...an easy SMILE!

This time of the year in the NE United States, when temps are generally hovering in the teens, 'saling' tends to dry-up!  An occasional Estate Sale or trip to a Thrift Store are about the only ways to get a Good.STUFF.Fix.!!

Yet,

I have noticed lately (as has J), that I rarely come home without an extra box or bag (or 2) of 'STUFF'!

Upon pondering this, I realized that I have gained quite the posse of suppliers to 'feed my habits'!!!

PACKING/SHIPPING SUPPLIES

~Our local Marshalls (namebrand discount homegood/clothing stores ) calls when they have a boxful ready to pick up

~Our hometown RX always has a bag of packing misc. ready for me when I pick up our monthly prescriptions.

~My Mom's hairdresser sends her homes with boxes full of 'peanuts' every 6wks (for us!!)

WE KNOW A LOT OF WINOS!!

When you love to craft & create with CORKS, like I do, this is a GOOD THING (It would be SERIOUS TROUBLE if I had to empty all these bottle by myself!!)

~Sweet next door neighbor waitresses evenings at a high-end Restaurant, and has convinced the bartender to save corks for her!!

~A dear friend works at a local winery doing tastings...

~Our Favorite Happy Hour Bar has a bag waiting for me weekly!

(*One night at Happy Hr., I was surveying the contents of the 'weekly bag'.  One of the 'Hierarchy' of the Company J works for was out with us - he looked at me, shook his head and laughed "Oh Susan, I wish something that simple could put a Smile like that on MY face!")

BIRDS of A FEATHER...

~The Best Man from our wedding has become an avid Hunter/Fisherman in his retirement.  He is more than happy to supply me with FEATHERS to feed yet another of my recent 'crafting inflictions'!

JUNK MAIL

~My 'trendy' friends are more than happy to keep me supplied with catalogs!!  This probably seems REALLY BIZARRE to most, but when you don't do much retail shopping, you tend to get NO CATALOGS!!  I LOVE thumbing through high-end clothing & home goods catalogs to catch up on the latest trends, and get Creative inspiration - like my recent soldering attempt!!

As WONDERFUL as all of this stuff is...

it was fun to get a 'Different Fix' this past Friday, and come home with the Subaru FILLED!!

To sum it all up...

I had my First. Real. DUMPSTER DIVE!!

BOSE Outlet STORE CLOSING!

I missed all of the BIG store display pieces over-flowing from the top and sides of the Dumpster, that first caught my eye when I pulled into the mall from the side entrance... but I had 'real' stuff to do that I didn't want to look/smell like I had been 'rummaging around a dumpster' for.

When I came back through 45min. later, it looked like the dumpster was empty, but upon closer inspection - NOT!

More tangles of wires, cables, remotes, speakers, headphones and other non-sense than you can imagine - but luckily there were TWO Large Plastic totes (with Covers!!) in the dumpster, just waiting for me to fill.  It means NOTHING to me, but it put a SMILE on J's face!  I can Honestly say this is the first time I have ever garbage picked that he has actually APPROVED!

(and Today, 1/29 is his birthday - so I'm glad I brought him home some Fun Stuff!!)

After I had loaded every.last.electronic.bit into the car, I went back for ALL of the unopened boxes of office supplies!(?)...case of scotch tape ...boxful of white board markers in red ...boxful of white board markers in black ...another in green  ...another in brown...  carton (6 boxes of 5,000) of staples ...roll of Bubble wrap ...white board erasers ...tape dispenser ...3hole punch ...boxful of Sharpies in black ...in red ...boxful of highlighters ...pens ...white out ... folders ...wood yardstick ...magnetic displays ... even a Disco Ball light NIB!!   OH MY!!

Yes, we have had TWO DAYS of fun sorting through all of the STUFF!

I can remember my Dad on occasion making comments about People regarding their smiles... "She wouldn't be nearly as Grumpy, if she smiled" ... "She wouldn't be half bad, if she would smile" or "I like her, she has a good smile"

Despite a lack of SALING, I have had an abundance of SMILES in my life lately!

...and HAPPY BIRTHDAY J!

 I love You!! ((BIG Smile!))

