FOR YOU TO PLAY WITH

Oooooooohhhhhhhhh I hope you love these pretty papers as much as I do. The possibilities are endless; I use them as backgrounds for art cards, covering boxes with or in journaling. You could even wrap tiny little pressies with them.








Just double click to enlarge and then right click to save to your docs and then you can print them out as needed and at whatever size you need.

Have fun!

Sharing The Grapes From Our Vintage Vineyard

"Sweeter as the years go by, Sweeter as the years go by; Richer, fuller, deeper, Jesus' love is sweeter, Sweeter as the years go by".

These lyrics were taken from an old hymnal belonging to Miz Pearl and one day I'll photograph some images from it for you and wouldn't you agree that the things we "unearth, resurrect, acquire and just hang onto" are indeed sweeter as the years go by?

What a natural and raw beauty this little ladder back chair that Punkin found up in the attic is. We're fortunate because this is the house he grew up in and there in the attic is a virtual treasure trove of vintage surprises. His Daddy and Grandfather made this little chair and three more like it from deer hide for the seat which you can see is stretched over the legs that were hand sawed, turned and put together with nails. They are well over 60 years old. I use it at Miz Pearls sewing machine table and don't trust it to be sat in as the hide is brittle.
My daughter Lori bought this tiny beaded evening bag for me at an antique mall in Hot Springs, Arkansas and I just treasure it because I think back on the women before me and what hard working women they were who sacrificed so much for their families that for them to have something so dainty and sweet like this little bag would have been completely out of the question. How special they would have felt owning something so femme and glam. I don't actually know how old this little jewelry box is because I got it through the online Goodwill Auction and if you've never done that, you're missing some fun. As a girl, I always dreamed of having a little Ballerina Music/Jewelry Box, so I went for it. The image on top is foiled and pretty scratched up, but still had a certain charm and appeal to me.

She long ago stopped singing and twirling, but she still pops up in her little white tutu and I adore this.

I bought this doll several years ago and probably paid too much for her as she came from one of the pricey little shops my daughter Shari and I had gone to called "Antique Alley" in West Monroe, Louisiana and you know how they typically gouge the prices at these type places, but I fell in love with her as she is so much like a favorite dolly of mine when I was probably 8 or so playing house in my backyard. She wears her original clothing and is plyable rubber all over but stuffed with excelsor or wool type stuff and if you pinch her hard, the imprint stays awhile. Her body is not straight up and down as her little butt pokes out in the back. She is not jointed at her limbs. I think she is a beauty and I would say she is in "mint" condition.

And as usual I saved the pick of the litter for last! Here you see a couple of things I truly try to take good care of. These cowboys and their horses which are separate are made of hard plastic. They're complete originals, not knock-offs. They both belonged to Punkin Darlin when he was a boy and were two of only a few things he can remember getting as gifts when he was a boy. He treasured them, playing with them ever so little so they would stay nice. So they are probably around 50 years old. There is a Gene Autry Museum in of course Gene Autry, Oklahoma and we hope to take a little trip up there one day. Here's old Gene and one of his pals.

And here he is Boys and Girls..........the "King of Cowboys", Roy Rogers and his beloved horse, Trigger. He's back in the saddle again as his beautiful wife Dale would say. Aren't they too precious for words?

and kids if you want to be in Roy's Club you must remember these 10 very important rules.........

Roy Rogers Riders Club Rules:

1.Be neat and clean

2.Be courteous and polite

3.Always obey your parents

4.Protect the weak and help them

5.Be brave but never take chances

6.Study hard and learn all you can

7.Be kind to animals and take care of them

8.Eat all your food and never waste any

9.Love God and go to Sunday School regularly

10.Always respect our flag and our country

(Note: They worked for us back then and they'll work for us today)

That's all boys and girls

Happy Trails To You, 'Til We Meet Again
MizMollye

A Puzzling Situation

Have you ever had one of those days when you just felt so...well you know creative and almost like the feeling when you're dieting and you want something to eat sooooooooooo bad but you know there is nothing in the fridge that will satisfy you?
Well I had one of those days yesterday but I was good and did all my chores because Punkin said if I was very good he would bring me home a little surprise. So yeppers, I did all my housework stuff, ran errands, got my nickles worth of use out of the pool, picked okra, posted on my blog, did my Bible Study lesson, and even watched my soap then it was off and running to THE room. The Art Room and the one I sometimes refer to as my "Studio" depending on my audience of course. teee heee


And eyeing all the wonderful little supplies and goodies I stuff here and there I came upon a box of very BIG puzzle pieces. An old thick puzzle I had lucked up on at a thrift store eons ago and it was a puzzle of the United States with the World on the back, of course several states were missing hence the price of owning it for a mere .25 cents.

But I found a use for the pieces that bordered all the states, like Canada and Mexico and you know those foreign type spots. And deciding they were just too over the top and big to make as pendants decided to make pins out of them. So now that I have a small stash finished, I will glue the pin backs on them and think they will be cute worn on coats this winter or even pinned on handbags. What'cha think?

Here's one I did use as a State Pin, the Texas one which is the largest by far you know.

And I liked the way the star piece came out and it was the right size for a link at the top which could actually be worn on a ribbon around your neck I guess.

I began covering all the pieces with pretty background papers and then inked the edges and stamped some random images with most of the little girls and the women taken from Paper Imagery Designs and a few from Kristin over at Retro Cafe Art. I love buying those collage sheets.

