My Mom and Handmade Baby Dress

Last year after my Mom passed away I went through her belongings and helped my Dad sort through what to keep and what to give or throw away.  Well, I found this baby dress that my Grandmother had made for my Mother back in 1932.  So I took it and had it framed so that we could keep it as an heirloom.

Well, recently my brother painstakingly went through hundreds of old photos from my family and our mother's family.  He found this photo of my Mom around age 3 wearing this same dress.  Wow!

My Mom's Baby Dress - Handmade by her mother around 1932

My Mom wearing the same dress age 3 years old

I love being able to keep this little piece of history from our family!

Snow Days

The last two days have been "snow days" here in South Carolina.  It is very unusual that we get as much snow and ice as we have had - probably the worst in 15 or 20 years.  Now I know that you all in the North would laugh at how incapacitated we become with a bit of snow here, but remember it happens so infrequently here that we don't have the resources for clearing the roads, etc.

Of course it's always exciting when it happens, and it is quite beautiful, but all in all, I'm ready for spring!  Still, I thought I would share a bit of what things have been like here.

My house on day 1 of the snow

Day 2 - more snow!

My driveway - you can't really see it because of snow!

The pasture in front of our house

My hubby - he loves snow!

Me bundled up - I'd rather be in the tropics!

"The Girls" - Maggie and Jenny - they're happy as long as they're with us!

Of course, I did get a few things accomplished inside as well - like working on what else - my jewelry.  And I re-photographed some old designs to give them a fresh look in my Etsy shop.  I'm sharing a couple of them below.

I call these earrings All My Heart Earrings.  They feature antique brass filigree hearts and clear pear shaped beads which I wire-wrapped onto the hearts.

These next earrings are true Deco Bling!  Beaded with aqua blue and hot pink crystals and antique brass filigree.  The second photo with the vintage woman image is from thegraphicsfairy.com - I love her images since they fit so well with my vintage style jewelry!

Both of these earrings can be found in my Etsy shop.  

That's all for now ... hope everyone has a Happy Valentine's Day!

Irene

My Mother's Jewelry Treasure Chest

One of my last posts was about my mother's recent passing away.  One of the inevitable tasks after such an event is going through the loved one's possessions.  Initially I dreaded doing this, but once started I found it therapeutic and helpful in dealing with her death.

My Dad asked me to come and help go through her clothing and personal belongings.  She had a lot of clothing, some not even worn - still with tags.  She was a bit of a shopaholic - like me.  We donated most of the clothing to a local charity where it will be put to good use.  But as I dug through her closets and dressers I found some real treasures to keep for myself.

One of the treasures was an entire chest of drawers filled with her costume jewelry from over the years.  In her younger days, my Mom loved to deck herself out with costume jewelry, although in recent years I only remember her wearing her wedding ring and her topaz birthstone ring.   Finding these beautiful baubles brought back many memories - I remember her sometimes letting me play "dress up" with some of her jewelry.  Mom loved jewelry and passed this love on to me, and over the years I developed a love for making my own jewelry.

Even more amazing than the amount of jewelry I found was the incredible way she had organized it.  Everything was stored in an orderly color coded fashion inside egg crates and candy boxes.  There were boxes with black jewelry, white jewelry, rose colored jewelry, blue jewelry and so on and so on.  For this post I thought I would share her collection of black jewelry.

My Mom's Collection of Black Jewelry

Black and Gold Deco Beaded Necklace

Black and Gold Deco Beaded Clip-on Earrings

Bold Black Glass and Silver Deco Necklace w/Matching Earrings

Bold Black Glass and Silver Earrings

Black Beaded Stretch Bracelet

Black and Rhinestone Bangle Bracelets

Floral and Black Clip-on Earrings

Black and Silver Clip-on Earrings

Black Rose Clip-on Earrings

Large Black and Gold Oval Clip-on Earrings

Black Glass Flower Earrings

Round Black Glass and Gold Earrings

Faceted Round Glass and Silver Earrings

Round Glass Screw-back Earrings

Textured Round Black Glass Earrings

What will I do with these vintage treasures?  Do what Mom would want me to do ... upcycle some of them to make more jewelry of course!  She loved the fact that I made jewelry and I even found some of the pieces I made for her in the past - I will not be parting with those treasures but will post some pictures of them in the future.  Will also post pictures as I design some new pieces from the vintage treasures above!

Remembering and Honoring My Mother

I have not posted in a couple of weeks having been busy with my Mother's passing away earlier this week.  She was diagnosed with advanced renal cell cancer in April and dealt with it quite bravely and forthrightly.  I am fortunate enough to live within a two hour drive of where she  and my Father live near Linville, NC and have been traveling back and forth on days off and weekends to visit with her.  I am ever so grateful for being able to spend time with her before her passing.

As prepared as we all were for her final days and hours, it is never easy to say Good-bye.  Still, the rituals and ceremonies associated with death are both comforting and cleansing.  I shared time with my Father (fortunately still healthy and living) along with my brother, sister-in-law, sons and daughter-in-law.  My extended family of aunts, uncles, cousins and close friends were also a great comfort.

My Mother was a strong-willed and independent person who lived her life with great zest! Her many passions included music, gardening and cooking - all of which she acquired great skill at.

