Assemblage mixed media vintage hardware and button jewelry

 Hi guys! This is what I have been working on this week..sneaking a minute here and there. Last weekend we bought a bunch of "stuff" at an auction. I always find in the bottoms of drawers, boxes and old tool totes, stuff that is to some..junk..but to ME, an opportunity to "play"!

 I took vintage plastic pierced buttons and added jump rings and links of old chandelier beading.

The chain is old hardware brass chain.

 There was this sweet  leather coin purse that became the focal point. I added a shabby patinaed keyhole with tiny mother of pearl buttons from my stash and a image from my stash. The dangle is a rusty small key and a vintage chandelier button prism.

I use the image of this Japanese girl a lot..she is just so wistful looking! She is off an antique stereograph card I have and I really like her! I like how the bottom of this coin purse had been mended at one time. People just don't fix things like that today..when it breaks..toss it! That's a shame.

 This was necklace 2. I gathered some patinaed small brass hinges and hinge parts, a shabby brass label and an old porcelain cameo all from the bottom of a tool tote we bought.

 I attached the hinges in a cross shape with jewelry wire. I stamped the brass label with the word FAITH.

 The cameo has a necklace and the stone was missing..luckily I had another in my bag of vintage jewelry pieces parts and I glued it on. She has sort of Madonna feel (not Madonna the singer! lol)

 I added a dangle of a vintage pearly bead and a vintage chandelier prism button. The chain was a 1960's one.I swapped out some damaged milk glass bead spacers with vintage chandelier beads. I don't really consider myself a jewelry maker, but I do enjoy taking the odd and ends and  bits and bobs that are basically one man's junk and making it into my treasure!

Today (and yesterday..and Thursday) I went to estate sales and an antique auction so I will be spending my week listing items. Today I am making latke's (potato pancakes) for our church's fall festival tomorrow for the Polish food booth. I'm not Polish but I got asked years back to help with the food for this booth so that is what I continue to do! There is also Italian, Asian, Latin, Cajun and American food booths. I've got 75 latkes in the fridge and another 25-50 to make! I will be praying for a nice day tomorrow. I need to finish up painting a couple more pumpkins and bake a couple cobblers. I PLAN to take my camera tomorrow and take pics (when I am not dishing up desserts) so stop back and check it out! 'Til then! Julia

Warm and Natural rolled no sew roses tutorial and Plaid Pumpkins

 Hi guys! I have been making some stuffed fabric pumpkins for our church's upcoming Fall Festival. I made these with vintage wool fabric, jute twine, burlap leaves and roses I made from Warm and Natural .. which is a quilt batting I believe. I am not a fan of orange pumpkins. I wanted to make something that had an (to quote Martha) "autumnal feel". I got this vintage plaid and checked wool yardage at an estate sale for not much. You could surely use whatever you have on hand or buy something new!  I made the leaves from a burlap coffee bag fabric and free hand stitched it on the sewing machine.

I hot glued on the leaves and the finished rose. I wanted to make cream felt roses, but all we have in town is a Walmart and their felt selection is limited and not high quality..no cream. So I found the Warm and Natural in the fabric section. *lightbulb*. I got a 1/2 yard for $3.49 plus tax. It is 90" wide so cutting it into 4 inch squares, you could make 88 roses for that $3.49! I also got the jute twine there, but in the hardware department. It is $1.97 for a regular roll..and in the craft department it is a lot more..probably because it is hemp there and meant for jewelry. I don't care if it is itchy jute twine when I am using it for crafts!

 Here is the how to's. Pardon the lighting..I took these last night. Cut a approx. 4" square. Now let me say these directions are all over the net. I do a few things differently though from what I have seen.

 Round off the corners..

 Start at the edge and cut a approx. 1/2" -3/4" spiral to the middle stopping a 1/2" or so from the center edge.

 Here's were I change it up. I cut the spiral into scallops on the outside edge every inch or so..no need for exactness!

 (Now pardon my atrocious fingernails!) Start at the outside edge and begin tightly rolling about an inch or so..and add a dab of hot glue. This will be the flower center.

 Continue rolling and hot gluing at the flat edge about every third scallop.. a little dab will do ya!

When you get towards the end, I use a bit more hot glue and flare the petals out a bit by attaching them at an angle to the rest of the rose.

Keep the bottom edges of the rose flat.

  Add a bunch of glue to seal those flat edges.

 And cover the glue with the last bit of the spiral.

 I like a more open rose, so at this point I go back and slit the outer petals at the low points of the scallops..it makes them look more like individual petals and not just a roll.

 I then go in at the slits I just made and trim off the square corners by making a small V shape..because I am picky!

All done and ready to glue onto something! You could also make these with felt, scrapbook paper, sheet music, book pages, old maps ..you name it! The Warm and Natural is my new fave though and I plan to experiment dying some of it next to make different colored flowers! With 88 roses per 1/2 yard, you could use these to make a gorgeous rose covered wreath! Hmmmm.... Til next time! Julia

New puppy baby!

We got a new Puppy Baby this weekend! Her name is Daisy Mae (because she is a Southern girl!)

 My daughters are calling her their Puppy Sister (we like that insurance commercial about "my Puppy Brother") We got her from an Australian Shepherd rescue group but she is supposed to be AS and ???? I think the ???? might be terrier as she is 4 months old and way small for an Australian Shepherd ..the did say her mom was smallish though. She has gangly legs and ears so maybe she will grow into those after all!

My son is happy..he has been begging for a pup for a few months.She is training us already! She has a sleeping crate on our covered porch and will stay out there at night until she gets that crate time is bed time..she is a bit noisy about it now. When she quiets down, I plan to move her sleeping crate downstairs. She will be an indoor /outdoor dog as we are in the country.

On day 2 she was already "helping" me with my Etsy photo shoots! She is like having a 1 year old again..she likes my lap! We went to an antique sale this weekend and got lots of goodies. I am spending the week sorting things for Etsy, Ebay, my booth uptown and the show we are doing next month. Busy busy! Hope  you have a great week! 'Til next time! Julia

The Fiddler's Convention antique show Loudon, TN

Hi guys! We did another antique show today. This one was in Loudon, TN just 15 miles or so down the road from home. It is held in conjunction with the annual Fiddler's convention on the lawn of the Loudon County Courthouse.

It is a pretty site..lots of shade trees and today was gorgeous..no rain and a slight breeze. Luckily no rain because when we unpacked our tent we found only the frame! Apparently we took the top off last time we used it because it was wet and we didn't want to pack it in the bag wet..oh well!

This is a one day show so we usually don't bring tons of stuff. I have yet to make it to the actual fiddler's convention held a couple blocks away. After a day unloading, setting up, sitting in the sun and re-loading, by the time we are packed we are hot and sweaty and ready to go home!You could hear them occasionally though on the breeze.

 I wandered a bit and took some pix. Quite a few of our fellow antiquing friends do this show also and it is fun to catch up and trade stories. This is "Yankee John's" booth. We have known him for years from auctions ..he is an actual "picker" ..not the TV kind..although his impression and fake story of American Pickers Mike and Frank getting lost in "Deliverance" Georgia had me laughing to tears.

Some pretty Depression glass. I have really weeded out most of my breakables in the last few shows..glass has been a slow seller for me. It's a shame..there are some really gorgeous old pieces out there. I couldn't even sell a large Victorian era patterned glass lidded footed compote for $15 today! I had it marked $20 and They offered $10..I said $15 and they didn't bite..Half price!!!


                                             
This is the booth of a couple from Knoxville..they have some nice primitive things and cool painted pieces.

                                                              I like shabby old paint!

This was a cool old painted shutter.I like the squash colored mustard and the grey blue together. Things like this spark my imagination for color combinations for other projects.

A cute farmhouse table. I have one just about like this in my shed waiting for our next show..we could only haul so much today! Old chairs generally sit a lot lower than modern ones..tables were shorter too. I believe that is Cash Family pottery sitting on the table. It was an offshoot of the local Blue Ridge pottery that was manufactured in Erwin, TN. After the factory closed, some of the potters and painters that had worked there for years started their own potteries.

I liked this dealers displays. She had a lot of things in vintage suitcases sorted by category...linens, vintage gloves, hankies, baby clothes.

                                                  I have a weakness for old sewing notions.

She had a cool idea for her vintage mannequin. It was one of those adjustable/sectional dressmakers mannis. She wrapped and wedged burlap around it..cute! The thing on the bottom is a cage for a hoopskirt.

                         A bunch of fishing lures of various ages and pedigrees.

This is my  show buddies Albert and Sandy's booth. They use a lot of vintage suitcases to haul and display too. When the show is done, shut the suitcases, stack and haul them off!

                                           She has a lot of cool vintage Christmas things.

                                                          Cute Japan Putz houses...........

                                                  She has lots of cool vintage buttons too.

                                                                            Yum!

This dealer mixed ferns, mums, white pumpkins and walnuts (the greenish brown balls in the paper bag) into her display.A great mix with her garden themed things.

                       
                         I love the colors of vintage toys..green, red, yellow blue and corally pink.

                                     A vintage steamer trunk with manly vintage clothing items.

                              This case was so cool..it was actually one of those old bonnet hair dryers!

                                                        An old "sow belly" kitchen hutch.

Last but not least..vintage and antique quilts.A great  relaxing day. This week I am back to cracking..painting, making, photographing and listing...hope you have a productive week too! Til next time! Julia