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

A Bounty of Blistex and Beautiful Blooms

hey y'all,

and a very happy valentine's day to y'all!

okay, so it's a day early but in this house, we celebrate things whenever we feel like it. and since tomorrow (the real day of love and flowers and chocolates and other nonsensical stuff) is a monday, my DH decided to surprise me with a bouquet of red roses and boxes of blistex this morning.

as i stumbled into the kitchen (♫♪♫ to pour myself a cup of ambition ♪♫♪), i was blown away by these gorgeous roses ... sitting pretty next to boxes and boxes of my beloved blistex!

also, my valentine wrote me a poem (he's a poet and he knows it!) and presented it to me on a sweet, pink handmade card.

all together now ladies: awwwwwww ... sighhhhhhhhhh.

i know. i have a winner, a keeper, a dandy. he works hard so i don't have to. kinda like those scrubbing bubbles ... haha. i could go on and on about all he does for me, but i don't want y'all to hate me because i have such a wonderful husband. hate me because i'm beautiful. bwahahahahahaha!!

i had a terrific junkin' day with my darling daughter yesterday. just the two of us. she's so funny ... and fun to be with! we hit an estate sale in temple, among other things. it was only her second estate sale ever and so she's still sorting out how she feels about them.

a sweeeeeet lil perfume bottle. so tiny, so old. love it!
i've blogged before about the mixed emotions they elicit. it's sad to rummage through the remains of a dead person's life ... all the things they've collected through the years. on the other hand, it's utterly fascinating to explore and discover all the things they've collected in their lives.

you can't tell in the picture, but this gorgeous vintage bonnet is a light green. it. is. KILLER.
tara did well and actually finished perusing before i did. that's because she's inexperienced in the art of digging and sifting, which as you all know, that's how you find the treasures. but when i met up with her in one of the back bedrooms, she looked pale and slightly panicked. she had just looked in the master bathroom and eyed a box labeled "ladies urinal", along with other medical-type supplies.

apparently, this made her "creepiness meter" go berserk. she was ready to check out. literally and figuratively. so while she waited in the car, i finished shopping and then took my leave as well.

this estate sale had lots of old lace to go along with the arsenic in the master bath. okay, i'm kidding. no arsenic.
no doubt about it. estate sales are an acquired taste. some are absolutely fab, some are duds. but if i'm being honest, every single one of them has a "creep factor". some just hide it better than others.

at the estate sale, i found a great pair of old heavy duty scissors that cut like a dream! the handmade-looking journal was a score from a temple thrift shop

old chenille pillow with some added lace and vintage button. adorable!
hope y'all have a great week of valentines and chocolate, plenty of hugs and kisses ... and lots and lots of happiness and love.

love and hugs,
terrylee

my favorite piece from the estate sale: a gorgeous black dress that is approximately 100 years old. it belonged to the mother of an 86 year old woman. she said she remembers her mother wearing the dress, with a slip-type undergarment. good thing ... it's v. sheer! and oh-so-beautiful!

up close

hmmm, could be romantical, no? :)

These Are a Few of My Favorite Things

hey y'all,

i fiddled with this dang slideshow much, much longer than i intended. it was meant to be a quicker, easier project than uploading individual pics to my blog. huh. that didn't happen.

anyhow, i wanted to show you some of my christmas decor around the house. not much different than last year, save for the cmas tree itself. it's old and small, something i bought a few years ago in my futile attempt to scale down cmas decor. i keep the white lights on it and the ornies too. just cover it up with a large trash bag and toss it in the garage until next year. however, last year i found an old silver tree at the goodwill, and i just had to use it. not this year, though. back to simplicity, ease and a little peace.

hope you enjoy the slideshow. pictures speak a thousand words, so i'll be quiet. but first (heh heh), i'd like to say that i really wanted music with this slideshow. in particular, the song, "my favorite things". instead, i'm embedding another video with lovely julie andrews singing it for you. click play and then WATCH my slideshow. get it? got it? good! :)

love and hugs and a v. merry christmas to y'all,
terrylee

 

Friends + FleaMarkets (minus infection) = Felicity

hey y'all,

wow. a lot has happened since i last bloggity blogged! let me catch you up.

i went to visit my sweet pal dana in georgetown last wednesday! we've been junking together but i'd never seen her house. oh.my.gawd. this woman is way too humble and modest about her decorating skillz!!



not only is she the sweetest, gentlest and generous soul in all of central texas, her house could be (and should be!) on the cover of better homes and gardens!











after The Tour (of her lovely house and grounds, including the chicken house!) we headed for a quick bite to eat before hitting the junking haunts of georgetown. she insisted on chick-fil-a (because it's my favorite) and we were both surprised at the ... well ... less than efficient service we received there.

normally, chick-fil-a employees are young and eager to serve you. they snap to attention when taking and delivering your order. not. the. case. on wednesday. oddly enough, there were three elderly ladies (sweet in nature, but still ...) who were manning the front counter. whaaa?!?



okay, fine. no worries. i'm not age-ist. i rattled off my order to "joyce", who responded with the most befuddled of expressions. you want what? she asked.

