Antique Electric Advertising

It's shocking!~Everything's electric today!

To a Mr. J.M. Riley, I want to tip my hat today. He obviously used his own patented electric comb, although not only on his scalp. And, no, he is not wearing some fancy or weird collar under his chin. That is actually a beard growing out of his neck! Don't you pity his poor wife (if he even had one)?

Please see the red letter Guidelines below the image. Thank you.

Accompanying Mr. Riley and his strange contraption is a far more useful electrical apparatus: a Grafonola! 

Grafonola was the trademark name for a Graphophone record playing system invented at the turn of the last century. For more information about those machines, please follow the link HERE.

"A Precious Memory" 

by Bob Crosby and His Bobcats

on a genuine Grafonola.

(Bing Crosby's brother)

My grandmother had a somewhat more modern version of the record playing machine shown in the advertisement below. I only heard it play once or twice, as I recall. It used to sit on her old fashioned living room rug at the front of her house.

Happy Electric Creativity!

PPS™ Electric Ephemera Set

Download HERE

Display version

(lower quality than the download)

You are free to:

use these 2 images in art

for fun or for profit.

You are not free to:

sell them as they are here

in any way.

Otherwise, you'll be selling my time and effort.

Thank you

for helping me to 

keep free things free!

Our Salute to Fire Fighters

Free Fire Fighter Graphics

Today is September 11th here in the USA, and therefore it is a solemn and important anniversary for us all.

In honor of the day's observances, the Studio is offering the following images for free. These were supplied initially by nypl.org. The first is a collage set. The second is a lower resolution item than would normally be offered here, but it appears to be the sort of item which children might color. It is a slice of history, an illustration from an old newspaper article. It looked rather untidy, and so has been softened a bit. It is by no means of fine enough quality for framing, but rather for coloring in by children.

Please read our red letters below for legal guidelines.
Thank you.

So here's to the heroes whose lives were in danger throughout that fateful time.
And here is our salute to just one gathering of people from among the many, many heroes of that time: the Fire Fighters. Quite frankly, I see them all as heroic all of the time for us. Somehow, though, during our disasters they seem to really rise to even greater heights as people with every harrowing act of heroism.

PPS™ Fire Fighter Collage Set

Download Printable JPG HERE

The Display Copy 

(at a lower resolution than the download above)

Click on image for enlarged view

PPSColorMe™ Page: A Brave Fire Fighter

Download Printable JPG HERE

The Display Copy

(at a lower resolution even than the download)

You are free to:

use the above images in art for educational

or personal purposes.

These images are a part of the nypl.org Collection.

Therefore, that library has ultimate ownership.

Let's keep free things, free!

Thank you.

Our Next Chapter!

Today's latest Steam Tea Travels post is now up and rolling!

Do stop by for a peek at our Links Party there, won't you?

You may find it and Downloadable Imagery HERE

Meantime, here is a display copy of only one of the offerings you'll find there (and there are 3 in today's post alone!), all for Free and for use as you choose. Just another service of our Studio's for you.

NOTE:

This set was not pre-packaged when we found it. In fact, it took weeks of searching and then processing and cleaning up to make this set a finished product.

We would never sell anything which you, our guests, had not given us permission to sell, and we ask that that same courtesy be given to us in return.

Otherwise, a theft would occur, or friends part ways. This may not seem all that valuable an item, but it does belong to our Studio, in that it was processed for months before being offered for your use.

Free of charge.

Please be mindful of others' copyrights.

Thank you.

Some Sneak Peek Images
(for Downloads at 300 dpi of the following image sets, 
please go HERE)

"Magnificent" Flying Machines Set for Digi & Print

The Wright Brothers' Kitty Hawk anniversary is soon to occur, and with that in mind, we are posting a fun set of flying machine images for you to play with.

Included here are two technical images in black and white which we removed all background from for our Digi crowd. Print -style artists will still find the same quality available for use, as we always post both versions at the same resolution here.

I'm fondest of all of that propeller. I can see many possibilities for that one image! ;)

For more info on the Wright Brothers, their aircraft, or the history of flight in general, please go HERE.

Hope you'll enjoy all our collage sets here at PPS as much as we do creating each one for you.

Happy Creativity!

Rose

NOTE:

This set was not pre-packaged when we found it. In fact, it took weeks of searching and then processing and cleaning up to make this set a finished product.

