We were Not Without Our Visitors

More Desert #3 views of our condo

Are We in the Desert or Jurassic Park?

Ho Hum A Week In The Desert#1

Even Victorians need rest and diversion. In fact the wealthier ones would take a whole summer or winter vacation. The Catskill Mt's and the Adirondack Mt's. were the destinations of wealthy Easterners,especially New Yorkers,escaping the humid unbearable summer heat. Those mountains were peppered with elegant hotels and lakeside homes built by these wealthy Victorians. Until recent years these homes were falling into disrepair, ignored and unwanted. Air travel had led to their demise.
Some enterprising business men in the 50's did buy a few and turned them into summer camps and etc. As a teenager I was fortunate to attend one such in the Adirondacks. It had been built on an Island in the middle of a lake. I had not yet been won over by the all consuming passion for Victoriana but I did have a great appreciation for God's creation and the beauty there was breathtaking. Can you imagine the romance of living on an island for a week as a teenager?  The camp was Word Of Life , A great ministry to teenagers that inspired them to give their lives to the Lord.
Presently these beautiful homes are being snatched up for big prices and being refurbished and given new life.
Many extremely wealthy Easterners would travel by train to the West Coast to stay in Grand Hotels. One such is Greene Hotel in Pasadena. The thing of it is that they didn't just come with their kids and and maybe aging parents but they brought along with them their whole staff.,butlers,nannies, personal assistants, you name it.. Oh the romance of it all.

Ho Hum a Week in the Desert #2

looks like an old master painting, not southern ca. desert

r view from our "villa"

view from our "villa"

Whopps did we make a wrong turn and end up in Hawaii?!!. This little fella was on our curtain when we entered the room.

This Victorian doesn't have an extensive staff or a preponderance of money to spend a whole summer or winter someplace. I just rounded up my mom and hubby ,we packed tons of food from Costco piled into the Camry and drove two and a half hours to our desert destination.
My husband had made reservations ,so I had no idea where we were headed. What a pleasant surprise!
The Resort was grandly bedecked with waterfalls and impeccable landscaping. I never realized the desert plants could be so beautiful. I have a new appreciation for the bee balm bush. It is very striking against it's native environment.

sunset and ribs on the patio

grandma's private patio

just a dreamy view!

At any rate we were greeted graciously by the clerks at the registration desk and handed our key to our "villa". And what a villa it was...2 bedrooms,2 full baths, a kitchenette in mom's bedroom and a full kitchen ,dining room,and living room, and not to be ignored 3 flat screen TVs.To top this all off we had a great water view and mountain view plus golf court view. We were surrounded by breathtaking beauty.Desert #3 will have more pictures.

How to Cover that Ugly Vent

Our house has a large vent for the central heating and cooling. It is placed on the stair landing, right in a very prominent place readily visible as you enter my home and if you sit at certain places in my living room. Not really a very pleasing sight.
The problem is ,you can't block the vent as it will impede the flow of air. Other than the obvious, placing a piece of decorative material over it I was in a quandary what to do.
First I purchased a very tall narrow antique bird cage to obscure it's appearance. It would allow air flow and worked to a certain degree but it seemed awkward  and wasn't quite tall enough.
Then I remembered a hall tree that I had bought some time ago for $35 from the Salvation Army. It's back was very open and would look great in that spot.
It had carvings and brass poles across the top along with a few hooks to hang some of my collectibles.
I ventured again into my "Hoarders" garage dragged  my prize and put it in place and my problem was solved!

maybe some would say the vent looks better

The birdcage found it's way into my garden making a home for my$.99 store ceramic birds.

Mantel Mania

detail on mantel over fireplace, string inlay and circle fan inlay

fireplace lusters ,which
I use on my buffet 

This pair of fire place light expanding lusters was found in a thrift store less it's prisms for $45
Ecclesiastes 2:13 Then I saw that wisdom excelleth folly,as far as light excelleth darkness.

