Ginny's Small Studio

British Route Signs

Here are some things you can do with these British destination rolls.  Overdone above, but then it is a store showing their wares. I have added some sections of these rolls to my travel etsy shop.  They are authentic, old (1940s) and not a print, but the real deal and come from a bus like this:

See the destination displayed on the front of the bus?  These iconic British buses are being phased out and not replaced so the signs are a bit of history and becoming rare. That is what I have for you in my shop. The pieces I have currently listed are linen on paper and have been handled enough to be a bit soft.  Good for covering a bench or stool.

Here is another idea from Renovation Hardware's latest catalog:

Frame it! I have been seeing this often in decorating magazines. John and I bought several from an estate in England which makes us feel quite cosmopolitan. 

 

Odds and Ends

Last week we filled our room at the antique mall with 1920s linen bus numbers.  They sold the next day. Back we went and put up the remainder and that same day all the single numbers sold...all 17 of them! So again we spent our week cutting and framing bits of those rolling signs that tell one where the transport is going. Our wall at Brothers Antique Mall (Medina OH) is now loaded with 1940s London bus signs.  I forgot to take my camera so you will just have to be satisfied with seeing the one that came home because it wouldn't fit on the wall.

I am so enamoured with these signs and we have quite a few to sell at our antique mall shop. Too big to ship. Sorry.

John and I really enjoyed the Small Studio Workshop Series that we did in 2010.  We had to cancel it for this year due to some pesky medical stuff, but we are planning our Series again for 2012 and we have lined up Keith Lobue and Michael deMeng already! All info will be available on this blog when dates have been confirmed.  I am awaiting word from other instructors.

Last, but certainly not least, I am abandoning John for a whole week while I go make books at Pam Sussman's.  She hosts and teaches 6 students in her home studio for a one week intensive workshop.

Here is what I made last time:

I can't wait.  Working with Pam is always fun, well organised and so instructive.  I haven't made anything artsy in quite awhile so I am excited to begin.

While I am gone my etsy shops will be closed and will reopen Aug 27th or 28th. 

No Paparazzi

I spent the weekend messing around with my etsy shops.  Yes, shops plural. I collect several different things, so it only seems logical to separate the collections into different shops.  I get bored after about the 4th or 5th page of etsy shops that list 1000 items. Maybe I have a short attention span. Now my shop has been divided into three.

One is called No Paparazzi and features vintage photo related goods:

TINTYPES

 

CABINET CARDS

I have moved my ViCTORIAN ALBUMS and other old photographs over to this etsy shop.

Then I have created The Right Route which is all vintage travel related items.

TICKET ROLLS

GAS STATION NUMBERS

Authentic SUBWAY SIGNS and coming soon London Bus Signs

I still will have the Small Studio etsy shop that offers craft supplies and vintage goods:

Now go forth and create!

Good Mail Day

Sometimes the light comes in the window just right in the morning and it makes everything okay again.

This morning was one of those mornings.

Yesterday was a wonderful mail day.  First I received this great little packet of goodies from friend Chris Meador.  Now how did she know I like the number 5? I really like the gold and black number decals. I wonder if they are still sold somewhere. Thank you, Chris!

Then I received "The Ringmaster".  I had been wanting him for some time.  He is a creation of Tracey Truly, the artist behind A Little Character. It is a cool website full of Tracey's little characters.  Go have a browse.

I can't get over the wonderful details that Tracey incorporates into her art. Check out the close-up of the face and mouth.  Amazing work.

I spent the morning adding stuff to my etsy shop.  If you are planning on taking Mary Ann Moss' Full Tilt Boogie workshop and why wouldn't you, I have added several more Victorian albums to my shop. More info on her many workshops can be found on her blog: Dispatch From LA. I also added some great metal numbers and other vintage goodies.

Shameless Plug

I have been trying to destash my house of all the odds and ends and excesses of my various endeavors, online and offline. Almost daily I add new stuff to my etsy shop.  Usually I only add 3-5 items, but yesterday in a spurt of enthusiasm, I added all the rest of my vintage New York City subway train roll signs.

I have added about 15 of them.  They are the last of these. Here is what we did with one of them. We framed it and hung it. This is the kitchen when we lived in CA a few years ago. The strips are 52" long, so they make quite a statement.

I have lots of other stuff in my etsy shop. I have all the wonderful Coffee Break Design stencils, kits and novelties. I still miss Mike (the late and great owner of CBD) so much.

