tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9631629519739089702024-02-19T01:26:59.550-05:00Cats From Marslife as I see it and live itaimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.comBlogger737125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-87292286683333425652019-05-31T20:23:00.001-04:002019-05-31T20:23:33.804-04:00Garden Fantasy And Reality - Plus A Gardening Tip!<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hello! We traveled to Lexington, Kentucky as part of a Memorial Day weekend getaway. During our visit, we walked around the University of Kentucky Arboretum, where I saw this:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">In the vegetable garden area, multiple heads of beautiful leaf lettuces were growing. As it was a hot day (the high of 90 was just one degree shy of tying the high for that date), my mouth watered at the sight of those crisp heads of lettuce. I joked that I ought to pick a head and tuck it under my shirt. Of course I'd never do this, and just as well, for my husband pointed to the security cameras mounted on the outbuilding next to this garden. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And there was a sign stating that the produce grown at the arboretum is distributed to those in need. I was glad of that, for I've often seen produce well past its prime at similar public gardens. Perhaps rotting tomatoes and greens gone to seed are meant to show the life cycles of the plants, but this has always seemed wasteful to me. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">That was my fantasy lettuce garden. Then I returned home to the reality of my own lettuce patch:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I don't have space for a big vegetable garden, so I grow some of my produce in pots on my deck. I got the idea of a "lettuce bowl" - a large pot of mesclun - from some of the vendors at our local farmer's market, who offer a similar item. But why pay $13 bucks or more when I can easily do the same for far less? I have two bowls of mesclun, sown a couple of weeks apart. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The only trouble with my deckside "lettuce bowl" is the gang of neighborhood squirrels. They're fond of digging up my pots of mesclun! So I learned to drape these plantings with "row covers" (sheer curtains purchased at thrift stores). This worked well, but of course I'd have to uncover the mesclun when I wanted to pick it, and I couldn't see the pretty leaves of my crop very well either. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Then last fall I came across a tip that had potential: a woman's flower garden was beset by unwelcome visitors like squirrels and rabbits. Another avid gardener told her to place children's pinwheels from the dollar store around the perimeter of her garden. Supposedly the critters don't like the movement and shiny colors of these toys and so they'll stay away. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Shortly before Memorial Day, our local Dollar Tree advertised pinwheels, so I picked up a baker's dozen. Some were placed in my vegetable garden and others were placed in my deck pots. You can see the red and blue of one pinwheel in the left side of the above photo. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">As a test, the pinwheels were put into place Friday morning of the holiday weekend, and we returned home the next Monday afternoon. I looked over my deck and garden plantings - not a single plant had been disturbed. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I was happy about this! In the past, besides row covers, I'd spent money on fake owls and snakes and various repellant sprays or powders. The fake critters have to be moved every so often and the repellant concoctions (some commercial, some DIY) have to reapplied after rains. But the pinwheels just sit there and spin around in the breeze, and look cute even when still. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">So there you have it - gardening fantasy and reality, plus an easy tip to try out if you have critter troubles too. Here's to a good growing season!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">(If you'd like more information about the University of Kentucky Arboretum, go <a href="https://arboretum.ca.uky.edu/" target="_blank">here.</a> It's worth a visit if you're in the Lexington area.)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><br /></span>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-18785801488642859792019-05-10T21:52:00.000-04:002019-05-10T21:52:18.716-04:00Thrifty Acres: Armchair Traveling<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hello! I've traveled a fair share of US, but my international trips have thus far been limited to Canada. That latter fact may change someday, but even if it doesn't, I'm always good for some armchair traveling. And thrift stores are good places to pick up trip accounts, such as these three books I've purchased recently:</span><br />
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<br /><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">From top to bottom: <b>Cafe Oc</b>, by Beebe Bahrami; <b>Grandma's On The Camino</b>, by Mary O'Hara Wyman, and <b>The New York Times Explorer Mountains, Deserts & Plains.</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The first two books are somewhat similar in that the authors immerse themselves in European countries for several weeks (Wyman) to a year (Bahrami) at a time, which gives both women time to make new friends, learn the history and customs of an area, enjoy local foods and drinks, and observe flora and fauna. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Wyman doesn't have a car at her disposal, since she's "on the camino" - that is, a 500-mile route that starts in France but primarily traverses through Spain. Wyman was 70 when she set out on her 48-day walk, and was a solo traveler. I admired her for putting up with variable weather and sleeping conditions. She mentions others who made the walk easier by signing up with touring companies that arranged nice lodging and hauled excess gear. But even though Wyman was consistently beset by various foot injuries (she stops for medical services several times along the way), she rolls with the punches and keeps on walking. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Her book is presented as a three-part journal. Part One is the daily postcard she wrote and mailed to her five-year-old granddaughter. Part Two is her daily journal entry, and Part Three includes reflections she added for each journal entry after she had returned home. (Thus, each day's walk includes three entries.) Considering how challenging the walk was, I was impressed that Wyman kept to her writing schedule every day! I think I would have been nodding off the minute I stopped walking.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Bahrami doesn't have a car, either, when she settles into the town of Sarlat in southwestern France for a year. So she does a great deal of walking as well, both around town and in the countryside. She revels in local foods and wines, explores prehistoric caves in the region, makes new friends, brushes up on her French and meets with a group who gather to speak the local dialect, Occitan. This gathering takes place in Cafe Oc, the basis of Bahrami's book title. (By the way, "oc" means "yes" in Occitan.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I'm a regular visitor to our local farmer's market, so I really enjoyed Bahrami's frequent trips to Sarlat's version of this enterprise. Such wonderful descriptions of such wonderful food! I swooned at the delectibles she brought back to her rental apartment.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The last book, the one produced by <i>The New York Times</i>, is very different from the first two books. Instead of one author who describes her adventures in (mostly)a single country, <b>Explorer </b>is a compilation of travel articles about locales the world over. Sure, there's write-ups of visits to US spots in Idaho (Sawtooth Valley), Georgia (Okefenokee Swamp), Alaska (Inside Passage region), and more. But there's also descriptions of trips to Peru (Machu Picchu), Chili (star-gazing hot spots), Germany (the Alps in the winter) and so on. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The articles are short and I found myself wishing they'd been a bit longer. I would have liked to have learned even more about each writer's experiences during their visits. But again, these articles had originally appeared in the travel section of a newspaper, where space was limited. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><b>Explorer </b>doesn't skimp on page quality or photographs though. Both are along the lines of what I'd consider a "coffee table book". I wasn't surprised to learn that brand new, this book was $40.00. I was happy with the $2.99 I paid at a thrift store. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">So until my next big trip (a summer vacation out west is in the works), I'll continue with my armchair traveling. </span><br />
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<br />aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-4321952050922501592019-04-24T20:42:00.002-04:002019-04-24T20:42:21.715-04:00Thrifty Acres: Color Me Thrifty<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hello! Well, it's been awhile since I last posted - a home renovation project and several out-of-town trips have kept me absent from my blog. But here I am again, and I have a colorful post today. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I'll start off with this:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Ed-u-Cards' Color Bingo game, produced in 1952. The box is a little beat-up, but hey, the game's 67 years old after all. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">From the front cover: "Color Bingo with Special Peg Spinner and Wooden Covering Counters. A New, Improved Bingo Game...Faster, Easier and More Fun For Children And Adults"</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Sounds fantastic, right? So let's take a look inside:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigvCo-h1pUb1kBI7sRfAEAlpeAR1HNJYtWf0Nn1_qzidnb0xb8yRTNZcNPggEAYIXnsMWwRkrCadmurAoLx3wGA_JsSRIYZpfXfpq8KG9kc486UAb1eHNMRnji_JiFOpcjFkBUAuf4t6PL/s1600/100_9791.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigvCo-h1pUb1kBI7sRfAEAlpeAR1HNJYtWf0Nn1_qzidnb0xb8yRTNZcNPggEAYIXnsMWwRkrCadmurAoLx3wGA_JsSRIYZpfXfpq8KG9kc486UAb1eHNMRnji_JiFOpcjFkBUAuf4t6PL/s320/100_9791.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The bingo cards and the "Special Peg Spinner" certainly are colorful, what with those sections of blue, yellow, red, green and orange. Those colors remind me of the Colorforms sets I used to play with when I was a kid. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I don't know if the game is complete; I suspect that a few cards are missing; maybe some pegs and counters are too. No matter, it's still an interesting look for a bingo game and one I hadn't encountered before. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Another close-up:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">You can see the dark pink wooden pegs on the "Special Peg Spinner" on the right - so now you know why the spinner has that name! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">As to why this bingo game is "faster, easier and more fun for children and adults"? Well, for one thing, there's two sections on the spinner for each color, so I suppose that would, indeed, make the game go faster. It did not take me long to get the bingo show above. Perhaps the ease of winning bingos makes this version "more fun". But I'm not sure about the "easier" part - it's played the same as any other bingo game!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Moving on to another colorful thrift store purchase:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Two vintage beverage mugs, labeled with "Japan" on the bottoms. I don't know what year these are from, but I'm guessing from the 1960's or 1970's. Two very different floral designs but I love them both. Bonus points for the tulips on the bottom mug, since I live in a town famed for that flower. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And speaking of tulips, they're just beginning to bloom around town, and the annual festival honoring them begins the first weekend of May. And these colors from nature are even better than those found on thrift store finds!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> </span>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-57008200618132379722019-03-07T22:17:00.001-05:002019-03-07T22:17:07.000-05:00Vintage Book Fun For Old And Young<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hello! I'm well past the target age for young adult books, but I couldn't resist picking up this vintage volume at a thrift store:</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"></span></b><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><b>Run Sheep Run</b>, published in 1959 by husband/wife duo Bob and Jan Young. The cover may look rather generic, but the back of the book jacket mentions a lofty goal:"<b>Best Loved Girls' Books</b> is a new program of top quality reading entertainment for girls in their early and mid-teens. Each month a staff of experienced editors in this field chooses an outstanding teen romance, career story, or girl's adventure book for our membership. Every selection is pre-tested for its wholesome, enjoyable appeal to today's young moderns..."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">So of course I bought the book to see what the "young moderns" of 1959 would read. I discovered an appealing story of a girl who learns to be her own person, and that part of the story is still relevant. But of course there were still plenty of outdated passages that seem amusing or bizarre today! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">As the book begins, our heroine, Judy Cannon, is relaxing on a state park beach with her friends, somewhere in California. Her junior year of high school is about to begin, so the discussion of a science class requirement comes up. None of Judy's friends are fond of science, it seems, and they all agree that "girls hate science". She's urged to take biology, as it's supposed to be the easiest science class at their school. Perhaps that's because an aging teacher has led that course at their school for decades. Judy agrees, reluctantly, to sign up for that class.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">We also learn that going steady during junior year is <i>the </i>thing to do. After all, think of all the parties and dances one would miss otherwise! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">So right away here's two outdated notions. I began high school 14 years after this book came out. I'm glad I'd never heard that "girls hate science", since I took science all four years of high school, well above the then-meager state requirement for that subject. And although there was plenty of "steady dating" in my high school (something I actually did for half my junior year), it wasn't as big a thing as it was for Judy and her friends. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Judy's group walks up the coastline, until they reach the boundary of the state park and the beginning of private property. We learn that the land was a recent purchase by Judy's widowed mother. It's "100 acres of shoreline and meadow" and has an abandoned Victorian house near the beach to boot. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">In the next chapter, we read that Mrs. Cannon has a rather modest-sounding job working in the underground safety deposit vaults of a local bank. Yet by cashing in her late husband's life insurance policy, she was able to buy all that land on the California coastline. Since subdivisions had just arrived in their area, she figured she could resell the land at profit to the next developer. Can you imagine the average single mom buying land like that in California now? How much would an unspoiled tract like that would be worth today? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The school year begins and much to Judy's dismay, the old biology teacher has retired, and now there is a younger, presumably tougher male teacher. But in spite of herself, Judy finds herself liking the marine biology lessons. And since she'd already shown aptitude in art class, she's pleased when her art teacher announces an marine watercolor assignment. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">So all is going well, until disaster strikes: Mrs. Cannon is suddenly hospitalized with some sort of severe lung condition. The doctor's orders for her recovery involve a year off work and plenty of fresh air and sunshine. I couldn't help but wonder what sort of lung condition would have warranted such a drastic change in lifestyle. TB? But the authors never say. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">This turn of events is real trouble for Judy and her only sibling, a ditzy, 19-year-old married sister whose husband barely makes enough money to support their newlywed household. No dad, no other relatives in town to help them. But wait - there's their Uncle Mort, their mother's stepbrother, recently retired from the Navy and settled in Oregon. Would he be able to help them?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Would he! It'd been decades since he'd last seen the family - Judy was too young to remember his last visit - yet he settles his affairs in Oregon and within days comes to assist the Cannons. He vows to stay as long as he's needed. What luck!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Uncle Mort brings many changes to the family, the biggest being moving the family to a residence that'll meet the requirements for Mrs. Cannon's recovery: that old Victorian house on her beachfront property. In no time, he is able to make the house habitable again, and Judy, Mrs. Cannon and Uncle Mort move there shortly after the new year.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Judy's against the move at first - she's now 4 miles out of town, away from her friends. Even worse, there's no school bus route that leads to her property, so her uncle informs her she'll have to ride her bike to and from school. Judy's mortified by this - nobody, but nobody but a few loser boys, rides bikes to school. I was amused by this, and wondered if this would still be true in energy-conscious, fitness-conscious California.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">(Conveniently, shortly thereafter she makes friends with a girl who happens to live by the last bus stop in Judy's direction. The girl suggests that Judy bike to her house, leave her bike there, and then board the bus with her. The reverse steps would occur after school. This shortens Judy's commute by a huge distance, and best of all, she'll no longer be seen biking to and from school!) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">She's also appalled when Uncle Mort announces a start of a money-making venture for the family: he's going to fix up an old structure between their house and their beach to turn it into a bait shack. The fishing's good along their stretch of the coast, and he figures they can do well by selling bait and other fishing supplies. And before you know it, they're up and running. Judy helps him on the weekends. Initially, she figures the money she earns will go toward a car. No more being stuck out there; she'll be able to go into town to hang out with her friends! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">But she begins to like the bait shack work. Instead of saving for a car, or even buying new spring clothes, she purchases a fish smoker at the hardware store. This delicacy sells so well at the bait shack that she convinces a local butcher to stock it too. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The bait shack start-up and addition of smoked fish seemed to happen really fast. I wondered what sort of licensing, zoning and health department requirements were around back then. Granted, the authors may not have wanted to bother with such details, but I bet things were more lax in 1959. After all, a lot of things have changed since then. Why, Judy was shocked that the smoked fish the butcher had purchased from another supplier was "...marked at more than a dollar and a half per pound." I'd take that price for smoked fish any day of the week!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Judy grows ever more immersed in her biology class. She risks the scorn of her friends by joining the Science Society. It's a sometimes painful process, making new friends there while trying to keep the old. But after a few false moves she gains more confidence in herself, and even gains the respect of her old crowd. Some of them bemoan their lack of funds and have to look for summer jobs. They admire her smoked fish and bait shack earnings. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Along with her new Science Society</span><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> friends, she participates in a regional high school Science Fair. Her exhibit of marine tide pool drawings combined her interests in art and marine biology. Much to her disappointment, she wins no awards at the science fair, but her exhibit catches the eye of the director of the local Marine Biological Station, who wants it displayed in his facility's museum all summer. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And prize ribbon or not, Judy now has a future career goal in mind: marine biology illustrator. The financing of the college education necessary to meet this goal will be no problem - she'll just make more money working at the bait shack and selling more smoked fish! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">So yes, our heroine Judy Cannon grows up a good deal in <b>Run Sheep Run. </b>I don't know if this book appealed to the "young moderns" it targeted, but it appealed to this "old" reader. A slightly contrived but believable story, along with tidbits that are amusing in today's world, made this vintage book fun to read!</span>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-15954778136168854262019-02-21T20:10:00.002-05:002019-02-21T20:10:33.156-05:00Vintage Valentine's Day Ad<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hello! The end of February is close, so I thought I'd show off a vintage Valentine's Day ad in honor of the month's signature event. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqP8_2CV6u47fefnwMMvjud1ADP6gSOLyMf80AyZsq82h3jiE_A4SV6UJUX8BqB5ajvq_-CKaY1G8XXaMz-C0bOlprWgyoBn38ZFCXNlJ1Np0b45ngrxw3EuO54zhMyGkUHN6EfOzTFQzB/s1600/100_9774.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1194" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqP8_2CV6u47fefnwMMvjud1ADP6gSOLyMf80AyZsq82h3jiE_A4SV6UJUX8BqB5ajvq_-CKaY1G8XXaMz-C0bOlprWgyoBn38ZFCXNlJ1Np0b45ngrxw3EuO54zhMyGkUHN6EfOzTFQzB/s320/100_9774.JPG" width="238" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">This FTD ad appeared in a <i>Reader's Digest</i> sometime between the mid-50's/early 60's. That was the range of years in the bundle of <i>Reader's Digest</i> magazines that I found at a thrift store a couple of years ago. That bundle remains a favorite find of mine, because I love vintage magazines. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Here's a close-up of the three men in the ad:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7Kns0kNS6O-OGynsiH7GX_NL5a4jwvfHaIYRCP6yvcyYA27r06z2CVGn6GrFVkC2DM0FG804VW4iY7FysuCBsVnCIXwFAVtVYjn0rDBhUmE_SvbS8RztETvnaOFBm-TY30BQyPZN3vBEF/s1600/100_9777+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1317" data-original-width="1600" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7Kns0kNS6O-OGynsiH7GX_NL5a4jwvfHaIYRCP6yvcyYA27r06z2CVGn6GrFVkC2DM0FG804VW4iY7FysuCBsVnCIXwFAVtVYjn0rDBhUmE_SvbS8RztETvnaOFBm-TY30BQyPZN3vBEF/s320/100_9777+%25282%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">They clearly are from very different backgrounds, but they have something in common: they're all holding what appears to be a small FTD catalogue, and they're all on the phone (rotary dial, of course) to order floral arrangements from FTD. According to the ad, a total of 26 arrangements were available in that catalogue, so our men had plenty to choose from. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Now let's "meet" our three gentlemen up close. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLGR0RJtnNNKmXNV3jkBmSZ5dPoR7XcOd_5JSSYUJIVqFBQNQoT-xKq8kRt1vx88FRSHPEjb1qwXO1B3nenVNhQKoN3zU4DWkXMrUWfd3xkEHEPWV-6dx1BPazm8dFqcc75DhSKoYIAbZp/s1600/100_9776+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="743" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLGR0RJtnNNKmXNV3jkBmSZ5dPoR7XcOd_5JSSYUJIVqFBQNQoT-xKq8kRt1vx88FRSHPEjb1qwXO1B3nenVNhQKoN3zU4DWkXMrUWfd3xkEHEPWV-6dx1BPazm8dFqcc75DhSKoYIAbZp/s320/100_9776+%25282%2529.JPG" width="148" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Mr. Suave here says "...the H-17 bouquet for Valentine's Day. Does the $7.50 include the vase? Swell! I'll take twelve..."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And to underscore this large order, Mr. Suave is shown with twelve small picture frame - undoubtedly with photos of those twelve lady friends in them. Ugh. I don't think this sort of behavior would go over too well in a magazine ad today. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The gentleman in the middle:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi20FJxUMkiWhhUz-9HD2XEIIID9dgVNtbPScf8zsg_oHLtwBic3wAEbSWIw5jnpd2XG5Rk4OZPazRxb8oDwXu2gatge63o8PUzqtGZdT9ZjE1LA7GkhyGZ77V3U3wDMiaThpj9di1m0uX/s1600/100_9775.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="878" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi20FJxUMkiWhhUz-9HD2XEIIID9dgVNtbPScf8zsg_oHLtwBic3wAEbSWIw5jnpd2XG5Rk4OZPazRxb8oDwXu2gatge63o8PUzqtGZdT9ZjE1LA7GkhyGZ77V3U3wDMiaThpj9di1m0uX/s320/100_9775.JPG" width="175" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And <i>he </i>says "...yeah, C-1...with all them little roses in it. How quick can you get it to Hackensack?"</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">This man is dressed in rugged work clothes, and he's calling from a pay phone, so he's away from home. Truck driver, maybe, or perhaps a delivery man? No matter, as those long as C-1 gets sent to Hackensack in time!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Our first two seem quite assertive about their orders, but not so with the last gentleman:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAI-gsurzo9qo0HD98Wq8I255qzBCfBDhtn6yYlJin3efO9n-lCMTJVN9r3n_l3Jk7WJKb-67TsMmWLSV7VC113BkMKZSj2ncLxvZHebzDJ-lXdQmPGTvAKm3JZeNo_QCaCfQjuvabmhs_/s1600/100_9778.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="664" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAI-gsurzo9qo0HD98Wq8I255qzBCfBDhtn6yYlJin3efO9n-lCMTJVN9r3n_l3Jk7WJKb-67TsMmWLSV7VC113BkMKZSj2ncLxvZHebzDJ-lXdQmPGTvAKm3JZeNo_QCaCfQjuvabmhs_/s320/100_9778.JPG" width="132" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">He says "H-13, please. Sign it, 'Love, Norm.' Wait...better make that 'Regards, Norman Q. Frisby.' It's been awhile since I've seen her and..."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Norman Q. Frisby may have a good white collar job somewhere - he's dressed in a nice suit - but he sure is a wimpy sort. Still, I couldn't help but wonder why it'd been awhile since he'd seen the woman he was sending the floral arrangment to. Had he been neglecting her because of working too much at the office? In the meantime, had another man begun to move in on her? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Or maybe it was his mother that he had been neglecting, though it seems odd that he'd want to sign his message that formally. But I guess I'll never know. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Like I said, three very different men are depicted in this ad. To further highlight their differences, each "quote" was printed in a different font. Nevertheless, they all had one thing in common: a reliance on FTD to help them out on Valentine's Day. </span>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-76421426945831652082019-02-15T23:06:00.003-05:002019-02-15T23:06:52.885-05:00Get Carded: Valentines for Vets 2019<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hello! As I've done for the past several years, I made two dozen valentines and mailed them off to a regional VA medical center. I enjoy making greeting cards, so why not do it for a good cause?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Here's a brief sample of how this year's batch of cards turned out:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5ZtCvZQnafCa64HFBT7k_zR6VenIOqR_2A_ZfxqXZT8uAnrbcEAJwZ3Yw77jisauaChyphenhyphenn9h7DEG3m9q8kz1zMnP8lsL5dkOhHSQI34p4p7G1ArHXz3xqt-DEvGlOCDSluAernLc2iyNWa/s1600/100_9760.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="889" data-original-width="1600" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5ZtCvZQnafCa64HFBT7k_zR6VenIOqR_2A_ZfxqXZT8uAnrbcEAJwZ3Yw77jisauaChyphenhyphenn9h7DEG3m9q8kz1zMnP8lsL5dkOhHSQI34p4p7G1ArHXz3xqt-DEvGlOCDSluAernLc2iyNWa/s320/100_9760.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And a few close-ups:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqJ0Om0L4BOVW6SWmAciUD7Q8I3e_attTz00tMN8L6MCec_nmkywFoL75vc88yjB9Sf8aAfm-LavWEltK5TrXlypXnJIKAQuc4RDN9ok_HX0R4-agR64JZteq0D3VXdAZGKGzy8yP3wXz0/s1600/100_9762.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1524" data-original-width="1600" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqJ0Om0L4BOVW6SWmAciUD7Q8I3e_attTz00tMN8L6MCec_nmkywFoL75vc88yjB9Sf8aAfm-LavWEltK5TrXlypXnJIKAQuc4RDN9ok_HX0R4-agR64JZteq0D3VXdAZGKGzy8yP3wXz0/s320/100_9762.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">A vintage dictionary page is the basis for this heart.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUqOjqqp8kgU867URT7m1Gh3PwSvE5S-XevWkvQsxfkvI5jWf-EeXSrRJkzVMgPu41W0TjWtYHfTAN2_21UKunXUYYEcz9IrlDPQTA0cje_e996OHc2jxxGgXhU5kZ-_u5rmezGxoxzM4W/s1600/100_9764.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1513" data-original-width="1600" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUqOjqqp8kgU867URT7m1Gh3PwSvE5S-XevWkvQsxfkvI5jWf-EeXSrRJkzVMgPu41W0TjWtYHfTAN2_21UKunXUYYEcz9IrlDPQTA0cje_e996OHc2jxxGgXhU5kZ-_u5rmezGxoxzM4W/s320/100_9764.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">This heart looks vintage, but it's actually an art paper imposter.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2gtX2Mph-4DLyu0uSinC6fphs3COWYZnkaPiytUsyulThhyPYaCMl_SZZAmlxkYgQufBLVF1cFdCfQ0rYC0wNBzVXIQpt-qImwF6wiIK7AdfTYWPEK7aIPUftTXXlivBuBD-4YTHt2BBO/s1600/100_9765.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1550" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2gtX2Mph-4DLyu0uSinC6fphs3COWYZnkaPiytUsyulThhyPYaCMl_SZZAmlxkYgQufBLVF1cFdCfQ0rYC0wNBzVXIQpt-qImwF6wiIK7AdfTYWPEK7aIPUftTXXlivBuBD-4YTHt2BBO/s320/100_9765.JPG" width="310" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">But the vintage look is authentic here; the heart was created on a piece of 1880's ledger paper.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The rest of the materials are:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">White card stock</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Two heart stencils: one that made stripes and one that made a scalloped edge. The stencils were colored in with marker or colored pencil.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The scalloped-edge hearts were made on white art papers scraps, then the striped-heart papers were added.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Pink masking tape embellishment</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">As seen in the photo showing all three cards is the word "LOVE", created with a Dymo Organizer Xpress label maker. </span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> Yes, it's a bit of work making this many cards, but I'm glad to do it for our veterans. I hope my efforts gladdened their hearts on Valentine's Day!</span><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> </span>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-75762430508024260572019-02-08T22:29:00.000-05:002019-02-08T22:29:03.776-05:00Get Carded: A Month Of Many Cards<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Hello! February is a month of many cards for me, primarily because I send out a few dozen valentines to family, friends and to the Valentines for Vets program.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">But the first two cards I mailed out this month had nothing to do with February 14th - I made one birthday card and one sympathy card. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPDvbQmheFJkGLcsgqxOqMarR7OxVa7pEWBywthPalUvHOas-6JjgnIs_tEdv3Q_vemZ69_u4KONqMcsWrJzg_Jy1k2YLYkIpZ5W8fl7eao2RjdlOS-K1fXbXjkv67YkRUDAh7PRaBXVJC/s1600/100_9749.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1311" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPDvbQmheFJkGLcsgqxOqMarR7OxVa7pEWBywthPalUvHOas-6JjgnIs_tEdv3Q_vemZ69_u4KONqMcsWrJzg_Jy1k2YLYkIpZ5W8fl7eao2RjdlOS-K1fXbXjkv67YkRUDAh7PRaBXVJC/s320/100_9749.JPG" width="262" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">The sympathy card, and its close-up:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0ucvYHSR-yF888HGZcBsQjeeimD2Uum40XVsiVNHbiKCXSkGG7RRvMct2j1XTunN2Kx2krjNXxCgWmiucvwyUV5S4hRkCbV6mUB3lvUUjK2sGo7t5TwJBs28AR0qGGYUjsFQI_yevFXwu/s1600/100_9751.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1004" data-original-width="1600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0ucvYHSR-yF888HGZcBsQjeeimD2Uum40XVsiVNHbiKCXSkGG7RRvMct2j1XTunN2Kx2krjNXxCgWmiucvwyUV5S4hRkCbV6mUB3lvUUjK2sGo7t5TwJBs28AR0qGGYUjsFQI_yevFXwu/s320/100_9751.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I find sympathy cards hard to write, so I'm grateful that the rubber stamped sentiment helped express my feelings.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Materials used:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">white card stock</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">off-white art paper scrap</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">image taken from Flavia's <b>Cake and Candles</b>, a small gift book I found for free at a local thrift store</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Martha Stewart fine white glitter applied to the white flowers in the image. It doesn't show up in the photo but added a gentle, soft touch to the card. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">pink organza ribbon bow</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"May all your precious memories help bring you peace and comfort through the days ahead" stamped in black ink onto vintage paper scrap</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The birthday card:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJFaRh77ecKKvxYAWGnAP1dsPiElPXwiIhFpaCq6PeGn-QW2ptMN5hW0W4Hf2OO7-KCXDbtbGWGruQfHC2P01WiAzWr2KpcbOz1Ls5YgKecLUg6dYR1xirQpnOeRgoyFFe8xENXzfbZ0L2/s1600/100_9757.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1317" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJFaRh77ecKKvxYAWGnAP1dsPiElPXwiIhFpaCq6PeGn-QW2ptMN5hW0W4Hf2OO7-KCXDbtbGWGruQfHC2P01WiAzWr2KpcbOz1Ls5YgKecLUg6dYR1xirQpnOeRgoyFFe8xENXzfbZ0L2/s320/100_9757.JPG" width="263" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And a close-up:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7dDpFxn0Q72rYiKKt0aiR18sj1uhPzQPGGrOkvQysQm9r-OTSWxTgFTScXJriWXIesPDbyMT1fqNmvRgzTEzwoD4NF_w4oHLKdYlt9ZjzkIT2samRvtmHTDKkUQ33WnAjuyHlP7fP_pYA/s1600/100_9758.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7dDpFxn0Q72rYiKKt0aiR18sj1uhPzQPGGrOkvQysQm9r-OTSWxTgFTScXJriWXIesPDbyMT1fqNmvRgzTEzwoD4NF_w4oHLKdYlt9ZjzkIT2samRvtmHTDKkUQ33WnAjuyHlP7fP_pYA/s320/100_9758.JPG" width="319" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Materials used:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">white card stock</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">image taken from Flavia's <b>Cake and Candles</b> (with a title like that, you know that the book is actually meant for birthdays, but I thought the floral image was appropriate for the sympathy card since flowers are common at funerals)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Martha Stewart fine white glitter applied to the stars on the plate, the cake icing and the candle flame. As with the sympathy card, the glitter added a nice touch.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">pink organza ribbon bow</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"happy birthday" stamped in black ink onto art paper scrap</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I think that both cards turned out well and I hope the recipients liked them.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">You'll notice that I used a few of the same elements for both cards: images from the same book, white glitter and pink organza ribbon bows. It's easier to design cards when you can use some of the same supplies, and easy is what I need during this month of many cards!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I'll show off more of the cards I've designed in my next post. </span><br /><br />
