Sometime between the 1960’s and the early 1970’s, a couch was born in Forsyth, Georgia. In a pretty shade of green – a hue laying somewhere between celery and olive – this tufted beauty began her early life as a sales piece in Cawthorn Store for Homes, one of Forsyth’s local midcentury furniture stores.
She sat on the showroom floor with a bevy of other age- appropriate furniture that was meant to awe and inspire the home decorator just like the goal of this vintage 1970s Levitz ad…
But her destiny was not to be bought, enjoyed and then eventually discarded. There was no rubble heap in store for our green girl. This couch had vagabond stories to tell deep within her bones which is why at some point in her maturing life, our fair couch left the confines of her small city and headed out on the open road, eventually migrating five counties north to Athens, GA where she took up residence in a vintage clothing shop giving rest to weary tryer-on-ers. The clothing shop was above a grocery, The Daily Co-Op…
in a historic building owned and renovated by R.E.M.’s lead singer Michael Stipe. There she stayed for quite some time until this past June, when the vintage clothing shop was packing up to move locations. In a wonderful moment of serendipity, Ms. Jeannie happened upon this couch for free just days before moving to Nashville.
While loading all 7′ feet of her into the moving truck, a piece of paper fell out from underneath the tufted section…
It was a 1930’s paper postcard from Nurnberg, Germany. While the card was never mailed there was a detailed message hand-written in fountain pen ink on the back. It read…
“As you look at this card the house to the left on the corner was bilt in the 18th century. And on the rite is the first wall that was bilt around the city. At the time, it had not many houses. Later they bilt more on the outside of the wall and then they bilt another wall around it. All of this is broken down now.”
The house that our postcard writer is referring to…
is that of 15th century German artist Albrecht Durer (1471-1528)
Albrecht’s self portrait completed in 1500 at the age of 28.
who was an influential German renaissance painter and a prolific artist of landscapes, portraits and religious iconography throughout his career. These are some of Ms. Jeannie’s favorite Durer paintings…
The postcard was not signed so there is no telling who it belonged to or how it wound up in the couch but it does add a fun little piece of story that strings together a collection of creative spirits across quite an extensive number of years. From the initial mid-19th century furniture maker to the 1990’s famous musician to the contemporary vintage shop keeper to the 16th century German renaissance painter to the 1930’s postcard writer to the present day antique lover that is Ms. Jeannie, this one couch has managed to connect six artistic people across four centuries. Not often are such associations all wrapped up in one piece of furniture!
As with all vintage items, the beauty of this couch lies deep in the fact that she’s lived a mysterious life, well-worn and adventurous. Her interior stuffing is made from hog hair, and her wood frame shows a few knicks and scratches. Spots of threadbare fabric on one seat cushion match some shabby fray on both of the arm rests, but these imperfections add more dignity than distraction. Eventually when the fabric can hold up to time no more, she’ll be reupholstered in smooth black leather, but until that day occurs she’ll reside as-is in the land of Ms. Jeannie. Adorned with some handmade boho pillows (a new sewing project!) and a pup who thinks she is heaven, this vintage couch seems happy to build up a new layer of history here in Music City. Time has only yet to tell what other kindred-creatives will leave their impressions upon her!
It is not often that Ms. Jeannie will tell you to judge a book by its cover, but in the case of Destiny Bay, a vintage fiction novel recently listed in her shop, she wholeheartedly recommends it. In an on-going conversation about book collections and what fuels them, we’ve talked about book batches centered around a favorite author (F. Scott Fitzgerald!) or a common theme (Africa!). Today’s post is all about the first impressions that draw us in and keep us going – the face of the book. A book’s aesthetic is often one of the key motivations in amassing a collection. Some people collect books with eye-catching covers for their color arrangement…
or for their stunning graphic layout and design…
Book covers from the 1920’s, 1930’s and 1940’s
Collections can be built around books from a specific time period, like this antique collection…
This is an antique collection with gorgeous decorated book spines.
or for the artist behind the image like these contemporary book covers designed by Chip Kidd…
In the case of Destiny Bay, there are a lot of things going for it in the pretty presentation department. By far, it is one of the most attractive books that has ever come across Ms. Jeannie’s bookshelves.
From its whimsical illustration, complimentary color palette and stylish graphics this edition of Destiny Bay fires on all cylinders in the book cover department.
