“In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: It Goes On.”
Robert Frost
Showing posts with label etsy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label etsy. Show all posts

Sunday, June 28, 2020

Summer Days

Spring has gone and summer days are here. The past few months have been filled with turmoil and sadness in this area but we all must make the best of things and move on. Here's a glimpse at the past flowers of spring in my garden.


Summer's here and the living is pretty much like the last several months but greener and warmer.  Stay home, be safe.  Go to grocery store, mask up, stay safe. Talk to friends on the phone, tell them to stay safe and well.  And repeat! My husband and I are asking each other, "What day is it?", way too often!


Guy in the Buttercups!

Of course everything about going to the store takes twice as long.  We both are taking all the precautions we can to stay healthy and o far we have not shown any symptoms.

We've been enjoying the garden and catching up on things we left undone from last year because of my husbands health issues.  His surgery for this spring was canceled and may not happen now until next year. Every day is a new day and we enjoy each one.  Guy loves to be outside in the warm weather and as you see below he thinks in is in the wilds of a meadow.  To keep him safe he always is on his harness and we keep a close eye on him.









I haven't been very active in my Etsy shop these days as going out to buy merchandise is not as simple as before. Sales are slow but I have been lucky enough to have a few.  The feedback from one customer was so sweet and sentimental, it makes it all worth it. Every time I read his comment I tear up a bit. Thank you Michael, you made my week!

Here's what Michael wrote regarding a purchase he made as a gift for his cousin....

"This light set was on my Grandmothers Christmas (tree) every year in the 1970's. My cousin Tim and I were obsessed with this light set. When our Grandmother passed in the 90's I inherited the light set. I always wished there were 2 so Tim could have one. I have been searching for a set for over 20 years that worked and was intact and only came close once. I was on Etsy looking for another gift and did a quick search for the lights and there they were. Finally found them. Tim loves them. I hope Grandma will see them on our trees this Christmas. The item was exactly as described and shipping was perfect."



Vintage Christmas Tree Light Covers Train Set by Radiant image 0


Vintage Christmas Tree Light Covers Train Set by Radiant image 2







Peace be with you friends and stay safe out there!
Diane and Guy Noir


Monday, March 26, 2018

Winter Holds Us Close

Spring is here or should I say near?  It still feels and looks like winter around our place.  We are not alone, many areas are still in winter's icy grip!  Winter holds us close and does not want to let go! The remedy of course, is to dwell on all things Spring and stop looking out the window until all the now ugly, dirty, ice and snow melts away!

Don't be sad, look at these cute and pretty vintage things instead. If you'd like something cute of your very own, please visit the links attached to the images, all items are for sale in my Etsy shop.

Golden Egg Book

I have my original copy of the Golden Egg Book from when I was a child, it is so cute! This is an even rarer copy with the yellow cover that I picked up at an estate sale.   A little bunny finds an egg and is very curious to find out what the heck is inside. Adorable illustrations!


Spring Tulips, Rosina June Floral Teacup & Saucer

The tea cup above has tiny yellow and pink tulips and lots of gold gilding! Fill with tea and honey, it's just the thing to drive away those early spring chills! Also works wonderfully for holding Easter candy, flowers or a votive candle!








Baby Lamb Lamp

This Vintage Lamb Lamp will add fun to your cottage decor.  I would love to keep him, but alas, I am trying to downsize! Working condition, but does not come with a lamp shade. 


An Introduction to Wild Flowers

While away the hours waiting for spring flowers by looking through this gorgeous wild flower book! And it makes a great gift too!


Bunny Candy Holder, McCoy, Fanny Farmer

This adorable cheerful yellow Bunny was sold filled with Candy from Fanny Farmer! The candy is long gone! In this example I've added some faux flowers.

Bunnies, 1930s

This is part of a great auction find. Books from the 1930's! The Bunnies book has some darling illustrations and is in really great condition for it's age! Who doesn't like looking at cute bunnies, especially when they aren't' chomping on your garden flowers!


Easter will be here soon and it looks like we might have more snow and rain! Hope wherever you are you have some warmer days ahead.  Don't give up hope, sooner or later spring will arrive!

Happy Easter and Happy Spring to You!
~~ Diane ~~

 

Wednesday, April 5, 2017

Spring Awakes

Our winter was almost non existent. The first snow was in December and we had but a mere 2 inches of snow in February. It seems like we're almost 3 weeks ahead of schedule as far as the weather goes, the grass has even greened up in spots. So even though we may still see some late snow storms, I'm already thinking about Spring!


What do I think of in Spring? Well Bunnies of course, and in this case they are a variety of Easter Bunnies depicted in these vintage cards. I never knew the Easter bunny was so talented!







And what goes with bunnies you may ask? Well flowers of courses!  In my garden the blood root are starting to bloom and I'm seeing the scillia pushing up shoots and soon they'll be showing their cheerful blue colors.



Speaking of flowers, I came across two gorgeous vintage books of wildflowers. They're in my shop now, here's a peek!

