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Hmm...Define 'vintage'.

10/28/2014

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If an item is…

Antique – My grandmother used to have one.

Vintage – I haven’t seen one in a while.

Old – Mine’s in the attic.

Classic – popular at least one year.

Limited edition – limited to the number of buyers we can find.

Retro – covered in plastic and price marked up.

Rare – listed no more often than once a week.

Unique – only a dozen left!

Collectible – I thought it was great, but don’t want it anymore.

Scarce – I need to get this sold before I misplace it again!

A customer submitted ^ these definitions to us several months ago, and we thought they were pretty funny. 

Here are more accurate definitions:
Antique - Meaning the age of the items is at least 100 years old 

Vintage - signifies in general something being old, old-fashioned, classical, or "from another time."

Old - Typical of an earlier style or form 

Classic - Belonging to the highest rank or class, serving as a model or standard 

Limited Edition - An edition that is restricted to a specific number of copies 

Retro - Trends, modes, fashions or attitudes of the recent past 15-20 years 

Rare - There aren’t many of its kind

Unique - Only one of its kind 

Collectible - Collected by fanciers

Scarce - Insufficient amount to meet the demand 
I believe the age of E-bay, Etsy, Amazon, and Craigslist has changed the definitions a little, but the definitions given to us by a customer are a good way to remember how to tag items, and identify them for resale, or for collecting.

What terms do you use for "old" items?

I like this definition for vintage: 
Characterized by excellence, maturity, and enduring appeal; classic.

-The GA Gang

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In Search of the real Zane Grey

10/22/2014

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I was going through some boxes of books and found this book by Zane Grey called Roping Lions in the Grand Canyon. Hoping to learn more about  Zane Grey as a person, this book caught my eye because it was fact, not fiction.

The book is dedicated to the Boy Scouts of America and I was also hoping to tie it to President Roosevelt, since he was an ardent supporter of the boy scouts. This is an older book, written in 1922. 

In the summer of 1998, I chose to take my physical science course as a summer hiking trip.  One of the five canyons I hiked for that course was the Grand Canyon from the North rim to the South rim, nineteen point five (19.5) miles.  Since, I have hiked the Grand Canyon, researched the area, and studied about the Anasazi Indians.  I thought I knew a lot about the Grand Canyon.  I knew about the gray squirrels, but not about it being mountain lion country.  Maybe, my professors did not tell me because we were alone quite a bit as we hiked.

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It is reported by GrandCanyon411.com there are mountain lions in the Grand Canyon.  Mountain lions will generally avoid humans.  Most people will never get even a brief glimpse at a mountain lion, and lion attacks on people are extremely rare.  The number of mountain lion- human interactions has been increasing in recent years, largely because more people are living and recreating in areas where lions live.

After reading the book, I began to wonder if it had been controversial in its time, especially to the Boy Scouts of America.  The following is what I found out:

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This is a true account of Zane Grey’s Adventure, at the age of 36 years, traveling in 1908 to Powell's Plateau in the Grand Canyon in order to rope mountain lions, with legendary plainsman Buffalo Jones, James Simpson Emmett (simply "Emett" in the book), Jim Owens, an unnamed Navajo man referred to only as "Navvy", and a pack of very lovable dogs (who are as much real individuals as their masters) set off on this hunting adventure with camera and lasso.

Everyone has heard of roping cattle and wild horses, but roping mountain lions on their home ground is another matter. The book never explains why they are roping mountain lions. (Perhaps, they were trying to translate catch-and-release in a hunting context or maybe they were collecting live specimens, they never make that point clear). Things go badly more often than they go well. Several lions die in unnecessary deaths. The five men survive almost unscathed.

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I don’t feel I learned much about Zane Grey, except that he was a hunter and supported the Boy Scouts of America.  Later, I read another of his non-fiction books, Betty Zane.  Still, I learned more about his grandmother than I did about him...I’m still curious about  Zane Grey the author.

