Saturday, February 21, 2015

What’s Up with Alice?


On courtesy of:https://vintageatoz.wordpress.com/?s=oz+love+alice

PJ from seasidecollectibles loves Alice. It might be due to the nonsense of it. As an adult, it seems that every aspect of life needs to be organized. Alice releases PJ from this obligation with its whimsical fun.
PJ was born to a family of collectors. Five generations in her family collected and cared for items from all around the world. A picker at heart ,she is fascinated mostly by books,stories and related collectibles.

Her unique shop on Etsy, has great items of "Alice in wonderland":


https://www.etsy.com/il-en/listing/209536939/alice-with-piglet




https://www.etsy.com/il-en/listing/211396600/alice-and-the-caterpillar


PJ has a wonderful job (inflight purser) that  takes her around the world and she search the local markets and fairs for interesting treasures.

On top of that, she loves salvage. More than that she loves people and loves to travel. 
Sometimes while driving around PJ  get so excited when seeing something that she forgets to set the emergency brake...This has only happen to her once. Cars roll backwards when on a hill. Slowly at first....

One such salvage you can find in her shop:



https://www.etsy.com/il-en/listing/221550493/vintage-r-lighted-letter-green-white


You are invited to pop in PJ's shop on:







Monday, February 9, 2015

Fête de la Chandeleur



on courtesy of:http://teamvintagevertigo.blogspot.co.il/                                                                           
  Written and Created by Veronique of Etsy shop VintageFindsFrance                      



On February 2 crêpes are offered in France on the holiday known as Fête de la Chandeleur, Fête de la Lumière, or “jour des crêpes”. 




 Part 1 : HISTORY

The word crêpe is French for pancake and is derived from the Latin crispus meaning “curled”. Crêpes originated in Brittany , in the northwest region of France,. Crêpes were originally called galettes, meaning flat cakes. 
Around the 12th century buckwheat was introduced in Brittany from the east. Buckwheat thrived on the desolate and rocky Breton moors and is called “sarrasin” or “blé noir” (black wheat) due to the dark specs that are often found in it. It is high in fiber and is an excellent plant source of easily digestive protein and contains all eight essential amino acids. Another benefit is that it is gluten free.
white flour « sweet » crêpes appeared early 20th century when white wheat flour which formerly had been as expensive as sugar, honey or meat, became affordable. White flour crêpes are more thin than buckwheat crêpes made of flour, eggs, sugar, milk, and butter of course ! :)
Crêpe making were cooked on large cast-iron hot plates heated over a wood fire in a fireplace to hot plates.


The butter is spread with a tool known as a rozel and flipped with a spatula. In Brittany, crêpes and galettes are traditionally served with cider.

















To hold that cider, here's a lovely Carved Wood Breton Folk Shoe Bottle Holder


Not only do the French eat a lot of crêpes on this day, but they also do a bit of fortune telling while making them It is traditional to hold a coin in your writing hand and a crêpe pan in the other, and flip the crêpe into the air. If you manage to catch the crêpe in the pan, your family will be prosperous for the rest of the year.



Part 2 : RECIPE

Ingredients :
5 cups cold water (1.25 liter - 1 cup equals 250 ml)
30 g salt
1 kg buckwheat flour
50 g melted salted butter
butter, extra
eggs (1 per galette)
ham (1–2 slices per galette)
3 tbsp grated Swiss cheese (per galette)

Instructions :
Place most of the cold water and the salt in a large bowl and mix well. Add buckwheat flour and whisk until the texture of the batter is like a ribbon when you lift the whisk. If necessary, add a little extra water ( please note extra butter is essential ingedient for delicious flavor).

Mix in melted butter until well incorporated. Cover batter and rest in the fridge for about 4 hours.
Spread enough of the batter in a hot frying pan to cover the base very thinly. When the base is dry, lower heat and rub the top with a piece of extra butter.
Bread an egg in the centre and spread the white all over the pancake, keeping the yolk intact. Sprinkle the crêpe with grated cheese and top with a slice or two of ham.

Using a spatula, carefully fold the sides of the crêpe towards the yolk to form a square. Cook for an extra 1–2 minutes and serve.

Régalez vous et bonne fortune en 2015 ! :)


Baby it's Cold Outside!




On courtesy of :https://www.etsy.com/il-en/people/EarthLites


It’s been awhile since the New Year began and we are back into the Ice Age!
I've had Cabin Fever since the first of January and now I can’t get the front door open, let alone the car door.  I’d also like to keep my fingers and toes for a few more years.

What do you do?  I have plenty to do.  (Too much, actually.)  I’d like less, but I want to go OUT!  I don’t care where… the pharmacy will do.  If I make it that far, then I can make it across the street to one of those cheap department stores.  That will keep me busy a little longer.

I know what will happen next, it’s automatic when I’m out… hunger!  That’s when I’d better get out of the store… FAST!  I will purchase things I will regret.  I want real food.

Off I go… must drive a bit since there isn't much nearby and even if there were, I’d be tired of eating whatever it was.  So what do I want? 

Ohhh noooo… all I want is to get warm.  I’m going home, watch TV and snuggle under 10 blankets to try and stop shivering.

I hope you are all staying safe and warm.  Please take all precautions, and remember any neighbors who may need you… anyone with health problems, the elderly, or even a lost pet.


Sunday, February 8, 2015

Lana Leuschen from ravished HEART






I met Lana through "Vintage Vogue Team" on Etsy. Etsy these days is an enormous site with about one million small shops. Being in a team gives you the sense of togetherness that is sometimes missing when you work from home.
People who choose to make a living from vintage or handmade ,do so because they are passionate about it..
So, vogue team is a group of mostly vintage lovers.Working with Lana on the team I know that her  fascination and fervor is to take things that have been other wise discarded, lonely, broken or old and combine them with other materials or objects to create something new.
Repurposing and giving new life to those old and lonely things ,is also very important for conserving earth limited resources.

Lana tells that her passion for creating came from her mother,who has the creation passion as well.
From a very young age ,Lana was creating things together with her mother.

As expected from someone creating such romantic jewelry,Lana's studio is so romantic..





In order to create a new item, Lana needs to see all old and broken parts in front of her.
So, she says her working place is not so tidy ...
I am sure the cats are a great help in that respect...




Some beautiful vintage jewelry parts:



And what Lana created :




A cute dog modeling Lana's upcycled cat collar:



Lana creates not only jewelry (for people and animals..) but also lovely vintage collages:



I conclude in Lana's own words: