Another Frantic Day

 

 

Well. after being scared half out of my wits tonight, all is well! I received a call that my entire blog was gone - poof, up in smoke - just completely gone.

 

PANIC ATTACK!!

 

But luckily, with the calming assistance of Brenda and Claudia, all I had to do was change my password and PRESTO - it was all back.

 

Now, let me tell you, that's scary!!

 

All's well for now!

 

I will be traveling to Oklahoma City tomorrow to the Dean McGee Eye Institute for more tests on my eyes.  Please remember me in prayer.  I'm really getting tired of this going up and down, good and bad, etc.  I have wonderful doctors and we thought the problem was solved.  NOT!!

So, hopefully when I return home tomorrow, my eyes and my blog will both be in good shape. (I hope)

Thanks for listening to me whine!

Till next time, Judy

My Funny Valentine

 

 

I know when most people think of Valentine decor, they think of hearts and flowers!!  Not me!!  I could only think of my new little red truck and then the second thing I thought of was my collection of salt and pepper shakers with the red Bakelite tops sitting atop a vintage red tablecloth.

 

So, this is my funny Valentine today!!

 

Enjoy!

 

Till next time, Judy

Painting Again

 

As you know, I love to paint.  I have painted forever.  I started out doing tole painting - which was with oils, then moved to acrylic and watercolors.  I taught tole, acrylic and watercolor for many years and loved to watch students' paintings turn into something they were so proud of.

 

This piece (forgive the bad photo, these were taken with my old camera and probably a flash) was the top of a side table that had bookshelves below it.

 

 

This was a fun chair to paint.  It is a really pretty aqua color with the quote and birdcage painted onto the back and seat.  I used old book pages and cut out the leaves and the border at the bottom of the seat.

 

 

The quote says "I don't sing because I'm happy, I'm happy because I sing".

 

 

This was also a side table that I painted the design on the top.  And yes, I did paint all of the writing.  It was a combination of several things I had seen.

 

Painting furniture just has to have detail on it for me.  I very seldom do something just a plain color.  I know that sometimes you don't need lots of detail, but I dearly love very detailed painting.

 

Enjoy!

 

Till next time, Judy

 

 



Saturday Treasures and Treasures and Treasures

Did I have a fun couple of days or not?  I want you to know that I had to take two photos to get the majority of my "goodies" to share with you.

 

Now keep in mind, this does not include my trip to Ross, TJMaxx and JoAnns.

 

I decided to take a couple of days off and go to Missouri to visit my dear friend Sabra.  So, I met her and we had lunch at this neat little tea room in Monett, MO.  Wonderful lunch!! We sat and talked for a couple of hours and then hit a little antique mall and I found quite a few things.

 

 

So, after we both left Monett, I drove back to Neosha, MO to my sisters.  We had dinner at a fantastic Oriental Buffet in Neosha.  I don't do Chinese food, but I absolutely love this food.  It's a buffet and all the chicken is white breast meat and oh my gosh - is it good!!

 

Then, my sister Jean and I got up Saturday morning and went shopping and shopping and shopping.  We hit several antique malls in Joplin, had a great Mexican lunch at Maria's and shopped till we literally dropped.

 

You probably think all we do is eat and you're pretty close to right.  Shop and eat.  Repeat. Repeat.

 

 

I wanted you to see all the precious stuff I found.  Vintage pieces of china, egg cups, crystal, cups, baby's silver comb and brush, salt and pepper shakers, buttons, lace, rolling pins........

 

My husband thinks I have an addiction to salt and pepper shakers - wonder what would ever make him think that of me?

 

 

Crochet pieces, more buttons, more lace, more salt and pepper shakers.  The old vintage quilt in the background I bought for $15.00!  I was wanting one for a background and this one is torn along one of the edges, so, it was perfect for what I wanted.

 

Now, to my three best buys of the weekend:

 

 

A new, "old" highchair for Laynee for my house!  Isn't it unusual.  It's in perfect condition.  I have never seen one made like this.

 

 

Five of these in my Rose Point china.  I don't know what they actually are.  They are too large for egg cups - unless you had really big chickens!  Do you know what they are called?  I found 6 of these.

 

 

Be still my heart!! Two new pieces of McCoy!!

 

So, alot of this will be going on one or the other of my Etsy shops, so if you see something you have to have, let me know and I'll alert you when I list it.  (The highchair, Rose Point and McCoy don't go!!)