I had also read that President Roosevelt was an ardent supporter of the Boy Scouts of America.  Boys Scouts of America began in 1910, which was after President Roosevelt was out of the office of President. (Dates in office; Sept. 14, 1901 – March 4, 1909)  Mr. Roosevelt was associated with Troop 39 out of Oyster Bay, N. Y.  He was honorary Vice President of The Boy Scouts of America and the only man designated as “Chief Scout of America”. Although, both Grey and Roosevelt were alive in the same period of time, there does not seem to be a connection between them, other than the fact that they were both supporters of Boy Scouts of America.  The Boy Scout troops in Arizona are recorded to have had the Roping Lions in the Grand Canyon book as part of their reading materials and often visit the Grand Canyon.  Mr. Grey was not connected to that troop though.

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Troop 39 of Oyster Bay, NY
The following is quote by Zane Grey regarding his feelings on writing this book:

“Every boy has a heritage. It is outdoor America. Our open country, that is to say, our uncultivated lands, forests, preserves, feeding and nesting swamps are threatened by the march of so-called progress and commercialism. What is needed is two million Boy Scouts to save some of our green, fragrant, untrammeled land for the boys to come.” 

I enjoy reading older books.  I find it interesting how differently we view things now, than we did back then.  Obviously, we feel differently about hunting. Contemporary nature-lovers, animal-lovers, or environmentalists will be appalled by elements of this book. (And the representation of Navvy, too, will offend readers, but that's a story for someone else to tell.)

I checked into current care of lions found in the Grand Canyon and the following is a report from Rangers of The Grand Canyon;

“R. V. Ward, Wildlife Program Manager in 2003 has research the lions of the Grand Canyon and if they are captured they are immobilized with a mixture of tranquilizer chemicals, delivered via blow dart. Immobilized lions are fitted with radio collars, weighed, and morphological measurements taken. Blood is collected for genetic analysis. All capture methods and drugs used are approved by National Park Service veterinarians.”

Sounds a lot different than roping mountain lions, huh?

If you are interested in Boy Scouts of America, the Grand Canyon, mountain lions, old books, or just enjoy Zane Grey books.  Here is a controversial read for you. 

This book can be found at Grandma’s Attic for $8.00.

Have you read Roping Lions? Tell us what you think!

-The GA Gang

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Just a Spoon.

10/15/2014

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Just a spoon.

Or so I thought.

Awhile back, I was given a vintage spoon to research,  I found the spoon on the internet and in the process discovered a lot about spoons and silver in general!
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http://www.hoardersworld.co.uk/elizabethan-tudor-spoon-c1500-in-fine-english-pewter-293-p.asp
  I have never really thought about the parts of a spoon before, but this particular spoon had a makers mark on the “drop” or “neck”, so I went looking for the makers mark first and when that dead ended, I began trying to think of other ways to approach this task.  While trying to find words to put into the computer to help locate this spoon, I decided to dissect the spoon into parts.  The following is what I found:
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A - bowl tip or rim

B - bowl

C - drop or neck

D - shoulder or heel

E - stem or transition

F - handle or thread

G – terminal or tip

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This diagram of spoon gave me the era in which my spoon might have been made.
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This is a diagram of the parts of a knife.
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So, next time you start to take a bite of your cereal, remember...

Sometimes, even a spoon is more than just a spoon. 

Leave us a comment and tell us what items have taught you 

"There's more here than meets the eye". 

Next time you want to identify a piece of silver the information will all be in one spot and your search will be shorter. 

Happy Hunting.

-The GA Gang

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Ship of the Desert

10/7/2014

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The other day, the twelve year old granddaughter of one of our vendors brought an item to me at the front counter.  She thought it would be a good item to blog about. At first glance, it was obvious that it was a whip. 
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  It is in fact a Camel whip from Saudi Arabia.  It is a vintage (1970’s) inlaid whip with a wood and leather wrapped handle.  When camels refused to move, they would use these whips to give them a smart whip on the chest.  The surprising part was what I found *inside* the handle. 
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 Inside the handle is a prodder. Camels have thick coats that protect them from the sun, and insulate them so their bodies can absorb their sweat.  Their hide is very strong, with a pulling strength 5x greater than cattle hide. This prodder is used to stimulate movement.  They are poked in the rump.  If you have watched “Indiana Jones” movies you will have seen a prodder used on camels when the bad guys are chasing them.  Camels can keep a constant speed of 45 mph.  With a little prodding they can do short bursts of 65 mph.  The prodder is not easily accessible and I am sure only used when necessary.   Camels are amazing animals.  A full grown camel stands at 6 foot 1 inch at the shoulder and 7 foot 1 inch at the hump. They have a life span of 40 to 50 years.  Camels can consume 53 gallons of water in 3 minutes.   So, just how long can a camel go, before its hump starts to slump or the camel is in need of water? There are records of camels going 6 to 7 months without water.
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http://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/21513985_vintage-egyptian-leather-and-wood-camel-saddle-stool
In the few years that Grandma’s Attic has been open, we have had a camel saddle and now a camel whip.  This is pretty amazing since there aren’t too many camels in Anderson, MO!

