more estate sale-ing, and more trends.

So, I said I found more than just those scarves at the estate sale I went to last Saturday- check out more of the pics below!

seed beaded Zuni sunface earrings-
I paid $5 for these (half off marked price of $10).

The price on these beaded earrings when new (tag shown in the picture) was for $29.95, and has the artist's name on (I think it said Delia Chee). I did a little googling to try and find "The Trading Post Collection" but nothing came up. Maybe they came from a tourist place somewhere in AZ or New Mexico?? They're a little 'brighter' than most of the jewelry I own, but I think they were Native American made, and took a lot of work, so I couldn't just leave them there! Plus, I will wear them occasionally (with my hair up so you can see them).

silver dreamcatcher earrings- my price, $7.50 (half of $15)
A bit on the high end of what I really wanted to pay for a
pair of earrings, but I know they also took a lot of work to make.

These earrings were stuffed into a zipper baggie and really tarnished, but I thought they might be silver, and I was right. 
(A small estate sale-ing rant, here: all the jewelry at this sale was in individual plastic bags, all taped up with packing tape, and you couldn't see any of it clearly. This frustrates the heck out of me as an estate sale shopper! I suppose they're trying to reduce shoplifting, but I need to really look at stuff before I commit to buying it! I probably irritated the woman manning the register, but I took the things I was looking at over to the front door where there was actual daylight (I did ask her first). And, gasp- I even took things out of those plastic bags so I could hold them up and look into a mirror to get an idea of how things would look as I was wearing them! That's not unreasonable, I don't think... I know she wouldn't know that I'm a trustworthy person, but I just hate that people assume right off the bat that everyone might be a thief, so they don't give them the benefit of the doubt. rant over.)

Anyway, back to the dreamcatcher earrings: this is another pair I'll need to wear with my hair up to show them off, but I really love the delicate look of the wire web. And, I think this means I am officially a 'collector' of Southwestern jewelry... in addition to these, I have a couple smaller pairs of earrings that were given to me as gifts years ago, I have the pendants and rings I've acquired over the past few months, and I have two bracelets and a necklace that Tom bought me on our first trip to AZ (wow, that was almost 9 years ago, now!)... I'll have to take a photo of all of it together. 

and now, for something a bit different:

Target Shoes #1

You know, how sometimes you can't find anything you like in a store, and then sometimes you find lots of stuff you really like in a store?? That's what happened with me and the Target shoes... I went there on my lunch hour to look for casual shoes that could be worn with shorts, because the only pair of casual shoes I had was my old pair of running shoes. So, I found the tan moccasins. Then, I went back again because I kind of liked the white sneakers, and while I was at it, decided to get the plaid ones, too... I've always loved plaid, and these remind me of the classic 'preppy, camp' sort of look. (they also have red navy, and gray ones, too, but I decided I'd better stop.) 

Target Shoes #2

Then, I saw the brown high-heels: very cool and retro / vintage looking! So, I bought those, too... (while my workplace is extremely casual- think tee-shirt, shorts, and sneakers- that doesn't mean I couldn't dress up if I wanted to. Plus, we do go out occasionally.) These shoes have enough character to be retro/vintage, but since they're new shoes, they're comfortable. After getting them home, I decided it was only practical to go back and get the gray & black pair, too... brown&tan, and gray&black shoes; they can be worn with pretty much anything, right?? :D haha!! So, I think I'm over my shoe-buying kick, for now, anyway. (and I already knew I had a shoe collection- it's always nice to add to it, though!)

throw pillows ($2 each)

Back to estate sale-ing, now: I got this collection of throw pillows from the house in Sun City. They had at least 20-25 pillows all piled in a corner of the living room- who has that many throw pillows in their entire house?? Anyway, I weeded through all of them and picked out these four that I thought matched the colors in our living room rug. The two on the right are even filled with down/feathers! (They just need to go into the dryer with some Bounce to get rid of the 'old-lady-perfume' smell... at least Prescott likes the smell, though; he keeps rubbing up against them. lol!)

I did buy just a couple more items, but those photos turned out horrible, so I need to retake them... one more post to go!

letters from home

A couple more vintage postcards from my collection. I don't remember where I got these; I most likely purchased them when I was visiting my parents; maybe last summer?? I just can't quite believe I would have scored vintage postcards featuring scenes from home here in Arizona... (fyi, I did intend for this post to be a short one, but I just can't help doing internet research to make sure I know what I'm talking about, and I keep finding more interesting things I want to write about!)

