Vintage Junk in My Trunk

Happy Easter

Yard-Long Photos, A Collection

I promised I would try to get a shot of Mr. VJIMT's yard-long photograph collection after you saw his last purchase. Here it sits, waiting to find a proper spot.

He hangs them in our upstairs hallway, so it's tough to get any decent photos since it's very dark (even with an overhead light) and a tight squeeze.

This is the best I can do; my back is right up against the washer/dryer! I've even Photoshopped these images to make them brighter; you can imagine how dark it is in the hallway.

He's been collecting these group shots of school classes and sports teams for years. Some are not as long as a yard, but I think they still fill the bill.

Fortunately we only junk with Sue of Vintage Rescue Squad once a year at Bouckville, or those two would be slugging it out for first dibs. 

You can see some of his actual purchases here…

and here…

and here.

And if you're curious about the history of the yard-long photo, there's an interesting piece here.

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Edited to note: I found this photo a few weeks after writing this post and had to include it!

Reindeer, Bottle Brush Trees, and Dress Forms

Well, the junking around here has been extremely limited for the last several weeks. I feel like I have nothing of interest to show you!

I did go to my local antique center to take advantage of the after-Christmas sales. I should probably make another visit to see if things have been reduced any further.

The large aqua Western Germany ornament broke about 18 seconds after I got it into my house. I put it on top of a cupboard with my other seasonal items -- and then the vibrations of my daughter running through the house caused it to teeter off and smash into smithereens!

So I thought I'd show you some of that seasonal display (you've already seen Bob the Elf). Here is my reindeer collection. Last year at this time I only had about 10 of them. I am at a loss to explain the population explosion.

My bottle brush tree collection also expanded…

… but it is nothing like the collection of a friend's mom (who wishes to remain internet anonymous). Love her display!

Scary santas, courtesy of Mr. VJIMT. They are almost as bad as those elves.

Stella chose to hang out by the aluminum and pink ornament tree most of the season. I'm glad she liked it; my son proclaimed it "an eyesore". Gotta love those teenagers!

Luna preferred the real thing as well.

You know I like to decorate my dress forms. 

The one with the apron just sold this morning in my Etsy shop -- and now I am in a shipping terror frenzy! And kind of sad that she will be leaving us.

{EDIT -- Customer requested transaction canceled, and I'm glad as I was having major seller's remorse! I've decided my full-figured gal is no longer for sale, and will now be occupying a space in my bedroom where a fourth, foam-covered-and-not-as-old dress form resided.}

Speaking of Etsy, my friend Carolyn has opened her own shop full of holiday wreaths -- she was quite the productive little (not scary) elf this season -- click here to see them all!

Autumn Porch Decor

I forgot to share these photos yesterday -- our porch, all gussied up for the fall. The antique stroller was a recent yard sale purchase, if you can believe it!

Gusty, blustery, rainy day today, and bowls overflowing with candy. Not a good combination!

Surviving the Storm

We are safe and sound here in our part of New Jersey; thank you all for your concern!

Somehow we escaped the wrath of Sandy, although the Jersey shore points did not fare so well. Thoughts and prayers to those who took the brunt of the damage and devastation.

Most of our damage is indoors, thanks to our own personal little Hurricane S (and two days off from school). All of this stuff recently got a new home in the refinished basement, yet somehow it managed to work its way back upstairs.

I spent most of my day speed cooking before we lost power. Which we thankfully never did, but after spending two hours Sunday morning grocery shopping with the rest of the mob I didn't want to chance the uncooked food spoiling.

Because if I got it cooked, it could be eaten!

Chicken Escarole & Orzo Soup (my teenager inhaled it before I could take a photo), Roasted Chicken with Potatoes, Onions, and Carrots…

Coconut Granola…

Cracker Crusted Tilapia:

Beef Tips and Noodles… (doesn't look too appetizing in my photo, but the boy loves it)

Chocolate Chip & Pretzel Bars…

And I STILL wound up making plain pasta at 8pm because the Little Miss did not care for any of the above. Sigh.

Also, apparently I like to cook brown food.

All of our eggs have been hard-boiled, and the freezer is full of bags of ice cubes and bags filled with water to make blocks of ice. I contemplated filling our bathtub with water to use to flush the toilets, but was too afraid the cats wouldn't notice and would fall in and I don't know if they know how to swim.

