...Rock ~ Paper ~ Scissors!

Finally found my way back to my favorite thrifts...  dropped off a bag of clothes for donation, and came away with nothing 'blogworthy' ('cause this blog has Such.High.Standards - ya know ...ha!ha!).  The extent of my purchases were a few 'smalls' to add to my current delve into the realm of 'scrapbooking' (ie: decorative papers, stickers.  That's it.  The end.)

Do any of you scrapbook?

     I have always tried to be good and in January's cold, short days of the New Year, I would do the ENTIRE previous years' scrapbooking. 

     Well, about two years ago I was in some new phase where I thought it was futile, all of this scrapbooking.  J & I have no kids to pass these down to (not that they would want them anyway!!), the nieces and nephew sure aren't going to want them!  It's all just a BIG waste of time and space and $ that I could be doing something else with.  So I boycotted it. One small flaw to this plan (okay, maybe a couple)...

~I enjoy those few weeks of doing it.

~I enjoy looking back at the journeys these books hold .

~I REALLY don't have many $$ invested, as just about ALL of the components are thrifted (other than the photo's themselves, and a few times a year WalGreens Photo has some GOOD sales on prints!!).

~...and hey, who knows, maybe someday they will be found at a sale by some 'vintage-minded' person, who will adore them and think that they have just struck Gold for only a buck!!

     In my 'catch-up' mode (That has become 2015's mantra!), I find myself settling into a spare room upstairs for a l-o-n-g haul of Winter scrapbooking 2012-2013-2014!!  It is fun hauling out all of the neat tools-punches-cutters-papers-die cuts-stickers that I have amassed while saling and getting creative!!!

  This has been WAY TOO WORDY of a post, so I will show you our Upstairs Hall (the hallway that leads to the 'spare room turned Scrapbooking Hdq.!!) and our collection of 'chalkware' (maybe the Post Title should have been "Chalk ~ Paper ~ Scissors"?!)...

  I think that I have shown our chalkware fish on this blog before, but just in case you missed them, here they are again, in their Hallway Habitat! 

with a few mermaid mixed in!!
LOVE Mermaids in any Way - Shape or form!

Since we are talking 'chalkware', I Have to include a few pictures of our 'MISC' vintage 'Fun' chalkware that has found it's way into our home, and now forms a border around the TOP of one of our rooms.  This goes out to VINTAGE BIRD GIRL who recently posted a chalkware piece on her blog that I had never seen!

CATS and BIRDS and DANCING DUTCH...

more CATS and BIRD w/ a few KIDS and FRUIT!

If you hadn't already guessed, this is the Tiny 1/2 bath on our 1st Floor!
It's always interesting to get 'newbies' reactions!!!

ELEPHANTS and LADYBUGS and CAMPBELLS KIDS and that loveable RAGGEDY pair!

Do you see that ORANGE fish with the RED lipstick in the lower left corner???

That, single, adorable fishy (without bubbles) is what started this whole mess!!

Stay warm friends!  Saling Season will be here before we know it ~ so get 'prepared'!!!!  ;-)

... Tale of TWO Houses.

NO 'new-old-stuff' to report.

I have been Good.

VERY GOOD!

I haven't set one single foot into a thrift in 2015!!

((okay, pick yourselves up off of the floor))


So, what have I been doing with my time - you may ask... 
2015 is starting out as 2014 left off - I'm playing 'catch-up'!!  (and at the rate I'm going, 2016 should prove to be an AWESOME year!!).
Right now I'm in the middle of LOADS of non-blogworthy 'STUFF' ~ like 'catching-up' on my scrapbooking - circa 2012-2013 & 2014!!
AND 
LOTS of cleaning and hoeing out!!
BOTH of which tend to take me on many great trips down memory lane...  
I've decided that until I have 'new' stuff to blog at you about, I'll take you on some of my Memory Lane Journeys - Ready?


Quite a while back, Danielle at BLESSED SERENDIPITY posted about her DollHouse acquisition.  This post thrilled me to no end.  It was an identical DollHouse (ie: made from the same floorPlan / pattern) as MY DollHouse! 

The Year: 1971, Christmas.
For several weeks, this 4yr old was banned from going down to their finished basement - her 'Big Brother' (13yrs older) was doing 'something' down there!?!
Christmas Morning she found this 3-story dollhouse waiting for her under the tree.  Completely furnished with age-appropriate Durable-plastic furnishings, rugs & table clothes crocheted by her grandmother...
This dollhouse was played with EVERY day - through the years the furniture was upgraded, wallpaper and details added...
NEVER to be parted with!


~She grows up, move out, the Dollhouse follows her with every move~


Fast Forward 26yrs...
The 'not-so-little-anymore' girl has FINALLY completed her BFA in Environmental Design / Interiors (after many years of part-time study, while working).  Two of her girlfriends decide that as a Graduation gift she needs a 'new' House to be her first 'interiors' project.

This house was also adored.

and RAPIDLY filled.

Now, it is 2014.

43 years later.

Does a 47year old REALLY 'NEED' TWO DollHouses?