We would never sell anything which you, our guests, had not given us permission to sell, and we ask that that same courtesy be given to us in return.

Otherwise, a theft would occur, or friends part ways. This may not seem all that valuable an item, but it does belong to our Studio, in that it was processed for months before being offered for your use.

Free of charge.

Please be mindful of others' copyrights.

Thank you.

PPSDigiScrap™ Collage Set: Flying Machines

Download Digi PNG Version HERE

Download JPG Print Version HERE

Credits: Original 1890's image (prior to our fiddling) from
the New york Public Library at nypl.org
also from Wiki Commons

Antique Truck Graphic: A Gift From Christine H. at The Daily Postcard

Isn't life wonderful? It brings us surprises of friendship along with gifts like this one.
Christine was nice enough to email me some very fine scans from a book of hers which I admired in her post HERE. It's really a fascinating article! You may want to check it out!
I was so surprised, I dropped our other project for over the weekend in favor of some of her automobile ephemera. The scans we received she had so graciously set for our default setting of 300dpi--so we had very little difficulty in processing our first offering from her set for you.
Her scan work was just perfect as it was, so we didn't have to do much beyond straighten or clean up as we generally would.
We are offering this one for your use in both colorways of Original Look and B&W.
So a big round of applause for Christine H.!! Once you visit her stellar blog, you'll be sure to want to return for more of her interesting musings! Please remember to thank her with a comment or two and your Follow while you're there. 
Hope you'll treasure your friends from near and far this weekend with some of your--
Happy Creativity!
Rose

Christine's Truck Imagery

Original Look

Download Digi PNG Version HERE

Download For Print Version HERE

Black & White

Download Digi PNG Version HERE

Download For Print Version HERE

You are free to:

make art with the above two graphic pages

for either fun or profit.

After all, they are in the public domain.

But please don't

repackage either version for sale as they are meant to be kept free.

Please respect our  (And Christine H.'s) 

gifts for the public's use.

Thank you.

Autumn's Finest Hour--On Wheels!

Isn't this a lovely time of year? Every color seems remarkable against the sky, whether the weather might be clear where you are, or stormy. Many of us love to head for the hills, mountain passes, or valleys of their youth during autumn weather for glimpses of colorful foliage. There's a nostalgia about such places I find quite touching.
The two pictures we've uploaded for you this morning are all about traveling through countryside when nature is at her showiest.
I'm loving that old automobile. Isn't it charming? The bonnets of the ladies are tied down with scarves, and their vantage point over a valley is simply divine! But those cyclists--how serious they look! I would imagine it takes great skill, balance, and confident handling to ride those high-wheeled bikes over such a bumpy dirt road!
We hope you'll find plenty of uses for this duo and that you'll enjoy our weather with those thoughts of more of your--
Happy Creativity!
Rose

Autumn's Antique Wheelers

Download Full Resolution HERE

New Steampunk Party Fun: Wrap Up Your Cupcakes!

We're having so much fun at the Studio using Steampunk for a theme. And if it's party gear you're after today, you can look no further. Already, we have two back-to-back posts focussing on Steampunk party gear with an edge on fresh design.
Ours are the first cupcake sleeves we've found within the same colorways or theme. All you have to do is print, clip, line with a little wax paper (we prefer the brown variety, made  from recycled paper for this particular project, but your choice might be the standard), cut the slot, slip around your choice of cupcake (preferably one still in its baking liner), and tuck the tab into the slot. That simple. Hides a multitude of ordinary cupcake liner styles!
NOTE: For speed's sake, you might try using a pair of decorative edged scissors, cutting just a hair above our geared-up top edges.
Or, Simply follow the highest peaks, ignoring the valleys altogether with your scissors, and leave just a tad of white between our peaks.
Enjoy your party season with our growing selection of party gear for--
Happy Creativity!
Rose

NOTE:
This set was not pre-packaged when we found it. In fact, it took several weeks of searching and then trial and error work and processing, along with cleaning up in order to make this set a finished product for your use.
We would never sell anything which you, our guests, had not given us permission to sell, and we ask that that same courtesy be given to us in return.
Otherwise, a theft would occur, or friends part ways. This may not seem all that valuable an item, but it does belong to our Studio, in that it was processed for months before being offered for your use.
Free of charge.
Please be mindful of others' copyrights.
Thank you.


Steampunk Party Style Cupcake "Sleeves"

Set One

Download HERE

Set Two

Download HERE

CREDITS
Corner digital brushes to both these items are by
Obsidian Dawn.