oh dddddear. i repeated my order, slower this time. a look of recognition flashed across her kind, crinkly face ... and then she went into full force, sloooow-motion mode of preparing my order. yikes. i'd never seen anyone fill a cup of ice soooo me-tho-di-cal-ly (read: slowly).

i nudged dana and darted my eyes over to the sweet old ladies. by the time they delivered the food to our table, we were in a full fit of giggles. dana explained the demographics of that area of georgetown: retired folks.

huh.

fine with me, as long as my waffles fries are still warm when i get 'em.

after lunch, we went to collector's market, just down the road. it's full of vendors with a lovely array of vintage items. we had sooo much fun perusing the booths!

sadly, it was time for me to head back to the ranch (not really, i don't have a ranch) ... but not before dana loaded me up with homemade strawberry preserves, a hand-poured coffee bean candle in a vintage cup, some yummy home-baked caramel apple cake and a few other treasures.



i had a terrific time, dana. thanks for your warm, southern, charming hospitality. you're THE best!

soooo when i got home that night, i noticed my right eye was itching and burning. it'd been bothering me for several days, since my punctal plug insertion of two weeks ago. go ahead. click the link ... if you dare!

when i woke up on thursday morning, this is what i saw in the mirror:





ack!!! and just in time for halloween!!

my opthamologist saw me right away and mumbled phrases like ... severe, fast-moving infection, aggressive treatment necessary, could spread to the brain, hospitalization with IV antibiotics, triangle of death (while he made a triangle over his face), blah blah blah blah.

eeeeeeyikes!!!!!!!!

mainly, i understood that i. was. sick. and very. he promptly removed the punctal plugs from the right eye and felt the need to inform me that yes, pus oooooozed out of the punctum when the plug was removed. can't say that i was surprised. the entire right side of my face was swollen and red.

got my antibiotics going (like a good nurse and patient) immediately and took to my bed for the next 24 hours.

while in the drug-induced stupor of the infected and infirm, the upcoming st. mary's flea market kept calling my name. i had committed to participate on saturday and figured that i'd have to give it up. but by saturday morning, i had reached the honeymoon phase of antibiotic relief ... and convinced myself i was healthy enough to DO IT.

so in the gawd-awful pre-dawn hours of saturday morn, hubby followed me to temple and unloaded all my wares. it took me a long time to set up ... but ice packs, covergirl, keflex, motrin and vicodin got me through it. yea!!! i made it to the flea market!!!





precious and few were the customers, but i met a couple of really sweet ones that made my day.

lisa from belton, who's a blog reader, stopped by for a visit. i love meeting new folks out there who read my blog. lisa bought a few of my home-made cards (which i made with my sewing machine) and seemed happy with them ... which made me very happy! it was soooo nice to meet you, lisa!



and sweet lil savannah came by with her mama and baby brother in tow. she was a girl after my own heart. she oooo'd and ahhhhhh'd over so much of the stuff, that i simply had to give her some of it. mama bought some things too, so i think everyone was happy at the end of the day. keep reading your books, savannah!



by the time i got home, i realized just how sick i still was ... and took to the bed again for the rest of the weekend. on monday morning, my opthamologist was pleased with my progress but reminded me that i still needed several more days of rest for complete healing. oh, and his final word to me before i left? BEHAVE!

whaaa?!?! i'm always being have.

love and hugs,
terrylee

Out of My Gourd

hey y'all,

well, i was going to start this blog with something else ... but after a morning of irritating, agitating and downright frustrating phone calls with companies, medical offices, banks, etc. i am out. of. my. gourd (a little autumnal pun for you).

i'm not even sure what out of my gourd is, exactically. but you get the idea. i have spent the better half of this morning ON. HOLD. arghhhh!!!

for those of you who know me, you know that i despise being on the phone. i loathe it. i'm a texter, emailer and blogger. i don't mind short, perfunctory phone calls with friends or family. but i'd rather eat dog poop than do business on the phone.

sigh.

anyhow, now that my rant is over (for now), i've come to bloggie land to impart some very special news to you!

i will be at st. mary's church/school in temple, tx this saturday, oct. 23rd for their fall festival flea market. i hear from reliable sources (hi cindy!) that there will be over 30 excited vendors at the flea market (yes, including me) who'll be on hand to help you find that perfect SOMETHING that you want, need or simply must have!

if you read my blog, you'll know what kind of junk vintage collectibles to expect at my booth. if your tastes are simpatico with mine, then you do NOT want to miss it! wonderful vintage pieces, terrific prices and my smiling face. what more could you ax for? heh heh.











don't like my junque?! no worries. plenty of other vendors to visit. there will be something. for. everyone! and all proceeds go to a great cause.

and thus ends the news flash portion of today's blog.

i'd like to thank sue of vintagesue for the lovely box of vintage yumminess she sent my way last week. thanks, girl. you're the best.

see that darling lil girl?! sigh! and that vintage pink jewelry box!!



and dana, thank you for the GORGEOUS tote you made for me (a blog contest prize from dana's chicken scoop). i love it!!

