New Christmas Flour Sack Towels

We are thrilled to be offering these new flour sack towels by Vintage Ops in our shop.

They are made right here in the USA and are decorated with vintage postcard artwork. 

They are only $10 and make wonderful gifts. 

 

 

Hearth Warming Holidays is Next Weekend!

Shop our huge selection of vintage Christmas and gifts and then check out the 60+ shops, galleries and restaurants of Waynesville, Ohio during Hearth Warming Holidays next weekend!

 

 

Just in for Christmas: New Abbybelle Creations!

 

Sam, the artist behind Abbybelle, is just so talented (and sweet!) and her creations a filled with fun.  Here we have Santa and Mrs. Claus figures nestled in an old wire milk crate among vintage aqua mason jars.  She also makes these delightful Santa and Cat head ornaments that we have nestled in old jello molds.  (I apologize about the lighting in these pics...I am still getting to know a new camera.)

 

 

Here we have a snowman with a cat building another to his one side and another cat preparing for a snowball fight on his other.  Three little Christmas mice are nestled among hankies in the box below them. 

 



 

This Santa is relaxing in his jaunty overalls.  We found that one of our vintage light fixture bases made the perfect pedestal for him!

 

 

Sam also made these sweet snowman head ornaments.  The pillow tucked in the drawer above is made in Lancaster County, PA by Old Time Gathering.

 

 

This little wooden church is also part of the same display in the shop and I couldn't resist sharing it here.  It is vintage and hand made.  It lights up and there is a nativity scene at the front of all the church pews. 

 

 

This wall hanging is another one of the many pieces by Old Time Gathering that we have in the shop.  It is hand painted and grunged and stitched by hand.  We found that these work great as valances or as accents on curtains.  You can also hang them up on a wall or door. 

 

 

Here is another example of one of their fabric hanging signs. 

New Artist Jan Dahler

Another new artist in our shop is Jan Dahler of Kitschy Christmas. Her wonderful creations are made of a fabric mache and incorporate vintage materials.   

 

 

 

We were fortunate to be able to get 2 of her Halloween crows this year.  They are sitting on vintage Christmas light reflectors.  The leaves on the pumpkins are vintage millenry.  Vintage fabrics are used for the ruffles and the hats.  There are vintage mercury beads at the tips of the hats.

 

 

We also got a number of her snowmen in the shop.  They were just so cute we couldn't wait to put them out.  They fit so perfectly in this old painted cabinet top.

 

 

Jan used vintage paper cups for these snowmen.  They are made of fabric mache and are accented with glitter. 

 

 

These little guys fit perfectly in this old muffin tin that we had.  It was painted red and black and decorated with floral decals sometime long ago.  In addition to the old Coke, Frostie and Dr. Pepper cups, there is a snowman on an old Stoller's honey sample cup and another in an old Dixie dessert cup decorated with little snowmen playing in the snow. 

 

 

Here is a snowman in a large vintage Coke cup.  The one below it has a spoon and is all ready to dig into the vintage box of ice cream on which it is perched.

 

 

The snowman on the top of this picture is coming out of a chimney made from vintage fabrix and trimmed in vintage cellophane tinsel garland.  He is carrying a bag made of vintage polka dotted fabric.

 

 

Here is a close up of another snowman in one of the vintage Dixie dessert cup.

 

 

 

Here are another couple snowmen in their sample cups. 

 

Vintage Christmas Spotlight: Jello Molds

Today I thought I would share a few ideas on how you can use vintage Jello molds in your christmas decor. In the picture above you'll see that they make fabulous tea-light holders (or if you're feeling crafty, you can even make them into little candles). They reflect the soft light so well, adding to the coziness of your decor. Plus if you use an electric tea-light, you can nestle them among your garlands and decorations! These round ones also make the perfect ornament holder to showcase a special medium sized (3-4 inch) shiny brite bulb!




Propped on its side, it makes the perfect showcase for little gems like this spun cotton elf ornament...



Or a tiny plastic nativity like this one. You can be creative and make tiny little vignettes of some of your smallest vintage Christmas treasures that might otherwise be lost among your other decorations. Use a little bit of wax or display putty to hold it in place!




They also make a great base for your vintage (or reproduction) bottle-brush trees. Wouldn't it be a sweet way to greet your family and guests to the Christmas brunch with a tree at each place setting with their names attached on a pretty tag? You could nestle some batting, garland or a bit of tinsel at the base to make it even more festive!

Hearth Warming Holidays Vintage Spotlight: Christmas Trees

We've gotten all sorts of wonderful vintage Christmas goodies in the shop right now and we wanted to share some of them with you. Here are some of our various Christmas trees.



This Christmas tree is the one that took center stage in Mom's childhood Christmasses. It is laden down with all of our vintage handmade and plastic unbreakable ornaments (after all, we do have to crawl under it to plug/unplug the lights!). The tree skirt is a vintage find as are the great funky metal tree stands.



Mom got the inspiration for this display in the December 09 issue of Romantic Homes (such a great magazine!). You can easily replicate the look in your own home with some polyester or cotton batting. We got a huge bag of it down the street at the Fabric Shack. The centerpiece is a FABULOUS gold and white ceramic tree. It has its original red lightbulb which gives it a faint rosy glow. The little plastic bulbs are actually clear candle shapes with gold glitter. This mountainous tree presides over a village of vintage putz-style mica covered cardboard houses.



This great vintage aluminum tree is covered with old handmade beaded ornaments and is kept company by some of our other ceramic trees. It's skirt features feathers! Underneath is a round Christmas tablecloth. On the green patio table are some reproduction creamy bottle brush trees.



The tree on our Stickley Brothers desk is a new piece but we just love the frosted look of the branches. It is decked out with pieces of Steph's Jewels handmade jewelry, made by a talented local lady who uses pieces of vintage jewelry and findings to make great new creations. We've put a lot of our vintage pieces as well as some of our other handcrafted jewels, pocket mirrors and hair accessories around it.

Hearth Warming Holidays Sneak Peek!

Here is a sneak peek at some of the fabulous vintage baubles we've been busy putting out for our Hearth Warming Holidays Open House which goes on through Sunday. Here we've assembled oodles of beautiful aqua and blue vintage glass ornaments. Don't you just love the old stencilled ones from Shiny Brite or made in Poland?

Here we've got some of our pink vintage ornaments, accented with some of our vintage jewels. We've put some of our pink champagne glasses to good use holding some "baubly"!


Here we've got some of our greens and golds...the old wire basket lends a nice contrast for display.

On our chippy white dresser, we've raided the shop's shelves for pretty compotes and dishes to hold some of our more spectacular ornaments. Those in the hobnail Fenton tidbit (front and center) are unsilvered WWII finds!

A Reason To Give Thanks

The merchants here in Waynesville have been helping the Village government collect toiletries and supplies for the troops in an effort called Give Thanks and We'll Thank You. From Hearth Warming Holidays in November through Christmas in the Village at the beginning of this month, we've been collecting both donations including monetary ones in exchange for a chance to win one of some great giftbaskets filled with items from the merchants of Waynesville and put together by the lovely ladies at The Pretty Pooch.

I am so thrilled to be able to say that this collection has been a huge success. So many people have been so very incredibly generous and supportive of their troops. A number of people in our shop alone donated while declining to even enter in the raffle. We raised a little under $250, many many cards and a huge amount of toiletries.

I would like also to thank all of the merchants who worked hard to get the word out, the very wonderful people who donated so generously and the people up at the Village offices who have always kept the troops and their needs close to their hearts. Most of all, Mom and I would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude to all those who are serving, have served or who supports a loved one's service for all of the sacrifices and hard work that you have and continue to put forth in support of this wonderful country, keeping all of us safe each day. Thank you so very, very much. May God bless you and may you have a very Merry Christmas (or other holiday that you celebrate) and a very wonderful New Year.

If you missed this donation drive but would still like to donate to the troops, just contact the Village office in Waynesville, Ohio at 513-897-2025. If you aren't from around here but would like to help, contact your local American Legion post or your National Guard. I am sure that they can help you find someone who is collecting close to your home.

A Vintage Christmas Tree: Shimmering Ceramics

If you live in a small space where you just can't fit a real tree (using the term in a relative sense) a great alternative is a collectible vintage ceramic tree. They are also a great item to collect. You can scatter them around a room or group on a table, buffet or mantle for more impact.

One of the most popular manufacturers was Atlantic Mold. Because they were sold as molds there is a wide variety not only of shapes and sizes but also of different color combinations. White, aqua and pink tend to be the most highly prized, particularly when it is accented with gold. The trees generally come in two ceramic pieces. There is the tree itself and then a base that hides the light and often a music box.

One of the niftiest things about these little ceramic trees are the little plastic "bulbs" that you can put on them. They light up in the same manner as a light-up house but with little holes that you can plug up with these little clear plastic bulbs. They come in an array of colors and such different shapes as bows, holly, birds (these are one of the more common shapes), flowers, etc and toppers like angels and stars. Some even are glittery! Because they are collectible too, don't despair if you find a tree you love that does not have bulbs, it might take a little work (they sometimes are a little harder to find), but you should be able to find replacements. Plus, you can pick out whatever ones you like best with your tree.

