Ted and I saw a movie tonight in Logan Square, an old Chicago neighborhood, and while driving down Kimball we spotted a really neat early 20th-century building.
I didn't have our camera with, and besides, it was pretty dark, anyway, so the above image comes from
Flickr, and below you can find it on Google maps (you can click the map image to move it around and get a closer view; hit refresh a few times if you need to, as the map sometimes gets stuck loading).
View Larger Map
I was rather surprised to see it. I had heard that, prior to WWII, when the Nazis perverted this
ancient symbol, a number of buildings in the City had swastikas in the decorative brickwork. Many had been destroyed or covered up. In any case, I don't recall encountering one before.
I often have trouble trying to convince people that, prior to the 20th century, the symbol actually had a rather positive history. It's thousands of years old, and can be found as a decorative or religious symbol in cultures spanning the globe.There's an interesting
history of the swastika at Lucky Mojo, a fun site with an extensive online archive of folk magic traditions. (The postcard below, dated 1907, is from their collection. I have the same one kicking around my office somewhere, but I'm too lazy to find it and scan it.)
I have a few other swastika-as-good-luck items that I've picked up in my travels, including a yak bell I got in Nepal with black-and-white swastikas woven into the collar, a puppet from Thailand who has them embroidered all over his tunic, a hundred-year-old stoneware pitcher I found at an estate sale, and a small Buddha figurine with a swastika carved into its base.
And the Baha'i temple up the road from us has some carved into the facade, amongst other religious symbols:
So now I wonder, does anyone know of other buildings in the Chicago area that still sport good-luck swastikas?
(Image of Logan Theatre courtesy of
nonnyV on Flickr; image of swastika building courtesy of
JonathanMathias on Flickr.)
This is Cameron's Horses & Dogs, two of his favorite animals. Can't see it but the back is herds of horses running across green grass. Twin size.
Can't see this one either but the back is red flames ans smaller gold dragons.
Won't give to the boys until Christmas. Just a few weeks. They have no idea they are getting new quilts. Just like the Harry Potter one I posted a while ago.
Earlier this fall Daniel, the 27-year-old son of Ted's cousin Kay, died from huffing. Huffing is the breathing in of an inhalant, such as the propellant gases found in aerosol cans like hairspray, whipped cream, and cooking sprays. It is a very, very dangerous activity, and of those who die from it, one in three were trying it for the first time. It's estimated that in 2008, more than a million teenagers tried it.
The first is one I did for my sister in law, Marsha. The focal fabric is 1940s bathing beauties, then surrounded by tropical flowers and ferns. It's a duplicate of a quilt I did for a friend of my father's who was living in a veterans home in Western Illinois. Marsha will put hers in the family room that has a tropical theme.
It's big enough for a twin bed. The center is a purchased panel with 12" blocks all around. Joanne is helping me set up a blog page for quilting. I'll post there, in future, as soon as I can figure out what I'm doing. :)
The quilt is big enough for two people to snuggle under and two cats to sit on top!
Moots (Box House Mom)
Who doesn't love a handmade gift?
Can you spot all three critters in this picture?
The flats of ground cover were $1.50 each (regular price $11); as soon as I planted them, they began to bloom. How's that for a late fall pick-me-up?
A large butterfly bush, normally $24, now only $6. And enough eunymous to fill in all the empty spots—90 cents to a $1.17 each. I went back to Home Depot three times to fill up the trunk of my PT Cruiser with the eunymous, and I'm contemplating going back tomorrow to see if there is anything left.
Miscellaneous shrubs, each one was an unbelievable bargain:
But here's the absolute best part, a Celtic-inspired concrete birdbath that they were practically paying me to take:
And a cedar arbor and wisteria vine, which I still need to find a spot for. (And nail down the top bits; that's why they look wonky.)
You want to hear the grand total, don't you? Had we paid full price for all of this--including the bird bath and arbor—it would have been roughly $1250. We paid...
I've been watching this set of sconces on eBay all week, and didn't put my bid in until the last seven seconds; I was outbid in the last four. Grrrr. I'm super bummed, as these 1929 fixtures were from the same series as our dining room chandelier.
The Chandelier
Our Living Room Sconces (shown with arm from our chandelier for comparison).
Ted and I saw a movie tonight in Logan Square, an old Chicago neighborhood, and while driving down Kimball we spotted a really neat early 20th-century building.
I didn't have our camera with, and besides, it was pretty dark, anyway, so the above image comes from Flickr, and below you can find it on Google maps (you can click the map image to move it around and get a closer view; hit refresh a few times if you need to, as the map sometimes gets stuck loading).
I have a few other swastika-as-good-luck items that I've picked up in my travels, including a yak bell I got in Nepal with black-and-white swastikas woven into the collar, a puppet from Thailand who has them embroidered all over his tunic, a hundred-year-old stoneware pitcher I found at an estate sale, and a small Buddha figurine with a swastika carved into its base.
So, it looks like it was meant to have the round bulbs. The designs were registered in 1929, roughly the same year as our house. I found a design patent for part of our matching sconces, as well.
