Friday, April 29, 2011

paper....

pulp fashion....
there is an amazing show in san francisco
at the legion of honor right now that
i would love to see.
i have a passion for old and vintage
costumes and fashion and when i saw the images
from this show i couldn't believe they weren't
silk, damask and  velvet but paper.

images via legion of honor

road trip any one?

Ciao,
F

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

advice....

with spring in the air
many are spring cleaning.
one thing i remember from childhood
was cleaning all the rugs in the house.
it was a seasonal thing and as soon 
as the weather warmed up 
the rugs went outside to be cleaned.

i found some good ol' fashion advice
on cleaning heavy rag rugs 
and it reminded me of that ol'
spring chore from being a kid.


image via main rag rugs

To Wash Heavy Rag Rugs

" I have found a simple way of washing heavy rag rugs. 
Soak the rugs for five minutes in cold water,
then spread them on a bare floor and sprinkle heavily with
any good washing powder.
Scrub the rugs until they are clean with a clean broom
dipped in hot water.
Rinse thoroughly in clear water in the laundry tub
and hang on the line to dry."
Mrs. L. J. O., Wyoming 1923

my oma always washed her persian rugs with vinegar and water.
to this day i still do with a bucket in hand, 
a broom or scrub brush and some 
good old fashion elbow grease
i scrub them then rinse with 
plain water and the brush,
leave them outside to dry
and presto clean rugs
for another year.

happy spring cleaning.

Ciao,
F

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

meditate....

To Meditate...
a verb
meaning
to engage in contemplation or reflection.

image via brown dress white dots


namaste,
f

Monday, April 25, 2011

projects....

for awhile now i have been hoping for 
a free saturday that also was sunny and dry.
well my wishes came true this last saturday.

after a morning run, chores and a quick appointment
i pulled as many projects i thought i could finish 
before our guests arrived for dinner.
the lucky projects were:
  • the chair i am suppose to upholster
  • a white dresser
  • a black and green dresser
  • the birds
well, i am happy to report my chair is painted
and sealed and all ready for my upholstery class on thursday.

the white dresser just needed a little fresh coat of paint
and yes it needs handles but that's for another day.

before

after

black and mint green dresser, well do i need to say much here?

licorice mint
pale yellow before final coat of paint

the drawers after 3 coats of yellow

and last but not least,
put a bird on it.

after
i forgot a before picture of the birds but they
were all different colors. 
now they are shiny and white.

all of this in one sunny saturday afternoon.
i can't tell you how happy and productive i felt.
i might just get these all done for the show in may
after all.

stay tune for the final results,
handles and all.

ciao,
f

Thursday, April 21, 2011

advice....

One would think we would learn from our
past but we really are not good students.
I found a tidbit on children and health education
from my 1923 Good Housekeeping book
that could have been written today.



Interest in Health
"In the school my children attend there are no 
school nurses, nutrition classes, etc.,
but I tell them what is being done in other schools
along health lines,
and we try to carry out some of these
principles, chief of which are weighting and measuring.
I give each a weight chart that they may see for
themselves what they should weigh, impress upon them the 
value of proper food and plenty of sleep,
and once a month take them to the scales.
They are quite interested in observing their progress
and are not nearly so indifferent regarding
meals as they were before I had them keep their own records."
Mrs. T. K. F.,  W. VA 

Eat well.
Ciao,
F

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

upholstery part 2....

well, finally got a little time squeezed in between
work and a visit from my sister and nephew
to get the sanding, priming and first coat
on my chair.
the weather was even kind enough to
cooperate with some sun and dry weather.
i forgot to take a picture of it sanded and
primed but have a picture of the first coat.





i went for a warm, creamy white versus
a real chalky white. it seemed more suited
to the style of chair and fabric.
the backing was done in class last week
along with some sanding.
hoping tomorrow the painting gods
continue to smile down upon my little
chair so i can get a second coat 
on which means i might actually get
to do some upholstery in class on thursday
night.
keep your fingers crossed.
it is starting to look like something.
Yeah!

Ciao,
F



Wednesday, April 13, 2011

bubbles....

