Some Pretty Things for Pink Saturday

Happy Pink Saturday everyone! I've been keeping my little hands busy this week making these cute microscope slide glass tags. I made them once for Christmas ornaments/decorations, but thought it would be fun to do some for spring (can you tell I'm anxious?). The top picture is of one side and the bottom picture is the reverse of the same tags. I hand made each of them, using both vintage and new paper, silver wire, and Czech glass beads. Topping them off is a little vintage rayon seam binding bow. I've used these as a very nice addition to a package, a little thing to hang in your window, tree ornaments, and put around the neck of an old bottle to add a little pizazz. And each one has some pretty PINK to whet your appetite. They are available now on my website, Our Cottage Garden. After you check them out, pop on over to Bev's place at How Sweet the Sound and visit the other participants of Pink Saturday.

Oh and by the way, my husband I have been invited to a Mardi Gras costume party tonight. What does one wear? Ideas (quickly, please) would be much appreciated. I know you wonderfully clever bloggers out there are going to have some super thoughts on this.
Until next time,

My own version of Almost Wordless Wednesday

I am a bit overwhelmed right now with the building of my art and antiques studio as well as life in general, so today's post is just a couple of pretty pictures I took, no more, no less. I've really gotten into the old rayon seam binding thing and went on a little binge lately. Even thrown in a bowl, they are sure pretty. Hope to be back soon with a little more substance. Just wanted you to know I was thinking of you out there in Bloggerland.

Until next time,

Happy Valentine's Day & Welcome to the Party...

Happy Valentine's Day from French Laundry (that's me) to you! I had this phenomenal ALMOST vision of this post in my head ever since Lesley over at Flatwoods Folk Art said she was hostessing this fun party. "In my head" and "almost" being the key words. Now it is time to post, and, like so many of you out there, I'm coming down with some sort of crud; sore throat, cough, you know the drill. So, this will be my attempt, after which I will grab my pillow and blankie and assume the position.

What does one think of on Valentine's Day? Romance, beauty, and love all come to mind. I think of my Mr French Laundry who's a pretty darn special guy. I think of my sweet boys who are definitely the apple of my eye, even when they're a wee bit naughty. And then I think of nostalgic Valentine's, roses (of course), and pretty vignettes. France comes to mind because it is home to Paris, one of the world's most romantic cities. Sweet cherubs and a general softening of your usual look...I present to you a few of my personal favorite things. What are your favorite Valentine things/traditions/memories? I'd love to read your comments...Creamy white roses- my all time favorites and certainly an elegant and romantic look for Valentine's Day or any day.

A vintage inspired Valentine I made for a Valentine's swap. The ruffle is a piece of brown tissue paper that I gathered up since I was sans crepe paper. I think it turned out nice and it was sure fun to do (especially the glitter!).

An antique Raphael Tuck Valentine sold recently on Ebay by my friend Denise.

The prettiest antique Valentine EVER, also recently sold by Denise, Ebay seller winter-garden. I tried unsuccessfully to score this one, so I guess pictures will have to do.

This is one of the places I'd like to have my "you are here" mark on.


Ahhhh, Paris...


An adorable little birdie that was made in kit form by Junque Art. SO cute!


A stunningly beautiful vintage iridescent perfume bottle with Aurora Borealis rhinestone top, available from me , seller name french*laundry.

The list could go on and on of my favorite things, but I want to leave you time to go by and visit the other participants in the Valentine's shindig, so I'll stop now. Besides that, I'm pooped. I hope you get to spend Valentine's Day with those who matter most to you.


Until next time,

Time for a new collection spotlight...1920's Wedding Toppers

Its been a little while since the rhinestone clock collection post, so I thought today would be a nice time to share one of my sweeter collections with you. I started out just collecting any vintage wedding cake toppers that struck my fancy, however, with Ebay and all of the other online shopping possibilities out there, I could see that this could quickly become an overwhelmingly large collection. Not a problem if you only collect a couple of things...ahem, that would NOT be me though, so I had to reign myself in a bit. I decided that since my most favorite toppers seemed to be of the 1920-1930's era, I would limit myself to just those. I proceeded to sell the ones that didn't meet the criteria and then spread out my remaining little pretties so I could appreciate them fully. Then I put a couple of them under glass cloches which is a way I love to display all sorts of things. Not only does it put them in the spotlight, but it also keeps them from needing to be dusted!

