^ vintage spaces
Michelle and Chuck’s granddaughter, Charlotte, has her very own place where she can play and create, right off of the kitchen.
have an elf collection,” she says. “We have tons of elves, and I put them out at Christmas time. She came over one day and she said, ‘Mawmaw, more elves!’ She got my old trucks out and put elves in the trucks and started driving them around. And I thought, ‘Man, these kids don’t need much!’” Charlotte, it seems, shares her grandmother’s worldview of appre- ciating the artistic potential of items that are discarded or otherwise taken for granted by others. After Michelle retires from teaching this year, she will be able to turn her focus completely to Good Ju Ju and ensuring such items go to a good home. And eventually, Michelle says, she knows those collect- ibles will be in good hands – the hands of someone who loves them just as much as she does. “You give kids this old stuff, and they love it like it’s new stuff,” Mi- chelle smiles. “And everything here will be Charlotte’s one day.” ^ Corbin Crable, an adjunct associate professor of journalism at Johnson County Community College, doesn’t have Michelle’s same knack for home decoration, but he knows what he likes. One of two tailor mannequins in the master bedroom doubles as a jewelry rack of sorts. Michelle says tailor mannequins — especially those in good repair — are becoming increasingly difficult to find in vintage stores.
and to make other things whiter. I’m always working on something.” And speaking of the future, Michelle doesn’t have to worry about her legacy of collecting being lost anytime soon – it’s something she has passed down to her two-year-old granddaughter, Charlotte, whom she calls “an old soul.” On this day, Charlotte has shown up at Grandma’s house (“Where the word we always say is ‘yes’.”) for a brief visit and to have her pic- ture taken. Charlotte, too, has her own decorative space in a corner of the kitchen – a wooden, child-sized table with matching chairs. Atop the table sits a canister full of brightly colored pencils, and on a shelf across from the table sits an abacus with brightly colored beads. “I told them you like to decorate,” Michelle coos to the shy, blonde- haired youngster, who heads for her little table when she arrives. “Do you want to check out your table and see if it’s OK? Mawmaw decorated it for you.” Michelle laughs heartily as she discusses some of Charlotte’s favorite collectibles throughout the house. “Charlotte plays with the old toy trucks, with the old clocks … and I
20 VINTAGEKC SPRING 2017
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