Have you ever ridden on a camel?

-The GA Gang

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Grandma's Gate to Indian Screen Door

9/22/2014

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Three months after the opening of Grandma’s Attic in 2010 we were in Eureka Springs, Arkansas.  We were going through antique shops to get ideas and find merchandise, when we came upon  “the gate”! We snatched it up and brought it to its new “home”, because you don’t find a piece like that everyday!

For awhile we had it just leaning against a wall.  Then we decided to put it up in the doorway between the back room and the front room of Grandma’s Attic.  It is an older gate and someone had to have spent a lot of time arching the top.  My thoughts were that is was a European gate because I have seen gardens in Italy and on the internet with similar gates.  We didn’t know for sure where it came from or what it was used for, but we knew it was attention grabbing, we got price inquiries almost daily! It is a part of the character of Grandma's Attic. 
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Then in June of this year, a vendor brought in another gate set.  This one had the exact same latch and was shaped the same, as well as having bars that are the same size as our gate.  The person that sold the gate to our vendor said that the gate is from India.  
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That got me to thinking about an incident that had happened when I took a trip to India in 2009.  We got up one morning and everyone was pulling clothes from the lines, closing windows and doors.  Apparently, there had been a monkey alert.   Roving monkeys had moved into our community and they are curious characters.  The radio had announced the movement of the monkey troops around town.  


It was then that I remember seeing  two doors together-one was solid and one made with bars.  These gates are normally placed in front of traditional wood doors, allowing air ventilation into a home, while keeping the roving animals out. This type of door/gate combinations makes perfect sense with the freedom animals have in India.  

This started my internet search on gates from India.  There is not a lot to find.
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I found this one ^, but it was not exactly the same.
I believe maybe there was a specific era that this type of gate was built in, and the lack of finding them on the internet is because India has changed the style somewhat in current years. 

Well, that’s it then, one of the novelties of Grandma’s Attic has had its secret discovered!  It is a set of gates from India that they use as their front and back doors.

We’d love to have you stop in and see our “Indian screen doors”!

-The GA Gang

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The Teacup's Secret

9/16/2014

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This is a beautiful little Japanese tea cup that we have in the store right now. 
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At first glance, that's all it appears to be, is a beautiful little tea cup,
but sometimes, looks can be deceiving! 

If you finish your tea, and glance into the bottom of your now empty cup, you will notice that the bottom surface of the cup is uneven. Nothing too exciting, really.
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Then you may think, "Hey, that looks a little like a picture. A face, maybe?"


And when you pick it up to give it a closer inspection, and the light hits the bottom of the cup, you see it! A very detailed picture etched in the porcelain at the bottom of the cup.
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So, it turns out, what we really have here is a beautiful little Japanese tea cup with a LITHOPHANE  in the bottom.
The word "lithophane" is said to have Greek origins, meaning "Light in stone" or "to appear in stone". 

A lithophane starts out as a sheet of beeswax, then a picture is carved into the beeswax, then that sheet of wax is used to make a plaster of Paris mold, and finally Porcelain is poured into the mold and then "fired". 

Where the porcelain is thinnest, more light shows through, thus allowing the artist to create a picture by thinner and thicker sections of porcelain creating a "three-dimensional like" picture, or lithophane.   

I have read that the older lithophanes would start with the image in wax, then the artist would back-light the image and carve it on glass. Their work tables would be beneath a window, sometimes with a mirror underneath to bounce light up on the backside of the lithophane. 

Sounds like tedious work, doesn't it? 

Beautiful work though! 
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Lithophanes change in appearance, depending on the light source that you hold them up to. 


