Kitchen Reds

There seemed to be a theme running through the Rednesday posts today. See them over at It's A Very Cherry World. So I went to my kitchen to find reds for today. This sugar and creamer were passed on to me from my grandmother quite a few years ago.














This cookbook was also given to me by my grandmother. It doesn't have any date in it but the art work on the divider pages suggest '40s or'50s.



















Next is this pretty dish towel from my MIL. She had a set of 3, these strawberries, raspberries and blueberries.

















And finally here's my cookbook shelf in the kitchen.

Two Posts In One Day?!!

Yes, two posts in one day. Unheard of for me, I know. But I couldn't wait to share these with you.
I have fallen in love with so many vintage bits of greeting cards, post cards and children's books that have been kindly shared online that my computer image files are bursting at the seams. A couple of months ago I began my own collection when I purchased some vintage postcards at a local flea market. As I have mentioned in my previous post, I have a wonderful selection of places nearby to go 'junking'. In these shops I always find vintage post cards. Many wonderful post cards from flowery greetings to places both local and around the world. What I'm not finding, are greeting cards.
Well, I have been rewarded and I will be sharing. We have slowly been cleaning out my MIL's house since her passing last fall. Saturday, I went over for just a bit to see what else I might 'deal' with. Two good sized boxes, bound in rubber bands, as so many of her things are, sat on a stray chair in the spare bedroom. Stretching off the rubber bands, I pulled up the cover of the smaller box. Inside was filled with letters and cards, saved through the years. OMG! Could the larger box be holding the same sort of treasure? Stretch off the rubber bands, pull off the cover... YES! More cards! I spent hours over the weekend going through them. Reading letters from the past and noticing that my MIL's mother always chose the prettiest cards. The cards seem to be from the 1960s through the '80s. The earliest ones are baby cards from my husband's birth in 1967. They aren't all wonderful. But I will show the best ones. I'll start with Mother's Day cards, as that is right around the calendar's corner.
This one was made by Ambassador Cards and my MIL has marked 1981 on the back.

This little bunny card for a Godmother is also made by Ambassador cards, no date.

The swans are designed by Robert Laessig, American Greeting, 1975

This pretty card has glitter on the tree, grass and water. Made in USA by Gibson. My MIL has marked 1968 on the back.

This adorable Grandmother clock is from Hallmark and my MIL has marked 1982 on the back.

And the last one for today is this American Greetings card. It's not dated, but from the signatures inside, I estimate before 1975. There's a piece of ribbon attatched to the girl's hairband. And don't you love the hot pink knee socks!!!

Please left click on the pictures to see larger. Right click to save and use for your personal craft projects.

The Hunt for Miss Cutie Pie

I love vintage! And I live just a few miles from Brimfield, Massachusetts. Three times a year, serious collectors and casual browsers alike, gather in the small town of Brimfield for the 'show'.("The Brimfield Antiques Show is the largest outdoor antiques show in the world, with over 6,000 dealers and 130,000+ visitors during the course of the week. While it is convenient to refer to it as "The Show", it is actually comprised of 23 fields, owned by "Promoters", who lease spaces to dealers from all over the world." - quoted from brimfieldshow.com) This event started small, back in 1959 when one man opened up his field for a flea market. It was always called the Brimfield Flea Market until it became famous outside of New England, now it's an 'Antique Show'. I went only once, years ago, when it was still relatively small. Somehow, the idea of walking for miles in rain or sun through old cow fields to look at other people's 'junque' doesn't really get my excited.
But there's a wonderful side effect from the show and that is that within a few miles drive, we can visit about a dozen year-round, indoor flea markets and antique co-ops. These are places with pretty displays and reasonable prices, where you never know what you might find. This, I enjoy. My son loves to go along as he is always on the hunt for Hot Wheels cars and Hardy Boys books.
Here's one thing I've had my eye out for. She's labeled Miss Cutie Pie and these pieces belonged to my grandmother.

