Speaking of feed sacks...

I know the last thing you want to think about the day after a holiday feast...but this site is fantastic. They offer reproduction feed sacks to use for vintage decor. You've got to take a look...they've even got something called "exotic cowhides."

http://www.weavingwebdesigns.com/hidesonline-testarea/feed-sacks.htm

Feed Sacks?

Wow, who would have imagined a book filled with photos of vintage feed sacks? Certainly not my grandfather when he was throwing out chicken feed to his barnyard of hens at his Wetumpka, Alabama farm. Oh if only he were alive today to see a book like this one.
Vintage Feed Sacks: Fabric from the Farm (Schiffer Books)

The Simplicity of Sewing Patterns

In 1927 a guy named James Shapiro started a company selling sewing patterns for the home hobbyist. It had been done before. McCall's was offering sewing patterns for sale via it's magazine at the time. But Simplicity was doing it sans the magazine. Back then dress patterns and undergarments were about the only type of sewing patterns women used. There were fashions for men also but nothing too complicated. I have ties, shirts, slacks and have had boxer shorts patterns in my inventory now and in the past.

This sweet suit pattern is from 1969. The style totally works for today's fashion forward gal. You can find it in my online store Tokul Vintage on etsy. Can't you just see Peggy Olson dashing into Don Draper's office waring the belted number?

It's never been used - the pieces are uncut and still have their factory folds.

High School Biology in the 1930s

I've got a this for sale in my etsy store, Tokul Vintage. Dynamic Biology. The cover is gorgeous, deep red, cloth with an arts and crafts style print of a frog and lily pads. Well, you can see in the image below. Each page is chock full of information on biology ranging from the digestive system of frogs, humans and sea anemones to plants, trees, bears, moose, insects and sealife. And then in the back just before the book is about to end is the part about Eugenics. This was the science of perfecting the human race. There is actually an illustration of how to barricade immigration to Ellis Island in order to keep out the unsavory kind. Also included are the six recommended steps to sorting out the gene pool. This is what high school students in the 1930s were reading. Think about the people who would have been reading this stuff...some of the leaders of our past were high school students then. Well, I guess maybe the horrible acts that transpired in WWII put an end to including such nonsense in public school text books and I hope all school text books. The illustrations are awesome and if I hadn't paged through the book, I would have never noticed the part about Eugenics. Glad I did though. It was an education for me. 

Lucite vs. Bakelite

What's your choice? Here's a pair of earrings I have not YET sold on my etsy store. They photography pretty but wow do they look swell and sparkly in your hands and on your ears!

Holly Hobbie Bound for Canadian Crafter

This vintage 1970s sewing pattern is on its way to a crafter in Quebec. Try saying that 10 times really fast! I'd love to see her handiwork once she gets a few projects completed. Nice to know there are people who still appreciate a good old fashioned cloth doll. But it is Holly Hobbie and who could resist such sweet innocent charm?

So I did a bit of research - not hard these days. Holly Hobbie is a real person. She was born in 1944 and is or was an illustrator who worked as a contract artist for American Greetings. She wrote a series of children's books called Toot and Puddle and created Holly Hobbie the character using her real name which came to her after she married a guy named Douglas Hobbie in 1964. She lives in Conway, Massachusetts. I wonder if she still writes and draws?

Well turns out the most recent thing she has done is to direct a TV show for National Geographic called National Geographic Kids. In the show, Toot & Puddle live in Pocket Hollow and in each episode they travel to a foreign country. The show lasted from 2008-2009.

Would love to hear your Holly Hobbie memories. And as always you can check out my current items for sale at http://www.etsy.com/shop/TokulVintage

Coolest Item I've Sold...So Far

So, I was rummaging through the dusty, crusty, spider-filled corners of an old antique store in Snoqualmie that was going out of business. It was called Bad Sisters Antiques, so you know they weren't the kind of proprietors to clean and dust, much less know what they had stashed in those boxes way down under the tool benches in the back room. I found all kinds of rusty old things...chains, spools of amazing wire I can use to make my sculptures, drawer handles, odd fishing gear in cool glass jars, tiles, and this. I wanted to keep it and I did for a couple months. I loved photographing it. And I loved listing it on my Etsy shop because I knew someone who appreciated it like me would snatch it up in no time. But in my "etsy world time" that could be a very long time as my sales are few and far between for some reason. Anyone have any tips on marketing...I'm all ears!

It's the face plate from a nut dispenser...you know like a candy dispenser only for nuts. What do you think? I've been hunting and gathering vintage junk for 10 years and it's the first one I've run across. It found a new home in Seattle and the buyer agreed..."coolest thing ever!"