1940's Bow Broach Repair & Repurpose

Bows in Fashion and Jewelry have been around for ages.  In the 1940's bows were at the forefront in jewelry design often in the form of broaches.  Today, bow broaches are making a comeback as 'Repurposed/Assemblage Jewelry'. 

 

'Antique Rose Bow' is my latest repurposed bow broach.  She needed a bit of TLC with replacement of a couple of garnet rhinestones and plating repair on the base metal bow.  Here's a HowToTip on making that repair: 

~ Clean with Dawn using a soft bristle toothbrush. 

~ Lightly buff with 'Fine Steel Wool'.

~  Use a Metallic Paint Pen to cover the entire front surface of the bow.  I used Elmer's brand...example HERE.  The shiny plated finish becomes a bit more antique gold and opaque, but still has a shine.  Some plated pieces are left with chippy look to give aged look.  To me, this piece seemed too elegant to leave chippy. 

 

Not bad for a Bow Broach found in a Bag of Broken/Battered/Broaches!

Now to Find a Buyer.
BTW...It's January's Birthstone.
Hmmm...I may have to keep it!

'BackInTheDay' Buttons and Birthdays

Remember when a calendar was just a calendar...like when one day was pretty much like the one before.  When the months you paid the most attention to were June, July and August because school was out for the summer.  Not that you cared what day it was or marked them off on the calendar like in the month of May. 

 

Remember when your Mom hung the freebie calendar from the local 'Grocery Store' somewhere in the kitchen...usually near the door where you stood barefoot tall with a pencil pressed against the top of your head to make the line.  My Mom always said, "Sue, for Pete's Sake, stand up straight".  I was TALL and SKINNY and not always happy to be so.  Sometimes the tallness number was written on the calendar, but for sure it was recorded right there on wall beside the pencil mark for measuring how much TALLER I was than the JANUARY before.  That was about the only time I paid much attention to Calendars....until I became a 'January Collector'.

 

Now, whenever I see a 'January Calendar' I add it to my collection.  It just so happened the 1955 January calendar was displayed in a bin of buttons.  Could not be better for closing out this months Button Binge posting.  Not that I am done with Buttons, you understand.

The Button Bins will continue to repurpose into Button Jewelry and be incorporated in with the Vintage to Vogue Jewelry making...like this one.

I do not remember wearing JEWELRY BackInTheDay, yet here I am in 1955 wearing a leaning to the left Medallion Necklace and a shoved up the arm Bangle Bracelet.  I can just hear my Mom saying, "Sue, for Pete's Sake, stand up straight, you are slumping to the left, again."  That explains the leaning left necklace.  As for the bangle bracelet...it would have been a saddle oxford ornament had it not been pushed up nearly to my elbow.

On my Birthday...January 20, 1955...I was 8 years old.

Told you I was TALL and SKINNY!!!

Aurora Borealis...Blue Jewels of Choice

Collecting vintage jewelry comes with a price besides what you pay for it whether you thrift, flea, garage, junktique shop or...gasp...Retail/Internet shop.   That price?  The Parting Pain!

It is almost too high a price to pay...the pain of parting with pieces you have coveted for so long.  It doesn't matter that many of the treasures may be missing a rhinestone or two or the clasp is broken, or even covered in dirt.  All of those flaws can be fixed.

Yet, once they are repaired and it is your intention to 'Part' with said 'Treasure', it is still hard to do.  That is where I am with this latest 'VintageToVogue' necklace that was previously three different pairs of clip on earrings, a strand of knotted faux pearls and a mixture of glass and crystal beads.

Most of what I collect is NOT in MINT condition.  I am not put off by broken, chipped, or missing rhinestones.  If one earring is missing a few stones, or the clip is broken, all the better for repurposing into a new piece.  Such was the case with the pair of Aurora Borealis earrings. 

The Blue Aurora Borealis is my color of choice between Red, Green, and Clear. The technique of applying rhinestones with an iridescent metallic coating was developed in the early 1950's by French Fashion Designer, Chrisian Dior.
He collaborated with Austrian crystal manufacturer, Swarovski in developing and producing the coating that gave the stones a dazzling glimmer.  They named the coating after the mysterious glow of the Northern Lights.  The first massed produced aurora borealis coated costume jewelry hit the public market in 1955. 

 Parting is such Sweet Sorrow...but...I'll get over it...as soon as it sells.

In it's favor is the BSK marking on the once-an-earring pendant.

The pristine knotted strand of pearls with the original clasp adds to it's value as well.

I'm betting Blue Aurora Borealis just might be your Jewel of Choice, too.

