Linens for Sale! Linens for Sale!

I just pulled out some beautiful pillowcases that I thought I'd share with you. The beauty in the needlework always amazes me no matter how many years I've been selling and collecting these wonderful pieces. The work done by human hands so many years ago is nothing less than art and a tiny snap shot into the lives of women.


Click on the photos to enlarge them and see the beuatiful details and wonderful hand work.

1st pair: Pink roses on strong, snow white cotton tubing. Hand embroidered with crocheted trim. There is the tiniest, faintest speck on one. Otherwise no flaws, holes, or stains. Excellent vintage condition. 20 1/2" x 28" SOLD

2nd pair: Mommy dear and three babies. Strong snow white cotton tubing. Hand embroidered with crocheted trim. No flaws, stains or holes. Pristine vintage condition. 20 1/2" x 28"

SOLD

3nd pair: Pink trumpet flowers and greenery. Strong snow white cotton tubing. Hand embroidered with crocheted trim. No flaws, stains or holes. Pristine vintage condition 20 1/2" x 27" PENDING

4nd pair: Hens and daisies. Strong, snow white cotton tubing. Hand embroidered with crocheted trim. No flaws, stains or holes. Pristine vintage condition. 21" x 28"

SOLD

Domestic (USA) orders: Postage is $4.75 per order shipping to same address. Payments can be made via Paypal, Money Order, or Personal Check (must clear before shipping).

International orders: Postage varies according to country. PAYPAL only payment form accepted. Buyer responsible for any taxes, customs, etc.

Please let me know if you need and more photos, or if you have any questions. First come, first served.

Thank you!

Patricia :o)

Embroidered Southern Belles

Southern Belles are one of my favorite embroidered item to collect. Especially when they are done on pillowcases and runners. I've also heard them called crinoline ladies because of their beautiful full dresses.

These pillowcases are beautifully embroidered with gorgeous Southern Belles holding delicate parasols. My favorite feature is the hand crocheted skirts have have been inserted in a cut out section of the pillowcase opening. SO BEAUTIFUL!

This is a close up of the crocheted work. I've tried crocheting before...it was not a pretty picture. It's SO much easier to just find them already done for me. m And when I find them in my favorite colors, Oh yeah! Gotta love that!

This is such a sweet pattern which is done on a pillowcase. Two lovely Southern Belles seem to be dancing around a basket of flowers. They're so cute! I love how the dresses are decorated with pretty flowers at the hem with their tiny slippered feet showing.

The Southern Belle below is definitely one of my best in my collection. She's done on a runner and the work is expertly done with tiny little stitches. Just look at the details on the butterfly, her hat, blond curly locks, and even her eyelashes seen from profile.

I can sum it all up in one word; GORGEOUS!

I also love anything made from old linens. This cute little make-up bag was made from an old embroidered runner. I'm sure the runner was too damaged for display, so a crafty lady on eBay turned it into this sweet little bag. She even added a tiny pink, baby button on the top of the parasol.

Gosh! Just look at the embroidery on this sweet Belle! The artists (whoever can embroider like this is always referred to as an artist by me) used thin floss and tiny stitches to create an image that seems to pop off the fabric.

This cute accent pillow was made from a vintage runner. The great thing about runners is that you have two images so you can usually make two of something. What a great way to recycle old linens! The pillow was very simply made by sewing along two edges (on the outside) tucking in a little stuffing or small pillow and stitching along the third side. Easy-Peezy!

FYI, I didn't make this pillow. As simple as it is, it's simpler to buy it already done. I found this at a little flea market and had to have it.

TIP for storing linens: As you may have noticed, the linens in the photos look a little wrinkled. The reason is that linens, old or new, should not be ironed and/or starched before storing. Ironing in creases or folding linens when they're still hot can cause breakage of the fibers which will cause weak areas and eventually holes. Also, starch is often looked upon as food by tiny little critters (ie, it may attract bugs). Tuck in sachets of lavender, cedar balls or even an opened pack of cigarettes to keep bugs away. I prefer lavender because it's the yummiest scent. :o)

Blessings,

Patricia :o)

Beautiful Crocheted Pillowcases!

Although life is good, it is very challenging and has been taking up much of my time. I haven't really had a chance to make posts the way I'd like, or share my thoughts lately. And with everything that's been going on (nothing bad, just busy), I haven't had time.



The easiest things for me to talk about are linens. And since I've posted a lot of picture of embroidered items, I thought I'd share some beautiful crocheted pillowcases.



This beautiful pair of PC's are hand crocheted AND embroidered. I love it when I'm lucky enough of find something like this. It's very rare, at least for me, to come across a pair of pillowcases that are expertly crocheted in my favorite colors of pink, have great embroidered detailing AND are in excellent condition.

Aren't they beautiful!" Love the pink and white and a touch of green in the embroidery

When I bought these wonderful purple pillowcases, I thought the were a pair. But when I got them home and really looked at them, they aren't exact. One pillowcase is bigger than the other, but you can tell they were made by the same person. Hubby's pillow must have been bigger than the wife's (or vice versa).

The crocheted inserts of pink stand up roses on these pillowcases goes all the way across the bottom edge. Usually it's only a small part of the pillowcase. I like the extra special touch of the yellow centers, too. How cute is that?

Just look at all that work! Sometimes I wish I can do crochet like that...Ok, LOTS of times, I wish I could crochet like that, but the amount of time involved seems daunting to me. I'm so glad there were and are ladies out there willing to do it so that you and I can enjoy their work.

I usually buy pinks, blues and lavenders, but when I saw these gorgeous sunny pillowcases, I had to get them! They're beautifully hand crocheted in such a happy color. I just know they'll be perfect to brightens some ones bedroom. How can they not? They're gorgeous!

