Vintage Weddings: "Something Old..."

"Something Old, Something New,
Something Borrowed, Something Blue
And a Silver Sixpence in Her Shoe."

                     - Old English rhyme - Anonymous 

I don't think I'll ever outgrow my love for weddings.  It doesn't matter that my own marriage didn't last quite as long as I had hoped.  Whenever I go to a wedding, my eyes always glisten with tears of of joy for the bride and groom.  I still believe that love can last a lifetime - and my own parents, happily married for 54 years, are living proof.

Romantic fool that I am, it's no surprise that when I go to antique stores, auctions and estate sales - anything to do with a wedding catches my eye.

Here are some of the vintage wedding items I've collected over the years.  I hope you'll enjoy...

Engaged!  Showing off the ring at the office.  1958 Saturday Evening Post cover.

"Priscilla" Wedding Ring ad - from 1929 Photoplay Magazine

Beautiful Diamond Rings - 1930's Jason Weiler & Sons catalog

What a sweet little ceramic basket for holding rings - ca. 1920's?

An early 1920's Wedding Record Book

The book opens up to this quaint verse - "Hail! Wedded Love..."

One of the oldest wedding traditions....tossing the garter.  These days it's often a blue garter - to cover the "something blue" tradition.  The garters pictured above are from "The Ribbon Art Book", 1923 - back when garters weren't just worn for show, but to hold up stockings!

A variety of tiny wedding flowers from the 1950's and 60's - for bouquets, wedding cake toppers, hats and veils.  They were purchased from the estate of a 91-yr-old woman who catered weddings for 35 years.

Here's a closeup of the flowers with a rhinestone center.  Aren't they fabulous!

Life Magazine - June 9, 1952.  Isn't this dress gorgeous?

Crinoline Petticoats and a "Belle o" the Ball" hoop (above).  Bridesmaid nine times, flower girl three times (below).  Both photos are from Life magazine - 1952

Early 1960's bridesmaid dress.  The coat, with a bow clasp, is in a heavy gold satin. And the lovely dress underneath is in a beautiful gold and cream floral brocade.

Here's another early 1960's bridesmaid dress in a pretty lemon yellow.  I was thrilled to find a matching pair, both size 8.

I love the daisies - and the pretty bow in back.

And best of all....there's a train with a huge bow that attaches to the back, for that walk down the aisle!

And to top it off - a pretty yellow veil.  I love this color!

Here's a pretty Fostoria American cake stand with a rum well in the center.

Vintage plastic bridesmaids in green, yellow and blue, on heart stands - to decorate a wedding cake.  How fun! 

Here's a 1950 "military" wedding cake topper with a 48-stars flag.  I love the simple floral frame surrounding the bisque bride and groom.

Pictured above - famous bride Frances Folsom Cleveland (wife of President Grover Cleveland). The gown was fashioned of ivory silk, a bustled skirt, fifteen foot train & trimmed with orange blossoms - the most popular bridal flower of the nineteenth century. 

Pictured below are three more famous brides: Jackie Kennedy (married 1953); Wallis Simpson - King Edward VIII abidcated his throne to marry her in 1937; and Grace Kelly, who became Princess Grace of Monaco when she married Prince Rainier in 1956.

1920's satin "flapper" wedding dress

Such a simple wedding dress - with the only embellishments, the beautiful lace (above) attached to the slip underneath, and the gorgeous beaded belt (below) across the front.

 

A collection of early 50's bridal shower, wedding and anniversary cards.

This last one is my favorite.  Squeeze the top of the card, and the couple pops out from underneath!

 

And finally - a vintage 50's, 60's bride doll with a zippered storage compartment hidden under her skirt, for holding all your wedding treasures!

p.s. If you're interested in learning a bit more about the history behind "Something Old, Something New..." take a peek at this Foot Talk blog, written by a shoe historian!

Collecting Vintage Magazines: Ten Favorite LIFE Covers, 1936 to 1949

I've mentioned before how much I love paging through old magazines.  Well, I hit the jackpot at an estate sale this past week.   I found piles of Life, Look, McCall's and Ladies Home Journal magazines from 1959 through the 1970's - for 25 cents a piece!   There were so many magazines that even at that price I could have spent a small fortune if I had grabbed the whole lot.  So I decided to limit myself to 1969 and older - and  just 100 magazines.   Total cost: $25.00.

That was the best $25 I've spent in a long time.  I'm in vintage magazine heaven...

Here are a couple of piles from that sale, and a few samples of my favorites.

In case you're wondering who is on the cover of the top magazines on the two piles...  On the right:  Tipi Hedren, in Alfred Hitchcock's "The Birds."  And on the left, the lovely Grace Kelly.  Who but Ms. Kelly could pull off the spectacled look with such....well, with such grace!

At this sale, I found mostly Look and Ladies Home Journal.  But my favorite magazine to collect is LIFE - because of its long history, gorgeous photographs, wonderful stories and fabulous ads. 

