STILL AT IT!

Tomorrow, I start my 6th week working on this gigantic estate sale with my friend and her husband, who is the administrator of this estate with no heirs. Since there is no family and before the estate can be disbursed to the designated charities, the state mandates that every thing be sold at the optimum price. Yesterday, there were seven of us working at organizing and pricing the things that had found their way to the garage and the family room. The whole process has been tedious work, as every piece of paper, etc. must be gone through. For instance, we have discovered valuable jewelry among tools and junk in the outside shed.

We have found such diverse items as an invitation to a White House garden party given by Mrs. Roosevelt to souvenirs from 32 countries to 7 irons (all in working order!)

There are lots of treasured items from several generations, jewelry, old pictures and postcards.

For sale are ethnic clothing items from her travels and lots of vintage clothing with pictures of her wearing the dresses, etc. including her 1942 satin, beaded wedding dress.

There is a whole room of lovely linens with about 30 sets of embroidered and lace pillow cases. We found some nice quilts in the shed outside, plus there are antique baby clothes.

And, of course, there are dishes and silver. A few pieces have found their way to my house. More on that in a later post!

It has been a real learning experience for all of us working on this project. We come home at night thinking about our own stuff; and what a burden it can be when disbursement of belongings is left for family or, in this case, friends.


I had an aunt, who in her later years, was always working on getting things in "dying order". She was a wise and considerate woman!

JUST CHECKING IN

I'm still busy working six days a week getting ready for the humungous estate sale. And when you are over 70, working like that is much harder than when you are 20!! But, this type of work sure has its benefits when you are an antiquer (junker) like me. The workers have first crack at the goodies. The only rule is that someone else must do the pricing of the item you have your eye on. I've brought home quite a few wonderful things so far. Here are a couple of them.

The plate is Bavarian, the colors are luscious, and the bird is a delight - and only $3.00. Again for $3.00, this tiny (2 1/4") transferware pitcher is marked 'Rural England'.

I have lots more to show you on future posts. Stay tuned.

In the meantime, our garden did not get the message that I'm busy. Must do something about all of these tomatoes soon.

Enjoy a new week!

I'm linking up with the following parties:

Rhoda at Southern Hospitality
for Thrifty Treasures

and

Linda at Coastal Charm
for Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays

Check out these blogs for a plethora of thrifty finds.

MET MONDAY

Do you remember this chair? Probably not, as I introduced it in my second post two years ago. If you are interested, you may check out that post by clicking here.

I've been waiting and waiting until the time was right to have it reupholstered to rid it of it's ugly green vinyl. We have done some reupholstering in the past; but with its great channel back and sides, I figured it was beyond our capabilities and deserved a professional job.

I took several pictures under different circumstances and still couldn't capture the true color. It really is a wonderful, red tweed fabric. I'm in love all over again with this chair!

I'm joining Susan at Between Naps on the Porch
for Met Monday

and

Marian at Miss Mustard Seed
for Furniture Feature Friday.

Be sure to check these parties out for lots of inspiration.

My posts and visiting have been sporadic, at best, recently. I've been involved in an interesting project for the last three weeks. A friend of mine is the administrator of an estate with no heirs; therefore, everything must be sold. The deceased was a traveler and literally shopped the world, plus was the caretaker of lots of old family belongings. I was asked to help with the organization, pricing, etc. for the estate sale. My computer time has been spent doing research on different items and prices, plus I've been spending full time working at the site. We have about three more weeks of work before the sale can be held. Hopefully, I'll have a lot to blog about when my time is free again. I'll try to pop in once in awhile until then.

Enjoy the remainder of the summer.

KITCHEN ISLAND

The theme this week at Funky Junk Interior's
Saturday Nite Special is Kitchen Islands. I'm joining Donna and other kitchen island enthusiasts with pictures of our island. Be sure to go by Donna's to check the others out.

Our island happens to be an old meat block from a grocery store. Bob grew up working and cutting meat in his Dad's grocery store; so when we had an opportunity to buy a meat block, we jumped on it. This particular block came from the country store that was close to my family farm. They sold it to us for $50 when they went out of business in 1969.

The block part measures 24" x 30" x 13" high. It is made of solid maple. It was assembled with 1 1/2" strips of the maple, and is held together with bolts and pins that run through the entire block. Then it has these wonderful maple curved legs.

This island is so much a part of our daily lives, and our kids remember it as always residing in our kitchen. One of our criteria in buying a house has always been, "Is there a place for the meat block?"

It is lower than regular kitchen counters, so it is perfect for us 'shorties' to roll pie crust or knead bread. I'm always amused when there is a group in the kitchen, you will always find Bob and I and our two kids crowded around and jockeying for position around the meat block to make our lunch sandwiches. The grandkids and others are always relegated to the regular kitchen counters.

A SIDE NOTE OF NOSTALGIA:
When we first acquired the meat block, our first born was still sleeping in a crib. His crib had these sturdy casters on it; and he soon learned that if he jumped up and down in the crib, he could move it across the hardwood floor all around his room. After a couple of near-miss accidents, he, at the age of one, lost the privilege of wheels. We took the wheels off of the crib and put them on the meat block to give this 300 pound hunk of wood more mobility. Even today after 41 years, I always think of my bouncing baby boy when I'm able to move the meat block to clean under it!

