Pink Roses

Show & Tell Sunday...

Today's Show and Tell topic is Trash to Treasure.  If you are like me, often times you bring things home from Garage Sales and flea markets with the intention of making something out of it, but it never actually happens!  As I was trying to decide what to show today, I became painfully aware that I have a lot of unfinished & unstarted projects!

The project above did get finished, quite a few years ago, and I have really enjoyed it.  I bought this silver teapot at a garage sale for just $5.00...of course it was black with tarnish when I found it, but with some silver polish and hard work, it shines like new. Its not hard to wire a lamp (they sell everything at Home Depot), but I took this teapot to a lamp store and had it wired, because I didn't want to attempt drilling through silver!  I had this in my dining room once upon a time, but now it sits on my desk next to my computer, and I see it everyday.

You can make a lamp out of almost anything...once you start, you then envision everything with a lampshade on it!

Here is a current work in progress...

I bought these 3 tacky plastic art/picture things at the Goodwill store for $1.00...they are 8" x 10"...diamonds in the rough.  The center plastic flower part snaps off, leaving just the frame and the lattice backing.  I started by priming them with white spray paint...

I was thinking of covering the lattice portion with a piece of chipboard, and then making a collage with vintage elements.  I want to make something to decorate Elizabeth's dorm room at college next year, and I need her help in deciding on colors.  She will be in a suite with 2 of her sorority sisters and I though of doing one for each of the girls...incorporating their initials or a monogram.  They may end up being more like something from Anthropologie ...funky and bright...with the frames painted in cheerful colors (that would probably look best on plain white dorm walls). I have so many ideas for these, but the final decision will be what Elizabeth wants.  I'll show  you the end result when I finish :).

Today it is Analise's turn to host Show and Tell...so head over to her blog for more Trash to Treasure!

Lucite purses...

I started collecting Lucite purses in college, but it wasn't what I wanted.  I wanted to collect Victorian style vintage beaded evening bags but they were way too expensive for my student budget. Almost every weekend my boyfriend (who became my husband), and I went to the flea market.  I was at the University of California, so we either went to the Alameda Flea Market (which was every weekend in those days), or to the Berkeley Flea Market held on Sundays at the BART station.  One weekend I found this purse...

It reminded me of Cinderella for some reason...maybe a purse version of her slippers...anyway, I fell in love and it was only a few dollars so I bought it.  Over the next 4 years of college I collected dozens of purses...I tried to buy only clear, or clear and white, although I do have 1 pink, 1 blue and 2 tortoise.

Now they are hard to find and expensive, so I don't buy them anymore.   It was a college collection, and I still love them, but part of the fun was finding them for a few dollars each!

I would use them for special occasions, and always lined them with a hankie...

and made sure not to carry anything too personal inside!

These are just a few of my favorites...I display them in the bookcases in my living room.

I also have a collection of white wicker purses...

but they are in a box somewhere in the basement...I'll have to dig those out another day!

ready for the prom...

The Junk Gypsy prom that is!  I found this skirt at the Nashville Flea Market last month for $10.00, and had to buy it...you just never know when you'll need it :).  I dressed my mannequin the other day and added a little bit of ribbon and a flower from an old hat...

All of my Aunts loved it when they came over for the Graduation party last weekend...they didn't understand why I had a mannequin in the dining room (so I can see it every day) , but they got it...it's a girl thing!

Show & Tell Sunday

When you're a packrat like me, you have lots of stuff, and I'm always looking for ways to store it.  I have things stored in hatboxes, cigar boxes, candy boxes and tins.  I find that when I put something away, I tend to forget about it...so I like to store things in jars where I can see what I have.

Here are some of my jars, as you can see I have a huge variety, some old, some new...most free!  From tiny baby food and spice jars, to industrial size jars, there is a size for everything.  I will confess that I have been known to buy a product in the grocery store based on the jar, knowing it would make great storage...especially jelly and pickle jars...

In my grocery store there is a deli department that makes sandwiches, and everyday they throw away lots of BIG jars that contained pickles and olives used for the sandwiches.  I get all of my big jars from them for free...they even wash them out for me! 

I have found lots of old jars with fun graphics at garage sales for 25 cents...I don't mind a little rust...

Some jars are organized with just one item, and some are a hodge-podge of stuff...

I have 4 bookcases in my studio filled with stuff...I try to display it nicely...

  and I'd love to tell you that it's all perfect...

but that would be a lie... when I'm working, the floor and my worktable are a mess.  You will never see my studio featured in a magazine...unless it's called "Creative Chaos"!

My goal is to one day have the whole thing clean...if that happens, trust me, you'll be the first to know : ).

sewing tin...

One of my most prized possessions is my grandmothers sewing tin. It's just an ordinary metal tin...

