A Mid-Winters Day Table

Hi! I'm so happy you stopped by. Come on in, want a hot cup of coffee? It is absolutely freezing outside!

 I was just setting my table for Tablescape Thursday over at Susan's blog Between Naps On The Porch.

You've never been there?! Well, you have just got to come with me today when I go later. I was just finishing up. Poor Jim never knows when he'll come home to find all my sewing and fabric in here or the table fully set. I think he'll be happy today, we'll eat in here tonight instead of in front of the tv.

You've not seen some of this before? You should remember the brown Mochaware plate and veggie bowl, and the Amber Medallion Goblets, I use them all the time. I love the rich colors of the placemats Jim's Mom gave me a while back. She's had them since the early 70's.

You remember when we went to the Longest Yard Sale and I found this creamer?

Well, a few months ago I found a wonderful T.V. tray and

this nifty percolator coffee pot.

Nope, not reproductions they're all from the 50's. Then when I participated in the craft show at the Rec Center, I took my donation to be raffled off and this was on the display....

one of the girls had taken a cup and plate, epoxy'd them together creating a cake plate! I hadn't found any place settings to go with the pattern so I was excited and asked where she found them. They had been in a box of dishes she found at a garage sale and there were only 2 plates and 2 cups, (sigh). I told her about my vintage hunt and and later she came to my booth with the second cake plate she had made and gave it to me. I hadn't won the raffle, she just wanted me to have the piece since I had the coffe pot and tray...I'd at least have the serving peices. I know....it was sooo nice of her.

 I told you Mom and Dad gave me a gift cerficate to the Ohio Valley Antique Mall this year....well, we went the day after Christmas..no I didn't go near the regular malls or Wall-Mart, but to the Antique Mall...anyway, we went thru the whole mall and I was sooo disappointed. I hadn't found anything I had to have, then we went to the locked cases and in one of the last few cases I found these.....

The whole 4 piece place setting....happy dance, right there, in the middle of the aisle.....

and, the sugar bowl and meat platter too!

The only marking is OvenProof Hand Decorated Made in the USA. I love that they go from oven to table..you know Jim, if someone brings a car in late he has to finish fixing it if they want to wait for it, so sometimes I have to keep his food warm, and these are perfect.

You have to remember the little teapot houses I got from Publisher's Clearing house a few years ago. I love to use them during Christmas right thru the winter months with faux snow.

That little log cabin is a pepper shaker

made of chalkware I found a long time ago. And the oil lamp

was found at a yard sale a couple of years ago. The 80 year old lady holding the sale said it was in her Aunts house since 1928. She wasn't sure the shade was original, but I didn't care. It is a thick glass with the cutest little flowers on the body of the lamp. Someday I'll find a shade that may be fancier.

You know how I love my aluminum. Jim found this last weekend.

It's an Everlast Hand-Wrought Aluminum salad bowl. To my surprise he new it would match my new dishes and thought I could use it in my tablescape post. I know..sometimes he does listen to me..lol.

There. I think the table is ready to show. Does it look okay to you? Alrighty then. Lets go on over to Susan's thru Here . I can't wait for you to see all these tables!
Oh, wait,  I wanted to remind you, I'm hosting a Vintage Alphabet  get-together every month. I hosted the first one last week. If you want to check it out go thru Here and  over Here. The  next post for the letter "B" will be on Feb. 23. I'm thinking 'B'ook as in cook'B'ook but you could do an alphabet post on your Blenko glass, or your Brooch collection, or your Betty Boop stuff. You've got so much to choose from, I can't wait
for you to come over. Okay let's go.......

Vintage Alphabet 'A'

A is for APRON.

  Everybody remembers Mom's or Grandma's aprons. Some were utilitarian cotton half aprons or smocks in pretty pronts or solid colors. Some were used only for special occasions in holiday motifs and fabrics of organza or satin. The use of the apron didn't just start in the 40's though. Aprons have been used since the 12 century. They were very utilitarian, used by tradesman and domestic help. By the late 17th -18th century the apron became more femanine and frilly. Fashioned more for the lady and domestic help of the house. There was an old wives tale from this time period that goes....'your beau is thinking of you if your apron becomes untied and drops to the floor.' Pretty risque for the prim and proper Quaker and  beginning of the Victorian era, but  by the 19th century aprons became once again plain and utilitarian. It wasn't until the 1930's that aprons saw a resurgence with bright sashes and beautiful prints. Feed , flour, seed, and sugar sacks were all created in a variety patterns and colors with the homemaker in mind. They knew they would be used to create the whimsicle, colorful aprons we prize today.  It was also during the 30's that crocheted aprons came into fashion for special occasions. During the 40's the half apron gained popularity and the use of hankies embellished those stylish creations. In the 50's plastic, or oilcloth, arpons joined the homemakers apron collection. Cross-stitch patterns were in such vogue embroidery transfers were readily available  During the late 50's to early 1960 how could we  forget June Cleaver with her fashionable kitchen ensemble. There was even one with matching dish towel and oven mitt. It was 1960 that half aprons were accented by hand towels and curtain material. By the late 60's and early 70's smock aprons were very popular, but with the advent of women' lib in the 70's the lowly apron represented women's servititude. Those apron strings. those ties that bind, were cut.  Fast forward 30 years and many stained frocks later, the apron has found a new popularity.  Today the apron has seen a quick rise in popularity once again, but not only do we prize our vintage finds, but also new designs that are vintage inspired. We wear them proudly not only in the kitchen, but in the garden, in classrooms, at sales counters, and even as fashion accents. There is a  new 'apronation'(C) on the horizon. Whether new or vintage the apron is not only seen as utilitarian, but quite fashionable.