Hope you had fun looking at these beautiful pieces of art!

Blessings,

Patricia :o)

These pillowcases will be available for purchase shortly at my eBay store.

Great finds ~ Part 2

When I found this gorgeous tablecloth I was originally going to sell it in my eBay store. But then I got to looking at it, and it's too beautiful to give up.

It is surrounded by the most beautiful hand crocheted edges! The work is amazing and the snow white center is the most luxurious fine linen. It was a dirty and smelly when I got it, but it didn't have any holes...Until I washed it. Now there's a tiny little hole near the center, but who cares, this piece is still stunning.

So much work!

I realized I wanted to keep this when I put it on this little table. I wish I could crochet like that!

Have a wonderful day!

Patricia :o)

Great finds in Calfornia

Last month during the Christmas season, we drove to California and then Oregon to visit family and friends. We were supposed to be gone for about three weeks, but the weather in Oregon didn't allow for safe RV travel through the passes. So basically we just stayed in California.

While I was there I did some treasure hunting. I found loads and loads of gorgeous linens that I will be listing on my website and eBay. I also found some wonderful little trinkets that I'll be keeping for my own.

This wonderful little draw-string purse is completely crocheted by hand. The detail is amazing! It has a crocheted bee or butterfly on the front. And there are flowers and berries hanging on the draw-strings. Again, all hand crocheted. The inside is lined with a hand sewn white fabric. I almost didn't buy this because I thought it was too much at $8.00! I'm so glad I changed my mind. I love it

The rhinestone "buttons" at the top are made to slip into small button holes. The posts are spring loaded so that they'll fit into small holes. I never saw that before. The large locket is actually a small compact. And the smaller locket pops open so that four photos can be placed inside.

I'm sure that the compact isn't terribly old and is probably from the 60's or 70's. The puff has the initials MF for Max Factor. (Thank you LouAnn & Mary for letting me know what the initials stood for!)

I also found this great vintage fan that was made in Spain. It's probably not that old either, but I really liked it. And at $4.00 it's a wonderful bargain. It is hand painted along the spines with red roses and gold detailing, and has tiny sequence hand sewn onto the lace.

I have more treasures to share with you later. So pop back in to see parts 2 and 3.

Blessings,

Patricia :o)

Batting Zero at the Thrift Stores

This weekend I went to several thrift stores and Goodwill stores. I was so excited to be out on the hunt for new places to shop. But all I found was junky and surprisingly expensive items! I'm so disappointed to have come home empty handed. Since I don't have any new finds to share with you, I thought I'd go through some linens and post pictures of some lovely vintage pillowcases!

Aren't these absolutely gorgeous!? I had planned on selling these, but the pink is just so perfectly cottage chic and the workmanship is amazing so they're staying with me. These are keepers for sure.
This pair of pink rose pillowcases are done with bright pinks and hunter greens. I love the pink hand crocheted trim that goes all around the openings. I can't even imagine how much time these must have taken to make. They're just beautiful!
My favorite color combination is pink and blue. This sweet pair of pillowcases are done with happy little tulips and tiny daisies. They're so perfect for the guest room. These are the kind of linens that definitely get noticed and always get happy comments from guests.

This is a simple but lovely design, and the workmanship is very well done, too. The stitches are so tiny! I just love vintage linens and never get tired of looking at them. Hope you enjoyed looking at these pretties!

Easy Pillowcase Project

Have you ever come across a wonderful vintage pillowcase that was too damaged to be used, but too beautiful to pass up? The great thing is that you can usually get them at the lowest prices ever because nobody wants them. And when you find that special pillowcase, you can make this!

To make this sweet little pillow, all you need is about 9" to 10" of the open edge. Take off the back side of the pillowcase and reserve it for later. The front side of the pillowcase is usually where all the hand work is done and should measure around 20" x 9" or so, depending on the design and pillowcase size. Fold it in half, short sides together, with the wrong side facing in, and sew along the short end. Press seam so that it's centered on the back, and sew along the top. (I should have taken pictures at each step, but didn't think about it until it was too late).

For this pillow, I used the crocheted edge of the back of the pillowcase to use at the top. I just slipped it in before sewing up the top. Use the left over fabric of the pillowcase to make the little pillow for the inside. I used a scrap piece of fabric with tiny checks of pink and white so that the crocheted skirt would show off better.

I like the back to be pretty, too, so I added a pink bow and a vintage-looking pink rose in the center.

Now you know how to rescue a beautiful pillowcase that may have seen better days. You only have to sew a few straight lines, and that's it! Super easy!

Free Drawing ~ Shabby Pink Flowers Runner Give-a-way

To enter for your chance to win this pretty table runner, just visit my Ebay store and look for a listing with a picture of an Angel and Roses and tell me what the picture says on it. I'll give you two hints: It will be near the bottom of the listing and it will appear on 4-15-08. Email me through the listing or through this blog. Your name will be dropped into a hat, and randomly drawn on 4-23-08 and if you're picked, you win this lovely runner!
~No purchase necessary~


This lovely vintage runner is all hand embroidered with the prettiest pink flowers and scrolling spring greenery. It's all done on snow white cotton fabric and trimmed in a yummy pink hand crocheted lace that goes all the way around it. This is a very lovely and dainty design that would look fabulous in any cottage chic decor.

These sweet little blossoms remind me of the flowers I would draw in the margins of my note book at school many, many years ago. But these are much nicer and must have taken hours to do. The work is very well done, and I love the crocheted trim. So pretty!
This contest is just for fun, but you have to hurry. The listing ends on 4-22-08 (and the name will be drawn on 4-23-08), so be sure to look for it and drop me a note. Be sure that I have a way to contact you if you're drawn. (Any info you provide will be strictly gaurded and used ONLY if you win). If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.