A lithopane picture being lit by a window, would change throughout the day, as the light changed. 
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Where did lithophanes originally come from? Well, that seems to be a subject with differing opinions. Some say they began in the "Tang Dynasty" where people said there were "bowls as thin as paper with secret decorations in them".  

That sounds very mysterious, doesn't it?

"The inspiration for the Japanese "geisha girl" lithophane mark seems more than likely  to have come to Japan during their early contacts with the West around the turn of the 19th century.

All kinds of decorative pieces, probably mostly lanterns were made in this technique in Europe, with its popularity reaching its peak in the 1870's after which point they gradually went out of fashion."
-http://www.gotheborg.com/qa/geisha.shtml
I guess this is just one more lesson of "Don't judge a book by its cover" or "appearances can be deceiving". 


In this case, the moral of the story would be, 


even a tea cup can have a secret. 

-The GA Gang

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The Soldier's Deck of Cards

9/2/2014

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A deck of cards can be used in many ways both for good and for bad.  When I heard this description, it changed the way I look at cards...

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Old limited airline cards $4.95
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Furadan cards $1.00
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Rondo round cards $12.00

Now, it doesn't matter the shape of the cards, the age of the cards, or where the cards are used, when ever I see them, here in Grandma's Attic or at home, they will always represent the Bible and the seasons to me.    


Maybe, this will change the way you view a deck of cards too.

-The GA Gang

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All About :The Barcode

7/29/2014

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Remember our post on using your five senses to identify if something is truly vintage or an antique? 


Well, here's another way to use your eyes:

Symbology - 
"A way of identifying the age of some items when antiquing and flea marketing"

One symbol I like to use to tell the age of items is...


the BARCODE.
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The barcode is a series of lines in distinct patterns accompanied by binary numbers (two numerals to represent all real numbers) below the lines.  The barcode is generally in a rectangular shape.
The barcode began in commercial use on June 26, 1974.  The first product scanned was a packet of Wrigley’s “Juicy Fruit” gum bought by Clyde Dawson and scanned by Sharon Buchanan at 8:01 a.m.  (A display of this moment of time is on display at Smithsonian Institute).
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http://barcodingblog.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/first-upc-barcode.png
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http://angelikaschneider.com/graphic_design.html
          Knowing a little bit about the barcode and when it began is a good way to identify the age of an item.   Items such as; books, VHS’s, magazines, cards, boxes used for products like coffee or butter, old tins, signs, band aids tins, or patterns, will have a bar code.  If these items do not have a bar code they were made prior to 1974 or from another country.
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So, what do you know about barcodes? 

Leave us a comment and tell us about it! :)

-The GA Gang

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What does "ihs" stand for?

7/22/2014

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Recently, we purchased a tray that caught my interest.  It is glass with a cross and the letters “IHS” etched on the bottom.  I asked the person selling the item what the letters stood for, they said that it stands for “In His Service”.
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My findings are that this is a tray used to hold cruets-one with water and one with wine.  It is from the 1950’s.  It is used in the Roman Catholic Mass Sacraments.  It is called the “Holy Eucharist” or “The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass”.
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Eucharist means “Thanksgiving” in Latin.
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This lovely plate needs to be reunited with some cruets that have glass cross stoppers.
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Image borrowed from the Internet
Come check it out at Grandma’s Attic! 

-The GA Gang

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All About :The Hitchcock Chair

7/16/2014

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When I hear the name Hitchcock I generally think of Alfred Hitchcock, writer and producer of scary movies. So it was easy for me to believe that Alfred Hitchcock could have been the maker of an electric chair, but "Hitchcock chairs" were actually made by Lambert Hitchcock, 

not Alfred.

On a side note, did you know Alfred Hitchcock was scared of his own movies?  
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Alfred
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Lambert
Alfred Hitchcock, the author and director, known as the Master of Suspense, arrived on the scene August 13, 1899.  As a child, Hitchcock was sent to the local police station with a letter from his father. The desk sergeant read the letter and immediately locked the boy up for ten minutes. After that, the sergeant let young Alfred go, explaining, "This is what happens to people who do bad things." Hitchcock had a morbid fear of police from that day on. He also cited this phobia as the reason he never learned to drive (as a person who doesn't drive can never be pulled over and given a ticket). It was also cited as the reason for the recurring "wrong man" themes in his films.  Mr. Alfred Hitchcock left us on April 29, 1980.  Do you think Mr. Alfred Hitchcock may have sat in a chair made by Mr. Lambert Hitchcock? I guess we'll never know!

