Taking Photos While The Sun Shines

 It looks like this may be the last sunny day above freezing for a while, so I was out taking pictures all day.  It was still so cold even at 35.  My fingers are not doing so well with the typing, still need to thaw out.  January is flying by.  Anna spent a week at her boyfriend's home.  I took her halfway, so two weekends of 4 hours in the car.  Weekend after that, Grace turned 21 so I took her about town, getting her sushi for lunch, Italian for dinner.  She tried a margarita and did not care for it.  And that is about it for news.

These are some of  my photographs:

Arnold Print Works Dolls

Arnold Print Works made these printed doll fabrics that you cut out, stitch up and stuff to make your own doll.  This was in 1892.  They made dogs and cats and rabbits and chickens, Little Red Riding Hood, and many other dolls.  The cats seem to be the easiest to find, as well as the rabbits.  I have never seen a chicken outside of a book.  I had a Little Red Riding Hood, purchased for nothing, sold for a bit more than nothing--one of my antique regrets.  She was in really good condition and was worth about $200, which I did not know at the time.  Anyway, I used to find the kittens occasionally, but had not seen one for about 3 years.  One comes for auction on eBay and I won!  A week later, I find two more at an antique shop.  A week after that, I find another in an antique shop!  So many all at once.  I also found this:

This little dog had damage to his back, so the antique dealer I bought him from took him apart and carefully stitched him to museum board and put him in an antique frame.  I have him hanging over my computer right now.

Now, it is important that you know about the reproductions.  I first learned about the printworks cats when I was in high school when all the fun gift shops carried a reproduction of the cat and kittens.  Later, they were reproduced with a Toyworks label sewn into the bottom.  Some were sold the same way as the originals, a printed fabric to cut and sew, but most were already made.  I think it is really easy to tell the repro from the original.  They just look darker and newer, the faces aren't as realistic on the new ones.  The absolute tell though is to look at the bottom.

an 1892 original has that little white oval that you see on the top left of the base, where the patent date is printed.  The dates are often faded, but the little oval is not on the reproduction cats.  I thought most dealers knew this, but I have seen many of the newer cats listed as being from the 1890s, which they most certainly are not.  A 1970s version used to sell for about $15, now they are more like $50.  The real 1892 kitten sells for anywhere from $75 to $200 depending on the condition.

That's it for todays antique tips.

I did get my Christmas tree up a week before Christmas.  My house is still a jumble of stuff to be sorted through.  Here is a photo of my favorite decoration.  My husband gave me the Fitz and Floyd reindeer and Santa, they are blue, Santa has a bunny in his toy bag, perfect!

 

Not Really Dreaming of a White Christmas

I am hoping that better late than never is still a thing.  I finally was able to finish things that I painted white --some Christmasy, some everyday goods.  I still do not have trees decorated--I still do not have all the Clarinda crap sorted and put away.  I am so very tired of all the mess. 

 

It Only Took Me a Year to Finish These

 I collect funnels all through the year to make Christmas trees out of the stacks of them.  Last year, I painted some and had several stacks that I was going to paint, even went as far as getting one coat of paint on them....then life happened and they got shoved to the side and have been sitting here mocking me for a year.  I even put a second coat of paint on some over 2 months ago but just could not finish them until now.  Behold the funnel tree forest:

I'm Late I'm Late I'm Late!

 Still no decorating at my house, still haven't started gift shopping, still rushing around like mad shipping and listing.  These flew out of the store...

So Much to Do!

 I really should not be taking time to do this, but I really want to save the photos of the Christmas goods I have been making.  I still do not have my trees up, it is the rush rush rush time of year.  Fortunately, much of that is shipping and more shipping, but my project list has grown to monumental proportions and hoping to make a crack in that today and get some actual painting done.  Sun is out at last, but it is sooooo cold and windy, so no photographing today.  Here is what I have been doing....

Farewell, Clarinda, I am Outta There!

 In a miracle of miracles, we have sold the Clarinda house.  We put sooooo much work in to that place, but there was sooooo much work that would need to continue to be done if we kept it.  I have spent the last month dealing with the consequences of my bad choices--just leaving everything there to deal with "someday".  Someday came and oh, dear!  I gave away a mountain of things that I had stored from the craft shows, I threw away even more, then there was all the furniture to move.  Big house, big furniture, old people....not a good combo.  My amazing brother and his wife came for 2 weekends and helped move the furniture to our unfinished shop building.  My little sister took away all the kitchenwares and the couch.  A wonderful woman named Lori works finding things for people in need and her organization took all the beds and linens and odds and ends.  There was also 3 trips to the thrift store to give things to them.  I am exhausted to say the least.

Here is miracle 1, the empty craft room.  It used to be my very messy craft room, then became storage after we moved.  It really is a pretty room emptied of its junk.

And here is my last look at the house, I truly never thought I would get everything out of there, but we did, and had an entire 15 minutes left before we had to hand over the keys.

Now the place I actually live is piled with boxes to unpack, furniture to find a place for.  I want a clean house so badly, but have to accept that I will be lucky to get there by Thanksgiving.