Victorian Lady in Her Garden

To say goodbye to June, here is a scan of a lovely Victorian painting of a lady in her summer garden.  This is a very large image, suitable for making a print if you like, but as with all the images you can easily resize it to a smaller size for a card, altered art, or jewelry. 

I see roses, daisies, hollyhocks, yellow rudbekia or coreopsis.  Love the white dress with the blue sash and straw hat.  Look behind her at the garden door and you will see she has a visitor.  Wouldn't you love to have an enclosed garden with an old brick wall and wooden door and cobblestone path? So romantic, the perfect spot for a walking daydream.

Emily

Gorgeous Post Card Back

I'm certainly having fun rummaging through old scans for cool images to share.  Here is a beautiful and unique old post card back, with an illustration and nice early Art Deco type decorative design.  I love old postcards ~ and often the backs are as pretty as the fronts.  I will share some with handwriting sometime also ~ have them with English, French, German.... so follow and come back!

Emily

Medieval Fantasy Girl?

I think this is a really pretty image, from an old postcard.  The style looks a little Celtic or Arthurian.  She could be a lady from Game of Thrones, from one of the southern lands where it is warm and flowery and they wear brighter colors.  Yes, I'm a Song of Ice and Fire fangirl.  Can't wait for the next book!

Emily

Yellow Label and Frame -- Fabric Label

This pretty image is adapted from an antique fabric label.  You see this type of image online from time to time, but not many people know what they actually are because in my experience not many people selling digital images actually possess the originals.

I like the yellow and gold color with the blue of the portrait, which is very nice.  I've had a request for more labels and frames, so I am also included a version below that is further altered into a blank oval frame. 

Enjoy, please remember to credit Emily's Image Garden and please follow my blog for more images!

Emily

Butterfly Garden Print Free Vintage Image

I thought you might enjoy another Victorian butterfly print.  This one is really colorful and bright, and kind of unusual in the types of plants it shows.  This is beautiful printed for wall decor or a card, or cropped for tags, or you can clip out individual butterflies to create elements and wings.  I particularly like the red and black butterfly near the middle, and the little yellow one at the top.  Have fun with this antique summertime art!

Emily

Picnic Lady Photograph Free Vintage Image

Just a cool old photograph dated 1909.  I like the flag in the background.  It makes this seem like it was taken at a July Fourth picnic.  She has a wonderful smile, and that's a pretty summer dress!

Emily

Label with Blank Scroll Bird and Flowers

I think this is a really wonderful little graphic image.  A little bird (a swift?) and flowers accent a blank decorative scroll.  Perfect for June, right between spring and summer. This would be nice as a label or in a scrapbook, for a card or invitation or bookplate, even as a transfer.  I'll try to do more frames and labels in upcoming weeks ... need to get busy doing some scanning!

Emily

Barefoot Little Girl

Another little barefoot girl for summertime, by Bouguereau.

Happy weekend!

Emily

Barefoot Summer Girl by Bouguereau

Here is another beautiful image that I think is appropriate for summertime.  This is a Victorian-era painting by the French artist Bouguereau, restored and enhanced.  Bouguereau painted gorgeous portraits of women and girls.  I love the pose, the way the little girl is tilting her head and brushing her hair back, and the look on her face.  And of course her bare feet!  Also the wildflowers and the green pear she holds in her hand.

Have a happy weekend.

Emily

Summertime Gals at the Seashore

Happy Summer! Here are two summertime sisters enjoying the beach.  It's a nice pose, symmetrical with pretty colors and an interesting rope frame, and of course the bathing beauty costumes are great.
This is a popular card, so maybe you've seen the image before, but I wanted to share something appropriate for the first day of Summer.  Please enjoy, and please credit/link Emily's Image Garden! Thank you!

Emily

Vintage Butterflies Print

Here is a summery butterfly print for you -- hope it inspires!  Actually I'm not sure whether these are butterflies or moths, but there are pretty wings you could clip out, and I love the raspberries and wildflowers.  If you look closely you'll find a caterpillar or two -- eek!  These look really pretty framed, too, or printed as is for cards.

Tomorrow is the official first day of summer, so I'll try to find something appropriate...

Emily

Victorian Flower Fairy

JPG

I decided having only one image in my Fairies and Angels selections wasn't enough (I've been looking at my Pinterest boards), so here is a very sweet little flower fairy.

There is so much blooming this time of year, I'm sure the flower fairies are happy!  I noticed that my new online friend Lunagirl is having a "garden fairies" challenge on her blog so this would work for that theme.  I have some butterfly prints as well that I can share.  Of course Lunagirl has created lots of beautiful wing images and other images that she sells on her site Lunagirl.com!

I am including this fairy in both jpg and png format (the png file has the background removed for you).  Have fun! Happy summer!

PNG

Antique Book Page: Alice in Wonderland

Still digging into the pages for cool ephemera backgrounds ... here is a scan of an antique book page.  Seems to be a story about a little girl and a White Rabbit with a pocket-watch... more to come...!

Thanks for visiting!

Emily

Antique Music Page Background

You can't have enough background pages, and the wonderful thing about digital is that you can use them again and again without harming the original.  I have piles of sheet music and antique books, ledgers, dictionaries and such, so expect more digital ephemera pages.  Let me know if you like them!  Have a request?

Yellow Roses Victorian Greeting Card

"To Wish You All That You Could Wish"
A lovely Victorian card featuring an illustration of beautiful yellow roses in a vase, and a beautiful sentiment!  This would be pretty for many celebrations and occasions, or as a "just because" card.  The yellow flowers would be a bright addition to any project!  Remember it's larger than shown here, and can be resized large or very small.  Enjoy, and thank you in advance for crediting Emily's Image Garden if your work is displayed online!

