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Thursday, December 31, 2009

Happy New Year everyone.........
Things are doing good here at the Ludwig house, Scott is recovering nicely and everyone else is surviving having a man in the house 24/7
some friends having been inquiring if we are doing another valentine greeting swap....i would love to. so if you are interested in getting creative and sending a little something to some other creative people let me know. It dosen't have to be a card, last year there were cookies and a hand knit heart pin.....put on your thinking caps and tell me your in.....
much hugs

Thursday, November 26, 2009

back to crafting and blogging next week.....my husband has been recovering from bypass surgery, but things are coming along nicely. thank you all for the good wishes.

well, my family sure has a lot to be thankful this year....nov 15th my husband had a heart attack and on nov.18th he had a quadruple bypass.....he is home now and getting stronger everyday....thanks to all the people that sent good thoughts his way, they all mean the world to us.
so, a bit more playing nurse and it is back to creating .

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

working, working, working.........getting ready for the Algonquin mill festival next week. Of course i am a procrastinator and got in the swing real late. But boy, am i swinging...ALL OVER THE HOUSE. the Ludwig house kinda looks like a war happened in here, well the weapons must have been fabric and paint...add 7 cats in the mix and you've got a disaster area. oh well, it will clean up and i love creating things. I love all the work but i especially love crafting up people, i mean dolls.

Thursday, August 27, 2009

it is just HOT....especially when your air conditioner goes poof .....it has been about a week and I have cankles....and my fingers look like Vienna sausages. Fat chicks cannot live without air....so it is shopping for me...and not fun stuff like shoes
(as if they would fit right now)
but a big box with something that will keep me cool. yippee....

Friday, August 21, 2009

Freebie Friday

This is the first Friday Freebie. I am going to try to post something of interest every Friday from now on, right here on the Vintage Macaroni blog.


This one's from a 50s Steubenville Herald Star. Back then, the Clare's Cafe was a big thing. That was when Amsterdam wasn't little more than a ghost town.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009


Finally the very old doors I bought at a garage sale forever ago have a home. I just love them....kinda like me...old ain't always bad.

so my husband went back to work....it was a fun time having him home for 2 months but back to reality....back to my studio, today the doors are going up and the outside light are to be installed...now Scott's REAL JOB is interfering with my completion plans. since he has gone back to work that means i have to get to work on items for the Algonquin mill.....the fact that it is in mid-October and I am just starting says a lot about how much fun we had together during this lay off.
so last night after he left for work I started working on a collage idea that kept running around in my head all summer.....worked way past my bedtime and boy, this morning i discovered it was the ugliest thing i had ever seen.....so it is back to the drawing board.

Friday, August 7, 2009

done......2:00 have i said wow today????
now all scott needs to do is install the door and paint
maybe i will move right in
maybe that was his WHOLE idea

trusses are up and it is only 9:45 , these guys are so focused....

8:21 a.m. boy are these guys fast.......i can see it coming together.....gona have to have a party....
oh and scott wiggled and jiggled things on the frig until it started working...let hope it holds

WOW, 6:22.......SOMETHING MUST BE GOIN' RIGHT FOR ME TODAY....

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Well, like Cindy's entry. My yesterday was perfect.....wonderful weather, wonderful company
( thanks Jody )
,and a wonderful visit with old friends......then today it all went to hell in a hand basket...........
#1......builders aren't coming to work on the studio until Friday. guess what I heard it's gona rain!
# 2...... my 3 year old refrigerator went POOP......AGAIN .....this happened under a year ago and was down for 5 weeks and here we go again
#3 We just went grocery shopping .....so everything is being transfered to coolers and we are going 12 miles to get ice. I would use the mini frig Sears gave me for medicine but oh, yeah it never worked....
So its off to call sears again
I had such a wonderful experience last year, I can hardly wait!

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Lucky August


August is a lucky month so far.

Yesterday, what seemed to be a disaster - going to Lawrenceville on Monday and not knowing that all the cool shops on the entire street are closed on Monday - turned into a good day. I found some fabulous stuff at Construction Junction and a new restaurant to boot!

This charming vintage dresser was a steal at $15, and the book cart sitting in front of it - vintage, made of metal, with World Book Encyclopedia printed on the front - was only $5. We found some *free* stuff in someone's trash along Penn Ave., and saw many fabulous things we could not get home, including a vintage white children's picnic table someone was throwing out.

