Monday, March 7, 2011

Stirring the Junkin' Pot


hey y'all,

been a long time since i've posted, i know. i'm sure you've all been waiting with baited breath and crying into your pillows each night for lack of terrylee's junking adventures. heh heh

killer vintage pillow with rows and rows of roses!

and yes. stuffed with chicken and duck feathers!!

well, i'll tell it to you straight. i lost my muse for a while. honestly, as much as i love love love junk and the thrill of the treasure hunt, i just got a little burned out and simply overwhelmed.

i kept buying and buying (and buying and buying and buying) ... do you get the picture yet? because i can NOT pass up a great vintage treasure OR a bargain. cases in point:

three lil vintage "bunnies" looking all sweet and precious and adorable. just look at those faces!


a precious vintage lipstick holder with mirror and sweet cherub


an estate sale find, this is a wax doll from the 1920s ... with her original hair, albeit a tad wadded. she's divine!

and what, several of you have asked me in the past, do i DO with all my terrific treasures? i think some of you have actually begun to worry a little about my ... er ... problem. situation. whatever you wanna call it.

we've all watched hoarders. and i think it's good medicine for junkers like me. we need a reality check. i need a reality check.

does this mean i'm done junking? in a word, NO. in two words, HELL no. i will NOT stop doing something that means so much to me. i LOVE vintage/antique items. i love their history. they make me feel connected to a past that i didn't live. to those women before me who had such a different life, yet probably felt many of the same emotions, desires, pleasures and heartaches that i have experienced.

BUT, how many vintage plates with pink roses does a person need?! how many scraps of vintage lace, doilies, bottles, ladies' hats, hat boxes, dresses, slips, dolls, ephemera ... i could go on and on. really? how much is too much?!



i guess the saturation point is different for all of us. but i know i've reached mine. the junk has taken over and is winning, just like the terrorists (heh).

so what's the answer? for me, i think the solution is three-fold. first, i need to buy in moderation. be more discriminating in my selections. reign myself in a bit. put things back. think twice. think thrice.

secondly, spend an occasional saturday with my current junk ... cleaning, sifting, organizing instead of junking for new pieces.

lately, it seems all i ever do is just move junk from one place to another. it's like my house is one big pot o' junk and i'm just stirring it around, over and over. watching it simmer. enjoying the aromas and anticipating the delicious flavors. but who can eat a whole potful of vintage yumminess??

thank the good lord i now have a "craft room". as IF any crafting is ever done in there. basically, it's my junk room. but still, i'm thankful for it ... a place to store/organize/fret-over my current junk. i mean, inventory.



which brings me to: thirdly, i need to feed the hungry masses, yearning for their own vintage food. share the love. meaning, more needs to go OUT. basic physics. inflow and output. junk in, junk out. give, sell, donate, etc. whatever. but i need a better output. i do sell on ebay, but that's quite a constipated process if you ask me. still, it's junk OUT. also, i'm excited about a couple of upcoming community garage sales at which i'll be a vendor (more info on that forthcoming).

a spot to call home base for my shipping efforts.

with any luck, i'll stay focused on this three-fold formula and my junkin' world will have a little more equilibrium. because i will not answer if the hoarder film crew comes knocking at my door!

as an aside, it's march in central texas. i'm officially on the bluebonnet watch! whoop!

love and hugs, ya'll,
terrylee

9 comments:

Library Lady said...

Now that you have admitted there is a problem, here's what you need:

1.800.HELP4ME -- an AA of sorts for hoarders.
Seriously, I know about hoarding and it's not pretty, Terry Lee. ;-)

I hope you can sort through your...er... inventory. Your junk is very pretty, however, and I adore the big, plump, pink rosey pillow. How much for it?!?

Art From The heart said...

Oh Gee, Lov all that stuff. Wish I was closer to relieve you of some of your burden!
Hugs, Amy

vintagesue said...

get a booth at crafters!!!! hahaha. actually....don't do that because then you will have to INVENTORY all of it and that is another complicated mess right there. don't get me started!!!
my assessment is this....1. you start junking and totally get the bug and buy up all kinds of cool stuff for about 5 years. 2. after 5 years, you realize your style and look and start minimizing what you buy, but still buy lots of it....but with a theme. 3. you purge and start over again!!! lol. i'm in the purging state now, but i start up again after some downtime. it is tough. you find CUTE stuff!!! shows are the thing, so i if you have time, go for it. you should sell WELL!! well, you shouldn't sell, cuz your family will miss you, but the inventory should.
terry lee....you should see my garage. it is crazy in there. ack. like marta always says...the heart loves what it loves. anyway...i want to see a reality show about psychologists and organizers (the ones that help hoarders) that are closet hoarders. i know they are out there!!!! what a twist.
hang in there and I LOVE THAT BISQUE DOLL. she is great!!!
take care
s

Dana said...

Hi Terry Lee! I have been waiting with bated breath for a post from you! Your pot of junk looks delicious. Love love love the pink rose pillow the best. Have fun with your inventory!

Michele said...

Oh Terry Lee...I've missed you! I've been MIA lately on blogland too and I have been thrifting for quite some time now! Actually, my daughter told me I could buy any more rose plates..that was last summer...ha!

Anyway, love all your stuff, specially the three little bunny dolls...too cute!

Hugz,
Michele

Anonymous said...

I'm right there with you! It's time for me to be more selective with my purchases. I'm just afraid they (precious items) will end up in someone's trash can.

Mollye said...

I am the wrong person to ask because I have "junk" packed away in strange places and one day my family will have to unpack and wonder and try to decide what to do with everything and that suits me find for the time being. Have a happy week, Mollye

Sarsaparilla said...

I love this post! It's so funny that you bring up Hoarders - because I saw that show for the first time a few months ago and was in a semi-panic, thinking - oh my god, am I a hoarder?!!

Like you, I feel like I'm constantly moving junk around from one part of the house to another - in an attempt to make it look more orderly and less hoarderly. Your metaphor of the big pot of vintage stew is perfect!

Tara said...

Well, I think your house looks lovely...you know just how to arrange, hang, situate, and prop all the pretty treasures up in a delightful and beautiful way...but I will help you sort and sift though the craft room and any other place, and i am excited to help this saturday at the sale! i need to feed the junkers as well with tons of my own stuff! love you mom!