 

Enjoy all of my treasures.

 

Till next time, Judy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 





Darling Shamrocks and Hearts

A month or so, I ordered these darling Prim Shamrocks from Deb at Paxton Valley Folk Art.  I told her the reason I was ordering them was because St. Patricks Day is my birthday and I was buying them for myself!!

They came and are so cute!  They each have a different sentiment on the muslin strips that are pinned onto the shamrock with rusty little safety pins.

BUT, THAT'S NOT ALL!!

She sent me a packet full of the most precious little fringed hearts as a birthday gift.
Thanks Deb!!

I put them in one of my Mom's pieces of pink Depression Glass.  This is the small tray that the sugar and creamer go on and they fit perfectly.  I added a pink compote full of pearls and a little mauve colored bird along with the sugar and creamer.  Along with my pink, burgundy and silver ornament wreath, it made a pretty arrangement that my Mom would have gone ape over!

So, be sure and visit Deb @www.etsy.com/shop/PaxtonValleyFolkArt

Her shop is loaded with all kinds of fun and seasonal items.

Enjoy!

Till next time, Judy





Vintage Victorian Lunch Box

This is one of my very favorite vintage pieces I have.  I have had it for probably twenty years and love it more each year.

When I bought it at an Antique Show, they told me it was a Victorian Lunch Box.

It came in this beautiful paper mache hand painted box .  The design on the top of the box matches the painting on the porcelain dish inside.

The box is stamped "Hand Painted in Japan".

This is the gorgeous dish that fits perfectly inside the paper mache box.  It is divided into three sections.  It is stamped "Hand Painted", "Japan" and "MM".  So, that's all I know about it, but I dearly love it.  The box has aged but is still beautiful.

My sister Jeannie doesn't care alot about most antiques, but this is something she has always be intriqued by, so some day it will probably be hers.

Enjoy!

Till next time, Judy



A Setting for Valentine

I am not one to do tablescapes, but rather vignettes.  If I did set a table for special occasions like Valentines Day, this is what I would use.

It's a combination of this set of red and white chintz dishes I have and some solid red pieces also.  I just can't control myself when I see cute dishes even if I don't know what I am going to do with them.  Crazy, eh?

I added a solid red flower shaped saucer and a red salad bowl on top of the red and white chintz saucer.  I love layering the dishes.  Along with a trio of red Bakelite salt and pepper shakers and a few red buttons scattered on the table, it makes a cute setting I think.

Enjoy!

Linking up with Be Inspired at Common Ground & Home Sweet Home @ The Charm Of Home.

Till next time, Judy





Turning Treasures Into Heirlooms

 

I thought it would be fun to take one day a week (if possible) and show you what I do with some of my Saturday Treasures.

 

I know that there are some Saturdays that I do not have an item that I can use in a different manner, but I'll try, OK?

 

Today, I'm giving you an idea of what to do with those old, vintage pieces of lace that I collect so fast.  I seem to always be able to find some lace each week at the Flea Market.  Last Saturday, what I found was a bag full of small, beautiful pieces of different varieties of lace.

 

I made this heart this week for my Etsy shop - www.20northora.etsy.com - and adorned it with some of those pieces of lace.  I added buttons, an old pearl earring and some crinkled seam binding from which hangs a small key. 

 

I just love the variety of lace used in projects - even if it is worn or discolored. I always hand sew my vintage lace onto a project because alot of it is very delicate.

 

So, try using up some of those old pieces of lace.

 

Enjoy!

 

Till next time, Judy

 

PS I have several new items in my Etsy and am trying to add a new one each day for a while.  Come visit.



Saturday Treasures

 

I know you will find this hard to believe, but, I was just not into a buying mood this last Saturday.  I found a few things and they were fairly reasonable or I wouldn't have bought them.

 

 

These small, wooden rolling pins are so cute.  They are only about 6-8" long. 

 



 

I love the silver child's cup inscribed with "Baby".

 

 

 

This set of little dogs just fascinated me.  They are all different and so sweet. Behind the little dogs is a pretty pin I found.

 

I also found my usual collection of lace pieces.

 

Enjoy!

 

Till next time, Judy

Make Your Own Mini Banners

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Tutorial for Mini Banners

Supplies Needed:

1/8 yard of 12 different fabrics
Iron on Interfacing (See Below) 1/4 yard
Sewing Machine
Paper
Posterboard
Scissors
3/8" Grosgrain Ribbon (5 yards)
Thread to Match Ribbon

Start with a 3" square of paper.  Fold it in half and draw a line from the top right hand corner to the bottom of the fold.

