the lost art of penmanship

I am obsesssed with old handwriting.  
I especially like old penmanship books where people practiced their handwriting.  
It is such a wonderful art that is lost today.  Today very few people even write.  
Most things are typed via computer.  
It was interesting, I was reading the book about Steve Jobs and the reason that computers have the many options of different fonts and typography is because when he was in college (actually had dropped out of college) he took a calligraphy class and was so influenced by it,  that is why he incorporated many different type options in his creations.  
Microsoft copied Apple and therefore they have font choices too. 

Such a simple thing that we take for granted today, but it was all due to a brilliant, creative mans love of handwriting too.
Here are a couple shots of someones practice book.

I think I will be matting and framing these pages and selling them in our Etsy shop. 
Gorgeous!

my favorite find this weekend

My sister and I had such a fun weekend.  We went to Scotts flea market Saturday morning and made plans to go to an auction that evening.
I went with one thing that I wanted to get.  I had viewed the auction on line and saw these WONDERFUL trophies.  
As you know we collect trophies and we love anything "farm"!
I had never seen trophies so wonderful as these. We have many loving cups, but these were trophies of a pig, a cow and an ear of corn!
I went to the auction with all intents of coming home with at least these three.

What I wasn't expecting, was the added bonus that we got!
We ended up getting all the trophies (6 in all), as well as the neck ties the gentleman who won the trophies wore when he won the trophies! 

How sweet that this collection was kept together after all these years!   (60 + years!)
I was glad that they didn't split them up at the auction!

giving thanks tree

We did something fun this thanksgiving. 
My son and his friend went outside and cut down a branch from a tree.  
My daughter cut out leaf shapes from pretty paper, strung them with pretty ribbon and we made a giving thanks tree.  
We had both my family and my husbands family, as well as some of my kids friends over for thanksgiving.  
Everyone that came had to fill out a leaf for what they were thankful for.  
It was really fun to read everyones leaf at the end of the evening.
A nice tradition that I think we will continue to do!

happy thanksgiving!

Wishing you all a wonderful thanksgiving!

No Holiday show :(

We have gotten so many requests asking if we are having our Holiday show this year.  
Unfortunately the answer is no :(
Work schedules won't allow us to pull one off this year, but perhaps next year!
We will be selling a lot of Holiday goodies in our Etsy shop over the next couple of weeks though!
Here are just a couple guys that will be listed in our Etsy shop soon.
Hope you can stop by there and visit us!

Thanksgiving pumpkins

We have a whole new selection of new colors of silk velvet pumpkins perfect for your Thanksgiving table in our Etsy shop.

I love old autograph books

There is something so sweet and innocent about old autograph books from the 40's and 50's.  
I remember having one and the goal was to fill it up.  
I wonder why they don't have them any more?

 This one was given to a little girl, Georgianna,  from her mother, Mary, for Christmas in 1951.

Why is it when you are younger and you tell your age, that you count the months, the days, and in Georgianna's case, the minutes and seconds!!

We know what she looked like.... "your description.....5 ft tall, brown eyes,  black hair curly, dresses nice and very cute" says Catherine Bogwell.

Here are some of the sweet entries in this one that I found at a recent flea market....

Carolyn Slaytor gives some sound advise...."Love is a funny thing shaped like a toy and if you want your heart broke just give it to a boy"

Or the standard, unoriginal, safe "Roses are red, Violets are blue, candy is sweet and so are you" from Catherine.

Judy Kabealo gives us  more morbid version .... 
'I love you up, I love you down, I love you like a little clown.  When i die bury me deep right in the middle of high street.  
lay my hand on my chest, tell the boys I lie in rest"   A little weird?!

We know she's from Ohio with this one....
"Oranges grow in Florida, they grow in California too,
But it takes a state like Ohio to grow a peach like you!"

We know the price of corsets....
"remember when you are old and out of shape, corsets are $2.98!  So remember me when you grow old by that corset"  from her friend Dorthy who is anticipating that Georgianna is going to get a little out of shape!


And the final entry on the last page reads...
"by hook, by crook, I'll be the last to sign this book"
Sandra


Only Jimmie Lee Willis outdid her and signed on the back cover!


Did any of you have an autograph book when you were younger?

i had to have it...

Ever see that thing that you just HAVE to have? 
You leave the store and you continue to think about it?

When we were in New England we stopped at a shop and they had this beautiful thick chunky french botanical book.  
As you know I am a Francophile, and I used to be a Master Gardener, so this was a combination of two of my loves!  


(Francophile [ˈfræŋkəʊˌfaɪl], Francophil [ˈfræŋkəʊfɪl] (sometimes not capital)

n

a person who admires France and the French

adj

marked by or possessing admiration of France and the French)

It wasn't priced, so I asked how much?
The owner wasn't there and the shop keeper didn't even know if it was for sale.... 
What?  Not for sale?!  Surely, there is a price for everything!?
So, I left my card and told them I would be by in the morning.
We went back in the morning, still no answer on a price.  
I left the store in a slump :(
Then we decided to have breakfast in the area, rather than moving along on our trip. 
My phone rang!  "Yes, she will sell it!" I was told!
So we ran over to the store before we left town and I got this wonderful book!
It has beautiful illustrations...

It's one of my favorite things!
Now I just have to learn to read it!