Wanderlust & Pixie Dust

More Random Thingys

I like photographing my stuff.  Is that weird?  I have a difficult time getting on the computer when the hubby is home.  Is that weird?  I can hear him thinking "Again?"  Is that weird? 

Dad just had hospital visit number 5. I was hoping to do this and do that and finish working on something else but It looks as if I may be heading to my parents for a few days instead. Anyhows...

Took some more random photos of my fave things yesterday.  As previously, some of these items may have been posted before but I like photographing them.  Ignore me when I repeat myself.  Dear hubby says that it's my age. 

This beaded green thing below was a recent find on Ebay.  It had been described as beaded trim for a vintage dress.  That description didn't fit quite right.  The photo wasn't the best and wasn't much help.  I had a hunch, took a chance and placed a bid.  My instincts were correct.  It was instead a Victorian era miser's purse.   It has developed a teeny bit of rust over time but I surely don't mind.

This little guy just had to come home with me.  Get a look at that mug.  How could I walk away from that expression?  For 50 cents this  bitty kitty makes me grin on a daily basis.   I like to look at him while listening to music from the 20's-30's.  He's a great contribution to the ambiance.

Yeah  I know.  A grown women like myself REALLY needed Hello Kitty in a kimono. I did.  Really.  I was a flight attendant at the time I found her and I was a junior flight attendant at that.   One that was constantly being flown back and forth to Japan at the last minute.  She brings back many memories and the scent of green tea.

Found this Milan filled frame at an estate sale many moons ago.  $2.  It's a constant reminder that I have yet to visit Milan.  As if I need a reminder.

Cute pair of boots.

This little doggy followed me home recently.  Again I went all weak in the knees over his goofy expression and that red bow on his neck that looks like a Superman cape.

I'm always on the prowl for vintage doggy stuff.  This next photo makes me sad.
 
Sad because I cracked one of his petite companions in two the other day.  Look to the left of him.  One doggy butt and one detached head.

Perfume bottles, a vintage Eiffel Tower key chain and a Victorian wooden box with a hand painted Rialto Bridge.  My beloved Abby left teethmarks on the box.

A pretty, orange turn of the century ribbon.  Finely embellished and embroidered. 

I've had this tiny cardboard cigarette box for eons.  I love it because of the Egyptian motif.  It's another reminder.  A reminder that I have yet to travel to Egypt.  Egypt has always been the number one country on my list of countries to see before I die.  Wow.  That trip seems so out of reach at the moment.  Sigh.

I've Been a Baaaaaad Girl

Ok.  Like a lot of you money is tight in our family.  VERY tight.   I go into the worst withdrawals every weekend because I am dying to bust out and go treasure hunting.   Well yesterday the husband was home and we ran around first thing in the morning running errands.  When we had finished we then strolled through a couple of small local antique malls. 

I crossed my fingers behind my back upon entering the first,  Please I hoped, let me only find a pretty postcard for a dollar!  A bit of antique lace for $2, or a bag of delightful old buttons for a few dollars more.  You get the picture. 

Did not turn out that way.  I wound up with the plate up above, an old sewing basket, a lovely old fringed textile and wonderful (unusual) vintage piece of wicker.   Long story short, I headed back to one of the stores later without the husband intending just to splurge on the sewing basket for $11. 

Shhhh....more pictures to come later.  Somebody else puh-leez tell me that you were also naughty this weekend!

Gothic Mississippi Window

Several years ago we drove from Memphis to California.  Months before that, I purchased this old lovely window in a tiny shop in Chino, CA.  The  friendly antique dealer who sold it to me  was a transplant from Mississippi.   Story was that this window came out of an old church in Mississippi.

It's missing a few panes but alas, it was still love at first site for me.  I promised to take good care of it.  She never did mention exactly where in Mississippi it had come from.

One hot, steamy summer later, we found ourselves exploring Canton, Canton, Mississippi.  Imagine our surprise when we discovered two companions to our beloved window in a small antique shop!  Naturally I wanted to drag them along on our road trip but I had to be content with the one waiting for me at home,  hundreds of miles away.

We were never able to confirm which church it came from but it really does make me wonder.  What did the church look like? 

Scenes of beautiful old Canton.

The name of this little lady escapes me know but she was the nicest, sweetest lady!  Her shop had been recently opened and I hope that business is booming for her.

Love this fake Barbie

I realize that I am a grown woman and all but geez,  I just love this doll! 

Discovered her buck naked (or butt naked as my husband says) for $1 her ('cept for earrings) at a yard sale. Isn't she sassy?

Gotta dig the sidelong glance.  The eyeliner.

The be-bop doo.