One of my favorite items is the 12" high Masonite mannequins.  The set comes in two sizes 5" and 12" (shown above) and includes one male, one female (two males shown above) and two sets of wings in case you want them to soar. They can be painted, stamped, drilled, collages, etc...you know what to do with them, of course.

I have a variety of other goodies besides the above.

Go on over and have a browse:  Ginny's Small Studio

 

Road Trip Three

When driving across this huge country of ours there are big impressions being made.

I am always amazed at how much open land we have. We would drive for hours between towns and they were usually small towns. Why do we all crowd into the cities?  

I was dismayed to see so many empty industrial parks, so many empty main street buildings and so many abandoned farms. We really are in trouble here in this beautiful land of ours.  

I was impressed with the many, many wind farms we saw everywhere that is everywhere but here in Ohio. We have plenty of wind.  Where are our wind turbines? One of the most prosperous towns we overnighted in was Cheyenne WY.  Why? One of the reasons is that they have a few large wind turbine manufacturers there and even a school to train future workers.

We stopped briefly in NV to visit my daughter, Amy and her family.  Amy was busy making a mountain of handmade Thank You cards for her daughter's school.  She had a small assembly line going with my granddaughters Ginny (left) and Amanda (right).

John sat down to help and their other grandfather who was visiting from Holland joined the girls, too. And so was born the international grandfathers' competition.  Look at them go!

We did some antiquing on our trip.  Knowing that the wonderful Mary Ann Moss was beginning another of her fabulous online workshops this month using old Victorian photo albums, we picked up a few.  You can see her class info at the "Dispatch from LA".  You can see the albums we found in my Etsy shop.

We had a good trip and we needed a good trip.  We two have had quite a winter this past year. We are ready for normal again.

 

Five Times Five Equals ?

I had not been to our PO box in quite awhile.  To tell you the truth, we have been preoccupied with other things, things that have been taking up all our time and energy and thoughts. It is the reason I haven't blogged in awhile or consistently, too. So when I walked into the post office, one of the wonderful clerks ran back and got a package for me. 

The package was completely unexpected.  It was a small canvas created by and from Erin Perry of Morro Bay.  It made my day. Thank you so much, Erin.  So sweet of you.

If you have been reading my blog for awhile you know I am obsessed with numbers and signs, but especially the number 5. With this new number five, I will have to rethink my "5" wall.

Speaking of numbers, I keep adding new things to my Etsy shop, trying to clear out my humongous stash of stuff.

 

Did you notice that I reworked my blog list on the left of this page? I edited and added some new ones that interest me. Maybe they will interest you also.

 

The Buck Stops Here

This entry is not about the deer that wander through our yard.  No, that would be an entirely different blog post.  No this is about playing with money.

When my kids were little, our bank sold pads of real dollar bills that had authentically colored stickers of Santa, Cupid and the Easter Bunny covering President Washington's face.  The kids thought they were pretty cool and sometimes didn't even spend them instead saving them. After a quick look through the internet, it seems this is still done.

Then as the kids got older and I became more creative, I would fold paper currency into origami shirts and other objects.  The kids were more savvy by then and quickly unfolded the origami and pocketed the bills.

Artist Mark Wagner likes to play with money.  He uses real money to make his own brand of art.  It appears he uses mostly $1s.

Some people like to put all their eggs into one "basket", so to speak, when it comes to money.

Here is a 50 Yeun Banknote.

Here is a 50 Yeun Banknote created in 3-D out of eggs!

An old friend of mine Julie Paquette (now Jeffries) began Fluxus Bucks back in the early 90s.  As a mail art project she printed up a gazillion fake dollar bills and sent them out into the art world to be altered and sent back to her to receive more. Back in the day she kept careful records of who she sent them to and who returned them.  I don't know if the record keeping has continued but Fluxus Bucks still circle the globe.  Go google it.  There is quite a bit of info online and several interviews with Julie.

What have you done funny with money?

Check out my etsy shop here.

Mail Day

Are you a fan of "Good Mail Day"?  I am.  I think we should declare a "Mail a Letter to a Friend" Day to save the Post Office which seems to be in deep financial trouble.  Good Mail Day posts interesting mail related stuff every day.

Maybe if we all write a letter, we might just get one back.

Maybe if we each sent a letter it would brighten someone's day when they need it.

I got an e-mail today (always appreciated too) from Shelley Howard who cut up an Observation zine (a now defunct publication of mine) to make her own art.