Credits: Original Antique imagery (prior to our fiddling) from
the New york Public Library at nypl.org
Also Wiki Commons

Summer Holidays Collage Printable

Today's post is all about the many ways we humans might have recreated our summers away in past centuries.
Selected images in the collage set below include camping (shown two ways), sports such as swimming, and a bit of fashionable apparel, among other things.
And what have you done with your summer fun time? Did you find a great read for your enjoyment? Or did you, perhaps, add to your art skills? Were you able to get out more often? And when you were, where did you stay?
My favorite images below would have to be the woman in her corseted "bathing costume" descending the steps to her "bathing engine," and the deluxe camper car--altho' sleeping outdoors would be preferable to breathing oil and gas fumes all night long! ;)
Hope you're enjoying what's left of the summertime fun!
Rose

Summertime Collage Printable

Downloadable Version HERE

Credits: Original Antique imagery (prior to our fiddling) from
the New york Public Library at nypl.org
Also, Wikimedia Commons

PPSDigiScrapPak™: Early Mowing Machines

As part of the summer wrap up, I thought I'd take on all you gardeners and lawn jockeys for a change.
Below, there is a new supply of tools to meet every lawn care need. Among those images shown you'll find are included numerous Digi PNG versions of each separated lawn care tool.
In addition, there is a fun bit of ephemera for the family prize-winning lawn jockeys we all favor. This one also comes in both Digi and Print formats.
Digi creatives, look for the "Digi PNG" label, and Hands-On creatives, look for the "JPG Print Version" label. 
I love each fun bit of ephemera today. Hope you will too!
Happy Creativity!
Rose

PPSDigiScrapPak™ Duo: Lawn Care Machinery

Set 1

Download Digi PNG Version HERE


Download JPG Print Version (for those with 12" by 12" printer format available) HERE

Set 2
Download Digi PNG Version HERE


Download JPG Print Version HERE



You are free to:
use the above sets in artwork for fun or sale.
You are not free to:
repackage this set or any other I am sharing
for sale in any way.
Please respect these gifts for the public's use.
Thank you
for helping me to
keep free things free!

Final Post for Steampunk Month!

Hi, all. It's about 11:30 here on a Sunday morning, and I'm relaxing and thinking about our new month just around the corner.
In our final tribute to this month's theme over at Gingersnap Creations, we offer 3 different sets with an edge on travel, steam style.
It's been a lot of fun, following along and keeping with our theme. I'm almost sad to let it go for a while. But, with so many new ideas, themes and fun projects to inspire me always coming to the fore in our blogosphere, I'm guaranteed of a good time year round even without Steampunking it up.
Time to bid adieu to Mona and her fab getup. We may see her lurking here a time or three before the year's end, just maybe not attired in so steam powered a manner. I love goofing on Mona! Hope you do too. ;)
Below, you'll note that, as before in our series, we've included more than one format to choose from. Our PNG sets are for strictly digital use (although they may still print, who can say), while our JPG Downloads are more easily accessed for hands-on style uses. 
Those of you who are new to us may wish to note here how our display versions (the ones you see here) are not only inferior to those Downloads available, but they aren't even print-worthy. We like to urge our readers always to choose for the higher quality versions we offer. This means you'll not only get the clarity of our best versions, but you hopefully won't be disappointed, either.
We generally set to scan at 300dpi, while the display versions on our blog are generally set at 96dpi (or our shorthand for it, "96PX"). This is calculated to make certain we aren't using too many KBs of our online storage.  Just a general heads-up so everyone will be on the same page.
Hope you're having a grand time Steampunking it with us. I've personally had enough fun to want to play with our Steampunk style all year long.
Happy Creativity!
Rose

NOTE:
These sets was not pre-packaged when we found them. In fact, it took weeks of searching and then processing and cleaning up to make of these sets our finished products.
We would never sell anything which you, our guests, had not given us permission to sell, and we ask that that same courtesy be given to us in return.
Otherwise, a theft would occur, or friends part ways. These sets may not seem all that valuable, but they do belong to our Studio, in that they were processed for months before being offered here for your use.
Free of charge.
Please be mindful of others' copyrights.
Thank you.


