Hill Country Antique Show

Set up day is always interesting in the world of antique shows. Some shows are held in wonderful old barns, some in hotel convention rooms, some in tents and some in the middle of fields. The show I participated in this past weekend was held in the buildings of the local fairgrounds of Boerne, Texas.

Early morning on Friday - lots of unloading, hauling, unpacking, and much creativity needed!

This is was what I had to work with. Big, open, ugly, ugly fan. Nice, huh?

Mmmmmmm......cinder block walls........nice. And what are we going to do with that big, NASTY,fan?

 Oops, shot the photo before we steamed our burlap table covers.......but, notice the antique log cabin quilt? A perfect fit hanging over the fan.

  

My friend, Betsy, shared the space with me. I have a little bit of everything - tole trays, hooked rugs and other antique textiles, tramp art, vintage stoneware, concrete lambs, and Mexican pottery.   Betsy has the best of early American furniture, crocks, textiles, and old buckets with wonderful, original paint. Let's just say we make an interesting mix!

 

Our friend, Sandy, finds the best of old urns, baskets, statuary ..................

 

If it has old white or creamy paint, she loves it.

 Dealers from Austin, Sandra and Jim, always set up a great booth with the best of country and garden items - always lots of good old paint, too.

  Peg and Jon Van Dyne of French Vanilla specialize in antique garden items and architectural elements, and very, very creative lighting designs.

  This is a favorite sign that I spy at a lot of the shows I go to.  The dealers do not want to sell it, but enjoy hanging it in their booth at shows and I think they live by what it says! I keep asking them to sell it to me but so far, no luck!

  

Wayne Ayers is a folk art dealer from Chappell Hill, Texas (Round Top territory).

 His collections are folky, eclectic and guaranteed to make you smile. 

All in all, it was a great weekend and antique show. Most dealers sold more small items than large, but just as I say that I remember the dealer across the aisle from us loading out three pieces of furniture to the same customer yesterday afternoon................. so, as they say, go figure! I had a great show and sold to some of my favorite customers. Thank you to each of you!

The next show coming up is the   Hill Country Vintage Home and Garden Fair on March 10 and 11 in Driftwood, Texas, near Dripping Springs.  To learn more about it, go to Bloom and Bee Swanky blog or to Garden Antiques Vintage blog.

I Just Have to Brag One More Time...........enid and design* sponge

Lara and Tim Bobo's kitchen

I know there are creative people everywhere, but I swear, they just grow like weeds in Fredericksburg, Texas! Talented Lara Bobo, whose home I featured here , ( her kitchen shown above) and who has the wonderfully hip and fresh shop, enid, recently penned a guide to our town and it was featured on the popular blog design* sponge today! Between Callie Jenschke from yesterday's post,  and Lara Collins Bobo, I feel so proud of both of them. These  enterprising young Texans are going to continue to impress the design world, of that I am sure.

 

Photo from design sponge feature on Fredericksburg

It is a great guide, full of the best shops, restaurants, and sights to see.  Check it out here. Lara did a fabulous job of capturing all the great spots in our town.

The first place I plan to visit, (after I finish the antique show this weekend) is enid's new location on East Main Street.

Photo from enid website

 Lara started her shop in a small space on the west end of town. Her original shop was loaded with charm and great modern as well as vintage items.  I'll bet her move has to do with expansion and the heavy tourist traffic that we get on the more central part of Main Street.  Spring is a huge season for visitors here with bluebonnets and peaches galore, and the shopping on Main Street is always fun. 

If you want to get away for the weekend, or want a great destination for a wedding, Fredericksburg is the perfect spot. 

Come see us, and meanwhile, check out Lara's guide on to Fredericksburg on design*sponge!!

NEWS FLASH - Scout Designs Update

This just in - my charming and most talented friend, Callie Jenschke, and her partner, Nicki Clendening, of Scout Designs, have been recognized and endorsed by Daily Candy here !

I am so excited for this amazing design duo. Some of you may remember that I am especially fond of Callie as she was our first babysitter when we moved to Fredericksburg fifteen years ago. She has been such a delight to know over the years, and of course, I live vicariously through her adventures in design and her life in NYC!

    (Callie on the left, Nicki on the right)  Photo from Scout website

I posted about these two talented young women here last summer. They have added more fabulous design work to their project list and have a great blog as well.

Here are a few of their great designs, but you really need to visit their website to get the full gist of their amazing style and vision.

 Photo credit  www.imogenbrownphoto.com  

What a fabulous tablescape. I love the mix, and who would ever think to make a lamp out of alabaster grapes?!

                                                                 Photo credit: www.kristamburello.com

The vast scope of design vision these young designers have is fascinating to me. When I look at their work, I see a full range of vintage bohemian to sleek and sophisticated.

                                                                            Photo credit: www.kristamburello.com

          They are clever, hard working, fresh.  They will scout for that perfect piece of furniture or accessory. Obviously, they are connected to some great sources for antiques and unusual, interesting objects.