I need a conversion van. One of those ones that can haul either 15 people or mountains of stuff.

My blazer isn't big enough. Especially since my mom never took out the lawn chairs from 4th of July, and all this stuff had to fit in the back yesterday.

For the full version of the story, check out my personal blog over here: Gob Pile.

Friday, July 31, 2009

well, I have had my share of cooking mishaps.....first when I was about 20 was the dill potato soup made with eagle brand milk, because I did not know the difference between eagle brand and carnation evaporated milk YKKKKKK.........then a few years ago I grabbed the liquid smoke instead of vanilla.....AND I WAS MAKING FRENCH TOAST......this was not a hit.....
now last night I was in the process of making creamed egg for this mornings breakfast. butter, mustard ,salt, pepper, hot sauce, and..........................flour for thickening of course............only I grabbed the powdered sugar.......I stirred and stirred but it just didn't get thick.....thank goodness I tasted BEFORE i added the hard boiled eggs....not that mustard and hot sauce don't JUST taste yummy with sugar...I do believe the eggs would have sent it to the top of the all time awful combo list.
I do believe my husband is taking me out to supper this evening.....
SMART GUY

Thursday, July 30, 2009

so they said my studio would be up on Saturday....now they say they are coming next Wednesday......something about the rain or some other shit.....TOUGHEN UP....a little rain isn't going to hurt ya. I am just no good at this waiting crap......think I will drag out all my art supplies and make a mess everywhere.........

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Butterfly Summer





earlier this summer we had a butterfly that just seemed to love my porch......hung around the better part of the morning.....My son,Brent held it for 20 minutes before it decided to chat up the dog. That seemed to be a preview for the whole summer, I think there has been a record setting amount visit this year...and whew, they don't eat near as much as the dog or the kid.




Monday, July 13, 2009

never mind...............I forgot to delete the former background dhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh


grrrr......I found this wonderful background paper at the Background Fairy http://www.backgroundfairy.com/ and well I am trying to change the blog look.....not so successfully. A coupla weeks ago I had no problems changing the header and the paper so being the cocky chic I am, I decided to completely change the layout...........hmmmmmmmmmmm maybe not such a fab idea...oh well tomorrow is another day.

Happy Birthday Stella
I hope you have a wonderful day.........

I will take you to breakfast soon..shop a bit..and later maybe even lunch,
that ol' building can just wait!

Friday, July 10, 2009

so....it was me and kid rock this weekend, well, sorta I was there but so was everyone else. My kids took me to post gazzette cause i am a fan....but just let me tell you about the TAILGATING.....Brent and Chrissy have this down to a science. canopy, tables one for food, one for a bar...a kick ass charcoal grill, comfy chairs. we had grilled shrimp, beef mushroom and pepper shiskabobs, marinated pork chops, smoked pulled pork sandwiches, baked pineapple.....and of course icy beverages....with great music.

yes, my little studio may have been put on hold for a day but that's o.k. I wouldn't have missed it. Spending time with my kids and good friends....nutin' beats that.

Saturday, June 27, 2009

The Amsterdam Post Office

Plain Spoke is enveloped, addressed, and ready-to-be-mailed.


And it has been since yesterday. The post office in Amsterdam this morning decided that it was "too close to time to close" to mail them today.

I called and made a complaint about it, and then I wrote a rant, and then I took that rant and polished it into a letter to the editor of the Herald Star.

You can read it here:

Wednesday, June 17, 2009


well, i think i am finally adjusting to this new schedule of my hubbies.....today i actually worked on some artwork, and i really enjoyed it. i forgot how therapeutic creating is for me. It is a need, if I am not able to get in there and get messy, this is one crabby chick. Nobody wants to see me crabby. Oh, and now that i am adjusting Scott is taking a voluntary lay off, so some younger family guy doesn't have to...Well, now that i am adjusting, he is going to be home all the time..........I am just gona be all screwed up.


Last week, we ordered a small studio for me....HURRAH I am so excited....we have to prepare the site and then they will come and build it...it even has a small covered porch. Now Scott and I can sit and listen to the rain...something we love. Anyone wanting to help move a little dirt just paddle your lil' hush puppies over here, we'll be glad to see ya.

