Even though I know that Summer officially begins June 20 or 21st, I usually think of it being "summer" around Memorial Day, so decided take a peak at what The Old Farmer's Almanac had to say about it.  Nowdays, www.almanac.com is the quick way to check out what that age-old reference has to say.  The sun will reach its farthest point north of the equator at 7:09 p.m. on June 20, 2012 in our time zone (EDT).  According to the Old Farmer's Almanac: "the word solstice is from the Latin solstitium, from sol (sun) and stitium (to stop), reflecting the fact that the sun appears to stop at this time (and again at the winter solstice)."   On the day of summer solstice, the northern hemisphere has more sunlight that any other day.  On our calendars, the Summer Solstice is marked as the first day of summer, but some would argue that it is more correctly MID-summer.  And climatologists use "meterorological" seasons, with summer beginning on June 1st. No matter, it's summer on June 20th in Ann Arbor!  It's great to have the trees and flowers in bloom.  The Ann Arbor Summer Festival is in full swing.  The 4th of July and then Art Fairs can't be far behind! And in my yard, the geraniums and petunias are adding a burst of color.  I love to use traditional annuals for pops of color mixed in with my hostas and other perennials.  Later in the summer huge red canna flowers will tower over this scene - right now they are just greenery.  If you look closely, you can see the vintage stuff I use as planters. Old tins and wooden boxes make great planters!  And they look good next to standard clay pots.   An old truck drove into the flower bed. My daughter planted tomatoes, peppers, lettuce and zucchini in an old watering trough.  The zucchini is winning.... I got this trough and another one at a spring farm auction - the better one is at the shop right now.  It would be great to fill with ice and cold drinks for large gatherings! Another thing we have is a small selection of door mats.  This is one I took home with me - have a couple more like it at FOUND. I took these photos around 8:30 tonight and the light is a bit dusky, but I hope you enjoyed seeing MY front yard. Enjoy these long summer days!     Continue reading

It's fun to add vintage touches when decorating your home.  We really like pottery from the 1930's and 40's with simple shapes and glazes.  Numbers and letters from old signs are also great accents.  A bowl, wire basket or antique counter jar filled with crocquet or pool balls adds colorful interest to a room.  We usually add a quick coat of clear Briwax to clean them up and bring out the natural color of the wood and old paint. When I found it, this cast iron sundial was pretty rusty.  It's another piece that benefitted from a buffing with Briwax to bring out the patina (and seal the rust). This sundial is embossed with a wonderful old saying: Grow old along with me - the best is yet to be.  Set in the garden properly, it will do a good job of keeping time.  At FOUND, we're bringing in more vintage treasures every week this summer.  Stop by soon to see what we've found! .. Continue reading

Things were getting a bit crowded as we brought fresh inventory in, so it's time for a SALE!  Cheery yellow dots and yellow post-it notes throughout the shop will tell you the reduced prices.  Continue reading

  FOUND is ready for summer!  Are you? Seems like people ease into a more casual style this time of year.  We've been gathering fresh finds at FOUND that are fun for summertime.  Here's a quick photo blog of some of our favorites. At the Third Sunday Market in Bloomington, Illinois, I found someone who was making flowers with antique doorknobs - of course I needed to bring some back to Ann Arbor!   Another artist at that show had flowers she made from corrigated tin from rusty sheds - all the small ones sold already - but we still have a few of these huge ones. Great on a garden fence or hung instead of a summer wreath.  Love these for casual rooms and cottages, as well.  This vintage sign proclaiming Air Conditioned was probably from a motel or cabins for vacationers.  In rough shape, but the red plastic letters are screwed on, so could be removed to repaint - but it makes me smile just the way it is.

Briwaxed this heavy duty, large capacity vintage red wheelbarrow and wheeled it into the shop.  Put a little display of sweet (okey-dokey) artichoke pillows in in, but it would be quite happy in someone's garden.  While you wait for your flowers to fill in, plant these in a row for instant color!  And add some candles to the garden stake votive holders to illuminate your party. Back by popular demand:  Great Lakes Pillows & Go Jump in the Lake signs!     Enjoy these lovely days & nights!   Continue reading

  Sweet little button flowers in our bud vases from upcycled silverware make a perfect Springtime pairing!  Emily has been busy at FOUND making lots of these colorful button bouquets for Mother's Day.  It's an easy project - just thread thin guage foral wire through the button holes, then hold the flower "head" while you twist the wire tight. If desired wire several together and add ribbon leaves for a vintage bouquet.  It's a great project to do with kids.  Small vintage bottles make great vases, too. You'll find charming Mom's Day cards at FOUND (handmade in Ann Arbor) that incorporate vintage story book images.  What Mom wouldn't love these?     This week, all  jewelry and candles are 10% off at FOUND. And  Saturday morning (May 12), we'll have a drop in button flower making session for kids between 10 a.m. and noon.  We'll help them make a couple flowers and wrap them up for Mommy or Grandma.  Happy Mother's Day from FOUND!     Continue reading