...but I always feel so close to her when I open it up and look at the things inside.  I got this tin from her house when she died 13 years ago, and have looked through it a million times.  My other grandmothers sewing tin was very practical...lots of brown and black, things for mending and repairing work clothes.  This tin was more about sewing for beauty and fashion.  My grandmother had beautiful colors of seam binding and lace, pearl buttons and dressmaker details...

and unlike my other grandmother, this one traveled all over Europe, and she had needles from England, French and Italian thread...

stamps and coins from places like Zambia and Tanzania...

I look at the buckles and buttons and try to imagine the outfits they must have come from...

After all these years of looking at this tin over and over, the other day I found a surprise.  There was a folded piece of paper that had a length of cream colored embroidery floss wound around it.  I looked at it, and for the first time noticed that the paper looked like a piece of notebook paper.  I unwound the floss, and started to get excited...I recognized the handwriting...it was a letter my grandfather had written to my grandmother...

He started it "Dear Honey".  I was shaking as I read the letter...my grandfather died in 1969, when I was 8 years old.  I felt like I had found hidden treasure that had been right in front of me all these years.  I showed this to my mom when she was here.  In the letter he wrote " I just wrote the baby"...he was referring to my mother.  My grandfather worked for an oil company in Africa, and sent letters to us, and to my grandmother when she was home in the United States visiting.  My grandmother had kept this all these years in her sewing tin wrapped with thread.  Now her little sewing tin is a treasure chest...and it is priceless...at least it is to me!

postcards...

A few years ago a friend of mine gave me this metal photo holder to use for my postcard collection.  It was black and had a tiny little round ball on the top.  I replaced the little ball with a large wooden finial, and spray painted the whole thing white...

I use it to store all of my postcards with pink roses...

I am showing this because the topic this week for "Show and Tell Sunday" is all about showing how you "store your stuff"...craft supplies, collections...whatever.  Visit Cerri's blog for more information.  I am going to try and organize some of my "stuff" and take some pictures to share...if nothing else, I will get inspired by the way everyone else organizes :)...come play along on Sunday!

fabulocity...

I think this pretty much just sums up all that is good in the world.  Except for chocolate.  And kissing.  But that's another post...

This little creation is by Jocelyn O'Gorman and her business is called "The Painted Fern"...she does not have a website or email listed on her card, so I can't tell you how to reach her...you could leave her a comment here if you want, she promised she would read this! (hi Jocelyn!)

I asked if I could take pictures of her booth and she said "sure", she was so sweet...this mannequin stopped me dead in my tracks...she tore apart a wedding dress (!) brave girl...I can't even rip apart hats!

she had vintage flowers from Tinsel Trading ...

great floral arrangements, lots of birds nests, fun altered art and collage pieces...I LOVE these bottles...

  You can find all this, and much more, every month in her booth at Lakewood...!

next stop...

The next stop on my flea market tour is to see my friend JoAnn  and her shop filled with GORGEOUS hand dyed vintage ribbons.  Heaven!  JoAnn had these darling vintage birds which she hand dyed and glittered...I bought a blue one and put it on this cloche in my entry...

(she has these for sale in her Etsy shop).  I also bought some vintage posies...

and I am wishing I had purchased this beautiful candy box and pink bird...

JoAnn is friends with Kris Hurst and sells some of her art and digital CD's in her shop.  Kris arrived while I was there so I got to visit with her...we usually miss each other.

Here is a crown Kris made, and here are my purchases of the day...

I didn't buy too much...I was only there 2 hours and spent most of my time TALKING and taking pictures...and I smiled the whole way home!

One more booth to show you tomorrow!

Show & Tell Sunday: vintage linens

Today Cerri is hosting Show and Tell Sunday...vintage linens.  I love old linens and have quite a few, but they are not beautifully arranged, or even ironed, most are in boxes or folded on a shelf.  One of these days.... :)

Above I have some of my old tablecloths, and below are vintage pillowcases..I use these sometimes...

and of course the hankies...

I got out a pile of embroidered doilies and was going to take pictures, but I didn't have time...at least she had a nice place to nap!

chippys...

 

I went to the flea market for a few hours this morning, to see some friends and take some pictures...and yes, shop!  My main mission was to take pictures of Lulu and Lauri's booth.  I met Lulu and Lauri in February, and it was one of those moments where you knew you had found kindred spirits.  They went to Round Top in Texas last month, and since they have returned home, they have started a blog called Chippys.

Their booth is not one of those hit-or-miss kind of flea market booths.  Everything is PERFECT.  They both have great taste, and know how to set up a display...every corner just takes my breath away...I want it ALL!

Yes, they are "baby head" kind of girls...

but not in a creepy way!

They have handmade things...

quirky  things...

serene things...

shabby things... 

rusty chippy things...

 

something great in every corner...

and always service with a smile...

Go visit their blog, or if you're near Atlanta, visit them at Lakewood 400...just follow the laughter, that's where you'll find them...Lulu's the the one with spurs on! :)