The Apple River is definitely "home," because the Apple River Canyon State Park is just a couple miles from the town of Warren, where I grew up. This part of the state is absolutely beautiful, and the park, especially so. The glaciers missed the northwest corner of Illinois, so it's not flat; there are rolling hills, limestone bluffs, and hilly ravines throughout the area. In the early 1800s, there was a town named Millville (named after its two sawmills) where the park is now; it was even a stop on the Chicago-Galena stagecoach route. The town was destroyed during a flood in 1892, and none of it remains today. I have many fond memories of the park which include birdwatching, looking for wildflowers, picnicking, and fishing for smallmouth bass in the river. This is the reverse side- it was sent in May, 1903, and it reads: "Dear Brother-- We are coming to your place Sun. if it does not rain and if you folks will be home if not phone and tell me. Your sister Bernice" I hope it didn't rain and that they had a nice visit! This postcard is of another wonderfully scenic piece of the Midwest, the beautiful area called the "Wisconsin Dells" along the Wisconsin River in the south-central part of Wisconsin. The town of Wisconsin Dells, WI is now known as the "Waterpark Capital of the World" and definitely lives up to its name! Tom's family lives a few miles outside of the town proper; we visit them every August. (we try to stay out of town, though, to avoid the tourists!) The town, along with its neighbor Lake Delton, is packed all summer long with visitors to waterparks and resorts such as the Kalihari Resort, Noah's Ark (the largest waterpark in the US, with 49 waterslides and 2 wave pools), Mt. Olympus Resort and Waterpark (this waterpark includes a Greek temple and a Trojan Horse!!), to name just a few. Wisconsin Dells has approximately 2500 year-round residents, but over 5 million visitors annually! Anyway-- "the Dells" itself is a gorgeous stretch of the Wisconsin River, also boasting beautiful river bluffs, ravines, and gorges.

The natural beauty of the river and surrounding bluffs can be seen from the water by taking a tour on the Wisconsin Ducks, which are amphibious vehicles from World War II-- it's pretty cool! This postcard was from a photograph copyrighted by the H.H. Bennett studios. H. H. Bennett revolutionized photography by taking the world's first "action shot;" he took a photograph of a man jumping from one of the bluffs to "Stand Rock" in the year 1866! (to be perfectly honest, I didn't know this until very recently when we watched an episode of the History channel show Only in America with Larry the Cable Guy; I will definitely be visiting the Bennett photography studio when we go back this August! Larry the Cable Guy's show is very good, by the way-- it showcases quirky and unique things, people, and events all across the country.) One other fact worth mentioning about this postcard; it is from the Curt Teich company, the world's largest printer of view and advertising postcards. If you're interested in vintage postcards, esp. Curt Teich ones, then visit this website: the Lake County Discovery Museum website, or better yet, visit the museum itself in Wauconda, IL. In addition to being a very nice museum, it is known worldwide for housing the largest public collection of postcards and related materials, with over 365,00 postcards, and a large exhibit showing postcards and the postcard printing process through history. (And, I just figured out, using some of these links that this postcard was the first Colortone process postcard printed by the Teich company in the year 1949-- pretty amazing what some internet research can do for you!)

a weekend in pictures-

Before: a creative project of a different sort- After: (oatmeal scotchies bar cookies... very tasty!)

It's mine!!

No, it's mine!!

Glimpses of my desk- Art Unraveled Chunky Book Swap Pages, in progress:

backgrounds, bookbinding thread, and printed quotes:

paint, glue, rubber stamps, and various papers... It doesn't look like much right now, I know, but I know where it all is! (or at least most of it, anyway...)

more treats!!

My collage pack of paper finally arrived from Kelly Kilmer!! I've been on pins and needles waiting for this package to be delivered. It was really difficult, but I actually managed to wait till we got the groceries put away and made the guacamole before I opened the box. (it sort of prolonged the anticipation, since I knew it was finally here and I could open it whenever I wanted...) Kelly always has a great selection of paper whenever she teaches classes, and picks up paper from the local stores when she travels... occasionally, she goes thru her stash and puts together grab-bag selections of paper for sale. I was really excited to see the sale announcement on her blog again, since I missed out the first time around. a great selection of exotic patterned handmade papers, vintage book pages, collage images, labels, and more... a couple papers even have a flocked pattern. At the top of this picture is a really neat piece; it's very thin, and has a wax design applied to make a batik resist pattern... the wax makes the pattern transparent. wonderful printed tissue paper, colorful Japanese floral patterns, and some really cute Japanese notepaper... do you see the pink tissue with the roses there in the middle, under the vintage road map? I love that pink piece; it's probably a wedding themed paper, but to me, it says "retro-1950s" journal page.

It ended up being a really colorful avalanche across the dining room table, once I got it all spread out. I looked thru it once, but I'm sure I missed seeing a few things, so I will definitely go thru it again before I put it away. Tom asked "so, do you know what you're going to do with it?" which is a question I don't really have an answer to, of course (other than drool over the wonderful colors and patterns, that is), but I have lots of ideas starting to buzz around in my head. There are some great floral patterns, so maybe I'll get started on my altered book, since the theme I have in mind for that project is nature and flowers... then again, I do want to make a couple journal pages... or I could make a couple mail-art postcards... So many choices; so little space on my crafting table to start any of these projects! (I guess that means I'll have to finish something I'm already working on, and maybe even clean a little, huh?!?)

craft room display

display shelf Originally uploaded by crimsoncat05

this weekend, we hung a display shelf in my craft room above the work table. This will showcase some of my collectable items that had been hiding on the over-crowded bookcase. The items may/will change, but right now, the shelf holds some of my vintage children's books, a couple of handsewn rabbits (thanks, Mom!), some of my favorite cards and ATCs, and various other favorites that came to me from my Mom, Dad, Grandma and Grandpa., and other family members. It's amazing how much impact such a small change can make! (see my Flickr page for close-up pics of the items...)