The story, originally published in 1925 by Irish American writer Donn Bryne, centers around the MacFarlane family of Ulster County, Ireland and combines romance, comedy and tragedy. The story is set against the sweeping Irish countryside with its beautiful topography, exiting horse race tracks, and idyllic country estates and features an eccentric cast of characters including blind Aunt Jenepher, gypsy Lady Clontarf, butler James Carabine and red-blooded Uncle Valentino to name a few. Combining the themes and characters of the book California artist Frank McIntosh (1901-1985) illustrated a cover that symbolizes the bright green landscape of Ireland and the colorful personalities of the family.
The stylized dust jacket via font and graphics are a nod towards art deco – the 1920’s style that was popular when the book first debuted. The colors are a compliment in opposites with bright spring greens and tangerine oranges each elegantly outlined in black ink. An overall dramatic and glamorous aesthetic that always seems to be in vogue no matter what the decade!
McIntosh built quite a career utilizing the sleek lines and sophisticated detailings that became so iconic of his work. He came of age in the 1920’s which no doubt left quite an impression on him and he carried that passion throughout his design career. Taking him from California all the way around the world to Paris and back again, he traveled in both commercial art circles and fine art circles. These are three of his beautiful covers for Asia Magazine…
We know from Destiny Bay, he was also a book designer and most of his work in the publishing world carried the same delicate disposition…
A robust career in advertising and freelance illustration left time to exhibit independently as well and kept his title of working artist relevant throughout most of the 20th century. Examples of his work in popular poster form are all so highly collectible now…
That makes Mr. Frank McIntosh a superstar in Ms. Jeannie’s world! His books look stunning on a shelf and his posters look equally amazing next to the shelf! So go ahead dear readers appreciate Destiny Bay for face value, and in doing so you’ll be pleased to discover that the story is equally beautiful as well! A gem of vintage book collecting all wrapped up in pretty package! Find the book here.
Open up more discussion on why you like to collect books by adding your thoughts in the comments section below!
She stands poised and serene on the sea rocks underneath a blustery sky. He stands confident and bold, like a fashionable Fauntleroy against the backdrop of a golden grey garden. At first glance, they are similar in subject, stance and appearance. They are similar in color palette, context and composition, in attitude and affluence. But their sameness doesn’t stop there. Embedded beneath the patina of paint and brushstroke runs a strange series of coincidences and ironies that bind both painters and subjects together in an unusual web of wonder.
If you walk into just about any antique shop today, you’ll most undoubtedly see the 18th century images of Pinkie and The Blue Boy reproduced in an assortment of different ways. Most commonly they peek out from behind matching frames of varying ages and styles like this…
Two Large Framed Prints of Pinkie and The Blue Boy from Happy Go Vintage
but they also appear on a variety of creative endeavors from ceramic vases to needlepoint pillows from coffee mugs to calendars and most collectibles in-between.
As two of the art world’s most commonly printed masterpieces, they are almost always presented as a pair… a portrait of teenagers on the cusp of an adult world. A nod to young love, first love, new love and a symbol of tenderness, confidence, potential and optimism.
But you can’t always judge a painting by its presentation. Pinkie and The Blue Boy as a couple are the result of time-worn perception and assumption. Painted by two different artists in two different decades, Pinkie and Blue were never meant to be together.
It wasn’t until the 1920s, roughly 150 years after they were painted, that this romantic perception took hold thanks to American railroad tycoon and enthusiastic art collecto,r Henry Edwards Huntington. Purchased in England during the American heyday of British portraiture, Huntington brought these two paintings across the ocean to California where he placed them in his library opposite one another.
Henry Edwards Huntington
The general public was then invited to come and take a look. From that moment forward Pinkie and The Blue Boy became associated as a couple forever linked by free association.
But oddly enough had Pinkie and Blue met in real-life and lived during the same time frame, they most likely could have been an actual real couple. They had so many similarities in common that relating to each other would have been as breezy as their painted backgrounds.
The linking of back stories between not only Pinkie and Blue, but also their painters and their collector is equally strong. Here are five people entwined in a strange sort of web that is made of parallels in all directions.
Let’s look at the links….
