Preserving memories of my dad

I have been drawn to these little oil cans lately.

The memory is a strong one:
the smell of the oil,
the doop, doop, doop sound of dad's thumb pumping the bottom of the can ,
and the visual of him oiling hinges, bicycle chains, and wagon wheels.

Every little girl is in awe of her daddy's Mr Fixit skills.  



I bought this one at a sale my husband found while we were staying at the beach.  I love the robin's egg blue color.  I knew I could make a picture holder out of it.  (I've seen this on other blogs.)
But this morning as I was cleaning it up, I remembered this great photo of my dad in his younger years.  He was an amateur artist, sign painter, and printer, so he apparently set up a little studio and sent this picture to his mom.  (This was all before I was born, so I am making an educated guess).  

This picture is only about 3 inches square.  Don't you just love the white, scalloped border?  LOVE old photos.  By the way, isn't he handsome?




So, I just took the oil can apart and threaded my wire through it.  I stablized the wire by bending the end into a little circle that would stand in the bottom of the can.











Then I screwed the top back on and bent the wire around a sharpie.

I pinched it together with the needle nose pliers. 

















And there you have it.  I enjoy the connection between the object and the man.  That's what I love most about vintage finds.