My Lucky Day?

I've come to believe the luck o' the Irish isn't all it's cracked up to be.  Maybe my luck hasn't changed, but I had some lucky little moments this weekend in my travels.

Soooo, I drive through some small towns on alternate routes to visit various branches of my family, grasshoppers comb their hair (not really, just wanted to wedge my favorite Stevie Ray song in there), and I happen upon places that Google didn't even know existed.  I found this:

With four-leaf clovers, lucky numbers, an elephant with a raised trunk, rabbit's feet, a wishbone, and a horseshoe, it's apparently the luckiest tea towel ever.

Now, I have never, ever, evereverever owned any Bakelite in my whole entire life... until yesterday.  I found these cherry-red carved dress (or shoe or scarf or fur) clips...

...and these butterscotch clip-on hoops.

Of course, I found them super el cheapo.  I find Bakelite all the time, really- it's just always beyond my budget.  My millinery professor told me when she and I were discussing vintage jewelry, that her mother had loads of Bakelite jewelry but got rid of it because it was dime store jewelry way back when. She didn't realize people like us would want it now, and that she could have gotten a pretty penny for it all.

Alas, I'm pretty sure I can't rock that butterscotch color, with my complexion and all, so I'm pretty sure they'll be consigned or meet some other "for sale" fate.  The dress clips, though, are probably mine forever.

Summer's Last Hurrah

Just when I thought Summer was over and started to put tropical things out of my mind (and hope in vain for another cool front), more tropical goodness put itself in my path rather unexpectedly.

It began last weekend with a couple of random antique store and roadside market stops.  I don't wear bangles a lot.  Small bone structure makes for scrawny wrists, and hands that can Houdini out of almost anything.  I still couldn't resist these:

They're not as squared as some I've seen, but will be interesting among my round bangles nonetheless (when I remember to wear them).

I also found an interesting addition to my handkerchief collection:

It appears to be a late 60s or early 70s hankie, made in Japan of a nylon and polynosic blend.   "Polynosic?", you say?  Polynosic, indeed.  It's code for rayon.  Rayon has lots of tricky code names, and lots of nasty tricks that textile manufacturers and other companies won't tell you about.  If you love your girlybits, you can read this article, and if you process and file that information in your brain, it will change the way you do some things (including products you buy).

I really use handkerchiefs... forserious.   Ones with souvenir prints and 3-d applique work will never make it into my purse, however, and are collection-only.  Maybe next week would be a good time to show pieces from my collection- untouched artsy ones as well as pretty printed ones that get used during church, sad movies, funerals, and allergy season.

So, last week was a blur, but I did come across this beauty:

It's a Les Bernard coral necklace.  Judging from the clasp, it's probably late 50s or early 60s.

This thing here... this is a gem.  Not a literal gem like the precious coral above, but a deadstock Kamehameha piece with the paper tag still inside.

As far as I can tell, it's an early 60s piece.  The bust is more rounded than a typical 50s silhouette, but the bottoms are still pretty high-waisted.  I wish Dolly had legs, so I could put the bottoms on her rump and display them properly.  I found this beauty at Beatniks in the Heights.

And so, as I long for sleep and prepare for a busy weekend (including making glamour happen with Mileslove Studios Eye Candy), I leave you with this.