Vignettes — Page 2

What the Heck is in that China Cabinet?

October 10, 2012 at 10:00 am by Claudia

First of all, why do I decide to do these kinds of posts on a rainy, gloomy day? Don’t answer. The truth is, taking a bright sunny photo in the den would be all but impossible on any given day. Even though there are lots of windows, the big window is tucked under the porch roof, so we don’t get any bright sun until the end of the day. So, using Aperture Priority, I’m attempting to take some fairly decent photos of this cabinet and its contents. (Note: I need a new camera.) And eliminating the television from this photo would entail moving a few pieces of furniture and that’s not going to happen. Trust me, this photo would have been a lot worse if I hadn’t painted the inside of the cabinet a pale pink.

This china cabinet, which is on the petite side, was one of the first things I bought for my apartment in San Diego. I found it in Ocean Beach, my favorite place to hunt for vintage anything. I bought it to house my collection of Fiesta, which I ended up selling a few years later. I love the different tones of wood and the inlays along the sides. I’ll never paint it. You can see the Hendryx birdcage and some of my Roseville on top. Let’s take a peek inside, shall we?

Shelf One

1. aqua bulb bowl – McCoy, 2. my great-grandmother’s syrup jug with pewter lid, 3. platter from my favorite set of of Edwin Knowles china, I wrote about them here, 4. creamer and sugar found in Orange, CA, 5. small dish from my great-grandmother’s set of Haviland China (the rest is still stored at my friend’s house in Detroit. I know.) 6. pale pink depression glass plate that I won in a giveaway 7. French china pitcher, found at Vignettes, 8. French china plate, also found at Vignettes 9. One of my first pieces of McCoy, a lovely green vase (I have 2 of them) 10. hat pin holder, 11. vintage hat pin

Shelf Two

1. McCoy bird dish, 2. McCoy vase in peach/coral, 3. McCoy pot (a present from Brenda) 4. beautiful plate, made in France, that you can’t see very well (from Vignettes) 5. Hull pitcher (a present from Betty) 6. my grandmother’s baby shoe, 7. my pink hobnail vase (found in the neighboring town) 8. a goose egg cup

Shelf Three

1. two teacups from that set of Edwin Knowles china, 2. a bowl and a gravy boat from that same set, 3. a little platter – same set, 4. McCoy vase, another one of my first finds, 5. a beautiful egg cup in my favorite colors, unmarked (I found it at Vignettes) 6. McCoy Arcature vase (one of my all-time favorites) 7. McCoy bulb bowl in aqua, 8. hat pin holder

I think I need some larger plates or platters in the back, don’t you?

I’ll take you on a tour of the kitchen cabinet (also full of china and pottery) on another day.

Thank you for all your beautiful, heartfelt comments on my post about Riley. I can never thank you enough for the compassion and love you’ve sent my way and for the love you’ve sent to Riley. Bless you.

Don’t forget the book giveaway! It ends tonight. Scroll down three posts and you’ll find it.

Happy Wednesday.

The Painting

November 16, 2011 at 9:38 am by Claudia

Do you have some special something you’d grab if there was, God forbid, a fire or flood in your home? I have several. Heaven knows if I’d be together enough to think of any of them in a moment of panic. But I do know that I would be yanking this off the wall:

For those of you who are newer readers of this blog, a couple of years ago I was working in San Diego for an extended period of six months. I often visited my favorite shop: Vignettes. This painting was hanging behind the counter. I’d seen it for the first time the year before and I couldn’t take my eyes off it. Over the course of several months, I visited it; rather like paying homage at a shrine. I’d stand there, pretending to look at something else, while I was really stealing glances at the painting. Eventually, when I realized how transparent I was, I started talking about it to Lori, the owner of Vignettes. The price was more than I had ever paid for a piece of art. It really wasn’t all that much, just a lot for us. Our modest income forces us to be extremely frugal.

Lori called the dealer, who was willing to give me a bit of a discount. She wrote down the price on a business card. I still have it.

Still, I couldn’t imagine actually buying it.

But I loved this cherub painting that had come to Vignettes all the way from France. Sometimes we see something that touches us deep in our core and no amount of rational thinking will change the fact that we are in love – in love with something that brings us joy. You know that feeling? Well, I had it.

