Sunday 23 June 2024

Storage of old photographs and scanning

 Storage of old photographs and scanning this month.

After having been a victim of arson. I decided to scan all the photographs and other ephemera that I have collected over the years.

This has been a major task and I am only half way through. I have quite a few large boxes of family photographs. So I spent a good few days just sitting and scanning my way through 2 boxes. Not quite finished the second but will do soon. I have stored the scans in 2 places. Google photographs which I share with relatives and on an external disc.

Now all I have to do, is decide how I am going to store the hundreds of photographs. So that I can easily find the originals? 

A few photographs from my Weaver box.

Vintage baby photograph
Vintage baby photograph. No idea who this is yet.
Family Weaver members
Family Weaver members. Unfortunately none are alive today. 
Weaver family on holiday
Weaver family on holiday.
Weaver and Welch family on holiday
Weaver and Welch family on holiday. Only know who some of the people are. 
Kathy Lightfoot and a friend outside a shop, probably in Shrewsbury
Kathy Lightfoot and a friend outside a shop, probably in Shrewsbury
Football team from Red Hill in Birmingham

Football team from Red Hill school in Birmingham. One of the players is Samuel Lightfoot. But not sure which one!

Photographs from the Horrocks and Webb box.

A family wedding Ward and Tombs 1960s
A family wedding Ward and Tombs 1960s. That is me in the front sat on my mom's lap.
Ward and Horrocks day out snapshot
Ward and Horrocks day out snapshot. All now deceased apart from the small boy at the back. But haven't heard from him in years. 
Denis Horrocks and a friend from ball room dancing
Denis Horrocks and a friend from ball room dancing. Both now deceased.
Ballet dancer in the 60s.
Ballet dancer in the 60s.Holding a cup that they gave for the best dancer of the month. Think they felt sorry for me as I had never got it before and had been dancing since I was 5 years old. 
Day trip from the ball room dancing club Denis Horrocks went to.
Day trip from the ball room dancing club Denis Horrocks went to. Photograph taken in 2005.
Joyce Horrocks and friend
Joyce Horrocks nee Webb and friend. 
National service 1950s
National service 1950s.
My granddad Ward with 2 of his grandchildren
My granddad Ward with 2 of his grandchildren. The bike belonged to Denis Horrocks.
Denis and Vera Horrocks wedding 1968
Denis and Vera Horrocks wedding 1968.
Somewhere in Egypt I think
Somewhere in Egypt I think. Lots of photos of places taken when Denis Horrocks was on National Service.
National service by car with friend
National service by house with friend's reunion
National service by house with friend's reunion 

National service by house with friend's reunion again. These would all be in their mid 90s if still alive.

Now off to decide on how to store all this information I have that is mostly in paper form.  

Vintage butterfly brooches and jewellery display

 Showing my vintage butterfly brooches and bug jewellery

My display for the last few months has been all my butterfly brooches with some other bug jewellery like dragonfly and a large vintage silver moth brooch in filigree. Not for sale as my own collection.

vintage butterfly brooches

Other butterfly jewellery I have had over the years.

Vintage silver butterfly brooch with abalone shell
Vintage silver butterfly brooch with abalone shell. My latest addition. Love the different colours in the shell. Has now been added to the above display
Barcs butterfly brooch 1980s
Barcs butterfly brooch circa 1980s. Pretty enamelled butterfly with the stamp Barcs on the reverse. Sold a long time ago.
Enamel butterfly clip on earrings
Enamel butterfly clip on earrings. Small in size but pretty. Unfortunately a victim of the fire in the warehouse. 
Enamel butterfly scarf clip
Enamel butterfly scarf clip circa 1980s/1990s. Pretty scarf clip unsigned I think. Sold a long time ago.
Black fabric lace butterfly brooch
Black fabric lace butterfly brooch vintage of unknown age. This large lace butterfly had a brooch mechanism sewn to the back. Not sure if I still have this or it had perished in the fire.
1960s vintage butterfly brooch

1960s vintage red butterfly brooch
1960s vintage red butterfly brooch. These brooches can still be found in all sort of colours and shapes. Well worth collecting as still inexpensive. Found at souvenir shops across the UK in the 1960s and 1970s. 
vintage butterfly brooch with faux pearls and faceted stones
Vintage butterfly brooch with faux pearls and faceted stones.
vintage butterfly brooch with black faceted stones
Vintage butterfly brooch with black faceted stones.
vintage butterfly brooch with clear faceted stones
Vintage butterfly brooch with clear faceted stones. The above three brooches originally came from America. All unsigned and in excellent condition.
Large fabric butterfly brooch multi coloured
Large fabric butterfly brooch multi coloured. Circa 1960s/1970s of age. Another sew on patch that has been turned into a brooch by adding a brooch mechanism to the back.
Vintage green butterfly brooch 1970s
Vintage green butterfly brooch 1970s. See above information on these enamel jewellery pieces.
vintage dragonfly brooch enamel 1990s
Vintage dragonfly brooch in blue and brown enamel c 1990s. Was trying to just add butterflies, but on seeing this in my data base. I couldn't resist. I think this was sold a long time ago. 
Vintage enamel bee brooch
Vintage enamel bee brooch. Again another bug that I saw in my data base. A bee brooch circa 1990s. Yes already sold a long time ago.
Dragonfly brooch in green enamel
Dragonfly brooch in green enamel and quite large. Brought from a shop in the mid 2000s. I liked the modern Art Deco look. Unfortunately the clip broke on the back shortly after. Still have this somewhere. One day will reuse it.
Pair of vintage enamelled butterfly brooches 1960s

Pair of vintage enamelled butterfly brooches 1960s. They are on the base of the display . Quite large pair in the bright colours. The enamel is clear over a base coat which can include silver and glitter in similar brooches.