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aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-53389010294198020572019-01-30T14:52:00.002-05:002019-01-30T14:52:30.739-05:00Birth Record Baby Spoon<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hello! It's my birthday today - normally a festive time, but the severe cold and snow makes things a little more challenging. Not sure if the restaurant I wanted to go to for my birthday dinner is even open today; will have to check on that. But nothing stopped me, of course, from making a birthday cake, so at least we'll have that.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Appropriate for today, last week I unearthed this during a decluttering of a storage cabinet:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie8HSRbbLnsVkVI7jYsdIagFv08cp2ALhyphenhyphens45YvLuorhEhQjz7GwzxxYcSRJkQHkoHRCM_cqycJpYb6d5PVbZjdAQ3_yrNyyziJp7PkcIPzxbaqxgeB5s1Un6pRjIlQhOy8DvfK0ktZlCQ/s1600/100_9743.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1105" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie8HSRbbLnsVkVI7jYsdIagFv08cp2ALhyphenhyphens45YvLuorhEhQjz7GwzxxYcSRJkQHkoHRCM_cqycJpYb6d5PVbZjdAQ3_yrNyyziJp7PkcIPzxbaqxgeB5s1Un6pRjIlQhOy8DvfK0ktZlCQ/s320/100_9743.JPG" width="221" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">A silverplate birth record baby spoon issued for me upon my arrival. It's 4" long and was made by Wm Rogers. These are fairly common on eBay. Mine is scratched up a bit and some of the silverplate has worn off. No matter, I've glad it's survived the years! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I seem to recall my mother telling me that she'd gotten this spoon from a local bank; don't know if it was something the bank gave away or offered at low cost to their customers. To be honest, although she gave it to me years ago, I never paid much attention to this spoon until I relocated it in that cabinet last week. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">It was tarnished, so I cleaned it up, then looked over the details closely. I'd always noticed that my first name and birthdate had been etched on the spoon's handle, but I'd never paid attention to this image before:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-2-yVPhzvTcn8oDD9fcnKIkT7y3dLMtKsM9EgnokRxFaOnDWlc9JLGFddYVVZseP9NeUfRDDfOSIHPaEvRilGYi3SDs19kCsCilh6pvgdT3PABk6q80QTH16z_9BkwU-ER6Pi88k4l1Jv/s1600/100_9745.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1340" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-2-yVPhzvTcn8oDD9fcnKIkT7y3dLMtKsM9EgnokRxFaOnDWlc9JLGFddYVVZseP9NeUfRDDfOSIHPaEvRilGYi3SDs19kCsCilh6pvgdT3PABk6q80QTH16z_9BkwU-ER6Pi88k4l1Jv/s320/100_9745.JPG" width="268" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">It didn't photograph the greatest, but that's a stork directly above the "bowl" part of the spoon. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And then there's this:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhbdCamt-PoPqqCudn-VWgcNrf2iSZqWjgtGs5IzwQzt6LeKflxzlMy_qUhwhDVTABr7WUBd16kQHGr14URssCHRK9FI7JuqWQTOAk4zKiaCfr6nZjZHizkWZ9oIq5DGHIiEQtfnPmYUxa/s1600/100_9744.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1181" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhbdCamt-PoPqqCudn-VWgcNrf2iSZqWjgtGs5IzwQzt6LeKflxzlMy_qUhwhDVTABr7WUBd16kQHGr14URssCHRK9FI7JuqWQTOAk4zKiaCfr6nZjZHizkWZ9oIq5DGHIiEQtfnPmYUxa/s320/100_9744.JPG" width="236" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Again, it doesn't show up well in the photo, but the somewhat rectangular-ish shape on the middle of the handle is supposed to be a clock. Perhaps you can see the dots around the shape, which of course represent the numbers on a clock face. "PM" is etched above the hands of the clock, and from the position of those hands, one can see I was born around 8:17 pm. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">It seems strange to me now that I had no idea that my time of birth was noted on this spoon, but it tickled me to discover this. I like that attention to details. Hey, so what that I was born two months early - at least the spoon got all the other details right!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I don't know how my birth record baby spoon ended up in the cabinet, but it's not going to stay there. From now on, I'll store it with the decorations I bring out for my birthday every year. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> </span>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-75500182728955749302019-01-26T16:23:00.001-05:002019-01-26T16:23:36.743-05:00Get Carded: Look Who Had A Birthday<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hello! My husband had a birthday yesterday, which meant a handmade card from me:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7viWDy3MmmXoScMOuqnFCBEH7xXd7BabhAsSvJkT0ZKGNbi3LR8zM510Esf1jAP8RA4kjzh1O-7HrbXUvF73aACG0I-IRCqdlr_gjPvJO_4tK38syGJOkgUV-siQLFNY4m6V5iMenFu19/s1600/100_9728.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1318" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7viWDy3MmmXoScMOuqnFCBEH7xXd7BabhAsSvJkT0ZKGNbi3LR8zM510Esf1jAP8RA4kjzh1O-7HrbXUvF73aACG0I-IRCqdlr_gjPvJO_4tK38syGJOkgUV-siQLFNY4m6V5iMenFu19/s320/100_9728.JPG" width="263" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">My husband laughed when he saw his card, which was my intended reaction. He likes humorous cards more than mushy ones, so that's the kind I make for him. I think it was the eyes image that made him laugh, but I think the owl image amused him as well. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">A couple of close-ups:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGoubgFBRiMdBAq4Uhp3fs3izGlZZj3pyX77l3oaRVpdmXhDkeULEZZExz8lPfTfx7F2ApAw1Fh4zumMxq6uEybk0OGAS1F0uv4d46RtjQLdC11xw9bTr5yZ0i38N4-_byzVvRLOoVNxgd/s1600/100_9729.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1413" data-original-width="1600" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGoubgFBRiMdBAq4Uhp3fs3izGlZZj3pyX77l3oaRVpdmXhDkeULEZZExz8lPfTfx7F2ApAw1Fh4zumMxq6uEybk0OGAS1F0uv4d46RtjQLdC11xw9bTr5yZ0i38N4-_byzVvRLOoVNxgd/s320/100_9729.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKBjMoWTYmZ99K_iXKySzL5ST35AE-EWG9Lhi6434V8iqje6u6idCmcYVKq9hHZLxW3IFMONCIs4xmpI1siGJJh7m-VHv2jsZ9y3yXXzAv2L3GrbPtZhQKrRhukie4XBa6fDvQdGQBrNPX/s1600/100_9730.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1158" data-original-width="1600" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKBjMoWTYmZ99K_iXKySzL5ST35AE-EWG9Lhi6434V8iqje6u6idCmcYVKq9hHZLxW3IFMONCIs4xmpI1siGJJh7m-VHv2jsZ9y3yXXzAv2L3GrbPtZhQKrRhukie4XBa6fDvQdGQBrNPX/s320/100_9730.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Materials used:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">white card stock</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">eyes image cut from takeout menu for Humal Chuli (a restaurant mentioned in my previous post)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">owl sticker from vintage stationery set (found in thrift store, perhaps from the 1970's)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"turn" cut from vintage children's dictionary</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"60" cut from vintage bingo card</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"LOOK", "WHO'S", "ING" and "Happy Birthday" stamped with black ink onto scraps of various vintage papers</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Not a complicated-looking card by any means, but still fun to make.</span><br /><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">For some reason, we never used to keep birthday cards, but have done so for quite a few years now. Thus, this year's card will join the ones from previous years:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6b7f1pHw6pMzXhHJcLkAPb5kEYuLOELrOC2JilFpUSWc6dYAwJLiWEX4SYxIdNKoscXz8kgfSozF3LrIjBN1BFZixbqHoYIhyphenhyphenFdPHTBiiOeYwjBpDml5J1OkfuvqP_gr9eZgeosxFHJBS/s1600/100_9747.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="815" data-original-width="1600" height="163" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6b7f1pHw6pMzXhHJcLkAPb5kEYuLOELrOC2JilFpUSWc6dYAwJLiWEX4SYxIdNKoscXz8kgfSozF3LrIjBN1BFZixbqHoYIhyphenhyphenFdPHTBiiOeYwjBpDml5J1OkfuvqP_gr9eZgeosxFHJBS/s320/100_9747.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Quite a fun collection! But the whole bunch will come down soon - so all my handmade Valentines to him can be displayed instead.</span><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> </span>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-45888007490714796012019-01-19T15:52:00.000-05:002019-01-19T15:52:23.178-05:00Holiday Trip Part Two<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hello! My previous post had highlights from a trip we'd made before Christmas; today's post will cover the excursion we took just as 2019 was beginning. We traveled to the Chicago area, plus the Wisconsin cities of Madison and Milwaukee. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Madison is not only the capitol of Wisconsin, but it's also the home of the flagship school of the University of Wisconsin system. With such important entities within this city, you'd expect a lively mix of shops and restaurants, and you'd be right. We focused on State Street, which runs near both the university and the state capitol building. Since neither the college nor state government were in session the day we visited (January 2nd), some businesses were shuttered. Still plenty to see and do, however, and those closures meant less people and traffic to clog up the sidewalks and streets. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">We began with lunch here: </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUYU-eo_XzEQfEzxLhBy5gs5GmgNBRe6mgrhC2iLPVH6keyCvZ8NrySo6WlEUNmnkSdDObG_xZ3s0WUWQFaV7BhLEI3iNs5khV80j2kCZxK-PzNWs30Fq_66R8Cia5RTIqx81WYf-ic7Q-/s1600/100_9684+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="814" data-original-width="1600" height="162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUYU-eo_XzEQfEzxLhBy5gs5GmgNBRe6mgrhC2iLPVH6keyCvZ8NrySo6WlEUNmnkSdDObG_xZ3s0WUWQFaV7BhLEI3iNs5khV80j2kCZxK-PzNWs30Fq_66R8Cia5RTIqx81WYf-ic7Q-/s320/100_9684+%25282%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Himal Chuli, a Nepali restaurant. Tiny place, so online reviews mentioned it can be difficult to get a table. We had no such trouble on this day. We'd never eaten at a Nepali restaurant but the menu looked good. Many of the dishes reminded us somewhat of Indian cuisine. For instance, samosas, which I ordered, had the familiar-sounding filling of potatoes and peas. They were fine, but shaped differently than the Indian-style food of the same name: rather than looking like turnovers that lay flat on a plate, these were more like pyramids that rose up from my plate. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">What I liked even better was the cup of dal that came with my order. The menu called it a "mixed bean soup", and while it was much more broth than beans, it had a delicious flavor. I would like to try to replicate it at home sometime. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">After lunch my family of three split up to explore various shops along State Street - we each have different tastes. I checked out Madison Modern Market, which has a lot of cool items for kids and adults, as well as things for the home and fun gifts - all in all, a well-curated place. I saw many potential purchases, which is saying a lot for someone like me who normally shops secondhand. I did finally succumb to this:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Kikkerland's Rainbow Multipen, which has ten different colors. It's the type of pen where you swivel the top around to change colors. I'm a sucker for color variety in my artwork, so I happily paid three dollars for this. But I was sorely tempted to buy so many other goodies at this shop - that's the kind of store Madison Modern Market is!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">We'd agreed to meet up at A Room Of One's Own, an indie bookstore around the corner from State Street on Gorham Street. As indie bookstores are one of my favorite places to browse, I made sure to give myself some time to look around before reconnecting with my family. I was attracted right away to a grouping of journals and planners near the front door. I'm also a sucker for these, so I succumbed to this:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Mary Kate McDevitt's <b>Every Day Is Epic,</b> "a guided journal for daydreams, creative rants & bright ideas". I liked the author's take in the introduction: "You may sometimes feel that if you aren't skydiving, cliff-jumping, or living the life of an action-movie stuntperson, your day somehow isn't measuring up. But every day has the chance to be epic...it just comes done to how you frame it. This journal celebrates embracing everyday events - from the mundane to the magnificent - that all add up to something incredibly awesome." </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And to prove her point, the author showed a sample from a "general notes" section, (part of most of the journal pages). Along with "moved to new studio" and "booked summer vacay", she listed "trash-picked a plant" and my favorite: "met a baby named Fritz". I found that last tidbit very amusing somehow! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Here's what a couple of the pages inside look like:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And a close-up:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I like the funky graphics! The layouts do repeat, but there are enough different ones that they don't feel repetitive at all. I'm happy with this purchase. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Due to lack of time - my husband and daughter showed up before I got very far into the store - this was my only purchase from A Room Of One's Own. Well, that's not exactly true - near the cash register was a small shelf of uncorrected proof books. If memory serves me correctly, these were free with a purchase, although a 50c donation toward a jail literacy program was suggested. I scanned the books, and selected Ryder Carroll's <b>The Bullet Journal Method</b> (he's the creator of this planner system, which I've pondered using). And yes, I did give 50c for this book. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Also of note: various promotional posters from book releases were for sale; I saw several mounted on the cash register counter base. Perhaps I've not been looking hard enough while at other indie bookstores, but I've not seen such posters, nor proof copies, on offer elsewhere. I liked that A Room Of One's Own had both. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">We arrived in Milwaukee in time for dinner at Jalapeno Loco, which is located across from Mitchell Airport. Solid Mexican food. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">We visited more of Milwaukee the next day. We have a fondness for this city and its blend of old-fashioned neighborhoods and shops of interest. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I always try to make it to American Science & Surplus, my go-to place for containers I use for storing various all-natural DIY cleaning supplies and toiletries. I often find interesting craft supplies as well. And during a previous visit, my husband purchased a particular piece of lab equipment for around 20 bucks. It had been used, but so are the versions he'd seen on eBay - that go for a few hundred dollars! (The AS&S piece didn't have a sign labeling what it was, so my husband suspected the employees there didn't know.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">From AS&S, we trekked over to Outpost Natural Foods Co-Op for wholesome lunches at their cafe. Excellent bulk food section too. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And speaking of bulk foods, you can't go wrong with The Spice House in the Old World 3rd Street area. We went there so I could find jalapeno pepper powder (the food co-op didn't carry it) - but I ended up buying a few other spices as well. This is a very nice store. Very high quality store, but it doesn't have the upscale feel that newer stores of this type tend to have. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">It's become a Christmastime tradition for us to visit the holiday display at Mitchell Park Domes. A "Scrooge" theme was featured for Christmas 2018. I didn't feel this theme was covered very well, but the variety of poinsettias was breathtaking:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">This is only a small sample of what we saw. I thought the blue-tinged poinsettias especially noteworthy since I'd not seen them before. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">With a busy but fun day in Milwaukee over, we headed down to Chicagoland and dinner at Rockwood Tap house in Downers Grove. My husband is fond of the beer menu and the food menu has many good choices as well. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Before departing Chicagoland the next day we stopped off at one of our favorite area plazas. Also located in Downers Grove, the Downers Shopping Plaza has, among other retail establishments, a See's candy store, a Trader Joe's and a nice Goodwill. My husband and daughter busied themselves at the first two stores while I checked out the Goodwill. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I found it loaded with a lot of good stuff during this visit. As it was so soon after Christmas (January 4th), I wondered if people had donated gifts they didn't want, or else had gathered up older possessions to make room for the gifts they'd received. Either way, there were a lot of purchasing possibilities! I was happy to find a pristine copy to replace my beat-up volume of <b>Asian Noodles </b>(Nina Simonds, author). And these really appealed to me:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">A set of four chunky colored pencils with folk art flavor. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">A close-up:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">So cute, and the group was mine for one dollar. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I didn't know what these were, or who had made them. For all I knew, they were from a set of kids' colored pencils. But from searching eBay and Etsy, I learned that these pencils are based on Russian matryoshka (nesting) dolls and are considered souvenirs of that country. Like with most listings, the asking prices for vintage versions are higher than for newer examples. I'm leaning toward thinking mine are newer. Even so, the price I paid for four was a bargain. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Our trip was over, other than taking our daughter back to West Lafayette, spending the night there and returning back home. The resumption of our everyday routines was about to begin. But we'd had two very nice holiday trips! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> </span>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-89161945420878739162019-01-12T21:48:00.003-05:002019-01-13T13:40:22.385-05:00Holiday Trip Part One<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Hello! Yeah, the Christmas season is over and done and we're already over a week into January. With two out-of-state trips and an in-state visit with relatives, the holiday went by very fast for me! The days I was home, I was busy making special foods for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year's Eve. This is a long way of saying I should have blogged more recently about my Yuletide travels, but hadn't.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">So I'll make up for that now, beginning with a little about our first out-of-state trip. It covered central Pennsylvania, Ohio and Indiana. The genesis for the excursion began when, while traveling through Pennsylvania in the fall, I'd picked up a brochure about a Christkindl Market in Mifflinburg, PA - the oldest such event of its kind in the US (the market website, <a href="https://oldchristkindl.com/index.html" target="_blank">seen here, s</a>tates that the event was begun in 1987). I commented to my husband that it'd be nice to go there sometime - well, he took my casual comment seriously and made the travel arrangements. We visited the Chirstkindl Market on December 15th, 2018.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">A few scenes from the event:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">A festive entrance to the market.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Entrance to one of the small buildings used by vendors at the market. This seller was skilled in scherenschitte, German-style paper cutting. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Lovely examples of this craft!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">We watched a folk dance troupe perform a variety of European folk dances. When the group went through the steps of a Dutch dance, my husband and I were reminded of the Dutch dancing done during our town's famous tulip festival. One big difference: the people above weren't wearing wooden shoes!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">We enjoyed seeing the various examples of German-style and American-style arts and crafts at the Christkindl Market, but we also enjoyed viewing some of the older buildings around town:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Mifflinburg is a very old town; it was first settled in the 1700's and became a village in 1827. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">When we first arrived at the market, it was late morning and not terribly crowded yet. But as the day went on more and more people appeared, and eventually it became one of those events in which you can barely move due to the crush of people. Of course, people were there because it's a fun, unique event, but it made it hard to take pictures, let along shop. So after lunch from a couple of the many food vendors, all we bought was a small glass-blown snowman figurine for our daughter.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">To escape the crowds, we started walking through the nearby downtown blocks. But I was quickly distracted by a sign pointing the way to a pop-up artisans' market. We followed the arrow and found ourselves at a small events center a couple of blocks away. I was taken with the upcycled sweater mittens crafted by this vendor:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Alas, she'd sold out of my mitten size; she's standing by men's mittens. I tried one pair on and found them to very warm and soft. I liked how she combined different sweaters to create each pair, and she even had the cuffs of men's blazers repurposed as mitten cuffs. Her prices were good too. She and her husband were very nice and I felt bad that I couldn't buy anything from her. If I recall correctly, this was her first craft show, and I hope it went well for her. I wish her luck in her future endeavors!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Would you believe I didn't even get this talented crafter's name? However, I did pick up one of her business cards, and learned that her business is called Recycwool Mitten Co. If you'd like more info, go <a href="https://www.facebook.com/recycwoolmittenco/" target="_blank">here.</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">From Mifflinburg, we headed toward Williamsport. Along the way, we stopped at one of our favorite candy stores, Purity. I'd blogged about seeing their candy canes being made last year in <a href="http://aimee-catsfrommars.blogspot.com/2017/12/see-them-being-made-candy-canes.html" target="_blank">this post.</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">I was content this year with just going to the store to buy more candy canes without seeing them being made first (some viewing sessions had already taken place that day). Like the Christkindl Market, it's a fun but very crowded event. And without the hordes there, I was free to take some pics:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Employees busy behind the scenes, with trays of chocolates and a large chocolate Santa in front of them. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">A cute chocolate cottage.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">And for the white chocolate fans:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">I'm not a fan of snow, but I'd make an exception for these snowmen!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Once in Williamsport, we ate at my favorite restaurant there, Boom City Brewing. I don't care for beer, but I like the cozy atmosphere and good food served up there. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">We went to bed with the hopes of going for a hike the next day, but unfortunately the weather gods, who usually smile on us, didn't cooperate. We were stuck with an all-day rain, which meant no outdoor activities. So instead we decided to visit the Woolrich outlet store, which was a short distance away. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">And where is the Woolrich outlet store located? Why, in the small community of Woolrich,PA, of course. Here is the festive scene outside the shop:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Once upon a time, the Woolrich store had a nice selection of their various fabrics, sold by the yard, and I think they had some sewing patterns and notions too. Now there is just a very small section of fabrics - perhaps the better to make room for the gift shop-type offerings we saw. But a big selection of Woolrich brand clothes are available, of course. I tried on a corduroy shirt from a sales rack, but it didn't fit right, so no purchase. (My husband did buy one of their knit hats.) Still, it's a fun place to poke around and even in rainy weather, a pleasant drive from Williamsport. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">We left Williamsport the next day and began the trek west to return home. Stopped in the Cleveland area for the night. The hotel we stayed at was so uncrowded, we got stellar service from the breakfast bar employees the next morning. They came around with refills of coffee, asked us if we needed anything - all the niceties they don't always have time to do. My husband has often commented that Christmastime is a good time to travel. There's usually few business travelers, and I guess enough people stay with relatives for the holidays that they're not in hotels either. So you end up with lower-priced room rates and excellent service from the bored staff!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">From Cleveland we journeyed to the Cincinnati area to visit Jungle Jim's in suburban Fairfield. It's undoubtedly one of the largest grocery stores in the country and always worth a visit. And if you're an Ikea fan, then do as we do and stay at one of a cluster of hotels in nearby West Chester. (we've used the Homewood Inn there.)There's an Ikea so close by you could literally walk to it, except there's not sidewalk all the way there. But of course that means it's just a very short drive away.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">The next day found us at our daughter's place in West Lafayette, IN. She'd just finished another grad school semester, so it was time to pick her and take her back to our house for Christmas. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">I'll talk about our post-Christmas trip in my next post. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"><br /></span>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-22350748829378629142018-12-21T20:03:00.000-05:002018-12-25T14:01:01.299-05:00Birthday And Christmas Together!<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hello! A friend and I did an ornament exchange earlier this month. But before I handed her the ornament I'd made for her, I gave her a birthday card and gift. (at the time of the ornament exchange, my friend's birthday had been almost one month ago, but we hadn't been able to get together to celebrate that occasion. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">First, the card:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCQCzUVFXobT_a4rZivWfi7KnEr3SE2Vk3qTP_biTevN5HYjHXLZZTvarLVIbgNxI1I-5IkdlPvsVTFFQour-ZDsK8_poSMWGegs-fP9HNyGjDzg6Wi0YCkcFXo1vQj7nNTde9gfmHgoiz/s1600/100_9656.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1270" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCQCzUVFXobT_a4rZivWfi7KnEr3SE2Vk3qTP_biTevN5HYjHXLZZTvarLVIbgNxI1I-5IkdlPvsVTFFQour-ZDsK8_poSMWGegs-fP9HNyGjDzg6Wi0YCkcFXo1vQj7nNTde9gfmHgoiz/s320/100_9656.JPG" width="254" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And a close-up:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkS8UzZw06B96CjOlp4_8pPb9ZaWEPJFrkjFEfrGOX6blk9PmoYQcwHVODb9ZgwWBbhp2-FOpkXi-4N8qa08dqcFK8W9K2WmUukAXNc0xQXxK7blLHBACFZO5zCoJ3AH4sox29UEUUGYCY/s1600/100_9657.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1472" data-original-width="1600" height="294" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkS8UzZw06B96CjOlp4_8pPb9ZaWEPJFrkjFEfrGOX6blk9PmoYQcwHVODb9ZgwWBbhp2-FOpkXi-4N8qa08dqcFK8W9K2WmUukAXNc0xQXxK7blLHBACFZO5zCoJ3AH4sox29UEUUGYCY/s320/100_9657.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Materials used:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">white card stock</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">woman image from 1940's magazine</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">vintage button "hat" glued to hair</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"say...wasn't it your birthday last month?" - lettering stamped in black ink on vintage file folder tab pieces and pieces of art paper scrap; a variety of alphabet fonts was used.</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">To me, it certainly looked like the woman was saying the phrase I affixed to the card!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Now on to the ornament:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4JUhITZWn9JjxMG_RDAnaB3R5a6iPd5YHZjXhHKrLk3E5Gmqj4bQMs3nxC_fwhdNZDLiZziuXoDykFifR8JOzZ1IPUfpImlPF4SpH2Cwcockw3PKJfus6OkZSpXQnNrB6Xkf1Uk1s6nxZ/s1600/100_9658.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1546" data-original-width="1600" height="309" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4JUhITZWn9JjxMG_RDAnaB3R5a6iPd5YHZjXhHKrLk3E5Gmqj4bQMs3nxC_fwhdNZDLiZziuXoDykFifR8JOzZ1IPUfpImlPF4SpH2Cwcockw3PKJfus6OkZSpXQnNrB6Xkf1Uk1s6nxZ/s320/100_9658.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And a close-up for this project as well:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoIPNIketKdAcMIcvxwdkInEyKqs_jpg8JkcBtcJPwqBcJZwRczFNNachzAmmd9tm97YkqW4bQHKOzIIYkl6z2JEmVAUDdKd0yqvNMd1lLHKwOjjdL8fbZolfh1-DOJyBv-3wBEL49fTww/s1600/100_9659.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1490" data-original-width="1600" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoIPNIketKdAcMIcvxwdkInEyKqs_jpg8JkcBtcJPwqBcJZwRczFNNachzAmmd9tm97YkqW4bQHKOzIIYkl6z2JEmVAUDdKd0yqvNMd1lLHKwOjjdL8fbZolfh1-DOJyBv-3wBEL49fTww/s320/100_9659.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">This is a small cross-stitch picture of a girl in a folksy-looking outfit. The cross-stitch chart came from the vintage counted cross-stitch booklet I'd written about <a href="http://aimee-catsfrommars.blogspot.com/2018/10/made-it-christmas-ornaments-from.html" target="_blank">here.</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I'd shown this booklet to my friend awhile back and while viewing the stitched example in it, she commented that the girl's outfit looked Dutch. I agreed and since my friend is of Dutch heritage, I thought I'd stitch up the girl and turn it into a Christmas ornament. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">After I'd stitched up the image, I bought a small unfinished wood frame at Hobby Lobby. I rubbed a walnut stain on the frame and then brushed on gold glitter glue accents.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I glued light blue felt to the back of the cross-stitched piece for a nice back appearance. I also glued on strips of the felt to the front edges of the piece. By doing so, the blue felt showed through the frame in the front. A nice touch, I thought. Added a gold cord hanger on top and the ornament was ready for my friend's tree. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">My friend said she liked her birthday card and Christmas ornament, and I liked making them for her!</span><br />
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<br /><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> </span>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-47431008809206124162018-12-09T17:32:00.002-05:002018-12-09T17:32:29.847-05:00A Nightmare For Christmas<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hello! I'm fond of vintage Christmas craft magazines, so when I spot them at secondhand sources, I scoop them up if the price is right. Thus, this magazine came home with me from an estate sale over the summer:</span><br />
