Jen Bowles Design

Year in Review: 2009 Things in 2009

Back in January, I sat down with a small spiral bound notebook and a pen.

My goal was to come up with 209 things I wanted to do in 2009.  Some big, some small.

Let's see how I did...

First of all, turns out that 209 things is a lot of things.  I only managed to write down 76 things.

However, I did manage to complete 32 of my 76 things--plus, I'm sure, a whole lot more that I didn't write down.

Some of the bigger things I did accomplish included:

• Visit Savannah.  Went there in March with my mom and had a wonderful time.  It's so pretty there and the people are so friendly.  And of course there's the shopping...
• document a Year of Wednesdays.  This is the one I'm most proud of.  Yesterday marked the last Wednesday of 2009.  I now have a stack of index cards with notes about each and every one of them.  The weather, daily life, outings and funny quotes.  I suppose one of my goals for 2010 should be to make some sort of scrapbook or journal out of them.  We'll see.
• participate in 3 online swaps.   I enjoyed participating in all 3 swaps that I signed up for this year.  All were hosted by Kari (Artsy Mama) over on her Year of Color blog.  I had some great partners (Julie at Jane's Apron, Katie at Create Each Day and Artsy Mama) and got to create some fun projects including a May Basket, a beeswax coated collage and a yarn wreath.  And of course now I have some great additions to my home and creative stash :-).
• expand our rear deck.  While I didn't do this work, I did place the call to our handyman extraordinaire, Patrick, and contracted to have the work done.  That counts, right?

Some of the other around the house things that did get done include:

• Painting my office & the upstairs bathroom
• Creating the Wall of Woof
• Sewing window treatments for the dining room
• Organize Will & Cuyler's closet
• Install & plant a window box for the farmer's porch

A few of the 'places to go' things I did:

• visit Patriot Place in Foxboro
• visit Yummy Goods on Cape Cod (had so much fun, did this one twice!)
• take the ferry to Provincetown

Some of the family things that got done:

• bake 12 months of Treat of the Month club for my dad.  Apparently I'm letting my success on this one go to my head.  I gave treat of the month club to 4 family members this Christmas.
• enroll Ebby in dance class
• get a Duxbury beach sticker and take many family trips there :-)

A few of the crafty things that got done include:

• more art journaling.  While I originally wrote that I wanted to complete a page per week, I'm happy to have completed  more than 4 pages for the year--which was my total for 2008
• make painted tin & button flowers
• make cushion for mudroom bench. This turned into getting some nice pillows at a yard sale, but I'm still counting it.  Besides, I did create cushions for the outdoor patio bench.

As I look over my list of 209, er, 76 things to do in 2009, there are several that I didn't accomplish.  Lots of these things still hold their appeal and will probably make it onto my next list including paint the porch ceiling sky blue, visit the Isabella Stewart Gardner museum and make pizza on the grill. Of course there are tons of things I did in 2009 that never made it onto the list such as: spontaneously introduce myself to women whose blogs I read (Melissa of Yummy Goods and Jenn Hayslip of Sweet Eye Candy Creations) and find out that they are even more fun and entertaining to hang out with in person, take unique art classes and create cool projects (with Mimi Kirchner and Marah Johnson), walk around the holiday window displays in NYC at Christmastime fully in awe of the creativity, detail and craftsmanship, be in the same room as 2 major film actors, and collect about 3 tons of beautiful beach rocks.

Yep, I did lots of things in 2009.  And I'm looking forward to accomplishing many more things in 2010~whatever they may be ;-)

To you, thank you for stopping by & reading about my adventures and endeavors and leaving me notes.

Thank you for sharing your inspiration, talents, photos, and links on Twitter, Facebook and Flickr. 

It's a big (real & virtual) world out there, and I'm happy for the connections that make it feel just a little bit smaller and a whole lot friendlier.

Wishing you a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year!!

Mosaic Monday

It is Monday, right??  All this vacationing and holiday-ness along with a head cold has me a bit confused.

As always though, there's no denying the loveliness of flickr.  Enjoy!

1. hearts & fishes, 2. Untitled, 3. miss trudie, 4. who knows, 5. Angel Sweets Gumball Assemblage, 6. Picture 045, 7. pink cashmere vintage wreath, 8. Me and santa fun, 9. Just Looking Pretty (Mooi Plaatje), 10. Thrifted shelf with vintage thread and buttons, 11. New window dressing at Nostalgia Organics, 12. His eyes-how the twinkled!~25 Days of Christmas~Day, 13. @home vintage general, 14. happy birthday sweetie, 15. O, little felt Christmas tree, 16. Katie Runnels

Wishing you...

