Vintage Style Tags and Post Cards

The American Tag Company produces a line of reproduction tags and postal cards. The tags are designer tags featuring art deco ladies and fashions. The postal cards come in two styles. One features international postcard designs. The other American designs. These are great for crafting, gift tags, and actual postcards. Another Made in America product.

Designer Tags • Set of 4 • $3.95

Postal Cards in American Designs • Set of 8 • $9.95

Postal Cards in International Designs • Set of 8 • $9.95

Inlaid Wood Money Clips and Card Holders

Just in! These superbly crafted money clips and business card holders from a New England studio. We love the warmth and sooth texture of finely crafted hardwood pieces. Priced at $49.95 each, these are perfect for the man in your life ... or just get one for yourself! Why not? As Susan's old boss had on his license plate: "IOIT2ME"!

The artists maintain a studio in a small Rhode Island town. Working out of a nineteenth century mill overlooking Dorset Mill Pond, they utilize the beauty of their surroundings to create objects that are simple yet elegant in design. Their woodcrafts are both serviceable and handsome. With minimal care, they can be appreciated for years to come. The hallmark of their work is its combination of artistic expression and utilitarian design. 

Renga Arts in Sebastopol

Driving down Sonoma's Gravenstein Highway south of Sebastopol the other day we spotted some bizarre and fascinating art surrounding this art shop. We just had to stop. There were space ships and trains, trucks carrying pigs and a VW bus driven by a strange couple. Around the garden were an eclectic mix of characters, animals and things!

How about a backyard party?

Conducter Patrick?

We recognized the reclaimed art sculptures as the work of Patrick Amiot and Brigitte Laurent, Sebastopol urban artists that we profiled a few years ago. Their junk art and wall reliefs are a collaborative effort of ideas and talents, jointly conceived, jointly created. Patrick sculpts and Brigitte paints.

 

This doesn't look like Buster Posey ... does it?

Remnants to arts

Looks like a confrontation is going to happen!

Farmer John and whoo else?

I think someone needs to kiss this frog.

Our fav ... the Three Pigs Construction Company

Hippies!

Back in 2010 we saw their art posted on lawns, standing in fields and parked in front of local businesses. Their art is now also on display at Renga Arts, along with the creations of owner Josef Suecs and a trove of other local artists. The shop's website explains:  

Renga Arts produces and sells art, both fine and functional, made from reclaimed, salvaged, and recycled materials. We have joined reknowned folk artist, Patrick Amiot, to create a showcase for exemplary works from the finest artists and craftspeople working with salvaged materials. 

Much of our line capitalizes on the inherent glory of used, and abused, surfaces and materials. Each has a history, a story, a past -- and at best, an intimation of soul. Other works are made of new materials, though constructed in such a way to hasten the process of positive decay.

A look out back.

Maybe this is a bit sacriligious, but it makes a statement!

The Amiot/Laurent art dominates the yard and sculpture garden. Inside are smaller objects including pianobots and vinyl record birds and ants by Suecs, nifty glass vases from Cee Glass ... or are they ink wells ... or maybe pencil holders ... they are what you want them to be, and eddy heads by 3D Edddy. There are dozens of other artists offering notes and cards, bags and purses, jewelry and whimsies.

 

One of Josef Suecs' Rocket Bots

Larger Pianobots by Suecs

A whole display of Pianobots

Vinyl record ants ... looking for lunch?

... and vinyl record birds flying overhead.

This is the vinyl record birds after they have been cut from the record

Cee Glass bottle top vases

3D Edddy's "Eddy Head"

The website also offers a look at a wonderful 1970s Collage Scrapbook filled with greeting cards, newspaper and magazine clippings and cartoons, jewelry catalogs, wildlife pictures, television show ads, children's books, and other everyday images. 

