Shoe's

Day 21-366 Red Shoes

Oh gosh, it has been a week since I have blogged.  It has been a busy week of looking after my sick hubby,  birthday's, organising my son's holiday social life, work and play.  Please forgive me my kind readers.  

I am not a huge shoe fan, I don't have a fetish and a closet full of shoes.  Personally I would rather buy a few really good quality shoes that are guaranteed to last a number of years, like my Doc Martens boots that I bought in pre veg days. I guess what my Mum said many years ago has stuck "You wont get rich by buying shoes all the time".   

I have been a vegetarian off and on for the past 12 years.  For the past four years I have been a full vegetarian and will not buy leather or animal based shoes (including the glue).  How is this story vintage you might be asking.  Here I go again gambling on.  But this afternoon I was wondering what to shoot for my vintage inspired photo a day project.  When I stumbled onto a Vegan Friendly Store website that sells shoes, not just any shoes though, these are vintage inspired and gorgeous! Here's the link: Vegan vintage inspired woman's shoes.  I love the Brogues and T Bars.  There are Men's shoes also.  Please have a look, the store is in Victoria, Australia, so maybe some day I will get to visit them.  But the postage costs shouldn't rock the boat too much either when I do decide to buy a pair.  Might need to start saving!

So my photo today is a pair of vintage styled shoes (man made materials too thankfully, although I am dubious about the glue used) I bought for an Art Deco outing.  Cost me $12 at the Salvation Store and they were particularly brand new!  Unfortunately these are a mere prop now as the metal stopper bit (or whatever it's called) fell off one of the heals, so one day I should investigate if it can be fixed.  

If you are into vintage costume's etcetera, I would love to hear about your lucky finds.  Please share in the comments,  post your blog or website should you have one.

Toodles,

Mel.        

"Sunday Driver" a vintage inspired band

Sunday Driver's album cover for In the city of dreadful night 

click here for the: Sunday Driver Album Download

Over the next couple of hours you can download this album for free or a named price, 

so what have you got to lose.

Have a sample listen from the link above or from the sidebar on the right.

They are a 7 piece acoustic band from Cambridge, UK.  Their genre is world music.  

Their music is a gorgeous complimentary blend of European and Eastern influences.     

Easy listening vintage inspired and big in the Steampunk scene.  

One of the singers reminds me a lot of Kate Bush, kind of folk like in a way and whimsical story telling lyrics.  

I like them. 

Silvo and Supper Time

Day 12-366 Silvo and Supper Time

Tonight I thought I would polish!   Silvo to me, well it's the bee's knees!   Years ago, on a quest to  be thrifty, I used to make my own polishing mix up with a concoction of stuff like baking soda, vinegar and toothpaste.  OK, why did I bother?  I used to have put in so much elbow grease to get anywhere and then the finish polish was never as good as Silvo's.   Silvo has a protection factor also to slow down the chemical reaction resulting in tarnishing.  The tarnishing will occur eventually, but it is slowed down with this polish.

It saves time too especially when there's tea and cake to be had!

Abyssinia,

Mel.

         

A piece of me

Day 10-366

I feel it's time to introduce myself somewhat more.

A 38 year old mum of two gorgeous funtastic future adults.

Married to an extraordinary man and dad who loves history, 

building things and is a talented artist!

I work with food during the day and with my camera as a part time portrait and wedding photographer 

whenever I'm given the opportunity. 

I am studying to be a better photographer and doing a vintage 366 photo project too.

We have 3 vintage tabby cats, a cute fat dog, 3 old almost non laying chooks (dare I say it, you know what that means), a shy cockatiel and some tropical fishes.

Vintage memorabilia is a passion of mine, I collect things.

I collect way too many things!

Most nights I stay up way too late writing blogs, researching and planning my book.

I have dreams!

This blog was started as a place for me to keep my motivation up for my book, 

by posting my ideas, photo's, inspiration, meet some more like-minded

vintage lovers 

and to 

dream some more!

Night night all.

