The Cedar Chest - antique postcards, vintage photographs, forgotten ephemera

heart shaped paper

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 22:13:00 +0000

I have been spending a lot of time with Valentines lately. There were a lot of great ones at the Postcard Club meeting on Saturday and I got a good hunk of them. Valentines are just so charming and sweet. It's hard to pass them by. I don't think of myself as a collector of Valentines and yet, I seem to do it.

Here are two I am keeping for myself.

I will be posting more Valentines this week, but please visit the shop to see what's all ready there.

Victorian Photocollage Exhibit

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 20:23:00 +0000

I found out about the wonderful exhibit of Victorian Photocollages that is at The Art Institute of Chicago via the website Retronuat. So exciting that this is the first exhibit of this kind of thing and the books that accompany it are the first scholarly look at photocollage in the Victorian era.

Sixty years ahead of the avant-garde—and more than a century before Photoshop—aristocratic Victorian women were already experimenting with photocollage. This world-premiere exhibition is the first to comprehensively examine this little-known phenomenon, presenting many eye-opening works that have rarely—and in many cases never—before been displayed or reproduced. (from the AIC website)

You can see more collages here. Hope all you folks near Chicago can go.

calling cards

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 01:00:00 +0000

In the 19th century everyone of any social standing had a card with their name printed on it usually with some decorative element added. These were called Calling Cards and were an important part of introducing oneself and fostering friendships.

I have no idea is this is THE Oscar Wilde's card. But, isn't it fun to think it is? I need to research this a bit.

If you lived back then you might come back from a day out and there would be a small pile of calling cards on your entryway table from all the people who had come by to see you that day. After a dinner party or a ball it was customary for folks who attended to come by the next day and leave their card.

I can easily imagine how exciting it must have been to go to the printers and choose the font and emblem that you would want for your cards. What you chose was a key way of showing everyone who you were and I'm sure it was taken quite seriously.

When wax-resist color printing known as chromolithography became available for the masses, around 1880, calling cards could then be made in bright and many hued colors. On the more lavish cards it took over a dozen steps to print all the colors.

A popular and fun type of calling card was the hidden name cards. Cards would be printed with the name and often cut into fancy shapes and a color decorative paper (now often called Victorian Scrap) was laid over and glued on one end. The result was that the recipient had to lift the decorative cover to see who had visited. I would assume this also served as a nice privacy screen for anyone who happens to be walking by your entryway table. (There is a set of these currently for sale in the shop)

Calling cards had a full set of rituals and sub-genres. One thing I like is that there were secret messages that you could convey by folding different corners of the cards. Some cards were specifically made so that a different design would appear if the corner was folded.

I kind of miss the days of the calling cards. I remember when my grandparents moved to Arizona in the 1970's there was this little holder on the wall outside their house. I asked what it was and my grandmother said it was for people to put their calling cards or business cards into. That was the first I had heard of something like that and I found it fascinating.

I guess business cards aren't really that different. But, they are seldom worth keeping. But, as you can imagine with me - if you give me your business card and it's pretty enough I will keep it for a long time.

oceans of love

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 22:12:00 +0000

I love this signature from Leonard on this studio portrait. "Oceans of Love". Swoon! I hope the person it was given to swooned a bit too.

This portrait doesn't look like it was used in the way it was intended. The tab that you use to prop it up looked to have never been bent back. Perhaps the person it was given to kept it hid away in a drawer or chest and when alone in the house they would take it out.

I think this signature is my favorite along with this one. I think I'll start a collection on here of my favorite signatures and tag them as such.

This portrait is for sale in the Etsy shop along with lots of equally romantic and gushy vintage valentines.

house valentines

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 19:51:00 +0000

These valentines are interesting because they simply show a house in a heart. There's no mention to a house or home in any text. It seems the house is just enough. Maybe the inclination is that your heart is my home or my home is your heart or something like that.

The again, maybe people just like the house as an object, as I do, which is why I collected these.

This one is from 1923. On the back it says From David R to Alice G. and 1923 penciled in.

This postcard below is blank on the other side.

I just listed a couple new Valentine postcards in the shop and will post more soon.

Hope you all have a good weekend!

a blithe new year to thee

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 00:15:00 +0000

Happy almost New Year to you! I love the new year. I'm not sure why. I'm not really one of those people to think of my life in terms of that was a good year or that was a bad year. I just love the idea of a fresh start and a new clean calendar ahead of me. I really like the quiet grey days of January. They're like white space and after the crowded Fall and Christmas time, the simpleness of January seems wonderful.