This was my lucky weekend for magazine finds because I happened upon this May 1988 magazine at another sale:

May 1988 was Life's 2000th issue, and they included an incredible resource inside:  photographs of every single cover, beginning with the first issue, Nov. 23, 1936.

This is great! Now I can easily find all twelve Elizabeth Taylor covers, or all nineteen of Jackie's.  Sometimes online sellers will sell Life Magazine in large lots, and they will mention the magazine dates but don't go into detail about what's on the cover, or inside.  But with my handy-dandy little guide here, I'll know that 6/28/37 was the first beach fashions issue...and that 10/5/42 featured "eye-catcher hats."  Knowledge is power.

I spent some time today going through all the covers from 1936 to 1949 and making lists of my favorites.  There were 684 issues during those years, and 122 made it into my first cut.  Somehow I managed to narrow that down to 20.....and then finally, my favorite 10.  Here they are, listed by year.

My Ten Favorite LIFE Covers, 1936 to 1949:

11/23/36: First Issue of Life. Unfortunately, a dull cover - but I still want it!  1/4/37: President Franklin D. Roosevelt - one of my fave presidents.

1/23/39: Bette Davis;  5/1/39: Joe DiMaggio - I love his smile and boy-next-door looks!

7/15/40: Rita Hayworth - the first of several Life covers during the 40's; 10/13/41: Lana Turner and Clark Gable, taken on set of "Honky Tonk."  Be sure to catch Gable in the 1934 film "It Happened One Night" - it's wonderful!

10/16/44: Lauren Bacall - she and Humphrey Bogart made a great team; 12/11/44: Judy Garland - she'll always be Dorothy in Wizard of Oz for me.

7/9/45: Thirty years of swimsuits! I had to pick one fashion spread for my Top Ten.  And finally, 7/14/47: The beautiful Elizabeth Taylor - this is her first of twelve (as of 1988) Life covers.

So...do I seem a little obsessed?  It's a pretty healthy obsession, I think.  And if, by chance, I've inspired you to do a bit of magazine collecting yourself, here are a few great resources:

1. eHow.com has a great series of videos on collecting Life magazine, presented by a qualified appraiser.

2. Google Books has the complete archives of Life magazine from 1936 to 1972.  Not just the covers - but you can open it up and read what's inside!

I hope this has been helpful for you.  As for me, I've got to get back to my reading.  Three magazines read, 97 more to go!

Each one she passes goes, aaaaaah

This song is one of my all-time favorites. Nothing else takes me back to the early 60's quite like this does. To get in the mood, put on a cool & slinky vintage dress, make yourself a martini - then kick off your heels and start swaying your hips......just like the Girl from Ipanema. 



"The Girl from Ipanema"

Tall, and tan, and young, and lovely
The girl from Ipanema goes walking
And when she passes
Each one she passes goes, aaaaaah

When she walks she's like a samba
That swings so cool and sways so gently
That when she passes
Each one she passes goes, aaaaaah

Ooh, but he watches so sadly
How can he tell her he loves her
Yes, he would give his heart gladly
But each day, when she walks to the sea
She looks straight ahead, not at him

Tall, and tan, and young, and lovely
The girl from Ipanema goes walking
And when she passes
He smiles, but she doesn't see.......

Song by: Antônio Carlos Jobim
Genre: Bossa nova
Language: Portuguese
Writer: Vinícius de Moraes
           Norman Gimbel (English lyrics)
Composer: Antônio Carlos Jobim (1962)
Grammy for Record of the Year in 1965

Seller's Remorse: Ten Things I Wish I Hadn't Sold On eBay

There are good things that can come out of a breakup.  And one of them is having lots of extra time on my hands in the evenings. Freedom! 

It feels too early to dive into the dating scene again, so instead I've decided to shift my focus back to my true love:  Antiques!

I'm both a Collector (dolls, paper ephemera, magazines, vintage clothing, and anything else that strikes my fancy) and a part-time Seller.   (Hmm...maybe someday I can quit my full-time "real" job.  Wishful thinking...)

A taste of my doll collection. The wax doll (on left with shawl), circa 1880's, is the oldest.

I think that most people start off as Collectors, and then when the stuff accumulates to the point where it becomes unmanageable, the Collector naturally moves into Selling - both to get rid of stuff and to get extra cash to be able to buy more.  It's a continuous (and often addictive) cycle.

Well, I did it backwards.  First a Seller - then a Collector.

I became a Seller on a whim.  One Saturday afternoon about 12 years ago, while browsing through an antique mall,  I noticed a "Space for Rent" sign. I'm really not much of a risk taker, but something inside nudged me toward the checkout counter where the owner was sitting - and within minutes I found myself writing out a check for the first month's rent.