Peace, love and a Merry Christmas!

Year of Color Wreath Swap ~ Revealed

One of my goals for 2009 was to participate in 3 online swaps.

Um, check!

The Holiday Wreath swap on the Year of Color blog was my 3rd and final swap of the year.  As soon as Kari posted the words "wreath swap" with several yarn wreath pictures for inspiration, I signed up.

I was lucky enough to be paired with none other than the hostess herself, the fabulous Artsy Mama, Kari Ramstrom!

Here is the wreath I made for Kari:

She was hoping for a wreath she could leave up all winter, with pale wintry colors.  Kari also mentioned that she likes fawns.

I looked all over for a vintage fawn but didn't end up having enough time to order one online as I wanted to complete the wreath before I went to NYC and before the 12/15 mailing deadline.  What I found was a cute wooden fawn ornament.  When I bought it, it was painted brown.  Enter the Martha Stewart brown flock.  Love that stuff! I also used vintage buttons & trim along with some new greenery and leaves cut from felted sweaters.  It was a new color palette for me, many  more earth tones than I usually work with.  However, the creative challenge was welcome and I was quite pleased with the finished wreath.  Love when that happens!

Of course Kari's wreath arrived before I had finished her wreath.  I made myself wait to open her package until after I had finished her wreath.  Luckily it only took another day or so, then I allowed myself to open my lovely wreath.   Kari included a very nice note, detailing the provenance of the materials that she used.  I loved reading that and hearing about where each item came from (including some wool from her grandmother and that yummy pom pom that came from Anthropologie).  I love the sentiment on my wreath.  It's hanging in my office/entry/mudroom and greets me everytime I walk in the door.

Thanks Kari for a wonderful swap and for a wonderful Year of Color!

New York City birthday weekend: 42 Things, Part 3

Also known as, The Thrilling Conclusion...

29. The Subway

I've been to NYC many times, but as far as I can remember, this was my first trip on the subway.  Felt very native--even though the couple we were chatting with on the platform was visiting from Ft. Worth, TX.

Mom loaded up an MTA card at 47th St. station and we were on our way Soho at Broadway and Prince St.   That train was an older train (and the Yellow line felt like an older subway line), didn't see very many maps on board and it was hard to understand the conductor on the P.A. system but we made it just fine.  On the way back uptown we rode on a different line and the train was all modern and had computerized signboards.  Fancy.  It was fast, felt safe, and had some nice underground scenery at the stops:  mosaic signs with the station name.  Once again, art is everywhere.  And accessible for $2.25 a trip.

30. Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree

Yes, it was totally mobbed, wall to wall people.  No, I didn't get a decent picture--although I did take one of a nice couple with their camera.  It's a must see though.  When you go to the side where you can see the skaters, the golden Prometheus statue and the tree all from one vantage point, it just says "New York City Christmas".  Smile.   

31. Saks windows

Based on the Saks book Twinkle, Twinkle Little Flake, these windows had some sort of tie in with the new Windows 7 operating system.  We're a Mac family, so that was not a selling point, but they were cute anyway.  I love the style of the illustrations and the snowflake is pretty cute (cutesy...) too.  I get a Christmas picture book for Ebby, Will & Cuyler each year and this just may be the book under the tree this year...   

32.  The color of the Purl Soho shops

Based on how big Purl Soho seems online, I was surprised that the brick & mortar shops were so tiny.  The yarn shop was so crowded that I dared not even venture in the door.  Plenty of good stuff to look at in the window though.  The fabric shop a few doors down was just as cozy, though not as crowded. They manage to fit a lot of fabric into a small space and it's displayed  quite nicely.  The shops themselves are a lovely aqua/green color--definitely unique and definitely charming.         