Hope you like my butterflies and bugs. Have a great Sunday. Bye for now.

Monday 8 April 2024

Yes, I am still collecting jewellery

 Yes I am still collecting jewellery

I haven't posted in a while as quite busy with other life events. However. I am contemplating how to display my growing collection of costume jewellery. I want to be able to see but have the items protected. So watch this space...

Flower brooch with ladybird by JJ
Pretty white floral brooch with a little ladybird on a petal. Loved this one and is by JJ. Jonette Jewelry. Sold a long time ago.
1970s bead and steel vintage necklace
A very stylish vintage necklace from the 1970s. Steel in silver tone with beads brightly coloured. Also sold a long time ago
Vintage jewellery set from Austria signed
Austrian vintage jewellery set of blue and brass clip earrings with matching necklace. Signed on the brooch. Now long gone. Can't remember if I sold this set or it was destroyed in the fire. Think it was the latter. Just a few oldies from my files.  
More jewels soon....


Saturday 6 January 2024

Vintage Christmas jewellery display - From past to present

Vintage Christmas jewellery displayed - With past to present pieces.

Showing the Christmas jewellery display I did for this last Christmas. It had vintage jewellery mixed with new jewellery that I had brought recently. I change the display regularly to match the seasons and just because.

Vintage Christmas jewellery display
With just 13 pieces of jewellery with a Christmas design on. Having lost a lot of other pieces in the fire. I will have to keep a look out this years for more. 

This is a Christmas necklace with cute retro Christmas images on either side. Made to look old but only about 5 years or so old. It is made of paper mache varnished.  
A cameo necklace with Christmas bells on in off white and red. It is just one that I made a few years ago. I haven't painted this one but may do in the future. As the colours are a bit drab and plain. 
A small Christmas tree pin. It doesn't look well made but is stamped Avon on the back. Obtained this one about 10 years ago and then it was pre-owned. 

Avon jewellery signature on the reverse of this Christmas tree pin which is in enamel and decorated with clear diamante.

A teddy bear necklace with a Santa hat on. Another Avon jewellery piece. This was identified by the box it was in. Pave crystal clear diamante with red enamel finish. Pretty Christmas necklace although too young for me to wear. Great for display though. 

This Christmas pudding brooch is unwearable because the pin clasp does not close. But suitable for display. It was in my bag of broken jewellery. So I used it for display. Looks to be a copy of an original which the Chinese jewellery manufacturers love to copy because of the marking on the back. 

Another Christmas brooch but this is a 1950s/1960s vintage wreath brooch with a working bell. The enamel on this was very worn originally. So I painted it up. It is nice and heavy well made and the bell still rings.

The next few pieces of vintage Christmas jewellery are from the late 1970s to early 1980s. I wore them at Christmas on my uniform as a nurse/midwife. It was allowed then and was something I looked foreword to doing. Alongside my hospital and registered general nursing badges. This is a bright enamelled candy cane pin.    

Another one I wore on my nursing uniform was this Father Christmas boot brooch. Again in bright enamel colours with clear diamante accents. 


Lastly this Avon vintage bell brooch. Think this was the first years vintage brooch in around 1979 that I brought new to wear on my uniform. Will have to show my nursing badges at some point that I have somewhere. Signed Avon on the reverse with silver glitter enamel and now slightly faded red enamel.                                                   

This delightful reindeer brooch I brought new about 10 years or more ago from a women's clothing shop. Bright metallic green enamel on a deer head design. Well made and one I wear often. 

This Christmas tree brooch was brought from a car boot sale. I liked the blue bead bauble design. Unsigned but has a 1980s style. 

A recent purchase from a table top sale. From the 1960s/1970s and has a lovely old fashion winter scene - snow with a horse and cart. This type of vintage brooch were made over a long period. Not only by manufacturers but the `back can be removed and you can add your own picture. The "glass" is in fact plastic with a brass frame and clasp. 


 A brand new piece of Christmas jewellery by Anne Stokes. Christmas present surprise dragon pin brooch. This large enamelled brooch has 2 pinch back pin fastenings on the back. Unsigned but came with an identification card and also a soft dragon toy in the same design. 

Still have lots of vintage to new jewellery to display and show this brand new years. So keep a look out for more blog posts. 

About Me

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Solihull, West Midlands, United Kingdom
I preserve the past. Researching family and local history. Finding about mine and other people's ancestors, is just one of my passions. I also love vintage costume jewellery made here in the UK. I write about my finds and like to research.