THE CONNECTION BETWEEN PINKIE & BLUE: Personal Lives
Painted somewhere around 1770, by famed British artist Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788), The Blue Boy, is thought to be the commissioned portrait of Jonathan Buttall, who came from a wealthy English iron-trading family.
Jonathan Buttall
At the time the portrait was completed, Jonathan was about 18 years old. His father had died two years earlier leaving Jonathan to run the retail iron business and attend to the massive fortune it procured.
Pinkie, the nickname of Sarah Goodin Barrett Moulton, sat for her portrait with equally esteemed English artist Thomas Lawrence in 1794. At the time of the painting she was eleven years old, and also without a father, who had abandoned her family several years earlier.
Like Jonathan, Sarah also came from wealthy stock. The Moultons made their fortune in the lucrative business of exporting rum and sugar from Jamaica. At the time of this portrait, Pinkie was two years into a stay in England – a dramatic move made for educational purposes that took her far away from her home country of Jamaica. Just like Jonathan adjusting to a new business environment, Pinkie was adjusting to a new living environment. They were both wealthy, young, fatherless and undergoing challenging transitions.
THE CONNECTION BETWEEN JONATHAN & THOMAS LAWRENCE: Debt
Although affable and kind-hearted, Jonathan did not turn out to have quite the same knack for financial business savvy that his father possessed. After two decades Jonathan was so loaded down in debt he was forced to file bankruptcy and auction off his belongings including his own portrait.
Thomas Lawrence (the painter of Pinkie) was one of the most popular portrait artists of his day and a favorite of the royal courts. He worked constantly and consistently, but to the puzzlement of those around him, was always in debt. Throughout his career he continually relied on financial support from benefactors and loans from his friends and left little fortune when he died.
THE CONNECTION BETWEEN JONATHAN AND THOMAS GAINSBOROUGH: Music
Gainsborough, at the time that he was commissioned to paint The Blue Boy, was looking to break into the theatrical art set of creative London. He appreciated the city’s cultured manner, their love of music and drama and their acceptance of artistic endeavors. But in order to fall in seamlessly with this crowd, he felt he had to step up his game as far as skill-level and painting technique. So he studied the style that he most admired, Flemish painter Anthony van Dyck…
Anthony Van Dyck’s portrait of Charles I of England, painted in in 1635.
Through Gainsborough’s own evolution of painting style that was directly influenced by the work of Van Dyck, you can see what an impression the one artist had on the other…
Gainsborough’s evolution of style: (left to right) Before studying Van Dyck, Sketching like Van Dyck, Painting like Van Dyck
When Gainsborough met and became friends with the Buttall family he took a particular interest in young Jonathan who enjoyed a similar love of music. Gainsborough introduced his refined painting style (modeled after Van Dyck’s work) in his portrait of Jonathan, which became one of England’s most treasured paintings and Gainsborough’s most notable work. Gainsborough treasured his friendship with Jonathan for the rest of his life.
THE CONNECTION BETWEEN THOMAS GAINSBOROUGH & THOMAS LAWRENCE: The Royal Academy of Arts
Aside from the obvious facts that they were both portrait artists, both named Thomas, and both incredibly talented, the two Thomas’ were also big-time supporters of their trade. Separated by a generation in age, Thomas Gainsborough, the elder of the two, was a founding member in The Royal Academy of Arts which opened in London in 1768 as an exhibition venue and an educational support center for artists. Thomas Lawrence became its 4th president in 1820. While it is known that Lawrence was an admirer of Gainsborough’s work, it is uncertain if the two ever met.
The Royal Academy of Arts in London. Photo by Davis Landscape Architecture.
THE CONNECTION BETWEEN PINKIE AND THOMAS LAWRENCE: Early Death
Tragically, Pinkie never made it to adulthood. She died a year after her portrait was painted possibly from complications of an upper respiratory infection. Her painter, Thomas Lawrence also died unexpectedly from a heart attack at the age of 60.
THE CONNECTION BETWEEN THEM ALL: Love
In all its varied forms, from the passions of collecting, to the comfort of friendship, to the dedication of career, and to the lofty assumptions of amorous awakenings, Pinkie and The Blue Boy connected not only these five people but also millions of people around the world with one word: love.