The earrings, natch.  Nary a hair out of place.  I cropped that lampshades that need redoing from the picture.  Guess I should probably cover her up before I redo the lampshades.

I suppose that I should explain why I think that she is a fake Barbie. She has no marking whatsoever.  She is also incredibly light not solid like a real Barbie.  Maybe she is just an early Barbie? I couldn't say.  I haven't held in early Barbie in my hands in quite a long time.  I purchases her from a seller who was orignally from England.  Maybe she is an Englihs knock-off of Barbie?   I'm just curios.  It doesn't matter anyhows as I think she is plenty cool no matter where she originated from. 

Uh-oh. I'm Going to Get Scolded

I won't have time to post more details about her till later but I couldn't wait to share a photo.  

Check back later tonight to see more.  She's exquisite!

Ok I'm back.  

A little while back I was minding my own business and in the middle of listing a few things on Etsy  Etsy.  Several years ago I used to sell on Ebay and got in the habit of using their shipping calculator.  I need to get unused to it because somehow I got sidetracked and found myself looking up boudoir dolls that appear to be smoking instead.  One thing led to another and next thing y'know I had bid on this beauty here.

Opening bid was so darn low I couldn't resist.  There was no way I could win right?  Well I did. I was both elated and mortified.  Mortified because like most of you I should be trying to make money not spending it.  Ah, such is the life of a vintage-antique-history-everything unique- under-the-sun addict.

Even though I brought her home for such an amazing deal of a price, I know that when the husband spots her, I'm going to get scolded.  She's worth it though.

Once I had paid for my dastardly dead, dread kicked in. Why didn't anyone else bid on her? Did they know something that I didn't?  She is unusual in size, about 14 inches long.  Often these ladies are quite large, the better to display across your bed.

The photo in the listing wasn't the clearest.  Maybe that was it.  

I prepared myself for the worst.  She had to have undisclosed damage.  All her clothes had to have been replaced.  I bet everything original had been stripped away long ago. 

Before you knew it she arrived at my front door.  I carefully unleashed her from her packaging. 

 

She was delightful beyond my wildest dreams!   

My gut instinct tells me that she is as original as can be.  Draped across her shoulders is a  shawl that appears to have been hand embroidered.  

A petticoat equally as beautiful and hand stitched.

Lacy black undies and embellished black stockings.

Get a kick out of her red shoes.

Teeny tiny little hand made heels.

She wears a cross about her neck and clutches her hands to her bosom.  

I must profess a weakness for things overly melodramatic and this beautiful Spanish lady just oozes drama.  I've had several friends comment that these boudoir dolls (or bed dolls) freak them out.   

Oops.  Before I forget, here are two earlier posts that  I did sharing two of my other bed dolls,
Click HERE   And HERE.

Even of these unique beautiful dolls do give you the willies, be sure to take a peek. After all, it is Halloween!

A Few Eiffel Towers & A Dancer From the Moulin Rouge.

I have a few Eiffel Towers sitting about.  This one was discovered recently at a local flea market.  It was one of those I'm-here-late-in-the-day-and-it's-still-just-sitting-here-so-it-must-be meant-for-me things.

 

What's really special about this piece besides it's large size (34 1/2 inches high!) is that I'd been eyeballing the very same Eiffel Tower in a neighbors front yard for weeks now.  And lo and behold I have my very own to treasure.

I wrapped Christmas lights around it and each night I set it ablaze.  I light it up even though I know full well that I am not going to be in the room with it, but because I want to be able to see it out of the corner of eye as I pass on by as I go about my business.  I know that this is not environment-friendly but it makes me happy and pleased as punch to see it standing there all pretty and bright.

I hung a picture on that I made using one of my antique frames.  I am passionate and freaky about anything with its original gold patina.  It really gets my goat when I come upon a perfectly beautiful old frame, only to find that it's been spray painted.   I have been known to take sandpaper to such a find and go over it ever so gently to expose some of the original layers of gold.

A cute little vintage Eiffel Tower key chain.

This next Eiffel Tower is some sort of Lancome promotional piece.  One of these days I'll add some pictures to the glass frames.  For now that project is just one more on ever growing list!  Draped on this tower are some of wonderful Wendy Addison glass glitter stars.

This is a page that I made for a round robin swap book.  I love the way that it turned out if I do say so myself.  If you think that sounds a bit big headed, trust me, it's not.  I'm one of those fussy, always in doubt of my abilities, crafters.  I will take a page apart repeatedly until I'm happy with it.  I am getting better though.  I think.  Better at not trying so darn hard and learning to let go.

 

It's hard to see but I hung a tiny tower from the vintage pink netting.