... from GROSSINGER's to The Concord

Last Saturday, on my way to meet a friend for a day of (GASP!) RETAIL MALL SHOPPING; I made a Quick stop to an Estate Sale.  Well, I am HAPPY to report that the $2 I spent at the Est. Sale is MORE than I spent at 'The Mall'!!  Some people have their penchant for Shiny Brites, some for Redman Baskets, well 'one' of mine is retro Train Cases!

I found this one for a song ($1), and it has ALL of the "bells and whistles" like none I have ever found before!

...pristine interior (complete with mirror intact)

...ORANGE (need I say more?)

 ...ORIGINAL travel tags from '1957'!

...and a VERY Conscientious previous owner, who went so far as to have HER name & address & phone # (see the phone # above and below the rivets?!) ENGRAVED on the latch!!!!

Of course, since I was carrying around this 'convenient shopping basket', I HAD to fill it up with various bits ;-)

(2) soldering irons, TINY pipe cutter - Made in USA, 1920's tin of Solder (For Graphics - NOT for use!!), small pocketknife size set of tools (Spark plug Cleaners?!?!) and (2) metal blocks that I thought would be useful for 'hammering' on.  

LOADS of inspiration to do some Projects - all for $1!!

**Come to find out those 'blocks' are St. Steel ~hmmm~ What would the scrap value be for #9??

...PIGS IN BLANKET!

IT'S SUMMER!

Stopped by one Garage Sale and one Estate Sale on Friday in honor of  'The Last Day of Spring'  (something wrong about saying "in honor of 'Summers Eve' " ?!!)
Had been wanting a lightweight, authentic Mexican blanket to use as a table cover on our Summer Porch - found TWO in beautiful condition!! ($2 ea)
Also found three Great OLD sets of metal stamping alphabets and numbers in sizes I don't currently have - The letters are HUGE!! ($10 for all) 

At the Estate Sale I just picked up a few 'useful bits' - a new in box mini blind (to replace an existing one in the house that has seen better days - not shown 'cause it's already installed!!), a couple of soldering irons (still looking for 'Mr. Right'), and 

a 'Brazilian Hammer'?!  Did you

Know that there was such a thing? 
'Famastil'.  Anybody ever heard of
them? 

Very nice tool - the balance, the 

texture of the handle...

Fri. night we had mentioned to a friend that we had used just about all of the Scapes from our garden already.  Upon returning home from saling on Saturday, we received a LARGE bag of freshly picked Scapes - OH.WHAT.A.TREAT!!
...We have been grilling them
...and I made a big batch of Scape Pesto



...and this morning I tried two different variations of pickling them!

Did you grow up with a dinner called 'PIGS IN BLANKET'?
How was it prepared?
In our house, it was one of MY Fav's! A hot dog filled with cheese, with a crescent roll wrapped around it and baked - YUMMY! Now that is Comfort food!  I'll never forget my disappointment the first time a friend said that they were having P.I.B. for dinner and I got served some kind of Polish cabbage dish (which, as I have aged I have kinda learned to appreciate!)

I recently came upon this 1898 Methodist Church cookbook from a Coastal New England - kinda puts a whole new twist on Pigs in Blankets!!  I guess it just doesn't get much better than Oysters wrapped in Pork Fat on toast!?! 

...'DIRT TRUMPS SALING'

BEFORE:
The deep freeze caused HAVOC on the poor Herb Bed Wine Bottle border...

HAPPINESS! OH HAPPINESS!  Saturday was in the 60's and SUNNY.  Sunday was in the High 70's and SUNNY!

As much as I crave the first sales of the Season - after this LONG WINTER I have a N.E.E.D. to be in the SUN with my hands in the dirt even more!! 

AFTER:
The 'beds' still need some T.L.C., but the Borders are standing
Tall and Proud B-)

 Several gardens were cleaned of their Winter debris, and the HERB Garden wine bottle border was straightened, and pounded back in securely.

OH yes, this was a Good workout on those 'Bingo-Wings'!!

Okay... so maybe, Saturday afternoon,  we did make ourselves 'public presentable' long enough to briefly stop by this Estate Sale before it closed - just long enough to swoop in and pick up this immaculate blue Train Case with insert (are we starting to notice a sickness developing here??) and unscrew this Waxed Paper/Paper Towel/Alum Foil dispenser from the wall (coming soon to ETSY) !!