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<i></i><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The 1962 issue of <i>Woman's Day Best Ideas for Christmas. </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">If these were, indeed, the "best ideas for Christmas" that year, then I'm grateful I was a mere toddler at the time and thus too young to do this kind of crafting. Many of the results look like a house of horrors in December! A nightmare for Christmas? No thanks, but I feel compelled anyway to show off these creepy craft projects. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOq2jY3bWge92ym_Lvg7LYuONVVxVbk_k5XmBXjyjVwPKr4KmaJ-yV1DbGtH-bFSknLDIe7djp3KNSapAbPgS0X7I0_Izek9Sqr3vN3lT2zyuQxVPb0MRtgk2sW5P4LfBTM-ar-aGLwfGH/s1600/100_9640.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1014" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOq2jY3bWge92ym_Lvg7LYuONVVxVbk_k5XmBXjyjVwPKr4KmaJ-yV1DbGtH-bFSknLDIe7djp3KNSapAbPgS0X7I0_Izek9Sqr3vN3lT2zyuQxVPb0MRtgk2sW5P4LfBTM-ar-aGLwfGH/s320/100_9640.JPG" width="202" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Above, a "Santa Gift Pail". Now, it may seem like a nice idea to stash some goodies in a dressed-up container, but those construction paper eyes look just plain weird to me. Not crazy about the use of crumpled-up foil for the beard and hat either. By the way, the pail is a paper paint bucket. Not sure what that item even is. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">A "Paper Strip Santa" is seen here. I suppose this isn't <i>horrible</i>, but again, the face looks weird. The eyes and nose are small Christmas ornaments, with foil cutouts around the eyes. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">But as weird as those eyes look, the collection of figures here seems even worse:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg86atvj0UjLPtrR6i7Jhs60fDvDBm6UGHytqOY38r17APEweLkbPoSCy8W3XiJ8am7b4qd02tkoPtsx3qUMRuGR-c3v2HDxhoxgj6C6C7OYpd8ZH19f26vZVW5n8S0bbBDi0920VfZbQcu/s1600/100_9642.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="862" data-original-width="1600" height="172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg86atvj0UjLPtrR6i7Jhs60fDvDBm6UGHytqOY38r17APEweLkbPoSCy8W3XiJ8am7b4qd02tkoPtsx3qUMRuGR-c3v2HDxhoxgj6C6C7OYpd8ZH19f26vZVW5n8S0bbBDi0920VfZbQcu/s320/100_9642.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">These are "Choir Boys for Buffet Table". Styrofoam balls form the heads of these, the better to attach faces out of paper cutouts and map pins. Mostly-bare styrofoam is a no-no in my book; it just looks plain cheap to me. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">A close-up:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir2VuyKiEmuDK_qx82i86rkWQyJZBbCCcmeaePGu3rnvbTwORJz6U6EhETkoMzkhs1LAIgqBhyLoR9PrCiTyNEFKWHulfkuY5memzEGtnIwstxqA2x1Jaaq9eglL14qn3VqsC6TZfC5BhI/s1600/100_9643.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1167" data-original-width="1600" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir2VuyKiEmuDK_qx82i86rkWQyJZBbCCcmeaePGu3rnvbTwORJz6U6EhETkoMzkhs1LAIgqBhyLoR9PrCiTyNEFKWHulfkuY5memzEGtnIwstxqA2x1Jaaq9eglL14qn3VqsC6TZfC5BhI/s320/100_9643.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Ugh, I think that one in the middle will give me nightmares unless I move along real quick now.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And so I will, only to show off this next:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDVd48WrsqkSTD0VbI6uMPuuNFmS2ZiohyFjKEuGHuHiTny9aA3NsyTV9yNepDOh_usAGZ2eVIrKpigFmWukVnL_2X9SY5gh4xxffRva-7xYhEcN_upTnisYVZPT60Qaz3H11idEZGIt0K/s1600/100_9646.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1444" data-original-width="1600" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDVd48WrsqkSTD0VbI6uMPuuNFmS2ZiohyFjKEuGHuHiTny9aA3NsyTV9yNepDOh_usAGZ2eVIrKpigFmWukVnL_2X9SY5gh4xxffRva-7xYhEcN_upTnisYVZPT60Qaz3H11idEZGIt0K/s320/100_9646.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE90kmhVTfz3Cta6JXGO2KZ_ozE1sJ7_7XAOTlCAuK-XrpioAzu93KtUFseMg8vm5kn-p0MoexfMldblSwTjOjosqMf9XnFNY8Dko89LMvxCu0X7B9QMCOsDjmsSOIbcg8RFNzcnFFJVYZ/s1600/100_9648.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1090" data-original-width="1600" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE90kmhVTfz3Cta6JXGO2KZ_ozE1sJ7_7XAOTlCAuK-XrpioAzu93KtUFseMg8vm5kn-p0MoexfMldblSwTjOjosqMf9XnFNY8Dko89LMvxCu0X7B9QMCOsDjmsSOIbcg8RFNzcnFFJVYZ/s320/100_9648.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">This Nativity set is made from...various breadstuffs. Now, I remember bread crafts in which a dough was made and tastefully formed into a wreath or other holiday shape. After baking and cooling, the bread was shellacked for reuse in years to come. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Not so with <i>this</i> Nativity: we are told "Be sure to use very fresh bread". So yeah, you may start out with that, but how long will cut-up breads stay that way? And unless you're sure that your house is absolutely mice- and/or bug-proof, I sure wouldn't want to leave anything edible like this out. Perhaps the folks at this magazine only meant for this Nativity set to be left out a short while, but they don't say that anywhere in the directions. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Besides, it rather seems like a waste of the "...variety of loaves, rolls, crackers, (English) muffins and bread sticks" one selects for the project, along with map pins, glass headed pins, beads, corsage pins, cafe curtain rings, brass washers, pipe cleaners and felt. The pipe cleaners are used to form shepherds' crooks. "Attach the crooks...with a stapler", we are informed. Well, what do you know, I learned something new! I never would have thought I could use a stapler on a chunk of bread! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">This "Pony-Tail Angel" is a fantasy in styrofoam, or at least the crafters at <i>Woman's Day </i>seemed to think. Both body and head are made of this material. At least the body is covered with pink gift wrap paper, but the head is not. Paper facial features and gold upholstery fringe are pinned to that styrofoam ball, leaving the majority of the styrofoam exposed. Besides the recurring nightmare of mostly-bare styrofoam, the eyes of this angel look bizarre (and the figure isn't well-photographed to boot. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRydlEf06UjeovGEQ2QsX3xeqCWIYQtjBqtJP9-Q2fNIcG1NwJCXJd-CTPUpeTIFdysIMGERktFVmIjK3psbY5qoVd6-7hioUhyDatavkYYMAYgsC537DA7kI7mrnrlbOLnjwDJXq-sYxc/s1600/100_9651.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRydlEf06UjeovGEQ2QsX3xeqCWIYQtjBqtJP9-Q2fNIcG1NwJCXJd-CTPUpeTIFdysIMGERktFVmIjK3psbY5qoVd6-7hioUhyDatavkYYMAYgsC537DA7kI7mrnrlbOLnjwDJXq-sYxc/s320/100_9651.JPG" width="204" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I'm old enough to remember when circus clowns were merely considered funny and happy, but my daughter informs me they're definitely looked upon as sinister now. But even if that weren't the case, this "Bottle Clown" would give me the creeps rather than the warm fuzzies. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Here we have yet another bare styrofoam ball for a head. Although we aren't told what the facial features are made out of, they, like the yarn hair and bottle top hat, are affixed to the ball with jeweled pins. A bottle, presumably the one belonging the the cap, makes up the body. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">There are a number of other unfortunate-looking crafts in this magazine, but I'd better not show off anymore! After all, who really wants a nightmare for Christmas?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><i> </i> </span>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-11945462307349035462018-11-29T19:21:00.001-05:002018-11-29T19:21:46.159-05:00My Kind Of Black Friday Shopping<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Hello! I've never been one to participate in the big Black Friday sales, but now that some of the local thrift stores have their own Black Friday sales, I'm all in those! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">I visited two such sales last Friday, where clothes and/or housewares had reduced prices for the day. I did check out both categories, but I couldn't resist the already-low prices of various Christmas items, such as:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">A vintage Hallmark Beverage Ensemble- 16 coasters and matching napkins. Not sure how old this is, but I'm guessing from the 1960's. Similar NOS (new old stock) sets on eBay go for several dollars more than the one dollar I paid for mine. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">A nice assortment of vintage Christmas craft magazines. The one on the right is the oldest, dating from 1969. The one on the left is the newest; it came out in 1979. The two publications in between are both from 1976. The pieces of paper sticking out of these magazines were used by me to write down the page numbers of projects I may want to try in the future. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Don't laugh - it's not unusual for me to see projects in these magazines, and realize I'd seen very similar crafts in their present-day counterparts. I wouldn't be surprised to learn that vintage craft magazines are perused by the folks at <i>Martha Stewart Living</i> and all those holiday "special publications" from <i>Better Homes & Gardens</i> to come up with ideas for their own issues. Of course, these modern crafters take advantage of present-day craft supplies when they write up their instructions. Naturally, I do as well.</span><br />
<br /><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">At any rate, it was fun to look through these magazines; made a Thanksgiving weekend car trip fly by! Not bad for a total of one dollar for all. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Another possibility for Christmas crafting, this time an older hardcover book:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Leslie Linsley's <b>Christmas Ornaments and Stockings</b>, published in 1982. I've picked up other craft books by this author at secondhand sources over the years. Most of her patterns are full-size, have good directions and are easy to make. This book is no exception; I saw many projects that would still look good today. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Thus, it was no mystery that I'd fork over 50 cents for this book. What <i>was</i> a mystery to me is how this book ended up in West Michigan. It was once in the collection of the Bayard, Nebraska public library! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Lest you think I just bought things that are decades old, here's the last purchase from my Black Friday thrift store shopping:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The current issue of <i>Midwest Living</i> magazine. I don't recall what its newsstand price is (maybe $3.99?), but it's certainly more than the quarter I spent! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Such good deals I found on Black Friday! And just think, the same two thrift stores I visited then will start marking down their Christmas items in a couple of weeks or so. More shopping ahead for me!</span><br />
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<br />aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-13415741501866804322018-11-22T12:20:00.000-05:002018-11-22T12:20:00.771-05:00Happy Thanksgiving And Scenes From Plymouth, Massachusetts<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hello! I've never actually never been to Plymouth, MA, but I bought this recently at a thrift store to add to my Thanksgiving decor:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">It's a fold-up postcard. When its front and back covers are separated, several scenes around Plymouth around Plymouth are revealed. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The rock that started it all, Plymouth Rock, of course. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The Fountain to Pilgrim Mothers, and the Pilgrim Maiden statue.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">National Monument to the Forefathers, and a drawing of Priscilla and John Alden.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Myles Standish Monument and Statue of Massasoit, Protector of the Pilgrims. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The Mayflower, Pilgrims Going to Church, Sarcophagus, Coles Hill and Model of the Mayflower, Pilgrim Hall. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Above, Grave of Myles Standish (in Duxbury, MA) and below, Grave of Governor William Bradford. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">These are just some of the scenes in this set. The (presumably) original price of 10c is written on the front right-hand corner; I paid a quarter for it. Not bad, when a current eBay listing for this item is $14.99. Not sure how old this postcard is, but the seller states it's from the 1940's.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Well, whether one's been to Plymouth, MA or not, here's wishing you and yours a Happy Thanksgiving! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> </span>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-81875566381965907002018-11-17T19:01:00.002-05:002018-11-17T19:01:37.613-05:00Thrifty Acres: The Miracle Of "Modern" Radiology<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hello! Recently I bought a small plastic case full of vintage needlework supplies at a church rummage sale. Sure, I was glad about my one-dollar purchase, but the icing on the cake was this unexpected find at the bottom of the case:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">A vintage medically-theme booklet: "prepared by E. R. Squibb & Sons", as it states on the inside back cover. But here, the front cover shows a woman dressed up in dress, heels, hat and gloves to visit the radiology department.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Not sure what year this booklet was produced, but judging by the clothing, I'd say sometime in the 1950's or 1960's. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">So, why is Milady heading to Radiology? We'll learn that soon, but first we must learn this:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Yes, indeed, "X-rays are medical tools of great importance"!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Now we get to the crux of the matter: "Sometimes the gallbladder or ducts become infected or stopped up. If your gallbladder is not functioning properly, you may feel indisposed". Milady may feel merely "indisposed", but the illustration shows her grimacing with the pain in her side. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">But never fear! "The radiologist is a specialist. He has had years of training and experience." </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Therefore: "Pretend that you are going to have your picture taken and sit back and leave all the details to your radiologist or his technician. They will take one or more pictures and the procedure will be entirely free of discomfort and pain". </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Things must have gone well, for the back cover shows this illustration:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Milady's "picture taking" finished, she is now fluffing up her hair. After all, it must have gotten mussed up from having to put on the hospital gown shown in the previous photo. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">All's well that ends well, thanks to the miracle of modern radiology! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">(Note: if the name "E.R. Squibb & Sons" sounds familiar, it's because the firm is now part of Bristol-Meyer Squibb company. Edward Robinson Squibb had a very full life in medicine: he worked as a Navy doctor during the Mexican-American War, and after that started his pharmaceutical manufacturing business in 1858. He obviously had success in this endeavor quickly, for his firm became a major medicine supplier for the Union Army during the Civil War. </span>
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">The Squibb company merged with Bristol-Meyer in 1989.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;"> </span>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-49573789121834723412018-10-25T20:03:00.000-04:002018-10-25T20:03:18.620-04:00Made It: Christmas Ornaments From An Unusual Source<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hello! May seem hard to believe, but Christmas is two months from today! So what better time to show off some ornament gifts I just finished making? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Every year I create ornaments for my younger nieces and nephews, the ones who haven't graduated from high school yet. I like to get these made early and out of the way since I always have other gifts to make. Here's what I stitched up for this year's set:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And a close-up:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"></span><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Each design was stitched on 14-count Aida fabric, trimmed, backed with coordinating felt and then glued to wooden rings. A friend of mine gave me those rings, which came wrapped with wire hangers. They were the perfect size for the finished stitcheries. I'll admit, though, that these aren't big ornaments - the wooden rings are only about 2" diameter. So, small ornaments, but big on charm. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">What makes the source of these designs unusual is this:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">A 1979 counted cross-stitch design book, published by the Japanese company Ondori. (In case you didn't know, the letters "DMC" on the front cover refer to a well-known embroidery thread company). I bought this book at a thrift store for a quarter. I liked the interesting - and sometimes goofy - designs, but it was the cheery colors that really caught my eye:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">A friend thought these figures looked Dutch. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">These chicks would be cute for Easter.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">A pig in pink. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The page from which my ornament designs came. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">For reasons unknown to me, several of the larger designs in this book depict some sort of circus or carnival setting, such as this one:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Children on an animal-themed ride. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Other designs along the same theme are children holding balloons, hot air balloons rising up in the sky beyond a roller coaster and a Ferris wheel, clowns riding a circus wagon being pulled by an ostrich, clowns doing an act with a monkey, and other whimsical scenes. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The purpose of these - or <i>any </i>of the designs in this book - is unknown to me as well, since nearly the entire book is in Japanese. But the design charts were easy to follow and the DMC color numbers were given for each design. Those numbers are universal, so I had no problem doing the stitching.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I was curious about this:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Might have included some handy tips about how to pull out an end of the floss without ending up with a tangled mess like I've sometimes done. But it'll remain a mystery to me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">This book is 120 pages long plus four pages of ads for other Ondori craft books. The only real English in the whole volume is two snippets added later: the American importer of the book and the shop in my area that had stocked it. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Although Japanese language craft books are still a thing in this country, I don't see them around much, so I do consider them an unusual source. But in this case, my thrift store find helped me with some Christmas gift-giving. There's nothing unusual about that! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> </span>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-49521811416486552942018-10-20T20:52:00.002-04:002018-10-20T20:52:56.208-04:00Views From The End Of The World<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Well, not <i>actually </i>the end of the world - but we did recently travel to Worlds End State Park in northeastern Pennsylvania. We used to live about 3 1/2 hours from this park; which made it a nice weekend escape from our workweek life in suburban Philadelphia.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">We no longer live nearly as close to Worlds End State Park but still enjoy revisiting it from time to time for a little hiking. A few photos show why we like returning: </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Views of many small waterfalls on Double Run. While I did enjoy sights on this part of our hike, I was less enamored of the trail routing. We were led onto rocks that lined the stream bed - not great footing, and slippery to boot. But by walking carefully we got through this part of the trail unscathed. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">We climbed steadily up to our ultimate goal, Canyon Vista. According to a guidebook I have, <b>Hiking The Endless Mountains</b> by Jeff Mitchell, Canyon Vista is "One of Pennsylvania's most famous vistas..." In a state abundant with natural scenery, that's high praise indeed. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">When we got the Canyon Vista, here's what we saw:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> That's Loyalsock Creek you see below, from Canyon Vista's height of 1,750 ft. Mitchell comments that "Canyon Visit is not very high, but it offers incredible mountain scenery and an awesome view of Loyalsock Canyon." </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">We were hoping for more fall color, but a couple also at the vista said that the frequent rains in the region had hurt the maples; they were told that the leaves had died and fallen off before they could change color. Nevertheless, my husband and I, and the couple (visiting from Philadelphia) were as happy with the views as Mitchell was. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">After the climb to Canyon Vista my husband and I prepared to climb back down. This actually took us a bit longer than the trip up. The descent was quite steep in spots, steep enough that we worked against gravity to ensure we wouldn't go too fast. The amount of boulders to cross, tree roots to avoid and wet leaves to guard against made for slow going. But again, we were cautious and made our way back to the car with no issues other than the skid I took down a wet, slippery boulder. No injuries from it, though, so no harm, no foul. But because of such tricky footing - along with that close-to-Double Run trail on the way up to Canyon Vista - I didn't wish to stop to take more photos. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Despite that iffy footing, we were very happy with our excursion to Worlds End State Park. Mitchell calls it "...one of Pennsylvania's most beautiful state parks...beauty encompasses the entire park." Truthfully, we didn't go to many state parks while living in Pennsylvania. Our hiking activities mostly took us elsewhere. But Worlds End State park was an exception, since the nearly 60-mile-long Loyalsock Trail passes through it. (We went on parts of the LT to and from Canyon Vista on this hike.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">(Mitchell says that the </span><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Loyalsock Trail is "...one of Pennsylvania's most famous hiking trails". Again, high praise for a trail in a state loaded with them. We have a fondness for the LT ourselves since we've hiked it in its entirety.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">By the way, it's believed that the "Worlds End" moniker came from early settlers to the region. According to the park's website <a href="https://www.dcnr.pa.gov/StateParks/FindAPark/WorldsEndStatePark/Pages/default.aspx" target="_blank">(found here)</a>:</span></div>
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Early settlers to the area used two horse
trails to cross the rugged highland from Muncy Creek to the forks of
Loyalsock Creek at the town of Forksville. This treacherous road became
obsolete in 1895 with the building of PA 154.</div>
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Pioneer Road Trail and Worlds End Road follow
the path of the old horse trail. Worlds End Vista, at the junction of
Pioneer Road Trail and Worlds End Trail, is the view that possibly
inspired the name of the park.</div>
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And I should also note that one can view Canyon Vista without the rigors of scrambling over boulders and huffing and puffing up hills:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><b>ADA accessible Loyalsock Canyon Vista, reached via Mineral Spring and
Cold Run roads, and nearby High Knob Vista, provide outstanding views of
the Endless Mountains region. Scenery is particularly unforgettable
during the June mountain laurel bloom and the fall foliage period in
Octobe</b>r. (this info also came from the park website). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">We did see some folks approach the vista via the roads, which of course is fine and sure saved them some wear and tear on their legs. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">But even by foot, the views from the end of the world are worth it! </span> </div>
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aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-86331547404321159182018-10-04T19:50:00.000-04:002018-10-04T19:50:03.264-04:00Get Carded: Sad And Glad<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hello: Recently I made greeting cards to comfort a neighbor and to celebrate a niece's wedding. Two very different circumstances, to be sure, but both occasions deserved a nice handcrafted card. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">For the neighbor with a death in the family:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCqsLpRFUa3ae1J0iQmY_zXGowMezFIA5N6NqGVMWg-Yc6DQnHqZ9UOL-vPKuIAvsz3mOitM7Ak6afX9ZOs9OwL9eUIfTJCVTLqEVgWGP5BnViJi7UWGnuXyV4g1kQK95xjUJhClCumt-v/s1600/101_0419.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1270" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCqsLpRFUa3ae1J0iQmY_zXGowMezFIA5N6NqGVMWg-Yc6DQnHqZ9UOL-vPKuIAvsz3mOitM7Ak6afX9ZOs9OwL9eUIfTJCVTLqEVgWGP5BnViJi7UWGnuXyV4g1kQK95xjUJhClCumt-v/s320/101_0419.JPG" width="254" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">A close-up:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMgrxLaGnreO9kXnsANlJfFhg_IKV2_IAA3tJc5NlaCfopjs6ga4R-Mc-G9TflE4R4alaSfilwp5QN13t9bMyUjdQvvlkb4wy9RJKqlIlwRgXUwKyadTC1Du9N2NHf2B37YKpl138Cfxnz/s1600/101_0420.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1383" data-original-width="1600" height="276" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMgrxLaGnreO9kXnsANlJfFhg_IKV2_IAA3tJc5NlaCfopjs6ga4R-Mc-G9TflE4R4alaSfilwp5QN13t9bMyUjdQvvlkb4wy9RJKqlIlwRgXUwKyadTC1Du9N2NHf2B37YKpl138Cfxnz/s320/101_0420.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Purple is my go-to color for sympathy cards.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Materials used:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">white card stock</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">textured purple art paper scrap</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">solid purple art paper scrap</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">heart shape cut from vintage playing card</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">vintage button</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">ribbon scrap</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"May all your precious memories help bring you peace and comfort through all the days ahead" stamped in lilac ink onto paper scrap, then affixed to card. </span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I don't enjoy making sympathy cards, but I think this one turned out pretty well. It may seem odd using a vintage playing card in this way, but the design on the card back is pretty. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I don't know if our neighbor cared about that vintage playing card design, but she was appreciative that we'd sent the card. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Happier times prevailed last weekend at our niece's wedding. The "save the date" card and wedding invitation were printed on medium brown card stock, so I used that color as a starting point for my card.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAF-NXTksT3yVBFF_X6BZu8MdhLZyVijyTDsu510rlEZSM2xNJoiTj_6R9lNFZ8opesvtoG_qTzsdTC8VFF1ffOmgCm4bwQJ8d9YKrpi1yP-NFM7dPDED7q0ZJeg3BPffnjzn43UNzNJNe/s1600/101_0422.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAF-NXTksT3yVBFF_X6BZu8MdhLZyVijyTDsu510rlEZSM2xNJoiTj_6R9lNFZ8opesvtoG_qTzsdTC8VFF1ffOmgCm4bwQJ8d9YKrpi1yP-NFM7dPDED7q0ZJeg3BPffnjzn43UNzNJNe/s320/101_0422.JPG" width="280" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And a close-up:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_8blkkajNZEpWuiioPUMGEQuw0Oz0At7GWRCiOPml1fqDgk9Yta7KzjRfjoB5CWzn_Y-xUUkoqAROAq5G5rT_cUfv8QaLCEdvpdP4EllhL1sts0eyBEWM8SERe9LpUOk-8OqZI7y_KwtN/s1600/101_0423.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1519" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_8blkkajNZEpWuiioPUMGEQuw0Oz0At7GWRCiOPml1fqDgk9Yta7KzjRfjoB5CWzn_Y-xUUkoqAROAq5G5rT_cUfv8QaLCEdvpdP4EllhL1sts0eyBEWM8SERe9LpUOk-8OqZI7y_KwtN/s320/101_0423.JPG" width="303" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Materials used:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">white card stock</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">kraft paper scrap embellished with gold stamp pad ink</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">brown and white patterned art paper scrap</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">white paper scrap</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">off-white, heart-shaped scrapbook embellishment with "truly madly deeply" printed on the heart in gold </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"Congratulations" stamped in black ink</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">vintage gold-tone eyelet threaded with three pieces of ribbon</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">This card's simplicity matched the simple yet stylish design of the "save the date" and invitation mailings we'd gotten. A wedding card with an over-the-top design didn't seem right.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Congratulations to Courtney and Jake! And I hope our neighbor will be able to take the words on the front of her card to heart. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Sad or glad, I'll make a card to match the occasion. </span><br />
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<br />aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-52951486762886549442018-09-21T20:14:00.003-04:002018-09-21T20:14:56.347-04:00A Northern Michigan Getaway<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hello! I've done enough traveling this month that I hadn't even gotten around to blogging about a recent northern Michigan getaway before I left for another trip. So, now here's an account on what we did and saw up north.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">My husband surprised me by planning a visit to Mackinac Island for our wedding anniversary a couple of weekends ago. We hadn't been there in 10 years and so were looking forward to it. We drove up to the region that Friday and used the Hampton Inn in Petoskey as our base. This hotel has a nice location: on a hill, so you can see the blue waters of Little Traverse Bay if your room, like ours, faces the water. If not, you can still see the bay from the breakfast dining area. Very nice!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">We went up to Short's Brewery in Bellaire for dinner. My husband's a huge craft beer fan so that is the main draw for him, though he likes their pizza as well. I'm not crazy about their pizza, and the rest of the menu is rather limited. So I got the soft pretzel app with three dipping sauces (queso, peanut butter and homemade jam, and spicy mustard). Plenty substantial! Like most microbrewery eateries, Short's has a cool vibe. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">You can learn more about Short's <a href="https://www.shortsbrewing.com/" target="_blank">here.</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Saturday morning, we hustled over to Mackinac City, hoping to make the 11:00 ferry to Mackinac Island. We made it with a few minutes to spare. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The view from our Star Line ferry boat:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Passing by the Mackinac Bridge. The water was quite choppy, so I was grateful that the ride was a short one. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">First order of the day after docking on the island was getting lunch. We split a small pizza at Island Slice Pizzeria. The last time we were on the island, I think there was a pizza place in the same location but with a different name. It appeared that the menu was basically the same as before, and the pizza's pretty good. Website is <a href="https://islandslicepizzeria.com/" target="_blank">here.</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">In case you didn't realize it, no cars are allowed on Mackinac Island, so people get around via bikes, carriage tours, renting their own carriages to drive, or by walking. My husband and I did the latter, so what follows are various pics along the route we took.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimzBkvVo5-JdOPIXzTc0ee7rNdeXagdbyAUbIPa-nmyTzFJ4rgKhECR4icdtcjSGCgy9T5uzgR5IoTJUPaHrsAuU3oeUCgZ-Y-WQvuX8VZkLOH8iS6F40FJkd6_8d5B3ImbMHJ50v97zL7/s1600/101_0386+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1382" data-original-width="1600" height="276" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimzBkvVo5-JdOPIXzTc0ee7rNdeXagdbyAUbIPa-nmyTzFJ4rgKhECR4icdtcjSGCgy9T5uzgR5IoTJUPaHrsAuU3oeUCgZ-Y-WQvuX8VZkLOH8iS6F40FJkd6_8d5B3ImbMHJ50v97zL7/s320/101_0386+%25282%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">An empty carriage pulled by horses, followed by one filled with tourists. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0fEI5OwP3j5jkSBFpew5eKQpVKBNdgl24T_KtgAraof6QR2fSIpdS0JI51de9NTX3Ucwsyq937uZwbB6pw0ybAAqykAk_1Hxy3qXmFo2KSG7OqZVgJDzZGEirRKYjRZbw_SzKemCnCA5-/s1600/101_0387+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="763" data-original-width="1600" height="152" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0fEI5OwP3j5jkSBFpew5eKQpVKBNdgl24T_KtgAraof6QR2fSIpdS0JI51de9NTX3Ucwsyq937uZwbB6pw0ybAAqykAk_1Hxy3qXmFo2KSG7OqZVgJDzZGEirRKYjRZbw_SzKemCnCA5-/s320/101_0387+%25282%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The iconic Grand Hotel; always well-known in Michigan but became even more well-known after being featured in the 1980 movie <i>Somewhere In Time. </i>Fun fact: my husband and I saw this movie while living in East Lansing, MI. In the scene in which the Christopher Reeve character arrives at the Grand Hotel, he's shown driving up in a car. The movie audience immediately booed since cars aren't allowed on the island (obviously an exception was made for the movie filming). We enjoyed that dissent as an only-in-Michigan moment. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Pretty cottage with picket fence.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">I've always been fond of Victorian houses that have turrets. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinINCcCSQCoiJ41xNpEU5Clz1HRcKQHppnUKSzuMzCuf2pMbfS-3N8HG7iD4hQI991tOIuvO0jL9TRGu5OZ3iQdxLSIwYrMYqaApXsqJAUN5FJqge7aF-QZZtqHTw_-IAHsFB4Eaqw_OCo/s1600/101_0395+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1150" data-original-width="1600" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinINCcCSQCoiJ41xNpEU5Clz1HRcKQHppnUKSzuMzCuf2pMbfS-3N8HG7iD4hQI991tOIuvO0jL9TRGu5OZ3iQdxLSIwYrMYqaApXsqJAUN5FJqge7aF-QZZtqHTw_-IAHsFB4Eaqw_OCo/s320/101_0395+%25282%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The Windermere Hotel, one of several lodging options on the island. Have never stayed there, but doesn't it look charming? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Yes, I didn't take many photos, but that was in part because we did so much walking. My Fitbit showed that I had logged almost nine miles by the time we were ready to board the ferry back to the mainland. I was tired enough that I didn't even go into any of the shops. Perhaps that was just as well, as the downtown area was crawling with visitors. Even though the summer tourist season was over, the weather was pleasant that weekend (sunny and in the low to mid 60's), so apparently that brought out the hordes. Yes, Mackinac Island's downtown gets crowded, and it's pricey, but we've always found it well worth an occasional visit. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Back in Petoskey, dinner was on the horizon. Via Yelp, my husband had scouted out Freshwater Grill, a place known for good local fish. Alas, it was unexpectedly closed when we arrived. A search of their website revealed that the owners were taking a well-deserved vacation after the busy summer season. So instead, we went to yet another craft beer-centric place, Beards Brewery. Since I'd been looking forward to seafood at Freshwater Grill, I got the fish and chips here. It was pretty good and I also enjoyed a black cherry cream pop (I was designated driver, after all) from Northwood Soda, a company in the region. My husband had the red curry bowl and, of course, more beer. Beards Brewery is nicely decorated inside and has a good view of the bay as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">If you'd like to know more about Beards, check <a href="http://www.beardsbrewery.com/" target="_blank">here.</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">As I'd said, my fish and chips dinner was good, but I wouldn't have ordered it if I'd known my husband had fish in mind for lunch the next day: Scalawags Whitefish And Chips on the edge of downtown Traverse City. This place looks pretty basic on the outside, but I loved the fishing-theme interior decor and took several pics:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">A lineup of used (vintage?) outboard motors.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Old bait buckets turned into lamps above our booth.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And to go along with those bait buckets (at least, I think that's what they were), a grouping of old fishing poles. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Some fishy details on our table. Note the bobber-like salt and pepper shakers. I appreciate such attention to details!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">My husband and I both got the whitefish sandwich baskets, which included fries and coleslaw. Other types of fish are available, but as whitefish is in the name of the restaurant, we felt that was the logical choice. And it was! An employee explained that the fish comes in freshly-caught from the region (Charlevoix area) and definitely tasted it. The whitefish had a subtle sweetness and was expertly prepared. I can highly recommend this place! Their website is <a href="http://www.scalawagstc.com/" target="_blank">here.</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">If it sounds like we mainly ate, drank and walked around on our excursion, you're correct. Even though we were visiting the region on a weekend, it was definitely a slower time of year. Most shops were closed in Petoskey by the time we hit downtown both evenings, and we simply didn't have much time in Traverse City since we stopped there on our way back home. But we'd had a very nice time anyway; it was a great way to celebrate our anniversary. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And it sure beat the trip I've just returned from, a visit to our daughter for a marathon cleaning session of her apartment. Her various grad school duties keep her quite busy, so I was being a nice mom to do some cleaning for her. Not sure if I'd do that again, but I'd certainly welcome another northern Michigan getaway!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> </span>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-83817963399309610252018-09-13T20:40:00.000-04:002018-09-13T20:40:16.278-04:00Thrifty Acres: TV Time In 1965<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hello! Once upon a time, network television was the only game in town: no cable channels, no original programming from online sources, etc. So ABC could promote its 1965 programming line-up with a 10-page ad in <i>Reader's Digest</i>:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Today is a Thursday, but it <i>is</i> September 13th, so what better day to show off what TV watchers could expect from ABC back then? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">How about "The most exciting of all television seasons. A season of great entertainment. Seven nights a week. All year long. On ABC." </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Sounds rather grandiose, doesn't it? But after all, it was the debut of "adorable newcomer" Sally Field, in <i>Gidget</i>:</span><br />
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<i></i><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><i>Gidget </i>fell under this heading:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"The excitement of high comedy", which also included shows that became rerun staples for decades: <i>McHale's Navy, F Troop </i>(new in 1965)<i>, Ozzie and Harriet, The Patty Duke Show, The Donna Reed Show, Bewitched, The Flintstones </i>and <i>The Addams Family.</i> But as I'd never heard of <i>The Farmer's Daughter, O.K. Crackerby! </i>or <i>Tammy,</i> I assume those weren't nearly as successful. Still, obviously a line-up that stood the test of time!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Maybe you'd rather have "The excitement of great drama"? Then these are the shows for you:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJbrhUNEvJETDXFq9vqu_dAxdrw4_6bEHHbwg29EQnMX4jXufsRJb_aefaXEFkPxJI7wGKNsdSiA15pbA6AbRZBdX8ygp1Ucb3f_g0-4Vg1psewc_5MwglQybmZldHzH0pQx9Qxin3Qzgr/s1600/101_0406+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1115" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJbrhUNEvJETDXFq9vqu_dAxdrw4_6bEHHbwg29EQnMX4jXufsRJb_aefaXEFkPxJI7wGKNsdSiA15pbA6AbRZBdX8ygp1Ucb3f_g0-4Vg1psewc_5MwglQybmZldHzH0pQx9Qxin3Qzgr/s320/101_0406+%25282%2529.JPG" width="223" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Of this grouping, <i>Ben Casey, Peyton Place, The Fugitive, </i>and <i>The Big Valley </i>stand out as shows people talked out. <i>The Big Valley </i>was new in 1965, and newcomer Lee Majors was on the show. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And there's another new show:</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> <i>The FBI</i>, starring Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. I was 5 1/2 when this show debuted, but it lasted through 1974, so I do remember watching this one! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Another new crime-oriented show in 1965, although one that wasn't as successful, was <i>Honey West. </i>The ad blurb for the show is cringe-worthy today: "Wait till you see Anne Francis as Honey West, private eye-ful if there ever was one". Ugh. I'll admit that Ms. Francis <i>was </i>attractive: </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">However, I don't think that "eye-ful" remark would go over too well these days. By the way, the show only lasted one season. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Moving along, we now come to: </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"The excitement of music...and movies". <i>Shindig</i> was "...entertainment as its go-goest!" This was the 2nd season of the pop music-oriented show, but it didn't last beyond January of 1966. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Of course, other musical genres had a home on ABC as well, like <i>The Jimmy Dean Show </i>for country music fans. I wonder how many people today now associate that name with sausage and other breakfast foods? But Jimmy Dean had a long career in music and in television. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><i>The Lawrence Welk Show </i>had its fans too, of course. Fun personal fact: my parents, my in-laws, and the parents of my two brothers-in-law were all about the same age. Yet out of these four sets of parents, mine were the only ones who never watched Lawrence Welk and his gang. Because of this, I grew up thinking hardly anyone had watched his show in the 1960's. I was quite surprised to learn that wasn't the case, at least among the families whose sons married into mine!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><i>The King Family</i> sounded interesting: "Thirty-seven (count 'em) thirty seven singing, dancing sisters, husbands, nephews, cousins and aunts in a warm, wonderful half-hour variety show". Quite a family indeed! This was actually the second season - and last - of the show, so the 39 shows produced just about equaled the number of people who were on the show. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">ABC didn't have much to say about movies, just a list of some that would be aired (<i>North To Alaska, The Hustler</i>) and some of the stars in them (James Stewart, Helen Hayes, John Wayne, Paul Newman). Nevertheless, "Save Sunday nights for movies on ABC!"</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And, let's not forget:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"The special excitement of specials...and the thrill of sports." The dapper gent in the top of the photo is Rex Harrison, who was set to show off Paris on TV. An animated version of Alice in Wonderland was going to appear over the holidays, and Robert Preston was going to tour the US in six appearances of <i>This Proud Land.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Sports programming featured pro bowling, NBA basketball ("pro basketball at its best, brought close to you by ABC's imaginative techniques" - I assume they meant camera work here), baseball, football specials, golf and the US Tennis Championship. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"Not a week goes by without outstanding sports on ABC." But what I remember most about ABC sports is this show:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hooray for <i>Wide World of Sports</i>! "The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat". I remember watching this show with my brother. For some reason, motocross was one of my favorites (I still enjoy watching it, which my husband can't understand.) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"><i>Wild World of Sports </i>ran for an incredible length of time: April 1961 to January 1998. Yet it had been conceived as only a single-season summer replacement series for that first year! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">This show made the sporting world big news, but naturally ABC didn't want us to forget its news division either:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"The excitement of world-wide news". And who's the man at the news desk at the top?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Why, it's none other than "dynamic, fast-moving Peter Jennings with the News". Dynamic he might have been, but apparently his first stint at the anchor desk didn't go well, and he became a foreign correspondent in 1968. But eventually he triumphed at that earlier position: ten years after that, he returned as one of three ABC news anchors, and became sole anchor in 1983. He remained at that helm until his death in 2005. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">So who's this guy, and why is there a bottle on the wall near his head? Silly you, didn't you know about ABC's "...superbly informative reporting of the news from space...Jules Bergman, ABC's Science Editor, and the entire news team with their continuing coverage of the Gemini flights". So you see, that's not a bottle above Bergman's head, it's a model of a Gemini spacecraft. Looks pretty cheesy compared to the images we see from space now, but that's the best they could do back then. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Bergman would have been plenty busy covering Gemini flights, as there were seven missions in a little over a year's time after this <i>Reader's Digest</i> issue came out. And there was plenty more space news to cover in the years ahead, which Bergman did through 1987. So from unmanned space flights to man landing on the moon to the space shuttle program, he saw a lot. And I bet eventually he didn't have a bottle-like object above his head during his segments! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Back to the general news, in 1965 Bob Young did the weekend news. And for the ladies, "Marlene Sanders and News with the Woman's Touch, weekday afternoons". That sounds awfully lightweight, but Sanders was actually a trailblazer for women in television. She had many firsts in her long career, such as being among the first women war correspondents in Vietnam. After joining ABC in 1964, she became the first woman to anchor a major network's news show when the regular anchor became ill. And eventually she became the first woman vice-president of ABC's news division. I have no idea if "News with the Woman's Touch" was actually lightweight, but clearly Sanders' career was anything but that!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Well, I think this is enough of TV Time in 1965. I enjoyed the look back - but I think I'll go read a book now!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> </span>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-82012421963274420192018-09-06T21:52:00.001-04:002018-09-06T21:56:10.993-04:00Thrifty Acres: Are You Ready For Some Football?<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Hello! Football season has begun: the local media's sports reporting is dominated by high school game scores, college football is underway, and the NFL season opens tonight. So I thought it appropriate to show off this:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">A print ad from a 1962 <i>Reader's Digest, </i>featuring a Olds F-85 Cutlass. A sporty car for the sporty action behind it:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">The kick is up and it's good! The ad folks must have thought it looked great to show that Olds F-85 Cutlass parked near the end zone of a football field, but I wouldn't want to ever park <i>my</i> car there! What if the kick had been blocked or the kicker had kicked it wide right? Then you'd have a dent or broken window marring that picture-perfect Olds! But of course in car ad-land, such things wouldn't happen. Save that for the car insurance ads!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">The magazine was one of an armful of vintage <i>Reader's Digests (</i>mid-1950's to early-1960's) I scooped up at a thrift store last year. After reading the articles at leisure, I eventually tore out the ads I wanted to keep for displaying or crafting. I thrifted a simple frame for the display purpose. Its front and back sections separate easily, so it only takes a moment to change out one ad for another. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Here's what I showed off during the summer months:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">According to Campbell's, "Summer is Soup 'n Sandwich Time!" The copy continues with "Good things begin to happen when summer lunch is soup and a sandwich. Spirits perk up. Appetites quicken." </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Uh, really? First off, who serves soup along with a hot dog? And is a hot dog really a sandwich? Granted, the AC in public places is often cranked up high enough to make me want something hot to eat, but I don't think that's what Campbell's had in mind. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">No, the purpose of promoting summertime soup is found at the very end of the ad: "And just one of 21 Campbell's Soups to enjoy once a day...every day! Have <u>you</u> had your soup today? Campbell's, of course!"</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Of course. But sorry, Campbell's, I didn't have any of your soups this summer. However, as I'd said, it's now football season<i> - </i>and<i> </i>to me, <i>that's</i> soup time!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">PS: on the back of this soup ad is the beginning of an article entitled "Is There Life in Outer Space?" (authored by Edwin Diamond, condensed from <i>Newsweek</i> magazine). It's now over 50 years later, and we <i>still</i> don't know!</span><br />
aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-92070160730237839582018-08-22T20:11:00.000-04:002018-08-26T22:04:29.094-04:00Things You Can Always Find At A Thrift Store #11: Pleasing Patterns<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Hello! I've owned a sewing machine since the mid-1980's. In all that time I've not advanced my sewing skills to a high level of expertise, but still like to try new projects from time to time. Fortunately, thrift stores typically have a variety of pleasing patterns, and for a fraction of the original prices. Read along and see what I mean! I'll begin by showing off some patterns I've actually used, followed by make-it-someday ones. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">A 50c pattern, but would have cost almost 12 bucks at full price. Fabric stores often have pattern sales, but not as low as 50c! I made the project on the right, a sofa slipcover. It was relatively easy, though I remember that it took a <i>long</i> time to sew the hem at the bottom.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">A pattern package full of sewing accessory projects (plus one button doll). This would have cost almost 19 dollars at full price. Needless to say, I was happy that I only needed a quarter at the thrift store! I made the project at the upper left, a sewing machine cover. (The photographed example has a large rick rack flower on it.) I figured that it was high time my sewing machine got a cover! (keeps dust off the machine). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">This is a pattern I've made over and over:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">As the package states, this really <i>is</i> an easy pattern! Even a slowpoke sewer like me can whip up a pair of polar fleece socks in no time at all. I often make up several pairs at a time and give them to our daughter as part of her Christmas presents. I sometimes pick up polar fleece remnants at thrift stores too. That helps even more in making these socks easy, inexpensive and practical gifts. If I have enough polar fleece left over after sewing her socks, I'll make some socks for me as well. Nice to wear on a cold winter day! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">This pattern is worth the $7.00 price on the package, but I only paid 50c for it. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Now on to patterns I hope to sew some day:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">From the Sew Green thrift store in Ithaca, NY, a fun pattern set: multi-pocketed vest, journal cover, portfolio and carry-all. The vest and its description on the back of the package caught my eye: "A play or work vest, with easy, folded pocket design, lets you personalize pocket sizes to fit the tools of your trade. A <u>must</u> for the artist, sewer, gardener, cook, sportsman or woodworker in your life." Well, I'm not a sportsman or a woodworker, but I can define myself with the other words, so I bought this pattern. It cost a dollar at Sew Green, but would have cost $12 at full price. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">And that brings me to another point about buying patterns at thrift stores. As I'd mentioned earlier, fabric stores often have sales on sewing patterns, but these tend to be the "big names" like Vogue, Simplicity, Butterick, etc. But it's hit and miss for the smaller pattern companies, whose lines may not even be readily available at the fabric store chains like Jo Ann Fabrics. I think Jo Ann's carries The Green Pepper brand (the polar fleece sock pattern) - but I'd never heard of Diane Ericson, designer of the Creative Companion pattern. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">I wasn't familiar with the CNT Pattern Company either, before I spied this:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUuq1tHGawT3SHkAzJa1pXRqLNN-wzOB83k3fXhS1m89kRbh6Yf72Avr97dObIxh8Oy-QotL09LeeugKiHXFXnZRAcmjZSD1vohv-Dvo78z-8sCQTcq78nuZAy6zVNvhiu0bIwPIyLYKrA/s1600/101_0363.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1057" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUuq1tHGawT3SHkAzJa1pXRqLNN-wzOB83k3fXhS1m89kRbh6Yf72Avr97dObIxh8Oy-QotL09LeeugKiHXFXnZRAcmjZSD1vohv-Dvo78z-8sCQTcq78nuZAy6zVNvhiu0bIwPIyLYKrA/s320/101_0363.JPG" width="211" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">A jacket to "Start <i>after</i> Breakfast Finish <i>before </i>Lunch". Not sure how long it would take <i>me </i>to sew this jacket, but for only 50c I could afford to take a chance on this pattern. If I'd been looking at paying $10.49, I would have passed it up! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Here's a good, multi-purpose pattern:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-Ke6DWy_OXQqnMLzTR_NtT5V8b39NyOm3J5oBWonKKJRQbS_aERS1Uilqjed5GBwVHcS_JArMx_j9E6r9OWm3TJcbJ5USvk29mShnPCW6cn6rp_NcYGREu-ozqqJkZLNaucEWG7wdaFHQ/s1600/101_0361.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1120" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-Ke6DWy_OXQqnMLzTR_NtT5V8b39NyOm3J5oBWonKKJRQbS_aERS1Uilqjed5GBwVHcS_JArMx_j9E6r9OWm3TJcbJ5USvk29mShnPCW6cn6rp_NcYGREu-ozqqJkZLNaucEWG7wdaFHQ/s320/101_0361.JPG" width="224" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">The pattern package didn't photograph great because it's in a plastic ziplock bag. So here's a close-up:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOwuaSNvaEKRlTGLaDZXV2EGA9Rd7OyepXFBmr5S-koX19iMsBLw-l0PZnLlUpRug1_7DpKKJWMMfZVabt5ZznvfkSpCz20SST_jn4m_48gdgNZ9YibwiEcNTciEsP40kd3w9Vx3qfVIam/s1600/101_0362.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1253" data-original-width="1600" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOwuaSNvaEKRlTGLaDZXV2EGA9Rd7OyepXFBmr5S-koX19iMsBLw-l0PZnLlUpRug1_7DpKKJWMMfZVabt5ZznvfkSpCz20SST_jn4m_48gdgNZ9YibwiEcNTciEsP40kd3w9Vx3qfVIam/s320/101_0362.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Shorts, crop pants, capris and long pants: you're covered for all four seasons! Not bad for fifty cents, and certainly better than the full price of eight dollars! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">I bought the next pattern over the weekend at the Ann Arbor PTO thrift store (a must-stop for the thrifty arts/crafts person):</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcr1BBKq8hn6FBK7_M-nZkw-JXKzPO9sKlYKH5HP57gSl0zoDhn1buWXUkqfeo7z3nTyNP3eKKiYkjVJ_qHREgX5BjPPlx66zG225u7ahvJ-V9FFApEnEFDmPmleniUfoCthh9ozsAb59W/s1600/101_0364.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1062" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcr1BBKq8hn6FBK7_M-nZkw-JXKzPO9sKlYKH5HP57gSl0zoDhn1buWXUkqfeo7z3nTyNP3eKKiYkjVJ_qHREgX5BjPPlx66zG225u7ahvJ-V9FFApEnEFDmPmleniUfoCthh9ozsAb59W/s320/101_0364.JPG" width="212" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">And a close-up:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjHxvJMwuLCFDP70zCK2wSzo7v_glur6qjvH1Sg8YvIwlBQftndxnxYc8AJhdMSTA1AyzD6rr2H75bCwHxDF1njS38qSD_e780Ug7n7iiI_BjpWzMtqBdP_dxsdwnKQ1q4clmnTdDhZ7_U/s1600/101_0365.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1054" data-original-width="1600" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjHxvJMwuLCFDP70zCK2wSzo7v_glur6qjvH1Sg8YvIwlBQftndxnxYc8AJhdMSTA1AyzD6rr2H75bCwHxDF1njS38qSD_e780Ug7n7iiI_BjpWzMtqBdP_dxsdwnKQ1q4clmnTdDhZ7_U/s320/101_0365.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">A variety of fabrics makes for a fun look, I thought. This is actually the second time I've purchased this pattern. My plans to sew the pattern the first time were thwarted, believe it or not, by a squirrel intruder. (you can read about this incident <a href="http://aimee-catsfrommars.blogspot.com/2013/09/its-gotten-squirrely-around-here.html" target="_blank">here.)</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">That initial purchase was from a store three hours away I had visited during a weekend trip, so I couldn't readily go back and buy another pattern. And this was before online ordering was the thing it is now. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Besides, I really didn't want to shell out nine dollars again. So I was happy to find another copy of the pattern for 50c! I'm not sure why I remembered this pattern well enough to recognize it at the thrift store, since it'd been "stolen" around ten years ago! But I know it's the same one.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Thus far I've shown off either clothing patterns or those patterns meant for the home. So I'll end this post with a craft pattern:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwvtZXL_1sGUM0FUH5fnAnocB4ReeAPMUfi32kby79vJDQEeksOhzzhPYSpfH7RZHHTIUXPZgshabxiSSMGGBG-fBxO8UkdYHw-58aXMfSXRqOheWNXEWv1_Q9HpJk83zDmR48dv0U0SKr/s1600/101_0369.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1018" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwvtZXL_1sGUM0FUH5fnAnocB4ReeAPMUfi32kby79vJDQEeksOhzzhPYSpfH7RZHHTIUXPZgshabxiSSMGGBG-fBxO8UkdYHw-58aXMfSXRqOheWNXEWv1_Q9HpJk83zDmR48dv0U0SKr/s320/101_0369.JPG" width="203" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">A pattern for quilted postcards; the package includes directions and two preprinted postcard backs. The front of the package also has this message from designer Jamie Kalvestran: "Yes, you can actually mail this with one postage stamp and send it through the U.S. mail without an envelope, just like any other postcard!" </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">At the end of the pattern directions, Kalvestran adds that one instructs the post office clerk to make sure the postcard is hand-cancelled and place in the NON-machineable bin. "If the postal workers give you a hard time - let them know these are being mailed all across the country with success..." Okay, then! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">I really got a good deal: besides this pattern, which cost me 50c instead of $7.25, I also got a package of eight more blank postcard backs for 50c more. Not only that, but someone had actually completed a quilted postcard:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu3QKWIKTOGRY5vJOE_PnMtBNwmacgrrz1-uuiVEHQAmqnb4VfAwdX9FDk_DOkLp-dRrpgRcKhpnv5UEz6jEZ4bT4ockJtHyuJhtlz01GgOpkk5CZSmk7iVOu3tytVd7_SslGdd1OylzYM/s1600/101_0370.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1109" data-original-width="1600" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu3QKWIKTOGRY5vJOE_PnMtBNwmacgrrz1-uuiVEHQAmqnb4VfAwdX9FDk_DOkLp-dRrpgRcKhpnv5UEz6jEZ4bT4ockJtHyuJhtlz01GgOpkk5CZSmk7iVOu3tytVd7_SslGdd1OylzYM/s320/101_0370.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Whoever had sewn this had done a fine job, so I wondered why they hadn't made the other nine postcards, let alone mail this one out! But as I occasionally participate in postcard swaps, I thought this would be a nice project the next time I do one.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">A couple of notes:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">All full prices are those listed on the patterns at the time of the original purchases.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">If you can, examine the pattern at the thrift store for completeness and correct sizing before you buy it. When I haven't remembered to check, I've sometimes discovered at home that a previous owner had cut off some of the sizes on a multi-size pattern, thereby making the pattern useless to me. And occasionally pattern pieces will be missing, which of course also makes it difficult to make the project. And occasionally, the pattern pieces will be there, but the directions won't! A lot of good that does!</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Thus, it goes without saying is that your best bet is an uncut pattern. In spite of the high (to me) prices I've quoted in this post for brand-new purchases, most of the patterns shown here had never been used. </span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Incidentally, I totaled up the full prices for the patterns shown here: $84.64. My thrift store price total: $4.25. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">So, besides offering pleasing patterns, thrift stores also offer pleasing prices! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">Happy Sewing! </span><br />
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aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-91397983529192029202018-08-11T20:50:00.002-04:002018-08-11T20:50:49.661-04:00Get Carded: Congratulations To The Bride And Groom <span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hello! My family attended my nephew's wedding last weekend in Maryland and had a very nice time. The ceremony was held outdoors in a garden a stone's throw away from Chesapeake Bay, while the reception was held indoors at the same location. The setting was just as nice as it sounds! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">But no matter where the setting, a wedding deserves a nice card and here's the one I made for my nephew and his bride:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglMmXWc6JWEsKfp9IM20M3jhagn19gT48vuGD60EjMAzB6rlcZ_jF2xe3sVLQRBd4b897lozwnWXMYhEnDqF229edzYl0qaf3Wh6hA0BR7nZabAFZrfJgfHUu3C9zNiQV4wJnKT4pQxE6f/s1600/101_0333.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1265" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglMmXWc6JWEsKfp9IM20M3jhagn19gT48vuGD60EjMAzB6rlcZ_jF2xe3sVLQRBd4b897lozwnWXMYhEnDqF229edzYl0qaf3Wh6hA0BR7nZabAFZrfJgfHUu3C9zNiQV4wJnKT4pQxE6f/s320/101_0333.JPG" width="252" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And a close-up:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL4ReuDgaRwXzPW01ghHkcMGWIrCriw1UPfD4irntfahGKsiySxaOKXKjJ9ftZW_poq47t2jf2koWhim1mFxAKTf68eAg0ZwGHCJk00kIpMk0g9O95cYRXwqT6On7vT5IQVbANjP-ZPAcN/s1600/101_0334.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1587" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL4ReuDgaRwXzPW01ghHkcMGWIrCriw1UPfD4irntfahGKsiySxaOKXKjJ9ftZW_poq47t2jf2koWhim1mFxAKTf68eAg0ZwGHCJk00kIpMk0g9O95cYRXwqT6On7vT5IQVbANjP-ZPAcN/s320/101_0334.JPG" width="317" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Materials used:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">white card stock</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">rubber stamp scroll design stamped in black ink</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">large heart cut from scrapbook paper</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">small heart cut from art paper </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">images of two bells stamped in black ink onto art paper, then cut out and affixed onto small heart</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"Congratulations to the BRIDE AND GROOM" photocopied from 1954 wedding card and edged in black ink</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">black and white cord</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">silver glitter glue dots</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">The black/white/silver color scheme was chosen to match the color scheme of the gift wrap I'd used for the wedding gifts.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And there was a special reason I photocopied part of a vintage wedding card: my parents - my nephew's grandparents - had been given that wedding card in 1954. And they received it from my mom's parents - my nephew's great-grandparents. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">My nephew never knew those great-grandparents, but he certainly remembers his late grandparents. So I wrote a note to him on the inside of my card, explaining the bit that had been photocopied from his grandparents' wedding card and how it represented them in spirit. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And what did I see on a table at his wedding reception? A framed picture of my parents (along with framed pictures of other deceased relatives). So indeed, another sign that my parents were there in spirit!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">A funny thing about my parents' wedding card: I have no idea how it came into my possession! But my eyes fell upon it while I was thinking up a card design for my nephew's wedding. Now that I used part of it for his card, I think I'll include it in subsequent weddings in my family. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Congratulations to the bride and groom! </span><br />
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<br /><br />aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-963162951973908970.post-78759954299477540272018-08-01T15:34:00.000-04:002018-08-01T15:34:49.332-04:00Get Carded: Welcome Home<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Hello! A brother who'd been hospitalized for several weeks was finally deemed well enough to return home. Being the nice sister that I am (well, <i>sometimes, </i>at least!), I made a greeting card to honor the occasion and sent it to him. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Here's how it turned out:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKOJIqkVWAHOdljZI0fYW5BD252iL2VZcf9XYsuHpbdy6Dc3mi0hUMs0t5eGuJqgUnDRFKQRRDcSUO56FJ5z_ALsLdDG2ONDcByoveKeY3JWEmFVFouw9ePk4ItxsfTbJC7_TK0Mk0YD_-/s1600/101_0328.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1267" data-original-width="1600" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKOJIqkVWAHOdljZI0fYW5BD252iL2VZcf9XYsuHpbdy6Dc3mi0hUMs0t5eGuJqgUnDRFKQRRDcSUO56FJ5z_ALsLdDG2ONDcByoveKeY3JWEmFVFouw9ePk4ItxsfTbJC7_TK0Mk0YD_-/s320/101_0328.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">And a close-up:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhREqhe4C45fPGuICuMyHw7o0OEDIJsUhI9Zs5SbQRDLIEqGdf5WMCfzeRJfB361HDXnrcxoHCAhQe0A88Q5G7zuoAEALp6nHtm4FvDKZqOGQ99J1nnAzoiGQM311r8mQBF3BsY4PUw3YPm/s1600/101_0329.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1088" data-original-width="1600" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhREqhe4C45fPGuICuMyHw7o0OEDIJsUhI9Zs5SbQRDLIEqGdf5WMCfzeRJfB361HDXnrcxoHCAhQe0A88Q5G7zuoAEALp6nHtm4FvDKZqOGQ99J1nnAzoiGQM311r8mQBF3BsY4PUw3YPm/s320/101_0329.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Materials used:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">white card stock</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">piece from vintage atlas</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">blue art paper scrap</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">bird image stamped in blue ink onto vintage wallpaper scrap</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">solid dot image stamped in blue ink onto paper with the letter "A" on it (initial of my brother's first name)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">"WELCOME HOME" stamped in blue ink onto ledge paper scrap</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Kind of a simple card, but I didn't think my brother would want one with a frilly look to it. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">This card expresses a simple sentiment but important sentiment: he's finally home after a long hospital stay. And for that I am very grateful! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;"> </span>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08403893749906764678noreply@blogger.com1