I love Vintage...

I Love Vintage...


Who doesn't like vintage? Tell me..who? Each piece surviving the fast hands of time. Each piece with a story. Each piece with an owner who must of loved it a long time ago.

Living in Prague I've had the opportunity to (re)discover hidden gems from all over. From the communist era to the time where kings and queens ruled, there is a magnificent collection in every corner of this city. My favorite pieces have to be jewelry and books. Every piece of jewelry has a story, a wearer, and a creator. Every book has a writer, a reader, a treasurer, and a survival story.

I've found a few pieces on etsy that I absolutely must share with you. Let's take a look.

I have 2 absolute vintage favorites, jewelry and books...eeek! I get excited just thinking about it.

Vintage Art Deco Tourmaline and Diamond ring set in 14K white gold. by My Estate Sale
This piece SCREAMS Art Deco! Did you know that May was my birthday? Sooo, next year rolls around...never mind, why wait til next year, go ahead and purchase this for me NOW! :-D If you really love me you will buy it for me. A 1930's Vintage Art Deco Tourmaline and Diamond ring set in 14K white gold. I love this piece. Check out their etsy store for TONS more beautiful items.



 

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain 1st ed. 1885 by artfind

I do believe that like "video killed the radio star", "digital books and iPads and Kindles killed books".

I do own a Sony Reader so I think I can speak about the differences (my husband bought one for me for Christmas). I can appreciate the luxury of having TONS of books in one itty bity thin piece of metal and microchips, conveniently carrying it where ever you go, but there is something about having a book in your hand and feeling the pages that you can't get with an electronic reader.

I can always appreciate a good book, so much so that I don't like sharing my books and I will NEVER throw a book away. Call me compulsive, call me weird, call me a hoarder, but you will NEVER see me throw a book out, no matter how poorly written.

Boy, does not throwing books away pay off. Here is a the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, 1st Editon (I'm drooling already) from 1885 in what seems to be great condition for $525. Ohh, I want that book.

My best tip if you enjoy collecting books as much as I do, go to your local Thrift Store, that's a GOLD MINE of treasures. Unfortunately most people don't realize what they have. As they say, one man's trash is another man's treasure.


Vintage teacup and saucer set by ossianknits

My sister-in-law Didi (check out her cool blog here) recently began collecting teacups. She already has quiet a collection but I bet she doesn't have this one. I think this is so pretty. Oh, know what I just thought of? This is a PERFECT cup to drink your tea from the day of your wedding Didi. What do you think? I think it's lovely.

Oh, and just so everyone knows, thanks to Didi, she some how woke up a sleeping collector in me. So much so that I ended up buying a beautiful Czechoslovakian coffee set at a family run antique store in Karlstejn. I think I was more obsessed with the color and the design. The fact that it only cost us 800CZk ($40.00) convinced my husband to gift it for me. I know, I'm such a cheap wife :)

Oh, I realize I never sent Didi a picture of the set, here, let me show everyone while I am here.

I Love My Coffee Set!

Unfortunately, I can't feature all my great finds on my blog, but I featured a few more in this treasury.

As always, show some love and leave me an e-mail if you want to share some of your finds at RememberLoveJewelry@gmail.com



See you next time!

Hello From Prague

If you are like most people, you've heard of Prague but don't know what country it is in
and more thank likely you don't know where to find it on a map.
That's okay, Mr. Google can help.
We are here...

See me down there waving 'Hi'.

I discovered Etsy about a year ago while I was planning my wedding. I ran across it after some other brides were raving about all the cool accessories and paper stuff they picked up. I instantly fell in love. 

After the wedding, my husband and I moved to Prague for his work. I ended up (re)learning my old hobby of working with beads. I had a lot of positive feedback from a few people so I then decided to use my hobby to make a few extra bucks on etsy. 

If I knew that etsy was such a great community for artisans that enjoyed helping each other and sharing their work, I would of opened a shop a long time ago. These artists are ALL OVER THE WORLD, including...wait for it...you guessed it, here in Prague. 

A recent Etsy World Wide Party brought them all out to meet here. I couldn't make it since I had hubby's family visiting from the states, but I know good things came out of that meeting.

