The end of a special trip

We didn't have much free time on our trip, but tried to squeeze in moments of sightseeing whenever we could. We took a quick drive through a part of the Roosevelt National Forest. It was in the mid-60's, but there were still patches of snow.

We also stopped at Devil's Backbone on our way back to the Denver airport.

It just appeared before us on a drive looking for skating hills and was a beautiful geological sight.

We took a quick hike to take a look around.

It was a nice way to stretch a bit before sitting on a plane.

Estes Park is on my bucket list, but we knew that we didn't have enough time to visit. We thought we would just drive down the road a bit to see what we could see. Unfortunately, not very far in there was a rock slide. The road was down to one lane for both directions and there were significant delays.

So we decided it was time to head to the airport. 

As we were looking for the highway, we happened upon an antique store, so I hopped in for a quick look around. :)

And I found a few little treasures:

The moment I saw this Abraham Lincoln bank bottle, I knew that it had to go home with me (being from the Land of Lincoln :) Lucky for my mom, there were two. So she received one for her birthday. The cap has a neat Lincoln graphic on it. I'm thinking I will collect wheat pennies in it. I think the copper will look nice. I also found a sweet little heart pincushion filled with straw or sawdust with green x's along the seams. My final purchase was a pie crimper - this one is special as the handle is made of wood, but the wheel is made of bone. I will add it to my collection that you can see here.

And here you can see what I worked on during our trip.

To commemorate the winter that would never end. Our daffodils and tulips are raising their tightly closed buds, so of course they are saying that it may snow early next week.

This was a special trip for me. The future may be unknown, but I will treasure this time that I spent alone with my oldest son. When I look at my little souvenirs and this cross stitch piece, I hope that they will always trigger those special memories and the gratefulness that I feel that we were able to do this - together.

"Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.

Worship the Lord with gladness;

come before him with joyful songs.

Know that the Lord is God.

It is he who made us, and we are his;

we are his people, the sheep of his pasture."

~Psalm 100:1-3

Blessings, Patti

Collection #5

 

Thank you so much for all of your lovely comments to my last post, "Life is hard..."

Each of them brightened my day as did your ideas of simple things that help:

a good cup of tea, comments from blogging friends (I certainly agree!), books in the mail (any package in the mail!), petting a dog, having a purring cat on your lap, stitching, and the Book of Psalms

just reading the list makes me smile :)

 

Well as you can see, Collection #5 isn't exactly prim, but it does brighten my bathroom both day and night. My blue glass insulators and blue Ball jars contain timer candles that shed a soft glow at night.

 

My newest collection are old glass bottles to serve as bud vases ~ from mustard, Alka Seltzer, extract, honey and aspirin. Filled with my favorite flower of the day - zinnias. I love those with lots and lots of petals. $5 spent and lots of happiness received :)

 

I don't think that the honey bottle is antique, but I loved the embossed bee skep!

 

Thanks so much for stopping by today!

Wishing you joy!

 

"When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done,

he was glad and encouraged them all

to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts."

~Acts 11:23

 

Blessings, Patti

Collection #4

 

Here is my Collection #4.

What are they you ask?

I have no idea!

Little treen boxes ~ some are threaded, some are not.

 

Some were labeled as needle cases, some were labeled as pill boxes.

I wish that I knew what they really are... or maybe they were used for a variety of purposes.

 

The four boxes in the middle are similar in size and shape.

The barrel shaped box on the left was too good a deal to pass up.

 

And the little knob topped box on the right was just such a sweet shape.

 

So there you have collection #4 ~ a collection  of 6 little treen boxes.

 (I think that I need a 7th as aren't odd numbers better for decorating lol.)

 

After finishing my last wool project, I decided it was time to start another Maggie Club kit.

Last weekend, I thought I would just trace out my pattern pieces. When I opened up my kit,

I realized that I had already traced them!

 

So instead, I was able to spend the time ironing and cutting!

I just love the late summer / early autumn colors of this kit!

Maybe this weekend I can pin them all in place :)

 

"Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens,
    your faithfulness to the skies.
Your righteousness is like the highest mountains,
    your justice like the great deep.
    You, Lord, preserve both people and animals.
 How priceless is your unfailing love, O God!
    People take refuge in the shadow of your wings."

~Psalms 36:5-7

 

Blessings, Patti

Collection #3

 

Greetings! My collection that I am featuring this week fits in one little basket.

I started this collection back when I was in high school.

Every once in a while, when my dad had a day off from work, he and I would sneak off for a bit of antiquing.

 

I spied this stereoscope in good condition. It was $25, but on my high school allowance, this was too much, so I asked if the shop owner would take $20. He said no, so I started walking out the door. The shop owner called me back in and said he would take $20. When we got back to the car, my dad just kept shaking his head at my negotiating skills :) He couldn't believe that I would leave over $5 either :)  

 

I love that the red velvet trim is all still intact. I was hoping to show you the wonderful 3D effect, but it is hard to see with a camera. Once I bought the stereoscope, I started collecting the cards.