This will be your paper pattern that you are going to transfer to posterboard and cut out for your permanent pattern.



I like to use posterboard because it makes good straight lines when you trace your pattern onto your interfacing and doesn't wear out so fast. 



This is the Pellon interfacing I love to use.  I buy mine at JoAnn's Fabrics.

Take your posterboard triangle

 and trace it on the dull side of your interfacing.  This interfacing is a little hard to tell which side is which but if you do it in a sunny place, the shiny side is very obvious.

Cut out all of your triangles of interfacing.

Iron your interfacing onto the back side of each of your fabrics.

Note:  If you buy 12 different fabrics at 1/8 yard, you will have enough to make 12 banners.  You can get 12 triangles traced across the width of the interfacing. 

This makes a nice group project because you can share and all have one.  Another idea, have everyone bring a different seasonal fabric.  Then, you could all have several varieties.

 Carefully, cut your triangles out following the shape of the interfacing.

 You are going to lay out your fused pieces of fabric in a pleasing arrangement.  Don't put all of the dark together, all the white backgrounds together, etc.

When you have it arranged like you want, stack them in order and take to your sewing machine.

 We are going to leave about a 10-12" tail on the end and start sewing your pennants on to the grosgrain ribbon.  I really prefer the grosgrain ribbon because it has so much more body than the satin.

I use a small zig-zag to stitch the pennants onto the ribbon. I do the zig-zag stitch in the center of the ribbon.

Slowly add the pennants one after the other.  They just touch one another at the tips. 

Take your finished banner and trim the two ends so that they are the same length.  Press the ribbon where you have zig-zagged until smooth.

TA DAH!!

YOU ARE DONE!!

 

 Now you can make one for every season.  The Valentine, Easter and St. Patricks Day are the hardest to find.  But, you're in luck because they are all out right now.  The Patriotic, Fall and Christmas all come out early enought that you will have time to get your fabric and make them in plenty of time.

Hope you enjoy this.

Let me know if you make one.  This is my first real tutorial, so let me know if I should have done something more or less.

Enjoy!

Till next time, Judy

Can You Tell I'm Ready For Spring??

In trying to do a vignette today, everything I came up with was bright colors - like yellow!!

I decided to go ahead and do a Spring vignette even tho we still have our coldest months ahead, those being February and March here in Oklahoma.

I believe the largest snow we ever had was mid-March!!

So, I took little Miss Laynee's black patent boots she had outgrown (I have a problem getting rid of things like that) and put bright yellow tulips in them.

Along with my old window frame and a small ceramic bird, I instantly got the feeling of Spring!!

I have had several people inquire about making the mini banners for the holidays.

 

So, tomorrow, I will do a tutorial on making your own mini banner.  Be sure and join me then.

 

Enjoy!

 

Till next time, Judy

EXCITING NEWS !!

 

It's time, it's time, it's time for an exciting announcement!



A dear friend, Dorothy, and I are opening an Etsy shop by the name of "The Five and Dime Store".  This store will open on Saturday, 1/19/2013.  Everything in this store will be priced at $5.10, (get it, the five and dime store?).  We hope you will join us for alot of items that you will love and can be used as gifts, home decor, or crafting.

Please join us on Saturday at

www.thefiveanddimestore.etsy.com

Enjoy!

Till next time, Judy

Another Winner!!

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Another Winner at 20 North Ora!!

You just never know when I am going to give away another surprize!!

Debbie @ MamaBear's Thoughts was my 200th follower to sign up!

I made her a stuffed heart and a mini Valentine banner for being my 200th follower!

 

Thanks Debbie!

Enjoy!

Till next time, Judy



A Valentine Heart

 

Last year, I was at Michael's and they had the remains of their Christmas items at 90% off.  I dug around in all of the bins until I had a cart full of red, burgundy, pink and pink with silver swirls Christmas glass ornaments. 

 

Then, I went back to the paper mache section and they had this large shaped heart for $2.99.

 

The pearls garland was from the wedding department.  In all, I spent about $10.00.

 

I started hot gluing the ornaments on the wreath and then filling in with the different sizes.  The last thing I did was add the pearl garland tucking it in where it was needed.