I'm pretty sure it is Sally's!

Linking To

Sally's Blue Monday

I BOUGHT Buttons...A Sympathy Buy

Lady at Antique Shop..."Here's a chair, a bottle of water, a scoop and a bag...have fun...and when you finish at the button TUB there's a CHEST full of old JEWELRY you can look through...more fun."

Are you kidding me??!!!  Like I don't have enough of both!!! 

None the less, I felt obligated to sit and sift through the 'Claw Foot Tub' FULL of Buttons.  Really, it was one of those BIG tubs, too, and when she said, "I have another one just like this one at home", I felt sorry for her.

Out of SixKabillionZillion Buttons I picked 6 and a Buckle.  That was one a minute...anymore time in that TUB and I'm sure I would have had a relapse of the Button Sicknesses I've been doctoring myself for these last few months. 

I am ever so grateful there are no known diseases attached to the about 1950's 

'Parklane Cornucopia' Broach/Pendant.

Even so, I would have risked it for $12...mint condition, too.

Yep, my Cornucopia runneth over...one on Ebay for $55.

What I have learned from this experience!

Styrofoam divided 'Dinner Trays' from Walmart not only make great

'Jewelry Work Trays', they make 'Stunning Photo Backgrounds'.

Great Values Day for Buttons, Broaches and Buffet!

On The Button Wagon...It's Been 7 Days!

It has been 7 Days since my last Button Post.  

Really, it's been 7 Days since my last post, period....it just so happens it was on buttons.

As I look back over June's Archives, nearly EVERY post has been about buttons.

I'd say it was certainly time for a Button Break...or...a Break from Buttons!

Before the Button Bustin' Break, the Button Bins were Bulging after the Button Binge I was on.  I'm glad I photographed the overflowing bins....otherwise I wouldn't have anything to show you on this 'BackToThe Buttons'  post.  Hard to believe I haven't taken a single photo in the last 7 days.  I think I must have 'Binged Out'...if there is such a thing even for an 'OverDoer' like me.



Yep, from the looks of these last three Bins you are probably thinking

I really needed a 7 Day Hiatus from Buttons.

Whew, this looks like a 'CrapShoot'...I wonder if they take

'Buttons' at the Crap Tables in Vegas!

Not that it matters...since I'm still

'On The Button Wagon'.

Sue's OverDone Button Bins Feature Pink Button Jewelry

I have been on a 'Button Bin Binge', and yes, some may say and think  I've OverDoneIt...again!  Ever since I wrote the post Button Sickness...A Real and Present Danger, I have worried about how my Button Collection has been organized and stored.

The warning of mixing metal buttons with any and all other buttons got me started separating and organizing the metal buttons.  Not such a difficult task, but of course I had to sort them in categories of metal color, size, shank or holes, collectible and so on.  Now I have a Silver Button Bin, a Gold Button Bin, and a Misc. Metal Button Bin.

The next order of  'Button Wellness' was to get the Collectible Celluloid and Bakelite buttons out of plastic baggies and into/onto acid free cards and open glass containers.  The experts stressed the need for them to breathe.  That's being done, and research ongoing for their worth and market value.

As it usually does when one is an 'OverDoer', one Button Bin Binge led to the next Mason Jar, Baggie,  and still on the 'Card' buttons....Button Market Crash Prompts New Strategy.  Hopefully, this organization will facilitate the production of 'OverDoSue's Eclections' of Button Jewelry.

Here is one of my favorites...fresh out of the Pink Button Bin!

Pink Buttons and Old Bowties

1960's Pink Shank Buttons with altered Vintage Bowtie clasp...Necklace and Earrings. 

Featured with 'Winter'...a watercolor from 1960's portfolio. 

Three Jars, a Bowl and a Plate Full and the Button Bins will be done.

Since I've separated out the 'Sickness Susceptible' Buttons,

I think the 'Plate Full' will go back in the Jars.

Afterall, what 'Bonafide Button Collector' does not have a Mason Jar full of Buttons?

Not this 'OverDoSue'!

Linking To

Beverly's How Sweet The Sound ~  PINK SATURDAY

Wordless Wed...Vintage Butterfly Calling Card

Button Market Crash Prompts New Strategy

Obviously my past marketing strategy was a bust.  I mean, who could pass up a package of buttons worth $20 for the absolutely final markdown of $4?  Not me!

That's why I pulled 'Buttons' out of my 'Junktique Booth'...I couldn't give them away!  That was several years ago, and now as I am gearing up to get back into the Junktique Booth business, I am re-evaluating my 'Button Marketing' strategy.

