Empty Nester – Extraordinaire

Posts Tagged ‘jewelry’

We Bought Stuff

A lot of stuff.

Friday evening, we [Eric, the girls,& I] drove around town and the topic of yard sales came up.  Since I had a Saturday morning off, we could all go together.  That’s been a rare thing for a good year or so, so I was really excited. Knowing this journey was bound to be special, I set about creating intent for the day, asking each person what they REALLY wanted to find through the day.  I wanted pretty mugs and teacups that I could repurpose into candle holders.  Whisper wanted shoes – specifically tennis shoes. Ravynn wanted clothes. And Eric was hoping for witchy/pagan items, either for as-is use or for crafting.  We wished it, we saw it, we had faith.

The first few stops we made were underwhelming.  Set up for collectors and VERY overpriced.  I did find a pretty pendant that can be resold after some “cleaning”.

I was very successful in my quest to pick up mugs for candlemaking [now, I need to get to work candlemaking!].  See the 11 mugs that we found:

I didn’t pay more than 50¢ for any of them and most were only a quarter. So… umm… yeah!  I’m excited to put them to use, but am mindful of the tasks that must be completed first.

We also, with dancing and giggling, found bundles of silver and gold metallic candles. They reach past the edge of the photo, but all the  taper candles you see here were picked up for 50¢.  Yeah us.  Also a set of candle sticks with a Japanese symbol on them, a VERY retro candle holder [this is Ravynn’s purchase] and a taller candle stick that will mesh perfectly with our overall home decor.

One [??] of the major finds of the day [we actually picked this up at two separate locations].  Tons of loose herbs, stick and cone incense, and a little “herbs” plaque.  All picked up for roughly $6. Woo!!

Eric had been saying, during the drive where we set our intentions,that it had been MONTHS since he’d found any decent STAR WARS offerings.  Well, lookie here.  Some ships, a figure or two, a lot of books, magazines, and several badges from SW Cons.

Catering to our inner geeks, we found these items.  Books on Authurian Legend and the prophecies of Nostradamus.  A classic Link/Zelda game. A Game of Thrones card game. And comic books featuring Superman and Aquaman.  Yes Aquaman – squee!

In addition to the pagan-appropriate goodies found above, Eric lucked out with the crafting wish as well.  Several faces [eww!], some plain wooden boxes, easels for displaying his artwork, and that grey case is full of paintbrushes and will give him a good way to store/carry the others he already has.  The Needlecraft book is for Ravynn, a gift from a sweet lady who was touched that someone so young was so excited about counted cross stitch.

And we found clothes.  The girls are especially pleased with the tennis shoes, flip flops, and Blondie tshirt.  They don’t quite understand the awesomeness that is CBGBs 🙂  There was also a fedora, a white baseball cap, and a Notre Dame baseball cap that didn’t make it into the picture.

Here is the big Bats! meow… find.  Almost 45 pieces of  punk jewelry found for a good price. These will be seen again in a booth display and on the website.

Here we have the “as is” selection of pagan finds. Decorative pieces, vases [one that Eric and I both decided looks like The Goddess”], a giant spider ornament, candle holders, coasters, wall decor, a gorgeous Russian-themed plate, and various rocks/gems.

A walking staff. Just gorgeous. I can’t wait to see it after Eric personalizes it.

I was waiting in the car when this purchase was made.  It freaks me out a little and a I made Eric put it in the back of the van for the drive home. Yes that’s where the kids were, but it didn’t freak THEM out. I understand it’ll be used in an art project [but it does look super amazing at the top of that walking staff].

The “other stuff”.  Backpack, conditioner, bubble bath, journal, thingie to strap and iPod to your arm for running or biking, stickers and writing paper, chopsticks, and seeds.

And a size 2T Colts jersey. Perfect for the dog, who was so exhausted from the walking we did she couldn’t even raise her head for a picture.

Overall, I call the day a success.

A huge success.

