Saturday, September 19, 2009

"Wonder-fall"...Tablescapes and Buffets

Since this is my favorite time of the year,
 I'm hoping to do some posts that are "magazine inspired".

I'm a big magazine fan, and some of my best ideas
 have come from the pages of great layouts.
So to celebrate fall and all the goodness that it has to offer,
 from decorating, to cozy evenings at home with family and friends,
to parties, and everything in between...
here are some of my favorite
"vintage inspired" fall magazine articles...

Spooky vignette to really get you in the mood.
 Great for an entry if you're having a get-together.



Love this idea for a "Poe" inspired buffet
of hors'doeurves, or desserts.
Notice the tall silver candlestick, silver trophy cup,
 silver platters and blackboard.




Wonderful tablescape consisting of black books and pumpkins.
Casual dishes, bookpage print placemats, and colorfull fall leaves.



All of these images are from the current issue of
Midwest Living Magazine.

Have fun pulling together great vintage pieces
 to make your table decor a real party!

Debra

Thursday, September 17, 2009

Heirlooms Party


I'm a pretty sentimental gal, so I'll be right at home at this Heirloom Party
 hosted by Marie at Emma Calls Me Momma.






I have some great memories of my childhood, and being the oldest sibling in my family, I was of course the first to leave the nest. My Dad's mom and dad were in their 40's when he was born. Old by the standards of 1929, so by the time I came along they were in their late 60's early 70's. One clear memory I have is of my grandmother's upstairs bedrooms that had been my dad's and uncle's, was an old sideboard that contained old papers and ephemera. She had been a schoolteacher for a while, and was a packrat. (Now I know where I get this from) The old sideboard had been her mother's and was crackled with old varnish. It seems that each year a new coat would be put on to "spiff it up". So many layers of darkend varnish were covering an oak beauty.




My parents gave this to me after my husband and I were married. We took it to a professional furniture restorer to remove the many layers of grime and varnish. It was in my Dining Room until we moved to this house, and now it's in our family area in the basement. It has a shelf underneath that holds some silver trays and  collectible Crabtree & Evelyn bisquit tins.





Original Hardware and beveled mirror.




An old Hull apple cookie jar and stove set were also from my Grandmother's kitchen.




The salt shaker met an untimely fate a few years ago,
so I need to give Mr. Pepper his mate back.





This red velvet autograph book is also hers,
with entries from friends which date from 1889.



 I wish I had a "macro" setting so you could see
the handwriting flourishes on some of the pages.




And a foil decal of a bird in flight.




Thank you for letting me share a few of my heirlooms.

Have a sweet day full of memories,
Debra

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