Art From Two Friends

Today is a very special day. I get to blog again, and enjoy what I'm doing. For the past week, I have been kept overly busy and have hardly had a chance to say two words to you all, and I missed every minute.
Mostly, I missed being a part of the fun with creative people like our two Guests for the week.


Amy Jo Dayton at Art From the Heart and Ann at annsimaginationcreations have graced me this week with loveliness. I say this week in that I have had to be away for so long their gifts could neither be brought home nor viewed till now, even though they'd been sent along a week before.


It's an amazing experience being involved locally very little while becoming known somewhat internationally (visitors from all over the globe visit here daily now--another reason to be delighted with our home blog's early days). What surprised me more was how quickly I felt tucked under the wings of their bright nurturing. If you notice, dear reader, these two ladies grace every 'Possum here nearly every day with encouraging words which, truth be known, have urged us to keep with the routine and grow online. They are intelligent, thoughtful, and tenderheartedly caring individuals. This is an easy thing to find out when you hang out with them online as often as it has been our PPS pleasure to do so. For me, this goes double, as I am our blog's semi official "Hostess." Which means, I get to enjoy our crowd here every single time I log in to blog.


Amy's art I had never seen before, on or offline, until my gig here. Now I know her quality and grace quite well. I say grace in that it must not be denied how graceful a wise compatriot of the blogging world Amy Jo Dayton is. Her recent gift, using one of the images posted HERE, wowed me down to the ground with beauty. And what beauty her artwork now brings into my life! (and FRAMED too!!!!!)

Art by Amy Jo Dayton of Amy Jo's Folk Art Studio, Traverse City, Michigan

(In which every color fits with the decor of the front room! And the theme is divine! Love the frame's look too!!!!)

Three ATCs by Ann of ansimaginationcreations.blogspot.com

(sorry about the blur to the first card's look--we're still in the market for the right camera)

I am honored, wowed to tears here, for I am truly grateful to these two ladies for making me feel as comfortable as I now feel in this position. I owe it to both for making the time here in our earliest stages of growth, process, and development, all the warmer and more lighthearted. I can't begin to tell everyone just how much it has meant to find their lovely musings in the Comments box here at nearly every turn. And that doesn't even count the emails we've begun trading here in recent weeks.


I can't even recall the first time we started interacting here. It just seems like from Day One.


Ann I only lately began to know once she became our first Giveaway winner back in April of this year. As we had only been blogging a short time, our first prize package had special significance, made all the more special by the beautiful people we met along the way. There are several others who've paved the way to good relations, all of whom deserve mention, yet I know somehow they'll find it true how consistently there these two people are. That they latched onto this site when it had barely begun still stumps me. The why of it I could not tell you. I just know I'm enjoying every minute. And with these two women around, who wouldn't find our blogosphere a friendlier, warmer, safer environment to incubate new ideas? We're not hatched yet, and we are warmed by our Followers, Friends and Visitors to continue incubating and to hopefully become something more than just a few random ideas coming together at the same starting point.


So here's to Amy Jo and Ann!!! Long may they artfully blog!!!!!!!!!
Love you guys.
You are two special, special people.
Rose

Antique Postcard: Seaside Sunset Over the Water

Isn't this charming? We found it at one of the area's best flea markets. I love all the sea creatures along with the pretty colors. It may not be as refined a collectible as others we could mention, but it has its own serene beauty. Note the seahorse tucked behind the shell shaped framework of the central focal points. Even the lobster looks perfectly satisfied in his position.
That's what we could all use once in a while, a lovely trip out over placid waters with friends.
We are hesitating to also publish its reverse side, owing to a little clean up difficulty. Not only is it a tough clean, but there is no stamp, much less postal marking, making it really less viable for posting. We find its front or illustrated side so pleasing, the back hardly mattered. Hope you'll see it our way. ;)
Happy Creativity, everyone!
Rose

Artistic Seaside Postcard

Original Coloring

Downloadable Version HERE

Brightened Up Tone

Downloadable Version HERE

Scanned Imagery courtesy PPS Archives

You are free to:

use the above images in artwork for fun or profit.

You are not free to:

repackage them for sale in any way.

Please respect our gift for the public's use.

Thank you.

Taking a Mini Break

Just an update for our visitors.
We are doing a little overhauling of our behind-the-scenes operation, including ferreting out any even somewhat doubtful posts made from before.
In our daily activities, this isn't always possible.
Please bear with us as we do a little sorting first before posting again. That should be by the middle of next week, so only a few days away.
We do hope the average visitor won't mind this waiting period. It is meant to help maintain as pristine a source for the ephemera you wanted as we are able to create.
Meantime, relax, enjoy our scenery, so to speak, and perhaps find what you came to see.
We hope to see you around here a lot more in future.
From all of us in our Studio, Happy Creativity!