Art is wonderful in uniting individuals, spawning ideas, energizing imaginations and recording place and time. Antique paintings like Pinkie and The Blue Boy serve not only as intimate proof of two young lives lived centuries ago, but they also serve as a playground for creative thought, intuitive whimsy and a universal need to understand and draw connections. And even though their association is not entirely based in accuracy, the fact that they were blended together in the 1920s and remain blended together today is a wonderful example of our human race’s need to connect and associate.
Sometimes making up a story is more unifying than defining an actual reality. That’s the beauty of art. That’s the beauty of Pinkie and the Blue Boy.
Interested in learning about more vintage art? Check out these two art history books here.
Ms. Jeannie is hard at work on a new art related blog post that will be coming out shortly. In the meantime, she wanted to share the new batch of old items that have just arrived in her shop. In this mix you’ll find:
The fun thing about this mix is that they are all hand-touched. From the choice of colors on the magnificent horse head bust to the choice of beads in the gracefully delicate sweater, each piece has been crafted with an artist’s eye and close attention has been paid to detail.
They also make for unique decorating and festive conversations! The decanter set is ready for a little outdoor entertaining, the antique basket is ready for a little garden gathering and nothing says rest and relaxation like a pot of tea and a good book. A new season is here and new stories are now unfolding!
If you like being kept abreast of new shop items in this fashion, please let Ms. Jeannie know in the comments section. Some new changes are coming to the blog over the next month and Ms. Jeannie wants to be sure to include all your favorite topics.
Cheers to a wonderful weekend ahead and Happy April!
It’s the middle of January. It is the middle of winter and the middle of a cold snap hitting Ms. Jeannie’s section of the woods. It’s in the twenties at night and the wood stove in the schoolhouse is working overtime. To everyone else it is freezing, but in the mind of Ms. Jeannie it is Spring. That’s right dear readers, a new season has arrived and it looks like this…
and this…
and this…
If you have visited Ms. Jeannie’s shop within the last week you’ll have noticed that a bevy of botanical flower prints have appeared – a hopeful little nod to warmer weather and all the beauty that is silently stirring under ground while everyone else is shivering above.
The flower prints are botanical bookplates that comprise wild flowers in America circa 1953. Printed watercolor portraits of over 400 different varieties, these beauties represent some of the most common and most exotic flowers that graced our mid-century American landscape from Alaska to Maine, from Canada to Mexico and from each and every state in-between.
Colorful, simple and classically stylish, these botanicals offer a bounty of decorating options from bright and bold to subtle and soothing. Today we are going to take a look at how you might decorate with such beauties to bring some fresh color into your space or use them as springboards to choose a room’s color palette.
You can go the traditional route and frame them in simple wood frames to liven up an accent wall like this balanced collage:
You could create your own garden cottage wallpaper…
You could pull colors together in a room with these guys as your green anchor:
You could think outside the frame and tape them up on a wall in a casual combination of beautifully messy:
Or you could incorporate them into a found object vignette like this one that represents all your favorite things…
When grouped together in a large collection, vintage botanicals help brighten up a dark space like this one…
And they help add a pop of color on a wall that is all white like this one…
They can help carry a theme of color and shape, like this arrangement…
Or help carry a vibe like this soft and soothing space…
Anyway, you look at them, from the traditional to the thought-provoking, vintage botanicals have the ability to instantly and effortlessly add personality to a room and a wall. Warm yourself up with some flowers in red and and orange. Or calm yourself down with flowers in white and green. There’s something for everyone in a wild flower whether you are looking for pretty petals or dramatic grasses, wild flowers never disappoint.
Oh and there is an added bonus too…instant mood brighteners on these chilly-willy days of winter when all seems icy grey and white.
To peruse the collections in Ms. Jeannie’s shop (which include vintage Menaboni bird botanicals too!) please click here.
Cheers to sunny days ahead! Happy day dreaming and happy decorating!
Almost every year Ms. Jeannie makes a paper village for Christmas. Sometimes she gives them away to friends and sometimes she incorporates them into her space. Sometimes they reflect little details of things that happened during the year and other times they act as little totems for what she might like to see happen in her life in the new year. Regardless of the theme it is always fun to make them – a little stress-relief project in the middle of a busy month.