FOUND's Eco-funky Earth Day weekend Art Show is almost over.... ends at 5:00 Sunday, April 22nd.  No time to write now, but are a few photos: Above: Cre Fuller's robots with admirer - photo compliments of Charlene Plagens.  Below: Sarah Stanton metal wall art. Above: Bingo Twin wooden dolls.   Below: Fashion collage. Both by Marsha Filipiak. Mirror (2 views) and cottage assemblages by John Gutoskey.   Below: Jewelry made from watches by Rena Hopkins.   Below: bags constructed from vintage neckties and handstitched heart pillows by Celibeth Donnelly.   Below: more robots by Cre Fuller.       What a fun show!  Next post will announce winner of our $50 FOUND gift card drawing.     Continue reading

FOUND is celebrating Earth Day weekend with an art show that features artists who do their part by using vintage and recycled materials to create eco-funky art!  For 3 days, April 20-22, FOUND will be filled with things that we don't normally carry at the shop, but that appeal to our sense of creative reuse of materials.  Here's an introduction to the 6 artists in our  first annual Eco-funky Art Show.  Cre Fuller is the Ypsilanti artist behind Tin Angry Men Industries.  I've admired Cre's incredible robot lamps and sculptures for years and am thrilled that he's agreed to bring a collection of tin men to FOUND for this show.  Rena Hopkins is a Detroit area artist who will be bringing "steampunk" jewelry created from such found objects as watch parts, old keys and game pieces, but as you can see on her website, the Divine Iguana wears many other artistic hats as well.  We think you'll love her jewelry as much as we do. Many of you know and wear the  jewelry we carry by Ann Arborite  Sarah Stanton.  For this show Sarah is doing wall art with an industrial flair for us!  Sarah is inspired by unusual materials, textures and patterns and loves to work in metal.  We're looking forward to seeing the larger pieces she'll bring to this show.  Hailing from Royal Oak, Marsha Filipiak has been a stained glass artist for a few decades, but recently became facinated by digital minipulation - her use of vintage photos and ephemera as source material is what we like.   Made by Marsha digital collages are mounted on salvaged wood blocks and embellished with found objects for a whimsical effect. Seamstress and artist Celibeth Donnelly is a jack-o-all-trades and master of many!  She's the inspiration behind this show and friend of many of our favorite artistic people.  For this show, we'll feature her new line of bags made from vintage men's ties, as well as her delightful collage prints and notecards. Last, but not least, we're thrilled that John Gutoskey has agreed to participate.  I've long admired his creative process and attention to minute details.  We know that he's bringing the mandala created from salvaged game parts, and look forward to seeing what other mixed media assemblages he'll have at FOUND for this special weekend show. Dates and times for Eco-funky Art Show.  April 20-22 at FOUND. Opening Reception.  Friday April 20  7:00-9:00 p.m. Saturday April 21  9:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. Sunday April 22   11:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.   Hope to see you there!     Continue reading

Earth Day 2012 is April 22nd.  FOUND has a special eco-funky art show planned for that entire weekend.  We believe artists who use recycled materials are doin' their part to save the earth.  Here's a quick preview of our poster! I'm really excited to be featuring these 6 artists - all of them use recycled, found or vintage materials in ways that make me very happy!  Watch this space for details about the artists and what they're bringing.     Continue reading

This morning we choose TWO lucky winners of the St. Pat's day contest by putting names in a hat and drawing names out. The FOUND  facebook comment winner is Deborah King Larson - who favors homemade shamrock shakes to the traditional corned beef and cabbage.  And the FOUND blog commentor who wins a $17 lucky FOUND gift card is Shawn M. who celebrates her sister-in-law Pat's St. Patrick's Day birthday with cake! Congratulations Deborah and Shawn!  I tucked your gift cards in envelopes for pick-up next time you're at the shop. Continue reading

Do you have a favorite St. Patrick's Day tradition?  I come from a long line of somewhat Irish folk - my grandmother celebrated with an Irish blessing and a shamrock pin on her sweater.  Mom made corned beef and cabbage.  Dad and my brothers once painted their shoes bright green to attend a cousins St. Patrick's Day wedding! Comment about something you like to do on St. Patrick's Day  at the bottom of this post or on our facebook page for a chance to win a FOUND gift card. At FOUND, we celebrate March 17th with 17% off any green colored item in the store - even if it has the tiniest wee bit o' green in the packaging, it's on sale...   Frogs are on sale of course - and the mint lotion with green on the label.  All the Green Daffodil soy candles have the color green in the packaging. 10 foot rolls of burlap make great table runners. Green candles in 5 different shades, candle rings, wreaths and florals add an instant touch of springtime to your home. There's more than a bit of green in this jewelry! Just noticed that some of the stamp sets by Yellow Owl Workshop have green on some of them, too. These little birds have green stands and almost everything in the front window would be part of the St. Patrick's Day special. And looking forward to Easter, these bunnies and eggs are 17% off on Saturday.     Hope this St. Patrick's Day finds your Irish (or not so Irish) eyes a smiling, and your day full of the luck of the Irish! If you find yourself in Kerrytown (an Irish place, at that), stop by FOUND and save a bit of green on anything green. oh, and one more thing...comment below or on our facebook page about one of your favorite St. Patrick's Day traditions, and we'll enter your name in a drawing for a $17 FOUND gift card!       Continue reading