And that's how we survived Hurricane Sandy.

Beach Bound

Appropriate summer attire for my dress form -- vintage New Jersey shore town postcards.

Isn't this a great illustration? Love the colors in her dress and in the ocean and her assortment of dollies.

An amazing example of novelty architecture -- Lucy the Elephant in Margate, NJ.

Asbury Park, NJ, home to a young Bruce Springsteen.

Atlantic City, NJ, home to a multitude of casinos.

The boardwalk in Wildwood, NJ, a family favorite. Looking forward to some sun, fun, sand, fudge and salt water taffy.

Happy Birthday, America!

Some gratuitous vintage 4th of July images for you today. You can revisit my red, white, and blue post from 2010 for more.

You've already seen these cards, but I didn't gussie up my dress form with them last Independence Day.

Here's our front porch, featuring the sweet baby bassinet I found a couple of weeks ago.

I told Linda of Itsy Bits and Pieces my porch is reminiscent of hers, with lots of flags in crocks, wicker chairs and needlepoint pillows.

I even found this bottle at Goodwill last week.

More crocks with flags.

And the view to the street.

Now I have to go decorate a bike for tomorrow's parade. Hope you all have a safe and spectacular fourth!

Gasping for Air

We are informally renovating our basement so Little Miss VJIMT has her own play area and Teenaged Mr. VJIMT can play the WII. Right now our family room is covered with Barbies, stuffed animals, doll houses, Pet Shop figures, Squinkies, and other assorted plastic mayhem.

I've been taking some "before" photos, and we're almost done the "after", so I should be blogging about that adventure shortly.

In the meantime, everything that was in our former cellar has been relegated to the garage or to the backyard in covered bins. It's been a nightmare trying to find my Etsy inventory as it sells. And a box to ship it in! And the bubble wrap! Where is the bubble wrap?

I either have to dig through here -- 

or squeeze myself through here --

This was the blue cupboard I took out of Sophia's room and replaced with the smaller but more useful pink bookcase.

This big ornate frame was found during the Memorial Day weekend -- not many sales that day. Plans are to use it as a chalkboard frame. 

This process is affecting the entire house. It's like a domino effect -- one thing leads to another thing, which leads to another.

Our second floor hallway is littered with toys and games I took out of her room after the decluttering (and yes, we did pare down with our own yard sale in April).

My computer area is riddled with items I've listed on Etsy but can't store yet. The dining room table still has remnants of Clover Market that were subsequently listed and now need to be put away.

We have a wedding this weekend immediately followed by our son's elementary school graduation and festivities (a two-day affair!), end-of-school activities for the girl, and my on-going job search.

Whew. Is it summer yet?

Mooooove it Out, Baaaack up the Truck

We had a barn sale this weekend. 

We don't really have a barn.

Only a garage with delusions of grandeur.

But antiques and vintage, that we have. Too many, in fact.

The house (and the addition, put on to the house to hold the vintage) is packed, and so was the “barn”.

(The drawing easel is not vintage, and regretfully, not for sale.)

Leftovers from Clover Market, smalls from my Etsy shop, recently found items, and stuff that had been replaced with different stuff.

Some things actually sold on Etsy while the barn sale was going on -- that was interesting, as I was at my job and Mr. VJIMT worked the sale alone, but the powers of modern technology -- specifically, texting and online access -- saved us from double dipping disaster!

Friends came from far and wide, and some not-so-local peeps saw the photos on my Facebook fan page and purchased via that outlet. Social media at work! 

A certain Gypsy girl showed up with a big bill. Why does she always looks so stinking cute?

So now that the “barn” is sort of cleared out, does that mean I can get some goats? Or at the very least, some barn cats?

A Re-Do and a To-Do

Remember that great bookcase I picked up at the (real) estate sale last weekend? Here's the before:

And the after, courtesy of the always-ready-for-a-project Mr. VJIMT.

Gorgeous, huh?

One more angle...

I love it! Now the usual dilemma; where to put it?

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I will soon be celebrating my 100th post (wow, already?) and one of my very favorite (unmet) blogger buddies is too! The effervescent Australian Tamarah of Shabby Vintage Junk and I will be coordinating our 100th posts together and having a fabulous international giveaway to celebrate! More details coming soon, so stay tuned.