Vintage Red Heart Buttons

 

I recently bought an old sewing machine at a thrift store.  There's more to that which I'll leave for a different post.  The two draws were full of notions (what put me over the edge to buy the machine). Some things were bobbins and other items for the sewing machine.  Some things were old and junky.  Then there were a few treasures...including buttons--most not that great but a few nice ones!  These two heart buttons were in it.  I love them!  They need to be on a project, but it will be a while before I'll be able to part with them. 

 

Spoolie Swap--Part 2--From Me

The spoolie I gave to Amy in Joanne's (from Vintage Dragonfly) Valentine spoolie swap was great fun to make. 

I took a vintage wooden spool and covered the center with pretty pink and white patterned paper, painted other areas of the spool white, and added lots of glitter.

I found the darling wee vintage porcelain girl at an antique mall.  I thought she was just perfect for the top of this spool.  Since she had a purple flower and not a pink one, I added lavender elements as well as pink to the whole thing. 

The flourish behind her is a cupcake liner that I folded, fanned out, and tipped in glitter.  I had some pretty lavender lace from which I hung little purple-pink shiny hearts.  I poked a hole in the tops of the hearts and tied them onto the lavender lace with green embroidery floss.  The green matches the green on the little porcelain girl. 

This has been a very fun swap.  What a unique idea to make these!  Thank you again to Amy for being my swap partner, to Lynn for the inspiration behind the swap, and to Joanne for hostessing the swap.

Spoolie Swap--Part 1--From Amy

I participated in Vintage Dragonfly's Valentine Spoolie Swap.  I had no idea what a spoolie was going into this, but Joanne directed us to an Etsy shop, Trash to Treasure, and Lynn's spoolie creations.  They are embellished thread spools with a mixed media flourish at the top. These were the inspiration behind the swap.  My partner was Amy of Ruby Moon Art.  She sent me a wonderful spoolie!

 

It is beautiful no matter how you look at it.  She also included a little pad of paper and some heart rubber stamps. 

I love the festive yet vintage look of it. 

The vintage trim with "Dream" on the end was a great touch.  Thank you so much, Amy!

Sweet, Simple Swap

I just joined a Valentine swap...it is sweet and simple. All we have to do is making something for our swap partner with a heart on it. Easy peasy. Click HERE for all the details. Thursday the 10th is the last day to sign up if you are interested.

Better Late Than Never....

Happy "Heart" Day to all.  This was stitched by a dear new friend and given to me in a swap.  Thank you, April; I hope you had a great day, too.

Can't Resist...

...hearts and vintage bits.  So, these have been the result of my work lately.  I found these sweet brass heart lockets from a seller on Etsy as well as some of the bits and pieces I've put onto the hearts.  Especially pretty are the guilloche pieces and those chippy flowers.

They have been fun to work on.  Ironically, I found a seller on Etsy who sells the little vintage enamel flowers, requested a custom listing of them...they agreed...and despite several emails over the past several weeks haven't heard a word back.  I'm so disappointed!  I know it's a busy time of year (but it has been many weeks)...I know things come up (but I've noticed they've listed many things)...but just can't understand poor customer service--at least communicate with me please!  I'd rather have someone tell me they can't get back to me until a month has passed than just not respond.  Oh, well...a lesson learned to remind me to have good customer service when a customer writes...and I'll keep on looking for my flowers.  Anyway, hope you like these.

I had these gorgeous rich, deep pink pieces that I knew belonged on a romantic, heart-shaped ornament.  Actually, I think this would be nice hung on a corner of one of the mirrors in our bedroom , but it has been listed in my Etsy shop instead.  

Antiquing and Thrift Store Hopping

Since Mom and Dad have moved closer--much closer--to us, it has been great fun "buzzing" about with Mom. During the short time that they have been around, we have hit thrift stores and antique stores, and it has been such fun. Sometimes just Mom and I go, and it has been nice to have a little "breather", so to speak--to have a few hours away, from the kids who I am around basically 24/7 (remember, they are homeschooled). While I love my children dearly, it is nice once in awhile to look at things in an antique shop and actually be able to concentrate on what I'm looking at! Anyway, yesterday Mom and I discovered a new antique mall where I found this little heart box and fell in love! It is vintage and was made by Dennison and even had the jeweler's box that the heart box came in with it. It is a ring box and is in great condition. I am just imagining what the ring was that came in this box and how the recipient reacted and what the occasion was. Although I'm trying to resell it, I won't mind if it doesn't sell because I DO like it. While antiquing I also found another little box of treasures, but I'll have to post about that at another time after I get a good picture (too cloudy out today).

Perfume Bottles and Romantic Homes Magazine

I always get way too far ahead of myself when it comes to reading my magazine subscriptions. I just got "Tea Time" in the mail...their January/February issue where they are talking about Valentines Day already...but I can't help it! All of this beautiful, fabulous information with pictures is sitting there waiting for me, and I can't resist peeking...then reading...from cover to cover!
Well, the January 2010 issue of "Romantic Homes" arrived, and I've already read through the whole thing. I couldn't help it. There is a must-see article about the home of one of the Layla-Grace co-founders, Wendy Estes, (the ornate white-with-pink-kissed-roses dresser is WAY, WAY beyond gorgeous), and there was a little article about perfume bottles. How can one resist an article about perfume bottles?
First, in the picture above, is the decorative glass "tray" that I have on my dresser. I don't use the things on it. It is basically just for decoration. I like the labels and the shapes and think it is romantic in every way.
The pink one with the heart-shaped topper I've had since high school and really like the color of the bottle AND the heart, of course.
The green one with the crown topper I bought in New Zealand at an antique store. It is a bath salt bottle actually with some of the salts still in it. I thought the crown was gorgeous and unique.
This is the perfume I use. My husband loved the scent...on another girlfriend, if you can believe that! LOL! But, no hard feelings at all, and I've worn it for over 20 years. He usually gets it for me for our anniversary when I'm out. I take great care not to waste it, and a bottle lasts and lasts and smells wonderful...oh, and makes me think of Paris!
These are little miniature bottles that I have sitting on this chintz plate on my dresser. You know...I can't resist anything in miniature, so a few miniature perfume bottles are a must. The Poeme bottle was given to me, and I like it for it's shape. The Paris miniature bottle, I've had for years and years. It was a "diamond" edition freebie with a Paris perfume purchase well over 10 years ago. My kids think it's a real diamond--wish it were!
Finally, this trio is an inexpensive set, but they look expensive, I think. The colors go perfectly with our bathroom colors. I love the crystal stoppers, and they sparkle and shine (when they aren't dusty!) and look beautiful when the sun is shining in our bathroom window. They just seem to glow.
I really do like and enjoy perfume bottles. I love their shapes, sizes, and labels. I don't have many perfume bottles, and those that I DO have aren't expensive ones. But, who needs to spend all outdoors to enjoy something pretty? Bottles and labels in many shapes and forms (like my glittery, shabby rose perfume label ornament--for year-round enjoyment) can truly add pretty spots of color and glamor to a home.