This year Ms. Jeannie built her Christmas village into her bookshelf. As you all know books swirled around her life left and right this year, and although there was a lot of unexpected events and occurrences that happened in 2015, books helped keep her hopeful. So it seemed fitting to build her paper village among the stacks of paper that so inspire her.
Mr. Jeannie pitched the roofs and lent his talents in the chimney smoke department. Ms. Jeannie hung stars and made alpine trees out of vintage book paper. It was a family affair like all good holiday projects should be with lots of love and laughter to hold up her little cut-out community.
The same can be said of this community of readers – you dear wonders – who continue to make Ms. Jeannie smile with all the love and support you give on a such a regular basis. Thank you so much for keeping in touch and contributing all your thoughts – with each kind word you lift Ms. Jeannie higher each and every day.
There are big plans for 2016 and many fun surprises in-store. Ms. Jeannie hopes with all her merry might that yourplans for the new year are just as big and just as bright and that 2016 is going to be the best year yet.
Wishing you a very Merry Christmas and the most cheerful of New Years!
Adele’s flat above the This, That and the Other Store in West Norwood where she filmed the at home video of Someone Like You
Celebrity decorating. It is something of endless fascination to Ms. Jeannie, mostly because the sky is big as far as budget, space and service, which yields a million varied possibilities. But while some really incredible rooms can be put together when you combine a team of decorators, exotic materials and bold statement pieces, sometimes the overall effect, while pretty as a magazine cover lacks the personality and individualism of the dweller who lives there.
Famed 20th century decorator, Sister Parish often said “all good decorating is about memories.” That’s so true and so relevant to people who like to decorate with antiques. Today we are going to look at one sensational singer’s library and examine how she has mastered the perfect balance between style and sentiment.
Adele’s new album, 25 officially releases this week, but we are going to look at one of the videos from her past album, 21, which was filmed in her humble flat where she was living just as fame started flirting. The video gives a wonderfully intimate glimpse into her personal space and the style she calls her own. By utilizing a fireplace mantle, one bookshelf and the wall in-between, Adele manages to pack a lot of detail into a moderately sized space. Let’s look…
There are lots of odds and ends tucked into her shelves: pictures of her dog, a giant rubber band ball, a mini figurine of a man running, a horse marionette, sand art. Story and memory and intrigue wind their way up and down and across. The overall look is eclectic which makes it interesting, unique which makes it personal, and unfussy which makes it fresh. Sister Parish would have definitely approved!
Using Etsy as her shopping source, Ms. Jeannie recreated Adele’s library look with these following items (click on each picture for more information)…
Vintage Fowler’s Preserving Jar from epochco, $25.58Cream Beethoven Bust made by mahzerandvee, $70Hand Carved Horse Marionette from Buddahagal, $28Mirror from SecretWindowMirrors, $76Antique Spelter Figurine from SquirrelMidden, $130.31Colorful Ceramic Horse from KukuliMarket, $38Puppy Love Photograph by Kalstek Photography, $33.00Colorful Rubber Band Balls by BeFashinoablyOnTime, $3.50Vintage Dachshund Figurine by VIntageGoofball, $9.95Antique Seth Thomas Wood Mantle Clock from OneReDunn, $149.99Ostrich Egg by BrocAndPop, $88.15
If decorating is a challenge for you, or you feel confused or uncertain as to where and how to begin to define your own interior style – take Adele’s lead and start with your book shelf. Like a mini room unto itself, bookshelves offer a vast amount of possibility when it comes to display and self expressionism. They can be changed and redecorated over and over again most easily. They offer a great blank canvas to play around with and they have the most effortless ability to really anchor a room as far as a focal point.
Ms. Jeannie encourages you to get beyond the typical effort of just lining up some books in a row and calling it done. Go and explore the little loves of your heart and watch your bookshelf come to life! And of course if you are looking for any books to fill out your shelves, there’s always Ms. Jeannie’s shop to help in that department.
On a side note, in 2013 Adele moved out of her cozy flat into this big beauty in Surrey. Ms. Jeannie imagines there’s a few more bookshelves there in need of her good style sense!
Gearing up for Fall and the busy holiday shopping season ahead, Ms. Jeannie is taking the briefest of moments to highlight where and why you can find her in the world of social media. Besides here on the blog and on Etsy, you can find Ms. Jeannie…
A vintage inspired re-tweet from flavorwire. Bookish business cards!