 Now, back to the chair! :)
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    The Hitchcock chair was an early example of mass production.  The frames are generally of birch, oak, or maple.  The backs have a curved top with a broad gentle curved back-slat, then a broad slat that usually has a design such as; leaves, flowers, baskets of fruit or cornucopias. Below this, is a narrow crosspiece, connected to the sides, that is a continuation of the leg.  The front legs and the stretcher between are nicely turned in spools, rings, or vase shapes.  The seats are wider at the front and graduate back with straight sides and rolled or rounded edges in front.  The front legs of some of the chairs have a ball on the bottom.

          There are several types of back slats; “turtle-back,” “cut-out back slat,” - a curved back with spindles, “the pillow back”, eagles, cornucopias, plain, button back, and a crested back.  The rarest of the back slats are the eagles, cornucopias, and the scrolls.  About 1845, the “vase back” chair or “Urn chair” chair became popular.  The wide vertical middle slat was shaped like an urn or vase. It was sometimes called “Fiddleback.”  The top slats are called crest rails which are referred to as; “crown top,” “crest top,” or “pillow top.”
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 In the beginning the chairs resembled rosewood, because the first coat of red paint, applied by children, showed through the black, also used were the colors white and green.  Later a lemon-yellow color and brown were used as a background colors.  Seats were first made of rush, then cane, and then plank. They were usually painted black, brownish-black or dark green.  They have yellow ochre pin striping with gold half-rings on the front legs.   The stencils were painted with metallic colors like red, gold, blue and white.  The designs can be found on the back and sides of the chairs.
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They were marked on the back with stencil “L. Hitchcock, Hitchcocksville, Connecticut, Warranted” all in one line.  Hitchcocksville would have been used when the furniture was manufactured in Boston, Massachusetts. Hitchcock chose his woods with care and allowed none to be used with knots or other imperfections.  Later marks were “Hitchcock, Alford & Co. Hitchcocks-ville Conn. Warranted,” and “L. Hitchcock, Unionville. Conn. Warranted.” 
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 The height of the Hitchcock chair sales was in the 1920’s and 30’s.  The earliest signature is dated from 1820 to 1832. From 1832 to 1843 the signature read “HITCHCOCK, ALFORD& Cl HITCHCOCKSVILLE, CONN WARRANTED” and from 1843 to 1852 the signature read “L.HITCHCOCK.UNIONVILLE,CONN. WARRANTED.” In the second variation of the stencils, many of the chairs have two backwards “N’s” in the word “CONN.”  This is thought to have occurred because many of the laborers who worked on the chairs were illiterate. If the “N” is written backwards, your Hitchcock chair is not an original but a replica made after 1946.

          These chairs are identified as “New Hampshire Hitchcock,” or “Sheraton Hitchcock” chairs.  Hitchcock is best known for their “Boston Rocker.”   
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 The Hitchcock chair was began in 1818 by Mr. Lambert Hitchcock of Barkhamsted, Connecticut.  He established a cabinet and chair factory.  He began by making parts that could be assembled later for the chair industry of Charleston, South Carolina.  In 1825 he began making complete chairs.  Mr. Hitchcock was born in Chesshire, Connecticut on June 28, 1795 and was the son of Revolutionary soldier John Lee Hitchcock.  He came to rest in 1852. 
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                        We received a call one day from a gentleman wanting to sell us a chair. We asked to see the chair before we purchased it, so he brought it to us and while it was in the store a vendor came in and said, “Oh, you have a Hitchcock chair!”   After some research and dickering, the chair now resides at Grandma’s Attic.  Come and check it out and let us know if you believe it is a real Hitchcock chair.

-The GA Gang

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All About : Aprons

7/9/2014

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We saw this little story on Facebook the other day, and thought it was really neat, so we decided to add pictures and share it with you! 


Hope you enjoy! :)
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The History of Aprons 

"I don't think our kids know what an apron is. The principle use of Grandma's apron was to protect the dress underneath because she only had a few. It was also because it was easier to wash aprons than dresses and aprons used less material. But along with that, it served as a potholder for removing hot pans from the oven.
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It was wonderful for drying children's tears, and on occasion was even used for cleaning out dirty ears. 