Thursday, June 11, 2009

The Stuff of Neglecting the Blog: Grad School, ATCs and a little bitta poetry to boot.

I've been silent for a while. Maybe that's a little more than understated, but it's the truth, regardless of the reasons. I am, however, unafraid to state them, and even though most of them might seem inconsequential enough to delay my attentiveness to the blog, when added together, the sum of their parts really does make for a mountain of a whole. Conversely, maybe they're all little molehills that make a wonderwerks of a mountain range. Any way that I look at the piled-up to-do-lists, there is just not enough scratching off going on, and that makes me sad. It makes me sad because I love to write, and I just don't have much time for it anymore. I need structure.

So here are the things keeping me away from my Other Mother (Jackie) and my lovely friends (online and off), in no particular order:

1. I have been making things for me lately. I always make a bunch of things I like and then they sell practically before I've finished them, and then I'm left with nothing but the big mess I've made. So a while back, I organized an ATC swap on Facebook, and here are some of the cards I made:

Bird School
Bird School, 2009

And None of them are Sugary or Spicy
And None of them are Sugary or Spicy, 2009

Family Tree
Family Tree, 2009

I also made a custom stamp out from a lino block so that I could stamp the back of my cards. I forgot to leave a space for my email address, but then I decided that technology has nothing to do with the organicness of creation, that technology's only place is in the meta-discourse that comes afterward, in sharing the photos on flickr and here and there/elsewhere, in using my Nikon D40 to capture (or almost capture) the character of the finished product. No, they're not as nice here as they are in person, but I can assure you that much fun and creative renewal was gained by the simple act of creating to share. Yay.

ATC Backs
Custom Stamp, 2009


2. Graduate School. Finishing up the spring semester was great, though I miss going to my Children's Literature class. There was hardly a break before May/Mini-mester began, in which I took a Grammar course and a Philosophical Studies in Education course. Horrifically, I found that my grammar is not and has never been anywhere near perfect. However, I did find my way back to diagramming sentences. Everywhere I go. I can't help myself. I leave Post-it notes everywhere. This one I graciously left for an unknowing server at Applebees in Steubenville:

3. Press/Shop/Etc. We're going to have our shop open again! Yay! (And then I'm going to wait for Jackie to put all her new artsies in her new-but-yet-unpurchased craft building complete with cute porch. Once I'm fairly certain she's got enough stuff in there to fill the walls, I'm going to sneak down there and get it. Or maybe I'll ask her for it.

Amsterdam Press is going to be releasing a bunch of titles this year, and I've got David Beard's book ready for printing. I've just got to print some proofs and get him to OK the final product. I've also almost finished Jendi Reiter's book, Swallow, which was the winner of the Flip Kelly Poetry Prize for 2008. We've got a lot of projects slated, and we're trudging through the pre-press for all of them right now. Trudging, I say, not because it's a grueling task, but because I have almost no time to devote to it until after my Teaching Writing class has ended. The month of July is dedicated to patient writers everywhere, as I catch up on correspondence, acceptance and rejection letters, requests, reviews, and other odds and ends associated with being the most disorganized editor on the planet (or at least in this tiny section of Ohio).

We have had delay after delay in getting the current issue of Plain Spoke out the door. First, I misplaced the contracts. Then it was the computer. After that, the printer ran out of toner and needed a new drum. Then we couldn't get the ink for the Epson, on which we print the covers. The toner and drum had to be ordered by mail because nobody carries it for the Xerox Workcentre M20 around here. The ink for the Epson is the one with the guitars on the box, and for some reason, nobody ever has the light cyan, so we were stumped on that one, too. Finally, I printed page 10 (which means page 47 and pages something else and something else else) the first time with a glaring typo (in which our featured poet "teachers" at such and such school instead of "teaches" and I could have just screamed. Now, the issue is ready to go, but we've got all those envelopes to address. Tomorrow is the day. We're going to get it finished tomorrow.

Here is a sneak peek at the cover:

My grandmother's handbag circa 1969, CMK 2009
Photomanipulation: black and white family photograph, Photoshop CS3

The bench has way too many pieces for me to ever attempt anything that detailed again, but I like the result.