Complete sets of Observation, 7 issues, are available for purchase in my Etsy shop.

Last from Good Mail Day this cool pillow. Your thought for the day:

Life

I am almost never sick.  I get some bug once every few years, but that is it.  Really.  The past 7 weeks I have spent in doctor's offices and medical labs all because of a really bad reaction to a blood pressure medication.  I think the doctors are trying to finish me off. I am feeling back to normal finally. Finally. Now that I have that off my chest....

I am dreaming of summer.

Dreaming of sitting on the patio with a cool glass of something with clinking ice cubes, smelling the sent of fresh mown grass and newly blooming flowers.

I am dreaming of bouquets of flowers in the house that have been cut from the garden.

But, alas, it is dark and dreary and wet outside.  I have been amusing myself by loading more stuff on my Etsy shop. This makes me happy because since I closed down Small Studio Emporium, I still have bits and bobs of stuff and it is more than I can use up myself. 

I also had a birthday since my last blog post.  My favorite thing about birthdays is all the phone calls from family and friends. Who needs gifts when a chatty call will make one happy? Although I did receive some pretty interesting gifts, too.  

We went to see The Adjustment Bureau last night with Matt Damon.  It was pretty good and did elicit some good conversation afterwards, but I think John liked it more than I did.

So what have you been up to?

Sun, Snow, Wind & Ice

We have had it all the past few days.  60 degree sunny days and then the ice storm hit and then 5" of snow and now it is a crisp 24 degrees and the trees are covered with ice and snow. With the sun shining through the tree branches it looks as though the woods are covered with fairy lights.  

When the branches take on the icy cover, they get very heavy and often break.  Locally there are many branches down along with some power lines.  We have mostly underground utilities in our neighborhood, so we are lucky.

Click on the photos to see the icy branches close-up.

John is still loving the drama of Eastern US weather.  He enjoys shoveling the snow.  Today he was really amused when he went out to get the mail and the mailbox was frozen closed.  He had to pry it open with a screwdriver. 

The pine trees really take the brunt of the ice.  There is more for the ice to cling to.  The heavy branches look like the pine tree has just slumped down in submission.  The icicles hanging from the ends of the pine branches look like tinsel on a Christmas tree.

Are you wondering why I haven't been making art?  Me too.

What's new on Etsy?

And She Keeps on Talking

First I want to share this cool art installation using nothing but security envelopes:

Next I wanted to share some new Etsy items with you.  Since I closed my Emporium, I am listing leftovers and personal stash stuff on my Etsy shop.  If you want multiples or want something I used to carry, e-mail me and I will see what I can do for you. I put a few new things up almost every day.

I received a ton of e-mails concerning the imported shrimp a few blog entries ago.  I am happy that I am not the only one concerned about this.  Did you know that on average our food travels 1500 miles from point of origin to our local store? A few years ago Time magazine had an article about a group of people who decided to challenge themselves to eat only food produced within 100 miles of their home. The blog world joined in and it is still going on. John and I like to shop our local farm market stands.  Our farm stands are right in front of the farms indicating, we assumed, that the produce came from that piece of land.  Imagine our disappointment when we noticed stickers on the tomatoes (Mexico) and on the cantaloupes (Honduras) that said otherwise.  Since we live in Ohio, the growing season is shorter than in warmer climates, but still.... The point is one has to really pay attention when shopping. Not only does it cost the universe pollution, oil, local jobs, etc, but it also costs us in lost nutrients.  Really what is the point?

 

Oops...Forgot to Blog

Where did the week go?  We were just busy doing stuff.

We went to an auction.

We went antiquing.

We added stuff to our antique mall room.

We attended a basketball playoff.  Our grandson's team won!

We had breakfast out with my son and his family.  Love that.

We did lots of mundane stuff.

I may not have blogged, but I did add some things to my Etsy shop.

Here is the question of the day: 

What is your most memorable Valentine's Day?

 

 

Sunday, Sunday

Keith Lo Bue arrives here is a couple of days to visit before the workshops begin.  I am really looking forward to his stay here. I hope the weather stays as wonderful as it has been this past weekend.  It has been glorious.  It has been energizing.  I have been moving stuff around and hanging things I have been meaning to hang and watering things that need moisture and singing while I have been doing it all. John has been hiding out in his man room downstairs.  I have even been cooking and baking.  The cake went to the birthday parties yesterday at son Tim's.  It was not only his birthday, but also his son Joey's. Weird but Joey likes donuts instead of cake, so his mom took care of that while I took care of Tim's cake.  His favorite is my mom's Chocolate Kahlua cake.