33. Rachel Ashwell's inspiration board at Shabby Chic

After being hit hard by the recession and declaring bankruptcy in the spring of this year, Rachel Ashwell's Shabby Chic store is back in this smaller, more intimate location on Mercer St.  They have one of Rachel's actual inspiration boards as part of the store decor.  I could've spent an hour studying it!  So many lovelies!     {Here's a great link to an interview with Rachel in the new store here}

34.  Celebrity sighting in Soho

So, my mom and I were in the Shabby Chic shop.  Just us and 2 sales associates.  My mom was enjoying one of the overstuffed chairs and I was getting ready to pay for 2 shabby snowflake ornaments.  Another sales associate came up from a roped off area downstairs followed by a female customer.  They were chatting about a furniture piece the customer was considering buying.  I was standing right next to this customer.  After I paid, I went over to see my mom.  I noticed the female customer (she was right next to the chair my mom was sitting in, still talking) and I almost asked if I could take her picture.  She looked very New York to me: beautiful, fashionable, comfortable, effortlessly casual and elegant at the same time.  Of course, I had no idea who she was.  As soon as she walked out, my mom said to the sales staff, 'Is that someone we should know?' and the associate that was helping her replied, 'Yeeees, that was Julia Stiles.'

Are you kidding me??  I was standing right next to her, noticed her, and I still didn't realize who she was??  I've seen her in movies, I read celeb magazines while waiting in line at the grocery store.  I'm so disappointed in myself. My  mom even recognized her enough to know she was famous. 

Epic fail on my part.  However Ms. Stiles seemed pretty down to earth, I don't think it bothered her in the least that I didn't harass her for a photo. Next time though, watch out! 

{Yes, I had to use a picture from the Bourne Ultimatum with Matt Damon--hoping to run into him on the street one of these days too ;-) }

35.  Tin assemblage dolls at Bergdorf  Goodman

I spotted these beauties not only in the holiday windows on 5th Avenue, but also upstairs in the Christmas ornament room.  I loved them all!  Altered art in Bergdorf Goodman, who knew?? I need to make one of these in 2010!

36. The elevator at MacKenzie-Childs

They are calling the holiday edition of the store 'Fantasy on West 57th'.  That would be an understatement.  The place was incredible.  My mom is a M-K pottery collector from way back, so this place was a must see for her.  Such a treat!  We took the over-the-top elevator to the 2nd floor to see the over-the-top fantasy Christmas scene room that included a 9 ft. pottery chard mosaic Christmas tree.  Amazing.

37. Santacon NYC

The two Harvard co-eds sitting next to us were discussing Santacon on the BoltBus on Friday morning.  One of the girls was doing it for the first time and the other one had friends who were involved.  I gathered that there was Santa garb involved.  I thought it might be a 5k road race.  Not quite.  Santacon is (according to the website--warning, colorful language abounds there)  "a not-for-profit, non-political, non-religious & non-logical Santa Claus convention, attended for absolutely no reason." It seems to be a cross between a bar crawl (which they say it isn't) and a canned food drive.  All I know is we saw a ton of Santa attired 20-somethings weaving down the sidewalk in the West Village as we were headed for the subway.  As the event started at 10am and it was 5pm, they were quite jolly.  A couple of Santas even let me take their picture.  The whole experience may have made me feel just a little bit old...

38. Peace signs

Again, it may have been that I was looking for them because it's Ebby's symbol du jour, but peace signs seemed to be everywhere: Tinsel Trading, Henri Bendel and the ever-hip Cinderella Club costume jewelry shop.     

39.  Goldbug Studio creations at MacKenzie-Childs and Bergdorf Goodman

Ashley's creations are amazing, a true inspiration for glitter-loving, vintage-inspired mixed media artists everywhere.     

40. Live "mannequin" in the window at Agent Provocateur

The Old Navy super Modelquins are no match for this lingerie clad performance artist.

Untitled from Ebby Bowles on Vimeo.

{I'm attempting to embed a video clip from my phone, can't really tell where it's going to end up in the post...}

41. My favorite Christmas ornament of the weekend

It was a bird in a gold nest at Bergdorf.  I was in such a hurry to get back to the hotel to check out of our room, I don't even know the vendor or how much it was. But I did manage to take a picture of it.  Phew.

eta: upon further review, it looks like this is a Goldbug Studio lovely.  Of course :-)

42.  Fun with my mom

Thanks so much to my mom for a great weekend, we saw and did sooo much and managed to keep a smile on our faces (most of the time anyway...).  It was an awesome birthday gift, even if I did have to carry all the bags for 2 days ;-)   Love you Mum, can't wait for our next adventure (during which we will ask a 3rd party to take a picture or 2 of us together)!

