Skip to main content

Marjie's Original Christmas Cards - Part 1

This series was first displayed about seven years ago.  It has become a bit of a tradition this time of year to honor my mother's creative bent.


++++++++++

As I have mentioned before my Mother made her own Christmas cards. I can still see her at the dining room table cutting, pasting, sprinkling and drawing her creations from scratch. I do not have all of the cards she made but I do have some of them and I will be featuring them the next couple of days.




Simple, colorful designs were her forte.  This early one was all pastel paint and a bit of sprinkle.



Another simple design that was painted.




Pictures were included every year to show the growth of the kids.  This first card must have been one of the first after Herb and Marj married, and that is Sandy, their cocker spaniel.


The second one here is when Phil was a newborn. 



I don't recall how many she would make from year to year, but I do remember seeing all of the materials lines up on the dining room table.  It was always quite a production.



Phil when he was perhaps 2 1/2?




A bit more involved with actual ribbon built into the card.



Three of us before we got Archie, our boxer mix that was a part of he family for pretty close to 18 years.  Mark, ever the trooper, displaying a small amount of boredom with the picture-taking.  Suck-up Phil is smiling nicely, and me, well, looking confused which would become a life-long natural pose. 



This must have been a reject or a prototype.  The deer has not been fleshed out via felt paper.   


The toothless twins.  Was Herb the fellow to the left of us we were supposed to focus on?  Even Archie seems mesmerized. 




Christmas time was a festive time in our house, as they are everywhere.  Marj really did it up well, coloring the front picture window in yuletide themes.  She usually flocked her trees  with white spray which was a fun and different artistic touch.  She also made life-size carolers out of pressed wood panels and placed outside with a spotlight.  Those carolers still are in my possession and during the later years at Chambers were displayed proudly with no touch ups or restoration.  They are at Mark's place now, awaiting my return.  Somehow the decades old patina added to the Spirit.  
  NEXT FRIDAY, MORE CARDS.

Comments

  1. Great cards. Oh my, reflections of the Christmas times of our misspent youth. Where did the time go my friend? Where?

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Flashback Friday

Class, Or Lack Thereof The Dwight Vice gravestone in Oquawka, Illinois. I bring this old chestnut out every so often just to remind me that class is classless.  Dwight Vice was killed in his home near Oquawka in 2001.  It was one of those things that can generate crime:  two guys thought Dwight had a lot of money stashed at home because of his pot-selling sideline to supplement his fishing job.   Not really one of those big drug deals gone-bad things.  Marijuana was, according to the trial, about the only stuff Dwight sold.   But these two guys barge into the house and killed Dwight and attempted to kill his 11 year old kid, Darryl, before they took off with what money they could find.   His son, now 23, was stabbed in the back and left for dead.  He survived and is wheelchair bound and has undergone several surgeries to repair his wounds.  He will be paralyzed for life.   None of this is pleasant.  Reading the f...

The Mary Davis Home - Part 2

None of these pictures were taken by me,  they came right from the MDH website.  I am posting these so that friends who have never seen inside where I worked can gain access.  After 27 years I have many stories, tales and acquaintances.  But, I wouldn't know how to express them appropriately in a few paragraphs.  I enjoyed 98% of my stay there and hope I made a difference in the lives of a fraction of the kids who entered.  The original MDH at this site was just the front part.  The large red-roofed area in back was added on in the 90's. This is the Jerry Carlton library.  It was unofficially named after one of the counselors who truly loved the place.   He passed away around 2002, I think.  Mr. Farber looks like he is explaining a few things to a client. The classroom. Activity area with the gym behind the windows. Another shot of the classroom. It was a little different area to teach since we had 2 classes and 2 teachers i...

Tuesday Tidbits On Wednesday

This week I will be heading up to the Cabin in the Woods.  I think I have come up with a long list of things to do and take care of.  As is usually the case, however, it won't take long till I miss the girls. It's kind of a Stockholm Syndrome in reverse, or circle.  My primary concern is Alfred and her substitute situation for the next few weeks before I head back for a Dr.'s appointment and do a little sitting to help Kenzie out.   But I suppose we'll all adjust and do nicely.  On my part I am looking forward to no diapers and some rec time.   ++++++++++ This is me when I am heading up to the Cabin In The Woods. ++++++++++ Oh yeah. ++++++++++ Poor Alfred.  It'll get easier, I swear. ++++++++++   One of my dreams is to find something like this or an old car tucked away in a barn somewhere.  That is the closest corollary we have nowadays for finding a buried treasure....