Nailhead Photo Block Project

Well I made Shanty to Chic's Nailhead Photo Blocks for me and my mom this week.  You can follow the directions here.

Here is  the one for my house:

 

The set I made for my mom (which I was so excited to give her that I forgot to take pics of)

said my family and had pictures of her growing up and her immediate family.

Super easy

and

Super cute!!!!

Vintage Christmas Finds

2013 is off to a so-so start -

I was so happy that my husband was off from work and that he was able to watch my boys so I could run to an estate sale that was advertising "vintage Christmas".  I was 15th in line and couldn't wait to run in the door.  Unfortunately, the prices were high and the finds were so-so....

I also have to mention that the basement was real dark and I forgot a flashlight.

I picked up these 4 "sputnick" shaped ornies - unfortunately when I get home I realized they were not in good condition at all but I am sure that I can do something with them.

I did get a box of gold tinsel gardland, a snowman that has seen better days as evidenced by his right arm but I can never let a snowman go and he is holding an awesome broom.  There is also a corsage right in front of the snowman.

A ton of ornies but I have to admit they look awesome in my bad photo - not in great condition in real life but they will make great filler in projects so I am happy!

 

 

3 Putz houses in need of flippin for sure.  They do not have glued bases they were stapled and there is rust everywhere.  These guys were made in the USA not Japan.  Do you see the mini Japan one with the purple roof?  I am in love.

An old Santa that needs some TLC and a bath...

This needs no words......

Love!!!!

and some scraggly tinsel garland.  Love the aqua.

Oh Chiquita - I AM SPEECHLESS!

Truth be told this is not my first blog.  A couple of years ago I had a blog called princesswithahalfpricetiara.blogspot.  I have not written a post for that blog since 2009!  It was generally about my crafts, crafts for little children, recipes, coupons and learning activities.  Basically it was about my life as a mother to two preschoolers one with special needs.  I loved my blog and the wonderful creative people that I met through the blogiverse. 

I tried to start another one called retroramamama.blogspot at the beginning of the year that was going to feature my fun vintage ad collection and all of the fun and sometimes quite nasty vintage recipes that I try like this one....

I was excited to start blogging again but quickly realized that I simply did not have the time to make all the vintage recipes to keep the blog from getting stale.Now that both boys are in school full time after 7 years I finally have some time to myself.  Time that I can play with my power tools (to fix up  the damage to my home created by my awesome two little boys) and get back into crafting and hunting vintage goodies.

I love the look of this ad....do you?  If so, check my etsy store (there is a link on the right hand side of my blog - I will be listing it real soon!

Gertz and Mays Blog

Welcome to Gertz and Mays...

This blog was named after the two stores that my grandmother's shopped at their entire lives. Most everything they owned was purchased on the "avenue" at either Gertz or Mays. Just the sound of their names brings a smile to my face.

I have an obsession with all things vintage! There I said it!!!!

Something about the things from the 1940's - 1960's makes me smile and feel very nostalgic for the bygone eras that were technically not a part of me. I suppose it has a lot to do with my love of my father and how I loved to listen to the stories of his childhood which I guess in turn makes me think of my own childhood. I love that my father memorized every advertising jingle of his youth, the products my grandparents used in their home and that despite economic struggles and war times - everything seemed so promising and happy "back in the day".

My family has always been "keen" on vintage...my Christmas tree growing up was lit with cloth wired C7 bulbs with tin reflectors and covered in Shiny Brite ornaments and always had a Lionel train board under it. Looking back, not only were the wires cloth, they even had tape on them with the names of my grandparents because when WWII ended their whole town had a party and lit up the streets and they wanted to make sure they got their lights back after the festivities were over. They are the decorations that my father grew up with and in turn so did I and so will my children - they make me smile!

My father was not only an amazing story teller he was also a very creative man - he was a engineer by trade but was an awesome gunsmith, leather crafter, stained glass artist and carpenter. He taught me the joy of making something with your own hands. Hence my love for DIY, crafts and power tools 


Thanks for joining me on my journey...