Junkin' in Style

If we're going to "Junk Bonanza" girls, we've gotta go in style!!! We, meaning myself, sister Shelli, and Cousin Jan, had tickets and plans to hit the road to Shakopee, MN for this once-a-year junkin' blowout which was THE place to be on September 16,17,& 18th.

We need a method, or more precisely, carts in which to haul our treasure! No constant running back and forth to the car, because my hip/leg/nerve damage just won't tolerate it!!! And so began the search for shopping carts, which, of course, just had to be vintage.

Jan was the first to lay her hands on one last June at an occasional sale at Red Barn Rustics outside of Boone, IA. While attending a quilt retreat last spring in Wisconsin, the hostess was using a cart lined with a trash bag for trash. Jan thought that would be great to use outside of her 1968 camper "The Happy Hippie". "Whoa, said I. It needs a fancy, smancy fabric liner so we can take them to Junk Bonanza to carry our stuff!

Now, Jan can sew. I knew she would have no problem making a custom liner for her cart. Jan can do pretty much whatever she sets her mind to doing. She's just that kind of a gal. I, on the other hand, get sweaty palms and scream for my Momma.
Later in the summer I found one in Weston, Mo that was just what I wanted. Mine has the cutest little red wheels. They squeak. I found one in St. Joe for Shelli. That way we each had our own cart to haul our loot!


I had a vision in my head of what I wanted for the carts. Muslin, burlap, with just a tad bit of lace. (This nearly put my Mom into shock because I just don't DO lace...EVER. I never do pink either, just in case you were wondering.) Shelli didn't really have a chance for much creative input but I think she was okay with that, 'cause she knows what great taste I have!



Now I just had to get what I was envisioning across to my Momma. We flopped the fabric around, muslin first, burlap over muslin, then the lace. And add a fabric flower! She got it and I knew the carts were in good hands.



It didn't take her long to whip them out and they were just what I wanted. She was very proud of them, as she should have been! I know I was thrilled with how they had turned out!



I must say when we rolled through the crowds at Junk Bonanza we made quite a stir! We looked FABULOUS, darlings!!! We received so many comments on the carts and liners, it was amazing! Everyone wanted to know where we got them, if we bought them there, where they could get one, if we sold them...ALL DAY LONG!!!




And they also held a lot of great finds!!!

Frustration.....

is not being able to get the porch photo clear across my blog page!!!!!!!!!! grrrrr......

Countin' Down The Days

I'm getting so excited for Junk Bonanza!!! This is the mother of all junkin' roundups and we have Early Bird Tickets!!!! I've never attended before, so I don't really know what I've gotten us into, but I can't wait to find out!!! My sister, Shelli, and my cousin, Jan are heading up with me to Shakopee, Minnesota for this huge annual event put on by Ki Nassauer. We are pulling along Jan's vintage 1968 camper "The Happy Hippie" and we've already got our campsites reserved. So after we junk all day, a few beers around the campfire, we will sleep like babies!!!!

This is going to be sooo much fun!!!

Lincoln View Farm

Jan has discovered a new hosta farm for us!!! It is Lincoln View Farm and it is owned by a friendly lady by the name of Nancy Briggs. It is located east of Boone, IA and just west of Ames.







Having watering cans myself, I enjoyed the clever way Nancy displays hers!




Lincoln View Farm isn't nearly as big as Flying Frog Farms, which is a hosta farm located south of Des Moines. But it's nice to find a new place and new offerings. Nancy has a beautiful garden and some truly awesome ponds. I'm not sure I will ever get into pond gardening, but I sure enjoy others! Too much work for me!!!


This pond is located in front of the house. She has another one behind the house where her hosta garden is located in a small timber.






The lotus pods are gorgeous!!!




Here's a peek at the pond out back!





I love the look of these hollowed out logs just stacked together!!!




Nancy has little treats for the eye at every turn!!




Sam is such a good sport when I drag him along. He gets to pick out his own hostas as long as he plants them!!! He's even getting the junkin' bug as well!!!

Tri-State Vintage Trailer Rally

A few weekends ago, my cousin Jan and I pulled our vintage trailers to South Sioux City, NE for a vintage trailer rally.

This was Sweet Emmaline's maiden camping voyage! I almost didn't take her as we'd only had her with us for one week and we really weren't as prepared, cleaned, and organized as I wanted to be. Sam and I just threw everything in her and went anyway!
When we left Clarinda, IA we got behind a semi loaded with a propeller from those huge wind turbines. It had a lead car in front of it and behind it. I had to chuckle because it looked like I had a lead car. As this was only my second time pulling a trailer, I felt like I needed a lead car!!!




We made it to the campground, without incident, Friday afternoon. We were welcomed with a cheer when we pulled in!!! Luckily, they helped me back up into our space. Jan arrived just a few minutes later and we set up camp. After we got settled in, we joined the group under the shelter for a taco in a bag supper.


The theme for the rally was "Christmas in July". Many of the campers were decked out! There were many types of campers, a teardrop, a Forester, Avion, and Airstream to name a few. I was too busy sweating to get a lot of pictures. On Saturday afternoon an open house was held so everyone could check out the interiors.




Jan has really been putting some hard work into "The Happie Hippie" and it showed! Check out the start of the new paint job! I don't know why these pictures won't post the right direction, but I'm tired of fighting with them, so just turn your head sideways!!! :)



As it was excruciatingly hot, we spent the evening holed up in Jan
's camper, The Happy Hippie, playing board games. Surprisingly, Sam really enjoyed it. ( At home I can't get him to play them. He's only interested in video games!) Later, we braved the heat and started up the campfire. What is camping without S'mores, I ask you??!!!





Saturday morning we slept in. Jan cooked us up some oatmeal pancakes then we took off to hit some junkin' spots. We also visited a quilt shop Jan had heard about and took in a quilt show.

Sioux City was the starting point for this year's Ragbrai event, so on Saturday tons of people and their bicycles poured into every crevice of the town. Tents were set up all along the river across from our campsite and we had several groups set up in our campground. It was fun to see all the people and bikes. The excitement for the ride was building. Downtown had been blocked off for the event. The bike paths were full!

Saturday evening the Tri-State group had a pot luck supper and we enjoyed the company of the other campers. We met a lot of nice people and made some good connections. Holding with the "Christmas in July" theme, there were presents for everyone! They also had several gifts for the children and crafts and games as well.






After supper, Jan, Sam, and I went for a nice bike ride. Sioux City has a great bike trail system. I was much more comfortable on the trail, since I had just gotten a bike and it had been years since I had ridden. No, it doesn't come right back! Well, the balance part does, I am just a little wobbly and much more concerned about crashing than I was as a kid!!!

Thankfully, it had cooled down Saturday, so we enjoyed the campfire considerably more Saturday night. Sam cooked us up s'more S'mores and Mike's Hard Lemonade washed them right on down!!! The evening was topped off with a huge fireworks display! It was great watching the sky light up, with the river flowing in front of us. Very nice, indeed!



Sunday morning Jan was able to have a gentleman by the name of Fritz come down and examine The Happy Hippie's water tank system. Having worked on several campers, he was just the guy Jan needed to meet to answer a lot of her questions.

We said our goodbyes to our new friends, hoping to meet them again next year!

My Vintage Bicycle

I have a new bicycle. I really wasn't looking for her. She just sorta found me. The graphics say "Elgin". The computer says she was made for Sears and Robuck.

A lady (her name might or might not be Lillian) I've known, well, forever, had found an old bicycle on a trip south and had to have her. When she and her husband returned from their trip, her husband (let's call him Marvin) bought this one at an auction. She decided to keep Bike #1 so I asked if they wanted to sell Bike #2 even though I had never laid eyes on her. And that is how she became mine!

I'm calling her Evelyn.

But the coolest thing about Evelyn is her bike tag. It is a small piece of metal crimped around her middle. It shows she was registered in Clarinda, IA in 1958!

Hey, Sam, wait a minute!!! Where are you going??? Hey, that's supposed to be MY bike!!! Come back here...I can't run that fast!!!

The Weekend According to Sam

Last weekend was a quick trip to Des Moines, by way of Adel, Gilbert, and Ames. Sam took over the camera and I wanted to share a sneak peek of our weekend through Sam's eyes!!!

















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