I can't believe it has been a week since I wrote last.
That is just way to long.
I have been working nonstop for the last 
10 days and finally am taking a late
morning to get a little sleep and blog.
It is Wednesday and that means it's 
"Advice" day and I wanted some
fun advice since I haven't had much time
to have fun in the last 10 days.

I found some good ol' 1923 advice
to having fun that really has lasted the 
age of time.
You don't have to be a kid to enjoy this,
you just have to be a bit of a kid at heart.
Sometimes the simplest things can be the most fun.



Glycerin Soap  Bubbles

"Having two small sisters, I am often called on,
in case of their illness, to help entertain them.
And I have at last found a sure way of keeping them
contented and happy when they are well enough to permit it.
I place a woolen blanket on top of the bed coverings
and provide each child with a clay pipe.
Then I prepare a cupful of real soapsuds,
adding to it a small amount of glycerin.
The children can blow bubbles to their 
hearts content, and the glycerin makes the bubbles
tough so that they settle on the blankets and 
often remain four or five minutes before breaking."
D.McC., Iowa
Let's hear it for finding the joy and fun
in the simplest of things.

Ciao,
F

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

advice....

found  a good one this week.
i know it's not fall but i loved
her approach on cooking squash.



Baking Squash
" I used to have sad times preparing my 
Hubbard squash for the kettle or oven,
often being obliged to call on the ax to
help me, 
and generally  winding up with at least
one disabled member.
Now, immediately after breakfast,
I just wash the squash and place it in the 
range oven.
By dinner-time it is baked;
then I open it with any common knife,
remove the seed, scrape out the squash,
and with the addition of a little cream
and seasoning I have the most delicious
squash imaginable, for all its sweet juices have
been retained and so has my temper!
O.D.B.,Iowa 1923

i think O.D.B would have been quite
the entertaining blogger.
i love her phrasing and description of her experience. 
the squash sounds good but here is what i
took away, if you need to use an ax
to make a recipe it probably isn't a good idea.
change the menu.

Ciao,
F

Sunday, April 3, 2011

upholstery....

i decided to finally learn how to re-upholster.
my friend lisa and i are taking a class.
our first class was last week.
when we initially signed up our soon to be
teacher, dee,  recommended we start with a
ottoman.
i have a couple but one doesn't need any work
and the other is in the man cave, which means
it definitely is not worthy of a new look, yet.

both of us had chairs that we wanted to do.
they didn't have to much upholstery
so we decided we would support each other
and go in to our first class insisting that
we get to do our chairs.
dee was totally cool with it.

 i didn't come prepared with my project other than 
a picture but lisa did.
so once we got the vocabulary lesson and some
quick tips on how to deconstruct our projects
we were set loose on to lisa's chair.

i didn't realize how much fun it could be taking
apart a chair but i will admit it gets a little 
tedious once you have pulled out your 
fifth millionth staple.

since i didn't have my project i promised 
to work on it at home until the next class.
finally the sun came out, well not really 
but it wasn't raining so that's kind of like 
the sun came out in these parts.
i dragged the chair out from the back of the garage,
pulled together some tools and began the task 
of taking apart my free chair.

my free chair
i found this chair on craigs list for free.
the seat cushion was in such bad shape
that when i picked it up it literally poured
out on to the floor in a stream of sand like stuff.
the bones were good so i took it home.

tools in hand i took the upholstery off.

the back before

the back during

removal of the seat back

double welting = extra staples

the seat back completely removed


the whole process was something like 
an excavation.
you're never quite sure what you are going to find.

these tuffs and string are what held the buttons in place.

random things holding it all together

almost done

naked

some raw knuckles, a few scratches and bruises
from the chair falling on me as i fell on my ass.
but all in all i had fun doing it and can't wait 
to sand and paint before the next class.

i promise to keep you all posted 
on my progress.

ciao,
f

Friday, April 1, 2011

Mix....

 

we are so excited the shop where we have
or space (Found on Fremont) got a write up
in Mix Magazine.
Mix did a story on the neighborhood and picked
Found as one of their highlighted shops.

to top it all off they not only wrote about
the shop they wrote about our space and
published a picture of our little  corner.

we are so excited for all of the girls at
Found on Fremont and thankful for
the shout out from the people at
Mix Magazine.

you can read the article here.

Ciao,
F