Magpie Ethel

Naked Jars No More

I have a thing for vintage water decals. Meyercord is a common maker and they come in a huge variety of styles. I found a big stash of them the other day at an estate sale. (I already had some, but now I have more!)

I realized that I have a few naked jars that needed a new look.

Vintage water decals can be tricky.  To apply them you soak them in warm water for a minute or so and then they are supposed to slide off the cardboard backing onto the item the decal is going to be placed on.    I often spray mine with varnish prior to soaking them in water.  Let the varnish dry before soaking.  I have had good luck with the varnish holding the decal together (most of the time).

This little lamb still came apart (his nose) when I applied him.

Luckily when you apply the decals you have a bit of flexiblity and can often slide the torn area into the correct position.

After the decal is in position I lightly dab away the excess water with a paper towel and make sure there are no air bubbles.  You can use your fingers to smooth out the image.  Let the decal air dry.

Here are a couple of tiny decals soaking in water waiting to be applied.

Ideally the decal will slide off the backing like this one is doing. I just need to slide the backing the rest of the way off and then smooth out the deer on the glass.

I have not found a test to see if a decal will stay together or not.  Often the larger decals tend to break apart easier.  This tiny decal simply disintegrated when I tried to remove her after soaking.  I did not spray her first with varnish and that might have saved her.

For the most part they are fairly easy to work with.  I have found that the coat of varnish makes the odds better in applying them.

These water decals are addictive!  I want no more naked jars in my studio.

These darling images are just addictive.
Fun project.  If blogland has any tidbits to add about applying water decals please let me know. I think I have more naked jars....

 

Collection Challenge #157 - Vintage Humpty Dumpty

Lily asked me if I collected nursery rhyme items.  I have a thing for Humpty Dumpty.  There must be something about that smiling, trusting face of his that attracts me.  He is the only nursery rhyme fellow that I have a variety of items for.  If I was to start a new collection I would start a Humpty Dumpty vase collection. I want a whole shelf of those Humpty Dumptys grouped together (but not falling).

Old non-working music box with nursery rhyme characters that appear in the window as you spin the knob.

Mother Goose drinking straws
Humpty Dumpty smiles from the side of the box.

Vintage storybook knobs featuring Humpty Dumpty.

This is my favorite Humpty.  I gave him a little magpie love with his bowtie and he lives in my cabinet of curiosities.

Humpty Dumpty scissors in original packaging.  You can cut out the Humpty and he becomes an action figure when you cut the tongue and stick it in his mouth!?

Humpty pajama bag.

Open in the back to put your p.j.s in for the day.
Vintage wrapping paper with nursery rhyme characters including Mr. Dumpty.
This pair of salt and pepper shakers is not old. A friend gave them to me and they sit on the back of my stove and smile at me.

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall,
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
All the king's horses and all the king's men
Couldn't put Humpty together again.

Such a sad tale for such a cute little fellow!  Thanks Lily for the challenge.  If you have an idea for a future collection challenge, leave me a sentence and finish the sentence "Show me your collection of _____."  Fun stuff to share....

Estate Sale Friday - Two Sales

I hit one estate sale yesterday and one today.  The one yesterday you could email in to get on the sign up list.  You could email starting at 9 a.m. I emailed at the STROKE of nine and ended up being #12.  Happy to get in the door quickly but was greeted with a very overpriced sale...I still bought a few Christmas things. 

The estate sale today had a rope across the driveway so you could not enter early and a big sign that said NO EARLY-BIRDS.  I was the ONLY one waiting to get in the sale when it opened...crazy!  Wishing it was a sale of my dreams since I was the only one there but unfortunately, it was only mediocre.

I still got my vintage fix though. Two big old style fans with a great turquoise exterior box and a bunch of old yardsticks.

I got three old poker chip holders (I already sorted the chips into colors for crafting) and a deck of cards with a sly looking wolf.

A towel with a sweet crochet woman with an umbrella.

A bunch of old floral glasses (that did not make the first picture...I forgot they were in the dish drainer). They were marked as candle holders since one of them had a candle in them.  I think they are old juice glasses that just happened to have a votive in one.

A box of old Christmas light bulbs...awesome box.

An old first aid kit, a vintage coffee can, folding ruler, Christmas reflectors and a few strands of mercury glass garland.

I think this was a fairly safe family as the kit looks complete and tidy.

Not a bad haul. Happy day and happy weekend!

Tidbits and Belated Thank You

Mishmash of a post today.  First I would like to thank a few people.

Kim from Midwest Musings sent me a package the other day. She had seen my photos from Round Top on some of the Pee Dee Characters I spotted.  I have blogged a bit about them on challenge #90.

She sent me the cutest hankies with a couple of the characters. I did not even know these existed! Here we have Stella Strawberry and Penny Pineapple.

I love how the cute graphics travel all the way around the hankie. So, so cute!  Thank you Kim!

A thank you to Lynn from Wienee Ranch for some vintage glasses that made their way to me. Happily added to my collection.

Thank you to Elizabeth from Creative Breathing for her surprise package that included some characters to keep me company in my studio. Adorable... as is her style.

On to the tidbits.

I got this wooden shoe the other day at an estate sale thinking it would be good to display my Old Woman and the Shoe scene that I found in Texas.

Wooden shoe from estate sale.  It is actually meant to be a toy to help you learn to tie your shoes.

It worked PERFECTLY to display my old woman and the shoe that I found in Texas.

Newly found mirror for the bathroom.  I have the bird thing going on and this had some great birds painted on the side.  I also loved the patina of age on the mirror itself.

Feels good to get a big of blog housekeeping done...tis a happy day!

Collection Challenge #156 - Vintage Dime/Quarter Savers

This is a fairly new collection for me thanks to my Round Top trip earlier this year.  I am not sure how quickly this collection will grow as I don't see money savers often at estate sales. My eyes are open for them now tho. Most of them were distributed by banks or savings and loans to encourage saving with children.

It started with Dime Kitty. Dated 1954.

I remember having these money savers as a kid. Usually you collected dimes or quarters in them.

  This one is really sweet. The graphics start out with just whiskers on your kitty. As you add dimes and save money your cat begins to fill out.

When $3 is reached, the little cat gets a ball of yarn.

Eager Beaver Dime Saver. Note his badge that says THRIFTY WORKER.

These chicken savers had us moving up into the world of saving quarters rather than dimes.

Turning chicken feed into big money.

Funny how $2 saved seemed like an accomplishment.  I imagine kids saving dimes from the tooth fairy and from a weekly allowance. My times have changed in the world of money!

Still a small collection, but a fun and unique one.  If you have an idea for a future collection challenge, leave me a comment and finish the sentence "Show me your collection of ____."  You just never know what collection will show up each week.