Steampunk Travel Sets

Set One

Download PPSDigiScrap™ 12" by 12" PNG Version HERE

Download Regular Set in JPG format HERE

Set 2

Download Digital PNG Format Version HERE

Download Print Version JPG HERE

Set Three

Download Digi PNG Version HERE

Download Print Version JPG HERE

Credits: Images--Public Domain
Altering of same--PPS



Credits: Original Antique imagery (prior to our fiddling) from
the New york Public Library at nypl.org
Also, Wikimedia Commons

New! Collage Background Freebie--Steampunk Style!

Winding up our month of fun with the Gingersnap Creations theme of Steampunk, we now include a brand new background for you.
This one we hope will bring a smile. And isn't it just right for layering, glazing, playing around with? Just enough room for playing with the theme your own way.
We doctored it a bit, starting with a change-up to its colorway, then added our own brand of fun to the overall theme using a few of the Digital Brushes from our favorite freebie brush site, Obsidian Dawn.
Below, you'll find our example, set at 96 dpi (digital pixels/ inch). For those of you new to the scene around here, you may want something a little finer in quality than this example. For that, you've only to click on the word "HERE" next to the phrase including "Download" in order to find the same artwork for your use at 300dpi instead. The difference is essential, especially once the work is in process.
Those of you used to the routine--you know what the difference is, don't you? ;)
Happy Creativity!
Rose

NOTE:
Due to the nature of the content of this collage background, it is not copyright free.
Please be aware that to sell it, even if you update it or make it more snazzy or fancy, that to do so would infringe international copyright laws.
Thank you. 


Collage Background: "Steampunk Airship Show"

Downloadable Version HERE

Primary Image (prior to much fiddling by us)

Courtesy Wikimedia Commons

Final Three Days For the Gingersnap Creations Steampunk Express! (with correction for download Set 3)

Our post today is all about inventors of the past and those inventions they offered the world. Included are some hopefully new ways for us to play around in this month's theme of Steampunk.  Also, those with digi capabilities may want to look for a few digi stamps in some places on the sheets below. Our inspiration started with  Gingersnap Creations designating all of the month of July as steam powered by design. This got followed by some fun over at The Three Muses, and with us discovering the wonderful land of Dezinaworld.
Needless to say, it's been a busy month, packed with so many creative new ideas coming to us from friends, it's enough to get me going all year long!
This weekend will be our last chance for the month long celebrating we've come to enjoy. So we're pulling out all the stops through the weekend with more Steampunk fun than you can shake a stick at.
Our readers will find at least two more offerings in the next two days. Hope you all will like what you see!
Meanwhile, as plans are going forward for the many holidays upcoming, along with school being in session in most places once more, there'll be more non-steamy additions to this collection here shortly.
For more in our Steampunk collection of imagery, you can go HERE.
Let's make it a Steam Powered weekend!
Happy Creativity!
Rose

NOTE:
The following sets were not pre-packaged when we found them. In fact, it took weeks of searching and then processing and cleaning up to make of these sets our finished products for your use.
Our sources are many and varied. It takes time to do just the right searching for just the right item, while making certain that each item is in the Public Domain, or legally free to be used.
Sometimes, our researches take us into dangerous areas, where we find our laws confusing, to say the very least.
that being said---
we would never sell anything which you, our guests, had not given us permission to sell, and we ask that that same courtesy be given to us in return.
Otherwise, a theft would occur, or friends part ways. This may not seem all that valuable an item, but it does belong to our Studio, in that it was processed for months before being offered for your use.
Free of charge.
Let's keep it free.
(This would not apply to any use of a single item or several scattered items form these particular sets. Please do not re-package anything you find here as your own kind of set.)
Please be mindful of others' copyrights.
Thank you.


Steampunk Inventions Sets

Set 1

Download 12" by 12" PNG Digi Version HERE

Download 12" by 12" Print Version (for those with that capability) HERE

Set 2

Download Digital PNG Version HERE

Download Print Version HERE

Set 3

Download Digital PNG Version HERE

Download Print Version HERE

Credits: Original Antique imagery (prior to our fiddling) from
the New york Public Library at nypl.org
Also, Wikimedia Commons

NEW! Steampunk Digi Air Travel Set!

