Mitzi's Miscellany

Cool Graphics from Ball Mason Jars

Is there anything hotter than vintage Mason jars right now?  It seems that they are popping up everywhere, from home decor to table centerpieces at weddings.  They have been painted, distressed, used for candles, and covered in lace or burlap.  Recently I found a box full of old cookbooks with some wonderful old graphics, including some for Ball Mason jars.  I thought you would like to see the colorful old depictions of Mason jars doing what they were intended to do:  canning fruits and vegetables.

This book was published in the 1920's:

Victorian-Era Trade Cards: Free Downloads

Happy Wednesday, everyone!  For those of you that regularly follow my blog, Wednesdays have been reserved for my educational posts which have included "Vintage Vocabulary" related to antique-related terms or "Show and Tell" posts exhibiting interesting items from the world of antiques and collectibles with a little background information included.  I'm taking a little break from the regular posts for a while, and in the meantime, for today at least, I'm sharing some great old trade card images you can save and use in your own art projects or post on your blog or Facebook page.

Colorful Vintage Floral Images: Free Downloads

I have some beautiful images to share with you today.  These are from vintage seed catalogs, and are good examples of the chromolithograph process, a printing technique that achieved gorgeous, rich color.

This image seems appropriate for the Fourth of July weekend, considering it has "Old Glory" included:

Learning From An Old Scrapbook

I often buy old scrapbooks, magazines, and catalogs because I love old the old graphics, postcards, greeting cards and photos they hold.  Recently, I found a McCalls catalog from1928 that had been converted into a scrapbook.  I've come across several such situations, where folks long ago had pasted over the pages of clothing catalogs with their own memorabilia.  This can be a good or bad situation, depending on what type of memorabilia is pasted in the catalog, but usually it's unfortunate because the cool graphics of the catalog are obliterated with old newspaper clippings and birth announcements.

I'm always looking for lovely fashions such as these.....

Charming Vintage Baby Related Ephemera

 I opened a box recently and it was full of vintage baby-related ephemera, including postcards, baby photos, and birth announcements.  Sometimes I buy things like a box lot of paper ephemera and stash bits and pieces away.  Over time I forget what I bought, so it's sort of exciting to open up these little mystery boxes....  

This postcard and most of the other items were printed in the early 1900's:

 

Amazing Vintage Seed Packet Graphics

 I purchased these vintage seed packets a while ago and have color copied them a couple times for various  projects.  I can visualize them decoupaged onto a galvanized tin watering can or sap bucket, or a simple vintage metal household bucket.  They could even be framed singly or in a group for colorful wall art.

 

Vintage Easter Images: Trade Cards and Postcards

I have some more pretty vintage graphics for you today.  They are copyright free, so you may share them on your own blog, Facebook page, or download them for craft projects.  For vintage Easter greeting card images, see this post.

Easter Images for You: Vintage Greeting Cards

 Today is the last day of March, and I don't know about you, but I'm looking forward to Spring like no other year!  It's going to be a warm and sunny day here in Michigan, so everyone here will be in a good mood.  I'm sharing some cheerful Easter greeting card images with you today from a vintage 1920's - 30's scrapbook.  I just love the artwork from this era, don't you?

 

 

Think Spring with Beautiful Floral Postcards

Is this winter ever going to end?  So many of us in the U.S. have experienced one brutal arctic freeze after another, I know we'll appreciate warm weather when it finally arrives!

Recently I purchased a postcard rack for one of my antique mall booths, so I've been pricing postcards to fill it up.  I discovered a whole stash of cards I forgot I had, and many of them had pretty floral images. Before I let them go, I thought I'd photograph them and share them with you. These are copyright free images, so you can copy them and share them on your own blog or Facebook page if you wish.

I never get tired of roses, how about you?

 

You've Come a Long Way, Baby

How many of you remember the slogan "You've come a long way, baby"?  I still remember hearing the jingle on TV, back when ads for cigarettes were allowed on television.  It's for VIrginia Slims cigarettes, and I don't know if it's still being used, but the fact that I still remember it must mean it was an effective slogan.

 I was perusing some old magazines over the weekend, and was so amused by the old ads.  Women truly have come a long way, even since the 1960's and 70's.  The roles of men and women were so inflexible years ago, to suggest that a man would vacuum the house, change a diaper or clean a toilet was unheard of.  Print ads reflected the strict male-female roles, and women in the ads had similarities in how they were depicted:  wearing a dress, heels, and usually a strand of pearls, even when doing housework.  From what I've read about the subject, post World War II America was needing to keep men employed and keep women in the home.  Housework and raising a family was a woman's job, and she was expected to get excited about new appliances and look glamorous at the same time.  I have plenty of evidence to prove the point.  Most of these ads are from the 1950's and 60's:

This woman looks ecstatic about her Tupperware.  Notice the pearls....

This poor gal is worried that her toilet isn't clean enough for company.  Pearls again: