Welcome!

Welcome to my blog! Here is where you'll finding me rambling about a variety of subjects, including my family, vintage, thrifting, Etsy shops I love, and more!





Tuesday, November 29, 2011

More of My Favorite Things

I love Etsy!  Not just because I sell vintage there, but there are so many talented handmade shops there too!

I'll be listing several of my favorite things each week, and hopefully you'll like some of them too!

http://www/rapportcards.etsy.com

I love these origami dresses! These would be so cute for a bridal shower!

http://www.enchantedquilling.etsy.com/


This is one of my favorite Etsy shops!  I've bought several items from this lovely lady who lives in Australia! She has beautiful greeting cards too!


http://www.jeneembroidery.etsy.com/


And how cute are these retro looking owl napkins!!  Love her shop!

http://www.lilprincessdollstore.etsy.com/

I love American Girl dolls, and my 18 year old daughter, Katherine, has a best friend who still loves them too, so I usually buy her something for her dolls.  Great prices in her shop!

Happy Shopping and Happy Holidays!

Jen

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Manly Treasury



How exciting to see my "manly leather cozies" on the Etsy front page treasury today!!

Saturday, November 26, 2011

I love gift wrapping!

I thought these had a cute retro look to them!

I've always loved gift wrapping! Since my Mom had 5 kids, and that meant a lot of gift wrapping at Christmas time, she appreciated that I was happy to do all of it!

I offer free gift wrapping in all three of my shops!  I can also send directly to the gift recipient, along with a personalized gift tag!

Cute Holiday Ribbons


Festive fun ribbons and paper!  All of you know I am not too great in the craft department, but I still love to create! Gift wrapping gives me that opportunity!

More traditional Christmas ribbons

So let the shopping begin, and I will do the gift wrapping for you!

Happy Holidays!

Jen

Monday, November 21, 2011

Happy Thanksgiving!



I will start off my Thanksgiving with my 3rd annual 5k, Turkey Run, in Avon, Ohio!  It's a great run through a gorgeous development!  There's always people that come out of their houses to cheer us on as we run by!

I had a little fall a few weeks back, so we'll see how it goes!  I've been coming in 2nd in my age category (a very old age category!!), and my goal is to be 1st, but not feeling to confident at this point!  But that's okay, it will be fun!  I think I've even recruited one of my spinning friends to run!  This would be her first 5k and she's a bit nervous.  I call her a "butt doctor" (not to her face), she's actually a proctologist!

My brother Steve, and his two sons, Michael and Tom will also be running.  They're all amazing runners.  I think my nephew Michael, may have finally broken a high school running record that Steve had!

Then we'll have Thanksgiving here!  I cooked a turkey breast last year that turned out great!  (A bone-in turkey breast), and I'll have some other traditional sides.  My daughter, Katherine, will be home from college, and she's a vegetarian, so I'll probably make her favorite veggie soup, and maybe get some ingredients for a veggie wrap too!

My mother-in-law, Grace, will be here, and my sister Susan, and her darling son, Bobby!  My oldest daughter will be hosting Thanksgiving at her new home in Columbus with her fiance and in-laws-to-be.  We were invited, but since I'm running in the 5k that won't work out!

So whatever you're doing for Thanksgiving, enjoy!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Jen

My son Mark is going to college locally, and living at home, so he'll be here!!

Friday, November 18, 2011

What Do I Love Most About Vintage!?

I love antiques and vintage!  I started my first Etsy shop in 2008, and my passion has grown even stronger since that time!

So what is it that draws me (and many others) to vintage!?

Retro Barware

There is definitely not 1-answer to that question!

I love the hunt!  I love bringing my items back to life, cleaning them, and making them shine again! 

Decorative Rooster Plate

I really did not have much experience with photography before I started my Etsy shops, but I've really learned a lot, and have so much more to learn, but I love it!  It's definitely a creative outlet!

Melamine Teacups & Saucers

I have always wanted to get a marketing degree!  I feel like I'm earning one on my own!  I tweet, I flickr, I facebook, blog, and more!  That's marketing and it's fun!

Vintage teacups are a unique gift!


I love my customers too!  When I ship out an order, I like to wrap it and tie it with a pretty bow, so you feel like you're receiving a gift!  After all, we work hard for our money, so why not make it special!!?

I really love that my office is right here in my home!  Although my house looks more like a "hoarder house", with all of my shop stuff everywhere, it's still great to not have to go to an 8-5 job!

Find what you love to do, and you'll be happy!

Jen

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Hostess Gift Ideas

It's nice to bring a little gift to the hostess of the holiday parties you'll be attending!

I think vintage teacaups are the perfect gift, and since they're vintage, they're unique!

Pirken-Hammer Teacup & Saucer

Why not add a nice selection of your favorite teas to go along with your gift!?

White and Black German Luster Set


Whether your hostess is more of the traditional girl, or the more modern girl, there's a teacup for everyone!

Pale Yellow Full Service Tea Set


Love this set that includes the teapot, creamer, and 3 teacups & saucers!

