Aussie Autographs

I hope readers enjoyed looking at the Autograph book-- our Friend in Australia put one up too!
Here is the Autograph Book from Down Under!

A Vintage Autograph Album

Here is an Autograph Album from the 1890's that I was privileged to view. You can imagine how thrilled I was to read all the poems and marvel at the beautiful handwriting, and wonder about the people who wrote in this little book! I spent a good afternoon reading it.



The Album was a present to Miss Caroline Jacobsen by her brother, John. It looks to me to be a Christmas gift.


Here is a picture of Caroline, who was born in 1879.

Her brother John wrote in it first:

"Dear Sister Carrie,

Within this book so pure and white,

Let none but friends presume to write;

And may each line with friendship given,

Direct the reader's thoughts to heaven.

Your Brother, John H. Jacobsen."

I was struck by the neat handwriting of the above, and then I read the poem!
"Dear Carrie,
Remember me
When far far off
Where the woodchucks die
With the whooping cough.
Your Friend,
Minnie Foster"

Most of the poems are sweet instead of joking. Here is one I liked:

Dear Carrie,

May you be happy,

May you be blessed,

With a neat little cottage,

And the one you love best.

Your friend,

Abbie Erickson."

As the book spanned so many years (into the 1920's), I could not help but wonder if Caroline's future husband may have written in the book? He did, and here is what he had to say:

Friend Carrie
For album scribbles I feel grieved
Such nonsense oft is said
One half will never be believed
The other never read.
Your Friend,
Jacob Peterson."
(The note says that Caroline married Jacob around 1902)

I'm glad to prove him wrong, for I read it all and believed most of it!

The last entry, written on a leaf in the back, was done by Caroline's youngest daughter, Ruth. It is especially sweet when you understand that this little girl died the year after she wrote this.

"Dear Mother,

I just ask a little spot

To write the word

Forget-me-not.

Your daughter Ruth P."

As a Pleasant Times treat, I will share a few of these album leaves with my readers, and I think I will call this feature, "Dear Carrie."

More about the Easter Dress

Here are some close-ups of the latest sewing project. Using a white-on-white material, I made a dress using the Elizabeth Lee pattern #109 as inspiration. The waistline is raised to empire-waist. The skirt is a simple two-piece a-line type skirt, and of course there are different sleeves.Though it is difficult to see in the above photo, there is a bit of deep eyelet trim on the skirt.

The bottom of the flutter collar has been gathered up. This will be a perfect place for a pretty pin or a flower. I can always take the gathering stitches out for a different look, too!

The over-dress (I am not sure if it is a proper pelisse or not!) above was partly inspired by the striped dresses in the A&E version of Emma. I used the Simplicity regency gown pattern, making a front closing and omitting the sleeves.

Collecting Flowers

Collecting Flowers
Giclee Print
Foster, Myles...
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Spring at Last!

Wishing everyone on my side of the world a Happy Spring!

Flower Girls
Art Print
Seeger, Hermann
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Fruit of the Spirit Booklet for Young Ladies

Here is a lovely idea for a Young Lady or for a Bible Class.

Our Craft Editor sat down one evening to make a little booklet, with hidden surprises and flaps and pictures, and with quite a lot of teaching, for a young lady of her acquaintance. This project can be done very easily with What You Have On Hand, as you will see in this example. Crayons were used for the illustrations, and the text is handwritten. Stickers and papers were used from the scrapbook or stationery stash. This is simply a piece of paper folded over, but could be made with more than one page for a real "book" if you felt inspired and extra-creative! More 3-d type things could be added, or left rather flat the booklet would easily be mailed to a friend.

Above we see the cover of the booklet, illustrated, with the Fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22) written out.

The inside of the booklet with stickers and pictures, some printed (or cut from a magazine) and some hand-drawn.

As you see above, a flap folds out to reveal a scripture, and the envelope holds another note under the title of "Things to Remember Every Day."

Here we see a list of the Things to Remember: "Do something for someone else; Take care of all your belongings; Be cheerful even when things go wrong; Dress your best; Be clean; Speak kindly; Create something; Learn a verse from the Bible."

Above is the back of the booklet. There is a flap entitled "Make a Proper Pot of Tea" (with a tea set picture cut from a catalog) and a pocket holding some "Be Creative" project.


Behold, proper tea brewing instructions!

And here we see another small flap over a scripture, and the Creative project is a small, easy-to-do craft purse.

The little purse is included as an example, and holds note paper; the yellow purse is a pattern to trace so that the recipient can make some for her friends.

When given, the booklet included a small, rolled-up paper "scroll" tied with a ribbon and fastened to the cover, which held a personal letter. The booklet was hand-delivered.

I hope this little project will inspire my readers to try their hand at their own teaching or friendship booklets!

Cottage Well
Giclee Print
Foster, Myles...
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Out of School
Giclee Print
Foster, Myles...
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Learning to Walk
Giclee Print
Foster, Myles...
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Cullercoats Cliffs
Giclee Print
Foster, Myles...
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Learning to Walk

Learning to Walk
Giclee Print
Foster, Myles...
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The Thorne Rooms

For all those interested in dollhouses or miniatures, the Thorne Rooms will fascinate you. I saw these years ago in a magazine and it was hard to believe that they were scaled one inch to one foot.

Pathway to the Water Meadows

Pathway to the Water Meadows
Art Print
Foster, Myles...
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New Link

http://www.practicallyprettydesign.com/

This is a beautiful dress site for girls that I am adding to the Sewing/Dress links. When I was younger, I would have chosen the pink striped V-neck with rose insert (scroll down to see the dresses)!

The Shepherd's Family

The Shepherd's Family
Foster, Myles...

Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations.

Before the mountains were brought forth,

or ever Thou hadst formed the earth and the world,

even from everlasting to everlasting,

Thou art God.

Psalm 90:1-2

Quick and Easy HomeMade Cards

Our Craft Editor has once again provided us with something we can do that only costs a few dollars and not a lot of time.

The newest product from the scrapbook section at the dollar store: cut & fold cards. They even come with envelopes! There are four to a pack. Add to this some stickers from the same section and some glitter glue (Wal-mart, 79 cents).

Fold the cards up and then embellish with stickers, outlining the design on the card and the sticker with the glitter glue. Looks pretty good, if you ask me.
If you really want to splurge, add some trinkets. These little keys came off of a pair of dollar store earrings, and make the perfect little shiny 3-D accent!

A Wall Decoration

I would like to share some ideas from our Craft Editor, used to decorate her own home.

Here we see a bouquet of roses painted with sponges on a small section of a wall.

To that she added a "trellis" that she picked up at Goodwill, which used to frame a picture. The picture out, and the "trellis" painted green and white, it adds a bit of the garden indoors when placed over the roses.

A coordinating bouquet painted on a hollow-core door.

Maiden Voyage

Maiden Voyage
Giclee Print
Foster, Myles...
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Gathering Primroses

Gathering Primroses
Giclee Print
Foster, Myles...
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A Poem About Directions

I do not know the title of this poem, it is one that my Grandmother taught me a long time ago. I had forgotten a few of the lines, and couldn't find it anywhere. Fortunately she called from Australia and now we have it again! I am pleased to share it with my readers. -The Editor

Sunrise face East,

Hands by the side,

Now stand steady,

Stretch arms wide-

North is left,

South is right,

West behind you

Not in sight.

The Bird's Nest

The Bird's Nest
Giclee Print
Foster, Myles...
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