A Charmed Life

Have you seen this tablecloth?

 

I bought this tablecloth at a yard sale two summers ago along with a bunch of others for $5 each. There was another woman there vying for the same stack of linens, and we graciously agreed as we snatched them up into our arms that if there was something we didn't want, we'd offer it to the other. She had picked up this one, which has my favorite periwinkle blue in it. Shoot, I thought. But in the end she handed it over to me saying--sotto voce so the seller wouldn't hear--"You probably won't want it. It has holes in the middle of it."

I nodded with apparent understanding, but inside I was doing the happy dance: Who cares if it has holes in it? I love the pattern and colors, and I'll find something to do with it.

Well, I did. You see, the blue is the precise blue of my kitchen walls, and the kitchen has red accents. So I promptly made the holey cloth into valances. But here's my problem: I could only make two valances with the fabric and I have three windows. So, I am looking for another tablecloth in this pattern, preferably a "cutter" as I would be loathe to cut up a vintage cloth in fine condition.

At the very least, if you know what the pattern name is, please let me know. That way I can do a more efficient search for it. Searching for "vintage tablecloth red blue flowers" doesn't exactly narrow down the choices.

Kitchy Corsage

 

I promised Words and Whimsies I'd post my retro Christmas corsage today to coincide with her challenge, and here it is. The flowers were made from vintage plastic twinkle light "collars" I snagged at a yard sale one day. I got a whole bag for a buck, and the minute Elizabeth issued her challenge, I knew what I was going to use. The centers are made from vintage silver-toned milliner's "berries."

Check out all the corsages at Words and Whimsies.

Another Wedding

Aren't they sweet? I love this little wedding party, but it's time for someone else to enjoy them. This set, handpainted in Germany, is also listed on eBay. The pieces are just 2" high, at the most! If you know of someone who is getting married, or if you are throwing a celebration for them, or if you just collect wedding-themed items or miniatures, please take a look.

I am also listing some vintage tablecloths:

Why so industrious?

I am home today with Miss Meredith who has a fever. I suspected she would not be well enough to go to school today last night, when she refused dessert. A sure sign in her (as with me), that something is amiss. I'm sorry she's not well (she was actually sad not to go to school today as she has an important band practice and some fun activities planned for after school), and goodness knows I have work to do, too, at the office. But it's a nice day, so I'm hoping to springify the outside decor a bit, removing the plaid, flannel covers from the porch cushions and festooning the entry with forsythia.

Recycled Beauty

What a pair! I found this Victorian bureau at a yard sale. The pale greenish-yellow paint was peeling off in some places, scratched in others. It was shabby without the chic. But it was $15 and had those gorgeous curves. Who could resist? Not me.

I planned to sand and repaint it--but three years passed and it was out in the garage, "waiting." My husband, who also saw it's inner beauty, refinished it for Valentine's Day.

No, he didn't saw off one leg--I just decided to play with the camera a bit. My cousin gave me the soft-sculpture heart that sits on top for my birthday last year. Another recycled beauty: it's made from an antique embroidered sampler and a rusted piece of hardware--one of those pointy things they used to stack resturant checks or bills on, I think.

The brass knobs are recycled, too. Nick saved them when we replaced the hardware on our kitchen cabinets in the old house. He had just enough to complete the bureau. Someday I might give this curvaceous lady some fancier "jewelry." But the brass does go with our four-poster bed.

Speaking of jewelry, I found this rack in an antique shop for $2 ("Get it, Mom. It's only $2 and you know you can do something cool with it," said my little flea market diva-in-training, Meredith.) I gilded it a bit, glued some mother-of-pearl buttons on the knobs, and then sorted my necklaces and bracelets. Now I have a pretty wall display and I can find my jewelry ("Hey, I forgot I had that!) in the morning.

Basket Full of Goodies

Oooh, lookee! Here is my basket full of spring and Easter goodies from Linda, my partner in the Easter basket swap. She tucked in all sorts of fuzzy chicks, nesting birds, cookie cutters, egg-themed vintage-style containers, a lovely embroidered handkerchief, a cross-stitched door hanger, Peter Rabbit paper goods, and some sweet treats, too.

 

Thank you, thank you, Linda, it sure was fun swapping with you, and I hope you like your basket, too.

Hints of spring

Easter is coming on apace, so I have been digging out a few things to make it more springlike around here. I made these eggs last year from scrips and scraps of feedsack fabrics and old tablecloths. I'm working on a few other versions which I will show you later. And you can see some here. There's something so relaxing about ripping and snipping fabrics and decoupaging the pieces onto something else--in this case, a wooden egg. Now, where did that egg tree and the string of Peeps lights go?

Fun Finds

I love my work. One reason is because of the interesting people I get to meet. Last Thursday I visited The Artgirlz, sisters who are artists leading a completely art-filled life. They make and sell all sorts of fun, colorful artsy supplies (like these balls) and objects and are just fun, fascinating people. They gave me a bag of these balls (to share with my coworkers, which I did, a little...). You should see what they do with them--embroider them, add tiny buttons, bead them, needlefelt designs on them. If you like anything crafty and colorful, be sure to check out the Art Girlz.

I also did a bit of finders-keepers shopping. I try to stop by my favorite antique mall, set in an old mill, every couple of weeks, and this time I hit the motherload. I'm immediately drawn to plates and linens, and I scored a few great buys. Above are these hand-painted saucers, made in Japan, that look like little landscapes. Ahem--$1 for the lot.

I found a couple of other plates for a buck each, and some linens, but I can't show you as they are gifts, and who knows who might be reading...

The Story of the Charms

So, about those charms at the top of the page.

Like a lot of girls born in the '50s and '60s, I had a charm bracelet that was added to every year at Christmas and significant events in my life. I don't remember how young I was when I received it--I can't remember a time when I didn't have it. It must have been when I was about 5, though, because of the ballet-themed charms (I only took one year of ballet but dined out on the memories for years) and I got my hair cut short that year, too (comb and scissors).

My dad's sisters, who were always well-dressed, beautifully groomed, and bejeweled (and still are) and who were unmarried and had only one niece to dote on until I was 11, gave me the charms. Their first cousin worked in the jewelry business and had access to the finest. And, let's face, it, they just don't make charms like this anymore. You see the jack-o'-lantern and the birthday cake? The tops open to reveal candles inside. The "mad money" cube has a real dollar inside (oh, the times I seriously considered cracking it open and using that dollar!), the purse opens to reveal a teensy coin (it's attached, or I would have lost it decades ago), the delicate ballerina does her arabesque bedecked with sapphires, rubies, and a pearl, and so on. The older charms came with an antiqued patina. I had the Greek charms (bouzouki and pointed evzone shoe) soldered on when I was in my teens. We picked the bracelet up from the jeweler and all the antiquing had been polished off. "We cleaned it, it was so dirty!" the young clerk said to my astonished and crestfallen face.

I have to laugh when I look at some of the charms. The Valentine heart and Christmas charms I get. But a skate? I haven't been on skates since I outgrew my double runners. An artist's palette? I always fancied myself an artist but that was more ego than talent. Same for the ballerina charms. And, did you notice, there's no typewriter or pen? It seems that the charms I requested represented my dreams rather than my reality.

When I was a child I wore the bracelet to any dress-up occasion, which included church, weddings, family birthdays, and holidays. As an only child I was invited to a lot of events that were otherwise attended mostly by adults, and the charms often served as my companions. I would play with the ones that opened and closed, imagine myself as the graceful ballerina dancing to the sounds of the orchestra, or gaze at the heart and dream about meeting my own true love. I would fantasize about spending that dollar.

I love my charm bracelet. It's magical to me. It reminds me of my childhood. It reminds me of my aunts who love me unconditionally and mean the world to me. I wore it as my "something blue" on my wedding day.

It's part of my story. My charmed life.

Happy Valentine's Day

This is an odd Valentine's Day. Usually there is much indecision over what kind of Valentines to make or buy, fretting (for the older daughter) over whom to give them to, and fussing over pink and red ensembles and accessories. This morning, not so much of that. Meredith, 11, made one Valentine, for her best friend, and Olivia, 15, is not giving Valentines at all, only hoping that a special someone will look her way in a certain way. "Only." Meredith did leave here in a flurry of pink. But aside from that, no fuss. Except for me, of course, I've bought them candy treats (ssssshhhhh) and am wearing my sparkly pink rhinestone heart earrings (with golden bows, no less) that my best friend gave me back in the '80s. And of course, there's the blog.

I promised Kim of Daisy Cottage that I would make her a vintage fabric heart, and this is as far as I got. But I promise you, Kim, I will finish and send it to you.

See? It's odd, spending time on a Valentine for a friend I've never met. And yet, I'm having so much fun with this blog (and must thank Kim for all the referrals). And, to my "real life" friends who haven't heard from me--I haven't forgotten you. I will be in touch. There is much to talk about and share. Love to all of you.

And the winner is....

...Darlene!

Darlene won the Vintage Valentine giveaway. Thanks for everyone's comments. It's good to know you're out there and I'm not just babbling away by myself with no one listening, like at home.

Darlene, if you will contact me, I will see about getting your package out to you ASAP.