Cleaning House

Grandma was a hoarder, Mum was a thrower-outer, I was the kid who hides "treasures" under her bed. 

My mum didn't like to have "stuff" around. She grew up in Grandmas house, which at best was a well packed away museum.

Unlike my mother, I'm the sort of person who feels comfortable with things around & I have a pretty steady collection of antiques to prove it.

Finding things hidden in the closets of my little apartment is great fun...but to smile & say "Oh! " then put it back...seems stupid.

These are all from my own home 

& will be in the shop starting tomorrow

Providing I don't chicken out on parting with any of these... 

What have you parted with? 

Did you regret selling it or were you happy just having it in the first place?

Childhood Memories

Seeing as how last week was a pretty steady 100+ F (38 C) with humidity a few of my plants died. 

Yes, you read that right. A few plants died. I am a terrible person. My soul is as black as my thumb. In my defense, I wanted to die too & this orchid had been going strong since April. 

This 60's dress frock needs some work, like to be steamed, but whatever, I'm sneaking you all a peek. Aside from being gorgeous, it reminded me so much of being a kid & playing dress up I probably would've bought it even if it were ugly. 

Growing up my mom had a huge cardboard box filled with clothes under her bed. Clothes that she had outgrown like this fantastic backless floral dress. Or her bright pink lace prom dress that she hated (but was so fairy princess Barbie for a kid) even though (or maybe because) Grandma made it for her. Come to think of it, there were a few homemade dresses in there. 

And all of these clothes smelled the same, like if this were a movie there would be clips of happy kids running through grass in the sunshine. And you know what else? That dress above, by some freak coincidence, smelled just like that old box of dress ups.

What was your favorite thing to dress up in as a kid?

Mend, Soak, Wash...Repeat.

I've come across a bunch of awesome pieces in the past few months. Not only vintage clothes, but vintage fabric, antique lace, and scarves.

And it's awesome! Every time I buy something new, or go hunting for new treasures, it renews my love. I spend days imagining who will end up with this great piece of history that I happened upon.

And sometimes you have to take a chance...take a deep breath and either dive in or turn around and walk back down the ladder.

And sometimes you find out that gleaming clean pool is actually like a giant mud puddle.

Missing buttons, ripped seams, stains & funky odors are just some of the surprises we vintage sellers find. It's like winning more on a scratch ticket than you'd thought...only it's not...it's funky basement moth ball scent that takes five washes to lift.

Anyways, I had been putting off restoring a few things & all of a sudden those few things had taken over an entire chair at the dining room table. Like heaping-over-the-table-can't-smoosh-it-down-and-push-in-anymore takeover.

So that's what I've been doing and that's what's coming soon. We vintage sellers are like your Grandma...

"That button's a bit loose, Sweetie, come here & I'll fix ya right up"

This doily was Orange with stains & smelled horrible. So it was quarantined...this is it's fifth and final rinse, I wish I'd taken pictures of the before. I've been hoarding little doilies like this for some future wedding crafting.

Until next time friends!

Cardinal: The Winter Bird

I realize there must be hundreds of better pictures of cardinals on Google. 

Fire engine red looking angry (always...always looking angry) on fluffy fresh snow.

Clearly this isn't one of those.

But! 

To begin with, I was at work, hence the "fire" red. 

B, These two are the only decent pictures I took....out of  121.

And finally, all of my oohing & awwing, while crouching on a chair (& even a brief kneeling on a desk) wasn't noticed by the boss.

Success!

Cardinals have always reminded me of my grandma. She hoarded pictures of them. She had several that lived & darted around the bay window & a feeder that sat directly under the cushioned seat there.

I've never seen a female cardinal in real life. The whole experience was quite awesome. 

She was beautiful in her own right, 

but different...

acutely aware of every thing happening around her.

It was quite magical.

Day 19

Nothing better than a handmade quilt, a pot of tea & some furry babies

This cold doesn't stand a chance!

A Tub Full of Silverware

A plastic tub that is, but still, full of old, disgustingly dingy, silverware.

My uncle found it below the stairs in the basement (at Grandmas) & had no idea who'd owned any of the mismatched pieces. (Seriously Grandma?) I doubt any are family pieces, and considering for sabout 40 years she took in exchange Students, Boarders & troubled kids, I think they must just be a mix of some of the secrets that house has to tell.

I know I don't have to tell you how my head has been reeling with sinarios and situations....I guess I'll get out the silver polish and load up google :)

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Daffodils and Snowflakes

The last snowstorm. We spent the night cozied up with some wine, thinking the next morning would be just as sparkly and snowy pretty...but it wasn't. Oh well, I would take flowers over snowflakes, any day!

Any guesses as to what the white globe is?

It's a porch post from my grandma's house. She's lived there forever, and I'd bet that this is older than she is. I love it...don't really know what to do with it, but love it. Oh, and fyi, the old posts were falling off, have been replaced with new posts, and I asked first if I could take it. :)

Until next time, little Acorns!

Old Cards On A Bathroom Wall

It's just plain wierd to grow up. Things you take for granted, people you depend on to be in your life, can disapear. Things change and shift and continue to do so. Some for the better, some for the worse, that's just how it is. My grandmother has reached the point where she can't anymore leave her home, so family events have since been anchored there for gatherings. In any rate, I took these pictures from off the walls of her bathroom. I've never given them too much thought, except they've been there as long as I can remember, and I don't know any of the people who sent them.

It seemed the perfect grandma mix of eccentric cat lady.....a practical approach to decorating...and an appropriate level of sentimentality for a tough old English lady.

Old standbys...English flowers

In a range of seasons

The cat that looks like he has his tail in his mouth & the cross eyed Siamese

A Birthday Wish from long ago, and Greetings from someone named Devon

Kittens, birds, a handrail and a clue above the light switch.

And here, almost 10 years later, this card just aching to tell it's tale. Ironically, this is one of the few cards that has the back message still attatched. I don't know why, if you were going through the effort of taping old cards to the walls of your bathroom, you would first cut off the message. Someday, these cards will be removed from the walls, and they, like my Grandmother, will take their secrets with them. I suppose that only adds to the mystery, and, mystery, swarms around my Grandmother like bees around Old Garden roses.

So here we are, Hello & Welcome!

I guess we'll just dive in!

This wicker love seat was rescued by yours truly from the scariest of places for unwanted/ no longer used things: Grandma's Barn Attic. It's a place of wonder for sure.

As the story goes, sometime in the late '40's my grandparents were driving around on a back road when they noticed this Victorian beauty. Dumped on the side of the road. DUMPED. Curlicues and all.

So being the young couple with dreams in their hearts and love in their heads they picked it up.

I'm not sure how long it was in the attic, I do remember it being on the porch in the summer, but it was surely in need of some love. So into the bath it went! 

Jersey is on the left, Cali on the right.

And here's Cali lounging once it reached it's home in the bay window. You can barely see the greenery that makes up the bay window garden, those are worthy of their own post entirely.