vintage Christmas monday

thanks to anything goes here for organizing a great blog party - vintage Christmas monday -

join up and "share your vintage decorations..

ornaments .. and lights .. trees ... and wreaths .. cards .. and postcards .. dishes, tree skirts, table covers .. creches and outdoor displays .. you get the idea ..

and who would expect in all that you would find .. matches!

yes, here is a set of santa matches ..

so cute!!



laters, troy & rod

of trees and thoughts ..

most people who know rod and i, know we are living with my older sister and her husband. we are grateful for their generosity and i am grateful that i have this time to share with her.

last year, we were in houston and our job prevented us from spending thanksgiving or Christmas at home - though we did return home during december to have a family style Christmas. at least it felt like it was family style, even though we were surrounded by nurses and hushed quiet and machines that seemed to blink in rhythm to the Christmas carols that danced in our heads.

last year, my older sister almost died on several occasions and the year was a blur of hospitals and nursing homes - dealing with everything from comas to infections. it just didn't seem that it would get better. however, we kept Praying and believing that there was no other solution than she would improve and come home.

and she did. 8 months later.

sometimes life gets going so fast that we forget why things are as they are.

i don't know why the universe has chosen to place us where we are at this time. i am just trying to put one foot in front of the other and believing and trusting and doing my best to make a contribution.

so, i took a moment this weekend and gave thanks. there is so much in my life for which to be thankful. rod. my family. my health. my family's health. ..

we call my older sister, Sister. Sister she has always been and Sister she will always be. to the nieces and nephews, she is aunt Sister.

between family, we refer to the last year as when 'Sister was sleeping'.

friday, i put up the Christmas tree for Sister and decorated it.

jolly & the mayor

watched the wizard of oz several times over the last few days - everywhere i turned - i think it kind of influenced one of my creations -
meet 'the mayor' - my second candy container made with an old bed spring -


the stove pipe portion of his hat lifts off to allow access to the inside and the placement of candies -


then to get my head out of the land of oz - i created 'jolly'
can't think of anything else to say tonight - other than 'May Your' Thanksgiving be as Jolly as they come - (didja catch that?)

laterz,
troy & rod

cyber monday .. monday .. monday

cyber monday .. have you heard about it?

well, for online retailers it is the monday following black friday - the monday after Thanksgiving... and it's coming .. so if you have an online shop, you might want to add some things to it and stock it full for the season .. i hear we are in for a good online shopping season ..

if you want to read more about cyber monday -

Cyber_Monday

The boss's Internet will get a Cyber Monday workout

troy

dude looks like a blogger ...

i love blogging .. started my first blog back in 2004.. it was more of a personal process but one i have shared with others - a kind of cleansing if you will...

i read a lot of blogs on a day to day basis - sometimes i comment - i am getting better about writing thoughts and appreciations on others peoples blogs - sometimes i don't comment nor chose to follow the blogs i visit - i am getting better about chosing to follow another also - it sounds kind of weird - at least where i come/came from - who wants to be followed - reminds me of a true life scene i witnessed while living in dallas back in the 70s - two old homeless men walking down the street - one trailing along behind the other - they would walk about a half a block at a time when suddenly the leader would twirl around and scream at the other at the top of his voice - quit follerin' me! - and the follower would cringe and turn to head the other way until his leader had restarted his treck - and the scene would repeat itself over and over - they disappeared into the sights and sounds of downtown dallas - but the image has remained in my mind - i guess i am afraid someone is going to scream at me to quit follerin' them ... so i am a bit timid about following - but working on it .. :)

don't know why i never noticed this before, but lately i have read posts that address women readers directly as if they are the only ones reading your blog - forgetting that there are men out here reading - when i read a post that is so gender specific - i honestly feel as if i am evesdropping on a conversation intended for women only - and that's ok, maybe you don't want men to feel welcome - i don't know - but i think that may be far from the case for many of you - anyway, where was i headed? -

i am offering up for you blogs written by men - in the world of decorating and design and creation and imagination -

enjoy -

color outside the lines - http://niagaranovice.blogspot.com/ artie

http://www.eddieross.com/eddie_ross/ eddie ross

danny seo - daily danny - http://www.dailydanny.com/

the elegant thrifter - stan williams - http://www.theelegantthrifter.com/

micheal mattison spice of life http://michael-spice-of-life.blogspot.com/

http://nikonsniper.blogspot.com/ stephen baird

tristan - http://tristanrobin.blogspot.com/ - enchanted revelry

http://www.barnhousebh.com/ - Joe & Jermonne

http://www.magnificentbastard.com/ - who is he?

and so you will know - the title of this post was inspired by an actual comment i received while attending a sale with my camera in tow - lol!

this pic is just cause i love penguins - and i thought it looked like one was follerin the other - lol!

troy

can you believe it ? ....

yesterday, we were loading the van for the flea market this weekend - had some trash to throw in the dumpster and look what i found in the dumpster -

it had it's back to me - and i could see a label on the backside - and i thought - hmmm - wonder what that is - i have found some cool stuff in this particular dumpster - so i went back to the warehouse and got a chair to stand on so i could reach into the dumpster - as i was doing this i thought, i bet it's one of those long skinny group style photos - i still could not see the front - so when i grabbed it and flipped it over - i almost fell off my chair - i collect blue bonnet paintings -
left side of the painting ...
right side of the painting ...
the signature - yeah it is signed - i can't make out the signature - but it looks like a nice piece to me - according to the label on the back - it was framed by a company in san antonio, texas - they were active during the 20s and 30s - thought about selling it, but i think i am going to keep -

also, forgot to mention - it was raining - lightly, but had rained hard early that morning - luckily the lid on the dumpster had been closed - also found a cute little green depression glass creamer - will probably list that on etsy ..

more to come -

troy

white wednesday creation ...

guess i am tardy for the pardy - nod to kim ..

sorry to be so late with my white wednesday post -

it's something i have been working on ... and just finished this evening .. what do you think?

a candy container made with the use of an old bed spring - i made a paper mache ball - the old fashioned way - like we used to do in school - textured it - let it dry and cut it for the opening, painted it white - attached it to the spring and then decorated it - the hat was made with a discarded paper towel roll - his scarf is made from crepe paper that i fringed by hand with a pair of scissors - i call him my Uncle Sam Snowman -

the finished product - i am kind of pleased with the way he turned out and it felt good to be doing something with my hands -
excuse the blur - my eyes were filled with dust today -
close-up of the hat - covered in glitter -

the inside - filled with peppermints -
thankz,

troy

junkin' - does a body good ...

sometimes, nothing will do but that you must get out and shop... the thrill of the hunt ... undiscovered treasures.. stuff that might go unnoticed by another... does a body good .. i think..
so, this morning, rod and i hit the local flea market then a couple of sales on the way home.. our local flea market is on the grounds of an old drive-in movie theater - it was quite famous in it's day - the movie theater that is -
i don't know what year they stopped operating as a theater, but i remember coming here in the 70s when i was in high school - it had become pretty seedy then - lots of r rated movies - which were considered pretty risky back in the day - would probably seem laughable today - does anyone remember 'cindy & donna' ?

i absolutely love the architecture of this former theater and am drawn to its presence .. it is somewhat haunting the way it lurks over the parking lot ... at the base of this building is an insurance office and to the side is the office for the flea market... i didn't notice this time, but the last time i was there the former snack bar/restrooms was still in place - just the restrooms were open though.. the name of this flea market is 'treasure city' ..

they have stalls on the outside and also enclosed stalls that look like storage buildings - kind of cool and some cool stuff mixed in with the socks and dvds - found a copy of little women - perfect for the upcoming holidays -


rod can't resist a good deal - practicing his 'dressing down' trick .. that's where nothing you wear matches so it throws their eye off .. and dulls their concentration ...

seriously, here are a few tips we have for attending flea markets -

1. know where the car/truck is ..
2. never haggle if it's a good deal - if it's 50 cents and you know you can sell it for $10 - don't ask them to take 25 cents..
3. smile..
4. carry cash..
5. water..
6. know where the bathrooms are ..
7. leave them laughing or smiling .. they will remember you.

i made a slideshow of the stuff we found over the weekend .. we did really good .. if there is something you see you like - email - the smaller stuff will most likely get listed in our etsy shop - loving etsy .. also check out some other etsy shops - including that red.neck chic and fiona & twig ..

and i am doing better, my blood pressure this morning was 151/83 with a heart rate of 66 - so it is coming down ..

riding it out ..

rod and i did not do the holiday reflections show at carol carrolls - i feel bad that she counted on us and we let her down - we just couldn't do it - sometimes your body just says NO - forwarding payment for the space on monday - we have spent the last few days vegging - and browsing - other blogs - i like to browse silently, so i am really not a fan of those side bar apps that show you as a visitor - esp, those that show your smiling face for all to see -

also took a cue from anne and opened an etsy shop - started stocking it this morning - bit here and there - and more to come.

finally got my prescriptions refilled - thought i could go without them - ha! - lecture from the dr on never ever ever never deciding to NOT take cholesterol meds - back on those and the little ones for my blood pressure -

not much else to say - other than publicly stating "we apologize to you, carol" and "we apologize to your vendors and hope you had a wonderful show".

thank you

my daddy - billy joyce rash - and his buddies - korean war -











As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them. ~John Fitzgerald Kennedy

when words fail ...

how do you say thank you, when what you want to convey means more than words could ever describe?

our sale was a huge success and rod and i want to thank each and every one of you who attended and showed your support, who blogged about it and showed your support and who emailed their support. thank you, thank you, thank you.