This was  an irresistable shade from a luster because of it's ornate decoration I have married it with other than it's own base

Unfortunately I paid $300 for this pair of lusters back East as it was the cheapest I had ever seen and I needed a birthday gift anyway. Believe me, I saw one cracked ruby glass one for $300 at an estate sale. The prices for these beauties range from $900 up and more often $1200 up.

this is my guest bedroom mantel

various decorative qualities of the mantel

Victorian furniture left us with the unique and lovely heritage of the ornate mantel. They were usually mirrored and ensconced within a lovely carved frame with various sizes of shelves positioned in strategic positions on the lovely old wood. The mirrors were beveled which offers a clue if the mirror on a mantel has been replaced. Nevertheless replaced mirror or not the mantel can serve as a great multi use decorative item in the Victorian home or any home for that matter.
They were used on any number of furniture pieces. The most common mantel was used to bring importance and beauty to the fireplace,usually the focal point of the Victorian living room.The shelves were usually adorned with items that would reflect the warm light of the fire in the fireplace, as light was at a premium in the days before electricity. One of these most beautiful and most collectible items was a pair of crystal or glass candle holders of sorts that stood on each side of the fireplace mantel. They were called fireplace lusters.These were very lovely and ornate and bejeweled with crystal prisms to enhance their reflectability.
Another fireplace item was a porcelain figurine which really appears unfinished if found out of it's intended environment. They were very lovely on the front side but flat and undecorated on the back side.This allowed them to sit flat agsinst the mantle. Most avidly sought after are the familiar Staffordshire dogs,usually found in pairs.
The mantels were not only used as fireplace decor but also were found on dining room buffets,china closets,book cases,desks,dressers, or any another piece of furniture that would support them.
Today you find them in many different decors as wall decor, hallway mirrors fireplace decor, headboards. There are just a myriad of uses for these products of the Victorian sensibilities...and those ensconced in the antique mall store reflect their desirability. in their price tags.
Well, with the luck of the Irish, I recently found 2 such beauties ,one for $35 and one for $28...you guessed it from Goodwill and one from The Collectibles thrift store both in Canoga Park.
One I believe is very old with circular fan inlays., and the other definitely from the late 1800's.
They are serving me elegantly ,one over my fireplace and one in my guest bedroom.

Chandelier Made Into a Candelier

Psalm18:28 For thou wilt light my candle:the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness.

Bought this great little chandelier yesterday from Council Thrift Shop in Canoga Park for $8.00. It needed rewiring as the wiring was of the cloth covered vintage type. Instead of rewiring ,I took all the wiring out,which entailed taking the whole lamp apart. I then reassembled it and hung in the corner in my dining room. It adds a delightful candlelight ambiance with battery operated flickering candles. It will be especially delightful during the holidays...which believe it or not, I am already looking forward to!

View From My Kitchen Window (compliments of the .$99 Store)

Believe it or not these angel trumpet trees were from the $.99 Store. A group of 4" plants came in and you had to know what they were as they weren't labeled.Love these trees and they grow fast creating this spectacular display. Matt.6:28,29 Consider the lilies of the field,how they grow;they toil not, neither do they spin:...even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed as one of these.

this inspires me through the day!

At last My Own Mother of Pearl Inlaid Table

granted it is a little rough around the edges but that just addds character to the piece

While traveling through museums and perusing decorating magazines, I became enamored with mother of pearl inlaid furniture, something I probably would never find in a thrift store or that would fit my budget.
 One day behold! there it was. Not quite a piece of furniture but a tray of sorts with edges that had obviously had been chewed by someone"s voracious puppy(been there done that).Thinking perhaps I could at least fix it up and use it for a wall hanging I asked  the thrift store attendant what it's price was. This was one of those stores with no prices on anything. I usually have an aversion to them but this time I braved it. The reply was $3.00.
The chewed edges lent themselves easily to being smoothed out with plastic wood that I sanded smooth after it thoroughly dried. I stained the repair walnut to match the rest of the wood and sealed it with clear nail polish to match the lacquer finish of the rest of the tray.
Before hanging it on my wall I discovered an ornate brass table less it's top  that I had bought a long time ago. The "tray" rested nicely on it and I now had my mother of pearl inlaid table!
I had shown it to my Korean friend and she informed me that my tray was an Asian tea table and that she didn't really like it at all. What is the matter with that girl's taste! To me it is the epitome of pure luxury! By the way she is still my friend.

