My Mid-Century Dream

As many of you know and can guess, I'm a big fan of Mid-Century modern design. I live in my own little time capsule and I don't like to be disturbed. Last June I went to an estate sale held at my dream home. The house was built in 1949 and the man who lived there moved into the house in the 1950's and was the second owner. What I love most about these types of original owner homes is that they don't get updated and are generally kept in original condition. This house was original and full of amazing period correct furniture. I got to hang out for the day at this really cool house and I even bought a few things. There were tons of dealers there so prices were high. Today I discovered that they still haven't sold the house. It needs lots of work and the right kind of owner to see the amazing gem that it is... oh and someone who can swallow the price tag $269,000 in this economy. Oh how I wish it could be me but I don't make that kind of money on my sad little teacher's salary!

Now, I'm sure you want to know what I bought...I only bought 2 things as prices were high and I'm cheapo! A set of 50's tiki palm leaves shelves and this atomic dresser which I use to hold some of my vintage purses.

jill of all trades

I like projects. I'm a DIY kinda gal. If I don't know how to do something, I teach myself and figure out how. I'm a Jill of all trades and a master of none. I think I get this trait from my Dad. When I was a teenager, he was building his own house and when I would visit him on weekends, he would make me work. I loved it. I like projects and building things and discovering how they work. Don't get me wrong, I'm also a girl and I wear dresses and makeup. I like cute undies with lace and bows. I expect to be treated like a girl at all times.....but man I sure do like to get dirty and do boy things!

I did the upholstery in my 53 Ford....which I gave back to my ex... I need to get an old car to play with again!

I learned to tile and then redid all the tile work in my bathroom.



And of course my favorite place to play in the dirt is my backyard!

This summer I plan on redoing my metal chairs and glider. I just need to find someone who will let me borrow their sandblaster... With my ex moving out, I have now found myself without major tools...like an air compressor!! Damn.......note to self* future husband must have tools, lots and lots of tools...that he'll let me play with!

Music I'm diggin....

Veggie Cakes

Still working on the perfect veggie burgers. Nope these weren't it either but they were good for a south west style veggie burgers and much better then my last attempt. I'm looking for the perfect grilling veggie burger recipe for the summer! If you know of any send them my way!

Tomorrow is my big estate sale adventure....I've got my fingers crossed I will turn up some good loot! On another note, don't you just love forgetting you had something really cool and then discovering you have it again?? I sure do and I can't wait to put up my vintage patio lights I found at auction last year. Tiki party at my place this year!

I want

I have fallen in love with this dress on the Whirling Turban site. I love this print so much! I have to do my taxes tomorrow....maybe if I have a huge refund coming?? This dress will probably go fast because VLV is coming!

Soy Free

I don't think so. I spent an extreme amount of time tonight at the grocery store trying to find soy free foods! Because of my thyroid condition, I am trying to get rid of ALL soy products in my foods. Easier said then done, it's almost impossible to find things that are not made with soy leichten, soy oil, or in general some sort of soy product. If you don't believe me go look at bread the next time you go to the grocery store.... the only product I found were Pepperidge Farm mini bagels 100 calories. This will now be the bread I eat. Even tortillas have soy in them. I'm gonna have to start making my own bread soon! I know one thing for sure, I will be doing a lot of my own cooking for now on....I can't believe the things that are found in processed foods, it really can't be good for us and since I'm into the whole vintage life style why not get into cooking from scratch too. It's about time our society returned to good homecooked meals and get all this processed crap out of our systems! Plus, I live in one of the best places in the country for produce and organic foods, it's about time I take better advantage of my surroundings.

I made my own soy free veggie burgers tonight and they came out so-so. I'm sure with a little experimenting, I'll find a yummy veggie burger recipe and won't miss my soy laden garden burgers!

Spring is here!