From the chicken coop, the apron was used for carrying eggs, fussy chicks, and sometimes half-hatched eggs to be finished in the warming oven. 

When company came, those aprons were ideal hiding places for shy kids...
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And when the weather was cold, Grandma wrapped it around her arms.

Those big old aprons wiped many a perspiring brow, bent over the hot wood stove. 

Chips and kindling wood were brought into the kitchen in that apron.
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From the garden, it carried all sorts of vegetables. After the peas had been shelled, it carried out the hulls. 


In the fall, the apron was used to bring in apples that had fallen from the trees. 
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When unexpected company drove up the road, it was surprising how much furniture that old apron could dust in a matter of seconds. 

When dinner was ready, Grandma walked out onto the porch, waved her apron, and the men folk knew it was time to come in from the fields to dinner.
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It will be a long time before someone invents something that will replace that 'old-time apron' that served so many purposes. 

Send this to those who would know (and love) the story about Grandma's aprons.
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REMEMBER: 

Grandma used to set her hot baked apple pies on the window sill to cool. Her granddaughters set theirs on the window sill to thaw.
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They would go crazy now trying to figure out how many germs were on that apron.

I don't think I ever caught anything from an apron - but love..."


-Author Unknown

-The GA Gang

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All About :The Chairs of the 1930's

7/2/2014

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Chairs designed in the 1930’s

·       1930        Palmio Chair by Alvar Aalto

·       1930        Barcelona Chair by Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe

·       1933       Cantilevered Chair No. 31 by Alvar Aalto

·       1934       Zig Zag chair by Gerrit Rietveld

·       1934       Standard chair by Jeane Prouve’

·       1935      Crate chair by Gerrit Rietveld

·       1935       Vilpuri chair by Alvar Aalto

·       1935      Chaise Lounge chair by Marcel Breuer

·       1936      Serving Cart by Alvar Aalto

·       1937      Wing spread Barrel chair by Frank Lloyd Wright

·       1938      Landior Spartana chair by Hans Coray

·       1938      Sling chair by Jorge Ferrari Hardoy

Alvar Aalto
1930 - Finnish - sleek curved lines

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Cantilevered Chair No. 31
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Vilpuri Chair
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Serving Cart
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Alvar Aalto
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Stacking Stools
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Palmio Chair

Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe 
of Bauhause School
1930- 1933 
German- American  extreme clarity and simplicity

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Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe
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Barcelona Chair

Gerrit Rietveld
1934- Dutch - Simplicity in construction

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Gerrit Rietveld
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Zig Zag Chair
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Crate chair and table
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Rood-Blauwe Stoel

Jean Prouve’
1934 - French - "We like logic, balance and purity”

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Jean Prouve’
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Bahut Brazzaville
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LaChaise Standard chair or Chaise Longue

Marcel Breuer Lajko
    1935 - Hungarian – greatly influence the establishment of an                                American way of designing modern houses

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Chaise Longue
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Marcel Breuer Lajko
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"Wassily"

Frank Lincoln “Lloyd”  Wright
1937 - American - organic architecture

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Frank Lincoln “Lloyd” Wright
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Barrel Arm chair or Wing spread chair
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Hans Coray
1938 – Swiss -known for the functionality and simplicity of his designs.

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Hans Coray
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L A U D I . C H A I R

Jorge Ferrari Hardoy
1938 - Argentinian -the most imitated chair in modern furniture history

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S L I N G . C H A I R
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Jorge Ferrari Hardoy
Do you have anything to add? 

Leave us a comment below, we'd love to hear from you! :)

-The GA Gang

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Jar Re-purposing Project

6/25/2014

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At the swap meet last Saturday, we bought four cute glass jars with wood tops from a swap meet vendor. 


Each of the lids had a chicken sticker on it. 


