Waiting for the weekend....

{photo via shorpy}

Already looking forward to the weekend ~ looks like the weather is going to be nice and I plan to hit another antique show ~ I've got the camera all charged up and my umbrella at hand just in case! Happy Friday!

Japanese Craft Book ~ Sock & Glove Animals

{ Sock & Glove Animals ~ ISBN4-579-11061-7}

It's been kind of busy in my neck of the woods lately so no time to take any photos! In the mean time I thought I would post about this great Japanese craft book I bought last year. I love the simplicity of the photographs and the animals ~ even though they are simply made they have such personality! I decided these would be a good project to do when my nieces and nephew came to visit last summer ~ I let them all look through the book and choose which animal they wanted to make and then purchased the necessary supplies. Below you can see the basics needed ~ there are clear directions for each animal as well ~ even though the book is written in Japanese, we had no problem figuring things out.

{ easy pictorial instructions for the dog}

{Simple variations make so many different characters!}

{the full range of creatures all made from socks and gloves!}

Above are the finished animals we made ~ my sister in law made the traditional sock monkey, my 11 year old nephew made the black and blue muscle bound monkey, my 9 year old niece made the pretty dog with the pearl on her collar, my 5 year old niece made the happy dog with the pink tongue. My creations are not finished yet ~ I blame that on the fact that the project was a bit more challenging than I expected and I had to help the others quite a bit so they could all take their projects home with them. Of course, this was months ago, so what is my excuse now??!!

Obsession #5 ~ Ephemera

Another thing I just can't seem to pass up is ephemera ~ defined as transitory written and printed material not intended to be retained. I thought this handwritten and drawn school notebook fell into this category even though someone did think it was worthy of keeping. Samuel Leighty is the name I found on the inside front cover, so I assume he was the author and illustrator of this fine piece of workmanship ~ I wish I knew how old he was when he did this. In the center photo he has written that the maps were drawn when he was going to the Prairie Hill School in 1900! I think I paid $3 or so ~ what a treasure!

Lovely Stores ~ Terrain

{photo via oh joy}

A couple of weeks ago I saw a posting on oh joy about a new garden theme store called Terrain, located near Philadelphia. Joy posted many photos here and here ~ additional photos from her visit to the store are here. This is the 4th brand from Urban Outfitters/Anthropologie/Free People and from what I can tell it looks like a place where I could spend hours {and dollars}. If only I lived closer to Philadelphia!

Fabulous Find #5 ~ Vintage Chest of Medicinal Labels

Pictured above is an item I have never seen before ~ a vintage wooden chest filled with old labels for medicines and poisons! The chest must have been used in an old drugstore/pharmacy ~ perhaps in storage for all these years. Another piece I let go as it didn't fit into the budget ~ I have to draw the line somewhere! I found it especially humorous that there was a special label for bed bug poison ~ I wonder what exactly that was?!

Great Graphics

Whenever I go to a flea market or antique show, another thing I notice and try to snap photos of are great graphics ~ above are a few shots from the flea market this spring in Sparks, KS. The top photo is actually from a bbq vendor at the other flea market in White Cloud ~ a small town 11 miles from Sparks. The center photo is from an old building in Sparks, the last photo a mower for sale.

Lovely Stores ~ ABC Carpet & Home

{gorgeous displays of home & garden wares}

{unique store decorations}

{beautiful handmade paper crown}

{lovely handmade wedding cake topper via tinsel trading}

{michal negrin jewelry}

Visited ABC Carpet & Home a couple weeks ago ~ as usual, it did not disappoint! ABC is one of my favorite places to go ~ it is filled with gorgeous and unique things to buy ~ lovely housewares, garden items, jewelry, furniture, rugs, even a floor filled with items for children. Whenever I am in NYC I try to make a stop here since the product offering and the displays are like nowhere else.