A group has been started, Creative Prague, on Facebook. I urge you to join and take a look around at some of the great stuff our artist have to offer here. 

Prague is such a beautiful city and so inspiring with its old architecture, flowers, and statues, that you can't help to create something, be a piece of art, a story, a poem, or even be inspired to create the ultimate 'must wear' summer clothing.

Take a walk with me through Prague (via etsy) and see what our local artists have to show you. 

Courtesy of mairidesign

I love Sun Catchers. I wish I had a back yard to hang them. When I was younger there used to be this kit that you would buy that let you paint your own sun catchers. We had like 100 of those at home. I still love the way they pick up the late and splash color all over. Each design is made by MaireDesign and can't be found anywhere else! Check out her shop and drop off some loving. 

Courtesy of Fanaberia

YES, YES, A MILLION TIME YES! I had seen these a few days ago and it was instant love. If it wasn't for the fact that my mother in law bought me a shawl during one of our travels a couple of days ago (THANK YOU ROXS), I would of picked this up in a heart beat. The shop is full of lace and handspun wool. Very eco-friendly! The added bonus is that repeat customers get to make their next purchase at 50% off. WOW!

Beautiful stuff Fanaberia, simply beautiful. 

Courtesy of dagamara

So much beauty in this shop that I really had a hard time which one I wanted to feature. Wow, just, wow. So much talent in such a small city. So much detail goes into each piece. Can you believe the artist paints each piece by hand. Not only are you getting an incredible item, but you will have something no one else will have. This is truly a labor of love. I could stare at each item for hours. It's amazing, just amazing!

Here are a few more items from artists here in Prague. Click on the picture and it will lead you to their shops:

By: tikoart

By: ZuzanaSchwabova

By: handyhandscorner

By: AndelinaFelt

There are so many astounding artists here in Prague. Visit Creative Prague on Facebook. Join us and share in the beauty. Each item listed above has their etsy shop listed underneath. Pop in and say 'hi', we like to hear that :)

Here is a quick link from etsy to Prague artists: http://www.etsy.com/shop_local.php?place=prague

Thank you for joining me. Next time we are doing Vintage....yeeeaaaahhh! 

Where are all my toys and dolls?

About a year ago I began the long process of packing up my dolls and toys. I was about to get married and move across the Atlantic with someone of the opposite gender who wasn't fond of having my plush toys and dolls decorating the apartment. Thus began the packing and selecting which 3 or 4 dolls or toys I could take with me.
I was actually heartbroken. Each doll or plush or toy had a story and I loved each story. I even had a plush toy that my husband to be gave me when we were teenagers!
My mother of course was NO HELP. She's a very old school Hispanic woman. She would say "Bota toda esa mierda! Ya no eres nina". Translated nicely it was "Ger rid of all that stuff , you are not a little girl anymore". I KNOW I'm not uber young, but I like my stuff, and I wanted to store it so in the future, if I had a daughter, I could share these stories with her.
I know, I know, it sounds like I have some sort of disorder and need to be brought up on National TV to exploit it, but bear with me, it's not that bad. So, I ended up getting rid of a few things, packed the bulk of it and brought 3 with me.
Fast forward to last week, my mom calls me. "Michelle, I have bad news".
"What happened" I asked with my heart rate already through the roof.
"It's the dogs."
"WHAT? Are they okay?What happened? Did Roxie bite Pudge?WHAT?"
"Nooo. It's that, well, the dogs got into the garage, into your boxes and there was an incident with your plush toys and dolls" my mother said nervously then added "There is a massacre in the backyard and your plush were the victims"
I didn't know if to laugh or cry. I think I ended up laughing. Apparently Roxie (Pit Mix) and Pudge (Shit Tzu) took solace in the fact that if I was not returning home, they will eat all my stuff for revenge. Great dogs eh?
Well, since I no longer have me entire collection and I'm too scared to ask what they exactly ate, I'm going to handpick a few items from some great Etsy artists and maybe, just maybe, I can convince my husband to start up my entire collection again.

SALE -Matching Crab Human and Cat Softies  by heartfeltwool 

Whats better than a toy for you? A toy for you and your furbaby...VOILA!