  

Finders Keepers

Day 9-366 Finders Keepers 

Wow I have may it past my first week of this blog.  That makes me so excited, so excited that I may not sleep tonight.  No really, it is cool and thanks to my followers.  I can say at this stage I know each one of you personally or through our photographic connections and that makes me even more excited and humble that you wish to keep up with my rambling.  

I saw this van in town today, I was impressed with it's sign writing.  Doesn't it stand out well?  It made everyone's heads turn including mine.  I hope it's owner doesn't mind me doing some free advertising for them ;).  They have a website: finderskeepers.co.nz/

Well, there's something to be said for second hand goods, we either love of hate them.  I love them mostly.  I especially love how someone else's used goods can make someone else smile, give them a simple pleasure (as long as it doesn't cost the earth!).   

One man's junk is another man's treasure!  

Tonight a friend posted this on her facebook status... so I will leave you with this to ponder over (sorry it is long)

Anyone age approx 35 or over should read this - copied from a friend ... Checking out at the supermarket recently, the young cashier suggested I should bring my own bags because plastic bags weren't good for the environment. I apologised and explained, "We didn't have this green thing back in my earlier days". the cler...k responded, "That's our problem today. Your generation did not care enough to save our environment for future generations". She was right about one thing--our generation didn't have the green thing in “Our” day. So what did we have back then?After some reflection and soul-searching on "Our" day here's what I remembered we did have.... Back then, we returned milk bottles, pop bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles repeatedly. So they really were recycled. But we didn't have the green thing back in our day. We walked up stairs, because we didn't have an escalator in every store and office building. We walked to the grocery store and didn't climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time we had to go two blocks. But she was right. We didn't have the green thing in our day. Back then, we washed the baby's nappies because we didn't have the throw-away kind. We dried clothes on a line, not in an energy gobbling machine burning up 240 volts -- wind and solar power really did dry our clothes back in our early days. Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing. But that young lady is right. We didn't have the green thing back in our day. Back then, we had one TV, or radio, in the house -- not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief (remember them?), not a screen the size of Wales. In the kitchen, we blended & stirred by hand because we didn't have electric machines to do everything for us. When we packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, we used wadded up old newspapers to cushion it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap. Back then, we didn't fire up an engine and burn petrol just to cut the lawn. We used a push mower that ran on human power. We exercised by working so we didn't need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity. But she's right. We didn't have the green thing back then. We drank from a fountain when we were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time we had a drink of water. We refilled writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and we replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull. But we didn't have the green thing back then. Back then, people took the bus, and kids rode their bikes to school or walked instead of turning their mums into a 24-hour taxi service. We had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances. And we didn't need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 2,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest pizza joint. But isn't it sad the current generation laments how wasteful we older folks were just because we didn't have the green thing back then?Please post this on your Facebook profile so another selfish old person who needs a lesson in conservation from a smarty-pants!

 

Industrial Me

Quote From "A Treatise on the Inherent Qualities of the Tea-Herb", Compiled by a Gentleman of Cambridge, England 1750.


Today is day eight of my 366 Vintage inspired photo a day challenge.  And above is my photo of the day.  I spent he afternoon being industrialised in my kitchen, something I have wanted to do all holidays.  Back to work for me tomorrow and I thought I would do some weekly baking, ha, not sure if the baking will last all week!  


I made Lemon curd for the first time, invented a new recipe even (more like totally hashed up the recipe I was using and had to remedy it!).  Well I think it turned out all good in the end.


Tonight I'm watching TV, something I haven't done a lot of lately.  Watched "Under the Mountain", absolutely loved it and at the moment watching a very fitting movie "Julie and Julia", so I will leave you now.  


Toodles duckies,
Mel.    

Happy 65th Birthday Dad and Happy 100th Birthday to Mr Charles Addams

My Dad turns 65 today, another huge milestone for him.  So Happy Birthday to my Dad.  I might class you as "Vintage" now, hehehe.

