Pink Roses

DIY Friday: vintage journal...

After my flea market adventure last Friday, I was inspired to use some of my vintage finds to make a journal. 

I used the covers from some old books as the pages, and embellished them with a little bit of everything!

The books I used were not the same height or width, but were close in size.  I cut the covers off the books with an exacto knife, and used the front and back cover of the tallest book (the tan one) as the front and back cover of the journal.  Because my pages were very 3 dimensional, I only used one cover of each of the other books, 7 covers total...5 pages plus the front and back cover.

I punched holes in the covers with a crop-o-dile, and held it all together with 2" binder rings from the office supply store.  The outside edges of the journal are the smooth edges, and the "spine" is the cut edges of the book covers. Here is the cover : lace, millinery, satin ribbon, and a rhinestone pin...

 

The back side of each cover was covered in assorted papers, and a piece of watercolor paper was added as a blank spot for journaling on some. Here is the inside cover and page 2: a vintage dress pattern,  lace trim, velvet ribbon, a millinery rose, and a vintage calling card...

I hadn't added the journaling spots when I took these photos...sheet music, bridal lace, a vintage embroidered hankie, and a milagro tied on with ribbon...

The next page has a piece of vintage barkcloth with a bit of padding behind, so it can be used to "pin" on items, including a vintage enamel flower pin from my collection.

The next page has more vintage barkcloth and lace, and I laced seam binding to make a place to hold journaling tags, business cards, etc.

The back of this cover has vintage wallpaper and more lacing (like a corset), to hold more journaling.  I may not actually use these tags for my journaling...I just put them here to show you a possibility.

The last page has a round doily cut in half, then sewn to form a corner pocket to hold notes, cards, etc...

The back side also has a pocket...

This journal is sturdy and thick and just filled with all the vintage things I love and collect...and it was SO much fun to make!

  It would make a great guest book at a wedding!

Lakewood Antiques Market...

It's been months since I've gone to the Lakewood Antiques Market...last summer before the wedding to be exact, so today I treated myself and went.  It was a beautiful day, perfect for browsing and rummaging through booth after booth of vintage treasures!  I found a few bargains, although I seem to always buy the same things...vintage ribbon, glass buttons, postcards with roses, rick rack, embroidered linens ($1.00 table)...

a baby shoe, a doll dress, a glass jar with rusted lid, a spool of pink thread, and 2 gold lipstick cases.  I can't resist the cheerful crochet potholders...

vintage silk, velvet, and satin ribbon from my friend JoAnne...

and a perfect basket for Easter...my deals of the day.

Here are some other things I saw along the way...loved the blue in Peg Davis's booth, Vintage Memories...

Oh yes, and I bought this mirror from Martha Thompson's booth Favorite Things...

These ladies are in Hall G, along with loads of other great sellers, and they will be there all weekend if you need a vintage fix...

texas inspiration: neutrals...

As a die hard fan of Shabby Chic, I am drawn to neutrals. Enjoy...

 

      

 

Don't you love the silverware, knitting needles, and paintbrushes all stuck in urns?  I do!!

texas inspiration: Christmas

I need to do a whole post on Christmas ornaments. I didn't buy a SINGLE one because we were flying, and I didn't have the room to pack them properly.  I knew they would break during travel, so I just took pictures to remember. I wanted them all, especially the tree toppers!! Next time I might drive...

    

 

 

texas inspiration:day1

I have sooo many pictures from Texas...things that inspire me or just make me say...ahhh.  I am going to post them every day this week and post them on Flickr.  They may be kind of random, but I hope they inspire you too.

 

 

more tomorrow...

I’d like to buy a vowel…

The real reason Elizabeth and I went to Texas was to attend the Fall Antique Week held in Warrenton & Roundtop.  We spent days rummaging through miles of treasures…honestly anything you want was there.  A stuffed Ostrich? They had that. From the ordinary to the unusual, it’s all in Texas during Antique week.  Today I’m going to talk about letters.  I have a thing for letters and it seemed that they were everywhere…take a look…from the gigantic {E for Elizabeth}, to the tiniest…

And SOOO much more…my head was spinning with the possibilities of all those letters!  So much potential…what to spell, what to make…I bought a few things, but it was overwhelming.  I have lots more to show you next week, including the stuff we bought…have a great weekend everyone…:)

cabinet card journal…

In Kansas last month, Beth had the AWESOME idea to use the folders that cabinet cards or old photos come in, to make a journal.  Why didn’t I think of that?  (I usually throw those away) Luckily, Beth shared her idea {and supplies} so that I could make one too!  Here’s how:  Start with a plain photo folder, and cut 2 pieces of watercolor paper (or any sturdy paper) slightly smaller than the (opened up) folder size.

Fold the 2 pieces of paper in half to make a seam, and open them up and stitch the paper to the folder down the seam. Your folder will now be a “journal” with 8 pages front & back!

I glued a cabinet card to the front, and I will say, this is not a card I would usually purchase because it had been folded…

and someone had written the girl’s names on the front with a blue ink pen…

But I sewed on some crochet trim and glued on a button, and it hid the writing!

I added some vintage papers to the inside front cover to hide my sewing…

and tied a bow out of a gorgeous vintage silk ribbon that Beth gave me {love}…

This project took no time at all, and was really inspiring.  It made me look twice at less that perfect items that I might normally throw away, or pass over at a flea market.  Thanks Beth for your inspiration and generosity!  Hope this inspires you too!

strangest carry on…

The strangest thing I ever carried onto a plane was this typewriter…

that I bought at a garage sale in Kansas last month for $8.00…

and it was WAY too heavy for my luggage.  So I carried it in a bag, through security, and onto the plane.  After carrying it home, through the entire Atlanta airport, it felt like 100 pounds!  But it was only $8.00.  You would have done the same thing, right?

miss lauri…

 

My sweet friend, Lauri Evans, can also be found at Lakewood every month, and twice a year she packs her bags and heads to Texas where she sets up her fabulous style at Marburger. Do I even have to tell you how much I wanted that pink doll carriage?  I am always inspired by Lauri’s booth and displays, and I love her neutral color palette.  She’s also one of the nicest gals in town…

 

I LOVE this vintage etched mirror used as a tray!

Don’t you just love her too?

sassytrash…

 

My friend Nancy has a great blog and business called Sassytrash. You can find her on the 3rd weekend of every month at the Lakewood Antique Market.  Elizabeth and I stopped by to see her yesterday and I bought this adorable “junk garden” from her. 

She used a vintage enamel tin for the container and added lots of vintage elements to the garden….bits of china,

a spoon and another china lid…

a rusted metal piece…

some old fencing with vintage photos wired on…I just LOVE it!!

She had 2 others…this one with the oval platter and silver creamer…and notice the vintage tart tin and the lamp harp…genius!!

and this one…more china, and succulents and architectural fragments…she has such talent :)

She also made these amazing flowers out of all sorts of jello molds and tins…I couldn’t decide, so I bought all 4 of these!

Here are a few other peeks at her booth…

Lakewood is open tomorrow, so if you live near Atlanta, stop by and see her! 

More flea market style to come…