOU feel,
because
those who mind don't MATTER
and those who matter
don't MIND!
Such an amazing artist and creative writer
what a gem to have both talents wrapped in one person.
What lessons of life do you remember learning before the age of 5?
Happy Tuesday!


Monday, May 30, 2011

Marvelous Memorial day weekend finds!

Took a few days off from writing
to enjoy some time with family and friends
I went out on Friday to an Estate sale
that just happened to be near my home
and I felt like I scored so well
I didn't bother going to any others
the rest of the weekend!
When I walked in I knew I would find something great...
and i was surprised because I got there an hour late
and it had been advertised to have "antiques"
but it seemed like no one was buying...
sometimes I think people don't see potential in items
they just want them to be perfect or "look" valuable...
I was so excited to see these on the first table I went to....


An Argoflex and a Cadet to add to my vintage camera collection! The cadet was $1!
The Argoflex was $3!  I couldn't believe it!

Then I saw this awesome Brownie movie camera..
It still has the original box and manual...
$8









Shiny Happy People....
The design is so lovely and sleek
Of course I had to open it
and the insides are pristine
It has a small reel of film still inside!


On the table next to the cameras I found these
old diaper pins...
Funny when I was looking for these
before my son was born I couldn't find them
now I have found two sets in the last two months..
.50 cents
I need to figure out a clever use for them
any suggestions?



as I entered the kitchen I noticed this huge pile of old towels
and tablecloths from the 70's with mushrooms etc.
I still decided to take a peek
and underneath all that brown and avocado green
was this lovely bright tablecloth
$2!
I've never seen this pattern before

Isn't it just lovely?
After roaming through several other rooms I made my way to the
 garage...
It became obvious that the owner of this home was
a very loving woman
she appeared to save everything her children or nieces and nephews
had
baby clothes, toys, chalkboards, doll clothes, and school papers.
Which is when I noticed two large boxes of old papers and "junk" in the corner near the trash...
I peeked inside and noticed old school notebooks and report cards...
So I asked one of the girls helping out with the sale if she
would consider selling some to me
that I used things like those in my artwork...
I didn't ask for them because I feel like a family deserves an offer...
She laughed and said
"You know I thought I should keep some of those because I am an artist too!"
She gave me the whole box for $5
Which to me for the amazing amount of ephemera inside was a steal
SOLD!
This box must weigh 10 lbs...
I still haven't gone through the whole thing
but here are some of the top layer
Love the note from the teacher on the little booklet on top..
it says she did a great job on her little book!

an Aviation news booklet
old letters and service papers
It appears the couple owned a Service / Gas Station locally here some years ago
Old logbook with wages for employees
not much compared to now...neat to see
Old posters in great shape
advertising all sorts of things...
These glasses are Anchor Hocking freebies
probably 10 of these workbooks for writing....
The back section of all the booklets have a section of punch outs...
The section I stopped in was where I found this photo
A church directory photograph and order form
It was taken in 1983
A lot of times I wonder about the people and what they were like
so it was neat to see the people these items were a part of.
Do you think I should try and contact the family about the portraits?
I'm not sure since they were also selling a lot of black and white photos that
belonged to this couple.
Hope you had an amazing weekend and found some treasures...
head on over to ApronThriftGirl
and see what everyone else was up to!
Happy memorial day!

   SuzieQ and Lisanne e-mail me your info since you are my winners from
my giveaway!
My mail link was disabled last week...
Congrats!

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Randomness for Thursday.......

Just a bit of Random fashion pics for fun...
I took these at the Richmond Highland Games...
I'd dare anyone to ask these guys about their "skirts"!
Look pretty manly to me....

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Yardsale Relationships.....

