Mother of Pearl Buttons - Shell Shocking History

Recently I came across an awesome post with some

great information about mother of pearl buttons.

I have to admit, I never knew where they came from!

It was Faye from Wild Rose Vintage who brought

 it all into perspective for me.

She wrote about mother of pearl button making here.

I asked if I could share some of her photos, etc.

It all started when she and her hubby

 came across these shells

with the holes in them.

I probably would have just said

"Oh look, there are holes in them thar shells!"

But alas, they had a real purpose for being well, holey.

She even did research on an old button factory

in her area (I think near the Mississippi)

that did the same kind of thing

back in the day.

Of course, her post and info is much better

than mine here.

I encourage you to check out her details!

 

Here is an example of what the factory did.

And voila....real mother of pearl buttons from

real shells!

Who knew?

I am definitely looking at MOP buttons (andshells )

with a different perspective and appreciation now.

Thank you Faye!

Summer Lovin'

What's not to love about summer?

Seriously.

My favorite time of the year.

We've already played in the lake.

It's so fun and relaxing we

tend to lose track of time there.

Not a bad thing during
Good 'ol summertime!

 

Rode in a barrel car at a local

Dairy Farm festival.

Mommy was given a free cookbook.

Can't wait to try out some

of the new recipes. 

And we even swam like fishies

with my local Mommy's group.

(That's Bebe with the yellow swim ring

I'm taking the photo)

 

We are blessed to

have so many wonderful

friends, places to go,

and things to do around us!

How are you enjoying your summer?

Summer Fun: Keepin' Em Busy With Vintage Games

My latest idea for the lake house:

VINTAGE GAMES!

I'm going to keep a basket of

them on hand.

Late nights or rainy days

or just because they're fun!

Not all of them are going.

Some I will be selling in the shop soon.

I'm not really sure how popular BINGO cards

and pieces are anymore.
I think I still have some

available in the shop.

 I have memories of playing pick up

sticks and BINGO but

 Dominoes and Lotto not so much.

And I had never heard of PIT until

I started dealing in antiques!

There is also another game

I have never heard of before in this pile

Sabotage.

 Have you ever played it?

Some of my favorites as a kid were

of course, Monopoly, Payday

and Sorry!

My Grandmother had Parcheesi

which we always played at her house.

And "Go Fish" the card game.

What fun!

My Sister, if she reads this

will get a kick out

of these memories!

_______________________________________________________

And don't forget books!

I picked these up at our local library.

They sell donated books

as a fundraiser.

This one looked brand new

and I thought it was perfect 

to keep up at the lake house.

There are card games I've

never even heard of in there!

Although it is a quirky read,

this "Americana Scrap Book"

makes a great coffee table

book up at the lake as well.

We'll be joined by my Step Daughter

and her family. It will be our

first time hosting there!

Let's hope I can keep

'em busy!

linking to "What's It Wednesday" at
Ivy & Elephants!

A Hot Day for Antiques

Over the weekend Hubby and I

decided to spend the afternoon

in a small town nearby with

a collection of little shops.

There just so happened to be an

antique barn along with them!

So, in we went.

It was a hot day and this

old industrial GE fan

looked appealing ...

 As well as this wooden soda crate

full of 7up bottles

 I was eyeing this Coca Cola sign

"Sold Here Ice Cold"

Wouldn't this be a gem for

the lake house?

It was a little out of my price range.

 So was this cute, tin sand bucket...

$64.00 was on the tag

 And speaking of prices...

I got a huge kick out of this booth...

The sign reads
"All Items Marked 10.00 each"

 Kind of like at the dollar store.

Except everything was 10.00.

Makes it easy to do
the accounting, I suppose!

Also easy to figure out a sale.

50% off = .....

well, you get the picture!

Over in another booth...
This gorgeous old celluloid album

was a beautiful piece to have on

display...I didn't even look at the tag

I also liked this sign...

advertising an antique flea market

Obviously it is now a thing of the past

But would look great on a future wall in our lake house!

Hope you enjoyed our

afternoon antiquing.

What did you do this past weekend?

I'd love to hear from you! 

