Up, Up and Away... Etsy Vintage Discoveries

Peruvian Hot Air Balloon $25
from Freshy Fig

Ballooning .. UNused Vintage Postage Stamps $10
from Verde Studio

Vintage Hat Box Luggage Set With Hand Painted Hot Air Ballons $90
from Bright Wall

Pyrex Turquoise Balloon Chip and Dip Set, 1958 $78
from Crabapple Vintage

Freebies, Coupons and Making Money: Point Programs

For quite a while I've used online point programs to get fun things for free. So I've decided to share a few at a time so you can too, it doesn't take much time and I get things like photo prints, magazine subscriptions, and other things free quite often.

Before I get started here's my #1 Tip: I use a separate email address for all the point programs I do, namely so I only look at the emails when I want to and I don't have to wade through so many just to get to my personal emails.

Point Programs

My Coke Rewards

• How to Use: Find points on coke products and packaging


• What You Can Get: there are plenty of rewards to choose from, but I use most of my points on photo credits from snapfish and magazine subscriptions that I wouldn't treat myself to otherwise.


• Where to Find Codes: there is really only one place to find codes - on coke packaging and under coke product bottle caps. While Richard and I don't drink soda all that often it's pretty easy to ask friends who do to save the codes. I know plenty of people who drink lots of coke but don't use the rewards program. So if you're not a soda drinker - don't write it off, just ask around! One of my old roommates would go so far as to take the caps from the recycling bin at her work for me (I made sure to get some prizes for her too!)


• My experience: Over the few years I've used this program I've managed to get at least ten rewards each year including yearly subscriptions to Vanity Fair and Readymade, as well as photobooks and prints from Snapfish.

Swag Bucks

• How to Use: Sign up. Use the site to search the internet. Get swagbucks. Trade them in for items or gift cards. If you shop online you're also able to use their website as a portal to online stores and receive points for the money you were planning to spend anyway. You also get points for referring friends, so if you decide to join you should use my referral link above to help me out!


• What You Can Get: Apple, Target and Amazon gift cards, ipods and electronics, clothes and even office supplies too.


• Where to Find Codes: there are Swagcodes that pop up from time to time on the SwagBlog and the Twitter account, I don't lurk all day hoping to get a code (as they are generally only good for a few hours) but have been lucky a few times to have the right timing when I did glance at the site.


• My experience: Just today, only two weeks after signing up I had earned 450 swagbucks which I exchanged for a $5 Amazon gift card. The gift cards can be stacked so I plan to earn a few more before making an Amazon purchase so I can get a couple things from my wish list for only the price of shipping.

Fun little lady up in the shop!

Another one of the Campus Cuties has made it up into the shop today and will be followed closely behind by some other fun vintage finds!

I quite love the Campus Cuties by Louis Marx myself and have a couple occupying various nooks in the house and have given a few as gifts to friends. You can't beat some vintage tschokie therapy on Monday morning!

Drawing Inspiration

It's drastically difficult for me to not find inspiration every where I turn, and the internet is certainly no exception. The truth is, I've been going through my oh-so-many bookmarks to clean house and remember what's been inspiring me and realized inspiration is so much more fun when shared - so have at it!

One of my favorite websites is DesignSponge for just about everything. The sneak peaks they provide into different homes provide decorating inspiration, and I really love their before and after features and instructions on various projects cause I'm a diy girl at heart. On of my favorites is the mini-garden from an altoids tin.


Dollar Store Hacks is a cute little blog, even though it seems a one time project that hasn't be updated since. It's a great little reminder of how we can all be ready makers. Below rulers become place mats, and make me want to make some out of mismatched wood rulers.

Art Lovelies: Anna

I may say this often, but it's true that my family is full of some awesome and creative people. One of those is my cousin Anna. She always has those creative vibes rolling off of her and she is involved in such a variety of artistic pursuits. She's almost done with her college degree at SCAD and has been cranking out some really awesome dioramas - like the one below - for her classes, and I'm just hoping I can make another trip down to Savannah before she graduates.


In addition to being a great illustrator, a phenomenal writer (with an reoccurring internship at Scholastic), and all around awesome gal she plays in a band by the name of General Oglethorpe and the Panhandlers. I'll readily admit to being biased, but I think they rock, and this photo of them by Zulmarie takes the cake. You can listen to four of their songs on their myspace right now, and they'll be recording more this spring so expect more soon!


As far as Anna and I go we're about a year apart in age and as children went through quite the love/hate/love relationship before we arrived at the friendship we have today. She's featured in most of the photos I have of myself and my sister in matching outfits.