Family Fun Project: A "Modeltown" Villa Out of Paper

Continuing our tradition of trying always to do our best creatively as well as within copyright restrictions, here is the second of two papercrafted buildings dating from around the turn of the last century.
While we realize some of you may have never visited here before, please note how our instructions towards the completion of these two projects may be found HERE, where we've included the basic materials we'd recommend you start with, along with a few basic tips for use throughout.
This may well be a tough project. It is not recommended children should try this on for themselves without some assistance, as for many it would be too difficult. However, when put together by adults and children together, it could well be a lot of fun.
Let each house hold its own distinction, with color, decorative touches, and so forth, and let each child feel proud she or he was able to contribute to the process of making a truly unique finished product.
It is possible, near where you and your family live, there could be some fine examples of mid-Victorian to late-Edwardian architecture. This might make for a fun family outing, and provide further ideas for what a house would look like from that era.
Anyway, here are the patterns, with some instructions, for an antique style house made of paper. I think this might well be fun during Winter school break as well as for rainy days or family gatherings the rest of the year. Those already having our church pattern from this series may wish to call our villa the Rector's lodging or Minister's house. We think that, any way you may choose to consider the history behind such a little house, there's creative fun to be had.
Happy Creativity, everybody!
Rose & Studio Friends

Modeltown Villa Paper House Patterns

Page One

Black & White

Downloadable Version HERE

Page Two

Black & White

Downloadable Version HERE

Last Page

Black & White

Downloadable Version HERE

And for Scrapbookers & Other Image Users,

the same in our Original Patina

Page One

Original Patina

Downloadable Version HERE

Page Two

Original Patina

Downloadable Version HERE

Last Page

Original Patina

Downloadable Version HERE

Scanned Imagery courtesy PPS Archives

Free for Public Domain Use

You are free to:

use these images for fun, but not for profit.

Unless,that is,

any of the above images gets incorporated into your own artwork.

You are not free to repackage them at all for sale.

They are a free gift in the Public Domain.

Let's let them remain so.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Apologies to Our Readers: Copyright Gaffers On Our Part

From 2011
It was decided we should check further into copyright infringement regarding certain hallmarks that were displayed in our last post on Meissen Porcelain, before posting it, or any other ephemera like it, here again. 

Although none of Meissen's actual hallmarks were posted, our thoughts turned to the rights of any other manufacturers' markings which may also share the same copyrighted distinction as any of the ones ever used by Meissen.

Our apologies to anyone whose work might be affected by that last post. We hope to keep better track of such facts in future.

In Addition

We also must apologize to anyone using our Victrola labels (LABELS only--our post on the workings of Gramaphone technology are well within copyright law) printout. These were not checked thoroughly enough and have been erased from the system as thoroughly as possible. In actuality, they were of much too recent a date, by at least a decade, and therefore were not safe to be used. Please make note of this and get rid of any downloaded copies you may have. As we do not currently have the RCA company's permission to include those images here, we are certain this would be best.


As copyright laws hold strong here in the United States as well as in other places around the globe, to continue to keep a post of this sort up would be out of line with our purposes here. 50 years following the demise of the designer or copyright holder is the general rule, although there have been exceptions.


So, please be aware, we are not infallible, so it might be wise to double check our sources if ever you are in doubt. We are doing our best to make this a user friendly site, and not something worth your worrying about. However, we are human, and make mistakes sometimes, and would rather not cause any of our readers to do the same.

Again, we are heartily sorry , and are currently working out a scheme by which our researches may be more comprehensively undertaken than before.

Sincerely,

Plush Possum Studio

Plush Page Frames c. 1908: In Time for Father's Day

These more masculine offerings had been left waiting before, just for the right moment. With Father's Day (here in the U.S.) only a short while away, we thought we'd bring on the testosterone just for those readers ready to create their dad's gift or gift wrap projects.
Here we have one fine example of why this work is so appealing. Where can we find this sort of imagery other than among those older pages of long ago?
Things today seem too slick and fancy at times. These frames manage to look both formal and casual at the same time, a rarity by today's standards.
This time, instead of going for those jewel bright tones you all seem to favor, we thought we'd tone down the colorway a tad bit until it would fit a father's choices for colors in apparel or for his favorite hangout.
We hope to be able to supply our readers with a few more items that are Father's Day related later on in the weeks to come. Suffice it to say, we all love to honor those that gave their better intentions towards our lives as young people.
So here's to the dads of America.
Happy Creativity!
Rose & Studio

Outdoorsy Page Frames

Wild Berry

Downloadable Version HERE

Concord

Downloadable Version HERE

Dark Denim

Downloadable Version HERE

Mallard

Downloadable Version HERE

Forest Glade

Downloadable Version HERE

Coffee

Downloadable Version HERE

And Original Black & White

Downloadable Version HERE

Scanned Imagery courtesy PPS Archives

Free for Public Domain Use

An Artful Adventure Is Having a Brand New Giveaway! (+ our first free blog decor)

