Yard Sale Score!

This weekend is a busy one around here if you like yard sales, flea markets and thrift shops!  

They turn the Fair Ground's into a redneck's paradise for Max's Water Dog Trials which are fun to watch, but the real attraction is the flea market.  Anything to do with hunting, guns, dogs, camouflage, and any combination of them could be found there.

We decided to forgo the redneckery and just stop at a few yard sales as we went about our normal Saturday chores, like grocery shopping etc...  The first place we stopped was in a small quaint neighborhood that still has a lot of older homeowners.  I spied a stack of books that looked like crafting type magazines.  I was right...partially.  It was a whole stack full of magazines and books for Porcelain Art.  

I hit the Jackpot!  

 

 Not only was there a whole stack of books and magazines but there was also a file folder holder that was full of hand-drawn patterns and folders with themed items stuffed into envelopes.  

The ladies working the yard sale saw me lovingly leafing through the books and asked if I was a porcelain artist, I'm not but I do paint other things and if you understand the process that porcelain painters use then translating the patterns to other mediums is fairly easy.  She asked if I would give her a dollar for them.  

A dollar!!?? 

No way!

They were all mine with no questions asked.  I felt a bit guilty for taking everything for a dollar but I bought my treasures and we left...before they could change their mind!

The books and magazines are stunningly beautiful

 

The illustrations and directions are so easy to understand.

It turns out they all belonged to a woman named Betty Taylor.  I assumed it was her kids and grand-kids who were having the yard sale and I think they were happy that Betty's things were going to someone who could use the, and love them like she did.  Her hand-drawn patterns tell me how much she loved to create beautiful things, and I have no doubt she did.

 She was a porcelain artist who had certificates to prove her hours of study and level of achievements.  She was meticulous in her filing system and had handwritten notes all over the place.

The pattern on the right above would turn out like the picture below...stunning!

I can't believe what an amazing find that was!  I already have a project on my plate that this stuff will come in handy for and I can't wait to look through it all!