Do you like this?

Dinah Shore House. Architect Donald Wexer built 1965

this?

Allyn E. Morris Home-Studio built 1958

or this?

The Walker Residence completed 1959

To those of you who do, take my advice and check out this new to me blog. It's awesome. If you like your mid-century architecture, textiles, furniture, ceramics etc. etc. you will be in raptures. Raptures I tell you!

All images via Mid Centuria. Clickety-click.

Our own, very lovely modernist home built in 1963

 

until recently

(sniff sniff)

Still learning to love our funny 1920's shop/house...

get the picture?

Things have improved btw...and at least we've still got some terrazzo

AND

a roof over our heads!

 and I am very grateful for that

(but it's nearly Christmas and there's nowhere to put the tree...I know, pathetic! But sometimes I can be a bit shallow like that)

"be it ever so humble there's no place like home"

right?

Best end before I get all teary

x

words: Robert Louis Stevenson

illustrations: Eloise Wilkin

from A Child's Garden of Verses, Little Golden Books, 1957

(my copy 1977)

A few lovely things that have made me happy lately...

1.

a parcel of Christmas goodies from this flamboyantly fashionable girl as part of Lakota's Christmas swap. Unfortunately the postie was a tad heavy handed in his delivery of Sarah's gorgeous parcel, damaging some of the other contents in the process of flinging it over our (admittedly) high front wall. Naughty postie.

Cool Chrissy card Sarah and I love those pineapple pot holders. Thank you x

  2.

Receiving the One Lovely Blog Award from Sharon who has a very lovely blog herself. Sharon's Sunlit Memories is a must see if you are interested in the wonderful illustrations that were a feature of children's books in the 1960's. She also has a collection of vintage paper dolly books to die for, here's one of them

The perfect award for me...considering my husband thinks I use the adjective lovely far too frequently on this blog. I'm afraid I've tried, but I just can't come up with a better alternative...and anyway I like the word lovely... it's a lovely word.

Now the tricky part...I'm meant to nominate five lovely blogs. To make it easy (because obviously I think all the blogs I read are lovely) I'm choosing from blogs written by fellow West Australians. Here they are, please check them out.

1. Tammi's little poppa

2. Wolves at the Door

3. Brown Paper Packages

4. Aliya's Paper Moons and Macarons

5. and sweet Em's Vintage Sweetheart (thanks for visiting me at the oppy on Sunday's Em)

I'm also meant to tell five random facts about me (this will be riveting. ha-ha)

1. I love cheese. Waaaaay more than chocolate.

2. I hate sad movies. The older I get the more I avoid them.

3. I am, and always will be, a book-worm.

4. Lately I have been really getting into Jonathon Creek.

5. I have a crush on Kevin Mc Cloud (I hope my husband won't mind me saying this...sorry Anth)

BORING!!! but thanks for the award Sharon x

   3.

Receiving a lovely (there's that word AGAIN!) little reindeer from Marlour of Planet Fur

hello christmas tree

Now it's my turn to craft it forward. Yikes! I was thinking of these pot holders I made from vintage hankies...

but looking at Marlous perfect little deer, I'm not sure they're good enough...

their backs are probably nicer...

than their fronts.

I'll have to put my crafting hat on...

4.

Discovering beauty in a bunch of decaying roses

like I say "some things get better with age"

I know it's either feast or famine around here, thanks for persevering I really appreciate it x





Take one slightly daggy vintage dress

a little bit Laura Ingalls...

a little bit Laura Ashley

Search for your trusty not-so quick unpick (oh that's right, you've got one here)

Remove those little black ribbons, that scratchy nylon lace and those home-made shoulder pads (scarily made from crepe bandages) Roll up the sleeves (waaaay easier than sewing) Add a tan belt (another no-sew fix), chuck on a pair of wedges and...

Voila!

    

the perfect

(I'm gazing adoringly at our new paving, in case you're wondering...)

Summer

Maxi.

And that my friends, is more than enough of me for one night...possibly for EVER!

x

It's all about the...

bird.

A-well-a, everybody's heard about the bird

Bird, bird, b-bird's the word

A-well-a, bird, bird, bird, the bird is the word

A-well-a, bird, bird, bird, well the bird is the word

I was the lucky winner of this gorgeous little birdy brooch in a bloggy give-away held recently by Liz Jones (of Betty Jo fame) on her newest blog Gleaners Inc.

It's quite confusing, because Liz writes three blogs and I keep on getting them mixed up. I think she's one of those annoying Superwoman types actually...because in addition to the bloggy stuff, Liz also designs and makes unique jewellery from vintage lino AND she is El Presidente (and chief bottle washer I suppose) of a lovely little shop called Gleaners Inc. It's full to the brim with all things cute and kitschy. Wow! (feeling a tad inadequate? I know I am...)

Here's a recent Gleaners window

no prizes for guessing why I fell in love with it...



You can find Gleaners Inc. at 2 Ballarat Street Brunswick in Victoria (oh the fun my husband and I had when we lived in Brunswick! years ago now...) but Liz is happy to post her treasures anywhere.

