Who Needs the Thrift Store When You Have an Uncle with an Attic!!!!

This morning I wanted to stop in and visit with my Dad for a few minutes and also an overdue visit with my Uncle (and he only lives 3 miles away!). Every year for a few months my Uncle Bud goes to Thailand and he got back mid-March. This time he went for three months. He loves to shop and you never know what he will bring back. Most of it is not my style but sterling silver is dirt cheap over there so he always brings me jewelry and some sort of bag (one can never have enough tote bags and things). Last year I got a gorgeous black onyx and sterling necklace, a black woven scarf, and a few pairs of earrings and bracelets. This year he said he didn't "shop" that much (yea right!)

Well anyway - here are three pair of earrings he brought me back - the top pair are very colorful and funky - not my usual style but still I like unusual things sometimes, then there is a pair of sterling earrings that remind me of "I Dream of Jeannie's" bottle, then a cute pair of cat earrings:



He also brought me a scarf woven by the "Hill People" (I'm not sure of the correct tribe name, but he said the women were the ones that have the long necks - they have those heavy gold rings that are added to make the neck grow long and longer) He took a side trip to the "hills" and spent some time up there - it's actually a brighter pink then the purple it looks. He also brought me a wooden bead bracelet that If forgot to take a pic of, a cute little silk bag with beads, a wooden/hand painted bowl that holds a little burner tart, and a wooden spoon for my wok (looks like a little shovel to me) - I think that's it - but who knows - every time you visit he gives you something else!

I asked him if he had an ball jar lids for my pin cushions (his house - which had been my grandmothers) is a treasure trove of antiques - very unusual now as it's stocked full of the older antiquities and then his "Asian" influence in decorating since my grandmother passed! So off we go to the attic - he found me one lid - and i came down with an old bar jar, a white agate pot with a lid and then an antique wash tub they used when he was a kid (he's in his 70's)! He tried to give me more stuff but I only took what I will use - the tub will be great to soak wool for dyeing - and same with the agate pot - Need to clean it up - a little Clorox will get it white again - it had bird seed stored in it - so his birds will be eating good tonite! I also dumped out the little dead bugs found in the wash tub!

Well before I went to Bud's, I stopped over to visit with my parents. My parents went for a "ride" the other day and not sure how the how story went - but met up with a man on the side of the road who is restoring the school house my Dad went to as a boy - long story short - my parents are going over to their house to visit and my Dad's taking his old report card from 1939, a war rations booklet he had from 1943, and some pictures of the school and property - the man is looking for items from the "day". Too funny, like I said before - my Dad will strike up a conversation with anyone. Looking for these old pictures and things had him poking in drawers and boxes and things - so he brings out to the sunroom these little feed sacks filled with coins and said "Here I have something for you you gave me to me years ago". He gave me a silver dollar he said I gave him when I was younger! He said I could have it back - I do not remember giving this to him but hey whatever! Funny what parents will keep - he also kept a card I gave him that said "Love Joanne and No backs" - a saying from my childhood I had completely forgotten about - How weird was I! LOL!

Then my Mom tells my Dad to go get this little bag - Hmmm wonder what it could be - and it's tied with a strip of wool -

I look inside and there are a pile of eggs!


Too cute - my Mom made them - I had told her I saw these little eggs made from old quilts at a local prim shop and she went to look at them and made her version and she added to them with the stitching - very cool! They are pieced (4 pieces) and she hand stitched with floss the crazy quilt stitching along each seam:

So that was my day! Just went out visiting and came home with a trunk of treasures.

It's Wednesday already and haven't gotten anything else completed in my rug hooking room but maybe, just maybe I'll get another spurt of energy! Jo-Jo - I hope you are feeling better!

Enjoy your week - Joanne