Eventually, I took a picture of it. I had it on my computer desktop. I pondered. I was afraid to tell Don of my need for this piece. Would he scoff? Would he not get it?

I finally emailed the photo to him. And then, fairly sure that he wasn’t a fan of cherubs, I haltingly tried to explain my passion for these cherubs. And my love for the pale aqua of the frame. And the price.

After being away from my family and home for 6 months, perhaps I felt I deserved a treat. Bless his heart, he understood.

Sigh of relief. Still not absolutely sure I would buy it, I trotted off to Vignettes. There it was. No one had stolen it away from me. Then Lori saw me and said that she had been thinking of me, especially since a customer had come to the shop, bought the painting and was having it wrapped up when, at the last minute, he changed his mind. She said all she could think about as the painting was taken down off the wall was how upset I would be.

That did it. The universe was telling me to buy it. I wouldn’t be so lucky a second time.

It hangs in our bedroom. It’s inspired the choice of the pale aqua coverlet on the bed.

Which brings me to our bedroom. The bedroom needs work. We have several pieces of furniture that need to be painted. That’s a project I want to tackle soon. I’d like to try chalk paint but it’s so darned expensive. Anyway, I want the color to be inspired by the colors of this painting. I’d love any suggestions you might have, especially from those of you who have used Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. If I use it, I can only afford one color, so it has to be the right choice.

Any ideas?

Vintage School is in Session

March 20, 2011 at 10:06 am by Claudia

While perusing some of my favorite blogs recently, I saw a post from my friend Lori, the owner of Vignettes. The theme was the cloche, but I spotted something in the background that made my pulse quicken.

Photo: Lori Chandler, Vignettes

That sign in the background, behind the cloches – the one that says “Miss Keybo….School.” That’s what caught my eye. Hey, nothing gets past me! I left a comment asking about it and Lori immediately got back to me with details and dimensions. I didn’t need it but I sure wanted it. And I knew the chances of seeing something like it again were next to none. Lori had it packed and shipped the next day. I left for Chicago with a casual, almost throwaway, mention of a package that might come while I was gone, hoping Don wouldn’t say “Lucy…you’ve got some ‘splainin’ to do.”

It was sitting on the porch when we pulled in the driveway on Thursday.

It’s mounted on wood. The words Contra, Great, Small, One Line, Two Line, Three Line, Four Line are above the keys. And there are little hooks on each key.

This was obviously a teaching tool and I did a little research. I found Miss Burrowes listed in The Woman’s Who’s Who of America for 1914-1915. Katherine lived in my hometown of Detroit, Michigan and was a music teacher. She eventually opened her own music school. She “invented appliances pertaining to the Burrowes course of music study, a method for teaching music to beginners by means of songs, stories, games, blackboard work, chart work, competitive drills and mechanical devices, as well as pianoforte music; some of the appliances are Miss Keyboard’s School, a device for teaching notation and sight reading (patented 1904)…” The entry goes on to list other inventions and music compositions. At the end it says: “Recreations: Reading, Concerts, Theater. Favors Women’s Suffrage.”

Don’t you just love it? I imagine students had to identify the note and then do something like hang a “C” on middle C. Or play certain tagged notes on a keyboard.

Obviously, we like words and graphics around here. I found the old Hymn board several years ago.

I really, really love this. Don likes it, too. At some point I might hang something from one of the hooks but not yet. And it will have to be just right.

Looks like the birds are singing the notes on the scale at the bottom of the sign.

Isn’t it fabulous??? (You can tell I’m excited, can’t you?) I love finding something that I’ve never seen anywhere else, that is unique and perfect for our cottage.

These photos were taken at different times on a sunny day. It always amazes me how light can change something’s appearance. Or somebody’s.

Oh, and I’m fighting a losing battle at the moment. I wrote a recommendation for a former Boston University student of mine who was applying to graduate school in Speech Pathology. Happily, she was accepted by the school she most wanted to attend. As a thank you, she sent me a box of these:

These are the most delicious chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever had.

Drat.

I can’t be rude, can I? I must eat them. It’s the right thing to do.

What the Heck is in that China Cabinet?

The Painting

Vintage School is in Session

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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