A Restored Cricket Bat

This is a very special cricket bat that used to belong to my husband David when he was a child, so its over 30 years old. It was white and the paint was coming off, it was in the back of Pa Murphy's shed. For Christmas Pa restored the cricket bat, painting it and wrapping the handle. He also made a matching wicket set to give to Thomas! What a special gift! Thomas and I were playing with it just yesterday and I'm sure its something he'll get a lot of use out of.

an old restored cricket bat with home-made wicket set

A Very Old Teddybear

This is a precious old teddy bear that once belonged to my uncle who is one year older than me, so that makes this bear over 40 years old! He has only one eye, I don't know where the missing eye is, and he has fur missing from his nose. He's full of character! He has movable limbs that are still firm. I put glitter on his feet during the time I was a children's entertainer and I used him in my shows, calling his Mr Silverfoot. I just wanted to share a picture of something that is very precious, enjoy!

Mr Silverfoot is a very old bear with just one eye

Old Pa Murphy's Garden Hoe

Here is a picture of the old garden hoe David used in Stanthorpe when we were helping his dad with some Spring planting. It used to belong to Brian's father, who was also known as Pa Murphy. That's why Brian likes to be called Pa Murphy, to carry on the tradition.

an old hoe belonging to the Murphy family

This old garden hoe is so old, it even has rounded corners, when originally it had been square. Old Pa Murphy was a farmer on his property in Kyogle in New South Wales. All of my son's great-grandparents are from N.S.W., he's a real Aussie!

David with his grandfather's old garden hoe

Aunty Annie's English Porcelain

Last month, when I visited my mother she spoke to me about this English Porcelain that once belonged to a lady we call Aunty Annie.

three pieces of old English porcelain

Aunty Annie was the lady who married my father's grandfather Charlie after his wife died. So really, she wasn't an aunty, she was a step-grandma. Aunty Annie's best friend was my grandmother Beverly's mother, Mary Margeretta, or Aunty May. That's how my parent's met, because My father's mum Mavis and Beverly knew each other, and conspired to have my parents go on a date!

the Imperial stamp on the back of the casserole dishes

My grandma Beverly inherited Aunty Annie's things, instead of my grandmother Mavis. Who can understand the reason? But in the end, it is in my mother's cabinet. These three pieces were the only ones that weren't chipped, the rest of the set was thrown out. It's not worth a great deal of money, but it's one of our family treasures that helps tell the story of our family.

A Precious Old Birthday Book

During our recent visit to Stanthorpe, Brian showed me this amazing old book that he has. Oh, what a treasure it is!

great-granma's old birthday book

Brian's mother kept this birthday book and often referred to it, as she was reknowned for never forgetting a person's birthday. It s a great record of special events, like her wedding in 1939.

3rd August marks the date of a special wedding day in 1939

This is an amazing old book, I'm not sure how old the actual book is, but it looks very old, and is very precious <3

The story of the old watermelon knife

When we visited Stanthorpe last weekend, we proceeded to cut up a watermelon with this old knife that Pa Murphy produced. He then began to tell the story of the old watermelon knife.

an old bone handled knife from 1939

This knife was given to Brian's parents as a wedding present on the 3rd of August 1939. Brian remembers as a kid rolling the large watermelons his father used to grow, they were so huge, up to where they would be cut up and eaten in the afternoon. They used to use this old knife which is the perfect length and strength for the task.

cutting up summer watermelon

Brian didn't see the knife again until he was visiting his brother John, who then was a bee-keeper. John was using the knife to scrape the wax away from the honey turning machine. I think Brian must have protested at such a special knife being used for that, and the knife got sharpened at a professional knife sharpener and the knife came up almost as good as new. Now the knife is in Brian's kitchen and was the perfect tool to cut up this summer's watermelon for a cool afternoon snack! I've tried to remember the story as best I could as it was told to me, maybe one day I'll get a chance to fill in more details ...

