Buttons - Beauties of the Past

I have been listing some fun old buttons on my AllButtons shop and I just had to stop and vent a little about how under appreciated these little beauties are. They come in all different sizes, shapes, colors, textures and ages. Just a little like the people I know. Maybe they are under appreciated too. God made us all so unique and different yet like buttons, we have a distinct purpose in the world. Some are bright and cheerful, some are dark and mysterious, while others are just good old consistent workers.

OK back to my rant on buttons. I love to look at these things...they are unique in so many different ways. Some have been made from natural materials like bone, ivory or nuts. These are usually warm to the touch and seem to have held up well over all the years. I am a but partial to the old bone buttons that were used to hold up men's old long johns or underwear. Can you imaging getting up in the middle of the night and having to unbutton those things just to...you know. I especially like the ones that only have 2 big holes (the buttons had 2 big holes) and people used to make them into faces using the holes as eyes!

What I am amazed about is that they usually sell for so little compared to the new ones I see in the stores. I keep thinking I will go take some pictures of the new ones on the cards in the stores and post the equivalent on here....so you can see the bargains you can get. Maybe my daughter will do that for me since she has a website about ways to save! By the way her site is called The Mommy Trade - if you are into couponing....check it out she does a great job of finding the deals locally.

Well...I didn't plan to get off on prices...I was just enjoying the different ones and thought I would share. Take a minute and look closely at some of your buttons and see if they are special to you too.

The love of Sewing

I just finished making some costumes for my grandchildren for Halloween and it was just a nice pleasant experience! When they are wearing them ...maybe I will remember to post a picture.

Now I am in the process of scanning some vintage patterns to list in my Allpatterns shop on Etsy. As I read each one and look through them to see if all the pieces are there I am longing to make something. Some of these old patterns bring back memories of when I wore clothes much like these and then I reminisce about those days for a while. No wonder it takes me so long to get this job done! And as you can see I have diverted to jabbering about it instead of doing it!

One of the things I recall with fondness was when my mother helped me make my first real outfit. I was probably in Jr. High or maybe high school and my sister was getting married in Canada so it was a small wedding and we had to travel. I recall being so proud of my workmanship and how I loved everything about it. It was a lined skirt and jacket in a green color that went well with my red hair.

My mother was very patient with her instructions and I did all of the sewing. I remember her watching me place the pattern pieces on the fabric and her explaining the importance of taking my time cutting it out neatly. Now at a much wiser age I agree with her. I used to hurry and try to make something as fast as I could and wondering why it didn't look quite right. I don't think I have ever made anything as well as that outfit...or at least that is my memory of it. I also recall the days when I was hurrying to make things...it would be because my baby was napping or in bed for the night and I wanted to get as much done as I could! Any one relate?

There are patterns in my shop that I would love to make, but most are not the right size or are not my style now...I do really like just looking them over and thinking about what they might look like made. This pattern is one that started this whole process today...for some reason I just think it is lovely! Back to work I must go!

Busy Busy month of August

I have been so busy all summer...I love that some of my grandchildren come to visit for a week at a time. It gives me some one on one time with them. My 11 year old granddaughter is here this week. We have been to Medival Times, Disneyland, pottery painting and clothes shopping. She has been going to VBS at church in the evenings and now our week is almost over. It has gone by so quickly. Disneyland is hard for me but I love going anyway.

My 10 year old grandson was here for just 4 days this summewr since I had a family reunion end up falling on the same week that he was coming, but actually his family was snatching him away for a wedding. I ended up missing the Angel/Yankees baseball game that we had tickets to, but I know they had fun anyway.

I have not had time to work on my shops this week, but I am sure they will be waiting for me next week. All work and no play makes working dreary so this was another nice break.

OK Bargain Hunters...I have Reduced...Reduced...Reduced!

On my Etsy Vintage4u Shop I set up a new section called Bargain Basement SALE. I have been and will continue to go through my shop and CHOP prices. I see somethings are overpriced so they will be reduced. I am just on a lets clean house kick! COME CHECK IT OUT!

Jennifer Lynn's Finds

Hey! Vintage Lovers...Book Lovers...this shop has some nice old books. You can find something for the intellectual here! The name is Jennifer Lynn's Finds

They are part of The Vintage Village that has a bunch of great new shops that sell vintage things. Check it out too! Look for Jennifer's blog there too.

Promoting a Great Shop POSH ADORNMENT

I admired this shop Posh Adornment from visiting The Vintage Village, a pretty new social networking site that has some really great sellers there!

I love the mostly antique jewelry that the Posh Adornment has listed on their Etsy site. My favorite is Edwardian jewelry and they have several pieces that caught my eye immediately.

I highly recommend this shop for anyone who loves vintage jewelry!

NEW blog in town! TheMommyTrade - SUPER DEALS

I just have to share this really neat blog that my daughter started. If you are looking for coupons for groceries or just about anything then checkout TheMommyTrade.com. Tips for bargain hunting...ideas for saving....information about being a good wife and mom...follow TheMommyTrade.com!

There are tips on how to save for lots of things...she often tells me how she went to Target with there advertised sales, coupons from online and her regular coupons and ended up saving $50 and only paid $12! That is worth the effort I would say...especially in this economy!