Tuesday, April 23, 2013

April Showers Bring May Flowers


Hello……anyone there?  And yes, I am still here…thank you to those asking if I am ok.  If a person could have a sound affect added to their body, mine would most likely resonate that of a bee hive in full blown action.  And if you could add an image along with that, it would either be The Roadrunner – you know, the cartoon character that was darting from point-to-point – or The Tasmanian Devil.  I prefer The Roadrunner – he seems to be less messy and a little less crazy looking – and just tone down the agility to a slower motion as if he has worn spine.


I thought I would share this post with y’all because I just LOVE all of the floral paintings that are here and there at The Antique Warehouse.   There are some pretty ones for sale right now and I think the one below is my fav.  This post is actually from The Antique Warehouse’s blog, which I am the author of.


On another note, I took off word verification and now am being flooded with anonymous comments from someone telling me how much they love my blog and if I would be willing to share their blog with my readers.  Being cautious minded, I don’t click on the links – and you should never do this – because who knows what the link REALLY is and my curiosity could potentially harm my computer.  Soooo, I may have to turn the WV back on..but we will see.  In the meantime, ANONYMOUS…whoever YOU are….why not leave your true identity and quit hiding?!!  Step up and be the real deal like us other bloggers take ownership of being. 


Ok…onwards now.  I made my peace.


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April showers do bring on the May flowers!  Magical things happen in the springtime with the rebirthing of foliage and the bursting of color from plants offering their first display of flowers.  Birds are happy, bees are buzzing, butterflies prancing, and hummingbirds seeking out their food from their favorite plants.  A lot is going on around us outside and it is always joyful to sit back and pay attention to the beauty that nature offers us – right in our own backyards, too.


We can bring the outdoors in with fresh cuttings of our favorite flowers – either from the local grocer or from our own gardens.  Beautiful pictures and paintings of flowers is another way to add a cottage garden look inside our homes.  Amateur paintings of flowers, vintage floral prints, old books with lovely graphics on the cover and and even dishes with pretty floral patterns can liven up any decor. 


Our dealers are celebrating the season here at the store and are bringing in some beautiful springtime pieces and creating lovely vignettes with these treasures in their spaces.


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Some of our favorite pieces are those that are done by amateur artists.  These paintings are often referred to as Sunday paintings or Sunday oils.  Back in time, women often learned how to paint and would master their skills on Sunday afternoons – hence the name Sunday paintings.  In the Victorian era (late 1800’s) it was a requirement of any woman who was “in good standing” to be able to paint and accomplish these skills quite well.


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Old needlepoint, frolicking garden angels and English transferware are scattered about here and there.  Pretty vintage pottery pieces are lovely to tuck in a hand-picked bouquet.  These make nice gifts for the special someone, too.

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Vintage toleware trays, bookends and door stops offer little touches of nature with sweet flower images.

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Garden shelves, cement urns, old milk cans and picket fencing can add that garden feel to any corner.  A little sign of scrabble tiles simply spells out that this is your garden.



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When you are done poking around in the garden, why not prepare a nice cup of tea, add a few scones to your floral plate and grab a book to read in your favorite chair that waits for you in your garden. 



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Sounds pretty good, huh?  Enjoy your day and enjoy the springtime.

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Like Peanut Butter And Jelly

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There are some things in life that seem like they were just meant to be together.  Like Lucy and Ricky, Oreos and cold milk, peanut butter and jelly and beans and wieners.  And how about with decorating?  When choosing items to cozy up the home, many of us like to coordinate like objects in vignettes that are harmonious and look good together in a room or on a shelf.

Being in the business of scouting out vintage and antique collectibles is a lot of fun and, often times, I have to remember that in order to make a living at what I do, I cannot keep everything I buy.  Yes, this can be a bit daunting at times, especially when recent finds happen to meld nicely together, like biscuits and gravy.

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The dough bowl, antique sampler and 1940’s French needlepoint pillow are recent finds and I seriously had great intentions on putting a price tag on them and taking them into one of the stores. 

HOWEVER…..

The colors of the sampler just so happen to be the colors in our dining room…

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….and the little pillow looks cute on the green bench…

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…and it matches the fresh flower cuttings from our garden.  See where I am going with this?  :)  

Uhhhh…huh and oh-oh.

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A few weeks later, I came upon these old books at a thrift store.  The books are circa 1890’s through 1905.  Shades of green, cream and gold….beautiful covers and spines…
and…
all the shades of the sampler.
Oh my…..

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And gosh, the books even match the oil painting of roses that hangs on the wall above the bench.

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The books could be displayed in the dough bowl,

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or just left stacked one on top of the other on the little green bench.

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So for now, I will enjoy this old collective of sorts and appreciate the blessing of finding them while out scouting.  Thank goodness my house isn’t very big!  I could always justify holding on to other things if it were!  I know some of my blog friends can identify with that.  Are you one of them?

Till next time…..