Hand-painted Ceramic Cat

On the base of this ceramic cat is my name and the year 1984. I don't know why it has my name on it, because I'm pretty sure my mum painted this green-ware cat when I was 13 years old.

hand-painted ceramic cat from the 1980s

I've always loved cats, and teenage-me wanted a ceramic cat, but it had to be a Siamese cat you see, and I couldn't operate the spray paint machine! My mum kindly painted the cat for me, I don't think I even did the eyes, I just wasn't as good a painter as my mum. I think I might have just prepared the green-ware by scrapping and sanding the seams. I think this is a very special cat for our family treasures collection!

My Great-Grandmother's Extendible Table

I really appreciate sensible, functional and flexible furniture like this old extendible table that once belonged to my great-grandmother. I like extendible tables so much that I have a small one myself.

my great-grandmother's extendible table folded out to full size seats 10 or more

Extendible tables like the small one we have, are really sensible for renters like us, because you never know when the next place you live will only have a small space for your table. But never mind, one day you might live somewhere where there is more space, and you can extend it out for large family gatherings. I'd like to get a photo of this old table folded into its small size, but that wasn't convenient this time. This table is at my mother's house and there's plenty of room for us all to sit around and enjoy a family meal together.

Wooden inlaid chess table

This amazingly delicate wooden inlaid chess table was made by my great-grandfather Charlie. Inside is a mechanism that once played music.

wooden inlaid table made by master craftsman my great-grandfather Charlie

The hinges are currently rusted, and I'm not sure if they can be fixed but we should try. This special tiny table is at my mother's house.

Engraved Lilac Lidded Pot

This engraving is another method you could use to decorate your purchased green-ware. My mother made this, I was too young at the time to try this, but my mother was very good at it.

engraved lilac lidded pot

I really like this simple lidded pot my mother engraved by hand with a tiny tool, and painted in a pretty lilac colour. I think it's something precious for our family. This little cutie is at my mother's house.

Large Green Buddha

In the 1980s, there was craft craze known as greenware painting. Basically you bought a plaster cast of a mould and painted it, then it was fired in a professional kiln. My mother took me with her to classes and we made several things, this green Buddha is one of my favourites.

green-ware Buddha my mother painted

I like him because he's so simple, just painted in a glaze that burst in spots inside the kiln. He is a stately gentleman standing about 12 inches high, I believe he brings good-luck! He currently lives at my mother's house, I think he is busy trying to make a lucky life for them <3

My Grandmother's Cookbook

This old and worse for wear cookbook was given to my grandmother in 1966, David and I have even used it! It's good to look up old recipes for traditional sauces, to name just a few.

an old cookbook given to my grandmother in 1966

 Inside the book there is a note to my grandmother and the date 1966. What a special old thing this cookbook is. I wonder how many times my nan used it to cook a meal for her family?

inside there is a note with the year 1966

Apparently these blemishes you can see are caused by moisture and acid in the paper, I'm not sure? I will have to find out how to look after this vintage treasure ...

Wooden Toy Steam Train

I think this train needs its own post, it's so very special.

hand-crafted wooden toy steam train

My father-in-law Brian, otherwise known as Pa Murphy, hand-crafted this at his workshop in Stanthorpe, and I think his wife Freya painted it. I put a tiny bit of silver and gold paint on top, just a few dots as if they were bolts. What a very special toy!

Old and Large Wooden Hook

This special hook once belonged to my great-grandmother. Now, that could be Mary Margaretta or Elizabeth Jackson, I'm not sure but I will find out!

this large wooden crochet hook once belonged to my great-grandmother

My mother gave this to me recently, I've only used it once to try a rug idea with some thick yarn I have here. That yarn is too stiff to work with, so I hope one day to come across some thick yarn that I can make into a rug using this hook. This old wooden hook is such a special thing, I do appreciate old things that have stood the test of time.

