calico cuteness

Vintage calico cuteness for the girls of summer; A pink frock for one, and a fluttery top for the other.

one size fits all

Do you remember clothes you wore when you were a teenager? Or wished you wore? Or wished you hadn't worn?
I think clothes are a pretty big deal to most teenage girls.
I remember something that I wish I had worn.
Wish I had owned.
Still do.
It was a dress sewn by my sister.
I could sketch it in an instant.
I thought of it as The Granny Gown.
It had a peasant vibe.
Soft pink calico, with a scooped gathered neckline, an empire elastic gather and floor length.
It had a nightie vibe too I guess.
But isn't there something appealing about that?
The style of the dress, so softly gathered, was almost one size fits all.
And almost an any occasion style too.
It could be worn to school, to a party, to the beach, to church, shopping or to bed.
Now that is beyond versatile.
A wardrobe in one.

logo for life

Have you ever noticed that loving someone alters how you see everything around you. You are drawn like a magnet to all that reminds you of them. That is heady stuff if they are close and constant, but if they are far away it feels a lot like grief.
I remember when my daughter was away at school for a year. Far away. I couldn't bear to watch the TV shows she had loved. I couldn't cook her favorite meals.
There just seemed to be so much that reminded me of her, or the lack of her.
She has children of her own now, and I find myself just as smitten by them.
What they love becomes dear to me for their sake.
My little granddaughter loves hearts. Almost every art project is adorned with hearts, drawn in her own distinctive backwards loopy heart-ish way.
I've never been fond of hearts. Perhaps the heart happy eighties with country hearts stamped on walls and whittled out of wood are to blame.
It is strange then that I have felt a growing affection for heart shaped things. It is like recognizing my little granddaughter's signature, her logo for life.
Her love of hearts truly says something about her nature. She loves. Generously, with all her heart.

I love wooden things (because my Grandma did) and when I saw this necklace, wooden AND heart shaped, I happily pounced on it. I am imagining it restrung with gauzy pink ribbon.( my granddaughters favorite color)

sold

The souvenirs people wedge into their suitcases and cram into their take on luggage have a way of gravitating to the bottom of toy boxes or end their days languishing on dusty shelves in thrift shops. Treasures have a hard time holding their own it seems.
While foraging at MCC I saw amidst the seashell plaques and toothpick holders, a treasure from Timbuktu or somewhere else equally distant.
This tiny wooden trio.
They were glued with gusto onto a slice of tree limb.
I loved the little house and the trees so Erzgebirge but not on the ugly bit of wood.
Too bad.
They seemed glued on pretty tight too.
Could they be pried off? 

"What do you think?" I asked my sister, handing it over for her appraisal.
There was a fumble and she promptly dropped it on the floor.
Off shot the house.
Sold.

big old

A big old baggy bruin. A brawny black bear.

seldom wise

 

Doesn't he look surprised. He stayed up way past his bedtime which is seldom a wise thing to do.

away in the woods

I love children's stories. I love the meter and cadence they are written in, so like poetry, and I love that illustrations are such a big part of the enjoyment. This story is for my grandchildren and the rhyme pattern was inspired by an Appalachian counting rhyme.

I'm not sure why I thought of writing a little story about bears but now that I have, another one seems very likely. Maybe one about a bear that didn't want to go to bed.....until it started to snow. But until then, here's Away In The Woods

----------------------------------

Away in the woods while the snow swirled down

Slept old mother bear and her soft baby, brown

Sleep baby bear cub

Love’s all around

So he slept and he dreamed

While the snow swirled down

Away in the woods as the spring breeze blew

Woke old mother bear and her baby cub too

Eat, said the mother

Love’s fresh and new

So he nibbled and he lunched

As the spring breeze blew

Away in the woods as clouds chased the sun 
Roamed old mother bear and her little brown son

Play, said the mother

Love’s full of fun

So he capered and he climbed

As clouds chased the sun

Away in the woods through days golden bright
Away in the woods through silver summer night
Birds high above them
Love's taken flight
Mother and cub walk on
Through gold and silver light
                      

Away in the woods as autumn leaves flew

Lived an old mother bear and her young one too

Follow, said the mother

Love’s meant for you

So he rambled and he roamed

As autumn leaves flew

Away in the woods while the snow swirled down

Slept old mother bear and her soft baby, brown

Sleep baby bear cub

Love’s all around

So he slept and he dreamed

While the snow swirled down