Vintage Treasure

08 Monday Oct 2012

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Finds from a recent visit to Tinsel Trading Company in Manhattan.  Tinsel Trading is a magical place that has been run and owned by the same family for generations.  Their story can be found here.  They have the most amazing selection of vintage millinery flowers, trims, buttons…I designed many projects around Tinsel Trading finds when I was in fashion school and I used to visit often for inspiration when I worked in the city.  There is a huge set of drawers in the back of the store filled with an ever-changing array.  This visit it housed unused paper labels, cardboard animals and new old stock of red paintbrushes among other things.  I love wandering in without a specific project and letting the treasure speak to me.  I have yet to bring Ada, but Tinsel Trading is pretty much a crafty four-year-old’s dream.  Here is what I found:

* Reproduction French sticker labels.  (We will use them for jams and gift labeling).

* Vintage silver ribbon.  (Waiting to trim a package).

* Vintage gold stacking beads.  (I am thinking these would make a pretty necklace mixed with seashells we found this summer for Ada’s mermaid Halloween costume that I have been knitting).

Inspiration

06 Saturday Oct 2012

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Instagrams from the week:

* Antique Lace, Metropolitan Museum of Art.

* Bathroom, Red Rooster Harlem

* Cy Twombly Detail, Metropolitan Museum of Art

* Sleeping Child, Metropolitan Museum of Art

Rain Boots

03 Wednesday Oct 2012

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Autumn means the rainy season in these parts.  Thus begins the yearly search for the perfect rain boots for the girls.  I found these on Ebay last week.  They are from Korea and were on sale for $10 with free shipping(!)  Korean designs are so cute!  I love this smart use of gingham fabric stretched under the waterproof rubber.  Why didn’t I think of that when I was designing shoes?

DIY Acorn Necklace

02 Tuesday Oct 2012

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There are acorns falling in these parts, and it is the perfect time to make acorn necklaces. We first learned to make this easy project at a visit to our CSA farm a couple of years ago. It is a great project for tiny bits of leftover yarn. Kids can help with the acorn gathering, and yarn choosing and twisting. To make your own you will need:

*Acorns with Caps

*Small Screw Eyes

*Yarn – at least two colors

*Scissors

1. Gather freshly fallen acorns and wash if necessary. Snip off stem from top of acorn with scissors, leaving a flat spot at the top of acorn cap.

2. Twist screw eye into top of cap. If cap pops off it can be glued back on with craft glue.

3. Choose two contrasting strands of yarn and cut about 36 inches of each. (Adjust size per wearer).

4. Tie two strands together. Stretch out yarns with knot in the middle and have two people hold each of the two ends. (Or tie one end to a door knob if you are alone).

5. Twist each color of yarn in the opposite direction until yarn coils back on itself. Bring the two loose ends together and grasp. Grab the knot in the center and pull away from loose ends until the twist evens out. The two colors should now be evenly twisted around each other. Loosen or tighten twist until you like the way it looks.

6. Slip screw eye over the twisted yarn strand and tie the ends together.

Happy Fall!

Flea Market Finds

01 Monday Oct 2012

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Happy October!

My friend Leslie and I spent a kid-free morning yesterday at The Elephant’s Trunk Flea Market.  (Thanks Dads!)  It was a beautiful fall day, despite a few sprinkles, and the leaves had just started changing colors in Connecticut.  We both found some great stuff and had a lovely lazy morning wandering around.  I am still jealous of the bright blue and red umbrella Leslie scored!  Flea markets are my favorite way to spend a morning.  I love nothing more than wandering around and getting ideas, thinking of new ways to use old things, and finding inspiration.  Here are my finds:

Ironstone butter pats – also great for holding small jewelry or marbles, spices when cooking, or for mixing watercolors.  Ebay has some here.  (The opal glass is for Ada’s collection).

Glass drawer pulls in various sizes.  You never know when you will need the perfect set!  I am putting the small set on Ada’s dresser today.  The rest will be saved for future projects.  Etsy has some here.

Balsa hat form.  I went specifically to the flea for this and found the perfect one for $25.  I love it when that magically happens!  I am using it to photograph my headband crowns for my opening-soon Etsy store.