John requested Chicken Tortilla soup for dinner tonight.  I had leftover chicken, so it was a perfect time to make it.

 

I put up the last of our Vintage Recycled Sari Ribbon Yarn on my etsy shop today.

 

Just Stuff

I saw these wonderful clock plates online recently.  Aren't they wonderful?  They are from Ralph Lauren Home Collection and they are also, alas, discontinued as far as I can tell.   I want them.  I need them.  I have to have them.  Too bad, says the universe.  Oh well.  It is always good to want something you cannot have. I have a thing for plates.  Any size plates are fine with me.  I don't care if they are good china or inexpensive pottery. I just love playing with table settings.  John has even gotten into the spirit. He sometimes comes up with a combination of plates that I hadn't thought of yet. Plates and all possessions, for that matter, should be used and not just looked at. Do you agree?

Laundry Pins.  Brass Laundry Pins.  Military Brass Laundry Pins.  In my Etsy shop.

Nails.  Rusty Nails, Old Rusty Nails.  Really Old Numbered Rusty Nails.  In my Etsy shop. 

That's it for tonight.  Be good to each other and appreciate those around you.  

 

Little Things I Miss

Remember how heavy these old black phones were?    

Remember the 25 foot long, thick cords that connected that phone to the telephone stand? Ours was on a shelf below the linen closet cupboards in the hallway to the bedrooms. The 25 foot cord reached just about everywhere in the house.  It barely fit under my bedroom door when I wanted to have a private conversation with a girlfriend or boyfriend.

I don't miss the heaviness of the phone or the cord, but I do miss being able to tuck the big receiver under my chin like I did years ago so that my hands were free to do other stuff like homework or feed the baby or fold the clothes. The phones we have now have a flash button on the back that is easily and mistakenly engaged.  One little miscalculation on holding the phone and the conversation is temporarily gone.

I miss the sound of the dial clicking it's way around when making a call. It sounded like you were actually doing something to connect to that call.

I miss the excitement or suspense of wondering who the call is from.  Actually our talking phone makes so many verbal "mistakes" that we often do not know who is on the other end until we pick up the receiver.  Of course, I could look at the digitally printed caller ID, but that would spoil the surprise.

Summers, while I was in high school, I worked as an information operator.  We sat in little half round glass cubicles.  We each had three huge phone books, white pages only.  We had a headset on and the calls were fed to us automatically.  We would ask the pertinent questions and swivel to the correct book and quickly (we were trained to be quick) look up the number.  Sometimes it would be someone we knew, but we were not allowed to acknowledge that, although we were encourage to be efficient, yet friendly with everyone.  We had information for a certain nearby area and no more.  We had a strict dress code.  No slacks, levis, capris or shorts.  Skirts or dresses only were allowed, button up the front blouses and nylons and leather shoes.  No one saw us, so it was a silly code. I miss friendly local information operators who could tell what the name of the restaurant that you couldn't remember. 

It is nice to have cell phones and cordless phones, but it was almost better to be unreachable if you were out having fun rather than everyone being able to reach us 24/7. Few things are so important that 24 hour access is necessary.  

Privacy.  One of the little things I miss.

 

I have added some wonderful recycled silk sari ribbon yarn to my Etsy shop.  It is 130 ft long and so colorful.  Each bundle is a bit different.  We had this ribbon yarn at Stampaway last month and it sold out very quickly.Go have a look.

 

Inspired & Productive

I have been playing in my art room and working in my Small Studio, alternating for the past week.  I am deep into packaging up goodies for the convention in Cincinnati next month.  Stampaway is one of the oldest rubber stamp conventions around.  I think second only to the Carson Show in Los Angeles. I am excited to do this last show of the year for us.  We have taken a bit larger booth for this show so the pressure is on to be well stocked and organized.

Look at these beautiful old ledger and journal pages from the mid 1800s.  I love the handwriting with the happy flourishes.  I have packed up about 35 of these, so if this is something you need, come to our booth early.  Last show we sold out of these quickly.

One can only package so long before a break is needed.  I took many, many breaks this week and put together this journal to put on my Etsy shop. 

Every page has some ephemera added, leaving space for you to write or add your own touches.

What have you been doing?    

Sign up for Small Studio Workshops here.