The salt & pepper shakers were in a box with other sets in my grandmother's basement. Without looking beyond the top of the box, my son decided he would love to have these. We brought the box home and there were a dozen different sets in varying condition but these were my favorite. Then at a family gathering at my parents house, I opened a kitchen drawer for something and Miss Cutie Pie was staring back at me. "Mom, this is Miss Cutie Pie! It matches the salt & pepper shakers we found." "Take it" Mom says. She didn't have to tell me twice. I know there were more tea bag holders (I believe they came in a set of four)but this seems to be the only one that survived. This is how we begin collecting, right?

So far, no luck finding any pieces of Miss Cutie Pie locally. I've seen them listed on eBay with big price tags (not selling, mind you, just listed) Doing a bit of research, I found Napco made many Miss Cutie Pie pieces included a cookie jar, sugar & creamer, egg cups, child's mug and spice jars. She came in pink, blue and yellow. Someday, I'll be browsing, having stopped in a shop for some unknown reason, and there she will be. I just know it. Miss Cutie Pie will find me, someday.

The Rest of the Quilt Show

I wanted to share a few more quilts from the quilt show I went to last week. I love Redwork and this Cape Cod Redwork Quilt is just beautiful! 







And while we're at the beach, how about this adorable quilt? I love these patriotic beach pails.

                   Pinwheels in blue and yellow! 

Check out those tiny pinwheels in the sashing.

Of course I didn't leave the quilt show empty handed.
                                                                These fun Halloween Fat Quarters came home with me.














 And lately, I just can't say no to roses.













          
And so many '30 reproduction fabrics, I was in heaven!

What a wonderful way to spend a few hours on a rainy Saturday.

Vintage Red

I finally bought lampshades for my grandmother's lamps and put them in the living room. After my grandmother died last August, her home was cleaned out by the family and a yard sale followed. This pair of lamps were put into the yard sale. I was trying very hard at the time, not to bring more stuff into my house, but I just had to bring home these lamps. They are hand-painted and signed simply "Mary".

This wonderful kitchy metal tray also came from my grandmother's house. I saved it from a box slated to go to Goodwill. 

I brought this piece of fabric home from a little antique store just the other day. I love the trees and castles on it. The piece is 36" wide and over a yard long, unfortunately someone cut a hole in the middle of it. Still, it's great for quilt pieces or any small craft and I only paid $1.00 for it.
This is my first time playing along on 'It's A Very Cherry World!'s' Rednesday. Check out all the others on her blog.

My Blog Ribbon & A Quilt Show

I first saw a blog ribbon on Creative Breathing's wonderful blog. She gives credit to Magpie Ethel for the idea. No matter who started the idea, I decided to jump on the bandwagon. So after days of searching for the perfect image, deciding on colors and trims, here is my Blog Ribbon! As always, click on the picture for a closer look.









Lucky me, today was spent with a good friend at a quilt show. I'd like to share some pictures of my favorite quilts. There was one display that was filled with 1930s original and reproduction quilts. Enjoy this vintage sweetness.








And more '30s inspired quilts.
So many talented people!

Pinwheel Quilt Update

Here are the newest blocks I've finished for the Pinwheel Sampler Quilt.

There's More to Life Than Aprons

There are so many wonderful people out in blog-land who freely share their ideas, recipes, patterns, stories, photography and in general, inspiration. I enjoy reading my favorites and I'm always discovering new ones to add to my list. But I also feel a bit of regret with each lovely blog I read. I regret that I haven't been adding to my blog on a regular basis. I decided some of the cause of that was that I don't find or make wonderful new aprons every day. So, even though this started as a blog specifically about aprons, I think that I will enjoy it more if I don't limit myself. If you have been kind enough to stop by and read some of my posts, I hope this decision will not disappoint you. My goal is to keep some record of my crafty life and perhaps I can return the kindness of so many bloggers and offer some inspiration. Here's just a bit of vintage loveliness that I recently acquired.