VINTAGE

For generations, my family has saved stuff, and I have inherited it all. Boxes and boxes of things - photos, books, slides, movies, lace, clothing, artwork, every letter that has ever been received, postcards, stamps . . . the list goes on forever. In an effort to organize it all and to decide which are keepers and which need a new home, I came across some real treasures. 

An original, 1897, signed copy of this book.




When I opened the book, pages fragile and brittle, it fell apart, and I was left holding this page.


Of course, I couldn’t resist reading the page. Marital indulgence? Witch hazel or raspberry infusion? Wow, life before modern medicine! It felt logical (and even vital) to include a portrait of a woman that my grandma knew. I hope she never experienced vaginal prolapses. 


Another treasure. Grandma’s shorthand stenography practice notebook filled with page after page of beautiful, elegant lettering. 


Two more items - a postcard addressed to Grandma and an old promotional photo card for some business in Dayton, Ohio Armed with these treasures from weeks of sorting through boxes, it took only five minutes to construct this piece. Very satisfying. 







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