Blarney Stone Antiques and Collectibles

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What a Busy Summer!

It is half over already!!

The weather has been driving us nuts!! It has been cold, and rainy, then HOT!! It has not been encouraging to us for picking agates at all. The good news is that Agate Days is on the Horizon!!

My hope is that I find some nice Larimar, some Kyanite, some Megolodon teeth, and other COOL stuff.

I never know what I am looking for until I see it! We did find some great little mineral specimens and awesome Labradorite specimens there.

Antique Postcards Are Great Learning Tools!

Antique Postcards are Fascinating!

A long time ago I got involved in antiques. I never thought much about paper media, when I began to see an attraction to "Old Stuff". The allure for me, at the time, was the ornate woodwork of some furniture, and the amazing patterns in the brocade and damask fabrics and draperies.

Then, one day I went to an auction, and my world changed!

I bought a BIG box of postcards. Really old ones, and probably a couple thousand of them!! Most were used, some not. They were all from the first 20 years of the 1900's, about 1906 to about 1919.

I sat down and started reading them. I read the printed picture captions on some of them, as well as looking at the pictures on the front. They related, in age, to the old furniture that I have learned to love, and showed the towns, streets, and even the houses where some of it could have even lived in it's day! I also turned them over and read t he messages.... WOW! I was all but communicating with these people!!

The messages were just like quick telephone calls home. Dad must have worked for the railroad. He wrote notes about when he would be getting home, and how he and the passengers would need to get off the train, and help clear snow from the tracks, so the train could get through...Who would have ever known!! I sure didn't know.

There are kids who do history research, and families who research the geaneology of their families. These postcards hold so many keys, and so much information!!

One group of postcards has the history of a young lady... I watched her be a young girl, move all over the Great lakes area, of the Midwest, and then, finally she must have gotten married, because, her name changed. Her family was prominent in the upper midwest, they had a town named after them!!

I have learned so much from these postcards, with the wanderings of the writings, and the wonderful photographs of homes that sadly do not exist any more, that I hope that kids and people younger than I, will see the wonderment in them, and share my passion!

What To Do During White Tail Season In Minnesota

The Minnesota White Tail Deer Hunting Season Opens November 7th, 2009.

What will I do while my husband is off looking for our winter store of meat?

I won't go with him. I do not like to hunt, and I don't like to be cold, especially when I have a choice.

I will make my great Deer Hunting Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies for him before he leaves.... My own recipie, not written down anywhere, and it is a little different each year.

What will probably happen, Is that I and My dog Lucy will spend a lot of time bonding. She came to us three years ago, just before we lost our old Boy, Buddy. Petting, and rubbing her head and belly get me lots of bonding points.

Lucy will still miss her Dad. I may take her collar off, and let her run around the house naked... She loves it!

We will eat what we want to, when we want to, go to bed when we want to, and Lucy and I will go for our walks when the time is right...Ahhh... Subtle independence... Everyone needs it for a moment!

Then comes the work! My goal is to research some of the latest Vintage Jewelry that I have purchased over the summertime. I will consult with one of my pals at the Antique Store, a specialist in jewelry, and then I will look on line at various venues to see current asking prices, and real selling prices. I also have some books, but it is unusual to find exactly the piece I have to price.

I also will use some of my huge collection of stones and cabochons to set some new jewelry for my shop. This is therapeudic.

Christmas is coming, so I need to think about the Display Window that I will be decorating beginning December 1st. I need to find Blow Mold Santas and Rein Deer, and Sleds... Time to hit the garage sale circuit!!