My Zoo

I have animals infiltrating every corner of my photo space... time to get these friends listed!

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My favorite, a pink and aqua kitty planter.  Unmarked, but heavy like McCoy or Shawnee Pottery.

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A brass owl letter opener with a handy inset magnifying glass

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A graduation diploma owl bank by Lefton

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Adorable warthog toothpick holder

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Redware elephant and pipe ashtray

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Set of plastic turtle coasters, Made in USA

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Anyone looking to adopt a new "pet"?

Friday's Favorite Fabric Finds

I am anything but "blue" over here after the success of the PTA sponsored picnic last night.  But, I do have some lovely blue hues to share this week, all from vintage sheets.

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What color are you feeling today?

Thursday's Treasure

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There she is.   My crock pot.  Well, that one in the photo isn't mine, but mine looks just like it.  I love her!

For hubby's birthday dinner last night I made white beans and sundried tomatoes (recipe HERE), along with some crusty bread and spinach/spring mix salad with walnuts, dried cranberries, and bleu cheese crumbles.  Dessert: double chocolate brownies! 

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I digress.  My point is that I was only able to pull off a such a special, healthy and gourmet-ish meal because I had the help of my crock pot.  The beans and tomatoes came out like a thick soup and was absolutely delicious.  I had to substitute parsley for the thyme, but other than that I followed the recipe to a T.  Highly recommend, and I am not even a big fan of sundried tomatoes!  Do you have a favorite crock pot recipe? 



Wednesday's Work

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Happy Hump Day!  And Happy 49th Birthday to Mike!

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These last two weeks have been a blur of work.  And not really the kind that gives me nice pictures to share.  Unless you like to see countless forms and sign up sheets and spreadsheets, that is. 

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I am, however, just finishing up a wholesale order of large jute stars.  A big box of these lovelies will be heading to A Piece of Mine in Kenosha, Wisconsin at the end of the week.  Check!

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What's been keeping YOU out of trouble lately?

Howdy Pardner

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Sinatra swiped his sister's hat for a photo shoot this morning.  He's got his eye on us!  In the eloquent and eternal words of Cosmo Kramer, "Giddy up!"

Makeover Monday: 9/24

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My folks came down to celebrate hubby's birthday this weekend, and we decided to venture to the National Zoo in Washington DC yesterday.  The weather was sunny and in the low 70s- just perfect!  Among the many animal attractions, there were lots of other things for kids to enjoy.  My baby got her first "glimmer tattoo".

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She may have been wearing pink and purple, but she chose the scorpion.  They put on the special adhesive, dusted it with the glitter of her choosing, and then lifted off the stencil.

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This baby is supposed to be waterproof and last for up to a week.  Woohoo!  My tough girl :)

Friday's Favorite Fabric Finds

There has been quite a nip in the air each morning this week.  In fact, today marks the first time we've turned on our heat since last spring.  In honor of my favorite season, here are a few fall-ish fabrics coming to sosovintage today!

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All of these are from vintage sheets.  The first one is one of my all time favorites!  The others I have had in other color variations, and it is always so fun to find the same sheet in another palette. 

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Happy Friday to all!  I hope you have a wonderful weekend, full of fall, fun and family.  That is just what I have on tap, and I can't wait!

Craft Challenge 2012 Results

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Just over 3 weeks ago, I set forth a challenge to any crafter out there: use 2 or more of the Pantone Fall 2012 colors and make something fabulous!  Several people responded with amazing talent, and today is the big reveal!

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These first two projects come to us from the same talented artist.  She writes: "I am Kelly Jackson, and my Etsy shop is Yelli Kelli, where I make fun art, cute clothing and hand embroidered pillows!"

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She continues, "The (first) image is my canvas painting of a flower vase done up in the entire color collection! This painting features a mosaic style vase with bright pink flowers in a rustic background of patterns and earthy fall colors. I added the sweet little pumpkin for a nod to Fall."

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And then, "(This) image is my “freehand wool embroidery” - a burlap pillow, titled “The Swing”.

I used vintage wool to freehand stitch this fallish tree, complete with a tire swing! My stitchery is a close cousin to Crewel, but my own wonky, silly style that I created to be able to use my vast collection of vintage wool! The pillow features my crazy stitching and lots of french knots! I backed it in a piece of wool fabric."

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This sweet hat and scarf set was done up in Tangerine Tango with a bit of Bright Chartreuse leaf.  It was sent in by Irene Rundell- crochet artist extraordinaire!  She also entered the market bags below.

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Honey Gold, Olympian Blue with Ultramarine Green...

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... and Honey Gold, Olympian Blue, Ultramarine Green and Pink Flambe!

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Next up, we have a fabulous messenger style baglet made by Donna Harold of www.littletinystitches.etsy.com and www.teapotlaneemporium.etsy.com.  She chose French Roast and Pink Flambe as her main colors, with a rosey Titanium lining!

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Donna's bag is extra special because the entire thing is made from repurposed vintage fabric combined with upcycled clothing.  The brown/dot fabric used to be a dress, and the pink cord used for the strap and flower used to be a skirt!