Etsy Vintage Discoveries - Let's Play!

I'm always a fan of Marx toys, in fact I had a hard time saying no to the gems I found on etsy today so that I could offer them to you!

Vintage Louis Marx and Co. Cowboy 1964 $5
from Other Such Nonesense 2

Vintage Toy Typewriter $48
from Camp Hobachee

Vintage WILD WEST Marx Toy Gun $28
from Sushipot Parts

Inspiration Projects

I feel like I draw inspiration from just about anywhere, but for the last month since I've been stuck inside with a back injury I'll admit that most of my inspiration is found online. While I've been keeping myself busy with projects like reorganizing the office/extra bedroom (and I think it's finally in a configuration that is a little more conducive to work) I've also been looking at other people's craft projects and decorating for inspiration.

I've also been crocheting an amazing amount of items - a case for my new digital camera (with my first buttonhole!), two cases for other people's ipods, more baby hats than I know babies, and a whole mess of play food/pincushion cupcakes. I'm sure all the theme of the crafting photos I've been looking at lately has to do with my penchant for crochet projects.


I'm planning to make a blanket based on this pattern from The Yvestown Blog out of cotton for a light summer throw (ah, summer.) and I really can't wait to get started.

In general I'm one of those people who just likes to make things. It's a little cliche but I find it cathartic to always have my hands busy and at the end have something I have managed to make myself. For this reason I love to learn new methods and new projects, so if you've got something you think I should try - let me know. Especially if it's something that will keep me busy while my back heals.

Ahoy Matey! Vintage Pirate Booty

Pair of Vintage Paint by Number Ships $26
from The Relic Trail

Cast Iron Ship Doorstop $42
from High Street Market

Vintage Brass Anchor Locket $20
from The Bumbling Bird

Sailing the High Seas... $28
from Ammelia Bedelia

Dear Deer, Etsy Vintage Discoveries

a tiny deer to fawn over $9
fromShrimp Salad Circus

Oh My Deer Vintage Planter $16
from Bright Wall Vintage

Pair of Deer Brass Candle Holders $17
from Happy Day Vintage


The Tiniest Deer Head $36
from Verabel

2010: Resolution #39

In my big old list of 2010 resolutions, I've added another.

39. Build/Buy a flea market wagon before the first Maxwell Street Days on May 30, 2010

This is really something I've been meaning to do for a while, and while I did give myself leeway to "buy" a wagon I'd really rather build one. And if I go in the direction of purchasing I'd really love to buy something home made, so if you have any leads - send them my way!

I've been looking at some diy tutorials on instructables.com and have found a couple that are promising, at least in an inspiration sort of way.

I especially like this milk crate one because I have quite a few milk crates around the house, I'm just afraid it might not be big enough for my flea market jaunts. I'm mainly concerned with size when it comes to bulky and heavy items, because most of the time my usual rig of backpack and extra canvas totes work for smaller items.

Etsy Vintage Discoveries - Be My Valentine

...all gussied up for St. Valentine
Ivory Beaded Vintage Clutch $40
from littlewhitechapel

1950's Red Polka Dot Party Dress $325
from TimelessVixenVintage

Vintage 50s LITTLE BOW PEEP Shoes $30
from Revolving Styles

Holga-moon

Right before Richard and I got married I decided to treat myself to a new camera. A holga, actually. I wanted to do some more experimenting with film since I've really gotten out of the film habit since I invested in a DSLR waaaay back in 2006 while working for the Advance Titan. It was one of those things where I started out carrying both my film and digital cameras with me so I could choose which one was better for the situation. Most of the time, if I was taking pictures for myself it was the Minolta (my film slr) but if I had to be able to email it the next day or send it over for the paper I used my Canon Rebel. After a while of luging both rather heavy cameras around I decided for the sake of my back to only carry one and by default that became the digital.


For ease of use I decided to go with the Holga 135 so I could continue using 35 mm film, after all I have a whole plethora of cameras in my collection that were designed to work with 620 film and are already really hard/expensive to find film for and get the film developed.


I'm still trying to decide how much I really like the holga. I like the style of picture it produces, and I like not knowing exactly what's going to come out of it. But there are somethings I need to work on, like understanding depth of field in this dinky little plastic lens, because contrary to popular belief there is a difference between soft-focus and way out of focus. I think I need to work on taking my small flash with me so that I can work with more than just "available light" - I've already wasted an entire roll because I've basically forgotten how to gauge light without a meter.


In the end, I know its a fun little camera, and as I keep trying to drill into the photo club kids - it's not the quality of the camera you use or even what you shoot - it's how you present it.