Anyway, I hope that you have a fantastic New Years. Here is a postcard from my collection from New Years 1912.

And here is one that is so pretty and non-traditional with a lovely little poem on it. There's no marking on the back, so unsure of the year, but I am guessing it is from around the same time.

Today is Friday and that means Postcard Friendship Friday, so you can head over to the blog The Best Hearts are Crunchy and see a list of other blogs participating in postcard posts today - as well as a great run down on New Years Eve traditions in other cultures. Happy 2012!!

having a good time

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 21:51:00 +0000

Christmas is almost here. I hope you all have some fun planned for the next few days, whether you celebrate Christmas or not. The rest of our small family has arrived in town and we shall now embark on the festivities. I have a pie in the oven and that is one of my last Christmas tasks.

Here is my final Christmas postcard for you. I am not a big collector of Santa Claus cards, but I like the uniqueness of this one and the sentiment. It was sent on Dec 24th, 1914 from Wattsburg, PA to Harborcreek, PA - a distance of about 18 miles. See below for message on postcard

Dear Cousins,

Many thanks for my new mittens. I have a very bad cold
so I don't feel very well. I hope Santa will bring you lots
of nice things for Xmas.

Your cousin,

Eleanor

Happy Holidays to you all! Thank you for following this blog.

greeting cards have all been sent....

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 01:56:00 +0000

Well, maybe yours haven't. There is totally still time. I just love The Carpenters song that that line comes from.

I've gotten some really nice Christmas Cards this year from friends. I got these two from a seller at the postcard club on Saturday. These seem to be from the WWII era. They're on the small side and so pretty.

I think it's neat how the person saved the unmarked stamp inside this Santa's Stable card.

Well, here it is the last week before Christmas. I did some baking today and am wrapping things up (ha! literally). Hope things are all the preparations are going good for you.

our finest collection

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 00:11:00 +0000

I like this postcard from 1958 advertising the assortment of Christmas cards this supplier has to offer. I could have sworn I had another one, but I can't find it. I really need to reorganize my postcards. Maybe in the new year.

Here is the message on the back of the postcard:

I scanned a bunch of vintage Christmas tags and made them available for you to download and print on your color printer at home. You can find them on the PonyBoy Press blog.

I just used some today and they look pretty good. This is one of my favorites. Very White Christmas. I do love that movie, don't you?

lacey christmas wishes

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 21:58:00 +0000

I like how this Christmas postcard from 1912 recreates the look of a lace doily. Very intricate and pretty.

This was sent from what looks like Nebraska to Portland Oregon on December 18, 1912.

Dear Cousins,

The pkg. for yourself and Ethel rec'd in fine condition, which Flora and I are very thankful, will give Lucy hers at Xmas time, I am not able to do any writing or I would write you a letter, but would be pleased to get one from you. I can only do certain things with my arm, will not be able to come my hair for some time yet. With love to all, from your Aunt E Loomis

Have you finished your Christmas shopping yet? I am seeing emails that say "last minute presents" and it's freaking me out. I just got started. The holiday season goes by so fast.

I did a little post on the PonyBoy Press blog about using copies of old family photos for Christmas tags. You an also use copies of your favorite Christmas postcards and cards. Here are a few I made just now.

Some new Christmas and New Years items added to the shop, including a beautiful handmade card from 1915.

small packages

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 04:44:00 +0000

I am always enchanted by little Christmas cards. Most of these are about 4" x 2.5".

Below is a very sweet small card from 1910. This is for sale in my Etsy shop. Just listed.

This is an actual Real Photo Postcard. It was done on a Brownie and is called a Brownie Souvenir. It's hard to tell here, but it is a little card. I love seeing the old Christmas trees. This is Edwin and Wayne's Christmas Tree from 1912.

Below are two more pretty small Christmas cards. Lots of Christmas cards added to the shop recently. New Years cards will be coming soon. Please like us on facebook to see all the new listings.

christmas gift subscriptions

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 22:27:00 +0000

Here's some Christmas gift inspiration from the past for you.

Magazines are still the best, if you ask me. I love the internet and kindles and all that, but I guess you can guess that above all I love paper. Maybe I'll give some magazine subscriptions this year. It's the gift you get all year long!

Below is a subscription card for giving the music magazine Downbeat from 1940. This magazine still exists and seems to be going strong. I love the illustrations and hand lettering on this.

What you see below is the beautiful and intricate cover (opened up) from a gift subscription for card for a 5 year subscription to the Farm Journal of Philadelphia. Pretty good gift.