Last night I was lurking around the etsy forums, which is something I rarely do, and I was lured into posting on  a thread about blogging. Long story short, I ended up getting 4 more followers on my blog (which is always appreciated), I'm now following 5 new AMAZING bloggers AND I found heartfeltwool shop. Now, not only is the artist ridiculously talented, BUT, 15% of cat toy and catnip toy sales benefit the Oshkosh Area Humane Society. With each toy looking like it's about to spring into life, you really can't lose in picking up a toy for you and your kitty. This shop has truly unique and cool looking items. Check them out...gooo...what are you waiting for? Oh, yeah. Okay finish reading this blog then go to the shop. 

 

Skeleton Sock Monkey With Argyle Tail and Arms SMALLER SIZE by OutlawHeartCreations

My friend, Nicole, is a collector of all things weird, random and obscure. She is also about the sweetest person with black nails, colored bracelets and spiked collar that you will ever meet. For all the years that I have known her (I've known her since high school), she has had this weird obsession collection plush toys, naming them, changing their clothes and then carring them with her in her car. Now, she has stopped putting them in her car (her favorite place was to pin them from her car ceiling), but she still dresses them and names them. If I know Nicole, which I do, I think this will fit right in with her collection. This monkey looks like such a scary delight that you can't help but fall in love. Created by "twenty-something, tattooed twins", each piece is sewn with lots of patience and love, and we here at Handpicked Etsy and RememberLoveJewelry is just what we like to see. Keep up the amazing work ladies. Nicole, as soon as you graduate nursing school, this sock monkey will be waiting for you, so STUDY!

 

Mac the super man bunny by zeropumpkin

There is all sorts of cute going on here. I can't look away...must be strong! He's a super hero bunny who likes to fly around with his lollipop. If this isn't absolutely freaking adorable then I don't know what is. If you aren't hitting that "Buy Now" button to buy it for me then you are not my friend. Just kidding, we're still cool...but really this is adorable . The shop clearly states "your kids will love me"...PFFT! I have no kids and don't intend of giving this to them when I do have them. They will probably slobber all over it when I give it to them. Isn't that what kids do? Poop, eat and slobber? Either way, they can't have it, IT'S MINE! Zeropumpkin, you are doing some fantastic stuff here. Keep up the good work!

Art Doll ADELINE one of a kind by PearlMoonArts

My very first "doll" was a porcelain doll my mother bought for me. She was a toddler with a frilly tutu on, blonde hair tied up in a tiny cascade held together with a pink bow. She is actually one of the dolls that I brought with me to Prague. She was a surprise gift from my mom, whom at that time was a single mother, working in a factory making ends meet for 2 kids. Buying dolls was certainly not in our budget, but she surprised me with it after I had seen it in a catalog. I loved my doll and still do. She is a constant reminder that any bad moment is only temporary and even in the bad moments, staying positive with ourselves and those around us, is always important. 

After my first doll I began to appreciate the craftmanship of other porcelain dolls. My grandmother, years later bought me a few, my mother a couple more. I ended up making up stories about the dolls and learning new stories about others to then scare the bejezus out of my brother and cousins. My favorite story was the girl with the ribbon around her neck. I was particularly sly about telling this story to them. I only told it to them at night (to scream at the end and add that extra effect) and when no parents were within ear shot (so I wouldn't get in trouble). 

Looking at this beautiful doll reminds me of that story and how I wish I would of had her to scare the living daylights out of those kids. Don't think I'm mean, but since I was the oldest between my brother and my cousins, it was my duty to make sure their childhood was riddled with WTF moments. If you ever see my cousin Kim, ask her how I convinced her that there was a pirate living in a construction site near our house...LOL it was classic! Thank you PearlMoonArts for reminding me of my childhood. I have a tear in my eye from laughter. By the way the Art Doll Bust Bird Lady RESERVED looks a lot like my aunt (sans the birds of course). You are truly a talented artist! Thank you!

Well, thank you for taking this journey with me down the doll and toys section of etsy. I appreciate your company while I stroll down memory lane. Stay tuned next week. Also, thank you to all the shops for letting me share you with the world. Lots of LOVE to you guys!