 

It made this beautiful heart which is about 20" in diameter.  It's considerably larger than the paper mache heart base because I glued ornaments to the sides making it larger.

 

A pretty Valentine's addition.

 

Enjoy!

 

Till next time, Judy



Bella & Laynee Announce a Winner

 

Bella and Laynee are excited to announce the winner of the giveaway.  The red polka dotted runner and the vintage ladle with the bird's nest goes to:

 

MARISSA @ HIGH HEELS AND DAFFODILS

 

Marissa will receive the runner and the vintage ladle.

 

Thank you all for the sweet comments.  I will definitely be having another giveaway soon.  I love to give things away!!

 

Please check in the next few days as I am making some changes in the format of my blog with some exciting new articles and items.

 

I am also working on lots of new items for my Etsy shop - www.20northora.etsy.com.l

 

And wait, there's more!  An exciting announcement about a new Etsy shop hopefully opening within the next week.

 

Thanks again for all of the entries!!

 

Enjoy!

 

Till next time, Judy

 

 

The Story of 20 North Ora

 

 

This is the real story of 20 North Ora and where the name of my blog came from.

 

The U.S. Government built 500 prefab houses in Pryor, OK during the war because outside of Pryor was the ammunition plant which produced the gun powder for the war.

An article came out that 25 Veterans could buy one of these houses after the war was over.  They called them Chouteau Court Houses because of the area they were built in.

 

My Dad came home from the Army and just months afterward, this announcement came out.  Mom & Dad applied and were one of the lucky 25 couples to be able to buy a house.

 

They bought a lot in Pryor for $250.00 in 1947 and paid $1200.00 for the house.  They had to build the foundation, sewer system, etc. themselves.

 

This house was 30 x 24 feet and had a living room, two bedrooms, one bath and a kitchen.

 



 Now, you must realize that in the next few years, this family of three would grow to six and then eventually seven.  All in this two bedroom home.

 

My Mom and Dad worked so hard.  Mom always was a stay-at-home Mom. When I started the First Grade, Mom was expecting her fourth child the first of October.  They had a hard time keeping me in school because I was afraid I was going to miss the baby #4 coming.

 

So, they told me if I would stay in school, I could name the baby whatever I wanted.

 

If you remember in the First Grade we had readers that were stories about Dick and Jane and Spot the dog.  So, my parents prayed every night that I wouldn't name my baby sister Spot.

 

I didn't.  I named her Jane.

 

The Smith family ended up with four girls.  I am the oldest, then Jean, then Rita and then Jane. 

 

At one time, I had a twin bed, Jeannie and Rita were both in cribs and we were all in the same room.  Jane was in a crib in Mom and Dad's room.

 

Then, Mom and Dad built on two more bedrooms on the back of the house because my Nana was coming to live with us.

 

This fairy tale story continued and for 57 years, we never had a Christmas Eve that we were not all at 20 North Ora.

 

So, this is why the name is so special to me.  It was here that I learned to sew, and do handwork.  So, the name was so fitting.

 

The pictures are of the front of the house and Mom's beloved Elephant Ears on the side of the house.

 

The sign at the top was on their front porch until we sold the house after they had both passed away.  It now hangs over the back door of my home.

 

Enjoy!

Don't forget to enter my GIVEAWAY!!  Today is the last day to enter.  Giveaway is tomorrow!!

Till next time, Judy

 

 



Saturday Treasures

 The Saturday Flea Market was fantastic last week.  There were alot of new vendors that I hadn't

seen before.  I got some goodies - linens and doilies, as usual, the box contains those sweet little mushroom birds.

 

 

This plate will go well with my collection of pink and green items that were my Mom's.
 

This pale yellow egg cup is for Brenda's collection.

 

Isn't this a precious salt and pepper shaker set with tray in chintz?

 

 

This silverplated small tray is so heavy.  It has so much detail.

 

 

 

The set of miniature Blue Willow dishes were from two different vendors. I have a set from my Mom, but these were very reasonably priced and I though I could fit them in with what I already had.

 

I always stop and think about all of the wonderful things I have that were my Mom's.  She left such a legacy - not only in material things and love, but in having a love for vintage items.

 

Miss ya Mom!

 

So, there are my treasures for this week.

 

Don't forget to sign up for my GIVEAWAY every day until Wednesday when I will announce a winner.

 

Enjoy!

 

Till next time, Judy