The sentiment written here is great. "You will find it full of instruction and sunshine". Nice. Speed the Plow.

Are you getting some shopping done yet? I've gotten a couple of things.

If you're looking for more Christmas inspiration, I've listed more Christmas postcards on the Etsy shop this week.

making unique holiday cards with vintage post cards

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 00:27:00 +0000

If you come across a vintage postcard or greeting card you love, you can easily use it to make all your holiday cards this year.

A lot of the vintage postcards are so pretty and have such charming sayings on them. Many have unique rhyming greetings, which you don't really see much anymore.

Personal printers and scanners make it easy to reproduce high quality images at home (If you don't have a color printer at home, a copy shop can do them for you at little cost. Just make sure to fit as many onto a page as you can). You can use these to make holiday cards, or you could even just print directly on a super thick card stock and send out postcards.

If you wanna make cards, here are a couple suggestions. I copied this vintage postcard onto two kinds of paper from my canon printer.

The top one is glossy photo paper and the one underneath is matte presentation paper. They both look really good and it was hard to tell the difference without touching them. The postcard on the glossy photo paper was a little sharper and had more contrast. It had a bit of a green cast to it. The matte photo paper had a bit of a blue cast to it. I think how you are going to use them is what might determine which paper you use.

The glossy photo paper is thicker and better to use like you would a photograph. An easy way to make cards with these would be to use photo corners and just place the copies like a photo onto blanks cards or folded colored paper stock.

If you want to decorate the cards more, using the matte paper would probably be better. It is thinner and easier to paste down. You could make some gorgeous handmade Christmas, New Years or any greeting cards by using the copy of the vintage postcard and then decorating with glitter, ribbon, vintage items or whatever you can think up. I am no pro at this, by any means, but I have done my cards like this in the past. I made one up today, just to give you an idea. I'm sure you can do much better.

You can use some colored paper to make the background have a little more depth if you want. After that is glued down I added some glitter.

If you want some better inspiration, take a look at the Little Pink Studio. She is always making something pretty and artful with vintage images.

I'd love to see what you make this year. Please let me know. Happy Christmas Season!

thanksgiving games

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 17:56:00 +0000

These poodles are getting ready for Thanksgiving. I think they must be making cranberry sauce.

I hope your Thanksgiving tomorrow goes better than this lunch below and that the kids aren't fighting like cats and dogs.

Hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Truth in Postcards & PFF

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 22:49:00 +0000

This postcard is actually this size. And it is a postcard, even thought it looks more like a bookmark. I've come across a couple other postcards this size before. The actual size is 2 1/8" x 6".

This one is from 1908, sent to Scotts Mills, Oregon (current population 355 residents -this has doubled since 1916!) from Roseburg, Oregon.

The greeting says:

I am back in the old place again, have been for little over a month. Have you and Eldon decided to stay where you are or go elsewhere?

I am disgusted with all in general,

J.C.

I love it when I read messages like this. Ones that make you laugh and that you can totally relate to.

I am posting this today to participate in Postcard Friendship Friday, hosted by The Best Hearts are Crunchy. Go to her site and you can see a list of other postcard blogs you can visit today.

happy birthday mom and dad

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 01:03:00 +0000

Today I'm going to post images of people I actually know. This is a scan of an old slide from when my mother and father were dating, around 1959. Don't you love that Pendleton outfit she has on? I used to wear the jacket in High School, but it was always a little small for me.

November is the month that both my parents were born in. Today is my mom's birthday and my father would have celebrated his last Saturday, the 12th. They haven't been married for over 30 years, but sometimes it's neat to see pictures of your parents when they were together and in love. Plus, they are just cool pictures.

Old Hollywood

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 02:47:00 +0000

I love old movies and am very fond of certain stars from the 20's to the 50's. I have in the past come across a number of postcards of celebrities with images of their houses. These must have been sold in tourist shops and on corners along with the maps to the stars homes. Linen postcards from the 40's and 50's are what I've come across the most. Here are two I've collected.

I just posted a really Old Hollywood postcard booklet in the Etsy shop that shows homes of the stars the Hollywood studios. The stars in this booklet are Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks, Charlie Chaplin and Clara Bow! I have never seen one this old before. It's in great condition, too.

Also, I have never heard the phrase "Screenland" before.

Above is a picture of Clara Bow's house from the booklet. Could this by the house now? According to Wikipedia she lived at this address in 1930 (from the 1930 census).

