i am daring to play match maker! my treasure this week for vintage thursday thingies is a product of 1972, my sweet, beautiful cousin daniel  , who lives in stockholm, sweden 

because i know how wonderful he is, because i love him, because my biggest wish for him is to find true love, i am advertising him on my blog today

i’m also doing it because we live over 1000 kilometers apart- i know for sure i have at least 24 hours to plan my escape

daniel with my son, the moon in 2007

i wholeheartedly and sincerely describe him as a gentle, kind, and caring person

he is unselfish

with his time, thoughts, and words

he is honest

bold and brave about the stuff that really matters

he is genuine

his word is his bond

he has an attractive mind

very smart,  penetrating intelligence and intellectual curiosity

and his spirit is incredible

daniel and my son in 2008

daniel has lived most of his life in sweden and spent years studying in the states. he is a talented architect living and working in stockholm.  he is also a distinguished portrait artist and spends his time working, volunteering, enjoys traveling, spending his time outdoors in the nature.

i am also taking the liberty of listing requirements of what i know for sure he wants in a woman:

straight female, non-smoker, a self loving woman who is not masochisticly stuck prefering the classic bad boy

daniel is a truly nice guy which we all know can be a rare breed- who will stay nice days, weeks, months, and years after you meet him

THE GIVEAWAY!

2 sets of authentic german vintage wedding china just like my green ones- all you have to do is leave a comment- it is not necessary that you are interested in daniel . there will  be a drawing and announcement on on june 18!

but if you, or someone you know would be interested in getting to know him, meeting him, please leave a comment here and or  send me an email   for confidentiality. i would also appreciate if you link to me and spread the word

i am on a mission here….

you can find others with priceless treausres participating in vintage thursday thingies, at coloradolady 

when my friends tamara and dale found out they were expecting, they had to get rid of books in their home in order to make extra space for their growing family- they had them everywhere. they donated and gave-away over 3000 books.

that’s how i got my hands on two huge boxes old books and became the owner of this treasure, a 1976 middle copy of norman rockewell & the saturday evening post.

the complete set of the 324 rockewell saturday evening post covers is reproduced in 3 volumes- a collection of masterpieces that create an irresisitable american self-image and a glorious record of a nation’s life.

rockwell painted over 2000 original works in his life time but it was through his exposure in the saturday evening post that he became and american favorite and created his legacy through images of patriotism, growing up, music, christmas, and love.

manning the homefront, september 4, 1943 this was inspired by the insignia on the cover of women war workers

the marbles champ, september 2, 1939 one of is many growing up images, he loved to watch kids

the doctor and the doll, march 9, 1929

meeting the milkman a couple was obviously having such a wonderful time that the hours flew by and they didn’t return home until dawn

april fool, 1943, april 3, 1943 the first of three april fool special covers- on page 99 of this issure, the editors listed some 45+  errors in this painting: a stairway running behind the fire place, and architectural impossibility, water, a fish, and hook on the stairway, the deer under the chair, etc

maiden voyage, june 4, 1938 grandma is taking her first flight

you can find others with priceless treausres participating in vintage thursday thingies, at coloradolady 

there is also an online gallery with more of rockwell’s work 

for more from the book 

(more…)

kodak duaflex II, kodet lens made between 1950-54

i lost my mind in the midst of my grief and trauma during the last year.  sometimes i run into people on the street and i cannot remember their names. i know we were neighbors, aquaintances from the kindergarten- i know we had coffee together, play dates, and for sure they were at the sun’s funeral.

camera bag had a roll of verichrome pan film,  flash, a set of 4 new ge bulbs

they ask how we are doing and i say fine as i struggle to remember their name….processing the alphabet in my mind hoping one of the letters will jog my memory….this is so out of character for me that the shock of it failing me leaves me speechless-  all i can say is es tout mir sehr leid, aber ich kan mich nicht deine name erinern….it is so awkward for me but everyone is always so graceful. they just hug me.

instructions include how to develop your own  film

there is more that i have forgotten or maybe it’s just that everything is different now….feels different now. of course everything is different- nothing is the way it was before. i’m getting to know the way things are now…myself, my family and my home again. in fact,  these days i feel like my home is giving me a big, huge, constant, hug just for spring cleaning it….producing memories, treasures, and forgotten things…..

..especially this space i’m stuck in , but i don’t mind- i found my kodak duaflex II that i got on ebay the summer before last- came all the way here from detroit i think- and in mint condition- even had a roll of film, still in its package that reads develop in total darkness, before november 1959! everytime i look at it, it makes me smile big- it delights me!

