Something for you :o)

I just love old world maps don't you?

Have a great day and make something beautiful with it.

Best...

Canace

Pictures from Earth Angels in Warwick

Jen O'Connor has been generous enough to share her pictures of the Earth Angels show at the Warwick Antique Barn this past Saturday. What a gorgeous day and equally gorgeous artwork!

Thank you Jen!











Best...

Canace

A day in Warwick

This past Saturday Janet, our friend Denise and I went to Warwick to see the Earth Angels artists at the Warwick Antique Barn. What a gorgeous day! Perfect weather for an outdoor art show/sale by a little brook. I must say the displays and the artwork were just lovely. Jen O'Connor was there, busily talking with everyone as well as a few of the artists in her group. We took our time looking at everything there was to see, then walked over to the Antiques Barn to peruse and ... well... quite frankly... drool.

So many amazing and beautiful antiques. I personally enjoyed it for the local pieces complete with signatures. Denise was breathless over a country work table with its original paint and Janet got a new treasure... I'll let her tell you... she might hurt me. ;o) Oh... and did I mention I got stung by a bee? Highlight of my day! Not. I'm having trouble typing now as the sting was on the palm of my hand and it's so swollen.. even today. That aside, we had a great time and got some new little treasures.

Then... we headed into Warwick proper to find a great place to eat... and we found it! It's Halligan's Public House on West and Spring Streets. They have the most delicious food and pleasant atmosphere... oh.. and did I mention the homemade carrot cake that Denise forced us to eat? Melt in your mouth good... every morsel! I highly recommend lunch there.

Then off to browse (drool) a few more antique/junque shops and head home. Wish I had some pics for you but this is one time I forgot my camera... sorry. I'm sure Jen will be posting some pictures on her blog if you want to have a look.

The leaves are changing.... getting prettier every day. Those of you attending Art Is You in Connecticut next month should have a treat seeing our beautiful autumn colors. This picture is from our historic D&H Canal just on the other side of 'my' mountain.

Have a great week...

Best...

Canace

40% Off Sale!

In the spirit of Halloween I am offering my blog readers 40% off all of my graphic prints.

Just post a link on your blog or website that I'm having a sale with the graphic above, let me know where I can see the posting and you will be entered for a drawing where you could win the print of your choice. This sale and offer will continue until October 15th when I will have the drawing for the winner.

Happy Halloween! Mwahhhhhahaha!

Best...

Canace

Start the Carrrrrr! Start the Carrrr!

I hope you had a great weekend.... we did! :o)

Janet, Pam and I went to the Rhinebeck Flea Market and of course found some great treasures. Janet finally found something that she's been wanting for a very long time, but I'll let her tell you about it. Pam got some lovely ephemera for her shadowboxes and theaters. I got all sorts of little odds and ends like watchmakers bottles, vintage buttons, old medicine bottles, a gorgeous little black portable typewriter from 1911 and some ephemera as well. There was one more rather large piece but I'm saving that for later when I have 'it' all fixed up. I love buying things that seem to have had a very rough life and restoring them to give them a new life and this was no exception.

I digress....

One piece of ephemera was a gorgeous little First Reader that I have decided to share with you. It was funny... the woman who was selling it got a very wistful look on her face as I was paying her and said she was hard pressed to part with it because she loves to collect anything with cats. ...

You know the Ikea commercial where the woman is dashing to the car shouting 'Start the carrrrr! ... Start the carrrr!' lol.... that was me!

And here it is... .so beautiful... yes? I hope you enjoy!



Best...

Canace

Chunky Chunky Monkey

Now this one is really chunky!


Off to the flea market to look for treasures! I'll post what we find next week.

Best...

Canace

"H" is for Halloween and Harvest Festival

It's coming...... my daughter's favorite time of year. She always has an amazing display for Halloween complete with foggers and animated figures. Of course her costume wouldn't be complete without her vampire teeth (ew). So in the spirit of Halloween, here is a freebie for you from an old calendar.

In addition... anyone who is local ... Pine Bush, N.Y. is having their annual Harvest Festival tomorrow, 9am to 3pm. Lots of entertainment/music/farmer's market/arts etc. Oh... and did I mention FOOD??? :oÞ

Have a great weekend.... I know I will.... Janet, Terri, Pam and I are going to hit the Rhinebeck Flea Market... 350 vendors! Oh... and did I mention FOOD??? :oÞ

Best...