These trees depending on size and glaze, bulbs (which are collected themselves) and the nature of the base range from the easily affordable $15-$20 range to close to $200 for a more spectacular tree. Of course this is a loose range. But an inexpensive tree might make a great gift for someone in a dorm.


Right now we have four different ceramic trees. None of ours are musical but we do have some really nifty ones.

First of all we have a rather traditional and more common plain green tree on a wreath design base by Atlantic Mold. It is decorated with little multi-colored bird bulbs.



This second tree is actually rather unusual because it is so tiny. Its mini bulbs are even more minute than on a standard ceramic tree. Its white color makes it even better.



Finally, we have our two best finds. The little white one is great with its pale green, almost aqua accents. It is lacking bulbs but I think that it would look lovely with some of the same bulbs as on our best tree, the large craggy white with gold accents. It has clear twisted bulb shaped bulbs with gold glitter inside. There are one or two on the tree but the others are squirrelled away in a little bag attached to the cord. It has a vintage large red bulb inside that gives it a pinkish look when lit.

A Vintage Christmas Tree: Jewel Brites, Glitter and Glue

In addition to those great vintage glass Shiny Brite type ornaments, there are some other great non-glass vintage ornaments out there that will help to brighten up your vintage Christmas theme. There are all sorts of great handmade ornaments like the little glittered and sometimes decoupaged styrofoam ball ornaments, those great beaded and sequined old satin kit ornaments, egg shell ornaments and felt ones...whatever the muse led someone to create.

There are also a number of ornaments made by a company called Jewel Brite which just capture the whimsical nature of a midcentury Christmas quite like them. They specialized in 3D scenic ornaments. They come in a range of designs like lanterns and tear-dropped with all sorts of different items inside. There are nativity and town scenes, poinsettias, spun cotton angels, snowmen and santas. Many of which are just darling.

Take a peak at our vintage tree (it was the one Mom's parents used when she was growing up) bedecked with a variety of vintage ornaments.










Here are some more great vintage ornaments, in particular some fantastic beaded ones, on our vintage aluminum tree.

A Vintage Christmas Tree: Shiny Brites and Baubles

One of the essentials to any vintage-inspired Christmas is the tree and its ornaments. There is something about the old glass ornaments especially that adds such a cozy note to your tree. We have just gotten a bunch of "new" ones in...and just in time too because our little gold tree was definitely beginning to get that Charlie Brown look to it. As we have started our business and continued to acquire vintage treasures for it we have come to realize that there are just so many different types.

However, as you can see it is quite full again now. I think we might have to see about finding another metal tree. (We are both too scared to put them out on a regular tree...it would be our luck we'd brush against it and send them all to the floor.)










One of my personal favorites that I could not part with is a little geisha girl ornament from the 20s-30s. She is just so sweet in her pale blue and pink and I love the little touches of glitter here and there on here. She is unmarked and while I have researched and tried to identify her I have not yet found one like her. Mom has been worse than me. There have been a number of stencilled glass ball ornaments that she has been unable to part with. One in particular that we both thought was just the neatest thing was an Italian teardrop Santa face with a little mini red glass bulb nose.

Yummy Christmases Past

We have a bunch of nifty vintage cookbooks in right now, many of them with an emphasis on entertaining and parties. One of these is an old wire-bound Betty Crocker's HOSTESS cookbook: Guest Tested Recipes and Party Plans for Every Occasion.



Since Christmas is coming up I thought I would give you a "taste" of some of the yummy recipes and helpful tips inside!



Here are some scrumptious looking desserts...I can attest to the absolute yumminess of the Buche Noel...my older brother had to make one for a foreign language class Christmas party in middle school and we've been making it on and off ever since. Smaller ones are great for the little baking exchange that we do on our street each year but they are also great for teachers, friends, hostesses, and parties. I personally can't stand cherries so we sometimes mix it up and have either a cream cheese and strawberry or a cinnamon-sugar apple filling instead. My Grandma also used to make the Yule Log cake... Seeing that picture makes me think I should ask her to make another one this year!




This book also has some great decorating ideas, like making these wreaths:

Vintage Better Homes and Gardens Sweet Dolly Christmas

Right now we have a copy of the vintage Better Homes and Gardens Birthdays and Family Celebrations book. I just could not resist sharing some of it with you!



Here the dollies are busy making their cookies and candies together for Christmas. Aren't they adorable?



Isn't this vignette of the little doll family gathered around the Christmas table charming?