Giant wicker basket.  I love this thing!  I bargained it down to $35, and had no idea what I would do with it.  I was thinking of maybe using it for a laundry basket, or blanket storage, or towels, or maybe a future baby bed…It seemed to grow when it got into the trunk of our car and by the time I got it home it seemed really big.  Ada and Josie saw it and begged to put it in their room as a ‘nest’.  They have been reading books and snuggling bears in there.  I am still not sure where it will end up, but it is good in the corner of their room for now.  This figuring out the perfect use for something that was once loved by someone else is exactly why I love the flea market.

Inspiration

28 Friday Sep 2012

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Instagrams from the week:

* Treasure Drawers at Tinsel Trading Company.

* Halloween Production at Nap Time.

* Silver Ribbon, Tinsel Trading Company.

* First Pony Rides at Sun High Orchards.

* Wool-covered Fountain at Bryant Park.

* Vintage Flowers at Tinsel Trading Company.

Have a wonderful weekend!

New Clay = Happy Girl

26 Wednesday Sep 2012

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Sometimes it just takes a simple $8 package of clay to make Ada happy, and to make my life a little easier for a couple of hours while she carefully unwraps packages and makes sculptures with scissors and string and pipe cleaners.  I can completely relate to her excitement over new supplies.  The potential is so endless!  Last month Katie from Katie’s Pencil Box had an amazing post about her favorite online office supply store Present and Correct.  (If you haven’t visited Katie’s beautiful blog, you should).  I am making my list of supplies to work into Christmas gifts this year.

DIY Apple Maple Jam

25 Tuesday Sep 2012

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Josie and I made jam today from some of our 20 pounds of apples picked this weekend. The house smelled like apple pie and the sun was streaming through the kitchen windows as the fence builders were busy outside. (We are finally fixing up our back yard and the work from just two days has already made the house so much brighter!  More about the fence building soon).  Please don’t judge me for the ugly kitchen in the photos…It is on the list of projects.  This recipe was adapted from the Ball Blue Book.  To make your own Apple Maple Jam you will need:

*12 Half-Pint Canning Jars with Seals and Lids

*15 Cups of Peeled, Cored and Chopped Apples (We used a combination of Cortland, Gala and Yellow Delicious)

*6 Cups Sugar (We used Raw Cane Sugar)

*1 Cup Maple Syrup

*2 teaspoons Cinnamon

*1 teaspoon Allspice

*1 teaspoon Nutmeg

*1/2 teaspoon Cloves

*Seeds Scraped from 1 Vanilla Bean

1. Prepare apples and combine all ingredients in large pot.  (This is my favorite apple peeler).

2. Slowly bring to a boil.

3. Stir frequently and cook until jam is thickened to your liking. (Ours took about an hour).

4. Remove from heat and spoon into washed hot jars, leaving 1/4″ headspace.

5. Carefully wipe rims and screw on two-piece caps.

6. Slide jars into warming water and boil for 10 minutes.

7. Remove from water using a jar lifter and allow to cool.

8. Jar tops will depress as they cool.  Any that don’t should be reprocessed or eaten within a few days.

9. We decorated circles of paper, carefully unscrewed lids and placed the circles on top of the sealed tops.  Screw lids can be replaced to hold the papers in place.  Be sure to label each jar with the contents and date.

**This jam is yummy warmed on vanilla ice cream, pancakes or PB&Js.  Store unopened jars in a cool dry place and eat within one year.  Enjoy!

Pumpkin Queen

24 Monday Sep 2012

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We started fall off with apple picking and antique shops this weekend.  Chris found this giant pumpkin at Sun High Orchards after we picked 20 pounds (!) of apples.  I am excited to perfect a maple apple jam recipe with them this week.  The girls went on their first pony rides at the farm and Josie did not want to share her pony with any of the other kids waiting in line.  I scored a pair of vintage juice glasses decorated with fall leaves (for $.99 each !).  Ada found this crown at the last antique shop and decided it could live on the pumpkin when not on her own head.  There is officially a chill in the air today.  Welcome Autumn!

Inspiration

21 Friday Sep 2012

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Instagrams from the week:

* The Season’s First Pumpkin
* Tomas Saraceno’s Cloud City at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
* Pillows, Vintage and Ikea
* Ada’s Installation: Osage Orange, Chartreuse Yarn and the Horse