I am very thankful to my friend Catherine for bringing up the idea of rationing like people had to do in1943.
It has brought many things into better perspective and what started off as just rationing our food and gasoline as they had to do in 1943, my husband and I took it a step further to living more like they did in 1943. This does not mean go all out and change everything from the way we dress to changing everything in our house but to rid ourselves of too many modern and unnecessary items in our home. Such as television etc.
We have brought the noise level down to minimal and it has been wonderful and honestly it helps to think better. Now instead of watching television we read.
We have a small twin bed in the sewing room and this past weekend we once again did some re-arranging. This small room holds many things such as all the goods for sewing, crochet, bobbin lace, tatting, embroidery and craft books. I always say moving furniture around is good to keep the dust from collecting. It was a very big job to move a sewing/craft room.
We continue to downsize and our goal is to get to a point of comfortable and interesting. We both feel things from the past are very interesting, just take a walk through an antique store.
I love children's books and I have even written a few and tucked them away on a shelf. Recently my husband added a shelf and two small doors to a cabinet that we had so I could bring out our Beatrix Potter figurines and books from their storage drawer. I am trying to have less things stored because what good is it if it always remains in storage?
Our collection of books and figurines in the small cabinet. There are many more Beatrix Potter figurines that I could collect but then there would be too many. I have seen people collect items to where they are overflowing throughout the house. We must be realistic about our space or our collection becomes clutter.
I have been painting the shelves and finished the top shelf but have not decided how to paint and arrange the bottom.
If you have never seen the Movie Miss Potter, I highly recommend it. My daughter gave me a wonderful gift not too long ago to add to our collection and it was this Beatrix Potter's Journal. I have read it over and over since I received it.
The journal is so very interesting and filled with little pockets and envelopes and things to open. It follows years of her writings and drawings.
The figurines are characters in the story books and I feel the books are delightful for any age to read. Even those with Alzheimer's would probably enjoy these stories being read to them.
I was the caregiver for my mother and when her dementia advanced I bought her a life like doll because she had always loved dolls and she would sit calmly and hold the doll and talk to it. She would pat it and fiddle with the blanket.
Some more of the figurines.
Lower left
Lower right.
There are many other items I feel are whimsical such as my bobbin lace pillow shown above sitting on an upper shelf in the sewing room.
The bobbin holder and the button box.
The walls are filled with pictures and I recently found this painting at a yard sale. I looks like the beaches two hours away from where we live.
This is a chair that I purchased at a yard sale and it sits in front of the treadle sewing machine.
I mention the Beatrix potter figurines as well as the bobbin lace pillow in another article called Vintage Feels Better. At that time the figurines were still being stored. Somehow I feel they are happier sitting on their new shelf.
I feel that the sewing room is just right now so it will probably stay this way for a very long time.
My friend Catherine's blog is,
http://www.elsiesgranddaughter.blogspot.com/
I hope something in this post helps in some way. Grandma Donna