Thanks for sticking with me through my 42 Things!  If you can believe it, I have a ton more stuff I didn't show so I'm going to upload a set of pictures to my flickr photostream.  Just not tonight.

If you have any questions about any of the places we went or things we did, just leave a comment or send me an email.  I'm happy to share info!

  

       

 

New York City birthday weekend: 42 Things, Part 2

Continuing with my list of more than you ever wanted to know about my trip to NYC...

15.  Sweet Revenge

It's a cupcake bakery.  It's a wine bar.  It's a bistro.

It's in the West Village and it was delicious. 

I had the signature Sweet Revenge cupcake (peanut butter & chocolate, delicous) and a frozen hot chocolate (decent, but not great).  Bubbe had a Pure cupcake (vanilla) which she much enjoyed, especially the frosting.  I loved the atmosphere in here.  It wasn't crowded when we went (5pm on Saturday).  Very cozy and warm with the lighting and old wood floors.  I would definitely recommend. 

16. Anthropologie windows at Rockefeller Center

Um, swoon.  Tons of paper, creatively used fabric and yarn and enough glittery fake snow to create your own blizzard.   Yes, that's a car (at least part of one) in the window. With fabric tire covers.  I loved the STOP sign.   Great use of paper cone cups, talk about a snow cone ;-) Those Anthro peeps make winter seem sooo appealing.

17. Handmade in New York       

At first I didn't want to stop at this craft fair in the basement of a church in Soho/West Village.  But my mom wanted to check it out, so I went.  Glad we did.  We met a very nice vendor selling vintage wallpaper & ephemera collage packs.  He does letterpress printing at the South Street Seaport Museum.  No time to go there this trip, but it's on the list for another visit for sure. 

18.  The upper floor escalators at Macy's

They still have the old fashioned wooden escalators.  I used to be so scared of getting on the down escalator when I was little--yet somehow I found these narrow wooden escalators oddly comforting and nostalgic. 

19.  The return of flock

I don't want to speak for Jenn, but we were both pretty excited while discussing flocking at dinner on Friday night.  Love the Martha Stewart flocking powder they now have at Michaels.  Loved talking to someone who "gets" it.  Gets why flock is awesome, could maybe be the new glitter.  Basically, flock rocks.

20. Our hotel

At first we were hoping to stay at a friend's pied a terre in the city.  That didn't work out, so we were going to stay with one of my friends in Westchester.  After reflecting on our limited time in the city and my friend's family obligations, we decided to look for a hotel.  With a room that wasn't $400 for the night.  I found a great place on Debby Schuh's blog.  I don't know Debby and I don't remember how I first found her blog but I enjoy reading it.  She has posted several times about her trips to NYC, always with great shops and tips.  When I read what she wrote about The Hotel at Times Square, it felt like a personal recommendation.  When I went to the website and was able to book a room for under $250, we had a place to stay.  Just as Debby said, the hotel is newly renovated & well located.  Free wifi and an included continental breakfast were a bonus.  Loved all the artwork (prints but all very colorful and appealing) and the carpet in the hallways. Other than the continuing construction & dumpster on the street in front of the hotel, it was great.  I think I may have liked it even better than the W on Lex that I stayed at last summer.  More character, fewer hipsters, plenty of families.

21. Great SoHo shop names

The Lively Set? Once Upon A Tart?  Yes, please.        

22. Pashmina scarves on every corner 

Whereas I brought a scarf with me, I resisted.  But oh  my goodness, pashmina (for $10, I use the term loosely) everywhere!  

23. Sequin heaven at Trims de Carnival

Another gem on W38th St. in the Garment District.  They had entire walls of sequins--in all shapes, sizes, colors and degrees of irridescence. We stocked up on a few different colors and styles.  The plan is to pool our purchases :-)     

24. The  Plaza Hotel

I only had a few minutes to dash inside, check out the lobby Christmas decorations, and dash out.  I didn't actually see Eloise.  She may have been across the street at FAO Schwarz...    

25.  Party straws at Pearl River

Ok, it wasn't just the party straws that I liked. I liked the tissue paper honeycomb lanterns, the cacophony of colors & textures, the juxtaposition of porcelain dishes and rice paper lamps.  Yep, I liked this place but they seem to have more of a selection (of paper lanterns and parasols anyway) online.  Of course I was tired, lugging 3 bags and didn't go upstairs so I may have missed a few things.     

