Some Girls Wander

Mechanical Gentleman Bird

I want this dapper little wind-up bird 75% for his excellent box.
The other 25% can probably be accounted for by the tiny top hat.

Found here.

Spooning in a Spoon

Humpty Dumpty 1935 /An Ub Iwerks Comicolor cartoon

This is one of my favorites of the Comicolor animations...the colors are so beautiful, and there are lots of details and visual jokes that I think are really delightful.

But all you really need to know to be certain it is fantastic is:
A.) There is a very funny & catchy little jingle of a love song (referred to in the title of the post)
and
B.) The villain is just called "The Bad Egg"

Serpent & Butterfly

I was watching a little of the TCM Unseen Cinema avant garde cinema broadcast at our friends' cozy house whilst on our Georgia trip, and I went crazy for these beautiful dance films from the late 1800's (now I reeeeally want the DVD set !)

Naturally, I started photographing the television, which any true friends won't ridicule you for (and mine didn't.)

I think this is a variation on "The Serpent Dance", which I believe was performed by several famous dancers (Loie Fuller is one famed dancin' gal I ran across in my sleuthing who had a Serpent Dance):

And this one is most certainly "The Butterfly Dance":

I'm not sure if both are Annabelle Moore, but "The Butterfly Dance" definitely is.

It's the first thing on this little video, so you can see it in all its moving glory:

There are several different dances (all beautifully hand-colored) contained therein...so be sure to watch it all the way through.

I could watch these dozens of times...really need to get my mitts on that DVD set!

Now you can buy hats for all your outfits

Extremely fancy and marvelous hats - and the prettiest pink-cheeked ladies!
My complexion idols.

I can't decide between the blue wing-motif one on the top left, and the simple(ish) green cloche in the middle. Via one of the very best (and prolific!) blogs for vintage images - specializing in both the bizarre and lovely.

A Little House on Wheels

I keep thinking about these fairytale fancy wagons from Demure Folk's beautiful post a few weeks back. I have a project in the works that I would like to feel very much like a pretty, cluttered little gypsy wagon, and these are really nice inspiration!

All that red & green!!! Perfect.

This all makes me want to watch Dr. Parnassus again (but maybe just the first half.) Or the first season of Carnivale (for the zillionth time!)

When I was little, I would haul a lamp and blankets into my tiny closet and try to create a makeshift version of something like this.

I guess I haven't changed one bit.

Paintbox

My eye keeps getting caught by nice old children's paint-boxes lately.
The graphics and colors are always so good!

They seem to always go for a pretty penny, so I've tried to be choosy and wait for just the right one.

I'd love to fill one of these with all my drawing pens and pencils.
But then it would be kind of sad to lose all those messy little rows of paint-cakes!

All of these boxes are from Etsy - and I think all have sold - but they originally hailed from these sweet shops!

Looking at them all here makes me re-commit to finding just the perfect one.
Til' then, I'll just gaze at these little wonders!

The Inside Garden

I was out at the antique stores with my pal the other day, and she remarked (sweetly, of course):
"You always go for the florals!"

And the lady's right. I do love flowered prints of all sorts - from demure calicos to cabbage roses.

Poking around my house one lazy afternoon, I got it in my head to take photos of some of my favorite floral prints (most of them old and worn and lovely).

I think it's neat to admire them out of their original/functional context (paper lining, furniture, box, folded fabric), although I'm sure you have some guesses!

Wind-up Elephant

This little circus elephant pal (or The "Elephant", as the box says) was another (mostly) surprise present from my mom. I spied him when we were out shopping together, and I suppose I ooh'ed and aah'ed over him so much that she sneakily bought him in secret!

He's really in beautiful shape, and so was his incredible box (I try not to be one of those collectors that's all funny over box condition, and I'm really not). I do, however, love old packaging so much that it's always a treasure to find an example of it in such nice shape!

I think he found a nice place at home among the other wind-up friends.

Tin Treasure Box

I tried to photograph some of the wonderful old things I received as Christmas gifts, so that I could archive them here. Probably the most special one is this little metal hinged box.

It might not seem that spectacular to a stranger, but to me, it's magic and makes me so sentimental. You see, I found this box in our attic when I was a little girl. Curious, I opened it up, and found that it was a real and true treasure box if ever there was one. I sat in the attic, spellbound.

What a discovery! It was filled with little crackerjack trinkets, small photos of school friends, and trading cards of the Beatles (or was it the Monkees?).  Who did this time capsule belong to?

My mom.

Last time she visited, we were out and about at the antique stores. I told my mom that I always look for little hinged metal boxes like the one from the attic, because that moment was so special to me. At first, I wasn't even sure she remembered what the heck I was talking about. But then I found this among my other gifts sent from home, wrapped in tissue and stuffed into my stocking on Christmas morning.

I'm going to fill it with my little treasures, and always be reminded of the magic, peculiar, and just-slightly bittersweet moment when I realized for the first time, in earnest, that my grown-up mom used to be a little girl.

New Old Stuffs

Ahoy there!
It's been a while, but I've been having such nice old-stuff-luck lately that I felt like it was time for a post in these parts.

Last week was the big thrice-annually antique Expo, and I found a few treasures (all but the dress are Expo finds):

The bunny boy is my new favorite trinket! Next to him is a child's wool coat...it reminds me of something my imaginary characters would wear. That row of buttons!

The chocolate-colored crepe dress is just a dream. I know you can't see it too well, but it has the most beautiful lace collar. I'll try to post pictures of the dress being worn soon, so you can see the details a bit better. And the blouse! It's just the best clothing-item I've ever found at the expo. The row of bobble-buttons, the fit, the lighter-than-air fabric. And I got it for a song, too, which makes it all the better!