Sunday, February 7, 2010

Crowns for a queen...or a king

My latest addiction is crochet and I found the neatest kit on, of all places, Anthrologie's website. The yarn used is tricot, which I think closely resembles T-shirt yarn, which is the latest craze. How cute is this?! I can see it holding a potted plant, jewelry on my vanity, and a zillion other uses! The yarn is cushy soft and washable, a double-bonus in my book. There was enough yarn included in the kit to make TWO of the square shaped baskets, plus some left over. I experimented with the pattern and leftover yarn and made a round basket. The kit's name is "Lace Basket", but I think it looks like a crown, don't you?

I just checked Anthropologie's website and, unfortunately, this kit is no longer available. Bummer. If it makes you feel any better about missing out on this kit, I will tell you the pattern was unbelievably HARD to follow. I can't count the number of times I pulled out stitches and started over.

I mentioned in my very first post about my shop within the walls of Paply's Antiques in Killeen, Texas, but failed to mention that I also have an etsy shop. You can find it here. In my etsy shop, I list vintage items, with a focus on vintage linens. I adore all the handwork comprised in vintage linens...the tatting, crocheting, hemstiching, embroidery, etc. Here's an example of one of the vintage hankies I currently have listed in my etsy shop.

If you look closely, you can see a name sewn into the corner of this hankie. Ida Paisley. Hmm. I wonder where she lives/lived, and if she made this hankie for herself? The history of an item intrigues me, and I love it when I can tell the 'real' story behind a piece I've purchased. Unfortunately, I know nothing about this hankie's history...only that it is beautiful!

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

New Year, New Blog!

Cow Palace Antiques is located within Paply's Antiques in Killeen, Texas, and I'm just one of many vendors you'll find at that location. If you drop by my shop, you'll find a mish-mash of merchandise...a little of this, a little of that and a whole lot of treasure looking for a new home. I love antiques and vintage items and enjoy hunting them down for others to enjoy. I also have an addiction for turning trash into treasure. A discarded or broken item is a challenge for me to turn into something functional, funky and--hopefully-- useable. I enjoy anything crafty--crocheting, sewing, paper, metal, and anything else that requires working with my hands--and you'll often find some of my handmade crafts in my shop. I also love decorating, and my shop is my favorite playground!