Just Another Green Day

We were at the Morgan Conservatory yesterday to drop off some post cards for them for The Workshop Series.  Susan, who runs most things over there, is taking a Michael DeMeng workshop and a Lynne Perrella workshop. Bruce, one the volunteers is also take a deMeng workshop.  Head of the whole Morgan is Tom Balbo who was busy making paper, huge sheets of handmade paper.  They make us feel so welcome when we stop by and there is always something interesting going on.  It is one of those places that just fills your mind with possibilities.  Cleveland is so lucky to have them here.

I added some new things to my Etsy.  You etsy shoppers out there have been keeping me busy lately. Thank you.  Most popular seems to be the old clock faces.

The tapes are popular. I had to order more and they came in today.  Now I have single rolls of 1/2" too.

Recently, the printer who had produced my zine, Observation (2003-2006) found a few boxes of the over runs.  I had no idea he had some of the previously sold out issues.  So now I have some complete sets available at a bargain rate on Etsy.  The events and maybe some of the ads are out of date, but the artwork is still good and the articles are still interesting.

   

Full Speed Ahead

Between Small Studio (thanks for the steady stream of orders), the Workshop Registrations (moving along nicely), basketball playoffs and dinners (they finished 18-1), a few doctor appointments, making art, tax stuff, a good book and wanting to be outside in the sun, I have been neglecting my readers.

We went to see Alice in Wonderland this afternoon.  Great effects.  Johnny Depp was good. Helena Bonham Carter was awesome. I don't know what I was expecting, but I was not as interested as I thought I would be.  John liked it better than I did.  He gave it an 8 out of 10.  I gave it a 6.  

More Etsy stuff online in our shop. Kelly Kilmer has turned me onto Japanese tapes.  I ordered one of these for myself and just love it.  It is made from Washi paper and lays down so flat that it looks like a printed design not added on tape.

 
 

Kelly has also turned me onto a wonderful magazine called Uppercase.

 

We love this issue, our first, and will be ordering back issues as soon as we can.  It is pricey, but so creative.  Even though it is beautifully printed on high quality paper, it has retained the feel of a zine.  It is a mix of graphically inspiring photos and quirky articles.  Love it when I can get it away from John!

Note:  When I checked my blog to see if it published, it has but cut off one side of the photos and messed up the text.  I have no idea why.

New Etsy Shop Items

I am still working delightedly on my ephemera books for the etsy shop, but in the meantime, I have added some other items you might like such as this:

It is an old gas station number about 9.5" high.  I found a few of these, but I am keeping the five.

Then there are more of the ceramic letters I have been selling on Etsy.

That is "Peep" as in Easter Bunnies and marshmallow confections, not as in peeping toms.

I have also listed a few more old and distressed clock faces like this one below:  

If you are in the etsy neighborhood, have a visit. 

Small Studio Workshop Series Registrations are still going on.

Book Me

Now that I have easier access to my collection of papers, I have made a new book.  I love making books.  Thank you, Pammy Sussman for introducing me to this very satisfying craft.

I have filled the book with vintage and new papers.

There is still room to add notes and lists and ideas.

I have spent many hours making up the pages.

This book is listed in my etsy shop.   

Thank you everyone for all the kind and fun birthday wishes.  It was a good birthday and it seems to keep on. Fun!

Small Studio Workshop Series information is on our website. 

 

 

Holiday Gift Ideas

The parking lots are full and crazy.  The lines at the stores are long.  Maybe it is really cold outside (32 F here tonight with a wind chill of 20F!!!!) and you have decided to look online.

I have some ideas for you from our Emporium at Small Studio and we ship within 24 hours (48 hours on weekends).

We have a variety of blank bezels that can be filled and made into great gifts. The board above has samples that Pam Sussman and I made one night before ArtFest a few years ago.

How about a canvas bucket to help organize or display rolled papers, magazines, towels, etc.  I love these.  They crush down for storing and have a great look to them.  We also have French themed canvas tote bags.

We have just a handful left of these limited edition cards made for a special exhibition by artists Kahn & Selesnick a few years ago. Your arty friends will appreciate them.  They commemorate a fictitious event. Very cool.

Then we have a zillion (or at least 25) kits that you could make or gift to someone who likes to play.

The three photos above are samples of a) Dash Shrine, b) six compartment slide cubby and c) La Guardarropa (wardrobe).  The latter sample is by Linda Cain.

We have a good variety of embellishments, kits, paper goods old and new, postcards, blank books and a number of special find items for all.  Check our etsy shop too! 
  

