Look What I Found. Vintage Turquoise and Gold Feather Beads

Since Bumbershoot Supplies, I don't purchase very many vintage beads for my personal collection any more.  I use the same ones in my designs that we offer at Bumbershoot Supplies, plus beads that have been in my collection for years. 

However, every once in a while I come across some beads that I just cannot pass up. 

Like these...

Years and years ago I purchased a notion kit from the French General that had a few of these gorgeous green turquoise feather-like beads in it. The ones from the French General were much larger and I used them as an accent in this one-of-a-kind bracelet. My recent acquisitions are a smaller version of the same bead. 

I am so thrilled with being able to locate a few more of these beads.  I love how these are drilled, they curve so gracefully. I love this greenish turquoise vintage color, and I love the aging gilt paint.  I've got these sitting out on my work table in my studio, where they will stay until they tell me how they want to be used. 

At the same time, I also purchased a few of these...

And these...

Both of which are also whispering quietly to me...

Look What I Found. Inez Dawson's Edwardian Scrapbook

Isn't she a beauty?

This is a scrapbook crammed full to bursting with memorabilia collected by Inez Dawson, later Inez Barnes. I don't know if this photo is of Inez or someone she knew.

The book appears to be an abandoned nursing notebook, reused for this purpose.  It begins with nursing notes dated 1901, but quickly these notes end and then the materials are pasted into the book in lots, with the dates skipping around a bit, from 1898 through 1906, as if Inez decided one day to finally collect together in one place all those mementos she had stashed away over the years. 

There are several treasures within this scrapbook, and I have barely dipped into it.  There is so much to discover, it's like an archaeological dig. 

 I'll share some of my finds here, and we will also make digital versions of some of the ephemera available to our newsletter subscribers.

Inez's scrapbook and a cup of tea - perfect to curl up with on a rainy Seattle day.

Look What I Found. Wired Flowers from Vintage Japan

Aren't these beautiful?

These are hand wired vintage Japanese flowers, complete with crystal leaf beads.

I just love being in the business of searching out vintage components for Bumbershoot Designs and Supplies. I'm not much of a shopper in general, but oh, the pleasure of discovering yet another vintage treasure, each one so delightful and unique, and never to be made again...it's a fabulous treasure hunt that I get to go on every day. 

These flowers have sat on my work table for several days now, as I enjoy their presence and contemplate what their future looks like.

I recently received some vintage-style scent lockets, designed to look like vintage lockets with pierced fronts, to hold a piece of cotton or cloth daubed with perfume.  Ala Miriam Haskell, perhaps it is possible to wire these flowers onto such a locket.  Looks rather like a winged heart to me. What do you think?



Look What I Found. Fabulous Crystal Glass Comet Cabochon

Isn't this a wonderful piece of vintage costume jewelry glass?

It's clear glass with gold foiling on the back. The foiling is quite marked and aged, there's a fair bit missing around the edges. But like an old mirror, it still throws a lot of shine. 

I imagine this was originally intended as a focal piece around which to build a fabulous brooch or clip or necklace. In my ongoing research about the vintage supplies we offer at Bumbershoot Supplies, I've not located this piece yet.  But I'll keep looking...

Miriam Haskell Flower Cameo Cabochons at Bumbershoot Supplies

At Bumbershoot Supplies, we are very interested in the provenance and history of the vintage supplies we offer. For this reason, I am constantly researching our supplies to learn as much about them as I can. On the weekend, I was again reviewing one of my resources, this book...

And what did I find on page 353?

This signed Miriam Haskell pendant and earrings set. The pendant features a gorgeous vintage glass flower cameo cabochon. And guess what! We now carry these cabochons at Bumbershoot Supplies!

These are exquisite flower cabochons. They have a decal transfer expertly applied to white glass, and then white accents were hand painted on top of the decal. These truly beautiful pieces are in mint condition, and the delicate hand painting really elevates them to something special.

Many of the items we sell at Bumbershoot Supplies were sold to me as Miriam Haskell stock, especially our vintage glass pearls. But I hesitate to label them as Haskell unless I have further verification. So I'm really excited to be able to say that these flower cabochons are the same ones that the Miriam Haskell Company used in some of their designs.

Look What I Found. Wired Flower Necklace from 1940's Occupied Germany

Aren't these lovely?

I recently purchased 2 unfinished vintage beaded and wired necklaces made in the 1940's in Germany.

They consist of flower motifs, made from flower and leaf beads and brass wire, joined with melon shaped beads linked rosary chain style...everything in that chalk white that was so classic at that time.

The challenge in using this necklace, or in using parts of it, like the flower clusters, is the uneven patina of the wire. So I've been doing a bit of experimenting in both directions - cleaning the wire to restore it to the original golden brass, and also going the other way and deepening the patina of the wire to make it uniformly dark.  I took apart one of the 2 necklaces in order to do these experiments.  I'll talk about what I did in an upcoming blog post, but you can see the results in the first photo, restored on the left, original in the middle, and patina'd on the right.

I can locate and date these necklaces with some precision due to the tags that were attached. Germany was occupied by the Allies from 1945 until 1949, and these necklaces were made in the US Zone of Allied-occupied Germany during that time.

Vintage with a clear provenance - it doesn't get any better.

Look What I Found. Tiny Glass Rhinestone Flowers, Vintage Beads on Wire

The tiniest, most delicate white glass flowers on wire, gilded, with tiny rhinestones. Very old, the only ones I have, from my personal collection.

