Kentucky Derby and sweet memories

bungalowWhen I used to work at Vail's Grove Golf Course in the early to mid-90's, there was still an air of nostalgia in that clubhouse. It was a cool, old bungalow style house with this gorgeous stone fireplace built in the early 1900's. The owners were all in their 60's and up and so were a few many of the members, it was nice because the ages were so diversified with people from all walks of life. Those members and owners were like a family to me but when I visited there this past August, it was under new ownership, the building had undergone some remodeling and modernization and many of the members I knew were no longer there. I don't know why but I still always think time will stand still and keep our favorite people and places and memories intact. Even though I loved to see the couple who remained and that Karen was still working there, the special feeling I used to get when I would go there was gone.

One of the things we used to do was a pool for the Kentucky Derby. If there was a reason to bet, there would be a pool! I would be given the instructions on how much to collect, how the selections would be made (draw the name from a hat, no picking your own horse) and I would fill-up the sheet before noon. The members would slowly trickle in after 18 holes and the bottles would come out of their lockers as they set-up in the TV room to watch the race. It was always fun and I remember I even 'showed' one time, my $5 got me $15 :)

Tonight's anticipated auction launch at 10:00 p.m. EST includes a 1990 Alabama Stakes glass. That is what got me feeling all nostalgic about today's big race.

Also, something else in tonight's batch that got me yearning for my past is a Hull mirror brown drip glaze creamer and sugar set. I spent a few summers at my Aunt and Uncle's huge farm in Denton, MD in my teens and this was the set my Aunt had. I still remember helping innoculate all the latest kittens that were born in the barn and feeding a newborwn bull from a bottle. Sure, I could do without the hundred's of pigs all oinking like mad at 4 a.m. to be fed but overall, the farm for a few weeks in the summer is something every kid should experience.

And, as usual, a slew of some souvenir items, plates, ashtray, cups, etc. for others who also want to remember days gone by.

Who would have thought to collect feet!

Guess I was born after the porcelain foot souvenir craze! Apparently, it was the same molded foot with two holes on the back for hanging to literally climb the wall and then the state name was added under the catch-phrase - WE GOT A KICK OUT OF ... These particular feet were from Japan and will be up for auction starting Wednesday, May 4th for Florida and South Carolina. They would be cute in a beach house or a guest room, if I ever have a home that actually has a guest room, I plan on filling it with quirky finds and whimsy! Sure, some guests may call it clutter but I am sure many would appreciate the variety of items which might spark some interesting conversations.

I tried to find out exactly who Lenox (the old green wreath mark and an incised mark I can not make out) made the ashtray with match holder for, it has a large schooner type ship and reads The Commodore - a few yacht clubs came up, which would make sense. I then tried to date it but wow, can anyone agree when the green wreath USA mark was actually used? No concrete answer on that but I know it is an older piece.

Then, for the well-dressed man, some vintage Anson bling! Or even for a lady, I saw some gorgeous blouses that had cufflink sleeves and you needed cufflinks for them. I was chatting with a colleague about this and she said when she worked in the banking industry in the 1970's down by Wall Street, she had several of these blouses and cufflinks. I am so for this style to come back in vogue, no woman can have too many accessories!! So we have here a lovely pair of silvertoned with faux onyx cufflinks and a matching tie tack by Anson with their original box, wonderful condition!

Finally!

Its been several weeks since I have done a few things, post on my blog and list a lot on eBay. Pneumonia got me again (had it back in 2003 as well) so I took it a bit easy. It even got me out of jury duty (which I really didn't want to be excused from). Since last Tuesday night, I have been making my daily listing goals and am happy to say we have some fun vintage and collectible finds hitting the eBay auctions every night @ 10 p.m. EST except Friday's.

Tuesday night, May 3rd, we will be getting these items set for launching. A single serve restaurant ware Hall tea pot. I love restaurants that bring me my own little tea pot and let me keep filling my own cup. And we have a Holt Howard Santa boot. We have a personal large collection of Santa face mugs, including the winking Holt Howard pitcher with cups. One day I hope to display our close to or maybe over a 100 by now Santa mugs. Also coming is a sweet sailor and young lady salt and pepper set, a sweet embossed apple creamer and a little souvenir jug from Flemington, N.J.

