Happy Easter

The Happiest of Easters to You and Yours!

Crocheted Spring Banner with Butterflies

Grandma G crocheted these butterflies by the dozens for magnets to sell at craft shows.  I figured out the pattern from one of hers.

This is the first crocheted banner I have made where the pieces are actually pennant shaped.  I learned a lot.

Next time I will make sure to not be impatient, and block the flags, so the sides do not go concave.  I will also weave a thread through the length of it to prevent stretching.  

I am really pleased with using crochet thread instead of yarn like folks, including myself, usually use.  It has a much more delicate appearance.

Happy Spring Everyone!

Spring Break Sculptures in Downtown Dallas

Floating Sculpture by Marta pan

Our eighteen year old and I galavanted around downtown Dallas yesterday.  I was glad that we took the time to get a closer look at the Henry Moore sculpture in front of City Hall, because this fun piece near it is not very noticeable from the road.  It was pretty windy, so the larger part kept spinning around.  How whimsical!

Fallen Police Officer Memorial - link to officer names

Dallas City Hall, in the background, is quite the striking building, and a sculpture in itself.  We found four pieces in the front.  I wonder if we missed any.

Of course I had to take him to Pioneer Park where the bronze cattle round up is.  My camera decided to die right as we got to the large beasts.  This is the second time I have been unable to get a good shot of them.  They are just the sort of sculpture a teenage guy can appreciate.

There is an area with trees spanning between the antique cemetery and the cattle.  This tree was so fragrant that we could tell it was there before we saw it.  The flowering trees in our neighborhood are not that way.  I cannot wait to see what fruit this one produces. 

Library Photo & Site Link

Pioneer Park is near the downtown location of the Dallas Library, so I will have lots of opportunities to get you some good photographs.

Right now though, I am going to go finish my morning coffee with one of the books we picked up there.  You never go by a library without getting a book!

Technical Issues and a Mystery Flower

Due to the recent news that Google will be discontinuing their reader service, I am signing up for Bloglovin.  It was recommended by a few more professional bloggers, so I am going to give it a try.  I will let you know how it works.  They want me to post this code, so here it is.

<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/5107595/?claim=qrvsg53bqky">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>

Does anybody know what kind of flower this is?  The blossoms are teeny, teeny tiny.

Downtown Dallas

Little Miss and I spent a couple of hours in the Historic District of Dallas the other day.  This is part of the Dealey Plaza.  Those tulips popped up fast, they did not even have buds the week before.

Dallas still has quite a few vintage signs like Grand Prairie does.  

Some time we will come take photographs at night.  I want to be really familiar with the area before then.  I am doing pretty good at being able to maneuver around without the map in the Historical, Government, and Bishop Arts districts already.

Puttin' on the Ritz

I am still lovin' my orange basket from the other day.

Here is one of the signs from the Hi-Ho.  See what I mean?  Totally unrelated, but still fabulous.

Yellow Texas Ware Sun Plate and Golden Friends

Imagine my surprise to find that this striking melamine plate is Texas Ware.  It appears hand drawn, but was actually a decal applied by the company.  I would love some more information on it, because I can find absolutely no information for it online.   I did find out that Texas Ware was made right here in the Dallas area.  

A dear friend who understands my love for vintage plates and decorating with them wrote a poem for me.

Plates

Plates on the wall

each smooth, round

with no end in sight.

Pictures and images of life

colored so varitable

gives dreams of a new

place of beyond.

Design of an artist

sets ones mind all a flutter

and calms ones mind

of another...

Place to be

and things to do

ideas to feel.

How I love my plates

on the wall.

This flower still had its label on it in a local courtyard,  Carolina Jasmine.  We are starting to have so many flowers blooming, that I cannot keep up with photographing them.  Every time I go out I am surprised by blossoms that are familiar and new.

My your day be full of blossoming surprises and poetic moments.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Speaking of poetic, this is a lovely sunny post, right?.  I am trying to focus on sunny positive things instead of the fact that a surprise blizzard blowing in stranded our teenage son in Chicago's Union Station yesterday, and it took three hours to find a way to rescue him.  

Praise God for beautiful (close by) friends!

I will be getting my boy two days late for spring break, but at least he is safe and sound.  AND, he is having too much fun to talk to his folks on the telephone.

Colorful Furniture

The last post with my bags had a smidgen of our wood bench showing in the corner.  It is our wood bench, because  Hubby made it to hold firewood.  For years it has been handy up north, but with its new lighter duties I thought it needed a new color.  We are all getting a makeover!  Little Miss painted it for us.  She is handy too!

This table is my first piece of vintage furniture found in Texas.  I have been wanting a mock Bamboo piece to paint this shade of green for years and years.  It is a nice solid piece made by Drexel.  The burned in trademark is so neat I painted around it inside the drawer.

It was actually refinished a few weeks ago, but I was holding out for my camera to work again.  I have been fiddling and tweaking ever since then to get it to take photos.  Yay, it has worked for two whole days!

This is my new night stand, and I am rather thrilled.  