...needing the space to accommodate on-line sale Storage, consolidation was necessary.

2 Became 1.

There was no question as to which would go.

One of my Besties who gave me House #2 now has a Great Niece, just the Perfect age... and so it was HER Christmas gift from Great-Aunt-'A'!

The. Original. has been emptied, sorted, cleaned, rearranged (Oh, if only FULL-sized homes were so easy!!) and maintains it's place of honor!  ALL of my FAVORITE pieces incorporated - including the original crochet rugs, and hand-beaded chair (on the 'roof-top' studio)!

THANKS for joining me on this journey !

**I have been told 'Great Niece' "Loves her dollhouse and plays with it everyday!  Just the other day she asked her Mom if they could get some stuff to make it 'Pretty' - like carpets and curtains" !!!!!

...OH MY!

BIRD CAGE #1 = 3 tiers @65 each (195)

I want to THANK everyone who played along in the 'SWEATER CLIP GUESS'!

RHINESTONE VALANCE (L) = 83
'GOLD' VALANCE (R) = 119

I am a bit embarrassed to divulge the actual Extent to which my obsession has evolved...

BIRD CAGE #2 = 4 tiers @ 60ea (240)

When you add up the few displays that I have pictured here, PLUS the new BIRD CAGE #3, + MANNEQUIN, + ANOTHER VALANCE, + Girly BOOKCASE, + 'ORIGINAL PACKAGIN' Cork board =

810 DIFFERENT Sweaterclips / guards!!!

(that number does NOT include the 33 duplicates I recently sorted OUT!!)


So, with a guess of 288, Lynn is the WINNER!!
L- PLEASE send me a way to contact you, so that I can get your PRIZE mailed to you 8-)!!

... ONE thing leads to ANOTHER!

At the beginning of the week I had just.one.last trace of The Christmas decor to put away... Our 1/2 Half mannequin "Miss Kit Katt" was still adorned in my collection of Holiday brooches!  Time for a new 'outfit' for her, so off I went to my "pin drawer"...

Yes.

I know.

I know.

but it is what it IS. 

BUT!

I adore them all, 

and I DO wear them,

and they Actually ARE Organized! 

... Holiday in one corner

...FELINES together

...SW themes

...FISH/NAUTICAL

...Stylized METALS

...BLING!

and ENAMELS!
YES!  We need a little color ~ these shall be her next 'outfit'!!

I only had about 43 of them... (Oh, and then there is the one I wear everyday on my Winter Coat... and the one on my Bag...) YOU get the idea!
Anyway, there weren't enough to give her a COMPLETE outfit, so I gathered up my 'pin' sweater clips and bedazzled the bottom.

~And then, while I was gathering the Sweater Clips, I realized that I had numerous ones that were waiting to be added to our displays!
~Like my 'pin drawer', the sweater clips are arranged on their respective birdcages / valances by "category" (OCD? Anal?)
~While trying to incorporate the 'newbies' I decided that current space just.wasn't.sufficient!
~Off to the attic storage to dig out ANOTHER birdcage & stand!! (because EVERYONE keeps an extra cage or 2 for 'someday' - HA!HA!)

Cage #3 is now the home to all 'souvenir' / beachy sweaterclips!

Of course, while relocating, I decided the cages ALL needed a Good Cleaning ~ so OFF came ALL of the clips!
Dusted.
Sorted for duplicates...

Re-arranged.
Now, all HAPPILY restored to some sense of logic.

 NO sweater clip was safe from my scrutiny!

Valance of BLING

Valance of 'GOLD'

 Even a couple of new additions to the ON ORIGINAL CARD board!!

If you have read this post to the end - you deserve a PRIZE!!  What is your guess on the TOTAL NUMBER of NON-DUPLICATE Sweater Clips-Guards currently residing in our house??  The 'closest to the clip' guess will receive One of our DUPLICATES (now, I KNOW you are excited about that - Ha!Ha!).  Winner will be announced Monday Morning (1-12-15)!

  (~OR~ if you just can't wait, we'll be listing SOME of the dup's in our ETSY store!!)

CLIP ON YOUR SWEATERS and STAY WARM!!

...Left foot forward into 2015

If you were to walk into a STORE CLOSING SALE, could you pass by an odd box filled with these??

Don't know what it is about them, but I dashed across the room to them - I HAD to rescue some!!

Could it be PURE nostalgia to the days we used to make our 'Annual, Start of school' visit to the nearby town that had an old-fashioned shoe store.  We'd walk in, browse the shoes, then go sit on a little bench until we were quickly greeted by JERRY ~ the 'ancient' owner, founder and local repairer of all that went on the feet.  Jerry would measure our feet, then disappear into the back room, and reappear with the correct size in each of the styles we wanted to try...

~OR~ is it the sleek industrial design, that makes me think a grouping of these on the right wall could be Totally Awesome?

~or maybe, it's the simplicity of use and the practicality of owning your own??!

any way you look at it...
...they 'measure-up'!!
(sorry, had to do it!)

...HAPPY!

'MID-WINTERs NIGHT KISS'...Haeger style.