By the way, he is a very good driver today; but at the age of one - not so good.

COMMONPLACE BOOKS

There is an Altered Art Party going on at the
French Cupboard.
I thought I would join in even though I am not very creative when attempting altered art, but I happen to have my step-great-grandmother's commonplace book from the 1890s to show off.

Are you familiar with Commonplace Books? They are the predecessor of what today we know as altered art. Essentially they are scrapbooks filled with every kind of written word: quotes, letters, poems, tables, obituaries, drawings, etc. Readers, students, etc. used them as an aid for remembering things they had learned. Below is my step-great-grandmother's commonplace book from the 1890s. Always using what she had on hand, she took a previously read book and pasted her notes and clippings on the pages. She then embroidered a new cover for her scrapbook.

Tucked inside the front cover are some clippings that she never found time to glue in, including a news article about some one's suicide.

Tables of Weights and Measures and Marriage Anniversaries

Obituaries and Poems

Cute drawings for inspiration, as she was an artist.

Programs

Going through this book has given me a glimpse of a woman I barely knew. My great-grandfather, after being widowed with two young boys, came to Colorado from Maine in the 1880s to start a new life. After his boys were raised, he sent for 'Auntie Evelyn' to come west to be his new wife in 1897. She was considered a spinster at the age of 29 when she was dispatched to Colorado! We have the train ticket that he sent her for her journey. They were married for 41 years until his death in 1938; she lived until 1950 in the West, far from her family and in a place that must have felt so foreign to her.

Just a look into another time and era.

I NEED A LITTLE BREAK!

This week we are getting all new windows in our 25-year-old house. They will be energy efficient, easier to clean, etc. etc. While we are looking forward to having them, we are not looking forward to all of the work involved in getting ready for the installation. Plus, then we will have to get our life back in order!

Everything within three feet of every window must be cleared out. That means this huge receptacle of my dish addiction must be emptied and moved. (When I remembered to take this picture, the top and the top shelf had already been cleared.) Because of the weight involved, this thing is bolted to the wall.

This one, too!!

And, this one.

And, this one.

Well, you know, if you are going to move all of these dishes, you might as well wash them all before you temporarily pack them away.

It's not just the dishes - there is the art work, the furniture, the stuff, stuff, etc. Thank goodness it will not disrupt the kitchen too much.

I'll be back to blogging in a couple of weeks when I get my life back together.

METAMORPHING A SKIRT INTO A PILLOW

I'm slowly working on my winter pillow project. Since I've always wanted wool pillows for my living room to use in the winter, I decided I needed an early start to get it done this year. You can check here and here for posts about my efforts so far.

My challenge was to do them 'on the cheap', so I regularly check at the thrift stores for wool clothes or yardage that would be suitable.

My daughter told me one day she was going to make a run to Goodwill to donate some of her work clothes from several years ago. She has been a stay-at-home mom for four years now, and had no use for them any more. I was excited as I told her that was what I always checked for at Goodwill. So, we cut out the middle man and she brought me three wool skirts - two from Ralph Lauren and a Pendleton!
I loved this red plaid, so the wheels began to turn.The other Lauren skirt had these classic Ralph Lauren leather fasteners on it, so I combined the two skirts to make this pillow.

I'm already thinking about what my next pillow will be!

I'm linking up with Susan at Between Naps on the Porch
for Metamorphosis Monday.

RUST!!

Donna at Funky Junk Interiors
keeps coming up with unusual themes for her Saturday Nite Special party. This week the theme is "Rust". And, of course, I have rust to show off.

This is the biggest hunk of rust in our yard. This grill came with a house that we bought in 1976. That was four houses ago, but it keeps following us around. Not an easy feat as it weighs a ton.

We used to cook the best hamburgers on this grill. It's too rusty, now.

Originally, it was a unit used in public parks.

Here are a couple more things masquerading as garden art (?). This milk can came from my family farm years ago.

I have no idea what this is, but it was in my parent's yard for years and years, and now has been in ours for eons. It's rusty for sure.

Our son, the high school teacher, is spending the summer in Japan living with a family and working in their orchard. Recently, he did a post on his blog,
Saulmon is in Japan
about "Rust". Check it out by clicking here
for some great pictures of rust in Japan.

Be sure to go to Donna's blog, Funky Junk Interiors
for more rusty inspiration.

CLOCHE PARTY

How many pieces of brown transferware does it take to fill a large cloche?

I don't know - I stopped at 10.

I'm joining up with Marty at A Stroll Thru Life
and her Cloche Party. Be sure to check it out; I'm sure you will be inspired!

OUT AND ABOUT WITH THE GRANDKIDS

Get in the van, buckle up, Papa has the cash; let's head to the city for a day of fun. The weather is in the cool 70s and the humidity is non-existent. (It is dry Colorado, after all!)

First stop - the beautiful Pueblo Riverwalk area. Get those long legs revved up, Caitlin, for the paddle boats. You know that Wyatt will get distracted with all of that water.