Once those were adhered, the fun began with charms, old earrings, or what ever "found" stuff you can put your little paws on and edges were once again re-inked. Some have a very thin line of glitter glue around the edges, and the Texas has dots of puff paint to resemble studs.


The captions were taken from a little vintage book I picked up at an estate sale called The Westminster Hymnal with Vespers. I really feel a small twinge of regret in cutting up that little old book as it is copyrighted 1912. Yep, I heard you gasp and groan, but I figure it like this. I didn't buy the thing as an investment and when I'm gone to my home in the sky who knows but my kids will either dump it in the trash can or send it to the Goodwill for some lucky shmirk (did I spell that word right, and what the heck is a shmirk anyway)to make a fortune from. Anyway I cut all the little words out and thought they just belonged on these puzzle pieces.

The piece way up at the top has Latin and I don't know what it says but I know it is "clean". It's the one with the flattened bottlecap. I have a terrible wanting for bottlecaps!
What gift can this precious child give to Jesus? Why nothing more than her heart we all know. The little captions are so right on.

And to finish them off I used TripleThick Glaze by Deco Art. I love using that because one coat is all you need for a really hard, glassy finish which truly looks like glass.

This beauty has Sinned Against Thee as you can see and she has a saints medal to show it. And the little Lamb below shows her love for Jesus.

So after taking the state shapes out and putting them in a special place where I will remember for the next time I'm puzzled about what to do, I was left with an empty box. Well you all know we do not throw away a perfectly good empty box do we. So I went to work on that!

I am so influenced by the works of JoAnnA Periotti and K.C.Willis that I am always drawn to creating in that style, attempting to put my own spin on the piece while still employing some of the techniques I have learned from them. So the boxtop became a sort of hanging shrine of a little cowgirl with brightly colored yo-yos and tea dyed canvas with lots of grunge and bling.

And now I'm not puzzled and I'm also not feeling creative so think I'll read a book today and do some ironing. Oh and I told Punkin I would think of something really scrumptious for supper and maybe tomorrow I will share my little surprise with you. And THAT is just one reason why he is my Punkin Darlin.

Sending you Arty Hugs and wishes for a Fun Day!

Mollye

Hi Kids...What Time Is It?

Well Gee Buffalo Bob, "It's Howdy Doody Time"!

I know, I know. If anyone reading this is under say 50 years old you're probably wondering "Now what the heck kind of language is she speaking"? or "Wow, look at all that vintage stuff".
But for you who are OVER that 50 year old hill, you're saying, "Hey there's the same stuff I have." tee hee

Does anyone remember wearing these? Well you know we could not just wear one. Nope we had to have at least 8 or 10 in different colors and before we put them on, they were washed in a wringer washer and then put on top of the stove in a huge pot of Faultless Starch and hung out on the line to dry. They were stiff as a board and when you had them all on, preferable under one of your Poodle Skirts, they stood waaaaaaaaaay out and of course in school they scratched your legs and fanny something terrible, and when you got up from your desk, there were little white specks all over the place from the dried starch. But boy were they cool.


And weren't you just more than a little proud of yourself for how long you could hula hoop? Course we had stopped wearing the petticoats by then and were in the more sophisticated Sack Dresses, Chemises or even being very daring to try the very new Mini's.
Theres Howdy in the picture next to the clamp-on sidewalk skates which everyone got a new pair of at Christmas. Sometimes when the year had been a little lean, you kept the same ones as they adjusted to your growing foot, and on that year you maybe got a woodburning set instead.

Childcraft........oh how I miss those books. We had the entire set and I poured through them like kids on the internet do today. I was consumed by reading. My favorite was the Boxcar Children series and McCall Magazine as I could flip to the back and take out the Betsy McCall Paperdoll page. I had saved my old Childcrafts for my kids who are all in their 40's now and they beg me to never get rid of those books! Wish they had saved all their little Golden Books which we used to buy for .15cents!

Had to show you here some of the old Granny Squares and hand pieced quilt squares which belonged to my mother-in-law, Miz Pearl. What an angel she was. I wish I was more motivated into making a quilt top or an afghan with them. Both of the little dollies are from the fifties and the coke bottles, wow you could do some damage with one of those clunky heavy things. Before canned drinks, we could get a cold Coca Cola for a nickle. And remember when every girl was a Princess with a white Princess phone? ooh lah de dah

Melmac and red Melmac at that. How cute I ask you is that? And Punkin Darlin was up in the attic a few weeks ago doing some electrical work and he brought down the lamp base you see. It was dirty as dirty can be and had a couple of hair line cracks but we soon bathed it as gentle as a new born babe and glued those nasty little cracks and look at it now. I will for sure be on the lookout for just the right shade and be using this baby. His Momma's old measuring spoons which I still use and the chrome Tea cannister which is just part of the full set I have and still use and Papa's old spittoon...YUK in the nth degree on that!
The darling doll is so old and in bad condition. I got him on the Goodwill auction and for a song almost. But the shipping charges are what eats you up on those auctions. He's peeling and chipping but I like to bring him out of his closet from time to time. Oh I almost forgot...lookit the old "egg beater". I swear to you I do remember when that was all we had to mix up a cake. Amazing how far we've come.

This is a typical rainy, gloomy Louisiana morning and not being able to go out I decided to dig up some bones. I'll do it again real soon as there's LOTS more where this came from.

M-I-C-K-E-Y MOUSE!
Happy Trails Boys and Girls, Mollye