I know I promised a few details about the yardsale...
I have to admit
I have a love/hate relationship with the whole yardsale event
I
Love
other peoples yardsales,
the money I make,
and
getting rid of things!
I
Hate
dealing with annoying,
rude,
and cheap people.
When I advertise that my sale starts at 8
that doesn't mean at 6 when I am trying to put things out
that you should walk up and start going through boxes and asking me questions
while I am trying to unpack.
I am one of the most friendly people you can meet 
and think it is common courtesy to respect others requests even if you are in their yard
and not a retail store!
I guess I also know there is sort of an unwritten code of ethics
for haggling also.
I think it is insulting to offer someone 75-80% less than what they have
marked on an item.
There was definitely a lot of stuff I wanted to just see
go out the door...
but the first little old lady who offered me .25 cents for something I had marked $1
I said sure...
then all her friends and a grown grandchild
came up to me with all sorts of items ranging from $1 to $4
and every one asked me if they could have them for.25 cents!
When I declined their offers with what they could see
was frustration in my face,
one woman looked at me and said
"These cards don't even have envelopes! This is a yardsale you know?!"
(15 or so full size Victorian greeting cards $1!)
she wanted them for .25cents $1 was already a great deal...
"Yes, it is a yardsale but I do have to make some money. If I wanted to donate them I would
have taken them to Goodwill,
Thanks but I'll keep them."
and just to see if she could add insult
the granddaughter whom I had already discounted several items for
had to ask again for a set of mugs I had $1 on for .25 cents
all I replied was "No, I think $1 is fair"
she slammed them down and huffed away...
For the life of me I just don't get what makes people act this way
over
THINGS!
Otherwise the day went really well,
we made some decent money,
spent time with family,
my awesome sister in-law came to help,
my grandmother showed up,
and we got rid of a lot of stuff!
I'm also proud of myself for having the willpower to
RESIST
going to the other sales
there were 27 in our little Village that day!

So,
what are some of your yardsale experiences like?
Do you have any tactics for dealing with uncouth shoppers?







Monday, May 23, 2011

Retro mommies...We have a winner!

Glad to be back everyone!
The yardsale was a success!
more on that to come...
The better part of the weekend however
was going to a retro themed baby shower!
Everyone was asked to come in vintage dress...
Right up my alley of course!
Think June Cleaver is what they suggested.
I think I pretty much got the "most accurate" look award....
of course I had to have a mini photo shoot when I got home
because so many people kept telling me how wonderful I looked....
What do you think?
The I'm so glamorous housewife pose...
(I took this with the Tilt Shift Generator app)
The next day my friend told me her husband didn't even recognize me...
Hmmmmm....

This is my "mommy knows better than you" look...
The earrings and the necklace I found at an estate sale for $2.00 for the set!
Funny because after looking at these later I think I look a lot like my dads mom
when she was younger....
Enough of my photo session...
The shower was so cute
we had meatloaf and mashed potatoes
deviled eggs and finger sandwiches
apple pie and cupcakes...
all the nifty stuff a good mommy would know how to serve...
It was a lot of fun.
I didn't have time to thrift because of our mega yardsale
so other than the jewelry set
 I am going to share a piece I "found" that had been forgotten about...
I found it a few months ago at a DAV for $3.95 

Ummm... so it's upside down ....oops...technical difficulties w/ the ICamera
Isn't it just lovely though?
Head on over to ATG 
to see all the other goodies everyone found.
and for the two lovely ladies
who entered my giveaway...
The winner is...
BOTH of you!
I'm glad you both entered and since you were brave enough to comment
I figured you both should get a little something!
Since SuzieQ entered first she's my big prize winner...
and Lisanne is my runner up!
Her gift will be a surprise but you know it'll be great!
Thanks for participating gals!
Send me your info so we can work out the details!
Happy Monday everyone!

 

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

ICamera Crazy....

 I'm probably one of the last people to update their IPOD
but I finally did!
Wonderful
and now obsessive Birthday gift....
Ever since I got home from work I've been scanning the
photography Apps...

I'll have to have a slideshow when I've started taking some real photos!
Do you have a favorite photography App?
Have you used the garage sale finding App?
This week will be quite busy
Forgive me if I'm a bit scattered with the posts this week.
The Annual Village yardsale is this weekend and we are trying
to empty out leftovers from my business I closed a few years ago and all kinds of excess.
Funny how having a child can make you forget things...
I had no idea I had inventory left that had been hiding...
 I even have company coming for part of the week to help!