“hochzeit” is the word for wedding in german. pronounced “hoh’ kh’ site”, it literally translates to “high time”.  i find this word to be charming and reflective of such a joyful and significant event.  

this hochzeit geschirr or wedding china was made in bavaria between the 1940s and 50s and found at a flohmarkt (flea market) in überlingen. 

take a look at the bottom or leg of the cup.  gorgeous, isn’t it?

i could not resist joining michele ward (truly a delightful soul) and the street team for this  month’s crusade no.12: what you are infatuated with, what causes crazy-but-good obsession?  tell us what you have a crush on.
especially after seeing eb’s passionate crushes and my soul sister steph’s big crush which also happens to be one of mine!

i have many crushes but i definitely get the weakest knees and softest heart at the site of handbags so i decided that’s my main squeeze crush. i had a lot of fun adding another variety recently “i’m a mom now i need bigger bags to carry extra diapers and snacks” collection.

that was my last excuse.

i have no excuse for having my eye on boutique rochambeau or rodrigvitzstyle  handbags other than they are unique, exquisite, handmade, and i have a crush on handbags!

as i was sorting my one million and one handbags, i realized i have a collection of another variety.

truly my timeless crush: i love indian (silk, cotton) beaded mirror bags, nepalese canvas, balinese batik, thai and tibetan embroidery, and guatemalen hand woven fabrics.

the most wonderful part: i suddenly realized people that i love and are dear to my heart  (they know me so well) have fed my insatiable crush for so many years (it will not end anytime soon).

handbags: two of those were contributed by miss AmErika, my other soul sister

tall, dark, and handsome gave me these pillowcases when we were dating, on my first visit to his hometown

this was a gift from my first soul sister,  super*k*west  for my 30th birthday. it is so, so,  beautiful, i had trouble writing in it for a long time. i kept it in a special place wishing i had the courage to right in it. i was saved by the birth of the sun. it is now the journal i keep for her

just proves to you that i am a sucker for this stuff. these are my favorite shoes that i bought for myself!

handmade and painted austrian schnapps decanter with matching glasses

they belonged to a woman who was a professional seamstress and from what i gathered walking around her home, a very glamorous lady.  all of her belongings were stored and preserved very well. one can only see the years in the changing styles as she was a woman of her time, a dedicated follower of fashion.  her daughter told me that she loved everything italian: art, lace, furniture, shoes, bags. she spent most of her vacations in italy.  she was also the kind of woman that bought two, three, or four of everything she fancied in all the colors that she loved: scarves, belts, gloves, handkerchiefs, purses, even umbrellas.  before she fell in love with italy, she frequented and was in love with austria. that is when she acquired this charming austrian schnapps  glasses set.

when i first saw them, i spotted them out of the corner of my eye and immediately felt my breathing pause as i tried to focus in on them.  they were sitting there in the center of the dining table surrounded by, although i did not know it at the time, other treasures that also needed new homes.  we were visiting a house for sale. we walked through the entire house for what felt like hours because  i could not stop thinking about them. i could not wait for the right moment to ask my questions:  what are they? where are they from?  who’s are they? i was dying to know. imagine my delight when i found out every single thing in the house was also for sale. 

the daughter of the man that owned the house, frau nachdigal (nightingale in english), said he died the winter before last without moving  a single thing in the house after his wife died 7 years earlier. she said everything in the house had to go and much to the real estate agent’s dismay, the visit quickly turned into a private estate sale.  i brought home treasures including these  austrian crystal schnapps glasses with a matching decanter set that made my heart skip a beat for a fraction of what they actually cost!

although tradition in germany, and german-speaking switzerland, schnapps originates from austria.  true schnapps has no sugar or flavoring added and is  distilled from primarily mirabelle plums, cherries,pears, peaches, and apricots.

“in austria, sekt or champagne is drunk on formal occasions, while schnapps is reserved for more intimate, convivial gatherings - the type of drink served defining both the nature of the event and the social relationship between the drinkers. the choice of drink also dictates behavior, to the extent that the appearance of a bottle of schnapps can prompt a switch from the ‘polite’ form of address, Sie (You), to the highly intimate (and casual) du “ quoted from  Sekt Versus Schnapps in an Austrian Village by M.A. Thornton (1987).

*original submission to tagtalesales (so sad to see it go!)*