I'm pretty sure I will never be able to use these :)

For more glass flowers, see this post.

For information on using these special beads in designs, see this tutorial.

Look What I Found. Crystal Glass Flowers, Vintage Beads on Wire

One of my favorite types of vintage glass beads are the glass flowers that come with embedded wires. Sometimes the wires are already looped and sometimes, like these, the wires are long. I was told these particular spiky spider mum-like flowers were made in Italy. Their crystalline character seemed appropriate today for Seattle, as we are in our 3rd day of shutdown due to ice and snow...

Look What I Found. Vintage Beaded Trim, Vintage Beads, Wired Glass Flowers and Leaves

I have been sharing some items from my personal collection that I think are just spectacular examples of vintage design and workmanship.  This is the last of my wired trims.  It is white glass leaves with lovely delicate periwinkle flower beads, individually wired together.

It dates to occupied Germany (1945-1949). A bit dusty, but really beautiful. To see other wired trims and unique finds, click on "Look What I Found" in the right sidebar. One of these days, I'm going to see if I can reproduce these trims.  I think it would be a fabulous design exercise as well as a wonderful way to feel connected to the era and the artisans who made these wonderful vintage supplies and materials.

Look What I Found. Vintage Beaded Rosary Chain Trim, Turquoise Glass Flowers, Vintage Beads

In the online Ethereal Bangles class by Kristen Robinson that I am taking, the current topic is rosary chain and so I must share another piece of vintage trim, recently acquired for my personal collection, the most amazing rosary chain linked beads I have seen to date.

These are white and turquoise glass flowers and beads, individually wired, capped with aged brass beadcaps.  One of the units broke in transit to me, but the good things about this accident are that 1) I can easily remove the one defective unit and 2) I now feel free to take apart the broken one to see the construction in more detail.

Dating to occupied Germany (1945-1949).  Fabulous.

 

Look What I Found. Vintage Beaded Trim, White Glass Leaves and Rhinestones

I must share another piece of vintage trim, recently acquired for my personal collection. It is white glass leaves and beads, individually wired to rhinestone chain and dates to occupied Germany (1945-1949).  A bit dusty, but just fabulous. It is similar to the turquoise rhinestone trim I showed previously in this blog post. 

Gotta love vintage :)

Look What I Found. Vintage Handpainted Japanese Kiddy Jewelry Set

If you have visited Bumbershoot Supplies, you know we carry a lot of vintage Japanese handpainted flower cabochons and embellishments, ranging in age from the 1940's to the 1960's.  I have never met a handpainted vintage flower cabochon that I didn't like :) and I'm convinced you can never have too many flowers of any kind in your life.  Imagine my delight when I discovered this handpainted "kiddy set" in a Seattle antique store I visited for the first time last week.

This charming set consists of a bracelet, ring and flower basket pin, all painted in soft colors that have faded perfectly with time.  The bracelet is exquisite, with roses, daisies and lily of valley curving around the sides. These pieces are tiny - this set was designed for a very little girl. Remember playing dress up way back when?  Perhaps you still do sometimes :)  How wonderful it was to have a matched set of jewelry - these 3 pieces would make it a "demi parure" in costume jewelry jargon. Very special.

Emma and I still enjoy playing dress up sometimes. Indeed, we were at the antique store looking at some vintage dresses for Emma.  She found a wonderful 1950's - 1960's navy with white polka dot dress with matching jacket.  It came home with us and looks fabulous with her vintage white gloves and the navy hat in this blog post.

Look What I Found. Miriam Haskell Beaded Flower Filigrees

I just have to share a picture of these vintage beaded flower filigrees. You can see these used in Miriam Haskell pieces, there are a number of pictures in Cathy Gordon's book Miriam Haskell Jewelry. Wonderful! I was very excited to be able to purchase a few to add to my personal collection.  Now I just have to bring myself to use them :)  Perhaps in a vintage design inspiration board...

Look What I Found. Vintage Beaded Trim, Turquoise Glass Leaves and Rhinestones

I just have to share a picture of this piece of vintage trim, recently acquired for my personal collection. It is turquoise glass leaves, individually wired to rhinestone chain and dates to occupied Germany (1945-1949).

Exquisite. 

Antique and Vintage Kimono Fabric: Visual and Tactile Inspiration

I just have to share some photos of the gorgeous antique and vintage kimono fabrics that arrived yesterday from Japan.

Even the stamps on the package are gorgeous...

I got these from togei, a shop on Etsy. I purchased them because I am making inspiration canvases and boards with some of the supplies from Bumbershoot Supplies and I want to pair the Japanese beads and cabochons with vintage Japanese textiles.

Plus, my hands have been itching for fabric. Even before mixed media, my deepest roots are in sewing and embroidery and crochet, all of which I learned as a child.

On the left is an antique cotton, with gorgeous flying cranes. This one dates to Meiji-Taisho, where Meiji = 1868-1912 and Taisho = 1912-1926.  The two other pieces are pre-WWII silk, dating roughly somewhere between 1912 and 1939.

Plus, I was also able to purchase some lengths of very old vintage, possibly antique silk "fringe", a scalloped ribbon.  Just look at these colors! 

I've even managed to clear off my work bench and clean up my studio, so I should be able to start working with these textiles very soon. Can't wait!