I love the ones that still have their bases and flower arches, but I'm also partial to the little bisque "Kewpie" looking ones. Wedding toppers have become increasingly popular in the collecting circles and the prices have definitely gone up, up, up. Once in a while though, you can still find them at thrift stores or estate sales for a reasonable price. ($10 or less). One of the most striking toppers I've ever seen was offered on Ebay this last September. It featured a very well dressed 1920's couple and the bride's dress went up in the front as was the style back in the day. Even though many flapper brides wore that style of dress, the toppers depicting the dresses that way are very rare and this little treasure brought over $200, if memory serves. OUCH! Needless to say, that one is NOT in my collection, but boy I wish it were. Most of the more "normal" ones can be had well within the $20-50 range. Now these prices I'm spouting off are for the older, say pre-1940 toppers. If you like the toppers from the 1950's on forward, you can probably cut the above prices in half unless there is something particularly rare/unusual about it. I don't personally own any reference books on the subject, but I've just ordered a Schiffer collector book titled, "Vintage Wedding Cake Toppers" by Penny Henderson, so it should be interesting to see if she agrees with me! If you like reference books on collectibles, Schiffer has books on almost any item you can imagine. They are usually fairly well done and have lots of pictures on the subject of interest.

This little couple might just be my favorite. Look how cute they are hugging each other, cheek to cheek! The little girl reminds me of one of the little girls in my baby son's Kindergarten class. I hope you enjoyed this brief little visit into the sentimental and sweet.

Until next time,

I've Been Tagged...

I've been tagged. Candy tagged me and its taken me a "spell" to get around to doing all of the links in order to answer my questions. Probably not as interesting as I would hope, but here it is.


First, "the rules":
1. Link to the person that tagged you & post the rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 random/or weird facts about yourself.
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post & include links to their blogs.
4. Let each person know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

7 Random or weird facts about me

1. I do not go camping...ever. I do like to hike and bike.
2. I love to laugh.
3. My husband will always chose function over form and I will always chose form over function. And then the fight starts...
4. I love a good hot cup of coffee and a nice cool glass of Chardonnay (not at the same time).
5. I love the ocean but live far, far away from one.
6. I enjoy my job as a microbiologist and need that logical, algorithmic thinking to keep me grounded in this world.
7. I love looking at art, making art, and being around artists. However, I need to engage my left brain regularly (see #6) or I get so caught up in the creative process that I forget to do stuff like pay bills or pick up the kids from school.

I'd love to know more about so many people, but I'm going to have to be somewhat selective since I can only pick 7. So, here's the old shout out to Heather, Bethie, Shannon, Joy, Ronda, Sylvia, and Tracie. I know time is precious, so I won't be hurt if you can't participate, but if you can, great, I'd love to know more about you!

And just a quick Happy Birthday to Mr. French Laundry! 57 years young today.



Until next time,

Pink Saturday and New Pretties

I thought this little handpainted drawer was just divine with its old green paint, pretty pink handpainted roses, and glass knob. But then as I was setting up my pictures for listing it on Ebay, I thought it would be fun to show it with some of the pretty items I have procured this week after visiting some wonderful online shops which I have actually come across by blogging...who knew? Anyway, many of those items just happen to be PINK, hence the relevance for a PINK SATURDAY post, hosted by Bev at How Sweet the Sound. My creative juices start flowing just looking at this box of pretty ribbons, millinery, and wish tickets from Andrea and gorgeous Paris inspired gift tags from Amy . The beautiful handpainted drawer is available by clicking here. I think I'll organize my creative bits and bobs something like this once my art studio is finished being built. Organization AND beauty = a winning combination, don't you think? Well, I have an antique sale to attend tomorrow, so I simply MUST cut this one short.

Until next time,

Wordless Wednesday...Children