 

The Bat Cave – The Home Tour, part 3

This installment of the home tour is LONG overdue as I cannot manage to keep my room clean long enough to photograph it.  I set a very bad example for my children. Really.

If you missed Part 1 or Part 2, click the links.

The view from the door.  The paint looks much darker without the flash, but without the flash, this really does look like a cave.

Skull and candle on the dresser at the foot of the bed. Not a real skull, I promise 🙂  And a vanilla-scented candle, inspiring me to work on making my own.

The bookshelf that is rarely ever organized.  Sadly it works as a storage unit most of the time. Today,  it’s relatively cleaned out.

The top.  Ignore the cobwebs; I can’t reach that corner.

Mama’s Teddy Scares and part of my collection of Peter Pan items.  Here you see the stack of printer paper that’s found a temporary home…

Small cabinet that holds most of my mani/pedi stuff.  Eric will set books on the top that he thinks I should read.

It photographs much more cluttered than it really is.  Jewelry boxes and candles take up most of the space.  There’s also a coaster since I was having tea as I was cleaning and a sticker that has since moved out to my sewing area.

Big box full of the chunkier jewelry, smaller box holding overflow jewelry, the thinnest box holds treasures from my Mother and Aunt Lois.  The ladybug cup was painted by one of my kids for Mother’s day and holds earrings.

Closeup of a birthday card I received from one of my good friends a couple years ago and a wax tart melter.

Ravynn made me a ring holder during a ceramics unit in school.  D12 becasue they make me happy. The bottom of a vase holding pretty rocks, hair sticks, and a tiara.

More candles, a box full of nail polish and the profile of an origami penguin that Ravynn made.

Next… the living room.

Everything? Really? [part 3]

Acker, Kerry. Everything You Need to Know About The Goth Scene. New York: The Rosen Publishing Group, 2000.

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Continued from Part 1 and Part 2.

Chapter 4/Gothic Fashion: Fashion is an important aspect of Goth culture.  Just as many other people in the world, Goths use fashion, hairstyle, and makeup to express themselves.  Lady Gaga certainly does and I’m not sure anyone would accuse her of being Goth. 🙂 

While there are some styles that tend to identify someone as Goth, I know many goths who were little other than jeans and black t-shirts.  I’m personally most comfortable in long skirts and t-shirts.  The husband is most comfortable in a complete outfit, styled head to toe, in a manner that will make him stand out.  He’s known for it.  Neither Jordan or Alek really embrace the fashion of the culture.  Jordan does wear primarily black tshirts and jeans, but I can’t tell you that is a conscious decision or for any reason other than it’s what he likes. Alek wears bright colors – basketball shorts and tshirts, or dress shirts and khakis.  Ravynn and Whisper like pretty clothes in any color.  They do like a lot of black, but they’re little girls so pink and baby blue show up in their choices a lot.  As far as we’re concerned, I believe that whatever in us determines our fashion choices, its’ the same thing that draws us to the Goth culture.  Maybe. It’s just a theory.

Acker lists several items common to Goth fashion:

• Black or dark-colored velvet skirts, dresses, and vests
• Doc Martens or combat boots
• White poet’s shirts
• Rubber, leather, or vinyl gear
• Corsets
• Pagan or Christian jewelry
• Buckles, pointy shoes, and ripped fishnets

I see so much more than that, but it’s not a bad list.  It’s also not bad [although slightly obvious] tha black is the color of choice for goth-minded folks.  You’ll notice, though, that Eric isn’t afraid of a splash [or more] of color in his outfits.  The author also spends a lot of time discussing the ways that MANY Goths wear their hair or the MANY kids of jewelry MANY of them wear.  Really, some experiment with hairstyles and some wear a lot of jewelry. 

Chapter 5/Gothic Music, Literature, and Film: The main part of the book conclude with lists of popular music, literature, and film.  The book is 12 years old, so none of these are current lists. I suggest you Google up the lists or just ask. 

There is more to be learned from just talking to people than from reading. While the book doesn’t offer wrong information, the way some of it is presented is misleading.