RetroBabs Vintage

I recently was working on a project to freshen up my bedroom.  The hubby never cares what I do so I decided to move all the furniture around. I have a rather long narrow room with many windows. I decide to create a mood:  I was going for a 1950s Tiki vibe, Hawaiian tropic sort of motif.  Vintage Bark cloth in Hawaiian theme framed in hoops and wooden frames. This fabric usually has a scene woven in.  Our grandmothers had draperies made out of Bark cloth.  Some vintage fabric has threads of fiberglass which was a new innovation in the 50. Use your collections to enhance a space. My groovy wooden bowls are teak, monk wood and cherry wood. Each are hand turned on a lathe and I consider them works of art. 1. Use your collections to freshen things up .  I collect vintage fabric called Bark cloth.  You know you have seen this type of fabric.  It is made out of natural fibers and dates from the 1950s. Your Grandmother's drapes were probably ...

My husband and I go to estate sales and flea markets, resale shops and garage sales.  We tend to pick up the old, discarded printer drawers.  The ones we gravitate towards are usually in some back corner, covered in dust! The drawers were used by printers to hold the alphabet print blocks for newspapers in days gone by. The printer would have a bureau or dresser full of these drawers and they would slide out.  He would have his pick the the blocks. Printer drawer The drawers have lots of little dividers that are perfect spot for little figurines,coins, thimbles, collectibles, treasures etc. Add legs and you can make a funky, retro, coffee table So the hubby and I made one of these  drawers into a coffee table.  We had the legs and frame of an old mid-century modern table laying in the garage.   My husband,Len, mounted the printer drawer by making a frame for on top of the legs.   I found a piece of glass that would cover said drawer....

I thought you Etsy fans might like to see what I make out of vintage items and I sell in my art world as Barb!  I paint in watercolors and I am a member of the Village Artists in Homewood, IL.  This is an artist co-op and we share the gallery space and the studio space.  I make these paintings to fit these vintage boxes that I find at antique shops and resale shops.  I am always coming up with new ideas.    I also use vintage items in my art displays for shows.  Here is a photo of my work displayed inside vintage suitcases.  I think it works well as the backdrop for the paintings and REMIX pottery jewelry I make.