I started with trashing the old plan...literally!  The trash basket is full of old cards and bygone bargins!  'Old School' marketing just won't cut it in today's 'E'commerce and Social Media markets...yes, even on the Social Media Sites, you can panhandle just about anything...why not Buttons!

Did you know there are Button Market Analyst out there who for a price will 'give your marketing strategy a good shake-up and an injection of fresh energy'?

Before I check into that further and consider their 'Button Bright Ideas', I better rescue that $4.25 gray button, MADE IN ITALY from the TRASH!

Might be a good idea to hang on to those stripped of their buttons CARDS from JAPAN, SPAIN, GERMANY and HOLLAND.  The cards are probably worth more than the buttons they held.

My New 'Button Bright Idea' Marketing Strategy?

Declaring them ART!

By Famous Artist from

ITALY....Toulouse LeChic

 SPAIN...Pablo LaMode

GERMANY...Ernst Streamline

HOLLAND...Vincent VanBuTon

That should 'ShakeEmUp'....I Am So Energized!

Black and Blue and Art All 'OverDoSue'

Is it Art? 

No worries, Ya'll, you don't have to answer, although you may decide one way or another as you browse through this 'Gallery Post'.  It is completely up to you!  BackInTheDay when I was an 'Art Student' working on my Masters, I DID have to answer the question "Is it Art?", and let me tell you some of the 'Stuff' I had to give a Yup or Nope was shocking to this here-to-fore 'Art Is Dalhart Windberg Bluebonnet Landscapes' Gal.

All along it was a 'TEST'.  My Yup's turned out to be Art alright, but my double the number of Nope's also turned out to be ART!  Needless to say, I failed the 'TEST', but learned quickly to say 'Yup' to ALL except the 'bogus bathroom sign' thrown in just to make sure I wasn't snoozing through the slideshow. 

That was a long time ago...like 31 years to be exact...and now, here I am

sifting through 'Old Portfolios' trying to decide...Is It Art? 

 If So then I'll keep it!  If No, then I'll trash it!

Is it Art?  What it was...was a 'practice' watercolor testing a block out product.

It must be Art...I kept it for over 30 years. 

In another 30 years it maybe priceless...or Not!

For now it works as a background for photographing my

OverDoSue Jewelry Eclections.

NOW THAT IS ART!!!

 

Linking To

Smiling Sally's Blue Monday

I SUPPORT the BHC...

...That'd be the 'Button Hunt Club'!!!

Is that a perfect button for 'Hunters' of whatever? 

My hunting lately has taken me through the Mason Jar Jungles of my stash. 

I've also been 'Goodwill Hunting'. 

Out of the Mason Jar Jungle I have designed several 'Bracelets'.

I keep thinking my stash should be dwindling.  If it is, I can't tell.

I bagged a Lion!  Actually, I rescued these Lion Buttons out of a Ziploc Baggie!  ROAR!!!

These two Lion Bracelets are going to my ETSY Zoo Shop!

In my Vintage Jewelry Jungle I went hunting for parts to make a necklace.

I think this 'Tiger Eye' bracelet is going to make several 'Hunt Club' pieces.

Don't you Love the 'Eye of the Tiger' Pendant?

Guess I'd better get back to my Jungle Jewelry Hut and finish it!

Watch for the finished necklace in OverDoSue Eclections ETSY Shop.

Take a look at what is Already there!

Thank-you for

SUPPORTING the BHC!

UnDecended From An Indian Princess

Once upon a time I believed my Great Great Grandmother was a Native American Indian.  That knowledge prompted me to write this about an unidentified photo from my Great Grandmothers Album....
" It has to be Mary Josephine Leatherwood.  She looks Indian!  After years of conjuring up stories in my head about how an Apache Princess must have lived her life married to a 'Trapper' or a 'Texas Lawman', you can imagine my excitement to find this picture in my Great Grandmother Martha Jane's Photo Album.  So, I proclaimed the 'Apache Princess' story as a part of our Family Tree, and set out to claim our American Indian Heritage."  Photo and Post...Leatherwood-Pittman Myths Debunked.

You know that old quote, "A little knowledge is a dangerous thing"?  In the case of my 2xGreat Grandmother Leatherwood, it was a double edged sword hatchet arrow. 

At the time, it confirmed what I believed was an innate connection with all things Southwestern and Native American.  I was raised by a Texas Cowboy, so no question about the love of all things Southwestern.

'Leatherwood'!!!   Who wouldn't jump all over that last name as being Native American?  Bingo!  There is the explanation why I had spent years painting and collecting Indian artifacts.