Don't forget about the giveaway
from Mondays post!
I'll be accepting entries until this Saturday evening
You only have to leave a comment to enter
but the more options you choose the more times you are entered!
See previous post for rules..
Let me know about those Apps or any other favorite you have.
Happy Tuesday everyone!



Monday, May 16, 2011

Thriftshare Monday - Giveaway Surprise!

Today is Thriftshare Monday
check out all the finds over at Apron Thrift Girl
but more importantly for me today
I am hosting my
First GIVEAWAY!

Here is all I manged to find this weekend....
We've been busy trying to clean out for a yardsale
and my little sis came all the way from dreary ol' Chicago for a visit...
so time was limited for me the last week.
but
I really love what I found...
This lovely little hand stitched scene...
It has adorable ribbon trim w/ roses attached to the frame
but I really didn't realise until later
that it really resembles our little house built in 1918...
I just love it to bits.
I paid $8 for it but it was so unique!
Now
On To The Giveaway Goodies!

Every domestic goddess, farmgirl, or city girl who dreams of the country
needs her own apron...
New  with cute retro styling
You must have your own vintage hankie to keep in that apron pocket..
To add a little charm to everyday things...
Two vintage doilies and a few other pieces of decoratively stitched linen...
and in this day and age of modern communication..
won't a friend be surprised by a Vintage postcard to say
"Hello" or "Happy Birthday"
(there are several more)

Every woman deserves a little sparkle...
these retro style earrings are a must!
What better to hold it all than a Sunny Sunflower tote from
April Cornell?
or
Use it for your veggies or flowers at the farmers market this summer!
There is also a copy of
Mary Jane Butters
mini Farmgirl Wisdom
with 14 magnets included
and
I'm throwing in a few other items that will be a surprise!
I'm going to keep this first one easy...
Please do one or all of the following...
The more you participate the more chances you have...
Heck I'll throw in the chicks,too.
All farmgirls  and city girls need their chicks, right?
1- post a comment - I'd love to hear what you think..
2-Like me or comment/link to me on  Facebook or Twitter
3-Link to my page from yours
4-Follow Me!
Easy?
...
I'll be working hard on the yard sale and working at the ol' day job
this week..
I'll be selecting and announcing my winner next Monday May 23rd!
Good Luck and can't wait to hear from you!
Happy Monday!

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

The Memory Keeper...

I have a problem with "Organizers"...
There are the kind you see trying to help people who are messy and they need help organizing it,
then there are the people they call hoarders.
Peter Walsh
I love
and sometimes hate...
Maybe I'm one of those crazy people...
I'll be honest....
I live in a maybe 1,000 sq. foot home
 built during WWI  and I love to collect things.
I have really had to work at learning to live in a small space .
When you don't have closets in some rooms
 or your largest one is the size of some peoples broom closet.
You have to work at what  you really need to keep.
I struggle to this day.
Mr.Keeper is a pack rat,
but I'm not going to go there.
Organizers like Peter always try to get people to understand
that an object is not a person.
Your memories of them are what you hold on to.
I agree that items like this have to be kept within reason.
But here is my argument...

I've had this box since I was a teenager.
Have not really looked in it since then...
Recently I opened it up...

Girl Scout badges, pins, and my sash.
Sure I remember I was in Girl Scouts
but I didn't remember I had achieved so much,
and as I looked at each badge or pin
memories that had been stored away on a shelf in the card catalog of my brain
(no one uses those anymore right?)
came to me in an instant..
I remembered flashes of the swimming classes I took at the YMCA for one.
I remembered having a pen-pal.
I remembered having the International food and fun festival where
I got Mexico and taught the Mexican Hat dance and we had chips and tacos.
I remembered struggling to earn the math badge because I LOATHE math,
but I did it.
I remembered the Cookie sales ,
that we loaded the cookies up in my Radio Flyer and wheeled them door to door.
While I have "memories",
 I recalled memories I truly would have never remembered...
had I not had these tangible items to hold in my fingertips,
 feel the silk threads on the badges ,
or touch the ones  my mother stapled on for some reason.
Peter ,
people do forget.
This was a wonderful way to remind me of the things a little girl
could accomplish,
and even though she may not have been as confident as she is now
 she still achieved her goals.
To remind me that even if I may feel that
I just can't do certain things because of my circumstances or life choices...
that maybe yes I can!