If I could, I would hire them in a heartbeat!

 See more at their website, Scout Designs.

Hugh Newell Jacobson, or, House Stalking in Nashville

 

Photo courtesy of Hugh Newell Jacobson 

Back in May of 2009, blogging friend, Laura Casey, did a post on red doors. Her photos were all lovely, but this one in particular caught my eye. It is a house designed by architect, Hugh Newell Jacobson.

Jacobson's designs are a wonderful combination of symmetry and gabled roofs of early American design, along with the simplicity, clean lines and open floor plans of modern architecture.

Laura mentioned that the house is in Nashville and I asked if it might be one I could drive by someday. (You know how we house stalkers are!)

So, this morning, my last in Nashville for a while, I got to thinking about that house again and quickly shot Laura an email, hoping she might be able to tell me exactly where the house is.

Sweet Laura got right back to me within a couple of hours and off I went! She was not able to give me the exact address, but a street intersection was all I needed.

My photo!

I do not think I would be a very good stalker - I mean,  a real one. I am too chicken.

I drove by three times before I even got up the nerve to pull over, roll down my window and take a picture. Finally, I did it!! 

The street is a long, winding road through an old neighborhood of beautiful houses set back on huge lots. There are no sidewalks or curbs, so there is not really any place to pull a car over.

After cruising the neighborhood for a while, I saw the house and did a double take. It sits at the end of this long, straight driveway, which runs right off the street. It is interesting seeing it against the cloudy sky and the snow covered lawn. It doesn't quite pop like it does in the first photo, but still......it is stunning. I would imagine in the spring and summer the trees hide the house from the road.

So, once I found the house,  I had to circle around the blocks several times, hoping that I might be able to drive by without anyone behind me. No luck. Each time I had a car right on my bumper, probably wondering who the old lady was poking down the street.

So, on about the third time around, I just pulled over as far as I could to the right, rolled down my window and shot a picture! I was so proud of myself, but also felt a little like, as my girls say, a "creeper".

What can I say? For me it was like seeing an original painting by a favorite, famous artist. The real thing is such a thrill compared to seeing pictures in books. 

Now, if I could just get inside that house..................

Blogging Detour and finally, the Nashville Antique Shows!

My friend, Barbara, and I have planned for months to visit her grandson and my daughter in Nashville in February. For antique lovers, February is a big month here. The Heart of Country Show is here, as well as the Music Valley Show,and the Tailgate Antiques Show.

We think it most convenient that we have kids in college here, especially this time of year!

I love this sign from an old furniture store. I found it at the Heart of Country show one year and had to have it! It kind of says it all, doesn't it?

As sometimes happens, our plans did not go exactly according to the way we imagined. My daughter and I had to make a detour for a funeral in Dallas and have just arrived a few days later than planned to Nashville.

While we saw amazing and beautiful snow in Dallas, and enjoyed the company of sweet family and friends, and attended a very touching and meaningful funeral service, we sure are happy to be back where we started - or where we wanted to start!

I will be selling at the next Texas hill country show in Boerne, Texas, but meanwhile I LOVE a good show to browse.

Who knows, I might just find something new to start collecting!

Photos from my personal collections in my home. 

Creative Block

My daughter is the Student Council Events Chairperson for her school. Translated, that means she plans dances, and a few other things. Nothing takes creativity quite like dances, though.

This Saturday, the theme of the dance is "A Walk to Remember". 

"Mom, I want it to be like we are in this beautiful park just full of flowers.....and we are dancing under the stars".

Lovely. One problem - maybe two.

Creativity, time and money - okay three problems.

The setting is a church gym - a big, plain, church gym.

Twinkle lights are good -with enough twinkle lights and the main lights turned down low, some good tunes............those can carry you a little ways, but not all the way.

Flowers - we found some lovelies at Michaels, Big Lots, and the Dollar Store. We can't afford the real thing, and besides it is freezing here and all my potted plants look pathetic.

 These pink garlands will wrap around the volleyball poles. Sweet.

Did I mention budget? $100.00

Fortunately, people bring cookies and punch and other snacks.

I know we could do a lot on one hundred bucks given the manpower, time and creativity.

We have a couple of park benches,  a few ficus trees, and lots of candles.

Still, we are just not feelin' it.

We bought some big paper lanterns today. Various sizes and color - they should add some dimension and color among the stars and imaginary tree tops.

The other day we went to the city - that's what we do for excitement sometimes - we go to Austin or San Antonio - anyway, we went to Anthropologie.

Oh - my - gosh....what those people can do with sticks and twigs and garden hoses and plastic bottles and some spray paint!

They had made vines and vines of "flowers" out of cut plastic bottles spray painted different spring colors. If only.............if only we had the manpower and the time.

 

Photo from flickr - ccerruti

But, the dance in the park is this Saturday, and I am not Anthropologie, as much as I wish I was.

I am just a mom trying to help decorate for a semi- formal - a big deal in junior high and high school.

Ideas welcome!