I'm so excited to see Spring finally come around again. It just perks my sad, saggy ass right up! I woke up Sat. morning and started to de-clutter my house. I promised myself I would stay up on getting rid of my junk around here and I have not been keeping up with my promise. But after this weekend I feel pretty good with myself. I totally cleaned out my closet and packed up to goodwill 2 hefty bags of clothing I haven't worn in years and just doesn't fit me anymore. I took another bag of nicer clothes to my Mom's for my sister who will be working an internship this summer for school at a furniture design store. I had some really nice suits that just didn't fit me anymore and I'm hoping they'll work for my sister. I also filled 4 hefty bags of garbage that just wasn't something that could be donated. Lets just say my house is clean and my closets are bare. It's time to go shopping! More vintage clothing please!

Today since it was close to 60 I spent it outside cleaning the garden for my growing plants. I have a fenced in yard so my cats also come outside to play when it's nice out.

My cat Bosche is a Manx and she is always on patrol looking for things to pounce on. She absolutely loves being outside and if I would let her she would probably just live outside. She likes to bring me little dead things for presents. If you look closely she has no tail....none at all....just a little tuft of fur that sticks up like a calic , kinda like a bunny tail.... she is known as a Manx Rumpy...I just call her rumpy butt. Bosche enjoys playing fetch with orange colored objects, playing in the bath tub when I turn the water on, and in general following me around the house. She HATES when anyone touches her where her tail should be but isn't.....I think she's very selfconsious about her missing tail.

My other cat, Mr. Remy is not really that into being outside. He enjoys coming out eating some grass or catnip and throwing it all up later for me to walk on in the house. He's a swell old guy who likes to spend his time napping, eating (he especially enjoys baked goods and coffee), and getting held and loved by me, his Mom (he really does think he owns me). Here he is with his face in the baby catnip plant getting high.

Right now, it's not a lot of fun for the cats in the garden as there is nothing for them to hide under or behind. Once June hits it's really hard for me to round them up back there as it turns into much more of a jungle!

I wanna be a cowgirl

I have a BIG estate sale to go to soon and it has vintage clothing as something that will be auctioned off.... of course there are no pictures of the items so it can really be hit or miss as to how good things are. It sounds like this one might be a hit this time......

VINTAGE CLOTHING: Jackets, hats & coats, coats w/ fur, wedding dress, gowns, hand bags, dresses, Stetson hat, bolo ties, old ties, Frye leather boots, belts, gloves. Dress form. Old luggage. Old purses. Old patterns. Xmas deco.

How exciting does this auction sound like it's going to be!!! I'm totally excited to go and I'm hoping that since it's out in the middle of farm country there won't be a lot of dealers there to compete against. I'm also hoping they sale all the clothing as a lot set instead of piece by piece. I can just see me dropping money big time. I would love a cool pair of vintage cowgirl boots! I looked up Frye leather boots and came up with this cool but expensive site... Cayuse Western Americana also check out their Vintage Cowgirl page!

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Here is a lovely pair of Vintage 1940's Frye cowgirl boots...

Or maybe instead of a cute pair of expensive cowgirl boots, I'll just get myself a relaxing pair of cowgirl slippers! They are so much better then those ugly Uggs all the girls wear! You can find your cowgirl slippers at Posh Possessions. Now go get your cowgirl on!

Atomic Adventure

I had a fun adventure today! I played hooky from work...(shhhh don't tell, if anyone asks I was sick)....and headed down to Baltimore to Atomic Cheesecake Studios to have a fun photo shoot with Stacey Barich. What a fun time it was! Stacey made me feel like such the glamour queen!! It was just the little girl time I needed to lift my spirits and something I think every girl should do once in their life if not at least once a year. I can't wait to see how the pictures will turn out!

Here's a picture I took of myself when I got home because the hair and makeup Stacey did looked so fab!

Stacey also had a really cute, cool house with lots of amazing things. I felt right at home!