Serene Woman in Classical Costume

This is a gorgeous old Paris postcard of a woman in classical Greek or Roman dress.  I've cleaned it up and repaired it, and added some subtle tint.

This classical theme seems to have been popular for postcards in the Victorian / Edwardian era, for there are many of them in my collection.  I think the pose on this one is particularly pretty and serene.  She could be a goddess, a muse, or just a lady with her thoughts faraway.

Enjoy ~

Victorian Illustrations: The Old Woman Tossed in a Basket

I couldn't resist a couple more pictures of the Old Woman Tossed in a Basket!

The first  is from The Real Mother Goose (1916), illustrated by Blanche Fisher Wright. The small black and white drawing is from The Little Mother Goose (1912), illustrated by Jessie Willcox Smith.

Witchy Girl / Housewife in Victorian Ad

Here is another woman with a broom to sweep the cobwebs from the sky -- this one from an antique Victorian soap ad. 

I like the contrast yet connection between the sensuous woman on her broomstick and the busy housewife (kitchen maid?) in her kitchen.  Each has the same knowing look on her face, looking right at the viewer, as if they are the same woman!

I hope you enjoy this old advertising art in your creative endeavors.

Fairy Tale Witch and Moon: Nursery Rhyme

There was an old woman tossed up in a basket,
Ninety times as high as the moon;
And where she was going I could'nt but ask it,
For in her hand she carried a broom.

"Old woman, old woman, old woman," quoth I,
"O whither, O whither, O whither, so high?"
"To brush the cobwebs off the sky!"
"Shall I go with thee?" "Aye, by and by."

I remember this nursery rhyme from Mother Goose.  I always liked it.  This version is from The Baby's Bouquet, A Fresh Bunch of Rhymes and Tunes by Walter Crane, with his wonderful illustration.

Beautifully Detailed Owl Illustration

Something a little different -- a gorgeous Victorian scientific ornithological illustration of a Hawk Owl.  Owls are one of my favorite birds, without a doubt, and I love birds.  The detail and soft watercolor painting in this picture are amazing.  I hope to bring you many more birds and animals in the future!  Remember the image is large, and you can resize it very large or print it very small if needed for charms, jewelry, etc.

Diva in Pink

Ooh-la-la, what a diva.  Here is an image of shapely Belle Epoque beauty Arlette Dorgere.  She was a famous lady of the stage, and one of the more popular subjects of French postcards such as this.  I've tinted her a dusky rose pink, which seems to suit her.  I hope she inspires your artwork and crafts and your diva attitude!

Fairy Tale Art: Finding A Little Man in the Enchanted Forest

Here to enjoy is a fairy tale illustration by one of the most famous and beloved Victorian illustrators of children's books, Arthur Rackham. 

Antique Advertising Text and Illustrations

I can never get enough of these old advertising pages, especially when they have fancy borders and cool illustrations.  I love the antique-looking fonts, too.

This is actually a rather larger image, so again remember you can resize large or small for all sorts of projects. 

These ephemera pages make lovely backgrounds, or crop out the illustrations.  Here we have a sewing machine, a cup of instantaneous chocolate ("the greatest invention of the age"), a rolling chair, and "the improved home Turko-Russian folding bath cabinet," in addition to the smart housekeeper answering her door, plus fun text.

Birds & Fairy Parade

I hope you'll enjoy this charming and colorful illustration from a fairy tale children's book.

Remember these images are larger than shown here (often much larger), so you can print them large, but you can also resize them smaller as well for jewelry and such!

Midsummer Girl Reading: Art Nouveau Magazine Cover

Continuing with art and illustration from magazines, here is a beautiful Art Nouveau cover of Century Magazine.  This has lots of pretty details -- I like the red flowers all around the girl, and the sky and forest behind her. 

Art Deco 1920s Corset Ad

Another corset ad, this one from a shop on Fifth Avenue in New York in the early 1920s.  It doesn't actually show the corset, but it's so cute!
"Goodwin corsets provide the most desirable foundation for the gown."
So-called "foundation garments" were a standard part of women's wardrobes for decades to come, well into the 1960s.  How do you think Joan Holloway looked so fabulous gliding through the office on Mad Men? 

Victorian Corsets Vintage Advertising

Always popular, vintage advertising of corsets for the fashionable Victorian lady.  These could be found in the London shop of Mrs. Addley Bourne, which in addition to ladies' garments manufactured and supplied bridal items and baby linens.

This is an older scan that someone sent me, and the clarity of the printing is not quite what I like, but it's so charming I thought I would share anyway.  I'm always on the lookout for more corset pictures...

Mother Rabbit and Little Rabbits (Hares, Actually) Victorian Art

 I thought this title page from an antique children's book, "The Ballad of the Lost Hare," was just lovely.  I like rabbits (and hares) and this is a sweet realistic Victorian illustration of a mother and babies, with a yellow rose and lovely soft colors.

Victorian Ladies: 1896 Chicago

I haven't decided whether these three fashionable Victorian ladies are sisters or friends.  They don't look much alike, but they are certainly dressed for something special.  Love the hats! 

Green Flapper Hat

JPG

Happy June!  I thought you would enjoy this cute little green cloche hat.  It looks perfect for a flapper or even an Edwardian girl out for a jaunt.  Above is a jpg.  Below is a png file as well because I thought that might be helpful for accessories/embellishments.  Either can be resized as needed, of course.

PNG