I also see people throwing their personal history on the curb constantly.
Sometimes to know where you are going,
 it's good to know where you came from.
I have plenty of friends who know nothing about their families beyond their grandparents
and they may not truly know who they REALLY were.
  I just think sometimes there are things we should hold on to.
If my grandfather hadn't held on to his Army cap from WWII
I would have never thought to ask him about what happened "when he was in The War"
Members of our family have let a home that my Great Great Grandparents built themselves
turn back into wilderness,
because "No one would want that old house".
It was too old fashioned.
Not thinking to preserve it for future generations who might care,
or offer it to someone who would care that a family built this home by hand
 and persevered in farming, lived through the Civil War, lived through the Great Depression and
ended up with streets in their town named after their family.
My dad held on to his favorite childhood train set
probably never thinking he would have a grandson to pass it on to.
When my father is no longer around
my son will have the memory of running things down with
that "old" locomotive in the garage with his grandfather.
This Peter is why I have issue with you sometimes...
some items can bring back memories.
Call me a hoarder then and I'll wear that badge.
If all of my vintage collecting friends are crazy too for wanting to protect the past
then lets all start a hoarding history club!
What do you guys think?






Monday, May 9, 2011

The Finderskeeper: Thriftshare Monday....

The Finderskeeper: Thriftshare Monday....: "Long weekend of feeling tired, but a sinus infection couldn't keep me down.  Felt good enough to go out Mothers Day and do some junking... ..."

Thriftshare Monday....

Long weekend of feeling tired,
but a sinus infection couldn't keep me down.
Felt good enough to go out Mothers Day and do some junking...
What is it with old guys in thrift stores who think they know everything?
There are a few regulars I see at Estate sales and local shops
It's almost as if they aren't really interested in what they buy...
as long as it "looks old"
and they can be pretty pushy or rude...
I laugh at them usually and don't engage in much conversation with them...
because they are usually trying to get whatever you have
by talking it down
They just don't know who they are messing with when it comes to me!
My baby face makes them think I'm a newbie...
little do they know I have been trained by generations of
Knowledgeable
Crafty
Bartering
thrifty ladies!
SO
when one of these "Oldies" tried to get this board game from me
$2.98
Him ="Hey, that looks old"
Me="Yeah, it probably is"(acting like I don't care)
He comes over to inspect it in my hands!
Him="Probably missing most of the pieces"
Me="Actually it is in great shape and has all the original pieces,
there's another one in the back if you want to take a look"
Me= "That one is missing most of the pieces though, but it's old.
That's what you're interested in right?Old"
Him="Humpphh" (stinky smirk)
He= walks off leaving me in peace...
I'm usually such a friendly person but these guys just bug me
Don't get me wrong - I'm not just being this way to any old guy I meet at a sale
This "type" I just get their vibe right away..
Find #2
$4.00
Awesome Kodak camera for my collection...
Bellows are still great
Glass sight still there
Everything you'd want to be intact
There is even a roll of film inside!
But who knows if it can even be developed or if it has been exposed somehow..
It was raining and got wet on the table it was displayed on
I talked the guy into $4 from $10 since I was going to have to try and dry it out
and keep it from rusting...
Find#3
$2.00
Cigar box full of Ephemera
Postage stamps
Savings stamps and books for all kinds of things
from Silverware, China, and books..
I remember my mom and my great grandmother saving for things like this too.
Every now and then I see a promotion like this in our grocery
but they don't really seem like a deal anymore...
Hope you all had a great Mothers Day..
Head on over to Apron Thrift Girl to see all the other great finds!
Come back next week for my first giveaway...
Got some great items in the works..
Happy Monday!

Friday, May 6, 2011

Mothers Day...

Three years ago today...
Who would have guessed...
That three years later....
I'd feel so blessed.
You are the greatest gift I have ever received.


Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Citra-Solv and Old National Geographics = ART?