26. The salad bar at Cafe Duke    

We were hungry.  The salad bar had a seemingly infinite variety of food selections.  I chose an eclectic mix of items including sesame chicken, cucumbers, lasagna, Thai rice, fresh salsa and 2 giant strawberries.  It was all delicious. 

27. Gift wrap on the lower level at Henri Bendel

Sure, I may have purchased the most inexpensive item in the store (an $8 ornament) but I still got the same signature gift wrap as the high rollers.  Very vintage big city department store, getting your purchases wrapped, gratis.  In fact, as much as I want to hang the ornament on my tree, I like looking at the box so I haven't unwrapped it yet.  All in good time.

28.  The one and only Tinsel Trading

Glitter. Vintage Millinery. A chance meeting with a fellow blogger. More glitter.  Printed vintage banner size ribbons. Helping another customer with her iPhone (I tried anyway). Metallic thread, silk thread.  Beautiful trims. Stars on  sticks.   Peace sign ornaments.        

Mmmmm....

Please do come back tomorrow for the exciting final installment of my NYC: 42 Things.

See you then!

New York City birthday weekend: 42 Things, Part 1

I had a birthday last week, and if you look at the clever title of this post, you can probably figure out how old I turned.  My birthday turned into a 4 day long Birthday Fest, one of the highlights of which was a 2 day trip to the Big Apple, a wonderful gift from my mom.

Since we did soooo much in our 30 hours in the city, I thought a list post might be in order. I've seen a few of these NYC lists floating around blogland and I love reading them.

Here we go, in no particular order...

1. Riding the Bolt Bus 

It's not just a mode of transportation, it's an adventure.  Especially when it's your first time and you have no idea which route your driver is taking.  Hello, New Jersey!  Thank goodness for my GPS equipped iPhone, I knew where we were at all times.  Phew.

2.  The Ribbon Guy on W. 38th Street 

Not his actual name I'm pretty sure, but fitting.  The shop is nothing fancy, more of a tiny warehouse really.  He's got some great ribbon in there though, and he loves to give the suburban tourists a good deal.  What a hoot to watch him measure out yards of ribbon, just pulling it off the spool--and then just giving us the whole spool.  We love it!  And he knows we'll be back ;-) 

3. Bergdorf Goodman holiday windows. 

In a word: incredible.  In several words: the best in the city, over-the-top amazing, stuffed with intricate details and a visual feast befitting a Manhattan shopping queen.  Phew. The theme this year is 'Compendium of Curiousities', inspired by Alice in Wonderland. It's difficult to capture the magic of these windows with a camera--especially with a small point & shoot during the day with a big crowd around.  There are some excellent pictures (in 3 parts) on this website: Another Normal .  Scroll down to see the pictures of the windows from this  year.  My favorite was the window made completely out of paper.  

4.  Celebrity Blogger meeting:  Jenn Hayslip of Sweet Eye Candy Creations. 

I still can't believe this actually happened.  My mom and I were in Tinsel Trading on Friday afternoon.  As we were browsing around, I noticed a woman taking a picture of one of the displays.  I looked at her face and then at her {beautiful} brown hair.  I was pretty sure I recognized her from the photo on her blog. So I went over to her and asked her if she was Jenn, the Sweet Eye Candy Creations blog author and createur extraordinaire.  She was.  I introduced myself (what a way to de-lurk!) and mentioned my blog.  She remembered that I'm one of her flickr contacts as well.  Jenn was as sweet, nice and lovely in person as she is on her blog.  We chatted for quite a while in TT, and when my mom heard Jenn's husband wouldn't be flying in until late in the evening, she invited her to have dinner with us.  And she did!  We met her again a few hours later at Anthropologie in Rockefeller Center and had dinner had a cozy, elegant restaurant nearby.  Though the food was lacking a bit, the company and conversation wonderful!  Bloggers in general (and Jenn in particular) are such nice people and the internet really does make the world a little bit smaller :-) 

5. Beautiful cast iron architectural details in Soho

I guess the tip off was that my hotel concierge map said 'Cast Iron Historic District' right over the section of Soho we walked through.  Beautiful stuff with great lines and patinas.     

6. Cupcakes from Magnolia 

I had read that they weren't nearly as good as the hype would have you believe but there was one right there next to the NBC Studio store at Rockefeller Center.  How could I not sample them?? I had a basic vanilla cupcake with pink frosting.  The cake part was pretty good.  The frosting was too much--as in too much shortening and too much quantity.  They were cute though. Eat and learn...      