Oh, so much fun! As we enjoy our countdown towards August, we thought we'd add some more funk to the old Steampunk theme via the two new sheets below. (Don't forget to check out all the fun with this month's theme of Steampunk over at Gingersnap Creations!! Lots more to do there!!)
Both are reformatted for more fun--meaning, each one may be used 2 different ways!
That's right!
So our 12" by 12" Digiscrap set will download as a PNG, or as a printable JPG--take your pick!
And our 8.5" by 11" set comes the very same way! Just click on your chosen format's link (either transparent PNG or regular printworthy JPG) and download!
Hope you'll enjoy these new pages and find many ways of using each image.
You can find our entire Steampunk category HERE.
;)
Happy Steampunk Month Creativity!
Rose


P.S. And, yes, we sepia toned a Rousseau as part of the 12" by 12".
(For those less familiar with the works of Rousseau, it's the second one down, far left.)

Steampunk Dirigibles Sets

12" by 12" Scrapper Set

Downloadable PNG (no background for the Digi crowd) HERE

Downloadable 12" by 12" Printable (for those with such printer capabilities) JPG HERE

8.5" by 11" Set

Downloadable  PNG (no background-for the Digi crowd) HERE

Downloadable JPG Version HERE

(Yes!!! Finally, Docs let us upload these for you!!!!!)

Credits: Original Antique imagery (prior to our fiddling) from

the New York Public Library at nypl.org

Also, WIkimedia Commons

You are free to:

use these in art for fun or profit, provided you will credit back to us with a link (thank you!)

You are not free to:

Repackage these for sale in any way.

Please honor our gift to the public by keeping them free for use.

Thank you!

Antique Illustration: A Farmer's Chores

Summer is for summertime fun, of course, but some of us have more work to do this time of year, including our farm community.
Here is one example of a bookload of wonderful illustrations we found at one library book sale.
And isn't it a treat? The horse stands patiently, ready for his master's command. Our farmer is poised, ready to start a new row.
I love the suspenders he wears, the way his attention is on the ground, where it's broken by cultivating. The machine itself is from before our first World War. It's so old fashioned, I bet one would be hard to find these days, except in  history museums.
We hope you enjoy this pause from this month's Steampunk fun. We'll be back around tomorrow, most likely, with a little something more for our fellow "steamers."
In the meantime--
Happy Creativity!
Rose

Antique Farm Manual Illustration

Black & White

Downloadable Version HERE

Old Look

Downloadable Version HERE

Scanned imagery courtesy PPS Archives

Free for Public Domain Use

Follow the Gingersnap Express using our Collage Sheet: A Steamy Trip to Gay "Paree"

This month, over at Gingersnap Creations, the theme is Steampunk--all month long!!! And here in our studio we are playing along!


Our pleasure is to doctor everything so that a visitor may walk away ready to create, and no fuss. As not everyone's keen on the digital world, we like to make certain our guests may choose how to apply their own creative mojo using our ephemera. We hope this will suit the discerning tastes of our visitors toward either path, the digital or hands-on approaches. Quite frankly, both please me immensely, so I may choose to alter by hand any of the digital works I may produce for online or elsewhere.


In case you are  not currently familiar with the goings on over at Gingersnap Creations, they host many a chance to get motivated, including challenges which bring out the best in the community they foster. Our response to their challenges was merely digital before, and, while they may choose to incorporate digital images from collage sheets and the like, they are most definitely a design team with a more hands-on focus. But what an appropriate focus! I like to stop by just to get inspired by gazing at all the beauty and playfulness I find at their team's blog. It's a beautiful thing. You should check it out!
Follow that Gingersnap link above for more steamy fun than you can shake a stick at!
By the way, I have at least one piece already in the works (well, the other 3 may pan out or not--art develops at its own pace), which I hope will be well received by the Gingersnap crowd.
Don't look for me to tell you what it's all about yet though! LOL
Happy Steamy Creativity!
Rose


Please be kind enough to never repackage for sale any of this site's offerings. They were meant to stay free for use permanently.
Also, we hope you will keep the bonds of fairness strong by never claiming any portion of our works  (either copyrighted or otherwise) are or were ever your own.
Thank You
The Studio

PPS Collage Sheet: "Gearing Up For Gay Paris"

Downloadable Version HERE

Credits: Original Antique imagery (prior to our fiddling) from

the New York Public Library at nypl.org

Also, Wikimedia Commons

You are free to:

Use the above set's items for artwork for fun or for profit.

You are not free to:

Repackage or redistribute this set

for any reason for sale.

This took many hours of work to design.

We hold the copyrights on that design, and 

are giving our set away here feely.

Please respect our gifts for the public's use.

Thank you.

Please attribute all artists listed above, including this Studio. Thanks so much.