Showing posts with label collections. Show all posts
Showing posts with label collections. Show all posts

Sunday, September 9

A gathering time...


Rocks in my pocket...
Handful of acorns...


Visiting my favorite lake friends!
They all get along...
They all agree that I am a bother!

A few of their feathers are in a plastic bag~
They feel that they have given enough to me.

Thank you for clicking on my Facebook page to follow along!
A giveaway is brewing over there...
New treasures for my Etsy store will be coming soon~

Hope you have a wonderful week!


Tuesday, July 31

My Studio...


Years ago I had seen a child's size dish drainer.
An antique shop by the lake~
Shopping wasn't planned... it was picnic time.
On the way home I couldn't stop thinking I should have grabbed it!


I went back for it a few days later~
It was gone...


I've been trying to come up with a way to store my
little butter pat palettes~
Remembering how PERFECT the little dish tray would have been!
I went to Etsy and typed in "vintage wire dish drainer"
Found this treasure!
It's perfect at 6" wide!
The store has oodles of vintage treasures~


I wait for my little palettes to dry~
They don't touch each other... no more paint on the bottoms!

Hope your day is creative!

Saturday, February 25

Artist Studio...


I began collecting my bird books 25 years ago~
 They range in date from mid 1800's to 2012.
Rows and rows of books that teach, identify and inform.
The more I know my little friends~
The better their portraits!
All of my studio shelves have "stuff" in front...
Frustrating to most~ I see it as reference material!



Martha Stewart has a new office collection at Staples.
Chalkboard labels... they come in two or three sizes...


They can be removed, leaving no sticky residue...
Doesn't damage surfaces~ from what I have experienced.


I love Martha's color palette and style~
Simple and classy!


I try to keep my mounds of sketchbooks in order...
(giggle, laugh... chuckle... sigh.......)
These might help, a tad.


These tags are very cool!
Rubber band at one end~


Every little bit helps, Martha!
Thankfully~ our home is more simply decorated...
My studio is a journey.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Friday, November 18

Vintage Enamelware ...


 Children's enamelware set...
Treasured, weathered and worn!


I collect pieces with character to use as snowman hats...
...vintage treasures and wool compliment each other nicely~
Blue will look so hip on my felted friends heads!
These are very heavy...
My wool friends will need a shore stone in their bottoms!

Hope your Friday is wonderful~

Saturday, May 29

Old linens bring a new treasure...


Good morning, sweet friends!
Yes... that is another picture of my
growing whisker collection!
(giggle)
Sweet 16 didn't have school yesterday because
they didn't use all of their allotted snowdays
this past winter. Grumpy that they had to go to school
with winter winds whipping... but thrilled to have a
warm sunny day away from the classroom!


The two of us set off to find more sugar/flour sacks.
I'm never let down...
We were not able to find the cotton treasures~
But this little sweetie was a find!
It is the same style as my strawberry piece.
I soaked it... rolled it in a cotton towel... pressed it!
Please click on the photo for an even closer peek~
I don't know anything about this style of stitching...
The thread is fine and shimmery.
I LOVE looking at the beautiful stitch work
so many of you do...
Amazing!

We found oodles and oodles of old linens for
new pen and ink illustrations!
I soaked them for a few hours...
I don't mind that 90% of the stains are set.
Each linen piece is a treasure in its own.
I finished pressing them at midnight...
When I put my head on my pillow~
So many beautiful patterns get
SO MANY fun ideas floating around my brain!


There is something about being surrounded by
old things. Walking through booth after booth of
worn surfaces...
Who used these treasures?
I'm thrilled that they're available to us...
But wouldn't it be sweet to give a young child
an old handkerchief that her great-great grandma
stitched forget-me-nots on?
The perfect summer blanket for her little doll...


I'm excited to have time to catch up on special orders
over the next few days...
Excited that I will have new treasures to list, too!


Each piece so very different~
I see many of my favorite subjects on them...
...I see loads of new themes, too!
Nautical... sea shore... shore birds...
Flowers...
Garden tools...

