Vintage Thingies Thursday Share ~ Old Books...

This past Saturday morning was rainy and cool, so needless to say most of the yard sales were canceled. However, I did swing by the flea market and one new guy was selling items from a vintage costume/antique store, that his wife had closed down years ago. I found some really neat, unique things, that I will share over the next two weeks during Vintage Thingies Thursday.


Today will be the books that I purchased....






I LOVE old books! Especially those that contain articles, pictures, and ads. Lidian, at Kitchen Retro blog, showcases vintage ads, and most are quite amusing...including her witty commentary! Check her out, if you enjoy this type of thing too!

Back to the Flea Market >>> One lady, who I know is a self-appointed antique expert with a sweet, kind personality...NOT!...tried to slip her hand to my book pile, as I was fishing them out of a bin! ...book snatcher! Of course, I knew then the books were probably more valuable than the $15 I paid for them all. But I did love them, so her confirmation wouldn't have mattered all that much!

I found two Bibles, one dated 1888, and the other did not have a copyright page. The book in the middle, below, was a German Evangelical Lutheran book, which my MIL thought might be a prayer book (?), and was dated 1892.






The Bible with no date, contained old photographs and obituary notices.

The fourth book I found, was a Harper's Magazine, June to November 1855! It is in great shape, considering it's age!

The magazine/book contained many articles and advertisements. It also featured a comic strip each month, called "Mr. Slim's," but they didn't make a lot of sense. "I guess you had to be THERE, huh...during that time!" LOL!

Below, is one of the ads for The Fashions of June, with an illustration of fashionable head dresses.

The November section contained house plans, which I have not seen in old books or magazines before.

This is the Simple Suburban Cottage, for the city. The estimated cost to build was $1500.

The following Log Cabin, was "a plan for a simple house for a well-to-do settler and his family." The reason I suppose it was for the more endowed, it was not just one big room, but also had a loft upstairs.

This SMALL Suburban House, which I didn't consider it small, was a three story home built of brick and cost $3500, to build.

Now moving on to the country houses (estates)...the IRREGULAR Country House. Not sure why it is deemed irregular, but it was also to be built of brick, for $16,000.

This beautiful home, featuring a winding staircase, was called a Pictureque Country House. It was intended for a physician, and was erected of brick and brown stone. Note the office and seperate entrance.

This grand house, the Picturesque Mansion, featured a fountain in the center corridor, that was built long to serve as a picture gallery. The magazine stated, "...residence is larger than required in a country like this." The price to build this home was $70,000....and keep in mind, this is 1855!

The following pictures are just examples of how I use old books in my decor...

~Rhonda ;)

(Take Note of the beautiful pear arrangement I bought from the Nester... I just love it!)