Canace

The Latest

I love doing the 'chunky monky' charm bracelets but felt I needed a little change so I dug out all my prettiest white vintage buttons... mostly mother of pearl and created my 'Buttons and Bows' charm bracelet.

Have a good day!

Best...

Canace

A New Toy - Technique

When I go treasure hunting and I see something interesting I don't always know why I need to have it or what I might eventually use it for, and this was the case with an old wooden wallpaper seam roller.

Light bulb moment.... use it to make a rubber stamp!

I love harlequin as you may know if you have seen my graphic prints. I decided that this is what I would do with the roller so I could just randomly roll the design over canvas in seconds. Brighter light bulb.... Rather than draw the diamonds, which can be very tedious if you tried... I decided to do them in photoshop and transfer them to fun foam. I printed the diamonds out on my laser printer and used a blender pen (thank you Janet!) to transfer the image to the foam. It was very easy to just cut out the diamonds and glue them to the roller. I used liquid nails but I would think E6000 or any other strong glue would work. Then I just zipped it over some paper to see how it worked. Tah dah! I love it!

Fun foam is sooooo cheap and easily had at any craft store. You can draw on it, impress textures in it, or cut out shapes like I did and have an instant roller stamp. :o)

Have fun!
I'm going down to the studio now and make another!

Best...

Canace

"M" is for Mermaid

Here's a nice tobacco ad for you to play with.

Have a great/artistic/productive day!

Best...

Canace

Art is You... Pamela Huntington

A reminder, or just in case you weren't aware, Art is You ... The East Coast Retreat...is in 4 more weeks! There are so many wonderful art classes to choose from but I'd like to suggest you check out Pamela Huntington's class while she still has some room. ... at least on one day.

If you're not familiar with her work, she has been designing with textiles (among other things) for many years. One facet in particular is the magic she weaves with vintage doll and baby clothes, turning them into precious works of art. This is one that I especially like. I know... she did it a long time ago... but it's still my favorite.She has a few more on her blog and in her Etsy Store if you want to see them. And oh... what she does with fabric in her journals!

Have fun with the eye candy...
Hope to see you at Art is You!


Canace

Time for a FREEBIE

And that's about all the time I have... a show Saturday... gallery show through next week... then another show on the 3rd of Oct. .. ART IS YOU the next week....Prepping for teaching in October and November.Whew! I'm beginning to look forward to those quiet snowy days with a fire going and lots of time in the studio .. just creating... *sigh*

Okay... here's an on the run freebie... have fun... make something beautiful!


Best...

Canace

Giveaway

Just a quick note to let you know that Linda at Unlimited Possibilities has a sweet giveaway. You have to post no later than the 121th!

I want those buttons! :o)

Best...

Canace

Is this GORGEOUS or what?

Okay, I promise this is it... no more suspense and dragging out.. so tempting though. :o)

Firstly, I need to apologize to Mr. Ketcham because I spelled his name Ketchum yesterday.. oops!

If you read the previous post then you know the whole story about Ketcham's Store so I won't repeat it. Soooo... when I got home from the Stormville Flea Market and showed the spool cabinet to my husband and told him what I'd paid he was blown away. He loved it! And... he said why didn't I buy more??? Got me thinking then... hmmm.... do I go back to Stormville and hope that the dealer still has the goods? Nahhh... too much money.

Then the following morning I was telling my Dad about the spool cabinet and all the other exciting things that were from Ketcham's Store. Of course he remembered clearly going there and was excited for me. He too said... go get it... you were born in Mountainville... it's your history... you have to have it!

We hung up and I thought it over for hmm ... about 30 seconds and called the dealer to see if he still had it .. bracing myself for disappointment. But no... no disappointment... he still had it!!! He saved it for me and actually delivered it right to my house the next day. And here it is!



I've got the cash register from Ketcham's Store! Isn't it magnificent? The details are a complete work of art. It's called 'The Dolphin' by the National Cash Register Company and it's all brass. I want to keep the patina the way it is and not polish it. They really are magical when all polished up though if you have a look online. I found 3 wheaties pennies in the drawer too!

Look at the amazing detail on all sides. There was beauty in everything made years ago, not the utilitarian look that we have now. I love it!




And.... as if that and the spool cabinet weren't enough... I had to buy the embossing tool too that Pam and Janet were testing out. As it turns out Mr. Ketcham was a Notary, and this was his stamp. It's cast iron and I'm not sure if it's a dog head or a lion head with the stamp in its mouth.