As daylight hours are getting longer, STUDIO TIME is getting shorting (YEH!!!), but there are still a couple of projects I have rambling around in the back of my head...

Like plans for this necklace that I picked up a couple of weeks ago at the Rummage sale...

and working on my soldering, which still needs LOTS of PRACTICE!!

Maybe learn how to combine the two?
I always have GREAT VISIONS that I dream up as I lie awake about 3:30am...

Now, I just have to learn how to get these ideas to fruition in a presentable form!!

Or else, just not let the rest of the world look to close B-) !!


HOPE EVERYONE IS HAVING A WONDERFUL WEEK!
BE WELL.

...Arlington BATH FASHIONS anyone??

It's all a waiting game this time of the year here in the NE 

~ one day it is FRIGID with crystal clear sub-zero temps, the next the temp is up to a balmy 20° but we are getting snow up to our shoulders; then the thaw sets in for a few days with 40° daytime temps that gets the snow down to manageable levels ~ BUT the flooding worries set in

 ((sigh!!))

They say we may reach 50° today?!!

Our Hydrangea thinks so!   She has been pretty sparse all Winter, and is finally getting a fresh coating of leaves!

As for 'stuff'...

The Thrifting is still mighty sparse!  I did have a 'small find' with these GUESS wallets the other day.  Anybody ever try reselling Wallets like this?
With saling being so slow... I have actually resorted to doing some 'de-stashing of the attic hoard' ((Gasp!))...

 and we recently listed this Great New-Old-Stock MidCentury Bath Curtain that I had picked up last Fall at a Church Rummage Sale  ~ Gotta Love it!!!

AS FOR other ATTIC STUDIO HAPPENINGS...

The 'GIRL's DUKE vs SU afternoon Tea' resulted in my introduction to somebody who has been doing stained-glass soldering for years.  She ('N'), was gracious enough to come over for a couple of hours and give me some pointers~tips~tricks.  HOPEFULLY now I'm on my way?!??
Playing~Practing~Thinking~Dreaming
OH, it's all good in my head. 

...back to the garden!


I did finally make it into the 'studio' on Sunday ~ OH, what a nasty massacre that was!!  Soldering still alludes me ((SIGH))...

I.

WILL.

NOT.

GIVE.

UP!
 

 

I did complete' two pieces ~ but NO EVIDENCE is going to be put onto this blog!!  Instead we are going to put PRETTY PICTURES of today's happy place 8-)



The Garden.

Where I can transform a pile of weeds
(aka: JAPANESE LANTERNS)...

...Into a BEAUTIFUL FALL BOUQUET!!




LIFE IS GOOD IN THE GARDEN!!

...dog-day DayTrippin'

Started off the new week of the 'New Year' with a Girl's Day-Trippin' adventure!   (Picked a local town/city that we had been wanting to explore more 'in-depth'... and did it!)

good sign.  First 'Angel Trumpet' blossomed in our garden on the eve of our journey...

R (my comrade in travel) is stamper / cardmaker extraordinaire!  I got lots of inspiration from her patient explanations of techniques as we visited every little boutique and shop that piqued our interest! 

 

Fun Garden nooks!



Primitive Local Art!



A beautiful, eclectic day.
 

...and at the ripe old age of almost 46, it's nice to know that I can still have 'FIRSTS'  ;-)
YEP!
I got my first parking ticket.
 

 After that FULL day of inspiration (and a bit of purging, as I did sell some clothing to a second hand shop!!) I was ready to hit the 'attic studio' for some creative work...

NOT.TO.BE.

~apparently the planets aren't quite aligned-just yet~



Craziness with 'real-world-work' sent

 me to my favorite beach for solace,

where I ended up scoring some

 beautiful specimens!!

 

Another day I joined my Parents who are camping in our part of the state, for a day of 'flea marketing'!  Dad had brought me an old metal spool (from his shop at home) filled with some copper wire - he thought I might be able to use it in my jewelry endeavors.  While saling I also found a vintage cast iron based 'solder clamp' which had been on my 'wishlist' for quite a while ($2).  The box of solder and the spool of Brass wire were also flea market finds that set me back a whopping $1.50!
If you are wondering,
Yes.
That is an arm.
just. an. arm.