We decided the jars would make fun display items for the counter, so we pulled off the stickers and replaced them with our own. :)
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First, we used our favorite photo editing site, Picmonkey, and designed a new "sticker" for the jar tops, based on what we were going to put inside-in this case; marbles, jars of honey, Zotz candy, and A&W Root Beer Jelly Bellys. 
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After we printed off the new "stickers", we took 1/2 Elmer's glue and 1/2 water and mixed up a "Modpodge" type glue.
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Next we made sure the labels were going to be the right size for the lids...
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Then it was time to paint a thin layer of our glue on the backside of the paper and press it down on the wooden lid.
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We could have left it just like that, but we decided since the jars already had a "vintage" feel to them, that we would paint a thin layer of glue on over the top too. This smears the ink a little and gives it an aged look.
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We wiped the glue off around the edges so we weren't left with a dried crust on the wood. :)
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Once they were all dry and filled with the goodies, we were finished! 


Voila! Vintage inspired jars with an old fashioned candy store look! :)
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Stop by and tell us what you think! :)

-The GA Gang

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All About : Celadon &“A Single Shard”

6/25/2014

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My introduction to this type of pottery was from a children’s book, 
“A Single Shard”.  


It was written by Linda Sue Park and won the 2002 Newbery Medal.  It is a story of an orphan and his dream to become a potter, set in the 12th century Korea. 


In the story, the pottery made by the master potter was “Celadon”.  The shard mentioned in the title is a shard of Celadon. 


I began to wonder “What does it look like"?


That’s what got me started on this blog post. :)
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Not being very familiar with the term “shard”, I decided to look up the definition; “a piece of broken pottery, especially one found in an archaeological dig; a pot shred, a fragment of a brittle substance, as of glass or metal, or a small piece or part.”
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Celadon is usually a pale green with a hint of blue, a glossy appearance and smooth texture.  It can be any shade of that color from a very pale yellow-green or gray green to deepest jade-green color.  It has a subtle beauty and elegant simplicity. 
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Molded(Incised) Celadon
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Plain Celadon
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Inlaid Celadon
Celadon glazing was perfected during the Koryo dynasty of Korea which dates from 918 to 1392 AD.  There are three design types; inlaid, incised(or molded), and plain(called Mu-ju).  Celadon in Korean means “green”. It is referred to as “cheong-ja” in Korean. There is also a brown Celadon which is called “bun-cheong” or brown porcelain, as well as white.
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These Celadon items are for sale in Grandma's Attic
Celadon is beautiful pottery but the book A Single Shard made it mean so much more to me than just a piece of pottery from Korea.  A Single Shard is a very moving story, it will bring Korean Celadon alive for you.  Come on in and see these beautiful pieces of pottery and visit your local library to check out A Single Shard, then let me know what you think of it! :)

-The GA Gang

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All About Antique"Cup Plates"

6/18/2014

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       History teaches about the Boston Tea Party on December 1, 1773.  


Tea is an important part of our history.  


Awhile back, a vendor brought me some little plates and explained that they are “cup plates.” Cup plates are like coasters for tea cups; they were introduced to the tea society around the 1700’s in England and in the United States during the first half of the 19th century.
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Photo credit: Harrogate Museums & Arts
Tea was originally consumed from “tea bowls.”  In the 1700’s saucers were placed with the tea bowls.  The tea was too hot to drink therefore was poured into the saucer to cool before consumption.  Tea cups, at that time, had no handles.  In order to drink the tea from the saucer two hands were needed, which made it necessary to put the cups down.  The saucers were used to protect furniture from marks left by the tea cups.
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Authentic Antique Cup Plate
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Reproduction Cup Plate
 In the 1750’s teacups with handles were introduced.  It took a while to get used to cups with handles and saucers, but it eventually spread, and at that time cup plates were no longer necessary.
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  The vendor had authentic cup plates, as well as some commemorative cup plates-seven plates altogether.  They are all between 3 ¼ and 3 ½ inches in diameter.  They are clear glass and have decorative designs.
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Authentic Antique Cup Plate
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Reproduction Cup Plate
   This is another good example of how to use your five senses when attempting to identify “the real thing.”

The vendor explained how to authenticate these cup plates;

      Hold the plate between your thumb and forefinger then…
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thump the end. 


If it is authentic it will make a clear “ping” sound.  
If it is not authentic it will make a “plunk” sound.
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The weight of the commemorative plates is also heavier than the real ones.

The old cup plates are true antiques if you can find them.  And now you will know how to tell if you have the real deal.  They cost about $3.50 each. 

  Now, get on out there and hunt up some cup plates! :)

-The GA Gang

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