The Hobby Horse Pa Murphy made

And here is the hobby horse Pa Murphy made for Thomas, isn't it great? Thomas is just the right age to appreciate this, he loved it straight away. He's very lucky to have a crafty grandfather who can make him really cool things!

the hobby horse Pa Murphy made

Other things Pa Murphy made for us are the wooden blocks and toy cars, and the drop spindle I posted about yesterday. Thanks, grandpa!

a cosy scene by the fire

My Grandmother's Tape Measure

This will seem like a very mundane thing, but since my mother gave me my grandmother's old tape measure, I've been really enjoying how much more sensible this tool is made compared to others.

my grandmother's tape measure has both centimetres and inches going in the same direction

This one not only has inches as well as centimetres, but it has both going the same way. Nothing else in my house does this, not even my tool shed tape measure. One ruler I have which is my favourite because it also is transparent, that has inches, but they go in opposite directions. If I want to know inches I have to turn the ruler around. My grandmother's tape measure is the best because straight away I can see the conversion to inches.

Is this a case of "simple things amuse simple minds"? Well no, I just like things that are made properly and do the job you need them to do. I wish more things were like my grandmother's tape measure ...

My Grandmother's Mandolin

We lost our grandmother a few years ago now, so her very special mandolin came to be in my possession.

my late grandmother Beverly's old mandolin, which she played as a child

Apparently someone did some work on it for her, but I don't think whoever it was did a very good job. The wood is clearly split. I have no idea who I could possibly trust to restore it properly. So it currently sits in my piano stool, as I have no where else more appropriate to put it.

I hope one day someone will know what is the proper thing to do with it. It's a very special thing.

My Very First Paycheck

When I was 14 years old I got a job packing grocery bags at Woolworths. My very first paycheck was spent buying this flute, with help from my mother.

the flute I bought with my very first paycheck when I was 14 years old in 1985

I was only allowed to work for them for 2 weeks, apparently because I was too young, but it was money well spent on my first instrument!

Jug Cover my Great-grandmother Made

This beautiful white jug cover with delicate real shell weights was made by my maternal great-grandmother, Mary Margaretta Davis. She is the  great-mother that made all of the delicate crochet doilies, some of which I have already blogged about. My other maternal great-mother Elizabeth Jackson also could crochet, but she did more work with thicker yarns like baby jackets. I don't think I have any samples of her work, but she is my mother's grandmother who's parents owned a tailor shop.

A beautiful white jug cover made by my great-grandmother Mary Margaretta Davis

When my mother gave this to me a few weeks ago, it had an awful stain on it. Mum said I could try and wash it out with lemon juice. I did a search and found a site that recommended how to wash cotton in lemon juice so I gave it a try. The doily spent a couple of hours in the sun sitting on this glass and the stain has definately faded. I was worried it would deteriorate the cotton, but it doesn't seem to have and is still holding together strong.

I hope one day to have the time to copy my great-grandmother's pattern. She has swirled it, instead of starting new rounds with chains. One of the many things that is on my list of things to do!

The Wooden Blocks Pa Murphy made

Here are some simply delightful wooden blocks, and a special red and green wooden train made by Pa Murphy as a gift for Thomas!

the wooden blocks Pa Murphy made

Isn't this collection of wooden toys just lovely? Its so much nicer than the mass produced blocks you buy from the store. All the more special are these toys because they were made for Thomas by his grandfather. These are something you would want to keep and treasure, and hopefully pass on one day, because no one has anything quite the same as these wooden toys. I'm not sure where the wood came from originally, but I think these are at least some what environmentally friendly because they were made from scraps of wood from Pa Murphy's workshop. For something like this you really shouldn't buy any wood especially, as any tiny bits of left over scrap wood of any shape will do. These were lightly coated with vegetable oil so a very nice, environmentally friendly toy for Thomas!

two small wooden toy cars by Pa Murphy

Another reason why I like these toys is because they are a classic and timeless toy that doesn't have the branding you see everywhere nowadays. As much as possible, I'd like to help Thomas learn the true value of things, and not according to if they have some recognisable logo or image on them, as hard as I know that is going to be!

Definitely an addition to my collection of hand crafted family heirlooms! Thankyou Pa Murphy <3