Stop into Renga Arts next time you are in the Sonoma wine country or in the Sebastopol apple country.  It is located at: Renga Arts, 2371 Gravenstein Hwy South, Sebastopol, CA 95472. Phone: 707.823.9407

Goodie Bags and Paper Straws

It seems like we always have a need for little bags for goodies, popcorn or snacks ... and paper straws bring back loads of memories of milk shakes and ice cream sodas at the fountain in Woolworth's. We have them both! But don't stop at popcorn and sodas. Try using these paper gems in crafts, as gift bags, as part of table decorations, or just to jazz things up at a picnic.

Colorful Paper Bags in stripes, dots and chevrons (5"x7") $7.95 for a package of 24

Paper Straws in stripes, dots and hearts (7 3/4") $6.95 for a package of 25

Use these with baker's twine, washi tape, pretty ribbons, paper flowers and colorful paper ... and we have all that stuff too!

Great for picnics, tailgates, BBQs ... anytime you want to have fun!

Try making some flags or hearts to put on the straws

We pulled these ideas off the internet

Great Spring colors!

To top it all off, these bags and straws are made in the good old USA! Just another product we keep local.

Vintage-style Postcards and Tags

The American Tag Company produces a line of reproduction tags and postal cards. The tags are designer tags featuring art deco ladies and fashions. The postal cards come in two styles. One features international postcard designs. The other American designs. These are great for crafting, gift tags, and actual postcards. Another Made in America product.

Designer Tags • Set of 4 • $3.95

Postal Cards in American or International Designs • Set of 8 • $9.95

Craftsman Tile from Janet Ontko

Janet Ontko is inspired by the simplicity and style of the Craftsman Movement: the honesty of the materials, the look of the clay, the touch of the potter. The return to the craft tradition compelled Janet to develop her own signature style.  We love her tiles and have offered them here at Vintages and online for several years. 

Decorative Clay Tiles • Here in tan and heather glazes • $45.95 each

Welcome Clay Tiles • Here in white and heather glazes • $49.95 each

Inspirational Word Tiles • $29.95 each

Janet explains her inspiration and methods:

My inspiration for creating these clay forms comes from my love of nature and nostalgia for vintage ceramic styles.  I've worked with clay all of my life and enjoy interpreting nature's details creatively.  By combining the two together, I have designed a distinct ceramic form for home and garden.  Each clay form is handmade using century-old techniques.  Glazed and kiln fired, they vary slightly in design and appearance making each one unique.

 

Janet attended CSU Fresno and has worked with a number of Fresno artists. Her studios are still in the central valley town of Fresno. She enjoys collecting vintage American art pottery and working in her garden and fishpond, drawing inspiration and relaxation from nature and art.

 

The incredible glazes created by Janet are translucent, as were the glazes of the great American art potteries of the early 1900s. These tiles are equally suited for hanging on the wall, setting on a table top, or attached to an inside backsplash or an outside wall to welcome your guests at your front door.

 

We hope you enjoy her work as much as we do.  Please peruse our shop site or drop by our store to see more of Janet's tiles.  And if we do not have the design or glaze you want, we will be happy to place a special order for you.

Handmade Decorative Stationery Box & Tags

This gorgeous handmade stationery box is a treasure trove of paper art supplies. Tricia Bourdakis of Tricia's Ribbons & Fine Things made this beautiful, one-of-a-kind box and filled it with a bunch of hand-made ephemera. What a wonderful gift for yourself or someone you love.

This one-of-a-kind hand crafted stationery box is just $89, complete with the above list of ephemera.

Tricia also makes these gift tags that are suitable for framing -- each one is truly a work of art.

Tricia's Handmade Tags ($12.95 each)

We have lots of wonderful handmade tags, cards and all the supplies for making your own. Come in and see for yourself.

Vintage Paper Ephemera

This month we would like to highlight vintage paper ephemera. We recently listed quite a sizable selection on Susan's Pretty Ribbons Etsy site. These papers are wonderful unique items that are perfect for that special tag, note or card. Imagine using these one-of-a-kind pages, letters, envelopes, menus or ledger sheets in a scrapbook or altered art project, or embedded into a collage, under an encaustic layer or in a decoupage. Your limit is your imagination. Here are some of the pieces we have on Etsy ... and we have much more in the shop.