Roll Out the Barrel... Summer is Here! New Arrivals and my NEW Mystery Sale

It's here.... my new Mystery Sale!
Each time  I unveil my latest listings there will also be a mystery sale where twelve items get drastically reduced. You just never know which things I will choose so check back often...

Now, here are this week's latest finds:

 First up, my favorite piece of the week!

T&V Limoges France hair receiver.

GORGEOUS and signed by the artist.

 French "token of affection" postcard

 A present from the fair!
I don't know about you

but I just love memories

of going to the fair.

Here is a vintage souvenir for you!

Lovely antique Valentine card

with a lace "overlay"

Purple glass bead "grape" earrings

Wear them out to dinner or

for a wine tasting!

I've seen some fantastic pillows created

out of old needlepoint pieces.

This one reads "HELLO" in the center 

A couple of antique vanity items

in milk glass

Also receive the three antique

keys for your display 

 This is my other favorite this week.

A micro mosaic brooch surrounded

by sterling silver I do believe.

I love the millefiori design.

In Italian, millefiori means 1000 or

"many" flowers.

 Two more vintage Nancy Drew books

Remember the old advertising jingle?

"I loooooooove New Yoooooork!"

Three antique postcards of New York

City landmarks.

 Shabby books of Ralph Waldo Emerson,

Francis Bacon and

 Alden's English Verse

 Victorian lady in an elegant purple gown

A fancy way to have tea or

maybe it is a shaving mug!

 I have two pieces this week in this

lovely soft muted pastel

This is just the soap sized dish...

Check out the other

"Three crown china" piece here!

And a lovely trio of antique postcards

of violets because not everyone likes pink!

Be sure to check out the mystery sale

each time I announce

my latest listings...

Have a great weekend!

In the Still of the Night

Dear Hubby made a quick trip up

to the lake house to work on

a few projects.

He decided to put together the dock

so we'd be all set this summer.

I love the stillness of the lake at night.

Which reminded me of the loons

we see and hear crying out

in the middle of the night.

If you've never heard a loon call,

you really need to.

It is quite something!

Hopefully I'll get a photo

of the loons

on my next trip.

For now, I have found a link

to this website where there

is a recording of a loon.

Enjoy!

I'll be back soon...

debating on whether I should

get up really early

for my Tuesday fleamarket.

I'll be back to let you know

and to share my latest finds!

What I Learned From Dad

This is my Dad, in about 1959,

along a lake not too

far from where I grew up

He and my Mother met there

(I'm so glad they did!)

He taught us:

To be practical,

To use common sense.

He desperately wanted my

Sister and I to learn how to

change the oil in our cars.

(I still have to tackle that one)

To have a sense of humor.
(Note the photo above)

He taught me how to throw

a baseball.

How to drive,

how to bait a hook

To turn the lights off.

To appreciate what God

has given us on this Earth

To know when to speak

and when to be quiet.

And to understand that

no matter how much we

may not have wanted to

hear all of those things,

he wanted us to KNOW all of

 those things because  he

loved us.

Happy Father's Day, Dad!

Linking to Pink Saturday!

Roses, Metal & Rusty Stuff JUST LISTED

What better way to mix it up this week

than to share pink roses with

rusty, metal stuff!

Pretty pink roses on antique postcards

This would be a cool piece

to display in a movie/media room

Vintage military american eagle pins

Antique Kodak fold out camera

Love the art deco front graphics

This was a rare find...antique black silk ribbon,

 still on the paper roll.

"Penn Silk" from

Philadelphia

A collection of twelve

 rust and metal keys

What fun to make necklaces

or other craft projects!

A vintage style Bessie Pease Gutmann

flue cover

Not old but oh so

adorable!

Very large brass key

My Dear Hubby insisted I point out

that it has markings to show it is handcarved

Mother of pearl brooch

with a beautiful antique postcard as a bonus

 Gorgeous handpainted rose cake plate

from Vienna, Austria

 Antique check book from The Farmer's National Bank

Multi colored glass stones in this

gold filled bracelet

Pretty and feminine!

All these and a few more not shown,

JUST LISTED here

on BellaRosaAntiques.com