. . . Calling All Santos Seekers

Ballard Designs currently offers a pair of nice repro caged santos dolls on its website.



Since originals are often prohibitively priced, these have the added charm of being affordable!

Hooked on Folk Art Rugs

Forgive me the lame post title. Sometimes puns are all this girl's got.

I've been doing my share of online perusing of late, looking for a cozy, folksy, antique hooked rug. Here are three amazing contenders.

The first, from Olde Hope Antiques, is a house with plenty of country charm:



The second, from Greg Kramer and Company, is as warm and inviting a hearth scene as you'll ever hope to see. This would be fab in front of a fireplace.



Finally, Antique Associates at West Townsend offers these three little kittens:



I'd love to see those kitties parked in front of a nice Windsor chair.

Trouble is -- how do you choose from the three?

Heart in Hand: Odd Fellows Staffs

The Heart in Hand emblem has a rich symbolic heritage in the Northeast. Traditionally, it is said to emblemize charity, or selfless action that originates in the heart: "Whatever the hand may find to do, may the heart go forth in union."

Blogger With Heart and Hands has a nice summary of the image's use in the Shaker tradition, as well as by the fraternal organization of Odd Fellows . . .

. . . which brings me to these amazing carvings, first used as ceremonial staffs for Odd Fellows gatherings. This matched pair was sold by aptly-named Odd Fellows Art and Antiques:



Check out their site for a veritable gallery of Heart-in-Hand carving, as well as other to-die-for folk art.

I like the silvery finish to this hand, offered by VanDeest Antiques:



Maybe the silver paint reminds me of the Tin Man, who only wanted a Heart.

It's rare to find these emblems for sale, but Ruby Lane seller Finish Line Collectibles offers this outstanding cast iron heart-in-hand marker:



Here's hoping we all act with with hearts in hand this holiday season.

Round and Round She Goes . . .

. . . and where she stops, nobody knows. Carnival art has become a popular form of collectible folk art of late, not the least for its bright graphics and sense of playfulness. I suspect that for many of us, gaming wheels like these recall the fun days we spent at the State Fair as kids.

This 1920's beauty was recently sold by Paul Madden Antiques. I love the crisp print and the fact that it comes with its own stand.





Here's another gorgeous specimen from Fryling's Antiques, dating to mid-20th Century:



This would look great hanging on the wall of a family game room.

Bitten? Need to buy a gaming wheel RIGHT NOW? Then hurry yourself over to Finish Line Collectibles on Ruby Lane. This seller boasts a number of outstanding wheels in a range of sizes and prices. I have my eye on this number:



Hope you win!

19th-Century Calligraphy With a Modern Twist

I love these framed calligraphy pieces from Carlson and Stevenson with such fervor. It's a treat to see the multi-colored inks, and the whimsmical quality of the fonts calls to mind the present-day craze for hand-lettering in graphic design (don't believe me? Check out Etsy).





For the calligraphy-obsessed, Piper Publishing offers a re-issue of the 1881 Real Pen Work Self-Instructor in Penmanship. Seeing the samples, I'm astonished at how our forebears incorporated so much artisanship into their daily lives through the simple act of writing.

Dali? Mais oui!

I just finished restoring the mechanical bank that my grandfather made for me (MANY) years ago, when I was ten.



My aim was to make it look like a turn-of-the-century gent, but methinks he looks more than a little like Salvador Dali, no?



Swallow the coin and . . . voila!



Grandpa’s long gone, but I still cherish all the handcrafts he made for us.

Gemma Taccogna Heads

I've always admired those antique French papier mache heads, the ones once used as hat stands. Case in point: This adorable girl from Dove Place Antiques. Love the bright colors, almost mod features, and baldish hairline.



Sadly, the pricing on these heads always put them out of my reach.

But nothing comes between a collector and her mania. Especially not when there's ebay.

After a few searches for "papier mache heads", I am now the proud owner of not one, but two head-shaped hat stands. Meet the twins:



They are both Gemma Taccogna, circa 1960s. And I love them.

Now someone tell me how, HOW, did I manage to get this old and not encounter Gemma Taccogna? She made THE most wonderful, whimsmical papier mache creations, with beautiful mod lines that manage to be folksy at the same time.

Of course, now that I own the two Gemma heads, I'm lusting for a third. I've got my eye on this grand-mammy of a head, 16" high, at Mod Hare.



And the vintage crackling makes it that much better!