I can't spell, but kneether kan ewe

I acquired this jar while helping a friend of mine sort canning jars a local charity had given her. We sorted through about 6 huge boxes of quart size modernish canning jars combined with glass shards, dirt, and my favorite jar accessory, The Spider.
Last of these quite large boxes, I found this little cutie and asked if I could have it. Early 1940's round Kerr wide mouth squat pint.
It took me about 6 months to notice SELF is spelled SELE.

Kerr Economy

Four versions of the kerr economy & economy unthreaded squat pints.
Group of three: Top jar is an unusual color in olive green made in sand springs oklahoma. Bottom Left is a very rare steele blue made in chicago ill. Bottom right is an unusual pink mauve that never turned amethyst after years in the sun, also made in chicago~must just have a touch of manganese dioxide which is unusual for a chicago jar especially embossed kerr and not just economy.
Single jar, simply embossed economy, made in portland oregon. I turned this jar a nice deep sun purple myself, only took a short while to turn so it must have quite a bit of managanese. It started out clear with an ugly rootbeer brown tint in the base.

What do mean we're out of coffee?

The coffee is gone.
The jars are empty.
But I salvaged the lids.

Wide Mouth Upcycled Mason Threaded Vintage Coffee Jar Lids:

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=28065862

Salvaged Drawer

Salvaged Drawer front from an old vintage desk.

I bought this desk at a rummage sale for charity. I paid 1.00 for the desk. I salvaged all the drawers. This front panel was from a drawer with broken sides.

Shabby white paint, primmy tole roses, sandpaper and sealant.

I will attach two hooks to hang it and some chic antique white cupboard knobs auntie found at a salvage store.

Shabby coat hanger for my daughter's room.

not bad for a buck.

Put a Lid on it

Sometimes I buy junktique odds & ends by the box. Sometimes I buy jars off eBay and they arrive smashed. Most eBay sellers are ignorant to the concept of bubble wrap. But I always seem to end up with extra lids for jars of all sorts. Repurposing is good, finding a new way to use something old keeps our landfills a little cleaner and our minds creatively innovative.

Repurposed metal vintage jar lid ornies:

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=27693434

Secretary Part One

This is the secretary I keep talking about, relentlessly, non stop, so excited.

Upon researching this piece Ive learned basically, nothing, Circa late 1800s to early 1900s
& the style is

called a side by side. I do believe it is oak.

This antique secretary will be periodically featured on this blog, sorry you furniture lovers, it is getting upchic painted and a shabby upcycled. It has such severe surface and veneer damage it cannot be refinished without considerable cost and tremendous labor. It has also been high gloss lacquered and stripping it would take many hours and the use of toxic chemicals.

My husbands Grandmother previously owned this piece. She bought it an estate auction in possibly the 1950s along with 2 or 3 other pieces that included another side by side secretary and a china cabinet. She paid 10.00 for it.

Over the years, Grandma Gertie had mentioned this secretary and how she wasn't going to refinish it. Restoring the other pieces she had was such a chore and since this secretary had such damage to the veneer and missing escutcheons, she wasn't going to even "mess with it" and that it was a good candidate for a faux painted or sponge painted look.

So it sat, many years in her basement. Sometimes we'd talk about it, sometimes we'd go in the basement and visit it. Grandma always mentioned she was glad the original mirror & bowed glass door was intact even though several other parts were missing.

The sponge painting idea came from a 1985 better homes and gardens magazine article where this exact piece was faux painted and re~knobbed and featured with a full picture. Grandma saved the picture and I found it tucked away inside the desk part. It is the same piece, reworked, it's nice to have a picture for reference. By comparing my secretary to the magazine picture I noticed my piece is missing the center molding scroll that should be on the top. Sure enough you can see and feel where it was cut off probably due to damage over the years.

My goal is to up~chic this side by side antique secretary desk for 120.00 or less.

By using the keyword 'secretary' as a label for the secretary progression, you will be able to search this blog for all posts relevant to this post.

Shabulous

Had to show off the most shabby primmy pins I have ever done and the first purple ones. These pins are super vintage, kind of chunky and have reinforcement stopper wire. Shakey hand gramma tole folk roses in shades of purple, primitive Americana traditional in a not so traditional color.

Color my cottage in purple...

available on etsy ships free to the united states:

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=27209453