we are very grateful and consider each and every one of you a friend. we offer you all a lifetime of favors.

highlights for us were - meeting Alice , Jessica , Mindy , Amy , Robelyn and other bloggers and followers of our blog. spending the day 'shopping' with Anne was without a doubt the most enjoyable day i have spent in a long long time and getting to know her Mom was such a treat. it felt like getting to know long lost cousins. i hated to see her go, but knew her trip would be a long one. and Anne, from the bottom of my heart - i could never thank you enough.

i really enjoyed seeing people make their 'piles' of merchandise. though some got mixed with others, i think overall, we did a good job of streamlining everything. the customers overall were friendly and happy and very funny.
i actually had a customer - and you were so cute - who tried my '50 cent, 50 cent, 50 cent' telepathy pricing game on me - but what made it cute was she said it out loud ... i'm still giggling about that one. cute.

i wish we had thought to take pics of the people attending, but honestly, we were very busy and it wasn't something i was thinking about. i promise to have an assigned photographer for the next event. and yes, we are planning another. nothing definite as yet, possibly in the spring.



for the moment we are doing a show

HOLIDAY REFLECTIONS by Carol Carroll and the BIG WHITE TENT

and NEW VENDORS this year.

TWO DAYS : Nov. 12th & 13th, Thurs. and Fri.

10:00 am - 8:00 pm

Home Tour (all different decor this year) with LOTS of items on sale from bedding to furniture all Carol Carroll

Vendors:

Gatherings - Georgetown, Texas

Precious Memories - Temple

His Country - Temple

Junk Exchange - Waco

Old Time Primitives- Belton

Scentsy & Southern Living - Temple

Vintage Sue- Kansas

Just Soap - Victoria, Tx

Just Kids and More - Georgetown, Tx

Tickets @ the door $20 (proceeds for Ronald McDonald House)

afterwards, some new things on the horizon.

laterz, troy & rod

oh, do you like the new header?

tomorrow - 1/2 price & last day

tomorrow is the last day of our sale - and it is 1/2 price on everything, EXCEPT furniture - which is negotiable - i meant to take pics of what was left before we close down this evening - but forgot - if you need to call us for better directions in the morning - we are opening at 7am - and our cell number is 281-813-0341...

the beginning of the sale - there is Alice of yesteryearsjewels and Anne and Mom - Anne of fiona and twig -


I wished i had gotten more pics of people - but i was too busy talking to them and rod was checking them out and by the time i could remember to grab the camera and snap pics - there wouldn't be anyone around - lol!


today was steady - sold that trio of victorian hanging lamps in one of the pics below - sold lots more 50 cent trinkets and bottles - conducted an impromptu class on gluing trinkets to bottle - wiring them with a hanger loop and using as a flower vase - gave another impromptu class on re-covering a lampshade -

i am excited about the sale ending and things getting back to normal so to speak - rod and i are doing carol carroll's holiday reflections show in temple, texas on the 12th & 13th of Nov. - that is next Thursday and Friday - come see us! 8050 Hartrick Bluff Rd. Temple, Texas 76502 - more info to come -

there is some drama associated with our sale - which i will share on sunday - once the sale is over and done - in the meantime - if you are close - come on by - we would love to load your truck - lol!

laterz, troy & rod
and to all of you who have come out - thank you, thank you, thank you -

artwork & stuff

sharing some pics of artwork that will be in the sale - the first pic is my favorite blue bonnet painting of all that i will be selling -

there may be one or two more blue bonnet paintings, but these are some i located for a group pic-

there is something about this piece i really like - it is a pressed flower pod of some kind - the mat around it is hand drawn and it is signed on the back - the lettering at the bottom is the kind of pod it is -

i don't know why i like this - i guess mostly it kind of reminds me of the painting they used in close encounters - also, it has a nice texture -


i love fall and the fall colors, i think that is why i was drawn to this painting -


i love this watercolor - the paper is torn and brittle, someone glued it down on cardboard - which has also become brittle - i just love the way the roses look - and the color looks great -

great selection of old vintage wallpaper - some florals, some solids and some patterns - great for art projects -

table lamps - i just like lamps and because i recover shades - i have a tendency to buy lamps whether i need them or not -
more table lamps -
old childrens shoe forms - and cardboard farm house -

great collection of small trinkets and costume and fashion jewelry -


necklaces and bracelets - and a bottle used to hold a huge assortment of thin bangle bracelets -

villeroy & boch - palermo pattern - dinner plates, luncheon plates, cream soup bowls, cups & saucers - service for 9 -

the coolest vintage banner - the ISLEY BROTHERS - !! so cool!

love this old ad - it's printed on thick cardboard -

ads went in today - it was a long day - more of the same tomorrow -

laterz,
troy & rod