By 1927 Clara Bow was Paramount's biggest star. The movie "It" gave her her nickname "The It Girl". I was just looking at some videos of her and this one from the film "It" is great. Not just for her, but dig those crazy carnival rides.

office christmas party

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 00:59:00 +0000

I wish there was more information on the back of this photo, but it's blank. Looks like an office Christmas party from around 1955. The women seem less amused then the men. Maybe they're less drunk.

I recently added some great new finds to The Cedar Chest shop. Please stop by.

Want to know when I update items to The Cedar Chest blog or shop? Like The Cedar Chest on Facebook. Thanks!!

Free Shipping at The Cedar Chest

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 23:13:00 +0000

fondue cook-in

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Sat, 22 Oct 2011 22:35:00 +0000

I just found this old fondue booklet in a box of things I was planning on getting rid of a long time ago, but I think I'll keep it. I actually have a fondue pot now and it's just too charming. I love the first page with the illustrations by Rebecca Crutchfield and the introduction:

I especially love this bit:

It sold for $1.00 in 1968. If you want a copy there seem to be quite a few onAmazon.

Some of the recipes: Beef Fondue, Fish Fondue, Swiss Fondue #1 and #2, Gruyere Fondue, Seafood Cheese Fondue and recipes for lots of sauces for the fondues, which I don't quite understand.

There are lots of tips and suggestions to for your "fondue cook-in"

This is why I get so little done on the weekends. I start to clean something out and get derailed with scanning and blogging. But, really, how can I not?

Postcard and Antique Paper Show this weekend

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 03:40:00 +0000

Just wanted you all to know about a Postcard, Stamp and Antique Paper Show this weekend in Portland. This is a big one! Admission is $5.00, but you can get a dollar off if you print this up and bring it.

The website is pretty minimal, but all you need to know is on this card. Have fun!

I am your friend

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 21:56:00 +0000

I am quite taken by the sentiment on the back of the portrait of this studious and very sincere seeming young man. On the back of this portrait it says:

With kind remembrance

I am your Friend

Henry Johnson

I love that he just states it. Just in case the recipient isn't sure he is letting it be known and making the commitment. I think that's lovely and I think we should do that more. Maybe we could start posting on facebook walls and just say "I am your Friend" (friend capitalized as he did) to friends we really feel committed to. I am totally serious about this. I am not making fun of it, in case you can't tell.

I just listed old Henry here and also the beautiful wistful portrait below on my Etsy shop. Her signature on the back is hard to see (partly damaged) but she also tells the recipient they are an old friend.

Alpine Love

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 04:01:00 +0000

In honor of Oktoberfest, I thought I'd share these vintage postcards in my collection. I love all things Alpine-y.

Neither postcards have any messages on them and there is very little info on the back. But, if I enter in what it says I do get some clues from Google.

This one above is a place in Austria and there are some pictures of the place here, which are really neat to see. Such a pretty illustration.

This group above is an Austrian musical group who put out records and you can see one here on Ebay

You got a couple more days to celebrate Oktoberfest in Austria.

Postcard Predictions for the Year 2000

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 01:03:00 +0000

I came across these awesome German Postcards through my google+ interests feed. They were produced by a German Chocolate Company around 1900 and they depicted some ideas of how life would be in the year 2000.

It's funny how in some ways a persons imagination can think out of the box and imagine all kinds of things and in other ways it just can't fathom anything different. Like, I think it's funny that they still imagine people using horse and wagons in the year 2000, but yet we'll be able to control the weather.

personal flying machines

weather control

an afternoon walk on the water

Some sort of broadcasted live performance with a projected image and audio through the phone

You can see more on the blog Retronaut

welcome september

noreply@blogger.com (PonyBoy Press) — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 02:14:00 +0000

My summer has not been that great and I'm looking forward to a better fall - my favorite season. I will miss the summer fruits, though. Seasonal produce, swimming and longer days are my favorite part of summer. The weather here is hot and going to get hotter. In fact, it's hotter than it's been all summer these last several days and will continue.But, I'm still thinking of September as I always do - like a new beginning - a fresh start. I guess it's a feeling left over from school days.

So, here's a postcard for the end of summer. Sent to a college boy. I really like the message on this postcard.

This was sent from Cleveland, Ohio in June 1929 from Adele to Mr. Stanlee Bates at Case School Camp

Mercy I thought college fellows always kept things going.

Don't talk about the weather. I am simply melted.

Am off for the day on a picnic at the beach, to bad you aren't here to go along. Was real glad to hear from you.