The first is
 
Wild Flowers - Matthias Hermann - First Edition 1973 - Botanical Illustrations - Vintage Collectible - Hardcover with Dust Jacket 
 Wild Flowers - Matthias Hermann - First Edition 1973 - Botanical Illustrations - Vintage Collectible - Hardcover with Dust Jacket






This next one is a large book and weighs about 5 pounds!

Wild Flowers of the World, A Thousand Beautiful Plants, Painted by Barbara Everard, Text by Brian Morley, First Edition 1970

Wild Flowers of the World,  A Thousand Beautiful Plants, Painted by Barbara Everard, Text by Brian Morley, First Edition 1970 


I hope you're all well and will try and visit your blogs as soon as possible. It' been a very difficult couple of months for me, but I'm trying to get back into the swing of things!

So tell me, what's blooming in your gardens now?

~~ Diane ~~


Wednesday, February 1, 2017

My Valentine

Robert Frost said it first...

“In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: It goes on.       Robert Frost


Even though the world seems to be crumbling around us, we also must go on.  It's been very hard for me to focus lately with all of the chaos the new president is creating. I'm sorry for any harm or hurt that he has brought to you. If you've been reading my blog for awhile you know that I did not vote for him, and I'll leave it at that.  

Since we've moved into February, I'd like to share a few vintage images with you.  Some are public domain images and a few are creations I made on Polyvore featuring some of my vintage items. Click on the links if you'd like more information. Hope you enjoy them!



 

This is a fantasy image made on Polyvore. It features one of my vintage teacups, this is the Wild Strawberry pattern by Wedgwood.




This dress worn by Jacqueline Kennedy has gotten a lot of attention lately and you may have seen it on your social media. When I took a closer look, I realized that it is a Valentine photo. Love the girls dresses with the appliqued hearts, so cute!









This Polyvore set features two of my cards. The prominent card of the Boy with Cat is in my shop now.



 

The Girl with Dog card above is also available in my shop.  These Polyvore sets are fun to make and I love adding them to my Twitter feed to highlight my shop.  

I'm also offering a shop discount for my blog followers. Get 15% off your order of $20.00 or more from cravecute.etsy.com.
Enter this coupon code at checkout:  BLOGGERDISCOUNT 
(Expires February 28, 2017)

Thank you for visiting!
Hope to see you here again soon!
xx Diane xx

Sunday, September 18, 2016

My Neck of the Woods

Hello! Anyone still out there?
I know, I've been gone for a whole month without any notice... Sometimes things happen to distract us from the blog world and draw us into the real world, sometimes the real world is hard.


While I was away some good things happened and a few bad things too.  That's the way it is, the bitter and the sweet all mixed together.

Let me catch you up to date on what's been going on ....


Some friends, my husband and I, went to the Apostle Islands, Wisconsin and sailed on Lake Superior for several days, and I lived through it ... (a blog post to come).



 After 9 hours of sailing, I felt like the mushroom on the right...


I've spent lots of time on my Etsy shop, working on inventory and social media, like Instagram....


https://www.etsy.com/listing/475390057/daily-dime-bank-buckaroo-cowboy-coin?ref=shop_home_active_17
  
Daily Dime Bank, Buckaroo Cowboy




My sales have been good this summer, keeping me 
busy shipping and restocking my inventory...

 




Vintage Chef Cats Salt Pepper Shakers

Vintage Chef Cats Salt and Pepper Shakers


The garden still requires some work and of course I have to spend time with my two adorable cats. Family visits and little excursions about town seems to have taken up the rest of my time this summer.


Politics this year seems to be even more hateful than most years, but I did think it funny that I found these blue elephants.  I thought they would be a great gift for the conflicted voter, but alas, one has a broken and re-glued trunk, so they will be staying at my house for the time being!



mother goose rhymes
 Mother Goose Rhymes

This 1953 edition of Mother Goose has the most adorable illustrations by Eulalie M. Banks. It's one of those books that I almost don't want to sell because I just love the sweet images!  But it is for sale now in my shop.. Click on the first image of the items to see the full listing and information.



 The image above and below are more from the Mother Goose book...



Locally some major things have happened since I was last here.

As I wrote in a previous post, Prince Rogers Nelson passed away last April.  His home and studio, Paisley Park, is opening for tours this month and next month there will be a tribute concert in St. Paul.

On a very sad note, the 27 year mystery of what happened to the young boy Jacob Wetterling has finally been solved and his family is having a memorial service for him at the end of September. After all these years he will finally be put to rest. If you haven't heard of this, just google his name and you will find the stories, I haven't the heart to go into any more details here.







So that's about it folks. Summer is fast coming to a close and the days are already getting shorter. My garden is winding down for the summer and will soon be covered with falling leaves. I'm hoping I have more time to spend here on the blog as I do enjoy visiting with all of you. If you are on Instagram, follow if you wish, I do tend to get over there more often just because it's so quick and easy.


