ULTRA COOL VINTAGE CAMP FIRE GIRLS NECKLACE

I often lament my lack of Camp Fire Girls awards and dwell on the one tiny red, white, and blue bead I earned in 6th grade.  A few months back you may remember I had been eyeballing a necklace my sister had created for her Etsy shop, made of vintage wooden Camp Fire Girls beads in that familiar red, white, and blue.  Well, I didn't get my thumb out in time and a complete stranger swooped in and bought it. 

Never fear!  Chester is here!  At the end of the epic Camp Gonnawanna this year, my sister (lovingly known as "Uncle Chester" to The Inmates) presented me with two hand-crafted gifts.  The first is a journal she created using the covers of a 1917 novel called The Camp Fire Girls at Lookout Pass, adorned with a string of the vintage Camp Fire Girls beads on the top ring.

The second present, which is really more an award for not throttling any children during Camp Gonnawanna, is a necklace made with those same vintage Camp Fire Girls beads, but all in my beloved, horrendously beautiful 70s colors of avocado, marigold, and tangerine (with purple thrown in as well).   Now that summer has ended and my Official David Cassidy Puka Shell Necklace has been lovingly tucked away in the jewelry box, I think it's time to put this little darling to good use.  And since I just took down my summer-themed family room knick knacks and reestablished the area as my Brady Bunch room, I think this baby will work nicely as a piece of home decor when not being worn.

My sister has been hard at work with some gorgeous vintage rose-shaped beads in an orange-y coral shade which she's pairing with black beads for some awesome Halloween-ish necklaces, as well as some with shades of light green and cream which I have my eye on.  (That's if those pesky customers don't get there first.)  In the meantime she's having a summer clearance sale and you can check out her shop here if you're interested.

And while we're on the subject of kudos for me (isn't that what we were talking about?), yesterday Corinne commented on my post No-Blog Tuesday that I didn't provide "after" photos of my two disaster areas.  Just to show, contrary to what The Vulcan says, that I did do something yesterday, I give you the excavated tidied "after" pictures:

I know...  It's not nearly as much fun as seeing all my crap, is it?  Don't worry, my friends, I have so many other condemned spots I could share that you can rest assured of your superiority over me.


You might also be interested in:

* Camp Gonnawanna

* Patch Envy

* Patch Envy - Part 2


 

PATCH ENVY - PART 2

I previously confessed to my frequent breaking of the 11th commandment -- "Thou Shalt Not Covet Thy Daughter's Patches."  As a Camp Fire Girl dropout, I have no vest tucked away in my hope chest dripping with patches and beads marking childhood accomplishments.  Foghorn recently bridged from a Girl Scout Daisy to a Brownie and the royal blue smock with its colorful patches has been hung in the spare closet and replaced with a brown vest.  At the moment the vest has only her troop number and a few insignia pins, although she may be on her way to filling this garment if she receives a patch for her appearance in yesterday's 4th of July parade.

Foghorn showing her lack of patriotic fervor by refusing to pass out flags to the spectators.

My sister, Nancy,  may be one of the few people who can understand my lust for recognition.  She could care less about patches.  Her obsession is for ribbons and medals.  While I sat gawking at a particularly fetching military man in dress whites who was nearby in the crowd, my sister noticed only the plethora of medals dangling from his chest.  

Given my feelings of inadequacy, a full 29 years after dropping out of 6th grade Camp Fire Girls, it's no surprise that I'm enamored of a new item in my sister's Etsy shop.  Nancy does beautiful crocheted jewelry and doilies, cool wall hangings combining vintage elements, and even a bracelet inspired by Emily Dickinson.  But what has my eye at the moment is this necklace:

It is fashioned from vintage wooden Camp Fire Girl beads and includes some of the red, white, and blue beads.  My one and only bead that I ever earned, and which was sewn on the front of my vest looking lonely against that huge expanse of dark blue fabric, was just such a bead.  Actually, my bead was much less cool, being made of plastic and about the size of my pinky fingernail.  These are larger and chunky and wood and combine my love of beady recognition with vintage goodness.  I keep trying to think of a way to earn this for myself.  If I go the whole summer with The Inmates and don't run screaming down the street naked in an insane fit or stow away on my neighbor's next Airstream excursion, isn't it just possible I deserve a little reward?


You might also be interested in:

*  PATCH ENVY

*  ULTRA COOL VINTAGE CAM PFIRE GIRLS NECKLACE