Pink and Blue Bath

Our circa 1940 bathroom has pink tile and blue fixtures. They are similar in style to the ones in this advertisement, but in light blue rather than the pale green. Our tile goes halfway up the wall, but is also on the floor, and in the stall shower. We don't have cool old wallpaper with fish on it, but our sink is very much like this one, with the chrome legs and towel racks on either side. We even have the same type of medicine cabinet with the long lights on either side. The original shower door has an etched swan design on the glass, so I just sort of "went with" swans in my choice of decor. They are all over the place in there! Here is one shot of my pink shelf which is filled with all sorts of vintage bath and vanity items, and swans, too.

There are three more shelves not shown, and swans abound on nearly every other available surface in the room!

Roses Everywhere

I always enjoy finding lovely real photo vintage post cards like this one. Such a pretty hand-tinted image. As you can you see, it says "Roses Everywhere" California, at the top. I'd had it for awhile, and then I found this one:


At the top of it: "in a Rose Garden, Portland, Oregon", also hand-tinted with gorgeous pale pink roses. But they are the same picture. So, where is it, really? Who knows - could easily be either place. I just got a kick out of it. I am sure it is something that was commonly done, I just hadn't ever come across an example myself, before this.

Beautiful

I believe I may have figured out what my "problem" is.
One of my favorite quotes of all time is this, from
William Morris:
" If you want a golden rule that will fit everybody, this is it: Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
I, quite simply, find beauty in far too many things. What other eyes may perceive as clutter, rather I opine are little bits of beauty all around me.

The little vintage sculpture of a dancer (shown above backed by a lovely paper based on a William Morris design) recently came loose from it's little wooden base. I can find no markings on it of any kind, therefore I know nothing about it whatsoever.
Except that I believe it to be beautiful. Hmmm.....

Dinette Set

I really like these old chrome-legged dinette sets. We had a yellow set (below -table only) that was a little plainer in style than the one above. I am on the left wearing my yellow and red floral calico dress that I mentioned in my post on Oct.26th of last year.

This great one was in David and Amy Butler's old kitchen, which was featured in Country Living magazine in 1999. I love the floor, too. Mama Brook over at Frisk The Frigidaire found a very similar table the other day. Lucky girl!

And this one, below, is ours. I got it in 1986, and it has served me well all these years. I wanted it because the chairs are red, but the table top is dark gray. You can see that I usually cover it up with a vintage tablecloth! One of our kitty's favorite places to be is on that red Cosco step stool you see next to the table. In fact, he's there right now.

I must admit, however that the table I really want is an enamel topped table with painted base and legs and a red and white design on the top - like some that Luke had in his diner on Gilmore Girls. If I can ever get one, I'd love to use my gray table in the basement as a work table. We will see.

Tucked Away In A Box....

(When I first posted this,I can't believe I forgot to add what may be the sweetest ones! The ones with bluebirds - and pink roses, even! I'd sure love to have a pair of little birdie bookends like those shown. Had to add this picture as soon as I remembered)

Yesterday I got to digging around in a closet again, and found nearly 60 (!) more vintage cards tucked away in a box!! I love finding stuff like these shower cards, above, from 1944. (and, speaking of showers - we had a LOT of rain yesterday!) And these cute and colorful birthday cards, below, from 1950.

And these adorable baby gift and announcement cards from the 30's and 40's.

But this one is the oldest, and perhaps my favorite. It was tucked into a high school yearbook from the 1920's. I love the little Gypsy-costumed fortune teller girl.And it's mechanical! The little arrow spins, and it folds just above the sentiment, so that it can stand up. And how about her little cat helper?

Sometimes I can't believe I am still finding treasures in this house after we have lived here for over 8 years.

The Aristocats

If I had unlimited funds, I probably would "upgrade" my video collection and get all of the newer DVD releases of all of the Disney classics - mostly because I'd enjoy seeing the extras concerning the making of the films, etc. But I don't - so I can't. So I will just have to content myself with my good old VHS versions like the one above. And then I can always look at my Big Golden Book:

And my Little Golden Book:

And of course, we have our very own resident little Aristocat. Here he happens to be snuggled with two of his non-feline Disney friends, Meeko and Dumbo, in his Disneyland-purchased frame surrounded by numerous Disney kitties!

And here, in his Hallmark ornament frame (which, by the way, also has a magnet on the back- that meant after Christmas it went onto the fridge!). This one was his Christmas present this past December.

I sure do love my sweet Dizzy Kitty! Can you tell?

Elves and Toadstools and Such

I found the cute little elf w/toadstool vase at a flea market in Hayward, Wisconsin in Aug. 2001. I took a trip there with my sisters to visit our aunt, uncle, and cousins. We had such a wonderful time, and we want to go back SO badly!! When I saw the little vase, it reminded me of the poem, below, that I remembered from my childhhood- and I decided it needed to come home with me!