Of Quilts and Quilters

Proverbs 31:13 She seeketh wool ,and flax,and worketh willingly with her hands.31;18b,19 Her candle goeth not out by night.She layeth her hand to thespindle and her hands hold the distaff.

Cathedral window,very difficult, made by my mom

Quilts or coverlets have been the end product of women's endeavors to properly decorate   the family beds for centuries. Most in the very early times were mainly utilitarian but with woman's penchant for decorating along with practicality Quilts began to take on a life of their own displaying great masterpieces produced by women in candle light,kerosene light or fireplace light what ever the lighting fashion might be. Not only were these artworks beautiful to look at but they had an additional practicality in that they were made from scraps left over sewing projects or even better from old clothing.
I cherish a quilt that was made by the women in my then hometown of Monterey ,N.Y.Many of the quilt pieces were from my childhood dresses.

The women in Victorian times often would come together for a day in what was called a quilting bee. Often it was a missionary society making quilts for the needy or for missionaries.Sometimes it would just be a reason to get together but they were all given the moniker of  "Quilting Bee".It was a time to get together and enjoy a good meal and catch up on the gossip.
The only quilting bee I really remember was one my Grandmother Gross hosted and I must have been barely 5 years old. I remember a large wooden frame spread out over the dining room table with material stretched across it and all the women sitting around it needle and thread in hand and conversation flowing freely. I was very short then being only 5 and my biggest impression of that day was a forest of dark stocking clad ankles in black "red cross" shoes.You know the kind of shoes with laces up to the ankle and tiny little perforations along the top and sides,I guess for ventilation more than fashion. Oh yes I also remember that the current hairstyle was long hair pulled back in a bun...so much for the fashion of the day,..back to quilts.
Quilts that were made before the cotton gin was invented will reveal the dark shadow of a cotton seed when held up to the light. I happen to have a baby blanket that displays that curiosity.

a black dot in the middle of the picture is a cotton seed

another visualization of a cotton seed in middle of picture,outline is a little indistinct  as it is embedded in the cotton

the baby blanket in it's entirety

large pompom quilt ,another time consuming production

postage stamp quilt made of wool

2 examples of crazy quilts,made of silks,taffeta,and velvet. Very poor condition but I enjoy them anyway.the quilt on the left is  a true crazy quilt ,just random pieces placed together,not as easy as it sounds!

dresden plate made by the ladies from my home town for me

quilt made for my daughter by my mom

quilt made from old suits

very old and fragile quilt in poor condition but I love it. the filler is not cotton or flannel but carded wool

carded wool seen through the tear

note very,very old style gingham backing and the carded wool through the tear

flying geese pattern, one of my best bargains $3.00 at Jewish Council Thrift Shop

note the deatailed quilting, though not readily visible it is a poinsetta

my 2nd best bargain $3.00 at Jewish Council Thrift Store. Does anyone know the name of this pattern?

my one attempt at quilt making

hand loomed coverlet , take note of how well my flow blue china serves as a filing cabinet for my husband. I just love it!

At the same time women were making patterned quilts,they were also making coverlets on looms. the earlier ones were made in 4 pieces and sewn together. They were usually blue and white and signed by their creator along with the date they were finished. Later a loom with larger dimensions enabled  the coverlets to be made in one piece. I latched on to one of these in Ohio and it now adorns my fireplace wall in my family room. It is beautifully and intricately rendered and what I like best about it is that it is worn thin along the edges. To some that may be a flaw but to me it says it was well used and served it's purpose.These coverlets were made of wool.