High Button Shoe
July
Good morning!What an absolutely beautiful morning here. I woke up early, as the many birds wake up literally at dawn and greet the morning with song, which while I love their greeting, makes sleep fairly impossible. Summer mornings should be early anyway. There is so much beauty in the early morning that changes as the day progresses. If you don't get up early enough, you miss that aspect of it. In the first two hours, I did little of much consequence, having sat in the wicker chair on the front porch and watched the turkeys feed only yards away from me. AND you must get up early to make sure they have food! The mamas are bringing in their many babies and I can think of no better way to start my day than having steaming coffee, sitting in the wicker chair watching baby turkeys. As we haven't had rain in a couple days and it has been hot with high winds blowing, I started the sprinkler system ( my own homemade system, not an underground automatic one, so 'mine' needs to be moved around periodically to catch all the growings).From my vantage point of the porch wicker, I can see the arc of the water falling on my garden.I cleaned the big bird bath and refilled it. While the turkey herds are fairly 'tamed' to humans being around, and seemingly know that if there isn't food on the ground, after a human appears, amazingly food is there!.... they are not yard trained and they POOP in the bird bath. So it requires constant care.I started dishes from last nights supper, but abandoned them for being outside longer. They will however, have to be attended to. The shop and barn is open today and tomorrow and today I am on my own with no help. So any work needed done in this house must be done before 11AM. Which should include a hairdo. But I think I will settle for my baseball cap today. I am tackling more boxes and working from the barn today. Yesterday after opening several big boxes I found such delightful treasures that I had completely forgotten about. You will be seeing many of them later, as my brain fuzzies clear from this barn sale. Todays agenda includes going thru linens. I am not much of a linen person. Think about it. Do I strike you as a 'lace' person? No. I didn't think so. So why I have so many boxes of them is perplexing to me. I am keeping the old sheets I apparently bought with total abandon. Must be I couldn't pass up a sheet! I don't use them for bedding of course. I tear them up and use them as doll stuffing. However, one might wonder just HOW many sheets does one have to have to stuff dolls with?I did find, however, one box I must have gotten at auction and never really went thru. Imagine my surprise to find old, but never used long underwear. There are 6 pairs I think. Totally thrilled with the first pair, I didn't really investigate the rest. They are white cotton, like a tank top with pants and would go down to mid thigh. They remind me of the wool swim suits men would have worn to the beach in the 20's and 30's that we occasionally see pictures of. But yesterday I was showing my mother my treasure when I realized it has a white tiny bow on the neckline. Womens' underwear? So I looked for a boxer short type opening, only to find none, but rather the whole thing is crotchless! I intend to hang one pair on the clothes line. For years, I have had long underwear hang on the clothes line, even in winter( until the snow gets too deep and the underwear gets somewhat buried in it). I tell you, this downsizing might not be as bad as I thought. I am finding such great things. Of course, the idea, is NOT that I am supposed to keep it, but rather that I am supposed to be getting RID of it.I still have all the lessons of the primitive on line course, so if you are missing some, let me know and I can forward them on. My lesson on painting cupboards and wood things, will be put to use again when we move, as I will redo all the cupboards in the tiny kitchen I will have. That kitchen was never good at best. But it will have to do until we can add on. At the moment I am trying to decide if I can even get a table in it. If I want a stove and refrigerator, I may not get the table! I can after all, only push Ronnie so far. I am sure he will want the stove and frig!Ranting Raven was released on Saturday, but I was in the barns so didn't have time to tell you.We are at http://www.rantingraven.com/Exhibit95.php We are selling my sampler I thought I would never part with ( yes, it is THAT good!) that you have seen in my house tour. I found another old clock case, so can make me another sampler. And going thru another forgotten box I came across 2 dozen very aged lead sacks. Be still my heart! I had planned to make bags from old feed sacking and put my drieds in them. I have sunflowers & sweet annie from last years gardens. The lead sacks are perfect! So check it out! Also, I noticed my goodest friend, Miss Elspeth (Wendy) is back with her offerings after a couple months off to tend her gardens. She is www.pineberrylane.com and found on ranting raven under http://www.rantingraven.com/Exhibit165.php Her work always makes me smile. I have several of her pieces and always think of her when I see them. Her Mrs. Groves sits on my fireplace hearth on an old box and with the ceiling fan turning last night, Mrs Groves "hair" blew in the wind, and after the initial shock of it for my Dad, he wondered about that makedo. He does not share the passion Miss Els and I have for ugly makedo's, but did find it of interest.As I don't have room to have all my folk art collections out at once, and much of them are seasonal, they store in that big white cupboard in the living room. The one I cleaned and organized just weeks ago. Soon, that big white cupboard will be moving to the shop, as the only way it can go in, is when we have the outside walls torn apart. It is too big for any of the door openings. We will have two big gaping holes in the house, for the bathroom renovation ( a huge shower stall is coming in and we (aha, that word we again, you know of course, I have nothing to do with this, RON is doing all the "we" stuff!) are completely redoing the bathroom (thankfully) and there will be the big opening for the french doors that will be coming in right where you see the white flour cupboard in the living room pictures of the shop. I will have a living room 1/2 the size I have now. And this living room is full! So some of my pieces will have to be sold. Drats!One thing we are selling and may be of some interest to some of you, is the checkout counter at the shop. I will get a picture of it around and get it up on the website. I wish I could keep it. But there is simply NO room in the house/shop for this piece once I start to bring my furniture in.It is 6' long, 2' wide, 34" high. The front has old peely light sage green paint over wainscot wood. It has a bronze plaque that reads " Manufactured by McCray Refrigerator and Cold Storage Company. Randallville, Ind." (That may read McGray with a G instead of a C. I had my glasses on OVER my contact lens but after sweating all day and makeup running off my face in swift streams, my reading doesn't work too swell..) But I think it was McCray. It is covered with a 3/4" piece of old marble the full top. HEAVY does not even begin to describe that marble! The back is all shelves and the one end could have a chair or bar stool (which I have) under it. Price? $650.00 firm. Has to be picked up here. No shipping ( obviously...) It was used before I bought it, in an old farm house kitchen as a (oh shoot, what is that word?)...anyway, a work island in the middle of the kitchen. It is a gorgeous old piece and in great condition. Check the website later this week. If I can get myself together today (always questionable..) I will try to photograph it.Okay, I have to get busy. Boxes to open awaits me.Thanks for asking to be a part of our farm!I wish you could all spend an hour on the porch with me having coffee or iced peach tea, watching the turkeys and my garden grow.Reminder of great shows..... Primitive Homeplace Bradford TN September 23 (Beulah and me will be set up there selling....)and Simple Goods in Mt Vernon Ohio on November 4thThere is another good one in Nashville Michigan in the fall. Should be the 1st Saturday in November, but I haven't gotten any information on it yet. I will let you know when I do.in fond regard,Miss Clotilda