I've always loved that little poem. It is from The Golden Treasury of Poetry which has the wonderful Joan Walsh Anglund illustrations. (click on "Illustrators", below, and you will find it in the last post.)I am sorry I don't know how to link to a previous post.
And while I'm on the subject - this little poem from the same book is a particular favorite. Being small in stature myself, it always resonated with me- and I have remembered it all my life. So cute!

Original Paintings

The first one I've shown above is the best of all. This adorable water color was painted for me (and of me) by a family friend, and given to me for my 10th birthday. She certainly caught my love of kitties in her depiction. I absolutely treasure it.
I found the colorful basket of apples at a thrift store in Tuolumne, which happens to be the home of one of my favorite apple ranches- so how appropriate! It was painted by an high school student. Maybe she didn't like it, and gave it away? Works for me, because I like it very much!

And the last one, below, with the great red barn out in the country was picked up at a thrift store in Angels Camp. I was so happy to find that I already had the perfect frames for both of these down in the basement - and didn't even know it!

Perhaps my inclusion of those two thrift shop finds has you thinking that I am not an art connoisseur? That would be correct. But I know what I like. I like color - and I don't look at artwork with a particularly critical eye. Since I don't consider myself an artist - I feel that anything someone has taken the time and trouble to paint is probably better than I would come up with were I to try!

Vintage Handbags

A few of my favorites. The blue velvet beauty, above, is the most gorgeous shade of fabulous royal blue. I think I found it at an antique faire. The "tweedy" looking bucket-style bag below was my mother-in-law's. I love it's uniqueness, that it is so stylish, and that it was hers.

And this beaded beauty is a particular favorite. It's completely reversible - flip it inside out, and it's just the beaded bag without the pink roses -but I love the pink roses!

And these last two- not vintage, but handmade from vintage bark cloth. I couldn't pass up this one with the covered wagon when I found it in Jamestown. It is small, easy to carry and throw a few things into.

And this one is from Ebay - just look at this lovely fabric with the bleeding hearts! It's quite large, and great for shopping trips!

Don't you just love vintage handbags? And doesn't "handbag" just have a nicer ring to it than "purse"? I think it does.

More Teapot Love

I have teapots, teapot ornaments, and things with teapot motifs all over in my kitchen and adjoining sunroom. Yes - you are correct- another obsession. What can I say? Not sure, exactly - so I'll show you a few instead. That set at the top there sits atop my yellow Ransburg breadbox. It is plastic by Superlon. I wanted one for a long time,and finally got it on Ebay last year. The one below I think I got in town, and then found the perfect salt and pepper duo to sit on it , also on Ebay. Those sit is on top of the stove.
Honestly, I have lost track of how long ago I started collecting the Mary Engelbreit teapot ornaments. Should I be embarrassed to admit that I have more than fifty? And, no - I do not have them all! Below, I am showing just four particular favorites, mostly for their colors. I also have birdhouse, watering can ,and coffee pot ones.

Those shown below are on the wall above my corner sink with my smallest Ransburg shakers and on top of my yellow Ransburg paper towel holder. Please try, if you can, to ignore the old wallpaper that we have not (yet?) been able to replace!


Another little teapot-shaped holder. I am a sucker for vintage hand-painted things with decals on them! And last, but definitely not least - this little beauty below is a bracelet I have had since I was a little girl. It's not a kitchen item , but it IS a teapot that begged to be included in this post, and I didn't have the heart to deny it! I don't even remember how old I was when it was given to me by my great aunt. It still fits me, and I just adore it!

I will probably show you more teapot stuff another time. Just a warning.

Captain Sacto Opening (Version 1)

Harry Martin

Goodbye, Captain Sacto

Harry Martin died on Sunday. I realize that if you didn't grow up in the same general area we did, you may not have heard of him. But we literally grew up watching him on TV, and we just loved him. He was witty and charming and handsome - he actually reminded me of our Daddy. Although I did not know him personally, of course, I truly believe that I know he was a genuinely nice man, and he was a delight to watch on KCRA Channel 3 from Sacramento. We miss you already, Mr. Martin. I know Captain Sacto is winging his way up to heaven.
(Please read my sister's comment - I know when she reads this she will have something to add. We really did love him- I have tears in my eyes as I write this. When I watched Channel 3's tribute to him, it made me cry.)

Through A Doll House Doorway

Just a little peek into my doll house. I couldn't bear to pack away my adorable Hallmark refrigerator ornament after Christmas, so I decided that it would have a permanent home in my doll house kitchen. Had to make room for it to fit there in the corner. My little house is a conglomeration of little miscellaneous stuff. Whatever I like. It isn't necessarily "to scale"; it's not perfect, it's just mine, and I like it. I just put whatever wherever. It was made by the stepfather of a dear friend, he sold it to me over 20 years ago at a very reasonable price.