Day 5 at Art and Soul
was a very unique
-scratch that-
was a very aromatic experience!
Last year I took a class w/ Cathy Taylor
and she mentioned a technique she used for creating works with
National Geographic magazines saturated in the natural cleaner Citra-Solv
Once the company learned about the number of people
who were using their product
they created a site dedicated to it
you can check it out here
Cathy has judged a few of their contests
she was also recently featured in
the recent issue of
but onto the experience....
Cathy started the day with her usual
Cheerleader like enthusiasm during her demo..
sorry I didn't capture it in a photo...
Basically you sprinkle the solvent on every page
shut the magazine and wait...

we headed outside
so we wouldn't ummm...
as Bubba would say "Inhale" too much...
but it was a gorgeous day
so wonderful to get outside for a bit...
We headed inside and laid them out to dry
and by lunchtime the whole Convention Center
smelled
Squeaky Clean...
at least we pretty much masked smell of the  the Wabi-Sabi-wax class
who totally stunk up their room w/ beeswax...
and here are some of the results

The photos don't necessarily show some of the range of color.
more of the dark shows up in the photos but not in person...
but a lot of people pay money for paper like this!
Here are a few of the pieces I created
I decided to use the actual design that appeared and paint what I "saw" in it
kind of like looking at clouds
we all see something different...


I realize now looking at the photo you can't see some of the subtleties in the image
but basically I imagined a sort of cloaked / camouflaged wood nymph
It would have been nice if I had the original page image
but would have been impossible for me to photograph the whole magazine for before images
However it was a photo of red ants carrying leaves

This image I clearly saw the wings in the angel first
and took it from there
kind of out there for me...
but all the reds and oranges
kind of a guardian angel with a child wrapped in her arms in a post-apocalyptic world?

This cloaked couple (man w/ a bit of long hair on the right)
appeared to me quite easily...
It was a photo of a hayfield....
If you stare at these images long enough you see all sorts of tiny things in them...
I think all these figures seemed ethereal to me
since I was letting my imagination go...
most everyone else saw trees and mountains
a few awesome fairies and mermaids as well.
So what do you think?
This is definitely not what I usually
paint..
but it was fun and different.
It's good to branch out.

Monday, May 2, 2011

Thriftshare Monday...Art and Soul style....

To go along with my usual participation in
Thrifshare Monday
at ATG
I thought I'd share some of the thrifted items
that I used in my artwork this weekend
and some of the goodies
from vendor night
These purchases were from Dimestore Chic
they are on on Etsy
I didn't provide a link because they are on vacay right now...
I'll definitely be doing a feature on them as soon as they are back...
Cheery vintage fabric swatches and two hand towels...
Eight of these vintage Christmas Goodies boxes..
Vintage match tins and candy tin
I'll definitely use the candy tin as the house for a tiny vignette..
All Vintage
diaper pins - to use in jewelry
 ballerina cake decorations (I actually got 8)
weighted handmade clown
sweet little bisque dollie
all will be used in future projects
Come back for a glimpse of the Dollie in her new home
I'll feature her in the Niche' I made with Sally Jean Alexander
in another post....
Jewels, Jewels Jewels!
all vintage
All kinds of vintage plastic western kids toys
with a bag of fencing
Loooove this tin basket!
Two tin cigar boxes and some paper ephemera
from Rusty,Dusty,Old and Crusty
This sweet doll
and the shop owner throws in a handful of old rusty nails
if you want them for projects...
I HAD to buy this paper doll set
her name written on the back was PAM!
She has quite the wardrobe...
When I purchased the paper doll
all I saw was what was on top
The added bonus was that underneath was this Orphan Annie set
Whoever owned these took very good care of them
they are definitely vintage
I can't wait to use them in a collage project!
In total I think I spent right around or less then $40 dollars
the quality of everything was so great it was worth spending a tad
more on a few of the items
Lastly
Here is what I can create out of your old National Geographic magazines

This is using a special technique to change the existing image
with a solvent
it liquefies the inks and creates beautiful designs
then you let your imagination run wild
I think this one is was channeling a bit of Klimt?
The photo doesn't show all of the iridescence in some of the areas of paint
I'll show more of my work and the whole process in a future post
SO,
How do you think I scored?
Happy Monday!
Don't forget to check out the other finds at ApronThriftGirl
(link at top)