Local history

In addition to several collections, my husband and I love to collect local vintage memorabilia as well. I have always found it fascinating to know what used to be where in our town, no matter where I have lived I always wanted to know more about the town's past. I am now in Hopatcong, N.J. and for some inexpicable reason I am drawn to the Lackawanna Railroad and the Morris Canal, both of which used to pass through this once bustling resort town on the lake. The Lackawanna Railroad is now part of New Jersey Transit which I ride regularly, I like to imagine what it was like a hundred years ago on that same train line when tourists used to be dropped off not only at the station (this was when the Canal also ran next to the tracks)-

But the stops that were in the middle of the woods with little dirt paths that led to a fine hotel or a small inn.

Our museum is filled with lots of old photos and stories, a lot of the grand houses and hotels burned down, unfortunately. And the Depression saw a major decline in this area as a resort hotspot. We even had an 18 hole golf course which was reduced to a 9 hole course and now is gone.

The 1980's saw the closure of an amusement park here on Bertrand Island, progress, it is now filled with condos.

Many of our local eateries have the walls filled with wonderful old photos of this area as well.

I love being able to acquire postcards of the past from here, I am not the only one because I often get in bidding wars on eBay for certain cards. It took me a few years to acquire the coveted original train station as well as the Breslin Hotel. I missed out on a few last week but I will keep checking back.

Heisey glassware - a quick note on the legit mark

It is important when collecting or buying a collectible that one researches fakes and reproductions and become familiar with how to spot the real McCoy, in this case, though, it is the real Heisey.

As I prepare to list a single Heisey stemmed goblet tonight, I wanted to verify the H mark on the bottom is indeed a true Heisey mark. I visited the Heisey Glass Museum site and found this helpful tidbit on identifying.

The H is in a diamond - the reproductions make you believe it is an H in a diamond but it is actually a square on its side. The H on my glass is indeed a Heisey mark, when I turned it sideways my diamond did not form a square.

A Few Decorating Techniques on Dinnerware

Dinnerware, be it for your own home or on restaurantware, often has a design on it. From a plain band to intricate designs, there are a few terms associated with the decorating process.

Hand Painted as implied, not as prevalent as in earlier years, often it takes years of training to make each piece almost identical. Brush stroke variations, color overlap and inconsistencies in line width and color depth are strong indicators that a piece is hand painted.

Lining and Banding can be done free hand but most often machine-applied now.

Airbrushing this technique became popularized in the 1940's, it is useful for band rims or accents. Stencil Airbrushing uses a stencil - also called "shadowtone".

Transfer Printing This is a neat pocess and common on older multi-colored pieces. Images are engraved onto a copper plate which a mixture of color and oil is then spread over the heated copper plate and this is worked into the engraving. Excess color is removed and then the designed is printed onto special paper which resembles a strong tissue-paper. Like a temporary tattoo, this piece of paper is placed on the piece and rubbed firmly. The paper is then soaked off and leaves behind the printed image. For multiple colors, it is basically layered on repeating the above for each color.

Direct Printing Like transfer printing, each layer of color must be applied separately in the following steps which are compared to an accurate form of rubber stamping. Soft silicone is used for the molded design and placed on a printing head. The head is then positioned on the piece, pressed down and leaves behind a single color design.

Decals applied by hand or machine, as the name implies, decals which are applied to the piece using various techniques.

For a more comprehensive in-depth definition with lots of great color photos, check out the Collector Books - Restaurant China Vol. I by Barbara J. Conroy.

No snow in our forecast FINALLY

I finished this just this past weekend, we had a forecast of snow into Wednesday and another batch Thursday to Friday but we were spared! I started this after the first fall, coincidence?

Of course it is!

My next project is 1/4 of the way done, may be completed by this weekend.

We hit a local thrift shop today, I was very good, we donated a cart full of boxes and I left with less than 10 items for eBay. Not that I don't have thousands of items waiting to be listed already (not an exaggeration) but I do LOVE the hunt!