So that's it.... all my treasures from Ketcham's Store. I will never part with them.. they are so very special to me. A part of my past.. my history... and Mr. Ketcham's Store.

Best...

Canace

The Stormville Treasure

Many of you may remember when you were little, going to your local country store. A fascinating place with oak and glass cabinets full of penny candies and a beautiful, shiny cash register that chimed with a bell when opened. That's one of my special memories growing up and I'd like to share just a short story with you.

When my brother and I were little our parents had good friends that they used to play pinochle with on Sunday nights. One week at our house, the next at their friend's house in Mountainville, N.Y. which is where I was born. I loved going to their friend's house because that would mean driving past Ketchum's Store, a typical country store in the country. If we were very, very good our parents might stop at Ketchum's and let us pick out a candy. I remember climbing those huge stone steps up to the scrolled screen door that would jingle a hanging bell to let Mr. Ketchum know you were there. What fun to look at all the fancy advertising with its brilliant colors, but the best part was looking at the wide array of penny candies, trying to decide which one was best. Was it the gold foiled chocolate coins or maybe the waxed candies with the juice inside. Of course it would be great fun to get those wax lips and laugh at each other too. Whatever our choice at the time it was a huge treat for us. I have fond memories of those times and our visits to Ketchum's Store, and that is where the story began of the treasure at Stormville.

Pam, Janet and I were walking down our first row of antiques when we spotted an antiques dealer with some amazing country store pieces. One was a spectacular coffee bin made of oak with wavy glass panels that pivoted, another was a beautiful brass cash register with ornate filigrees embossed into it and what caught my eye first was a long coveted Clarks Spool Cabinet. Not just a cabinet, a desktop cabinet. While I was looking at (drooling over) the Clarks Cabinet, Pam and Janet were playing with two of those old cast iron embossing machines to see what they would print out. First was one that had the name of a cemetery which we laughed at, and secondly was..... you guessed it.... Ketchum's Store, Mountainville, N.Y.! You can only imagine how it felt to see that name and all that was associated with it, for me at least. The dealer heard us talking and told me that everything that he had there was right out of Ketchum's Store, that he had bought out the estate. Okay.. now it's all magic to me!

Now the quandary. Do I walk away always regretting that one opportunity to connect with my past and save hundreds of dollars, or do I dive in and grab something so precious that I will never see again? Guessed again, did you? I did it! I bought the Clark's Spool Cabinet! Of course I may not have and almost didn't, but Pam and Janet made me do it! ;o)

Here is a picture of the cabinet 'before' in the back of my van, (thank goodness for vans) all dusty, dirty and the leather surface is dried and lifting. Still gorgeous though don't you think?

Ready for the finale'? Here it is in my studio after I got it all cleaned up, repaired and a good coat of butcher's wax applied:
I put the old ink bottle and a few vintage boxes in it as well as my Great Aunt's nib pen. I think it looks just gorgeous. It will be a treasured piece for me and I hope my daughter someday too. A little piece of my history from the place where I was born.

Best...

Canace

P.S. Oh.... I forgot to mention.... there's MORE!

Treasure Hunting at Stormville

We left bright and early yesterday morning to meet Pam at the Stormville flea market to hunt for treasures to use in our art work. Oh my! Over 600 vendors from 8+ states. I'm sure we didn't see more than 1/4 of it. Fortunately they have it separated so the new stuff is grouped in one area and the antiques/collectibles in another so we could head right for the good stuff. What a great time we had! We lasted until around 2:30/3:00 when it got much too hot to do anymore. Personally I think I was in sensory overload by that time too. So much to see/evaluate/dicker over etc. This gives you an idea of one tiny area:



Here's Pam, intently studying some wonderful steel printing plates.
And this is poor Janet, looking so miserable, having a terrible time:


We got some great stuff... unusual stuff ... great prices for the most part. Here's a sampling of Janet's stash:
I'm thinkin' she might want to do something with spoons in the near future, what do you think?

And here is a bit of my stash for the day:
See those pretty little dice? They were a present from Miss Pam... thank you Pam!

And... AND..... oh.... no.... I think I'll save the best for tomorrow. Let me just say it's probably one of the most exciting, most incredible finds that I've ever purchased. How's that for a teaser? I am SO excited I can hardly stand it! :o)

No telling Janet and Pam!

Till then...

Best...

Canace

Time Off

Too many irons in the fire .... booked solid for the next 2 months so here's a flyby freebie.
Will post when I can... In the meantime have a great week/month etc. :o)

Best...

Canace