It was a present from my Brother, (that my parents had delivered to me from him). He knew I was looking for one...(photo prop!!).   Now, it just makes me smile because EVERYTIME I look at it I have an 80's flashback, as this song goes through my head
"Let's hear it for the boy
Let's give the boy a hand
Let's hear it for my baby
You know you gotta understand"
Can you name that Movie/Song??
(can you get it out of your head now?)

 

Planets MUST be aligned now... right?
  Not quite. 

Meeting up with A (part of the college crew) for a girls' this afternoon! 
Then maybe!
...or maybe not.

...S.A.L.T.

Wish I had Wonderfully Festive & Decorative photos to show you... but this is all I've got... I hate to say it, but it is the Fourth of December and I've got Nothing!

The only 'lovelies' paying homage to this twelfth month holiday to be found scattered around our house are those items somewhere in the Ebay / ETSY stages (photo to pack-n-ship)! I have been 'informed' that is all to change THIS MORNING!... I have a date. DH and I are going to pick out our tree.

This Wed. 'The Crew' (for any newbies: bunch of college gal bestest buddies!!) is gathering for our Annual Cookie Baking Weekend (Could this Really be the 20th year that we have done this???). We exchange little 'stocking' gift bags with each other, consisting of mostly garage sale finds or craft experiments gone wrong or Winery finds!!!

For a change of pace, after I had finished making the Holiday Candy, I decided to get out my soldering iron (I know, I know... I had said 'NOT until after the Holidays!!'), and make 'The Crew 'Personalized Pendants'. Well, my soldering 'still' needs a LOT of practice ~ so they are each getting 'Personalized Ornaments' (ie: craft exp. gone wrong) in their stockings, and maybe, if I whittle out a little more time they will each get a piece from my Skeleton key collection 8-)!

CAN'T WAIT TO HAVE A LONG WEEKEND WITH THE GIRLS!! 8-)

... 5:18 pm EDT (Northern Hemisphere)

This past week I have been on a Most Excellent Adventure - the perfect 'Warm Welcome' to Fall...

It started in Alexandria Bay (1,000 Islands, NY) - climaxed by an evening at BOLDT CASTLE (see photos in previous post!!)

From A-bay we ventured through the Adirondacks, across Vermont and into NH. A few antique shops were visited along the way, and we netted a 'new-to-me' Royal Haeger souvenir!! This olive peacock (center), was captured and now roosts proudly among two of my other peacocks!! My first of yet another glaze - the exact shade of hazy olive-green that predominates our Fall foliage right now as we eagerly await the vibrant crimsons and ambers of the new season!!

Our Destination: Concord, NH (DH does part-time photography for a NASCAR magazine, and this weekend the race was in NH!). It was my first visit to Concord, and it quickly became a favorite! It is the perfect blend of 'tree huggers', 'right brainers' , 'middle class' and 'suits' - in other words 'broad', but not to any one extreme! Does that make any sense?

Full of inspiration to reawaken my creativity with the new season...

... A stain glass shop to rekindle my spark for soldering

...an antique mall filled with interesting ideas (hmmm... a button flower bouquet could be fun in a piece of Haeger!!)

...a bead shop with LOTS of eye candy!

...and even a store window display validating my 'plarn' creations!!


Saturday while DH was at the races, I got a paper, some maps and set my course for adventure!! Time for a walk...

Beautiful morning! Enroute I stumbled onto a Farmer's market, and an Arts festival. LOTS of sales happening. Nothing 'earth-shattering', but loads of fun and everyone I met was very friendly! Small metal shelf, sterling necklace, Scarves, hankies, Dennison Poker chips, vintage packets of beads, garlands, grapevine wreath, a Serta Sheep (my first!), and a couple of sweaters (it was COLD, and I wasn't prepared...). Good thing that I was limiting myself to the amount I could comfortably carry (DH had our vehicle at the races)!! Okay, so I did stop back to the hotel room midway to unload... All-in-all a MOST enjoyable 6++ mile siteseeing walk!!