 

I love to purchase cards of places that I have visited ~ from sweet home Chicago, National Parks, the U.S. and abroad.

 

I find animals hard to resist as well.

 

Other unusual cards include a miniature wedding, a little girl sleeping under a wonderful crazy quilt with her guardian angel watching over, and an advertisement for either a potter or a general store. 

 

This card was a special birthday gift from my parents - they always said my bedroom looked like Oscar's from "The Odd Couple". Luckily I have somewhat grown out of my messy stage ;)

 

This was my first series - from "The Proposal" to "The Wedding Day ~ Alone at Last"

Received around the time of my own engagement to my dear husband. 

 

I once won a drawing for a gift certificate to a local antique shop. With the certificate, I purchased this wonderful boxed tour of Sears Roebuck. So neat to see the old offices and inner workings of the old Sears catalogue. 

 

 

My most recent purchase was this set of 25 views of the life of Jesus from birth to resurrection.

 

Thanks for taking a tour of Collection #3.

Now what should I photograph next???

 

Thank you so much for the many comments and emails regarding my Moravian Star.

I was so excited to hear about your own vintage stars and seeing pictures of them too!

I was absolutely thrilled to hear from Colleen MacKinnon and to discover her wonderful blog, Penny Rugs and More. She has a great tutorial for making your very own Moravian Star! And even better, she has templates and kits for them in her Etsy shop.

 

I purchased one of her kits and just can't wait to give it a try! :) I will keep you posted once I get started...

 

And it was time for another concert at Ravinia.

This time it was Steely Dan. (I couldn't get the entire band in the picture.) I just love that horn section! Wonderful summer music for a lovely summer evening outdoors.

 

"One thing I ask from the Lord,
    this only do I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
    all the days of my life,
to gaze on the beauty of the Lord
    and to seek him in his temple."

~Psalm 27:4

 

Blessings, Patti

Collection #2

Some items I collect because they are inspired by a hobby (strawberry emeries in Collection #1),

other items I have no idea why I collect.

This is one of those items ~ Antique pie crimpers

Why do they appeal to me? I enjoy baking, but don't make pies that often.

I think there is something about them that exudes a folk art quality.

I have seen pie crimpers with metal wheels, but they don't appeal to me as much. So far, I have only purchased all wood pie crimpers. My first one was purchased at a garage sale for a dollar.

Recently I found a pie crimper with a bone wheel - now that is one that I would like to purchase, but it was not in my budget that day. I will keep my eyes open for another ;)

I also have to share a recent unusual antique purchase found at a favorite shop, Winterberry in Tuscola, IL, when visiting my parents: 

What is it, you ask?

I have no idea!

But I just had to have it! It is made of antique velvet and consists of 60 individual diamonds all sewn together by hand. The velvet appears to be covering cardboard or some other type of board.

In some ways it reminds me of antique puzzle ball pincuhions.

It is fairly large, about 9 inches across.

I think about the patience that someone had to piece and sew it all together and have it all fit just so!

I did a little online research and found that it is a moravian star. I found a similar piece here at a UK museum. The UK example was smaller and is a pincushion.  

I treasure my new found piece of antique folk art and wonder about its story. On two of the sides all the brown velvet nap has worn away with just the black base fabric remaining. Was it left too long in the sun? Handled too much? Just one more story that adds to the intrigue :)

"Even in darkness light dawns for the upright,
for those who are gracious and compassionate and righteous.

Good will come to those who are generous and lend freely,
who conduct their affairs with justice."

~Psalms 112: 4 - 5

Blessings, Patti

Collection #1

 

Hello, my name is Patti and I am an addictive collector.

Why own one of something when you can have many?

Once something catches your eye, you can't help but buy more.

I come from a long line of collectors and have learned from the best

(Hi Mom & Dad ;)

 

Not long ago, I posted about the Best.Estate Sale.Ever. you can read more about it here and here.

I mentioned that I would like to share come of my collections after being inspired by the incredible collections at the estate sale. So here is my first collection - antique strawberry emeries. I have only been collecting them for a few years. When I bought my first two, I remembered that I had one or two tucked in an antique sewing cabinet that I have. So I pulled them out to join the group.

 

Here is my most recent purchase for this collection:

 

An incredible petite antique sewing basket that came with a tiny little ditty bag and pincushion both tied to the basket and three sweet strawberry emeries.

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I think that this little emery is my current favorite.

(now that I look closely at these photos I think it needs a lint roller :)

 

I'll try to post a new collection each week.

At that rate, I think I will be sharing collections for a few years lol!

 

 "I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
    my God, in whom I trust.”

~Psalm 91:2

 

Blessings, Patti