Food For Thought

I've been doing research on my new diagnosed Hypothyroid condition and was shocked to find out the bad connection it has with soy. Soy products are what I have lived on for years. A lot of easy convenient veggie products are made from soy. I thought I was being healthy all these years but instead I was probably destroying my thyroid. I have also discovered a bunch of other foods called goitrogens that aren't good for your thyroid function.

Cruciferous vegetables including:

• Broccoli
• Brussel sprouts
• Cabbage
• Cauliflower
• Kale
• Kohlrabi
• Mustard
• Rutabaga
• Turnips

Millet

Peaches

Peanuts

Radishes

Soybean and soy products, including tofu

Spinach

Strawberries

What the hell am I gonna be able to eat?? I eat peanut butter every morning almost.....goodbye peanuts....at least I get to keep my almonds. And damn it to hell if I give up fresh juicy strawberries in the month of June! Goodbye soy, goodbye peanut butter.

Here are a few favorite snack items I still will be able to enjoy....

Drinks are on me

I don't know what this new medication is doing to me. Sometimes I feel so jumpy, like I can't sit still, perhaps I am just losing my mind. Hormones suck I wish I was a boy....If I could be a boy I would be Trent from Swingers.........

Oh Vince Vaughn how I love you......Jennifer Aniston was a fool.... Vince is cool!!

Or better yet Micheal Madsen! He's pretty yummy too! Hello Mr. Blonde!!!! What ever happened to you Micheal Madsen????

And just so it's not all about some of my fantasy crushes....here's what I was sporting today....as I continue to go amuck through my closet finding things I can now wear! The skirt was from my big auction a few years back a cool 40's type tulip skirt...a shirt from mode merr and a shiny belt....no you really don't need to see my face!!

Boobies

I went to the mall this evening to run some errands. I can't tell you how much I loath the mall...it's beyond words really how I feel about the stupid mall. Anyway I stopped in at Victoria's Secret to look for some stockings. They were having some sort of weird promotion if you try a bra on you get $5 off at the register. So being the cheap bastard that I am and being that I have lost weight and I'm really not sure about my bra size anymore, I decided what the hell and get measured while I was there. All I can say is, it was a bad idea. I don't like VS and pretty much think their bras are crap. Their ability to measure correctly for bra size is also crap. At first the woman told me I was a 32B.....hmmmm WHAT??? So she brought me a 32B and the girls were all kinds of spilling out every where. She looked at me and said oh, that's not right is it?? I told her I guess it would be okay if I were a stripper??? So, she brought me back a 34C. Which still didn't fit right to me but then it's hard to tell since I don't think VS makes a bra without a a severe amount of padding! At this point I realized I was wasting my time and decided to take my little ladies some place where they can read a tape measure...thank you very much! But I did take my $5 off coupon!!

So I ask.......Where do you like to buy your bras?? What is a brand that you love??

Auction finds

I finally went off to auction again and actually bought something this time! I love going to a good auction where they offer you a variety of methods to buy things. They had two auctions going, one inside selling tray lots and items piece by piece and then another auction going outside selling box lots. I love going through boxes looking for treasures....you do have to not mind being close to people as when they are selling the lots people are really pushy and like to shove you around. It's like being on the subway except you can find cool stuff in the crowd! I gave myself a budget of $100 bucks and here's what I bought!

I started off outside with the box lots and found a box with these really cool glasses in them....you know how I feel about vintage glasses. I wasn't sure if all the glasses were going to be there and in good condition but I got lucky and they were! $10 for the box.

I then bought a box of junky crap just because on the bottom of it I ran across a vintage hula dancer! $10 for the box of junky crap but I think she was worth it.

That was it for what I picked out of the box lots! I headed back inside to warm up and have a look at what was selling there. Take a look at the glasses that are behind the hula dancer. I like to call them keyhole risque glasses because when you look through the keyhole you see a picture of a woman in a bikini.

