Chalkware Don'ts

Last week An came down to stay with us for a couple days after her freshman orientation for UCLA (yay!).  After recovering and sleeping it all off, she was up early Friday and ready for her first estate sale adventure.  It was fun to have a pair of young eyes with an interest in a different vintage era; her interest is in late 60's mod, flower power. We walked away with a great haul of Brusche Bauer pottery, Floracal pottery, and a few wall hanging pieces!

Typically the majority of my junk haul is pottery & kitchenware so when I get home from an estate sale I almost always run a sink of soapy water and drop everything in for a bath.  Unfortunately, this is where the bad news comes in....Annie had picked out some really cute Chalkware flower basket wall hangings.  I didn't know what Chalkware was and dropped them in the water too!  Note to self....don’t ever submerse Chalkware in water again.  I was so heart broken when I took them out of the water and noticed that the paint had peeled away in a couple spots.  This is when I started to Google the marking on the flower baskets and discovered Chalkware is exactly what it sounds like – is a plaster or gypsum!

How to Clean Source

1. Don't make the same mistake I did.  Do not submerse in water!
2. Dust on a regular basis
3. Wipe with a clean cloth – barely damp!!

To dry them out I put them in the oven at a super low heat and left in for an hour at a time.  I'm happy to report they are now dry, but as you can see from the picture above, not in the pristine condition they were originally.

Happy Junking!

xxoo

Kristina

aka VandyCakes

Here are a few other Chalkware beauties I spotted on Etsy & the links below

 

  

1.    BorahStyle - Vintage apple chalkware string holder

2.  SemellebesCottage - Silvestri Kitschy Chalkware Chinese Couple Lamps 

3.  TuggysVintage - Vintage Chalkware Blessed Virgin Mary Statue

4.    GardnerVintage - Vintage Miller Studio Chalkware Kissing Fish

5.      FlyingDollar - Chalkware Fish with Top Hat Vintage Wall Decor

Addicted to Mid Century Vintage

An introduction to me and my pursuit of vintage....I promise not to always be so wordy!!


It's all my Mom's fault! My Mother has always had a love of vintage pieces; I'd say pottery was her biggest weakness. Growing up I have to admit I hated being dragged from garage sale to garage sale and all the local thrift stores. It was pure torture. Now, I can't get enough!

In 2011 I started thinking seriously about what I want to be when I grow up and came to the natural conclusion of turning my love of mid century vintage in to a little more than a hobby. After being a long time fan of Etsy, I opened my shop in January of 2012.  

I love the process and excitement of going "junk hunting" in order to fill my shop with inventory. I'm sure if you love vintage, you too can remember each piece, where you purchased it, who you were with, and what you were doing that day. And I'm sure like me, there are pieces you still think about and wish you hadn't let that one "get away"! There is always a sense of awe when I go to an Estate Sale; often times the homes are like time capsules that captures the details of the families life, hobbies, and loves (yes, I'm a bit of a softy and get teary once in awhile too). 

In my day to day "real" job I work on regional specialty business marketing for a global sneaker company, and no that N on the shoe does not stand for Nike.  While doing a presentation on Social Media Best Practices I did a bit of research on blogging and discovered I was missing the boat; I decided I needed to grab that Mai Tai and jump on board!

Bon Voyage & Happy Junking!!
xxoo
Kristina