Old Lace

The old fashioned girl in me has always been in love with old lace. The idea that this intricate patterning, these web like worlds of beauty have been made by nimble hands from the past just drives me crazy with admiration. The tea stained and aged beauty of the threads draws me in and then sends me back to some other time I'm certain I must have known... somehow. 
I've decided to carry some vintage and antique lace in my vintage shop,  bits of trims and scraps--for those of you who love to sew, or make jewelry, or add to your latest ingenious creations-- or those of you like me, who love to just sit and stare and marvel and touch and imagine..
Happy Monday to you!

Some new pieces finished and added to my jewelry shop just recently....the finish on these pieces pays tribute to autumn and her golden leaves and black velvety trunks and branches that glow against the grey skies after an october rain.
There is one particularly long stretch of blocks near the park that I love to turn onto-- lined with rows of maples from one end to the other. They light up the landscape -- everything else falls away- the leaves glow and flutter against the grey skies and the trunks and branches seem to join from one tree to the next forming a continuous web and pattern. I'm always blown away. Year after year it never fails to fill me with intense happiness, and a bit of aching, knowing that in just days the branches will be bare...
I wish you all a beautiful autumn-- enjoy every moment of it.

I just love this sweet Jennie June china doll kit from the 1950s--- made by Mark Farmer Mfg co. Something about the way she's never been turned into a doll-- just pristine porcelain parts wrapped in aged paper and stored away in a box-- a box that was originally sent with live orchids from Hawaii to a certain woman in a specific town in the 50s -- a perfect little package stowed away in a drawer or attic chest.. she comes with her original paper instructions with printed hand drawn illustrations and an order sheet for more parts or doll kits. a captivating little package of nostalgia. i've just listed her in 5gardenias vintage.
it's  late in the day and raining here with 50 mile an hour winds that are beginning to die down now .. there was even a little bit of hail at 6:00 am this morning... so it's been a feisty but beautiful grey blustery autumn day. hope you're all having a lovely weekend wherever you are! thank you for stopping by...  : )

October Finds

it certainly has taken me a while to make my way back to posting. i've been rounding up and photographing october finds for my vintage shop, 5gardenias.  I've been drawn to warm tones-- aged brass, sepia, chestnut stained wood, textiles and baskets-- even a few special clothing and jewelry items that speak of autumn and the colder season ahead ( i can't even say the word that names that season yet! ) all of the items are recently or soon to be listed in my shop. from top left to right: vintage italian hand knit sweater , vintage iron tongs, antique framed portrait print "La Flora" by Titian, antique toleware strawberry cotton reel thread box , ( for sewing notions lovers )vintage Kreamer lidded tin pudding mold , vintage Skinner tool box, sweet grass lidded storage or sewing basket, pair of antique brass petite candle holders, made in England, vintage woodland red winter berries and bakelite log brooch.
...and here's to a lovely weekend for all-- whether your season is autumn or turning toward spring... enjoy the beauty all around you-- thanks for stopping by!