  

It Was a Day

Did you know that it is still really dark at 7AM?  We were up earlier than usual today for a Saturday.  We wanted to drive over to see my grandson Tony play football.  I was amazed at how serious a group of 7 & 8 year olds are about their sports. The field was muddy, the kids were dirty and we adults were so cold. It was about 45-50 degrees and windy.  I am such a wuss when it comes to being cold, but we were surrounded by the bright Fall colors and we had such a good time. Afterwards we all went to breakfast and I have told you often how I feel about a big table of laughing, chatting family. Makes me happy.

The high point of the day for me was a tour of son Tim's new offices and facilities.  Tim has recently started his own business with three other men.  They are commodities brokers dealing in the recycling of plastics.  It was really interesting to see the process.  They buy (among other things) the leg cutouts from companies that make diapers.  The huge bales of the polypropylene pieces are shredded and then spun until the force heats the shreds, water is shot at them and they become tiny pellets that can be resold and reformed into solid products.  In this case, they will be made into storage units by his next client. The machine that does this is huge and fills a giant warehouse, but can be run by just two workers and produces something like 1000 lbs of pellets an hour and a million lbs per month.  Generally though, they buy and resell without ever having the product go through their warehouse. It was fascinating and I am so proud of Tim.  

I deal in small products and feel insignificant next to the volumes he does.

Two of these small products have just been added to my etsy shop.

John and I found a watchmaker's case full of these wonderful little vials above for you to play with in your artwork.  I love the tiny labels.  The bottles are only about 1" high.

Coffee Break Design just sent me these wonderful Elevated Box Kits, not quite as small, for you to make something wonderful and artsy.  The large one fits an ATC perfectly.  Add a head and some arms and some design details and you will have created a funky little doll.

Chandeliers, Part II

The other day I posted about chandeliers, unusual chandeliers, sold in mainstream catalogues.  Somehow I missed this Pottery Barn submission.  Check it out above.  Any one of us that consider ourselves "alternative artists" could and would have this in our art rooms.  Clips hod anything one could want to display such as this collection of ephemera.  Pottery Barn shows this second use of the same clip chandelier system for the holidays. It would be fun for a birthday or anniversary with old photos.  I kinda like it, but I dont' think I would like 24/7 in my dining room.

I turned onto a little traveled, wooded road today to get home from errands and was confronted with a gaggle of geese numbering well over 100 dawdling in the middle of the road. They just looked at me when I drove near, never batting an eyelash.  Do geese have eyelashes?  I don't know, but I am sure you understand.  I had to wait 10 minutes until they decided to move en masse to the side of the road.  I had plenty of time to get a good photo for you, except I did not have my camera with me.  Bummer.  You are all creative.  Just use your imagination.  Here I will help:  autumn colored leaves on the heavily wooded trees surrounding me and the geese....dappled sunshine peeking through those leaves, the light through the dust of the aging leaves casting a golden haze.  Lovely.

I am slowly getting the items we found on our two road trips into my Small Studio Etsy shop. The latest includes three wonderful antique photo albums.  Lately I have seen the pages from this type of album used for garlands and also for the base for collage.  They are in varying degrees of distress, but definitely usable for art projects.  C'mon over and have a visit.

How Do You Measure Up?

I have had my eye on this red advertising yardstick chair by artist Dorothy Spencer for a few years.  Ms Spencer has created quite a few pieces of Folk Art from yardsticks and rulers.  If you have a Paper Source near you, you may see a few of her pieces scattered throughout their stores using them for display.  Some of her pieces use all vintage rulers and some newer rulers and yardsticks.  This one uses all red yardsticks (not painted). I read somewhere that the word "yard" is from an old English word meaning stick so yardstick means stick-stick.

Click on photos for a closer look, if you like.

Several years ago in a decorating magazine, I saw a room that had old yardsticks installed all the way around as wainscoting finished with a piece of molding at the top and bottom.  It was very vintage looking, had great texture, but can you imagine how many yardsticks one would need to do just one wall?  I think a yardstick may only be an inch or two wide. Vintage yardsticks cost more than they should and would take a lifetime to collect enough.  The newer ones, although free, usually are unfinished whereas the older ones are stained and varnished.  The patina is what made the wall of yardsticks so interesting.

The frame above is made from surveyor's measuring sticks.  I think it would make a great base for an arty assemblage piece. It is available in my Etsy shop.  You know how I love letters and numbers.

How did your day measure up?  Were you happy, productive, serene, rested, surrounded by friendly faces?