Now before I end, I really want to share these beautiful re-purposed Tupperware light shades with you. There's a vague connection between lino and Tupperware isn't there...often found in kitchens? pretty colours? Maybe not, they are lovely though and because I might forget to share if I don't post this now...introducing the

Tupp-A-Lamp! 

by Frank Criscione

What do you think? Yep or Yuk?

(brought to my attention by Rosalie Malham of Notions)

 And just in case you want to get down to The Trashmen, and you know you want to...

Have fun x

p.s. thanks for giving me the bird Liz x

     btw I used the word annoying in the nicest possible

     way...amazing would be more appropriate.

Isn't this

the sweetest, prettiest, cutest little sewing caddy

you've ever seen...

I think so.

Made entirely from vintage sheet scraps (yep. scraps. the bits you might, and I most definetely would, throw in the bin) by the lovely and talented Tammi. 

Tammi is a Perth girl (Yay!) who sews, cooks, preserves, throws the most beautiful parties AND home schools her children! (I know) She's a little bit Nigella, a little bit Martha, a little bit Mother Theresa (in my opinion you'd have to be to home school your children. I feel the beginnings of a headache just thinking about it...)

Thanks to Tammi's generosity I will never have to hunt for my most used sewing tool, the quick unpick, again (the person who came up with that one is a big fat liar!)  Thank you Tammi, I love it x

pretty vintage sheet covered buttons. awwwww.

(also by Tammi)

 I'll end with a pic of my newest tea towel

memo to self: I must photograph more tea towels.

x





A funny old fellow called...

Humphrey

Lots of little Aussie girls and boys grew up watching Here's Humphrey. Where you one of them? It is one of the longest running childrens television programmes in Australia. First broadcast in 1965, over 3000 episodes were made until it ceased production in 2009.

When I was a kiddo I was glued to the telly whenever Here's Humphrey was on. I loved him. And Patsy Biscoe. 

Many years later, from time to time, my girls watched him too...although I have to say neither of them were huge fans...actually, to say they lacked my devotion would be a massive understatement.

They grew up watching The Wiggles and Hi-5...clumsy, funny, old Humphrey didn't cut it. An overweight bear who couldn't talk = Boring!

These days Humphrey B Bear "stuff" is quite collectible. A squeaky rubber Humphrey like mine in the top pic sold recently on ebay for $113! I paid four dollars for mine.

Recently I hit the Humphrey trifecta

Metti rubber Humphrey toy

vintage Humphrey sheet

hand-painted Humphrey cereal bowl

                                                                                                      

I also have a night-light like this

(pic not mine, you can buy this one here)

I'll end with the Here's Humphrey theme song. This is the original and I think, the best:

What a funny old fellow is Humphrey,

He gets in all manner of strife,

He leads a very exciting life,

And honey's his favourite fare,

Which is hardly so very surprising,

He's a really amazing old bear,

What a funny old fellow is Humphrey,

Humphrey the fun loving bear!

cute, isn't he...

x

I have met so many lovely people since I started this blog...a few in person and others in a more old-fashioned pen friend-ish kind of way.

Before I became a blogger I was actually pretty negative about computers (just ask my girls, they'll tell you) In my opinion they got in the way of lots of other good things like reading books, writing letters, talking to people etc etc. These days (although I'm not completely won over) I am beginning to see that computers actually have a strange charm of their own. I am writing more letters lately than I ever wrote before I started this blog. And I'm receiving my far share too. This is the nicest part about being a letter writer...knowing if you take the time to write a letter/card/quick scribble you'll usually get one back.

And although I wouldn't say I stalk the postie, when I'm home I do keep a close eye on him, because a good old-fashioned letter with my name on it is one of my most favourite things. 

Speaking of mail, yesterday's was particularly special because I received this parcel of goodies from sweet Allana

Tassie Rocks! and so do you Allana.

vintage tea towel perfection, love it.

x

I began this post on Wednesday, but didn't have time to finish it...good thing too, because just look what was waiting for me when I got home this afternoon 



another lovely parcel, this time from the Queen of Posing, and all round nice girl: the one and only Nelly!

I've been spoilt rotten...

see.

(the Kurt Cobain biography is a present from Nelly for my husband, a Nirvana fan from way back. He'll love it Nelly)

Check out this detail from the Telecom Tower tea towel Nelly sent me. It's hilarious and I love it...

Do you think he's about to pop the question?

I hope he hasn't got any left-overs from dinner stashed away in that mo...don't like his chances if he has...

I'm sure you can think of a much funnier caption than I can...I might award a prize to the best one...

To end, here are four friendly bloggy things you might like to do today:

1. Visit Allana and Nelly

2. Check out the lovely and inspiring new issue of Covet Garden magazine here

3. Pop over to Leah's, she's got the loveliest new bathers in stock

I'm wondering if I should buy myself another pair...

4. Write a letter, or scribble a quick postcard if a letter is too tricky. You'll make someone's day and you might even get a lovely proper letter in return.

p.s.

 

How special is this vintage postcard Laura found in an op-shop? She sent it to me because she knew I would love it, who wouldn't?

s.w.a.l.k.