Vintage Craft How~tos

I have always loved to make things and have always had all sorts of books and kits where I found instructions and inspiration. As a kid in the late 60's and 70's, the craft books and kits I used had a different look and style to those shown below, but much of the basic information was the same. I love the illustrations and the way the color is used on the pages below ~ the layouts and the hand lettering further enhance the pages ~ I want to go make a pompom right away!

Looks like recycling/repurposing isn't such a new thing afterall....check out all the stuff you can make from a cheese box!

{all images via agence eureka}

Cool Collections ~ Cigarette Cards

Every now and then I find myself on ebay bidding for cigarette cards ~ collectible cards on a wide variety of subjects that were packaged with cigarettes in Great Britain. I rarely find these at any flea markets or antique sales in the states ~ when I do, they are very expensive and are not usually a full set. I have a small collection of sets I have won on ebay ~ two of which I have shown below ~ these sets are pasted into paper booklets made for the collector ~ for some reason these were not as expensive as the sets that are just loose cards. I really love the older cards ~ the printing and graphics are beautiful and the subject matter is always fascinating ~ I will share more sets in a later post ~ for now, cycling and flags issued by John Player & Sons......

{cover shows a rather buxom bicycler!}

{spreads from the completed booklet}

{single cards}

{cover of the flags booklet}

{all of above from my personal collection}

Karl Blossfeldt ~ Plant Photographer

Karl Blossfeldt (1865-1932) was a German photographer of plant forms. Blossfeldt used a handmade wooden camera to photograph the botanical specimens and also casted models that were to be used by industrial craftsmen and manufacturers. I love the simplicity and symmetry of his work ~ also the richness and velvety softness of the black and white photogravure. Although this work was done in the early 1900's, it has an amazingly modern look.

{these look like totem poles to me}

{these, like wonderful skyscrapers}

{all images from here}

Here is a book you can buy on Karl Blossfeldt if you are interested in more of his work.

Good looks and personality too!

Well, Sprocket has certainly weaseled his way into our hearts ~ even my older dog Speck has taken a liking to the little guy. I think I took 40+ photos this weekend and ended up with only one or two good ones ~ most look like the last one ~ a blur! Sprocket is quite vocal too ~ his bark sometimes sounds like Froggy from the Little Rascals.

{speedy sprocket}

Lyndie Dourthe ~ paper artist

Lyndie Dourthe is a French paper artist whose work I first saw in an issue of Marie Claire Idees ~ a French craft magazine ~ one of my favorites. Lyndie's work is inspired by nature and Victorian era 'cabinets of curiosities'. Her paper flowers are delicately colored, crafted by hand and dipped in wax for a look that is reminiscent of old wedding crowns. She also utilizes glass domes or handmade paper boxes and identifying labels or tags in much of her work giving it the look of a museum or specimen collection. Her brooches utilize old engravings transferred onto fabric and then sewn, stuffed, and further embellished with beads ~ presented in a handmade paper box along with a tag or label. Simply gorgeous!

{varieties of paper flowers}

{radish under glass}

{Boites a tresors ~ Anatomie}

{Boites a tresors ~ Elepoica}

Welcome Sprocket!

Finally the puppy has arrived and we have settled on a name ~ Sprocket! Here he is on his trip to his new home.....

{Speck & Sprocket sharing a chair the first night!}

{a pooped pup!}

We have been pleasantly surprised that my older dog Speck has taken to the new puppy so well ~ there have been a couple of snapping incidents, but mostly just a lot of chasing each other around. It has been a busy weekend ~ we are all bushed ~ hopefully my photos will improve ~ I am not used to such a quick moving target!

Scotties on my mind!

This is the weekend we are adopting Angus ~ a wheaten scottish terrier puppy! To celebrate such an event I thought I would share with you two children's books from the 30's that I have and love.

The Angus series was one of my favorites as a child ~ actually 'Angus and the Ducks' was the book I had ~ I don't know that I discovered the one above and 'Angus Lost' until I was an adult. The Angus series are Marjorie Flack's most famous books ~ they are based on events that actually happened to Angus ~ the family's pet scottie. I've always loved the illustrations ~ they really capture the true spirit of a scottie!

{images from the endpapers}

{all images above from Angus and the Cat}

Jock and Jill, illustrated by Morgan Dennis and written by Maida Huneker is another great book featuring scotties. I found this copy several years ago either at a flea market or antique show or shop. Morgan Dennis is one of the best known illustrators of dogs ~ especially scotties. A charming book with dozens of black and white illustrations that showcase the scottish terrier and their unique personality.

{great title page}

{that squirrel doesn't have a chance!}

D is for Denise Sharp

{give this woman a trophy!}

Denise Sharp is an artist I have admired for many years ~ I think I first became aware of her work when I bought one of her paper trophies at one of my favorite stores, Curious Sofa. They carried some of her fanciful architectural candy boxes as well. Visit her shop at etsy where more of her paper luxuries and letterpress cards can be had. In addition to her artwork, her dsharp journal is one of my very favorite blogs ~ great inspiration, wonderful eye candy, an interesting variety of posts, AND a fabulous sense of humor! Make sure to check out her Abecedary of Inspiration ~ such a clever and original idea!

{for sale at dsharp's etsy store}

As I have been lurking around on her blog for quite a few months now, I have also discovered that we have a lot in common: we like the same sort of objects, we both like making things, we were both born in July, and I think we probably both have a huge collection of stuff that we don't want to part with! I am basing this on this statement she made here:

"Frankly, I can admire modernist, striking interiors where the inhabitants have no more than a half a dozen museum-worthy objects, I just couldn’t do it. As in, it would not be possible - because I am almost like a junk magnet....To me, collecting, decorating and living with found and favorite objects, most rather humble, is a necessary inspiration binge - whittling it down to a handful would be famine."

Most eloquently put ~ I feel just the same ~ when I read this I thought, finally, there is another person on this earth who isn't downsizing ~ and isn't apologizing for it either!

If you like dsharp's work as much as I do, make sure to enter her Eiffel Tower Giveaway for a chance to win one of her lovely containers!

{on second thought, give this woman three trophies!}
All images via dsharp

Fabulous Find #7 ~ Visiting Cards

Lately I have been trying to organize my life and all of the stuff I have managed to collect over the years. While it is fun to go through and find things that I forgot I had, sometimes it is rather scary as I will come upon something I have absolutely no idea where it came from ~ other things I can tell you where I got it, how much I paid etc.... Not only do I have a treasure trove of actual things, I have tons of images I have collected from the internet for inspiration. The handcolored visiting cards shown above are one of those images ~ unfortunately the scans aren't very good ~ these are from an ebay listing ~ one I think was out of my price range from the start. These are so beautiful ~ ink linework with watercolor.

Another group with a different look ~ the die cuts are amazing! The lower left one is my favorite ~ the edge treatment is so pretty. You can bid on them here!