She played several instruments including the piano, cello, mandolin, fiddle, and autoharp - I might have left off one or two instruments because she was always looking for a new instrument to enjoy playing.  She also imparted her love for music to my youngest son giving him a keyboard for Christmas when he was about seven years old.  We acquired a piano a couple of years later and he grew up learning and loving to play it - and he and my Mother shared this musical bond for the rest of her life.

Her green thumb was amazing - I swear she could revive a plant that was absolutely near death!  And her culinary skills were equally amazing - she enjoyed nothing greater than to prepare a great feast at Holidays and special gatherings.

After her diagnosis in April, we were uncertain if she would be able to make the trip to Charlotte, NC for my oldest son's wedding in May.  She seemed to be weakening by the day, but she was on a mission at that point to be present.  And present she was!  In this photo below with my father, son and new daughter-in-law, I admire the look of quiet determination on her face.

Finally, I just want to take a moment to thank the special people with Medi Home Hospice in Newland, NC who helped my mother die with the same grace and dignity by which she lived.

Corine S. Waterman
November 21, 1930 - July 7, 2013

New Wooden Decoupage Bracelets

Have been very busy this week!  Here are some pictures of wooden decoupage bangle bracelets I have been working on.  Am working on a tutorial now and will post later this week.  These are such fun to make - and really not that difficult!

Will also be posting these for sale in my Etsy shop soon.

As usual, thanks for visiting!  More to follow soon.

Empty Nest

This past weekend I helped my youngest son Mike get settled in to his new apartment in Atlanta.  He just finished grad school in May with a Master's of Science in Computer Science and is starting his first "real job."  My mission was to help him get his apartment a bit  "home like" so that he would at least have a comfortable place of retreat when not working.

I have many mixed feelings - I am proud of what he has accomplished and happy for him to be starting his own life, but am going to miss having him around.  Oh, he has been away at school at USC in Columbia, SC for the past several years, but this is only about 1 1/2 hours away from where we live.  So we would see him on a very regular basis.  Atlanta on the other hand is about 4 hours away - not so far we can't visit there or him come home - but it just won't be as frequently as in the past.

But we had a great weekend putting his apartment together.  A trip to Ikea for a computer desk and side table, several hours putting together the Ikea furniture, hanging curtains and a few pictures, and numerous trips to the nearby Home Depot for incidentals to complete all these projects.

In the end though, my mission was accomplished.  His apartment looks very nice and although it is in the heart of Midtown Atlanta seems safe and secure enough.  Here is a pic of the den with the small side table from Ikea we assembled, an overhead clock we bought at Lowe's, along with sofa and coffee table he inherited from his older brother.

And here is a photo of the Ikea desk we assembled - perfectly fits into the corner of his bedroom.  

And here is a picture of the curtains we hung in his bedroom - they were a nightmare to hang.  Unbeknownst to us, the wall had a combination of concrete and steel behind it - required several trips to Home Depot!

And here is a great picture of Midtown Atlanta's skyline taken from his rooftop.

The rooftop has a great area for relaxing - there are several tennis courts, basketball courts, a gazebo, hot tub, and an enclosed gym surrounded by windows.  Should have taken pics of that as well, but didn't.

Anyway,  after all is said and done, with the internet and technology today, the world is indeed a smaller place.  I "visited" with him last night on Skype and it was almost as if he was here.  Perhaps the anticipation of his leaving was more difficult than the actual event.  And after all a child's leaving "the nest" is just another of life's many milestones.

Gatsby Style Jewelry

This past week I have been working on some new jewelry designs which I am calling my Gatsby Collection.  This is a collection of deco style jewelry inspired by the popular Gatsby style trend.

I gave these designs a bold and spirited look with the large glass beads and pearls, but added some softness with the spectacular antique brass curb chain.  This chain has the most unbelievable sheen to it and lies flat against the skin giving it a definite feminine and romantic look.

The earrings shown in the last photo are designed to be worn with any of the necklaces.  There are two styles of necklaces - long beaded strands and long pendant styles - these are made to be able to be worn alone or in layers.  I really like the layered look!

Right now I have placed these designs in Ruby's Gift of Charlotte, NC but will be making more soon to sell in my Etsy shop!  Here's a photo of my booth at Ruby's Gift - if you're ever in the area, be sure to visit!

Thanks so much for visiting!

Irene

Trinkets from a Thrift Store

I went to a local thrift store today and ended up buying several trinkets that I hope to upcycle and alter into interesting jewelry displays.  The thrift store is Sweet Repeat Thrift Store in Lake Wylie, SC.  I always feel good about buying from them as this is a charitable non-profit organization run by volunteers.  All items sold there are donations from local residents.

Anyway here is what I came away with:

An old lampshade for $1.00.  I might end up removing the material and using the wire frame for a necklace and earring holder.

An old brass goblet - also $1.00.  It is very tarnished but still pretty.  I might actually paint over this and use as an earring display.

A brass candlestick holder for 50 cents.  It is very solid and heavy.  I also found the small brass drawer pull pictured beside the candle holder and went ahead and glued this to the top (see second photo below) ... it matches perfectly and will make a great weighted piece for draping necklaces around and letting them hang from a shelf in a store where I sell my jewelry.

A pair of candlestick holders for $2.00.  Not sure what I will do with these, but surely something will come to mind.

I will post some pictures of my finished alterations when done - hopefully along with some new jewelry designs I am working on from what I am calling my Gatsby Collection!