At Christmas I decorate it inside and out, including a tree that lights up in the bay window of the living room- just like in our REAL house! I like to think the little dragon in the wagon (in the picture below) is Custard from Ogden Nash's poem "The Tale Of Custard The Dragon". There is even a passage of the poem that says "They all sat laughing in the little red wagon at the realio, trulio, cowardly dragon." I've always loved that poem. It's in The Golden Treasury of Poetry, a book we grew up with.

When Bill (my friend's stepfather) died a couple of years ago, she called me and asked if I would like to have the doll house he had made for himself and his wife, that had been in their own home. She knew I loved mine, and she wanted someone to have his who would appreciate it. I was honored and delighted that she wanted me to have it. It is sort of more like the one shown below. It can sit on a table or be hung on a wall.

It's a lot bigger than mine, and fully furnished with working lights and a plexiglass "window" sort of a dust cover over the front. Unfortunately, we didn't have a place to put it, so right now it is stored. But I DO treasure it; I always will, and I hope to find the right place for it some day.
Thank you, Tammy, and thank you, Bill.

Happy Valentine's Day, Everyone!

Both of these two lovely Valentine postcards, above, are postmarked 1908. What beautiful 100 year old sentiments they are!
And the two little cuties below are each inscribed on the back to my husband. One from a teacher , and the other is literally from The Girl Next Door - whose family, by the way, just sold their home a few months ago after more than 60 years.

Have a wonderful day!

Thank You!

Mitzi from Vintage + Goodness = Happiness honored me with a You Make My Day Award - how sweet! Thank you so much, Mitzi! All of this is new to me, but I am supposed to pass it on to five other bloggers, so, here goes:
1) The top of my list has to be Alicia Paulson's blog Posie Gets Cozy (I'm not sure how to put a link within this post, but you can click on their names at right in my list of favorite blogs to go straight to them!)

Almost exactly a year ago, I read the article about Alicia, Andy and Audrey in Romantic Homes magazine (March 2007), and then I looked up her blog , and that was it for me. I became officially Addicted To Blogs. Every other blog I have read and enjoyed since then was discovered by clicking on a link to this or that person, and then from their links, and so on! Alicia, you definitely Make My Day with each and every new post, and, ultimately, inspired me to start a little blog of my own. But you will always be The Queen Of Blogdom to me!
2)Becky at Sweet Cottage Dreams also makes my day! I thoroughly enjoy her blog, and we have communicated through e-mail, as well.Her home and her creations are quite simply fabulous,and I love reading everything she writes about. She has the distinction of being the blogger closest in proximity to me (about an hour away or so)- and yet we have never met. Perhaps some day. Meanwhile, I will continue to delight in her posts!
3)Julie at Jane's Apron. Her creativity Makes My Day - I can hardly wait to see what wonderful thing she will come up with next! And I treasure my Cinderella wall hanging she made and which I purchased from her. I totally love it!
4)Niki of Nostalgia At The Stone House. Viewing the photos of all of her lovely vintage finds and her creations Makes My Day, and even Makes Me Think that perhaps some day I could even create something special with my own two hands. I was so tickled to see the lovely handbag she made recently, which was similar to the one pictured below that I had just purchased at an antique shop!

5)The Hunt For Vintage. Boy, do I ever love all of her collections!! I eagerly await her new posts so that I can see more of her lovely home and all of the wonderful treasures found within!It is exciting to see the photos of all of her fabulous finds! Seeing all of it, and how she decorates and displays her vintage things really does Make My Day!
I hope that I have done all of this correctly, as I am wanting to honor all of the fabulous and inspiring bloggers out there who have touched my life with their writings!

Vintage Valentine Cards

I know I keep saying it, but I can't express enough how lucky I feel that I am to have found here in the house where my husband grew up all kinds of neat vintage items - including a cache of mostly 50's era Valentines from when he and his brother were in elementary school. They are so darned cute, I can hardly stand it! Shown here, above and below, on a hanging rack that was a great deal at Hallmark after Christmas a year or two ago. I have the rack hanging on a door that you see as soon as you enter our house, so they can be easily seen and enjoyed.

Others are displayed on the card holder stand, below,, with one of my Betsy McCall paper doll pages next to it. There were also a few , more romantic ones from the 30's or 40's. but most are the kind exchanged by school children.There are so many adorable ones. (I believe you can click on the pictures to enlarge them a bit and see better detail).

But this may be my favorite one of all. It' also the largest ( about 7X8 inches), and it's a mechanical Valentine - the front end of the horse moves.

Hi-Ho Silver and away! And a Happy Valentine's Day!