Here you’ll find Ms. Jeannine tweeting about literary quotes, interesting vintage inspired trends (like the above bookish business cards!), historical fun facts, new shop items, cool places to travel, favorite books and secret sale announcements. Follow Ms. Jeannie on twitter here.
Just recently joined, here you’ll find behind-the-scenes shots of Ms. Jeannie’s blog photo shoots, moments of nature that catch her attention, ideas being crafted in the shop and of course magical moments with Indie – the biggest ham on Instagram! Follow Ms. Jeannie on Instagram here.
Some of Ms. Jeannie’s most popular boards include (from left to right): The Vintage House, The Vintage Man and the Vintage Garden
On Pinterest you’ll find a collection of design boards curated by Ms. Jeannie that seamlessly blend vintage items into our contemporary world through decorating, gardening, fashion, cooking, party planning and more. There’s a bit of whimsy floating around that space too! Fun boards include: Scenes from a Dinner Party Long Ago, True Adventurers and The Vintage Bird. Sign up to follow Ms. Jeannie on Pinterest here.
Vintage concrete rabbit bookends available in Ms. Jeannie’s shop.
This is the least utilized of all the social media outlets by Ms. Jeannie at the moment but come September this is where you’ll find new shop items, press mentions, shop sales, vintage item collections and favorite books. Like Ms. Jeannie on Facebook here.
And a big BIG thank you dear readers for encouraging the world of Ms. Jeannie in all the ways that you do. From comments on the blog to social media likes and favorites to individual messages – every single one of your thoughts and clicks counts big time in helping Ms. Jeannie persue her passion. It’s cliche to say she couldn’t do it with out you. But really she couldn’t do it without you. Thanks for being marvelous.
Please include your social media links in the comments section so we all can find you too!
We are just moments away from October and that means the countdown to Christmas is officially on! Don’t panic though, dear readers, Ms. Jeannie is here to help you shop. With just 12 and a half weeks until the big holiday, she’s excited to launch her holiday gift guide – a contemporary vintage suggestion gift list that incorporates the old with the new for one completely memorable gift giving experience.
Whether you are looking for a simple hostess gift for your friend’s party, a unique treasure for Aunt Sarah who has everything or a nostalgic gift for your closest family member, Ms. Jeannie will be highlighting a dozen items over the next three months that combine meaning and memory with a modern twist…
So grab a cup of hot chocolate, put on your favorite Christmas songs and let’s start shopping…
Idea No. 1: Lace Patterned Stoneware
Ceramic lace plate made by My mother’s Garden – $16.00
Embossed with vintage lace and crochet patterns, these stoneware dishes and serving pieces combine the prior popularity of the doily with a fully functional and modern shaped piece of pottery.
Blue Ceramic Tapas Dish made by Blue Butterfly Crafts – $15.00
The doily has been around since the 1700’s and was intended to protect wood and cloth surfaces from dirt and scratches. Many (so many!) for centuries were used on tabletops to protect expensive wood and on couches and chairs to prevent dirt and oil from seeping into the fabric. (You’ll notice one on the back of the chair in the Christmas photo above!).
Mostly, these cloth buffers were hand-crocheted – fine examples of a seamstress’ sewing abilities, a love of hobby and a stunning example of utilitarian purpose. But with the advent of modern cleaning products their usefulness has fallen out of favor in the home decorating market. What used to be an example of pride and beauty and function, now no longer seems quite so stylish in our contemporary lives. Which leaves a bit of a sentimental conundrum. What to do with all those family heirloom sewing pieces?
In Ms. Jeannie’s case, both her grandmother, great grandmother and great great grandmother were all sewers – which means a fair amount of crocheted doiles have been left behind in their wake.
You may recall seeing Grandma Dorothy’s tablecloth once before on the blog back in February 2013…
It’s a big swatch of a tablecloth full of round flowers and intricate webbing. Thanks to Ms. Jeannie’s artistic pottery friend Sloan, Grandma Dorothy’s tablecloth is also a now a pretty platter…
Ms. Jeannie sent this platter to her mom as a Mother’s Day gift, which made it a three generation gift. A nod to the past and also to the present!
Since the design is rolled out onto the clay and then lifted before firing, the heirloom fabric does not need to be sacrificed for a project such as this. Ms. Jeannie was able to choose the shape, dimension and colors of the piece as well for a completely custom gift.