I really just wanted these glasses but had to buy the whole tray lot of items. So, with the glasses I also got two vintage traveling liquor cases. All for $25.

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I bought another tray lot just for the Heidi Schoop ceramic figures. I love ceramic pieces by Heidi Schoop and this is the first set I have ever seen that went cheap enough. $25 for all the ceramic pieces on the tray. I don't think they knew what they were. The art deco yellow bud vase is very cool also as well as the two ceramic vases. A deal I think for 25 bucks!

Information about Heidi Schoop:

Hedi Schoop was born in Switzerland and an accomplished dancer in Germany, married to a well-known composer, Frederick Hollander. In 1933 Schoop and her husband fled Nazi Germany. After settling in Hollywood she began experimenting first in plaster and later in pottery, and soon became one of Califoria's most respected manufacturers of ceramic products.
Almost all the pieces produced at Schoop's North Hollywood factory were personally designed and modeled by Hedi. The most popular lines were the figurines of men and women...European and Asian couples in native attire, Hawaiian hula dancers and American debutantes. Besides the human figures Hedi Schoop produced animal figurines, vases, planters, candlesticks, ashtrays, and more...often these articles formed coordinated sets of items.

Business thrived in the 1950s, but a disastrous fire destroyed her factory in 1958. Schoop chose not to rebuild, instead selling some of her molds to other local manufacturers, and doing some design work for The California Cleminsons. Hedi Schoop retired from the pottery business in the early sixties.

And last but not least I bought this huge picture.....once again paying $25....it seems that my lucky number today was 25! It's very dirty and needs cleaned and the frame repainted but I'm hoping it's signed uner there somewhere! I just couldn't say no to flamingos.

Edit...I found a signature!!!! SCORE!!!! It's a Turner !!!!!! I'm so excited...that's what I thought it was but the glass was so dirty it was hard to find a signature.

But the cutest thing I saw all day was the little Amish boy (side right) who was simply mesmerized by the other little "english" boy playing a hand held video game. It probably didn't help that as the little boy played his game he would yell out... "KAPOW" " BAM" and in general bomb exploding noises! I was laughing so hard I just had to sneak a picture!

Amazing collection

Here is a woman I am very jealous of. Judith O'Toole please adopt me or put me in your will or something!I bet she has even more then that too.
You are so cool!

warhol

A day dress

One of my favorite vintage 40's dresses is now to big on me. The question becomes...should I have it altered to fit me again, sell it, or keep it locked away in my closet because you never know, I could gain weight again??

It has the most adorable red flower bakelite buttons!

I use to wear it with my killer 40's red peep toe sling backs with the cute red bows on them! Thank god I can still fit in the shoes!

weighty issues

As some of you might know, since January I have been working out and eating healthy. I've been exercising for a few years now as it helps me deal with the stress of my job but I wasn't really watching with a keen eye what I ate. The exercise helped me lose some weight but eventually I plateaued at a certain weight. I tend to be one of those people who lose a little weight, maintains it for a year, loses a little more weight, maintains it for a year. Then I might gain 10 lbs and have to work at losing it again. I have never been naturally thin. I have to really work at losing weight. I'm also one of those people whose weight all goes to her hips, thighs, and butt! With the new year beginning I thought it was time to really put some effort into eating better. From past experiences and being a member of weight watchers several years ago, I learned that the only way for me to lose weight is to actually make myself accountable for all the food that goes into my mouth. So, I write everything down and really watch my portion sizes. When I hit my calorie count for the day, then that's it with the food.

