Painting a picture while asking you questions

Imagine if you will…

It’s summer – possibly June or July. The weather is warm if not downright hot.  The gardens are planted, flowers are blooming, tomatoes are ripening and there’s a song in your heart and a smile on your face because you’re planning to attend an amazing vintage event over the weekend to shop for something specific or perhaps for everything in general (my preferred method).

With that in mind, let me ask you this:  How would you feel if you turned a corner at this hypothetical summertime vintage event and came across something like this?

Please do not attempt to adjust your eyeballs. This photo is blurry.

Or this?

 Or this?

I brake for Shiny Brites. 

Would you stop and shop? In July?

Would you need to put your head between your knees and count to 10 to avoid passing out? (No, wait, that’s not you. That’s me).

I’m curious to know if anyone else shops for vintage Christmas year round like I do?  

I did mention there would be questions, didn’t I? See, there’s another one. 

I know if I came across a vendor in a middle-of-the-summer vintage event (or even during a regular non-holiday-season visit to a vintage mall), who was dedicated solely to vintage Christmas, regardless of what might be on my shopping list, I would stop dead in my tracks.

More blurriness shiny-ness.

But maybe that’s just me. Shopping year round for vintage Christmas is one of those things that feels perfectly normal.*

OR… maybe it’s not just me.  Maybe it’s you too. 

Maybe we’re all in the same secret, sparkly, shiny club and don’t realize it!  

And so because I know how I feel about the topic of vintage Christmas year round, I wonder how you might feel about it and would greatly appreciate any enabling feedback you’d like to provide.

Thank you and Merry Vintage Christmas.

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* Disclaimer: I acknowledge that it’s entirely possible I may have lost my grip on “normal” some time ago.

PS I took the Christmas photos shown here in late 2013 when Magpie Ethel and I combined our vintage Christmas hoards at Monticello Antique Marketplace.  She wrote a fun post about it and you can CLICK HERE to read it. Lots of eye candy. 

Three Lots for Three Bucks

Price: $0

This bunch of dishes was in the free box outside the door of my local Senior Center Thrift Shop.

They were free in the financial sense but there was a price of another sort waiting in the box.

All of the dishes were stuck together in a big, gooey glob by what I think/hope was chocolate syrup.

At least that’s what I’m telling myself it was.

Free.  Focus on the Free.

Price: $1

I would have gladly paid twice that because when it comes to vintage Christmas,  I. Am. Weak.

Price: $2

I didn’t even look through this mountain of sewing patterns found at a yard sale – for $2, all of them went straight into the car with plans to use the tissue pattern pieces for wrapping any breakables sold at my next vintage event.

Until I started unpacking the box when I got home.

Some of these patterns are charming.

And some of them are horrifying.

But they all represent one woman’s lifetime of sewing:  For her younger self, her married self, her young daughters, teenage daughters and eventually, her granddaughters.

So much for my wrapping paper plans…

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Wishing you a wonderful 4th of July!

Pin to Vintage

Maybe by now you’ve had a chance to check out Pinterest, the website where you can ‘pin’ photos from the internet to your personal ‘pinboards’.

Occasionally you might even come across photos from your very own blog!

WARNING: I have found Pinterest to be extremely addictive and now know it should not be viewed unless one is prepared to abandon all previously scheduled activities and perhaps be willing to skip a meal or two while under its spell.

 If you want to see if a photo has been pinned from your blog, replace the xxxxxx with your blog's name:  http://pinterest.com/source/xxxxxx.blogspot.com/

For instance, to see what’s been pinned from Into Vintage, I would use this: http://pinterest.com/source/sointovintage.blogspot.com/

One photo from this blog that’s been pinned is this vintage ornament tree I made last year.

And yesterday another vintage-loving blogger, Charlene, emailed me to share her version of the ornament tree:

I love it! And she was so clever to do this on a real door – why didn’t I think of that?

See all of her photos on her blog, Willow & Paisley.

Now I’m wondering…are there more of these vintage ornament trees out there?

In other news, the exciting Third Annual Academy of Vintage Christmas Ornament Arts and Sciences Award Ceremony (um, does that name get longer every year?) is underway over at Oodles and oodles.

This year’s winners have been announced including the highly anticipated “Best Christmas Ornament Reminiscent of a Joni Mitchell Song.”

You’ll see.

PS You can click HERE to see what I’ve ‘pinned’ onto Pinterest.

I’m going to stop saying ‘pin’ and just say pin now.  Pin.

A vintage tablecloth winner and even more giveaways I think you’ll love

Thanks to everyone who entered the vintage Christmas tablecloth giveaway!

Lucky comment number 57 was randomly selected and congrats go to artteachergirl!

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While traveling the internet, I came across several other giveaways you might want to check out. Click the caption below each photo to go to the giveaway.

Fiona & Twig is giving away Vintage Rescue Squad’s 2012 Junking Calendar

How about a $50 gift certificate to Post Road Vintage?

I think this photo says it all. Made by GeorgiaPeachez.

Maybe some vintage holiday décor for your person?

Or a little holiday R & R (reading & relaxing) over at Oodles & Oodles?

... and Le Creuset for the holiday meal!

Good luck!

In my drawers

There’s a new addition to the vintage Christmas tablecloth drawer and I’m especially happy about it because:

It’s one I don’t have and it’s one I’ve never seen before and (this is always the deciding factor for me) it was a really great price.

I have achieved vintage Christmas tablecloth nirvana.

As long as we’re in the Christmas tablecloth drawer, let’s look around, shall we?

My all-time favorite. 

 Somehow I’ve ended up with four (!?) of these which might mean there’s been a breakdown in my Vintage Tablecloth Inventory System.  Or I’m hoarding. Or both.

 I really don’t know exactly what went wrong here.

My second all-time favorite.

Which I guess explains why I have only one.

Instead of four. (!?)

Do you iron before you store yours?

Sometimes I do. Sometimes I don’t.

 I’m random like that.

None of these fit my table but I like to layer them over a big, plain white tablecloth.

That way no one gets left out.

Or in. The drawer, I mean.

Christmas comes but once a year.



Vintage Christmas with a Pinch of Kitsch and Glitter

Ever the multi-tasker, I was fortunate to time a recent errand in Portland, OR with the opening day of Monticello Antique Mall’s Vintage Christmas Show.

Their Christmas show is always an amazing visual experience.

And I just enjoy spending time with others who are vintage-Christmas afflicted.

Except when they’re heading to the cash register carrying something I wish I had found before they did.

To the lady holding the vintage wood sap bucket with that beautifully-perfect aqua patina:

I’m mostly sorry I stalked you. I only did it to make sure you were really serious about buying it.

You were.

I moved on.

Lots of holiday inspiration, everywhere.

You can see the rest of the photos here.

By the way, did you see where this fellow turned up?