Welcome to Day 2 of the Cherished Collections Blog Tour! As with yesterday’s post, there are so many amazing collections from each participant; be sure to click through the links to visit their respective blogs and view the entirety of their Cherished Collections post!
Firstly is Anja from A Heart and Soul Story. She shares her covet-worthy collection of thrifted and vintage handbags. I always love seeing what other ladies find at flea markets and such, as good handbags are something I’m always on the lookout for too. I especially love her coral vintage handbag—so pretty!
Lianne at Insert Creativity Here beautifully photographed her various collections—looking at the images she shared is a feast for the eyes! From rusty old keys to bits and pieces she’s found; she has some really fun collections. Plus her colorful thread and fabric stashes aren’t to be missed!
Becky at Love of Stitch is truly a lady after my own heart… she shared her collection of vintage needlework books! She shares three beautiful and inspiring books that she has picked up at charity shops for very little—it just goes to show you that it’s worth digging through the used books sometimes! I especially am intrigued by the last one (pictured above)…
Kerry of My Orange Stilettos decided to photograph and blog about her brightly-hued vintage dress collection! I love all the cheerful colors and iconic vintage styles she has picked to share. The green-polka dot sailor dress is my favorite—also because it’s a handmade vintage piece!
Jeanne Marie’s Sewing Studio blog is the spot where I think my jaw nearly hit my keyboard! If you’ve followed this blog for a bit, you know I am an avid tea-drinker (I can literally not start my day without a cup or two!), and an elegant tea set makes it all the more special in my opinion! Jeanne Marie shared several of her favorite tea services—all are so beautiful and must be a joy to use!
Trudy of Sewing with Trudy posted her amazing collection of patterns; from vintage to reprint she’s included them all! She also shares how she stores her collection (totally thinking of stealing it… although it would take an awful lot of binders for me!), and that she’s managed to find most of her vintage patterns for mere pennies—something I also try and do with my vintage finds! (Best wishes to you and the little one too, Trudy!)
Corinne of Sewtopia has a keen appreciation for things from the past (we have had a few chats back and forth over email about collecting tendencies!), and I was so excited that she decided to share some of her vintage linens and dishware! Vintage table linens are a huge weakness of mine, and seeing what others have unearthed and found is always fun!
Lane of The Outside Lane truly has a keen eye for gorgeous vintage costume jewelry—her post made my heart skip a beat! Some of it is inherited, which makes it all the more special (her jewelry box—a beautiful piece—was passed down from her grandmother). Click and be prepared to drool!
A big thank you again to everyone who has been participating in this blog-tour! Stay tuned for part three tomorrow afternoon…
July 20, 2011 ·
11 lovely thoughts
posted in inspiration
· tags: cherished-collections, inspiration
Welcome to the first group of the Cherished Collections Blog Tour! I am so excited to be sharing some of the amazing collections everyone has been posting; it’s been so neat to go through each post (though hard to pick out which image from each to use!). I’m including only one image from each blog to keep things manageable here, but I do encourage you to follow the links below each and check out the larger posts. Many of those participating posted about multiple collections—really worth seeing!
First up is Elisabeth of Aesthetic Eclectic. Her wonderful collection of old and antique books makes me a bit light-headed. I adore old tomes and have a tiny collection of them myself. There is something just so fun about holding an old book and admiring the worn cover. She even shows some snapshot of the insides too!
Olivia at Dixie Damsels wrote about three collections; two of her own and one of her sister’s. She shared her growing collection of beautiful old handkerchiefs and scarves and lovely hats, and also her sister’s collection of Lucille Ball memorabilia! What fun collections!
Rhia of the Evil Dressmaker blog shared a handful of beautiful collections she has; from gorgeous old powder compacts, to family photos and lace collars. She is a girl after my own heart! She also talks a bit about how her collections have started and describes where some of these special pieces came from.
Irene of Heirloom Attire photographed some snippets of her collections of vintage clothes, Art Deco jewelry (love the bird pin she shared!), and vintage and handmade kitchenware and pottery. She also included some great tips on how she keeps her vintage clothing collection manageable—I need to take note!
Kendall at Knittin’ Pretty shared two collections: her vintage knitting booklets (just looking at these is making me want to pick up a knitting project I’ve sadly neglected!) and vintage advertisements and posters. Lots and lots of eye candy at her blog!
Ms. Cleaver photographed and blogged about her amazing collection of vintage aprons. She has truly a beautiful and eye-catching collection, and also uses them (which I agree with what she says that this makes them all the more treasured!). I have a little stash of aprons and seeing these makes me want to figure out a way to display them better…
Paige at her blog Final Clothes-Out shared some utterly gorgeous, jaw-dropping jewelry pieces she’s collected over time. From a lovely promise ring from 1871 (so neat!) to sparkling pieces that are good for a bit of glamor, her post is really beautiful to look at!
Catherine at Shu Flies gathered up some wonderful family images that she has in her collection. She wrote about what it means to have these pictures—especially from the standpoint of her heritage, past and what it means to her. I truly enjoyed reading her heartfelt words and thoughts… Thank you, Catherine!
Last but not least is Katie of Unconventional Katie. She shares a drool-worthy collection of old cameras (another burgeoning collection I have going too!). While I wouldn’t ever trade the instantaneous nature of my digital camera, there is something so beautiful about old film cameras (and the images they produce).
