Handmade

When I look around our house, I realize that so many pieces of furniture we own were made by my parents.  My father was a retired engineer who became a gentleman farmer and woodworker, and my mother was his ever present faithful sidekick who painted and finished many of the beautiful pieces that he built.

The two of them were quite a team, traveling all over buying wood, and there really wasn't anything they couldn't make together.  We would find a picture of something we loved but couldn't afford and they would make it for us.  A handy thing to have when you're a newly married couple with no spare change for fine furniture.

For the first 10 years of our marriage we never had a real bed.  We had a frame and a mattress and box springs.  Not because we didn't care about having a bed, but because picky me could never find something that I liked or if I did, we couldn't afford the high price tag.  I wanted solid wood, preferably natural cherry and a tall 4 poster, but not a tester or a rice carved bed, and I wanted it to be tall enough to need steps to get into it!  See what I mean about being picky?!

So finally I just made up my own design and gave it to my mother and father.  I said I wanted a heart shaped headboard and lots of turning on the posts.  I also wanted it to have some "weight" to it, but didn't want it to be too massive and imposing!

So, almost 14 years ago this is what he built for us and my mother then helped him finish it.  After my father built it, my mom applied a Briwax finish to it which gives it a subtle sheen.  The cherry wood doesn't have any stain on it, but it's aged beautifully over the years and I love the patina it has developed.  They also made the cherry tavern table that I use as a night stand on my side of the bed.

Ignore the poorly dressed bed, like me it's not perfect, but at least it's made right?! :-)

And in this picture you can barely make out the matching cherry steps my parents built for the bed.  And what's that big hunk of cardboard under our beautiful bed you ask?!  Well that was from the days when I obsessed over our new wood floors and the fact that our Border Collie loves to scramble underneath during every thunderstorm.  You can read about my floor obsession HERE!

Every night when we climb in to our solidly built bed, we are reminded of the love and labor that went in to its making.  And even though my parents are no longer with me.  I can walk around my house and see little pieces of them everywhere in the special things they made for us.


To see other great furniture pieces be sure to head over to Miss Mustard Seed's  for Furniture Feature Friday!

Secrets

You know the feeling when you find a great restaurant, the perfect painter, or someone who does upholstery and you hope no one else will discover your new find? Well, whenever I'm tempted to keep these new gems a secret, I just can't! Sure I'd love to think that our painter will be at our beck and call whenever we might need him, or that when I finally get around to picking the perfect fabric for that wing chair I got from my Great Aunt Frances, that I'll be first in line, but to "not" share just seems wrong.

So, although it might mean I'll miss out on a few great finds, I'm going to share a cute little shop that's tucked away in Southern Maryland, but visiting it is well worth the trip.

Photo Courtesy of The Vintage Source Website

The Vintage Source is an eclectic mix of things you've been dying to have and things you never even knew you wanted! Open just one weekend a month, the shop is filled to the brim when the doors open and there are always plenty of people anxiously waiting to get inside and begin treasure hunting. The girls who run the shop each bring their own sense of style and creativity to the unique vintage items they collect throughout the month. You're likely to find everything from painted cupboards to custom slipcovers alongside a myriad of fun and even quirky items. Each month it's a treat just to see what's new and different!

Photo Courtesy of The Vintage Source Website

In December I picked up some vintage Christmas ornaments for just $1 a piece. I tucked them in with my holiday china to add a little sparkle.

In my family room I added a great coffee table with wide pine boards and just the right patina for the casual feeling I was after.

Our daughter now has her own apartment so when it came time to help her furnish it we went to The Vintage Source and found her a great single bed painted a soft shade of blue. We also found a perfect little black kitchen table that fits nicely into her kitchen.

The excitement of not knowing just what you'll stumble upon is what makes visiting the store each month so much fun! When we remodeled, we removed 2 gas stoves neither of which were really our style, so that also meant we lost all the mantels in the house. The plan is to put a sunroom addition on at some point and to add a fireplace to that room, but for now we're mantle-less which led me to a stocking hanging dilemma over the holidays!

My sister and I went out one Saturday in November and decided to stop by The Vintage Source to see what new goodies they might have and there it was, a horse pull, the perfect substitute for a mantel right? Well at least in my head it was! The stockings hung beautifully on it all throughout December, and now I'm trying to decide what to hang on it, but for now the haphazardly hung starfish garland will have to do.

So if you ever happen to be in sunny Southern Maryland on the 3rd weekend of any given month (remember to check the website as the schedule can vary slightly) make sure you visit The Vintage Source. You never know what you might find, but it will always be something special!

Photo Courtesy of The Vintage Source Website