When I joined weight watchers in Jan 2005 I weighed in at 147. I know that I was probably over 150 at some point...I'm sure some dr's office has a record of it somewhere. (When I was in High School I was chubby. When I got out of high school, I went on a diet, found the fun of exercise and dropped down to 105 lbs which lasted a few years) Now in all seriousness 150 at 5'3" isn't huge by any means but I didn't like how I felt and looked. I was at weight watchers for 9 weeks and lost 8lbs. I left weight watchers to join the local gym. So from 2005 -2008 I went from 147- 130. So as you can see, I lose weight extremely slow but once I lose it I can maintain it usually within a 3 lb. range. My goal weight at weight watchers was 125 lbs. As of this morning I weighed myself at 124. It took me 4 years to get there but I got there.....my new goal 115lbs! As I'm writing this all down, I really am starting to wonder how having hypothyroidism effects the metabolism. I have read that people tend not to be able to lose weight easily and usually gain weight. With my messed up metabolism it will probably take me another 4 years to lose another 10 lbs.

Vintage Glasses

I love collecting vintage drinking glasses. The sad thing is I tend to use my vintage kitchen items which often times ends in items getting broken. I had a wonderful set of atomic drinking glasses and one by one the individual glasses met their demise. Now I am left with a pitcher, one drinking glass, and a bunch of shot glasses... and the search goes on for more drinking glasses!

But my holy grail of drinking glasses that I own would have to be this set. I found these at an auction many, many, many years ago. I bought the set of glasses in the carrier and for some reason the pitcher came up at a different time on a tray lot and I missed it! I was so upset! So, I decided to ask the woman who bought the tray lot if she wanted the pitcher and if not I would buy it from her. This is a common practice at auctions! She sold it to me for 5 bucks. I was so happy because in all my years I have not come across a pitcher yet that would match this set of glasses!

I also enjoy collecting tiki glasses!

How did I get ......

Hypothyroidism??? It was like WHAM right out of no where! Makes no sense to me?? My new doctor said it might be something that just happened to me and was caught early before it got really bad. I have so many tests that I have to go take...and a nice new replacement hormone called Synthroid that will now be my best friend for the rest of my life.

Symptoms of Hypothyroidism

• Fatigue
• Weakness
• Weight gain or increased difficulty losing weight
• Coarse, dry hair
• Dry, rough pale skin
• Hair loss
• Cold intolerance (can't tolerate the cold like those around you)
• Muscle cramps and frequent muscle aches
• Constipation
• Depression
• Irritability
• Memory loss
• Abnormal menstrual cycles
• Decreased libido
• Emotional or mental changes and mood swings
• Sleepiness or insomnia
  

Really, like how vague are these symptoms....I mean after all, I'm a woman for god's sake...I get those symptoms every freakin month!

Freezing hands Sunday!

Many years ago, I built a fish pond in my back yard. It started out innocently enough with me buying a preformed pond for my duck (who left me any way) and turned into a big hole in the ground. I thought I wanted a little preformed pond but once I started digging it turned into a 3' x 6' deep hole in the ground! This is how I tend to start projects...see below where I just started tearing up my kitchen counters one night! I remember it so clearly, My ex was in the house watching tv and came out back to find me in a big hole in the ground! He of course is laughing his ass off because he knows how I like to veer off my plans. I told him I was digging his grave...that just made him laugh harder! He became responsible for making up the plans for how the pump was to work and maintaining all that stuff.

Well today I happened to look out back and I noticed that the water was no longer flowing and when I went out back to take a closer look, the pump wasn't working at all. OMG I was going to have to stick my hands in that freezing water to get that damn pump out!! Now if I had a choice, I would just leave it till spring but I have Koi and goldfish in there that need the water to keep circulating in order to survive. So, in the water I went to retrieve the pump! Have you ever heard of introverted nipples?? I didn't know that was possible until today! Off to the store I went to buy a new pump and try and figure out how to get it all together again. I got it half right and got the water moving again but I wasn't able to get it hooked up to the filter because I didn't have the right size gasket to attach the hose to it! So the water is circulating but it's not getting filtered. That's okay for now but I should get it hooked back up before the temps get warmer and the algae start to grow! It feels good to know I can take care of things when they break! It's good to be a handy gal! And the fish are very happy about that too!