This is the kind of thing that makes me feel nostalgic and weak at the knees. I saw this tracing paper sample book at a wooden cutting board factory up in Vermont. They had a startling array of ephemera just lying around, and my camera died after this shot. Of course. As a matter of information, Kueffel and Esser, more commonly known as K & E, started out in the late 19th century as a company known for making drawing materials, drafting supplies and surveying equipment.

There was a time when I did collect things such as insect specimens and medical ephemera. I still pick up the occasional syringe or hand blown glass eye, but really those days are over. And for good reason. But just recently I was overtaken with the feeling that I had somehow lost these three specimen boxes along with a weird and truly wonderful array of hydrometers (more on that later), all purchased over the years during trips to Paris. I searched a little, but mostly forgot about them, not wanting to imagine where and when I had mistakenly thrown them in the trash. Well, I should have known, the other day I looked up at my shelves and there, in a box clearly labeled Bug Specimens and Hydrometers, they were. And, it turns out that the boxes themselves were from Deyrolle. I didn’t notice until just today.

Who in their right mind doesn’t love a bundt cake, much less a bundt pan? It’s that “dt” at the end that makes it all so satisfying. This pan was found at Bought and Sold, a seductive little antique shop (a branch of Lee Hartwell Antiques) in Callicoon, NY. The patina on this piece is more gray-black than what appears in the photo. It has a fragile quality about it that is irresistible.

I don’t know where to begin. So, what I will say is that I have fallen particularly hard for Present & Correct and their corresponding blog. The store has an abundance of quirky office ephemera, both old and new. And the blog is a virtual treasure trove of images. Many that I have not seen before. No easy feat in this era of ubiquity. These items are but a teeny example of what’s in the shop. Those numbered tags and pins are the best things I’ve seen in awhile. All photos from Present & Correct.

More buried treasure unearthed in move. Two nearly identical rulers found at the now defunct Grand Street flea market way way back when. Happy designer.