Sloan also, as a little surprise, made three pottery birds (one for Ms. Jeannie and both of her sisters) to use as tree ornaments or a petite wall hanging.
Of course the sky is the limit in the customization department. If you do a search on Etsy for lace patterned pottery, you’ll find a bevy of pretty examples from subtle vases…
Porcelain lace vase made by wapa – $105.00
to dramatic jewelry…
Ceramic Necklace Pendant made by Helihelmed – $18.26
By incorporating lace from a bridal dress or veil you could also transform this idea into a custom wedding or anniversary gift. Imagine what a pretty object this dress could turn into…
Lace Wedding Dress by elikadesigns –
If you love this idea, but do not have any crocheted family heirlooms in your treasure trove to call your own – don’t worry Ms. Jeannie’s got you handled in that department also. She has a (non-family!) doily bundle available in her shop here…
Two artists meeting many years apart to form one special gift for your one special person – it’s going to be one memorable holiday:) Stay tuned for Idea no. 2 next week!
Fall colors are just starting to seep into the autumn landscape here in the South. Usually, in Ms. Jeannie’s area, peak fall foliage time hits in early November, a couple of weeks before the Thanksgiving holiday, so we are just at the very start of the season now. But today was a blustery day, with leaves flying all over the yard and Ms. Jeannie couldn’t help but admire all the pretty colors turning from green to gold to rust that had just started occurring these past few days.
Primarily from mid Georgia to south Georgia the state is made up of pine trees, which of course are green all year round, so in order to get a fill of fall foliage, one must look to the decorative trees. Here are a few samplings of some traditional (non-pine!) Southern trees on their colorful journey from summer to fall…
The Fig TreeThe DogwoodThe Scuppernong Grapevine
When the afternoon sun hits the grapevine it is like a giant light has been turned on inside the vines. So bright that it almost hurts your eyes to look at!
The Tulip Tree
And Ms. Jeannie’s most favorite…
The Magnolia Tree
The Magnolia tree is really the grand spectacle of fall foliage in the South. All these leaves come from the same tree and were picked on the same day, so as you can see it is a colorful character in Fall. Ms. Jeannie thinks it is Mother Nature’s equivalent to the argyle sweater, with all of its blocks of repeating solids! The color range is spectacular. In the picture – the center leaf is a metallic silver, but can also count copper, lime, canary yellow, russet, pumpkin, neon green, chocolate brown, amber , hazel, emerald and cinnamon among its many shades. Fascinating that all that could be on tree at the same time. Add some pretty smelling, dinner plate size magnolia flowers to the mix and the tree is absolutely perfect!
Many Southerners use the leaves as garlands for their front porches and mantle pieces. Holiday time in the South really is a beautiful experience.
Magnolia garland for the stairway. Photo via pinterest.Magnolia garland for the mantle. Photo via pinterest.Magnolia garland for the front door. Photo courtesy of RSHcatalog.com
An unexpected surprise occurred when Ms. Jeannie took a first time road trip to the North Georgia mountains, in early November, several years ago. About an hour away, near Blue Ridge, Georgia, the trees offer up a completely different view of the season…
The North Georgia mountains in Autumn. Photo via pinterest
There, the foliage rivals the best of any Vermont town. Red, green, orange, yellow, brown – one tree after another just gets prettier and prettier. And because it is up in the mountains – the air is crispy, the roads windy and the fruit stands plentiful. Whenever Mr. Jeannie and Ms. Jeannie get a little nostalgic for their New England Autumns of past, they make a trek up to the mountains. Close your eyes for a second and then open – and tah-dah you could very seemingly be in Vermont! To give you an idea of the dazzling array of color – here are a few pictures courtesy of pinterest – that were taken in the North Georgia mountains…
Photo via pinterestPhoto via pinterest.Photo via pinterest.Photo via pinterest.
Ms. Jeannie is making a trip up to the mountains in the next couple of weeks, so that she can go apple picking. It’s officially time for apple pie season! So stayed tuned for more fall foliage pictures to come!
In the meantime, are leaves changing in your neck of the woods yet? If so, what color palette is Mother Nature painting with in your yard?
In the Vintage Kitchen: Where History Comes To Eat 