Hope your weekend is off to a great start!




Sunday, March 28

Buttons Shared with a Friend... Family...


I am so thankful for people I meet along the way.
I met a kind woman when I was in college.
She was an antique dealer who dealt in lace,
paper, ephemera, buttons... well~ you know!
ALL those things we love so much!


My dear friend, now twenty years later...
Is having to downsize.


My sweet daughter and I are helping her organize,
clean, move, toss... restore... save.
It must be so difficult for her to know she can
only keep a smidgen of what she owns.

In a long, round about way, we have discovered
that this wonderful woman is related to my husband...
Therefore, our daughter.
It was amazing when she and this woman first met.
They liked the same things, laughed at the same jokes...
Who would have thought? One day, while we were busy
working away, my daughter picked up a photo
album from the mid, to late 1800's~ A family book...
She saw her great, great grandfathers name!
We travel to her home every now and then~
They connect for an hour or so...
Then we get to work!


Yesterday was buttons!
We have so many buttons I will NEVER in my
lifetime be able to use them...
But I can share!
We purchased a huge lot of more common ones.
I'll be adding them with my fabric illustration sales.


My friend shared, when money was tight, that women
would sew these buttons to muslin or scrap fabrics
to try to sell. Much like the chipboard, card stock pages.


She unearthed a small collection of mother of pearl...
They are my favorites!
Natural, remind me of watercolor washes~


I tried to capture the details to share with you...


Just fussing with these makes the day sweeter.
Thinking of the times these were used...
Who tucked them inside a button hole~
Where were they off to?
Some place in time~


Hope your day is relaxing~

More fabric originals coming soon!
Chickadees, acorns, ladybirds and Hummingbirds!

Monday, March 22

Bonkers for Buttons...


I'll let the photographs tell the story...
These are the size of half dollars and larger...




They need to be cleaned...
That will wait for another day~


Because I'm finishing up on LOADS of
new sketches for my Etsy shop!

I'll post a few later today~

Hope you have a fantastic week!

Monday, March 15

Ephemera to Share...


Sweet little faces...


Fantastic hats...
I imagine faeries wear them in the garden~


Sweetness...


I have a few blog friends who adore bunnies~
Saw this and had to share!

New fabric illustrations tomorrow!
I finished a mound of art deadlines...
Tonight I will sit and draw new pieces
to share from my sketchbooks.

Oh what surprises!
Canada Geese... wee field mice... teddy bears...

Friday, March 12

Studio Collections... Baby Bird Illustrations...


Good Morning, Sweet Friends!
Thank you for all of your wonderful comments on
my posts... I love to hear from each of you~

As promised, I sketched more baby birds!
I just added four more to my Etsy store~
Please click here to go visit...


Studio collections...
Seems as if I have feathers tucked everywhere~
In a jar, safe from curious kitties!


Here a feather... there a feather...


Trying to gather "Palmer"
PAL...
As a graphic designer, all type is fantastic!


A peek into one tray...


These very tiny shells have beautiful~ intricate patterns!
Seemed to be the perfect place for my
very tiny feathers... their details just as gorgeous.

Hope you have a fantastic weekend!
Wishing you all that is wonderful~


Wednesday, February 24

Feathers... Nests... Flow Blue & Shells...


Studio nooks & crannies that I have
collections packed into.

On puppy-watering-strolls I make a pass
around our bird feeders. Always fun to find
a colorful feather or two!
I have written about how I walk around
during windstorms to find the sweetest
little nests that are tossed out with a strong gust.
Shells from a dear friend in Florida...
Hose nozzle... that has no purpose except to be treasured!

I love finding little corners like this when visiting blogs...
They share a lot about a person~

Tuesday, December 22

Calico Buttons...


A Christmas surprise for our daughter...
She LOVES calico buttons!
These antique sweeties are very difficult to find~


I stitched them to the wee little file folders
that I made HERE!


Small finds that bring great smiles!


These are blues, purples, blacks...


Her favorite color is green...
Haven't been able to find any of those!
Maybe by her birthday~