We're painting and transforming here in the Olde Garage. We're going to have designated spaces from now on, and we're going to stop tearing everything apart all of the time. We have decided not to go to Jewett Craft Show this year for reasons that are just too lengthy to fit in this brief update, which is getting too big for its britches already. Suffice it to say that in the end, it's just not worth it. I love that my clientele always consists of the eccentric and charming ladies, young and old, who wear interesting coats and yearn for some unusual, small object, but there are just not enough of them there for us to put so much effort into going back. After something like 20 years of having been a fixture in the elementary school in what used to be a joyous show, the charm has worn off and I realize my - our - time will be best spent focusing on our small enterprises here.

P1010047
Olde Garage / Life on Europa booth | Jewett, OH, 2008
Not the show it used to be...

But there are plenty of things to be excited about: July is going to be wonderful (except for the Praxis II on July 25), the shop will be open again this summer, and for keeps, and I am almost done with my teaching licensure program. Yay!

I've started working on my Ph.D. applications already.

I am a glutton for anything difficult.




Saturday, June 6, 2009

Today

wonderful day, wonderful people.......and KAREN AND TOM look the same as they did 25 years ago......Karens sister, Shelia hosted the party and did a fabulous job.......
and all I can say about Dolly (karens mom) is
I TOTALY ADORE YOU
thank you for including us.

what a sweetie



This afternoon we are going to celebrate Karen and Tom Stevens 25th anniversary....these are two of the nicest people I have ever met....they just don't come any better.And don't they look pretty spiffy in the wedding photo.....
of course they look just as happy and young 25 years later.



Blanca Medina from http://magicmoonlightstudio.blogspot.com/

has such a lovely a lovely blog and an abundance of talent. The other day I received these beautiful tags in the mail and was thrilled ............soooooo cute. What a wonderful generous gesture, thank you Blanca so very much. Be sure to visit her blog

http://magicmoonlightstudio.blogspot.com/

or her shop http://magicmoonlightstudioshoppe.blogspot.com/

I am sure you will love her work as much as I do.










Monday, June 1, 2009

sooooooooooo...... someone has informed me that my heritage is french. who'da thunk???? My maiden name was always Jackie Lumbatis
(i was always just a jackie).....now they spring on me a new name
Jacquelyn LamBatise'
whoa whoa......wait a minute...sure sounds fancy. wonder if I would have been more sophisticated and genteel had I known this in my formative years????
maybe instead of rollerskating and swilling beer I would have learned the waltz and sipped on champagne. I really don't know if I would have been different but I think I may start now.....
BREAK OUT THE BREITENBACH(i am fresh outa the bubbly) and crepes
or as Marie said
let them eat cake

Friday, May 22, 2009

summer is finally here






It is just beautiful here....iris, phlox, and columbine are all showing off this morning. I finally got my porch pots planted and now it is time to sit and enjoy them.



Beeswax had been on my mind...there are two blogs I follow that do wonderful things with it. I felt my projects had been missing a sense of depth and maybe this would help. Dragging out that Ranger melting pot I had purchased a long time ago I popped in some beeswax pellets....and waited....and waited....nutin'.....what the crap???? maybe it was a little ticked I had waited so long to play with it, but it sure wasn't heating up. I asked for advice from Suze Weinberg and got an immediate response....it must be something wrong with the heating element, so I drug out a small old crock pot and it worked. not so easy to work out of but it got the job done. I now see the benefits of the beeswax....a soft glow, dimension, and did I mention I love to smell it.



My daughter Chrissy and I have a friend that is getting married in a wooded setting. Mindy and Dennis wanted some very rustic invitations so Chrissy and I made 30 of them Wednesday night....whew about seven hours. It is very hard for me to do repetition but we hung in there and got them ready to mail. It was a hard night but I really enjoyed working with Chrissy.



well, the weekend is upon us so I better make the cole slaw and pickle some eggs.






Friday, May 8, 2009




It is a rainy ol'day in Ohio....I have zillion plants to get in the ground but mother nature seems to have it in for me. With my hubbys new schedule me and the kittys have been crafting late at night. I work later than I should and of course I wake up with a super huge mess every morning. Oh well, just means I can get started again right away. I found a funky old dress form the other day, it should make a nice piece to display jewelery and doflinkies for the mill show, and don't worry somewhere in this mess I am sure I have made some. I know she seems to be listing a bit to the starboard side.......maybe she likes margaritas as much as I do.


