Old Books, Hooks, and Baby Shoes

Hello dear friends!

We just got back from The Wren's Nest, our little place in the mountains, where we spent most of our time trying to finish the bathroom remodel before we have to close it down for the winter next month. Consequently, I haven't had much time for being creative in the way of any artwork.

So, I thought that I would take out a few of my pretties and post photos of them today.

I love Victorian baby shoes with their

tiny little buttons.

They look especially pretty when

sitting on top of a couple of vintage books...

Recently, I stumbled upon my newest collectors' item.

Did you ever wonder how the Victorians managed to

fasten all of those tiny buttons

while their little ones were squirming around?

Well, they used boot hooks, 

some of which you can see in the next two photos.

Boot hooks came in all different sizes,

some for children's shoes,

and some for those of the adults.

Some of them had celluloid handles.

And some, made of steel,

were given away at shoe stores as freebies and stated the name

and location of the manufacturer of the shoe.

The three below happen to have mother of pearl handles,

and not everyone likely afforded them.

They are so beautiful in their own right...

Here is a pretty little black shoe with lovely cutouts on the side,

and it has laces rather than buttons.

I also have the mate to this beauty.

Sometimes, though, I buy shoes 

that are missing their mate.

Not everyone and everything has to be

part of a pair to be beautiful!

And isn't the cover to this old poetry book gorgeous?

When buying old books,

I do indeed "judge the book by its cover"!

Even when falling apart I see such beauty in old books...

Of course,

you know that I also have a huge collection

of vintage photos, and couldn't resist

sneaking a couple into these vignettes!

**************************************

One of these days I will share photos of some of my other

old books, hooks and baby shoes.

Do you have any special collections?

I would love to hear about them. 

**************************************

Today I am joining Wen's Simply Neutrals Tuesday Party.

Why don't you pop over there and join the fun!

You can find Wen's blog here.

Thanks for coming by!