how sweet and creative! what talent!

a close up

lots to do before saturday! as much as i love my stuff, i'm excited to see it move on to other loving homes ... folks who'll treasure and enjoy it as much as i did. which in turn makes room for the new junk for me to love!

junk in, junk out. it's the way my world goes 'round.

love and hugs,
terry lee

~*~*~Flea Market Info:*~*~*

Date: Saturday, October 23, 2010
Time: 8:00am - 12:00 noon
Where: St. Mary's Catholic Church School, 1018 S. 7th St., Temple, TX

Rosemary's Ephemera

hey y'all,

sure meant to get this posted sooner, but as of late, i've been remiss in my blogging duties. which says a lot, actually. if blogging is a duty, then something's wrong.

i confided in a friend recently that i've lost some of my motivation and desire for blogging. don't panic, all you terrylee fans out there (hahaha)! it's just a phase. y'all know how much i love to gab, jibber jabber and otherwise carry-on about the things i do, the people i see and the treasures i find on the junkin' trail.

anyhow, i've actually done quite a bit o' junking lately. weekend before last, my daughter tara and i went out together for a "mommy and me" day (heh heh ... she's 28) and had loads of fun. that girl of mine. she's a hoot. kept me in stitches most of the day.

we found the awesome-est estate sale in lampasas! whew, it was a junker's paradise! i got tons of ephemera and other vintage goodies of which i can not recall at the moment. when i upload the pics, i shall be reminded.

okay, pics are uploaded and now i remember! oh. my. gawd. the owners of this estate (now deceased) were international travelers and collectors of all things. yes, all things. you would not believe what was in this house! and it was huge!

mainly, i scarfed up the ephemera as quickly as possible. we weren't the early birds, so i'm sure there was much more before we arrived. however, i did dig up some pretty cool stuff. miss rosemary bushey was a lady after my own heart. she scrapbooked before it was cool to do so.

i bought three of her scrapbooks which were made in the 1930s, and a high school project on "dramatics" in scrapbook form:



shame on her teacher! this project was an A+++ in my book!







i also found quite a few of her jr. high and high school report cards (a smart cookie, that rosemary!).



it'd be impossible to show you everything (though i'd love to) so i just took some random shots of her work and the scrapbooks. i. am. in. love.





















her penmanship was exquisite!

a vintage book of french postcards! translated: views of rouen (france)

inside! oooh la la!

the last thing i bought at rosemary (god rest her soul) bushey's estate sale was this precious pinkish vintage dress, hat and gloves. i think i paid a total of $7 for all three. i like to think of young rosemary attending a luncheon or maybe a graduation event in 1934 wearing these. :)



moving on ... last friday, i ventured out solo (only because my junkin' buddies have real jobs during the week) and landed myself at a killer vintage sale of some v. sweet folks named elizabeth and husband. geeez, so sorry i didn't get hubby's name! but i gave elizabeth my blog info, so i'm hoping she'll see this post and leave a comment.



they are collectors, much like myself, in that they LOVE most anything vintage. wow. they've downsized and were selling some terrific treasures. it's such a treat to find pieces that you love for sale (at excellent prices!) but it's icing on the cake when the sellers are such sweet, kind people as these.

elizabeth made time to tell me about certain pieces i was buying, which of course is v. important to me. i want to know the history. as i was leaving with my box of vintage goodies, elizabeth's hubby mentioned that the lil doll i bought was his mother's. awwww!!! see?! that's the kind of thing i love to know.

i assured him that this sweet baby was in good hands and going to a loving home. :)

awwww!! i know, right?! she's too much!! love love love her!!!

also got another cutie pie doll (plastic but v. vintage). i think of him as the little brother. :) oh! and he came with the sweetest lil blue crib too! see if you can spy it in the pics.

after chatting with elizabeth, she was compelled to give me this precious lil school book to go with the doll. why? because her shoes are orange and the vintage book matches! they make quite a sweet pair, no? thank you elizabeth!!!

sweet baby girl posing with a couple of the silver pieces i also bought from elizabeth.

i could not resist this precious piece!! a to-die-for handmade vintage pin cushion. with pins galore still in it:



see how sweet the material is on the back? love this little treasure!



i also snagged a pile of vintage trading stamps ... green, gold, plaid. remember them?? to my mama and grandma, collecting stamps was a religion. can't tell you how much cool junk we got from the stamp store in downtown killeen!! good times ...



thanks elizabeth and dear hubby for a fun and memorable shopping experience!

in old news, i did not have a winner for the price guessing contest of the gorgeous vintage train-station-bench-turned-mantel-piece. sorry about that! the correct answer was ......... $25!!!! since it was an impromptu contest (i'm prone to those) and i didn't include any rules, blah blah ... like the closest one without going over, i can't call a winner. but next time i'll be more clever and post rules, etc. so there will be a definite winner! thanks to those of you who participated and commented!

thanks for stopping by. i truly do appreciate those of you who take the time to read my nonsense and even leave comments! y'all are the best.

love and hugs,
terry lee