Sadly, Charles Addams passed away in 1988, but his macabre humour for life and his cartoons will live on for a very long time.  Thanks for Google for making their search logo in his honour today, otherwise I would not have know that he shared his birthday with my special Dad too and chosen to learn more about him today.

Charles Addams late wife Tee set up a foundation in their honour called Tee & Charles Addams Foundation:  http://www.charlesaddams.com  Their is some history about them on the website.  Tee sounded like she was a gorgeous caring lady.  Charles was married twice before (well according to Wikipedia) and he thought that one of his previous wives wanted to kill him (may have had some truth in it or maybe he thought up the story as an excuse to divorce her?)

Either way the universe put Marilyn "Tee" Matthews together in the end).  Tee was a model and had a huge passion for animals and their welfare.  They were married in a pet cemetery, in the 80's they moved to a new property and named it "The Swamp" and after Charles passed on his ashes were laid to rest in the pet cemetery on their property.

Over his lifetime Charles drew more than 1300 cartoons and drawings and a huge inspiration for many artist to follow!

Funny for us but also sad was that he didn't like children and this shows in his "Addams Family" cartoons in a way.  But he also had a soft spot for animals like his wife.  He sounded like quite the character himself and no doubt his inspiration for his artwork was drawn in from those in his life or once in his life.

My children haven't been introduced to "The Addams Family" as yet, I just might need to see if the series is on DVD sometime.  They will love it as I did when I was young.  Luckily my children have the same taste for ghoulish dark humour as I do.

  

Producing a book on a low budget

I think I am getting the hang of this blog thing.  Special thanks to my members and follows so far.
On this journey to write and publish a book, it has opened my eyes to many exciting questions.  Like,

• Will people actually be interested in this book?
• How do I connect with my target market?
• At what point do I tell the world what the book is all about? 
• How do I fund it?
• When will I find the time to do it?
• Do I do it alone? Self publish or publisher?  Do I seek sponsorship?

Definitely the key thing to start with is the funding.  So this is where I need you help.  If you know of any

applicable affiliate plans that I can sign up to or companies I can offer advertising to on this blog that will be ever useful.  

I know this blog is very young and not many companies will see the point with adverting with me, but a girl has to start somewhere.  Also if you wouldn't mind sharing my blog with you family and friends that have a liking for vintage that I would also appreciate. 

Found this lovely business recently:   New Bohemian It's a New Zealand Vintage Clothing and Homewares Store.  Worth a look.

I'm off to the library and perhaps drag the kiddies off to another op shop, I will leave you with a pic I took yesterday of the Poukawa Church, Hawke's Bay.

Toodles my lovelies

Mel.

  

Photo a Day Challenge

Well, I am really hanging myself on the hook of "One who refuses to know her limits".

I had been thinking for a few days that I should start a photo a day challenge.  I tried to talk myself out of it, knowing I could not complete the one I started last year.  But now with a cell phone with a camera and my Canon never far away, how hard will it be? (easy peasy!)

Theme?  A vintage theme sounds good.  Oh why not!  You can track the photo's here: Flickr "A Vintage Affair" set
or here: Facebook Album 366 Vintage Themed Photo's - "Photo a Day"

Toodles,
Mel.

Memoirs

A new years resolution, to write a new blog?  yes.  I have started blogs before and abandoned them to rot in cyber land.  Well this new blog will be different from the rest, whether read by an audience or just a place for me to keep my memoirs.  I aim to keep it going.

I am a picture maker, a freelance photographer, a product developer and an ex professional chef.  My history qualifications stop at high school history and art history however, but anything vintage makes me tick.  You will find me polishing silver, window shopping antique stores and fine combing TradeMe, EBay and op shops any moment I can for that special something.

This year I am fulfilling a long term dream of mine to write a vintage photographic book in my spare time, so I will be on the look out for models and many props to loan.  From time to time I will put requests on my facebook page.  

So join me on a journey into the past if you want.  I have a nice old chair saved just for you and some treats!