And now for something completely non-COVID-19 related (1)

[anna_wing]

1 A couple of years ago while visiting family in Melbourne, I went to the op-shop where my aunt was volunteering, and just to be nice, bought several little ladies' watches from I think the 1930s. Tiny, delicate things, with either gold-plated or silk cord straps. AUS$1 each. Early ladies' watches were so small that they didn't have space for all

Comments

[engarian]

My mother had watches like that. A lot of my older Native American jewelry really needs wind-up watches and they're very hard to find. We always recommend wind-up or kinetic watches to people looking to buy those styled bands because replacing the watch faces to change batteries actually damages the sterling silver bracelet cuff-style bands.

- Erulisse (one L)

[anna_wing]

How interesting! Do you mean those amazing silver and turquoise things that I have just found after googling (actually I use DuckDuck Go) 'Native American jewellery watch bands'? I had no idea they existed, and they are gorgeous!

Are you an antique dealer, if I may ask?

Certainly those teeny little 20s and 30s watches are really easy to find in Australian opshops. I'm sure thrift shops in the US would have them too. There must have been millions made.

[engarian]

I'm not an antique dealer, I have a store that sells craft supplies (beads and leather for Native-american beadwork and contemporary beading) and Native American art and crafts from my own area (Minnesota) and the American Southwest. The turquoise and silver is predominantly a Southwestern Native American product and I've collected and sold it for more than fifty years.

Your post brought back lovely memories of my mother, so I thank you!

- Erulisse (one L)

[anna_wing]

My pleasure! I've only seen that sort of jewellery once in person, in a very high-end New York City antique jewellery shop. I remember looking at the case, admiring everything. Museum quality stuff, for museum prices!

[clodia_metelli]

What lovely watches. I am also interested in your lime recipe, though not sure whre I would get some. That said, I've been doing kumquats, figs and quince over the last year, so maybe I can find some Calamondin limes in the local Turkish shops too.

[anna_wing]

You might still be able to find basic watches like that in thrift shops. They were practically giving them away in Australia.

I adapted a recipe for candied kumquats! WIth calamondins, I should probably have waited for them to ripen and turn orange, which I'm not used to doing (we usually just use the juice, squeezed onto salads and desserts, or else boiled them a bit longer to soften the skin. Will try again with next batch. When the wild lemons ripen, though, I will candy the peel.