7. People camped out in line for Saturday Night Live tickets--on Friday night in the freezing cold.

They had sleeping bags, blankets, chairs, and laptops.  It was about 25 degrees.  They were on the street.  Once I saw that Taylor Lautner was hosting, it all made sense.  Now if I'd realized Bonjovi was the musical guest, I might've been right there with them.

8. My mom and the hats

Our first stop after stepping of the bus in NYC?  The Bag Man.  Even before we found a bathroom, my mom found a shop and was trying on hats.  She bought one for 99¢.  Note the bright orange price tag I had to remove.  On Saturday, she bought another one on the street in Soho. And she tried on several in between--at a craft fair, department stores, more street vendors.  I had no idea she had such a great love of head-wear.

9. Nice people

When I think of the South, I think of nice people.  When I think of NYC, I usually think of people in too much of a rush to be concerned with being nice.  But guess what?  Pretty much everyone we had an interaction with in the city, was nice.  Security guards, transit workers, shop owners and workers, hotel employees and even people on the street. Nice job New York, way to polish up your image.  They must know that Santa's watching.

10. The chairs in Herald Square are the same lime green metal chairs I have on my patio at home

I thought that was pretty cool. 

11.  The Herald Square side windows at Macy's 

They were whimsical, colorful, and full of letters to Santa.  What's not to love?  Check out some excellent pictures here on

Another Normal (again).

12. Ruffle trim at M&J

I didn't buy anything at M&J this trip, but I did drool over the ruffle trim.  So luscious.

13.  Riding by Dylan's Candy Bar on the bus ride home

And thinking how crazy my kids will go when we take them there :-)  {photo is from some Dylan's candy for sale at Macy's}

14. Song that will always make me think of this trip: Ke$ha's TiK ToK

It's one of Ebby's current faves and it was playing in the store where I bought her a New York shirt. In fact, Ke$ha was in NYC on Friday as part of the Z100 Jingle Ball concert
In some further evidence of serendipity, when we got of the bus at 8th Ave & 34th St (in front of the Tick Tock Diner no less) there was a long line of people waiting to get into a free Z100 Meet & Greet.  Among the singers scheduled to appear:  Ke$ha.

TiK ToK.

Part 2 tomorrow.

Welcome Winter (???)

Whereas we had our first snow this weekend and our first frost (latest date for that here in our part of MA in over 130 years) and it's currently just above 30 degrees outside, I figured it was time to change out my blog banner and just give in to winter.

We didn't get much snow at all at our house, maybe a 1/2 inch on parts of the grass.  However, due to the cold temps and the lowness of the sun, we still have some snow to look out at. 

Will & Cuyler were especially excited for snow.  At 10pm on Saturday night when they went outside on the deck to dance in it. 

In shorts. 

{Welcome banner made by me using all natural or recycled materials including sticks from the yard, fabric from the EXCL center, vintage wallpaper, scrapbook paper scraps and thrifted book pages.  More pics on my flickr photostream.  Oh, and not made for winter ;-) }

More Estate Sale Finds

I loved the thread I got at the estate sale so much that I thought it deserved it's own post.

Thread, however, was not the only treasure that came home with me.

Let's start with the kitchen themed items, shall we?

How about some Jell-o molds and tart tins?  How about an assorted lot of 19 of them??

I love all the different lines & patinas, so sculptural and authentic.   For now I have these down in my studio, waiting to be filled with small embellishments for storage or project work.  They'd also make a great addition to some sort of 3-d assemblage or sculpture.  Reminds me of the make-it-yourself magnetic gadget wall at the Jepson Art Complex in Savannah {that's my mom and one of her creations back in March}. I would love to have a wall like that in my studio somewhere...

Moving on, I couldn't leave this stainless steel juicer behind.  It's adorable and it was $1. I think it was the curled handle that put me over the edge.

When I entered the sitting room of the house the sale was at, that's where my fun really began.  I found the thread, my long-lost pal Jen, some great vintage costume jewelry and a peanut butter jar full of buttons. Even the jar itself is old. 

Funny thing is, since going to this estate sale, I've been seeing estate sale signs every weekend. Obviously, there are a lot more treasures out there waiting to come home with me.

Going out and bringing them home is my responsibility.

My duty, really...