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This "Funky Pumpkin Girl" sweater comes to us from Suzi at sheerfab.etsy.com.  Another fan of repurposed fashion, Suzi loves to "refashion clothing, mostly sweaters, into new recycled funwear".  I'm seeing Tangerine Tango and Rhapsody in this one!

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Six year old Sophia did a little fashioning of her own with this headband entry.  So tribal!  She chose Honey Gold, Rose Smoke, Titanium and French Roast for her creation, and did a freestyle cut/glue/staple process.

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The artist modelling her creation.

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With her scraps, Sophia whipped up an "Abe Lincoln" style stovepipe hat for Sinatra.  I'm not sure where her ideas come from, but this is definitely one-of-a-kind... just like her!

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Scrapping sensation Liz Franklin used the challenge as an opportunity to create an invitation for her daughter's Halloween party.  She used Tangerine Tango, Rhapsody and Bright Chartreuse to work her spooky magic.  As with all of these photos, you can click to enlarge to appreciate the full detail.

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And last of all, here are my own entries.  I went yarn shopping with the color chart in my hand, and found these three colors that seemed a true match to the Pantone shades.  I needed a pattern for something that would work with the thin thread, and fell in love with this vintage potholder pattern. 

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I had hoped to be able to get three versions done before the due date, but two will have to do.  It's funny how different a project can look with just a color switcheroo.  I do love this mix of Honey Gold, Titanium and Pink Flambe.  Both of these will be in sosorosey soon!

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So much diversity!!  Thanks so much to all of the artists and crafters who participated in this challenge- you not only made it fun, but your hard work helps all of us enjoy different combinations of colors and styles. 

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Again, this is not a challenge with a "vote and win" outcome- every person who entered set out to create a project with certain criteria, and each person who completed the challenge is number one in my book!  Please leave a comment to let these wonderfully talented people know how much you appreciate their work.  Look for another challenge when the spring colors come out... I'll give more notice next time to see if we can get even more participation! 

Wednesday's Works

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This week my work has been centered around getting ready for Back to School night tomorrow night.  I also had the unique opportunity, however, to create this set of bowls for a returning sosorosey customer.  She sent me a gorgeous set of queen sized sheets, and this is what they produced.  The largest basket here is 9" wide by 3" tall.  The smallest is 3" by 3".

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I've also been hard at work getting our Craft Challenge post together.  Be sure to come back tomorrow to see all of the treasures that have been created!

Rug In Black

After I posted pics of my jute mat, I had someone express interest in a black version.  OK, fine- my MOM expressed interest.  She counts- believe me, she's one of my all-time best customers!

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In any case, here is the rug in black yarn.  Three strands of soft, specialty acrylic known for its washability, durability and lasting beauty.  She is almost 2 feet wide by 40" long.  All yours if you like her, Mama.  No pressure if it isn't what you were looking for... I can always pop her in sosorosey for someone else to love :)

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PS- this IS a true black black even though it has a brownish tinge in the photos.  We have a stormy day today, and even my fancy photo light can't work miracles with this gloomy lighting.

Makeover Monday: 9/17

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Our house just before the exterior painting commenced.  Cedar siding, never painted.  Rotten in places- especially down near the base of the garage.

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Now we have personality!  We chose "grey skies" as the main color, with "fireweed" for the trim.  As with most home improvements, we wish we had done this YEARS ago!!

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Fun Find

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Talk about new old stock!  The copyright date on this lovely set of *pix* is 1946.  There is just nothing I don't love about this whole package, from the colors to the graphics this is just all around extra sweet :)

Friday's Favorite Fabric Finds

This is the weekend for sending in Craft Challenge photos!  So, in order to get you all pumped up for that, here are some *new* vintage fabrics that all have "honey gold" in common.

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Can you guess which one was NOT a sheet?

Thursday's Treasure

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Finally!  I had been wanting to make a jute mat in this midcentury style for AGES.  When I had the time, I didn't have the supplies.  When I had the supplies, I didn't have the time.

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This particular one measures 22" long and 13" wide-  large enough to be a floor mat and small enough to be a coffee table runner.  The beauty, though, is that this mat can be made ANY size, from a long, skinny rectangle to an 8 foot square!

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Crocheted using three, 3-ply strands of heavy weight jute twine, it is super durable, flexible, and reversible.

What more could you hope for in rustic cabin decor? 

Wednesday's Works

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There have been lots of things happening over here, and I have been perfectly, pleasantly busy.  If you look closely at this basket, you'll see some little buttons on the fabric.  This is from the same button fabric stasher as Monday's project, though this one is for her very own self.  We discussed lots of possibilities, but I do think that after all, this is what the fabric wanted to be.

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This project was made for the same room as the basket above, and it has a very specific place/purpose.  Anyone care to guess what it might be?  No guesses from you, Karen- I think you know!!

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No photo yet of the last project I've been working on.  I'm hoping to have it to share for Thursday's Treasure tomorrow, though!