A big thank you to everyone who has participated in this—it’s been an amazing response and I love that we can do a “group project” like this together (isn’t it fun?!). Keep an eye out for the second group post tomorrow…
July 19, 2011 ·
15 lovely thoughts
posted in inspiration
· tags: cherished-collections
Welcome to the first day of the Cherished Collections Blog Tour! Today I’m starting the collection tour, but be sure to come back each evening this week (starting tomorrow) for a look at what others participating in the blog tour have posted about.
I had the worst time picking out what to share with you; I have a lot of little collections so choosing which to include today proved to be a bit challenging. In the end the three I picked I hope you’ll enjoy seeing!
the little yard sale find that started it all.
First up is my growing collection of vintage sweetheart and nautical-themed jewelry. I unwittingly purchased my first piece at a yard sale years ago (ironically the day SH and I went on our first date–fate perhaps?!). I didn’t really know about Navy sweetheart jewelry until much more recently, and have been picking up pieces here and there—although most have been lovely gifts from friends and family who know I collect it! Of course nautical pieces have also made their way into the collection as well. The trio of anchors is one that SH picked up for me earlier this year. I’ve always loved just about anything with a nautical theme, but I’m especially fond of it now because of SH and how proud I am of him and Navy heritage.
a 1964 pattern book that I was given years ago by one of my aunts. I think it belonged to my paternal grandmother at one point.
paging through for inspiration.
the sometimes mad-cap fashions of the late 40s. more images here.
You’ve seen snippets of my vintage pattern books and booklet collection over the years, but I wanted to show it collected up together! These are just the sewing pattern booklets; I have another (smaller) collection of knitting and needlework ones as well. A handful of the 40s booklets I bought as a teenager (some of my first Ebay purchases!), and they hold a very special spot in my collection. When I bought these I was just becoming interested in sewing vintage fashions and integrating it more into my everyday wardrobe. I’ve referred to all of these many times over the years for inspiration and ideas; they never fail to provide on that point!
Lastly is my very tiny stash of antique tintypes. (Wikipedia has a good history of the tintype photograph here.) These I mostly picked up some years back from my grandfather who ran an antiques business. But I’ve added in a couple since then as well! I still look for interesting images when I go to antique stores; I especially like group photos as you can see. I particularly love ones from the 1870s; the clothes of the decade are particularly beautiful in a Victorian way, and the piled-high hairstyles have always fascinated me. There is something haunting about old photographs that have found their way into antique stores and flea markets; and I think that appeals to me. I was always one of those children who would sit and stare at pictures in history books for hours, studying the faces of the people in the image and wondering what they were like. Though none of these are terribly remarkable or dynamic photographs, it’s an appeal of old images that still draws me in to this day.
Those are my three collections! I hope you enjoyed these, and be sure to stop by again tomorrow evening to see some of the collections others are sharing!
July 18, 2011 ·
27 lovely thoughts
posted in inspiration,vintage inspiration
· tags: cherished-collections, vintage inspiration
Good morning, friends! I hope you had a lovely weekend. Before I get any further into this post, I’d like to say thank you for all your encouraging comments of late. I’m sure it sounds a bit cliche and over-used, but your words always mean a lot to me. Sometimes I dislike the fact that blogging–or any online interaction–can be so cold and distant. It’s hard to convey how much your enthusiasm and thoughtfulness mean to me. Often it seems that I keep repeating myself endlessly with “thank you!” (and variations thereof), but it’s heartfelt and your words are what inspire me continually. Thank you!
The other day I was organizing my costume jewelry bits and bobs (I have never been, and will never be, the neatest person around), and realized that I have somehow started a little collection of animal and insect jewelry. I love the quirkiness of unusual pieces (even if they’re brand new–which about half of these are)—they’re sure conversation starters! Plus they tend to mesh very nicely with my vintage inspired closet—novelty pins such as these were immensely popular in the 1940s and 50s.
The latest addition is this jeweled beetle ring that SH surprised me with. It’s newer, but reminds me of insect jewelry popular particularly in the 40s—a bit silly, but still ladylike. What I love most about these sort of conversation pieces is that they instantly brighten just about any outfit. Whether pinned to a plain cardigan, or on the belt of a dress, or a winter coat lapel, the whimsy and splash of color can’t be denied.
While my vintage jewelry acquisition tends to be somewhat haphazard and based mostly on stumbling across little (inexpensive) treasures, there are a few pieces I’d be over the moon to eventually add into the mix! An octopus brooch would go nicely with my other sea-themed pieces. I have the poodle, so a kitty would of course be a nice addition (or perhaps a 40s tiger or panther pin?).
Do you have any little “novelty” jewelry collections going? Is there a theme to pieces you hunt for?
Collections: the first of hopefully many sharing my love of creating little collections. From found objects that catch my eye to things I actively hunt for at flea markets and thrift shops, I’m a bit of a packrat and adore chatting about these little groupings of objects that brighten everyday life. Please feel free to jump in and add your two cents too… The more the merrier! (If anyone would be interested in a little community post about collections–posting about a group of objects each week or two on each of our blogs–let me know! I’d love to do a “group project” together!)
July 5, 2011 ·
92 lovely thoughts
posted in inspiration
· tags: cherished-collections, collections, jewelry, thrifting + vintage