And what a giveaway! Artist and Artful blogger, Cassandra Van Curen's blog is a light hearted, colorful display all on its own. You'll find her work in various crafting and art zines, both online and at news stands. She has a flair for the unusual, and can make vintage really sparkle!
We now feature her blog button in our right sidebar for easier access. I'm sure you'll agree with us that this giveaway really shines.
Notable in this prize package is a free copy of Creating Marie Style Magazine (as in everyone's 18th century fave craft rave for fun, Marie Antoinette). Now, this is a special issue, in a single themed publication, that may be found online HERE. But the other issues available to date look like they'd be just as wonderful, really worth reading.
Here's a preview of just one of those Creating Marie Style issue pages which you'll find may be sneak peeked at the above link.

We found our first sneak peak utterly charming, fresh and fun to look through. And I love those shoes, don't you? A girl can't have enough, is our motto. This is one of those publications worth spending time with. Can't wait to see the rest!

But that's not all Cassandra's included in her prize package. Take a look HERE for the sparkling fresh straight scoop! it's a Cassandra Van Curen Original!!!

Happy Marie Antoinette Creativity!

Rose & Studio 

****

P.S.Gentle Reader, here is our first try at creating Blog Decor for our visitors. We hope to refine our skills for you the further in this area.

Hope you'll enjoy our first try! ;)

Digital brush credit (for their Micro Pattern brush):

Obsidian Dawn

Plus, if anybody knows to whom we might give credit for the Regency lady depicted, our thanks will be theirs. The jpg gives no source, and it was accidentally separated out from its original file.

Thanks.

Victorian Print: A Double Rainbow Landscape

Yesterday, we brought you our little offering of a trio of ATC backgrounds for your use. This was a pleasure to do for you, and today we'd like to add to the mix with our full sized depiction of the double rainbow.
It is sweet, this painting. Perhaps even a woman's hand made this beauty. Many a young Victorian lady was trained in both drawing and watercolor painting, so it is highly likely that is the kind of person responsible. Hypothetically, then, it was a young woman with some skill. But what she lacked was scientific training to see everything clearly enough. That this may have been painted mostly from memory seems certain. That one upside down rainbow's a bit telltale, is it not? (For more on this issue, see Comments, this post)
Regardless, we love its simple, pretty brush strokes, so delicate and lively. We hope you'll enjoy it as much as everybody here.
Happy Creativity!
Rose

Double Rainbow Landscape Watercolor

Original Look

Downloadable Version HERE

Upgraded Look

Downloadable Version HERE

Scanned Imagery courtesy PPS Archives

Free for Public Domain Use

Changes to Our Look

Well, it had to happen. We were never very satisfied with our last header, and blog background designing had to be put on hold to adjust for a certain learning curve in our Studio's ranks.
However, we did come up with some new ideas, the second of which is what you see today.
Please feel free to let us in on the affect it has with your browser. We love to hear your feedback!!!!!
Also, while we are still tweaking, expect a few other changes here or there to the present design, as in color, and so forth.
Please bear with us during our transitioning from the cutesie blog of old into our more sophisticated (hopefully) new look.
While this was fun to make, look out! It could well change again!
 ;)
We are just having way too much fun designing our blog's look. However, with no less than 4 designs to date, we may have to rest on this one. Briefly. Maybe. ;)
Suffice it to say, we are enjoying our time here serving you, our readers, and we hope you are enjoying your time here at PPS. 
On with the art-making!
And Happy Creative Blogging from all of us here at the Studio!
Rose




Header Design Elements Credits:
Frame, original classic self portrait by an 18th century woman artist, and the basis for our palette: all in the Public Domain.
Digital Brush work in corners: Obsidian Dawn

The Gramophone Revealed: Antique Views on a "Talking Machine"

In this day and age, we are ready always to learn from new sources of information, including ways to make music happen for us on a private basis. Now well over a century old, methods of collecting information specifically to be played back have become rather sophisticated.
Here's some music to help us remember some old ways of listening to tunes in one's own home.........

What happened to the old Phonograph, anyway? Since many of our readers were kids, technology has brought into every household quite a wide range of devices, from the more modern turntables to 8 Track and cassette decks, to our disc drives and now the iPod. What will happen next is anyone's guess. But it is a fascinating experience watching such changes occur.
Meanwhile, there's art to be made. :)
Happy Creativity, everybody!
Rose

Antique Phonograph Diagram (two pages)

Page One

Original Patina

Downloadable Version HERE

Black & White

Downloadable Version HERE

Page Two

Original Patina

Downloadable Version HERE

Black & White

Downloadable Version HERE

Scanned Imagery courtesy PPS Archives

You are free to:

use the above images in your artwork for fun or profit.

You are not free to:

repackage them in any way for sale.

Please respect our gifts for the public's use.

Thank you.