marie claire idees

One of my favorite magazines arrived this week ~ Marie Claire idees ~ a french magazine that arrives 6 times a year ~ there are wonderful decorative ideas and projects to look at ~ always a fresh take on things. The magazine offers a nice variety of articles covering needlecrafts, papercrafts, decorating and food ~ I suppose if I understood french I would like it even more! This is a hard magazine to find at bookstores, so if you are interested, get a subscription here ~ I don't think you will be disappointed.

{autumn 08 cover}

{fabric collage initial/monogram project idea}

{nature inspired projects}

{feature on collecting clocks}

Kansas City's Antiques & Collectibles Show ~ Purchases

As I had taken quite a few photos at last weeks antiques & collectibles show, I decided to break my postings down into several smaller ones rather than one giant one. Below are most of the things I ended up buying ~ at least the ones that I managed to get a good photograph of!

{miscellaneous buckles and a brass scottie stamping}

{antique albums & picture frames}

{interior album page}

{another interior album page ~ beautiful graphics!}

{vintage photos ~ photo on left has woodburned detail on frame ~ kind of strange}

{religious mass cards? game?}

I really can't figure out what these cards were used for ~ I just loved the graphics on them and thought they were quite unique. The word at the top of the card seems to have little relationship to either the image below or the saying at the bottom of the card. There is a whole deck of cards ~ some with the same image ~ the backs are plain ~ the cards seem pretty old.

Has anyone seen this sort of thing or know anything about these? I'd love to know more, but don't even know what to call them in order to do a search....

Alien abduction tattoo

Kansas City's Antiques & Collectibles Show ~ August 2008 ~ Part 2

Here are some shots from the Toy/Doll section of the show last weekend ~ quite a variety of great tin and cast iron toys! While I don't actively collect tin toys ~ they can get pretty pricey, I still find them interesting to look at ~ the graphics are wonderfully executed and the concept and/or mechanism of the toy is usually unique as well.

I do love these little scottie toys {of course!} The one on the left is called "the Wee Scot" ~ I wasn't able to get a very good shot of him ~ his little jacket sports the name, but is not visible on this photo. He has a rubber tail and ears with a tin body ~ he comes in several sizes. The scottie on the right is also a windup ~ I gather that when wound he must shake that shoe.

{variety of popular characters}

{swimming swan in a castle moat}

{variety of tin, pot metal and cast iron banks}

{busy kiddie kampers}

{great roller coaster}

{neatO autOlift}

{buck rogers and flash gordon rockets}

Knife nose

Kansas City's Antiques & Collectibles Show ~ August 2008

It has been quite a week ~ thus the lull in posting! I did manage to make it to the Kansas City Antiques & Collectibles Show last weekend and it did not disappoint. Below are a few shots of things I saw, but managed to pass up ~ my space situation is such that I can't add much of anything without getting rid of something ~ this especially applies to larger items!

{love these boxes!}

{tin cake keeper in especially good condition}

{wonderful chip carved souvenir}

{great selection of antique lace}

{nice assortment}

{salesman samples of a cookbook and different flours ~ I love those glass containers with the ribbed lids}

{paint sample board and file display ~ what exactly is a 'bastard file'?}

{more vintage display samples}

This show also included the KC Toy & Doll Show. I took a number of photos there ~ I will share them in a later post along with another post about the treasures I bought! Sprocket accompanied me this time around ~ his first big outing amongst a small crowd ~ now, if I can figure a way for him to carry some of my purchases.......
Tomorrow, White Cloud/Sparks!

Eyes Tattoo

Big Hole In Tree

Be Prepare For Unexpected

Man with 12 fingers and 14 toes

Pianists, typists and tailors might all look on green with envy at Haramb Ashok Kumthekar, of Goa in India, who has six digits on each hand and seven digits on each feet.

But for Heramb, 22, it means he cannot even wear a pair of simple flip-flops, nor can he find a pair of gloves that fit his hands in the winter.

…Heramb, who is currently studying for a Masters in Business Management at his college in the western Indian town of Pune, has always seen his extra digits as something to be proud of.

“I am happy about it because I have something that others don’t have,” says Heramb.

And showing a full understanding of that old maxim ‘Use what you’ve got’ , Heramb goes on to say, “I never had a problem with it and after I get publicity I will be famous because of it.”

Heramb’s extra digits are caused by the medical condition polydactlyism, which translates from the Greek for “many fingers”.

The congenital condition occurs in one in every 500 births and famous holders of extra digits include the beheaded ex-wife of Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn, who was rumoured to have an extra finger on her left hand.

Look behind you!

Frasier tattoo

Tempting Table of Typography

Just saw this table online at Crate & Barrel ~ looks like a pretty amazing piece! While it is a manufactured table, it looks like they did a pretty amazing job of adapting antique printer's blocks into a modern piece of furniture. I especially like the different colors the wood has been stained ~ plus I love how an obsolete object has found new life by inspiring a contemporary use.

{via Crate & Barrel}

Bike collector

Beautiful Homes ~ Antique Book

I have managed to amass a rather large collection of antique books since I started going to flea markets and antique shows. Most of the books I have aren't in the greatest of shape, but I am interested in the content and/or the illustrations so I'd rather spend less money and get a not so perfect copy. From time to time, I thought I'd share a book from my collection.

Beautiful Homes by Frank J. Scott is an antique book I found at a flea market in the last year or two. The copyright is 1886 and covers plans for residences and their grounds, trees and shrubs, and garden embellishment ~ it includes over 200 plates and engravings. Although there are no color plates, the black/white images are lovely ~ illustrated homes and grounds, landscaping and even plans. I've included a few images below.

{front cover}

{title page illustration}

{pretty end papers and spread with garden ideas}

{residence and grounds plans}

Half-shorn sheep

Calorie~free Cardboard Cakes & a Veggie

I love these delectable no calorie desserts from artonthemenu on Etsy. The simplicity of the materials used and the sophisticated finished piece of art is just beautiful ~ and great for weight loss! Of course, if you just aren't into sweets you can sample the organic celery.

Found these tasty treats via Haute*Nature ~ a blog I look forward to returning to and spending some time looking through the archives. All images via artonthemenu.

{mmmm ~ coconut!}

{chocolate decadence without the guilt!}

{organic celery}

Accident ad

Clarification

Mustard