Let's take another spin around the lake in a different boat.

After lunch, we had some time to kill before the Go-kart park opened.

This is always a number one request for a fun afternoon.

Hurry Wyatt, the clouds are building in the West.

Yes, it poured rain on us during the 45-minute ride back home. But, a great time was had by all.

I'm linking up with Susan at A Southern Daydreamer
for Outdoor Wednesday.

FUNKY DRAWERS

The theme on Donna's Funky Junk Interiors Saturday Night Special this week is drawers. I couldn't miss this opportunity to show a couple of my funky drawers. I can't pass up any drawer that in it's past life was handmade or used in a shop or store.

This one has tin sides and a wooden front. I think it must have been used in a store to sell hardware of some kind. Now it stores towels in our guest bathroom.

I love this little unit for its quirky knobs made out of thread spools. Inside of the drawers are little compartments.

Here are a couple more little drawers that, at one time, held bolts and hardware. Their sole purpose now is to just sit there and make me smile!

Be sure to stop by Donna's for more fun drawer inspiration.

SILHOUETTES

In the last few months I have run across several blogs showcasing silhouettes, which got me to thinking that I had some silhouettes SOMEWHERE. It took a couple of months but we finally found them in a box in the garage! They were no longer in frames, and hadn't seen the light of day for years.

We dug through our stash of thrifted frames, cut some down to fit, and gave them one of our favorite finishes (Sherwin Williams Antique Red paint with an ebony stain over it). I knew I wanted oval mats, but didn't want to pay the price for custom, so I checked Hobby Lobby & Michaels for ready-cut; but they never seemed to have three black ones alike. Finally, I just bought three of whatever color and spray painted them black.

This silhouette is of me when I was 15 (in 1954). It was cut at Riverview Amusement Park in Chicago.

The one below is of our son, Mike when he was 3 years old (1971). I love the scherenschnitte cutting that frames this silhouette.

Mike was 6 years old when this one was done by a different artist from above.

And, lastly, this one is of our daughter, Jenni, when she was 2 years old in 1974.

I'm sure enjoying my silhouettes again. Now, I just wish I had some of my grandchildren.

I'm joining Marty at A Stroll Thru Life
for Tabletop Tuesday. Be sure to stop by her blog for so much inspiration.

JULY 4TH WEEKEND

My family thinks there is nothing better than Strawberry Shortcake with homemade biscuits.

Personally, you can give me chocolate and nuts any day!

Do you have a preference?

I'm linking up with Michael at Designs by Gollum
for Foodie Friday

and

Donna at Funky Junk Interiors
for Saturday Nite Special (cooking section).

Have a glorious 4th of July weekend.

SUMMERTIME

I'm back from my blogging break. I am feeling much better, and can breathe again (important, you know?). I've had some time to knock out a couple of projects, and take care of some obligations.

Our grandkids said that one thing they wanted to do this summer was make sock monkeys. It seems their Momma will not let them play with her childhood monkey, and they wanted their own!

Little fingers are great for stuffing monkey tails, until they discovered that fiberfill is great for making a mess with fake beards.

Meet "Miss Priss" and "Camo Rambo".

They are kind of cute in a monkey sort of way.

One of the obligations that I had pending was a speaking engagement about 'Signature Quilts'. I don't do a lot of this type of thing anymore, so it took me a little time to get my act together. Wyatt, our 8-year-old grandson wanted to go hear what Grammy had to say. So, after I put the fear of God and Grammy into him about his behavior, his Momma brought him. He is our social one, so after my talk and during the 'meet and mingle'; he was out working the crowd! An overheard conversation went something like this: Friend: "Do you know that your grandmother is a famous quiltmaker?" Wyatt: "Oh, I know, I've read allllllllll of her books." (In reality, there are only 2 books, and hardly 2nd grade reading material.) Second conversation with another friend discussing his part in my success: Wyatt: "My sister helped with the drawings and samples for the book; but I was just a baby and not much help." (In reality, Caitlin was 5 years old at the time; and I was just producing busy work to stay 2 steps ahead of them, so that I could have 10 minutes of time to concentrate.) Needless to say, with his charm and cute freckles, he managed to engage the group. Do you suppose he will grow up to be a real press agent for someone really famous?

Summertime for us is all about the grandchildren. More projects and excursions are planned.

I'll be linking up with Donna at Funky Junk Interiors
for her Saturday Nite Special (sewing section) party. Please check her blog out for all kinds of fun inspiration.

CHAIR TRANSFORMATION

Once again, Bob has been working his magic in the garage. He bought this rocking chair at a yard sale for $5, which was probably too much for its condition. At one time, it had been painted, but must have set outside for years losing its seat in the process.

With a little sanding, glue, stain, finish and a new cane seat; it is now off to the consignment shop and, hopefully, a new owner! It's kind of cute, don't you think?

I'm going to take a blogging break. For a week now I have been trying to recover from what our family calls "The Crud" - you know: the horrendous cough and runny nose disease. I've been to the Dr. today, had a breathing treatment, and loaded up with medicine; and am now ready for a break.

Hope you are enjoying your summer. I'll be back!
Sally