Royal Sealy

Your hostess is not a coffee or tea drinker?  No problem!  Check out my shop for more unique gift ideas!

Happy Shopping!

Jen

Monday, November 14, 2011

I Love the Ads in Old Magazines!

I love the advertisements in the old magazines!  I just found these two 1953 Life magazines at an estate sale, and couldn't wait to go through them!  Both feature the queen on the front (she was beautiful)!

Queen Elizabeth Benediction

We've come along way (as you can see from this crazy "inflation bra".  This looks like it has some sort of satellite feature! I'm guessing your tv would get a better reception!



Really? Inflation Bra!?

Love this retro Franciscan Wheat set!

I'd love to find some of these pieces!


Then there was the glamour of smoking!! Such as Lucille Ball!!

Can't believe I used to smoke-ick!

This couple is so cute!! Jantzen ad!

Adorable couple!

My favorite magazines to collect are the ones featuring the Kennedy's, especially Jacqueline!  I'll have to feature my collection one of these days!

Happy Monday!

Jen

Sunday, November 13, 2011

These Are a Few of My Favorite Things

There are so many things I want on Etsy!  There's such a variety of handmade and vintage items, and I have a huge list of favorites!

I thought I'd list a few every week or so!

AmandaArcher

I love dresses, and that's usually what I throw everyday!  They're comfortable, and cute, and a no brainer!

DavieandChiyo

Clutches are cute and never go out of style!

IllusiveSwan

I have loved this shop forever!  It's so inspiring!  You know once in awhile, I have a "Jenny's Crappy Craft" segment! Last year I made a few things inspired by this shop, they didn't come close to what she creates!

PickleBerryTrifles

Cute shop name "PickleBerryTrifles"! Beautiful handmade jewelry! I love that she upcycles vintage jewelry!

So there you go, some hints, in case you want to buy me something!  Or maybe this will give you some ideas for gifts for family and friends!

Jen

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Meet Betty

The newest member of our family!  Betty (I liked this name my husband picked out!).

Betty -she's an outdoors kind of gal!

Yes, she looks like she's been around awhile!  That is one of the reasons I love her!  She's shabby and full of character!

And I'm hoping to work on getting some photographs of her modeling the vintage clothes I've been colleting!

She's adjustable (I just have to figure out how to do it)!

And, yes, she's a bit off kilter, but aren't we all!?


I love this vintage dress!



So this weekend Betty & I will be spending a lot of time together!  I hope she's patient, as I'm still trying to figure out the best place to photograph her!

Happy weekend!

Jen

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Monday Monday

Time to fire my office manager!

Monday I had a ton of orders to pack, and that means lots of bubble wrap!  So, I went out to my supply office, aka garage, to get my wonderful bubble wrap.

What? No bubble wrap at all!?  How could that be!  I was furious that my office manager would make such a blunder!

I was really ready to tell her off.

Then I realized, I'm the office manager!


Yep! It was all my fault!  I confess!  I'm the marketing director, office manager, merchandise supplier, photographer, public relations director, and more!

I love it!  Even the bumps in the road!

Everytime I look out my window (we live on a busy street) around 5:00 pm, and see all the traffic from people trying to get home from their 8-5 jobs, I am even more thankful!  I make my own hours, but that doesn't mean I'm a slacker!  I'm sure I work harder than I ever have!  And I'm also sure I've never been happier!

So I'll try not to be so hard on my office manager, usually she does a pretty good job!!

Jen

Thursday, November 3, 2011

Chicken Noodle Soup Good for What Ail's You!

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup


Sick with a cold?  Even scientists say there's something to the Chicken Noodle Soup remedy!  I make this as soon as I have a cold (no one else in my family eats chicken)! 

It's quick and easy!

Buy a package of cut up chicken with bone (a less expensive way it to get a whole chicken and cut it up yourself).  Boil it in water to cover with 1-2 chicken bouillon cubes, cut up celery, onion, and carrots (enough for taste, since you'll be removing it).  I always add some red pepper flakes, since I like it hot!  Also salt to taste and a bit of pepper.

Turn it down to a high simmer, maybe 20 minutes or so. You can take a piece out to be sure there's no pink left on the chicken.

Strain everything, be sure to keep the broth (yes, I've made the mistake of not having a bowl underneath when I was straining!).

Let the chicken cool a bit, so it's not too hot to handle.  Then you can cut it up or shred it, into bite size pieces.

Put the chicken back in the broth, add fresh cut up carrots, celery, and onion.  I also add some sage and Italian seasoning, it's whatever you like!

Let that cook for awhile, until the veggies are tender, but still have a bit of crispness to them.

Then add egg noodles, don't over do it like I do, or the next day the broth will be sucked right out of it!  For me, that's not a problem, I just add a bit more water, and microwave it.  Another good idea is to just cook the egg noodles separately, and then you won't have that problem!

So the next time someones coming down with a cold, whip this soup up!  It works and it tastes great!

Here's to your health!

Jen