I must dash away now... see you soon!
~~Diane~~


Tuesday, April 19, 2016

Singing Frogs

Last post I spoke of dancing bunnies and this week it's all about singing frogs.  I am fascinated by nature and have always had a curiosity about the creatures I encounter in the garden. Maybe this comes from growing up as the only girl on a somewhat secluded farm. My playground was 600 acres of woodland, prairie, deep sand filled ravines and a creek that ran through the middle of the property. There wasn't much else to do other than read and explore!




The illustration above is from my collection, the illustrator is Adrana Saviozzi from the book Somebody Saw, 1962.

I still remember those days as a child, when younger, accompanied by my two older brothers, but then later on when I was older, exploring on my own. It was all so magical.  I guess I've really never experienced it in any other way since.  I often wonder if my time entertaining myself when younger created the introvert I am today, or was I just comfortable being on my own because I was an introvert? I guess, I'll never really know the answer to that question!

Anyway... back to the frogs... You may remember that last year I was very upset because there were no frogs around our lake. I wrote about it here.  In past years we would see the small tree frogs around the garden and hear them at night singing. It was a crazy cacophony of sound that I loved to listen to at night while drifting off to sleep. Some people don't care for the sound, but those are the loud bull frogs that most people complain about, our tree frogs have a most amazing lyrical, musical sound.

Of course I couldn't write about frogs without thinking of some books I have that are delightfully illustrated with frogs dancing, prancing, singing etc.


This poem is in the vintage set of Best in Children's Books by Doubleday. 1960 Volume 30 - A Frog He Would A-Wooing Go (illustrated by Adrienne Adams) - available in my shop here. The following two images are from the same book. Illustrations are by Adrienne Adams.



I was so happy the other night when I heard the frogs start to sing. The first night I heard just one and now several days later I'm hearing maybe four or five different frog voices. Not nearly as many as there used to be, but I'm hoping that if it's a good year, there will be a bunch of tadpoles in our lake that will grow up to be wonderful singing frogs!

So you may be wondering, how do frogs survive the winter? Well first of all I did some reading and found out that they are called ectotherms. The body temperature of ectotherms follows their environment, for example if it is cold outside, their body temperature falls. They must bask in the sun to get warm and cool off in the shade, or under the water. Amphibians, reptiles and insects are ectotherms. 

To live through the winter Spring Peepers, Green/Gray frogs and others bury themselves in the mud (about an inch deep) around a wetland, such as a lake or stream. They have special components in their body that actually act as antifreeze. Their body converts glycogen into glucose, which keeps the frog alive while it's frozen solid. When the ground becomes warm again in spring, the frogs thaw-out and remain active until winter comes around again! That's why at first I heard just one frog and then as the days went by more and more, because the frogs were just 'waking' up from their hibernation.




So I can happily say that Spring is truly here! I hope our little frogs make a comeback and return to become a thriving community again. It's a very nice turn of events and so fitting as it is Earth Day this Friday on April 22nd. It's nice to see that with all the obstacles they face, our little frogs are a win for nature.





So, I've got to run, much like the frog above... and I'll be running 'round to your blogs soon, Heigh Ho!

Hope you are enjoying some warmer Spring weather wherever you are!
~~~ Diane ~~~



Wednesday, March 23, 2016

March into Spring!

March, in like a lamb, out like a lion! That saying seems so true as we saw warmer temperatures at the beginning of the month take a dive and now more snow is in the forecast!  You'll really need to cuddle up close to someone to stay warm, just like the bunny and duck below!



The Golden Egg Book was written by Margaret Wise Brown and illustrated by Lilian Obligado. Vintage 1962 publication by Golden Press, NY. A Little Golden Book.


I'm sharing some cheerful Spring and Easter images with you today. The books and the basket of chicks are available in my Etsy shop.  Click on the links if you are interested in finding out more about them.




These vintage wind-up Peek-A-Boo Chicks are simply adorable! As with many of the old wind-up toys, they don't work all the time, but they're still very cute!









The Fuzzy Duckling is a Big Golden Book. One morning the fuzzy duckling goes for a walk and meets a variety of animals along the way.  In the photo above he meets up with some lambs. Gorgeous illustrations on every page! Vintage hardcover book measures 12 1/4" x 9 1/4", great images for framing!



My house is finally decorated for Spring and Easter, even though today we are having a snowstorm! But that's the way it is here in Minnesota, and I have to remind myself that just a few years ago we had a huge snowstorm in early May!




I love these large milk chocolate eggs I found at Costco.  My husband could hardly wait until I finally let him have one after I was done taking pictures!  The bowl is vintage, I inherited it from my Mom and it was a gift to her from an Aunt, so it must be over 50 years old. The music box chick is a newer piece.






I hadn't purchased chocolate bunnies for years, but couldn't resist these cuties in their bright packaging.  The tablecloth is a vintage hand embroidered piece, I purchased it from an Etsy shop several years ago.





And finally, one of my new favorites, this is a vintage hand embroidered table-runner. I am in love with this sweet little duck! My husband found this at an estate sale and knew I would like it!


I wish you all a Happy Spring and a Joyous Easter....

Oh, and if you live in a climate like mine
you shouldn't have any trouble finding those hidden Easter Eggs.

Just follow the Bunny tracks in the snow!
~~ Diane ~~