'Feather Fascination' was probably the most intense subject of my 'Innate Native American Self'.  Feathers turned up in many paintings, displayed in pottery, etched into clay, and was the theme for my 'Graduate Art Show'...post and photo:  BackInThe Day Self Portraits.

'A little knowledge is a dangerous thing' can mislead one into thinking that they are more expert than they really are. 

On the other hand, that little bit of knowledge can lead one into a lifetime of appreciation of an ancient culture so important in American History.

Native American blood does not run through my veins. 

I am not descended from an Apache Princess. 

No matter...I still love all things Southwestern and Native American. 

Like these latest Jewelry Pieces designed from my collection of

Southwestern Beads and Navajo Effigies.

Rooted In Thistle

Here in Texas the Thistle is considered a weed.  None the less, I have always been attracted to this wild weed that grows along the byways and highways of Texas, where I have come to a screeching halt on a narrow two lane, back country road to photograph this stickery plant with it's spikey purple bloom.

Back in 1982 I painted 'The Thistle' in watercolor, and even then thought, "Sue, who does this for a weed?"

As with many of the 'idosyncra-crazy's of 'Me', the 'Thistle Fascination' has come to light in my later years.  Funny how that happens when you least expect it, especially when you are digging up bones.

Not literally, of course, but through genealogy research.  Yep, there are ancient 'Weeds' growing around my 'Family Tree' with the roots reaching from Texas to Georgia to Jamestown, Virginia and across the Atlantic to Scotland.  'The Thistle' is the National Flower of Scotland.

There's more...'The Thistle' is the symbol for 'The Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle which is an 'order of chivalry founded in 1687 by King James VII of Scotland.

What is the connection? 

 I am a descendent of Sir John Napier, a Knight of the Order of The Thistle.   

You can read about my 'Thistle Roots' on 'Tracks of My Georgia Ancestors' 

America to Scotland...Rene the Link 

Now that I know my 'Thistle Fascination' is part of my DNA, collecting 'Thistle Thingys' is now justified, and just when my collections are on the 'Downsizing List'.  I think you will agree though, that my latest Thistle Find won't take up too much room and is certainly worthy of being added to my Family Tree Heirlooms. 

Thistle Earrings by Scottish Silversmith John Hart.

Signed 'Iona' with JH monogram stamp

Silver ~ made 1940-1950 ~ value $50-$75

Found at Goodwill for $1.99

Linked to Tracks of Georgia Ancestors
Page Tab...Family Jewels

Seeking Summer Shade In Texas

You know it's too hot to trot when the 'Sundial' is seeking 'Shade'.

Texas has two seasons 'Summer and Winter', and sometimes they happen in the same week.

Although it's hotter than a pistol most July 4th weekends,  this summer has been tolerable.

Except for our garden squash and okra.  It's a 'Shade Seeker' in the late afternoon.

Look at that squash plant!  We grow em' Bigger in Texas, and about the heat...

Texans are always glad when it's finally hot enough to complain about how hot it is.

A lot of folks come to Texas for the climate...and rightly so. 

We Texans are always adapting to our  weather.

When it finally rains...we rejoice, pray for more and fill our rain barrels.

When it's hot we 'Seek Shade'.

When the wind blows, we build 'Windmills' on the mesas and....

Fly Kites!

Linking To:

Smiling Sally's Blue Monday

Vintage Button Collection Goes Viral...

...at least on this blog!!!

Who knew that all these years of Collecting and OverDoing would culminate in boxes, bags and Mason Jars.  It's been weeks, maybe even months...I've lost track...of sorting, sacking, stringing and stacking buttons and beads into what will make their debut today at.....

A SMALL Sample of just a FEW of

OverDoSue Button and Bead Necklaces!

And

They are Anti-Viral...Just Sayin'!



It Is Patriotism

"You have to love a nation that celebrates its independence every 4th, not with a parade

of guns, tanks, and soldiers who file by the White House in a show of strength and muscle,

but with family picnics where kids throw Frisbees, the potato salad gets iffy,

and the flies die from happiness. 

You may think you have overeaten, but it is patriotism.

~Erma Bombeck~

 

I have always been a fan of Erma Bombeck.  Her down to earth, day to day quotes about life in the 'Good Ol Days' make me smile!  I remember swatting flies at our Family 4th Picnics, but I never thought of it as a Happy ending for them.  I probably was more concerned about them landing on the wax paper covered bowl of 'Iffy Potato Salad'.  It might have been a Tubberware Covered bowl, too.  At any rate, some things never change, and I'll probably be swatting flies and grandkids this coming 4th of July weekend. 

I hope YOU and YOURS have a SAFE and HAPPY 4th of JULY!!!!