Ok now, this vintage cancan dolly  is one of my many many many favorite things.  At first glance she looks cute enough right?

But take note of some of her itty bitty details.  Her net gloves for instance and her endless layers of ruffles.

Then flip her over and voila!  She has fishnet stockings and bright blue garters!






I hope that those of you with more delicate sensibilities were not alarmed by the exposed knickers.

Bald Headed Bebe

Hee-hee.  I crack up whenever I look at her.

I found this sweet, beat up, flapper era hatstand many moons ago.  Back in the day when I could prowl all over the Rose Bowl in Pasadena with wild abandon.   In the middle of cleaning house, I paused to admire her and remembered how I sucked all her hair off with the vacuum cleaner.  You can see a few wispy bits stuck to the rim of her hat but yep, she's bald.  

She was just sooo dusty.  I know that I should have known better and I was mortified when it happened.  Now I think it's funny.  I'm sure she disagrees although she doesn't look too upset. I vowed at the time to replace her locks.  One of these days.  

She poses well though doesn't she?

On The Way To The Post Office...

I stopped at a few yard sales.

The a/c in my car is on the verge of going kaputsky.  Sometimes it comes on.   More often it does not.  At 110 degrees the only thing that makes it bearable is the reggae music I blast instead of the a/c.

The last couple of weekends I've left the house early, with a few dollars in my pocket that I shouldn't be spending any which way.  This is after I take my baby pom Abby for a strut around the block in her baby stroller.  Beneath her little doggy bottom,  I tuck a frozen ice cube pad to keep her cool.

I try to hit all the yards sales in a circular motion and run as many errands as possible along the way.  Try as I might, I can't help from the thinking "My gas, my gas."  Every yard sale that sucks now seems to cost extra in wasted gas.

But then, just as you're about to call it a day you stumble upon a few little somethings that make it all worthwhile.  Like the old little couple in the gaudy gold frame.  I felt sorry for them so they came home with me for a quarter.  I feel kinda bad for referring to their frame as gaudy but I guess it's okay considering that I happen to be quite fond of gaudy things.

A few pretty baubles.  Can't have too many of those.  What I really got bent out of shape over was that  beautiful odd shaped blue velvet box.

Hmmm.  I'm guessing that it was made to hold a bejeweled stickpin perhaps?  Too bad that there is no mention of a jewelers name in gold anywhere.  I shant complain though.  I'm just glad to call it mine.

When I came across this piece at a yard sale, "I'll put it in my Etsy shop": www.wanderlustnpixiedust.etsy.com

Of course this was only something I told myself to justify walking off with it.  The good thing is that it really was just a couple of dollars.

 

The bad thing is that if you look closely at the next picture, you'll notice that the original beveled mirror is long gone.  Which just serves to remind me of the good thing.  I doubt that it would cost very much to have a small mirror cut to size.

 
Such cupidy Art Nouveau-ness.  I'm madly in love with it already.

A Pile of Pretty Old Buttons Fills Me With Glee

Last weekend I got lucky. Stopped by a another church rummage sale and discovered this delightful pile. I absolutely adore vintage and antique buttons but can never find them. Even my husband knows exactly what I am on the hunt for. Together we we pick up every jar and tin full of buttons that we come across and 99% of the time they are overflowing with nothing special.

I felt like a goofy little kid again as I sat on my front steps and poured the plastic baggy out onto the bricks. They must have been meant just for me because this sale was jumping and there the bag sat. Right out in the middle and no one had swooped in on them. This is almost unheard of in this neighborhood. My home is on edge of a vintage 'hood and there is plenty of competition for the old stuff.

This is probably why I am so loath to use them to make jewelry. I can't get myself to use them because I never know when I am going to find any others!

I am also smack dab in the middle of trying to change the look of my blog a little bit. It's kinda screwy at the moment so please bear with me. Maybe all will be well by the time anyone sees it. Probably not. I can never seem to recall how I did something the last time and as you can see, I've never quite gotten the banner thing figured out. My banner is always off center. So are my badges. When I can even get them posted that is.

One more thing to share today. This little pain in the arse:

I was outside minding my own business taking photo's when I spotted this green caterpillar feasting on what was left of one of my delphiniums. Have mercy. If my plants are not getting devoured from below they're getting destroyed from above. It's just one never ending battle in my yard.

I had just been commenting to the husband about the unusual number of caterpillars I had been seeing crawling about. Butterflies are everywhere already. They make me smile and fight back tears at the same time. Butterflies remind me of my precious Marley who should be here chasing them and my sweetheart Casper who should be bemusedly watching him while he runs amok.

Since I originally posted this earlier today, I actually had some success with badges, finally!