For my old photo collection, I found these two antique real-photo postcards in a mixed bin at a small antique shop. They were $1.50 each. I just could not pass them up! Under what circumstances were these photos taken? And who felt the need to make them into postcards? And why this strange duplication/enlargement treatment?

They have names written on the back in pen. Please meet George McEntyre! (This one also says “mother’s half brother” interesting.) What is going on with that tie?? It must be some style I’m not familiar with. Or maybe he just caught it in some sort of machinery and ripped half of it off, and then decided to have a portrait! lol

This, I assume, is George’s wife, Millie McEntyre. I wish I were there when this picture was taken. I bet there’s a smile in there somewhere. I’d get it out. These have no dates on them. Hard to judge when they might be from. Evidently, a time when they didn’t smile for photographs. There’s a bit of a little house showing behind Millie. Looks rustic.

Here are a few more pages from the Girl Scout Scrapbook!

When I first glanced through this scrapbook I had a tough time understanding it until I realized that the author’s lowercase “t” looks a lot like an “r” with the crossbar only on the right side.

I’m working furiously on a cool dynamic Flash viewer for my scrapbooks that will load up the images and info using XML. It will allow navigation through the books using the “page flip” and hopefully zooming! It might not be done for a little while, but I have big plans!

As for physical preservation of the books, I think I am going to try a de-acidifying spray to stop the breakdown of the pages. I’m going to take apart the books and put each page into a sleeve made of Dura-lar (an archival clear mylar-type material) and then reassemble. Hopefully, this will reinforce the pages and protect from handling damage. Also, in the Family Trip Scrapbook, there is a lot of icky old tape holding in the postcards and things, so I’m going to try to carefully remove it as it causes yellowing (and it doesn’t stick anymore anyway!). I’ll use photo corners or an archival adhesive to reattach the goodies.

I’ve had a busy weekend and haven’t had much time to post here, but I hope to make up for that with a few AMAZING flea market finds from this morning!!

First, let me bore you with a few not-so-amazing finds:

Some glassware for my mom. Hen on nest was $5, milk glass basket was $3.50

Some bulbs, bobbins, and random sewing things for my new sewing machine.
Marked $5, I bargained to $3.

I’ve been looking for a cheap type case for a while, in which I can put little things and/or craft supplies. Who in bloody blazes got the urge to paint a type case blue?? I don’t know, but it allowed for the good price of $4. I’ll strip the outside edges and put on some stain and varnish and I’ll paint the inside white. I think it will look nice. I’ll shine up the handle too. It’ll be great!

Now on to my amazing finds of the day!!

I collect old scrapbooks, and was delighted to see the aqua-colored one for $1!! I didn’t even really look at the contents until I got home! I am so excited about it because I discovered that it follows a family trip around the US in 1959!

It’s filled with postcards, hotel stationery, menus and placemats, and what appears to be the writings of a young lady (I’m no pro at handwriting analysis!) who documents some of the events for us.

There is also some great vintage Disneyland stuff in there, like this brochure for the Sleeping Beauty Castle! It has a sweet fold-out poster in the middle.

Now if this wasn’t enough, I found ANOTHER amazing scrapbook at the same flea market on the same day!!! It has a plywood cover bound with leather lacing. It was marked at $15 and I only had $12 left in my pocket. I asked nicely (trying to contain my PURE JOY) and the seller accepted my offer easily.

This book is filled with amazing photographs of Girl Scout camp in 1937 and 1938!! There are tons of photos of swimming, sailing, cooking in tin cans and all that sort of fun! These are obviously older scouts, and it seems that they are campers themselves, but later in the book they serve as camp staff for younger children. The names of two camps are listed: Camp Alice Chester and Camp Wells. A Google search finds that Camp Alice Chester is still being used and is located in Milwaukee Wisconsin. I can’t seem to find anything about Camp Wells. Anyone have any details?

Here’s the first page of the book! This is the “cast of characters” for the rest of the book. Each of the young women seems to have a nickname, which is used throughout in the photo captions.

Stay tuned for more!! I plan on scanning both of these scrapbooks in their entirety to save them for posterity. The paper in them is typical cheap (acid-filled) paper for scrapbooks of the time, and it is terribly yellowed and getting crumbly. I’m not sure of the best way to proceed in preserving these books, so I’ll do a little research on that. In any event, I will definitely be scanning them to save them in digital form and I’ll share lots more here in upcoming posts!

Not too long ago, I acquired a Family Circle from April 1956. The cover price was only seven cents! (I paid $1) How could I pass it up with great ads like these!? When you flip open the cover, the first thing you see is this poor outcast. If only she knew the answer to all her problems was mouthwash. (Click each ad for a readable size!)

Readers of this issue are also treated to this appetizing ad for green pea soup. Can anyone say Exorcist?

I am also led to believe that people in this period in time are incredibly obsessed with their digestion. There are five ads in this one magazine about various laxatives and indigestion relief products.

Even children are not exempt from the worries of *gasp* constipation. Children of all ages even!

The kid in this laxative ad looks like he just crapped up a storm and he couldn’t be prouder! Don’t you love how dramatic the facial expressions are? The headlines and body copy have a tendency towards uber-dramatic too.

Look at the brow furrowing on this chica! I cannot imagine a more dramatic look of discomfort.

Finally, here’s another dramatic ad for the ladies! Why be old-fashioned!? Make sure you’re not sadly behind the times! haha

I spent the night at my folks’ place eating junk food and watching TV. This afternoon we got the itch to go to the local thrift store and hunt for treasure, so we did! I got this heavy ol’ Singer sewing machine with manual and all these boxes of accessories taped onto it for $30. I have no idea if it’s in good working order or not. It looks like the case has been forcefully/carelessly opened at the bottom, so I’m sure someone has messed with it somehow. I decided to take a chance on it because I enjoy fixing things. I’ll give a full status report on it after I test it out and see what sort of help it needs. The Kodak Colorburst 100 camera with flash will be a nice addition to my instant camera collection for $3.50. In the fabric section, I found these 3.5yd cuts of heavy hound’s tooth fabric for $1 a yard. And, the pièce de résistance, the Salem Mini Sew’R for $1. I haven’t tested this out yet, but it seems to work similarly to a punch needle and holds its own small spool or bobbin. More details on this set to come as well. Just wanted to share my finds right away while I had a free moment!