Here are a few examples of  vintage aprons.

This is the beginning of a crocheted apron from the 30's I'll be finishing.

 

I hand- embroidered and embellished this 1950's beauuty.

This 1940's Souvinir Apron was all the rage.

 I recreated this 1930-40 flour sack apron into an apron for a new Mom with the hand-embroidered Bunny, which was a vintage transfer from my collection.......hhmmmm do I have a 'T' item for next Octobers Vintage Alphabet Post?.....

This wonderful 1930's apron was a real  find. It still has it's flocking and glitter. I added the vintage buttons.

The apron below is a perfect example of a 1960's Dish Towel Apron. Of course I hand-embroidered the faded flowers to make them pop again.

These next two pics are piles of aprons waiting to be recreated. As you can see my hoop is around one of the hankies that accents this 1940's apron

Hand-appliques created using roses cut from a  tablecloth accent this 1940's apron

I love this little girls apron I found. Gingham is one of my favorite materials.

And, this black 1950's apron was a real find that I finished.

These are just area few of my aprons. You can find these and others aprons on  my website and at Etsy.

Now for some more fun. Lets see your vintage 'A' finds. Just do a post on your blog with pics of your finds..it can be as long or short as you want....and click on Mister Linky and you'll be linked to my site and others can visit! It's as easy as that.

Let's Play!

I had an idea for a monthly post a while back. A Vintage/Collection Alphabet. Each month I'd write a post pertaining to something vintage I collect beginning with a corresponding letter of the alphabet. Okay, look  out, I've been thinking again. I was hoping you all would help me make it more interesting by posting comments with links to your blogs showing others your corresponding vintage alphabet finds. January will be A. My post will pertain to APRONS, but yo can how off your Apple collection, vintage Artworks, Aluminum,  whatever you can think. Or, show off you apronature and display your own aprons!
You'll have time to think about this...the post will be up on  Jan. 20Th....I really hope you can come over and play Wednesday!
An Update!!! on Wed. at 9p you'll see the Mister Linky thingy, as below, just sugn in and you join in!!
Holy Cow It's easier than I thought. This should be fun!

I'm so glad you've stopped by!

It's 2010! The Holidays went by so quickly. Thanks to those who popped in to see if I was ok since I haven't posted for a while and hadn't visited sites lately, but I was just taking a much needed break. I even left my laptop home when out. My family was shocked. Here's what I've been doing..............................

I recieved a gift certificate from Here for Christmas. It takes a minimuum of 3 hours to get through this place and they have a wonderful little cafe where they make home made chili and other items, it is a day well spent . I'll show you in a later post what I  found, but I was sooooo excited.

On another day I surprised Jim by going to Entertrainment Junction

It is a new museum in the Cincy area dedicated to trains and model train builders. We're talking large scale layouts. Very detailed, all hand built, and the majority dedicated to vintage eras!. This place is huge, again another whole day excursion, but well worth the time. You cannot see it just once. They change it all the time and have special layouts different times of the year. During the summer they even have a garden set up with an outdoor train layout! Sorry not more pics, but my camera ran out of battery and no one sold any there. Moral of the story. When visiting this place take extra batteries you will be flashing a lot! But not to worry, we will definately going back, so there will be more pics in the future.

We went for short rides around the area. Snow and ice kept us from going too far in any direction. Seems all the really bad snows have been going around us. We are in this little bubble. Finally on New Years Eve we checked with Jellico Tn police and they said the Mountain was fine....it was getting to it thru Ky that was tricky, but we decided to take a road trip New Years Day! We left at 6A. weather wa fine til' we got just below Lexingron, Ky. little snowdrifts crawled across the road and the snow shower made it seem like fog. Once we got to Jellico, Tn the clouds see, to part a little and no snow or ice. Usually during this week there is ice and snow laying around, but luckily not this time! Around noon we got to Sevierville/Pigeon Forge just in time for lunch.

This  is the Apple House Resturant. A converted home as you can see. The atmosphere alone is worth the stop. They have a varied menu and the Apple Fritters are a must. They have a large aviary of beautiful finches and near that tables with porch swings instead of chairs.

When you're finished eating they have a whole shopping complex. They are an apple orchard so the whole barn is apple everything, especially the yummy apples and ciders. There is a bakery that specializes in fried apple pies, a candy store, and a winery...yes they have had a winery for several years now that produces award-winning wines.  From there we headed toward Gatlinburg.

See those clouds! They are covering the top of the mountains. You can see the breaks of blue sky, but the closer to the Gatlinburg connetor the more crowded it got. The picture doesn't show it that well, but the haziness on the mountain is snow..not good....the whole pass was closed to ice and snow. You couldn't get across to North Carolina. We turned around to head to my Aunt and Uncles for a visit. We thought we could go over to Cades Cove the next day, but no luck......it was also closed.

We had a wonderful time with my Aunt and Uncle and before we left she gave me her Toyota Serger! I am soooo excited. She gave me all kinds of books, video tapes, manuels....now I'm gonna have to get some classes.....I can't wait.

Now it's snowed here. We have had winter weather advisories all week. It's such a dry snow...not as much as some of you guys have gotten tho....and it's a nice sledding and cross-country skiing, but walking is slippery, so with my knee venturing outside is a scary thought. I've been working on the websites and trying to organize my craft space, and cooking. Hopefully tomorrow I'll get in to work to start the new year. To be honest cabin fever sets in quickly with me, so I'm ready to get out! What do you do when you're stuck inside? Did you go anywhere during the holiday week?