The nifty opalescent dish by Tiara is from a dear online friend, and if you have visited my old blog you probably recognize my Moonstone bowl.  They are two of the few pieces that traveled with us.

Another Texas first!  My first vintage jewelry in Texas.  Three Bakelite bangles.  Not one, not two, but three!

Why have a plain basket when you can have a colorful one? Seriously, why?  "Why would you choose orange?" is probably what "Dear D" is asking.  

I was inspired by a vintage towel.  More birds "Dear J"!

More Pork?!  If you want a laugh look this fellow up online.  There are plenty of video and audio clips.  What a hoot!  (I had to, and I am not one bit sorry.)

Handmade Bags as Wall Art

Yes, yes, I am a bag lady.  Everything in a bag, and a bag for everything.  I have not made one since we have been in Texas, and I think I am having withdrawal symptoms.

If you want to see a bunch of the bags I have made click bag and bags to visit my old blog.  I never did get around to doing a post about my Copy Cat Bag.  It was made back when I had to go to the photocopy place to make copies of the patterns I wanted from other people's books and magazines.  Every couple of weeks it would be chuck full of books to take.  It has quilted fans, my first letter embroidery,  Sashiko embroidery, and cats!

This is a an embroidery piece I did one day just because I wanted something simple and colorful.  Everybody needs a quickie once in a while. 

Meet our smallest neighbor.  Everybody say "hi" to "Alex the Lizard".  We did not realize she was a giiiirrll, and named her Alexander Graham Bell.  She lives in the phone box.  Hubby says she runs the telephone switchboard for Geico.  We would call her Alexandria, but the lady who lives one door away from the lizard is actually named Alexandria.  Can you imagine the misunderstandings if I started walking by every day baby talking Alexandria?

By the way, those are the stick on "Command Hooks" you see advertised nowadays.  I love them.  They work great as long as you follow the directions perfectly, and do not put them next to a hot stove top.  

By the way, I fixed the comments section, so make sure to say "HI"! 

Garden Green and Vintage Blue in the Kitchen

I finally remembered to snap a photo in the kitchen.  We have been eating a lot healthier since our move to Texas.  Normally I get so busy I forget the camera until we have eaten it all up.

My collection of varied blue patterned ovenware came to Texas with us.  

Could you tell what that is?  Stuffed zuccini!  Our Farmer's Market has started, and I cannot wait to go this coming Saturday.  Just thinking about it got me in the mood for zuccini.  

 We still have a good stash of basil from the garden last summer.  It smells so good when you crush it.  Here are our seedlings for this year.  The local garden centers are already leaving their basil plants out overnight.  Our seed trays and seedlings stay in the window every night now.  Before I was moving them every evening.  It was worth it.  These little fellas are just full of potential!

Tonight is the first time we will have homegrown lettuce this season in our salad.  In March!  Hubby asked me if these plants were okay.  I told him the name was "golden something or other", and we agreed that we like darker lettuce.  Hey, an excuse to peruse the seed packets again!

Ooops, I almost forgot.  How do you like my vintage linen kitchen towel with the rooster on it?  "Dear D" and I were having a good time going through my stash of vintage towels for the shop before we moved.  I had found a treasure trove of never used ones.  Guess what "D", I kept them ALL!  

Happy times in the kitchen.  What are you all cookin' up?!

Tiny Crochet Shamrock for Saint Patrick's Day Luck

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

To celebrate I crocheted the tiniest shamrock ever.  I found a whole basket of vintage crochet and tatting thread, that is super fine for making handkerchief trim.  It also had hairpin lace pins, pattern books, and fun bits and bobs.

St. Paddy's Day is not complete without at least one crocheted shamrock!

Now all I have to do is find an Irish Crochet Shamrock pattern.  Does anybody out there have one?

Roses in March

Roses in March!  These were newly planted two weeks ago, but still, planting roses in March!

Here is a fountain by where Hubby works.  It is in Lake Cliff Park.  Right now the park is being left to the egrets and cormorants.  I have a feeling it is very busy in the summer.  The grounds are lovely with majestic old oaks like the ones I grew up with in Wisconsin.

Chevron Bunny and Egg Garlands

I popped these bunnies and eggs into the mail last week, and they hopped their way across the country to perk up my mom and sisters.

I did not feel guilty about getting paint chips at the store, because I actually used these to figure out the colors for two pieces of furniture we are doing.  I finished one already, woohoo!  Photos will be coming when the second one is done.  Little Miss is working on it during Spring Break.

We are busy, busy bunnies.  What are you up to?

Splendid Sign

There is nothing I can say about this sign.  It speaks for itself.

To be honest this building has a lot going on for it.  There are at least four different signs that have apparently nothing to do with each other.  Then again, one does say "girls", so maybe that should be "Hi... Hoe".  Was it a nightclub run by dwarves?

You simply have to love the fact that they made the extra effort to put twinkles in around the words.

Life is Good

It is so lovely when things come together, like haircuts for masses of crazy curly hair and vintage colorware matching contemporary fabric.

May your week be full of simple goodness coming together into rainbows of blessings.