Rural Neighborhood Fall Festival

 We live in a rural area, west of a small town.

Once a year our "country neighbors" Gene and Diane

host a rural neighborhood "fall festival" for all the

people that live in our rural neck of the woods.

 This is no small event.

It is a bit of a soiree.

Complete with facepainting....

and I mean really good facepainting.

(I asked this little tiger if I could take her pic,

she surprised me by roaring while I took it!)

Also: snowcones and a bouncy house.

(Last year there was pumpkin painting and a car show.)

Yummy hot dogs and hamburgers are grilled.

And of course, everyone brings "dishes".

And enjoys cool drinks.

 It is a great opportunity to meet neighbors

whose country homes you just drive by ordinarily.

 And a good opportunity to enjoy the home and grounds

of our hosts until evening falls.

More Horsey Items Going On Ebay

I am a horsey girl at heart.

Great pair of mid-century lamps.

Great vintage cable sweater, going on ebay.

Paid $1, sold for $61.

Vintage Western Fabric Finds

 I was looking through a box at the flea market this morning.

It is definitely someone's "quilt scrap" box -- 

you know, the small remnants of fabric she kept  to

cut into tiny shapes for quilts.

 There were other interesting bits in the box --

lots of floral feedsack.  But I was drawn to all

of the assorted patterns of mid-century western fabric.

Eight different patterns in all.

I am hoping someone out in ebay land finds

them as fascinating as I do.

Bought the box for $10, sold all of them sold for $73.

Dollar Tree Styrofoam Pumpkin Upcycle 2019

It all started a few weeks ago,

when I bought a thick cable cardigan at a garage sale for 25 cents.

Yes, I bought it because I liked it -- but I don't normally wear thick sweaters,

and to be honest it was a bit small.  But I immediately saw the potential for some

sweet sweater pumpkins.  I went out and bought 8 styrofoam pumpkins and two bunches 

of tan flowers from Dollar Tree = $10.

 

 The more I looked at the sweater, the more I thought I

had better research it.  Turns out I might be able to get

$25 for it on ebay.  Best to not hack it into bits after all.

But I did find a flour sack in my stash that would cover

four of the pumpkins ....

 and a lacy ivory jacket in my "donate" pile that I could

cut up for the other four.  I am still a little disappointed to not

be looking at pumpkins dressed out in cozy cable knit....

I have decked out these little pumpkins in many different styles over the years.

The price is great, and they are easy to whack a hole in the top

in order to stuff  excess fabric in.  This year I used some

old wooden pieces for the stems.

Views of some past DT pumpkins: 2014, 2015, 2016.

Limestone Quarry Tour In A Ghost Town

 At a small town fall celebration we went on a free bus tour of a limestone quarry at the ghost town of Phenix, MO (spelled correctly!)  The site was once the center of a bustling limestone mining operation, complete with a "company town", "company store, school, church, and activity center for over 1000 employees in it's heyday around 1922.  The stone was distributed widely at the time. The New York Stock Exchange was built from limestone quarried here.

Apparently it was an expensive operation, and was forced to close during the Great Depression.  A few years ago, it was reopened on a much smaller scale. The limestone quarried now actually has replaced some of the original limestone quarried there in buildings like the Missouri Capitol.

They are also supplying countertops for homes.  Including ours!  Our kitchen countertop, bathroom countertop and shower interior is all made from this limestone.  It is one of rare types of limestone that can be "polished", but our doesn't look like it has be polished much.  You can see fossils in our countertops, which I find really interesting.  The tour guide says they find alot of starfish in the limestone. 

Baby Boo Pumpkins On The Vine

Fall Wildflowers

Pumpkins Going To Market

 I have my first group of pumpkins ready to sell.

I am taking them to my "outdoor" antique booth this week.

I raised them all from pumpkins that I purchased last fall.

 I bought pumpkins in muted tones that I like so well.

 I switched out the one on the left for a true orange pumpkin 

so that you can see the difference.

I love how the different shades look together.

A Pair Of Upcycled Wicker Side Tables

My husband got this pair of wicker side tables on the last day of an estate sale.

He paid $5 for the pair.

The problem?

They didn't have any tops.

The positives?

Super sturdy construction and cute as a button.

I dug out some old boards that I had from a

deconstructed crate.  (That writing is original!)

 

I got to use my "new" saw that I inherited.

It worked great.  Then I tried a little area with a jig saw

(see crooked area on the right side -- not so great :()

I used both nails and screws to secure the boards.

And then light brown briwax over the top.
Maybe better than new.

Pumpkin On Vine, Then & Now

I took this pic around July 25.

And I took this pic today.

What gorgeous colors,

and it even grew a little more.

Cherry Tomato Windowsill

Overalls Overhauled

 I went to a garage sale yesterday and bought eight

pairs of well-worn overalls.  I can't resist work-worn denim.

Besides admiring them,

I don't know exactly what I am doing with them yet.

I'll keep you posted.

Front Door Problems Part I

Our front door has kind of a cool look,

but it is not original to our house.
It has a sludgy mold on the exterior that I knew I would have to tackle if we kept it.

It has never fit the opening well,

and lately (with humidity) the entire thing has warped.

The doorknob is so close to the casing that it actually touches.

And now, we actually can't get it open because of the warpage.

Stick a fork in us.
 We are done.

So we cruised craig's list and facebook marketplace,

and came up with a door that we thought fit the look of our house

(looks great with our windows.)

Only $80.

But did you think it was going to be that easy?

No, no, no. Of course not.

First of all, the finish on one side was all scratched up,

and if I was going to refinish it - now was the time.

 LOTS of sanding.  With the orbital sander, and by hand.
Then staining with a dark walnut stain to obtain the deep color I wanted.
(Two coats of this, and spots with a third application).
A thin coat of polyshade -- brush on and immediately wipe off.
Then a regular final coat of polyshade (brushed on and not wiped off).
(Time for each step to completely dry, and trying not to work on
days above 90 degrees made all of this this long and drawn out.)
😠
I hated it.  The final coat was all streaky --
probably would have been fine if I had done another thin coat of polyshade instead.
Argh.
Wait for the frustration and heat to subside.

More sanding.  First by hand -- not quite enough poly removal.
Then with orbital sander.  Then by hand to try to get rid of orbital tracks.
Just one coat of walnut stain needed this time.
And I've done one thin coats of polyshade (wiped off right after application).

Still to solve:
-- non-working mortise lock that is a strange size
-- door is 1/4" shorter than opening
-- workable door hinges that at least look old

First Pumpkin Harvest

Selling Another Quilt From My Personal Collection

 This will be the third quilt that I am selling from my

personal collection.  These are the ones that I kept

because of their superb tiny stitches and great design.

I just don't have the room, or color scheme to keep

these beauties anymore.

Heading to ebay.

Sold for $106.