It was a crazy thing to do!  I knew very little about antiques, and owned only a few items myself.  How was I going to fill up that entire 20 ft x 12 ft (or whatever it was) space with antiques to sell?  Yikes - what did I get myself into!

But I discovered that I was definitely up to the challenge.  For better or for worse, antiques very quickly became my all-consuming passion.  For the next two, three years my head was constantly buried in antiques and collectibles guides, as I quickly tried to absorb as much information as I could about a wide range of antiques. 

I also faithfully attended two antique auctions each week, spending hours at the previews the night before.  All of this was a great learning experience but - oh my! - did I ever make some big mistakes. I'm still stuck with a number of clunkers that I had purchased during those green years.

Since then I've learned a few things, and my selling venue shifted three years ago from selling in an antique mall to selling online - eBay.  (I'm "Sarsaparilla" - take a peek at what I've got for sale now!)

Another shift:  In those first years my primary focus was on Selling - and Collecting was almost an afterthought.  Now, even though I really can't afford it, I find that I just don't have the heart to sell most of the things I buy.  I want to keep them for myself!  I guess that means I've officially become a Collector.

My large bedroom is lined, wall to wall, with vintage items that I need to sell - or just enjoy for a while. 

Luckily I'm single - because my partner would probably complain!

To my readers who also sell antiques:  Do you have the same problem?  Do you find yourself falling in love with the things you initially bought with "selling for profit" in mind - and then have a tough time giving them up?

In the early years of my antique business, I kept very little for myself.  Oh...when I think back to some of the jewels that I bought and then very quickly sold before really having a chance to enjoy them. And often it was for a price that was waaay too low because I didn't know what I was doing!

I'm a little smarter now, but I still occasionally sell things that I wish I could have back - and enjoy for a little while longer...

Seller's Remorse.  It's a curse.

Here's my list of Ten Things (in no particular order) That I Wish I Hadn't Sold on eBay:

#1 - Isn't this ceramic poodle with "spaghetti" fur adorable?  I've never run across one I liked better...

#2 - This Victorian-era Cast Iron Tazza was perfect for displaying my old Valentines and Calling Cards.  Why did I decide to give it up?

#3 - This Victorian bisque figural planter is so sweet. 

I recall that I had a hard time identifying the maker of this piece because the impressed marks were so faint.  The three marks were: 1) Germany; 2) H 112 or H - 12; and 3) a very faded C shape, with two longer lines running through it vertically - and the letters DEP. A kind eBayer told me that these lines might very well be arrows - and that would make this the mark of Carl Schneider, from the late 1800's to early 1900's. 

I learned a lot by selling this, but I'd still like it back!

#4 - Antique 6th plate daguerreotypes.  What a handsome young family! 

Truthfully, I didn't really appreciate this until after I started researching the history of photography to make sure I got my facts straight when I sold this.   The winner of the dags was a collector and knew his stuff.  He gave me good feedback, so I must have got it right. 

#5 - Here's a lovely pair of Edwardian era or early 1920's women's special occasion shoes. These pretty vintage shoes are in a soft creamy kid leather, accented with a beige ribboned bow and decorative silver buckle. They've got curvy 1  1/2" baby Louis heels and are in the strap-and-button Mary Jane style, popular from the 1890's through the 1920's.  

The shoes were in a very tiny size.  If they were a size 8, I would definitely have kept them - perhaps for my own wedding someday. (Yeah, right...)

#6 - This is part of a large set of cardboard doll furniture from the 1920's or 30's.  Look at that fabulous art deco vanity with large oval mirror!  It's no longer mine, but I'm glad that I still have the photos...

#7 - Vintage 1930's St. Paul Lowry Hotel menu - in mint condition.  I had this displayed on the buffet in my 1920's dining room for years.  What possessed me to sell it?  Happily, it went to a St. Paul bidder.

#8 - This darling Victorian child's dress and jacket is in a soft peach wool with brown velvet trim - with six matching velvet buttons down the back.

This dress is one of a collection of antique children's clothing items that I purchased at an auction several years ago - all dating from the 1850's to the 1890's.

This was my favorite of all the Victorian clothing that I sold.  All of it's gone now except for one lovely red plaid dress which I like to bring out of storage at Christmas time to display by my Christmas tree.  I'll share it with you sometime.

#9 - A 1930's patriotic print - For Love of Country.  This isn't artist-signed, but I think it's absolutely gorgeous...

#10 - Last, but definitely not least - a fabulous 1940's coat with fur trim! It was in perfect condition. It's hard to see in this photo but there is also a diagonal strip of fur on each sleeve.

And the added bonus - it came with a matching fur-trimmed, satin-lined, combination purse / muff!  I am sad that they're gone, but happy that the new owner was absolutely thrilled to have won the bidding war.

I said that these 10 items aren't in any particular order - but if I had to pick a Number One, the 1940's coat and purse set is my favorite.

Thank goodness for the magic of photographs.