Category Archives: Vintage

Chalkboard Grocery List (Old, Meet New)

23 Wednesday May 2012

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We have been on the hunt for a vintage chalkboard for the kitchen.  We found the perfect one at Brimfield, and then left it for too long and someone else bought it.  (I know, I know totally amateur move.  And I used to be in the antiques business…When you see something you love, get it before someone else does).  Luckily we found a small reproduction slate at Sturbridge Village the next day.  These slates were used by school children to practice lessons before schools had paper to hand out to everyone.  We use the chalkboard to keep a running grocery list and then take a picture of it on the phone before running out to the store.

Bloomers

17 Thursday May 2012

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Bloomers are one of my favorite baby wardrobe staples.  They are cute and comfortable and fit nicely over Josie’s big cloth diaper butt.  I modified a vintage Butterick pattern for this pair and they used less than half a yard of Liberty fabric.  I have plans to make some into longer pants, and a heavier corduroy would be perfect over tights for fall weather.  So many good options!  Here are some similar vintage patterns on Ebay.  Purl Soho is a great source for Liberty fabric, (and all around great inspiration).  Soor Ploom also has adorable bloomers if you would rather buy than DIY.

*Today is the 100th post on Domestic Space.  Thanks so much for reading and we can’t wait to share more with you!

Ironstone

16 Wednesday May 2012

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One of our Brimfield scores was an addition to our ironstone soap dishes.  These heavy utilitarian dishes are my favorite for the bathroom sinks.  They were often made for hotels and are sturdy and useful.  I love that they are each aged to a different mellow white.  Now we just need to find the perfect sinks to go with them:  I am dreaming of a heavy porcelain double basin farm sink for the kitchen, a pedestal for one bath and aged marble for another.  Slowly, slowly this home will be found in pieces and assembled to our liking.  Some days it is hard to be patient, but I know it will be worth the wait.  We are enjoying the hunt for the perfect treasures and trying to listen to what house has to tell us about our plans.

Pinwheels

14 Monday May 2012

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Pinwheels made from vintage fabric for headband crowns.  I found a big box of cut circles at a flea market and the prints were perfectly bright and preserved.  I remember a quilt made from these at my Gram’s house when I was little.  Yesterday Chris took the kids for the day and left me to a quiet house and NPR Podcasts and production.  So lovely!  I am working during the kids’ naps and between art projects to get lots of crowns done before Renegade in June.  I love a project!

Brimfield for Mother’s Day

10 Thursday May 2012

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Oh Brimfield, how I love you.  You never know what you will find there in the mix of strange and beautiful things and wandering around looking at antiques for hours is my idea of Heaven.  I get such inspiration from the design and quirky ingenuity of objects from the past.  The materials are often more beautiful and sturdy after 50 years than things for sale in stores today.  Thanks to my in-laws, I got an early Mother’s Day gift:  an entire day wandering the rows and rows and fields and fields of antiques with Chris and without children.  Despite the rain, and only a few small purchases, it was a wonderful day.

My List of Favorite Mother’s Day gifts so far (in no particular order):

*Unexpected flowers at my desk at work when I was first pregnant with Ada.

*Big bunches of cut peonies, lilac, lilies and iris – delivered by Ada in her pjs.  Chris got her up early, went to the market, and then left me alone to put them all in vases as he and Ada cooked pancakes.

*Brimfield with my love, who walked around for hours in the rain and pretended to be as excited as I was about all of the treasures.

What is on your list of best gotten or given gifts?

Here are some photos from the day:

Lilac

08 Tuesday May 2012

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Our neighbors gave us a little lilac bush last fall and we planted it in the back and weren’t sure if it would make it through the winter.  It is happily in bloom now and reminding me of growing up in New Hampshire.  When we were kids we had amazingly fragrant lilacs planted in front of the house and the smell of them always takes me back to early summer there.  Vintage juice glasses are some of my favorite vases and have a bit of a glass collecting obsession.  I usually refuse to pay more than $3 per glass.  This lily-of-the-valley etched version came in a set of 12 for $15 from an Upstate New York antique shop.  Bargain!

Beautiful Thing

03 Thursday May 2012

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Early Mother’s Day Gift for me from Ada. She has been talking about Mother’s Day for two weeks now and I was sure she was only excited about the prospect of eating cake to celebrate.  She used some of the contents of the surprise ball I gave her for Easter to make this sculpture.  This is the exact thing I would have wished for when I was three.  And she gave it to me.  Totally made me cry.

Bubblesuit Romper

02 Wednesday May 2012

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We have been longing for warmer days and our Friday forecast calls for sun and 80 degrees.  This bubblesuit from a 1971 Simplicity pattern (#9395) is perfect for a toddler in summer weather.  I think my sister had a similar one when she was little. The vintage fabric is from Ebay – I love the abstract bright figures.  You can find similar ones on Etsy here.  Be sure to check the quality and yardage when you are buying vintage fabric.  This Simplicity pattern also comes with a matching pinafore- so cute!  I’ve made a few versions of both from different fabrics and they are some of our favorite warm weather outfits.

Wisteria and Violets

17 Tuesday Apr 2012

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Chris was cleaning up in the back yard this weekend and found Wisteria in bloom!  We had it on our planting wish list, and there it was.  We must have missed it in August when it was done flowering and surrounded by the overgrown jungle in the back yard.  It has opened up all across the neighbor’s back shed and grown two stories up into the trees.  We can see the purple blooms from all of the back windows in the house.  Who planted it there?  The vine looks old.  Who were they?  Who planted the tiny purple violets in the yard that exactly match the ones on the old teacup that I use every morning?  Someone cared about this place a long time ago.  We are excited to uncover more about the lives that went on here before us.

Ribbon Dress

13 Friday Apr 2012

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I got this dress at American Apparel with plans to decorate it for Ada.  I was going to make little flowers out of vintage ribbons down the front of the dress.  When I asked Ada to help me pick out the ribbon she said she wanted all of them.  Then she told me they needed to go down the back and not be sewn down into petal shapes.  I was annoyed at her for not listening to directions.  I finally asked what the heck she was going to do with the ribbons hanging off the back of her dress.  “Spin and Dance, Mama.”  Duh.

To make a similar dress you will need:

*Plain Dress

*Assorted Ribbons and Buttons

*Needle and Thread

1. Wash and dry dress to account for shrinkage.

2. Let your designer direct placement.

3. Sew down buttons and ribbon.

4. Put dress on child and let the spinning begin.