thrifty style at 73

my kind of place

...this, May Sarton's description

of Eva La Galliennes' house...
It's my kind of place.

After some major sorting, I've decided to part with these ornaments--two layers of bulbs here in this 18"x14" box. Many (if not most) are vintage. I simply needed/wanted to keep and store red and blue bulbs, so I'm going to try to sell this whole box for $5. If they don't sell after a couple of weeks, they'll join multiple garlands and wreaths in the donation box of a favorite thrift store. When you've gotta go, you've gotta GO!

pleased as punch

After many hours of contemplation,

we decided to leave this hanging rack in its rustic condition.

My wonder-working husband dismantled an old, useless ladder

to fashion this 57 1/2" long piece.

I envision it hanging in a laundry room or entry hall.

I have neither --

so we're posting it on a few Facebook buy/sell pages.

Meanwhile, I'm "pleased as punch" at this re-purposed item!

I looked up the etymology of that phrase and found this at Mental Floss:

The pleased Punch in question is not a drink, but a puppet.

The traditional, ages-old Punch and Judy puppet shows feature the married couple

battling each other with clubs.

In the original story,line hunchbacked, hook-nosed Punch

eventually beats not only his wife to death, but also his infant child,

with a policeman, a doctor, a lawyer and the Devil.

Punch is deliciously self-satisfied with his sadism, constantly uttering his catchphrase:

“That’s the way to do it!” Punch’s strutting pride in his awful deeds is what led to the coining of the phrase of being “pleased as Punch.”

Hmmmmm. Maybe it's NOT a phrase I should continue using!

tools of my trade

These pens.

They were all I wanted for Christmas, and I got three of them.

They are harder and harder for me to find in stores.

Usually I go for the orange (red?) barreled ones - they are fine point.

But these, medium points, are working just fine.

This date book.

I've used this format for several years now.

It begins the August before the new year so has already been broken in.

Every year, I look over other formats

but return to this one. It works just fine for me.

cushionry

After a week of a malaise,

I just MAY be on my way out of it!

This morning, I had desire and "spark" enough

to cut out two sides of fabric to cover this cushion

whose previous cover was ragged..

Using the old one as my pattern,

I simply stitched around the outside edges and called it "DONE"!

This is the chair I sit on at the table to eat, play games, and converse.

Without the cushion, the seat is hard.

With it - PERFECT!

All is Calm; All is Bright

The book mentioned in my prior post was begun--

AND finished already.

Our Christmas season is quite simple this year.

A combination of choices and circumstances

has resulted in a most relaxing week thus far.

I'm thankful.

down time

With my father and brother on their way to board a train

for a Cousins' Reunion in Kansas,

Gary and I spent some time doing a few of our favorite things--

a thrift store stop (nothing for me; 3 shirts/sweaters for him)

and an hour or so at Barnes and Noble.

These four images from the magazines I chose were especially attractive to me.

(I guess you can tell I'm no minimalist!)

I'm thankful for a relaxing afternoon and a lull in activity this evening.

I'm looking forward to browsing some blogs and beginning a new book...

easy but messy

Easy...

...but very messy.

(And quite delicious!)

'tis the season

'Tis the season

and winter scenes are our favorites right now!

This Will Moses one caught my eye in a thrift store recently...
Since it cost only fifty cents, I shouldn't be so bummed that it was missing a piece,
I guess.

christmas homes tour

One of our Christmas "traditions" is taking in the annual Christmas Homes Tour

in an old, stately neighborhood in Fort Wayne.

Nine grand homes of previous generations are being (or have been) lovingly restored

and generously opened to an appreciative public

in all their Christmas splendor.

After dropping my cell phone several times early in the afternoon,

I gave up taking photos and just enjoyed the Walk.

Refreshments were served in this Carriage House

behind one of the homes on the tour.

Large, expansive bathrooms with the most modern equipment

were obvious trends on this year's tour

(as was the color gray--in many shades and tones).

Even with many elegant and expensive furnishings and finishings on display,

simple things and scenes brought me the most pleasure.

I'm hoping my husband will make me a wooden star like the one in the window here...

I'm a simple girl at heart, I guess.

I returned from the tour
to our own old house to see it with fresh eyes and appreciation--

and a few ideas to implement as well!

christmas pillows

Christmas pillows --

mine are at least twenty years old

and accompanied by fond memories

of stuffing and stitching them along with a friend who stitched her own pair.

They still "fit" my simple Christmas decorations.

No need to get new ones...

(I enjoy seeing all of YOURS, too--

old and new.)

old games

Rummaging through the game cupboard,

I found this one - an old one.

Suitable for two to play, it filled some "down" time

over the past holiday weekend.

Sometimes OLD games are the BEST games.