Last night I worked on a canvas piece, before that darn cat talked me into going to bed. It was fun and yes, I had to drag absolutely everything out as far as supplies go. I need to add some more texture but could not get my melting pot to heat up.....I have had it but never used it, so I went to sleep disappointed. Suze Weinberg and jack and cat curio do such wonderful things with beeswax so I will give it another go today, since there won't be any planting of flowers.






boy , am I a crappy photographer.....suggestions, please

Thursday, April 23, 2009


Had a great day today.....went shopping with Chrissy and Jim....of course I bought something too big to fit in the car.....but I had to have it. Tomorrow sounds like a good day to figure out different hauling methods....I also bought a wonderful old mail cubby....problem????? Well, of course there is a problem, isn't there always. We were in a huge old building and it didn't look BIG but boy, was it BIG when I got it home. Any body who has ever been to my house knows I have a few things tucked in every nook and cranny, so where I thought I was gona put it....not gona work. On the bright side we stopped at wallhouse and had the most fabulous ice cream and coffee....so see no matter how many goof ups you have in a day....butter pecan will make it better. that probably should be on a greeting card.

Thursday, March 26, 2009

savannah weekend

What could possibly be better than a girl weekend......well, having it in Savannah, of course. This city is the most beautiful inspiring place I have ever been. Even on st. Patrick's weekend it has a calming effect on me. This picture was taken in Bonaventure cemetery on Friday the 13th and with my squeamish daughter along for the ride. Everything was going along as planned and then I promptly ran out of gas in the middle of the cemetery. Beat that for a mother daughter memory. shopping was also on the agenda...our favorite shop was @home vintage general, just a wonderful little shop with the nicest proprietress. We gathered a few treasures and then headed to the cotton exchange tavern for a drinky-poo.... or two. Did I mention it was the biggest st. Patricks celebration in the country? The river walk was packed with revelers, some in costume some in hardly anything, certainly a GOOD TIME.

Friday, January 30, 2009

winter, winter go away...jackie wants to go and play



When you have to rub a dryer sheet on your hair every morning to keep the static from making you look like the bride of Frankenstein......it is January in Ohio.....this does seem to be an extremely long winter. Living way off the road in a wooded area it is usually very quiet in the winter, but Wednesday morning, not so much. During the night we had an ice storm that blanketed everything. Stepping out on the porch with my camera, the sound of trees creaking and falling in the woods followed by ice sliding off the roof and weighed down pine branches. Downright noisy....so after a few quick clicks I retreated to the warm house and snuggled with my cats. This is the 3rd week I have been stranded inside, my poor hubby is walking out the lane to get in the car and head off to drive all day at work (did i mention i am married to the milkman?) Seems like this is a perfect time to get a cup of coffee and get busy on those valentines for the swap....I hear glitter calling me.

Saturday, January 24, 2009

Since Cindy posted a picture of herself in the cutest hat ever, I thought I would share a picture she took of me at her shop open house. I do want to go on record as saying I am much younger and more beautiful in person.......you'll just have to trust me. Now, get to work on your valentine ideas......jackie

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

lessons Jackie learned in 2008

I have learned that if you use your laundry room as a emergency hiding place for all of your craft supplies during winter craft shows and the Christmas season every time unannounced visitors are standing on your porch, on or around January12th, the room will finally explode.

I have learned when you buy that small roast, just big enough for two, you will get company at dinner time, and they will be hungry.

I have learned deciding to grow out your hair sounds like an excellent idea, until the 3rd week. It is at this time you find yourself with scissors in front of the mirror. When you are done your hair needs cut shorter than it has ever been and when people look at your bangs they tilt their heads.

I have learned that when buying birdcages begins to be an obsession, you need to join a program. An average size house can only hold so many birdcages.

I have learned to put the double stick tape dispenser up after every use, especially if you have cats.....this is crucial.

I have learned there is not a thing in the world that doesn't need a little glitter.

No, I did not make resolutions for this new year, as I said I have learned my lessons well, and it will be at least sometime in Feburary before I forget them.