The Pleasure of Home

Staying home has me making small changes, like this coffee table vignette.

One corner has stayed the same for a while. It's a favorite spot of mine due to Edward Hopper print, old trunk as end table, and vintage sewing machine drawer to hold loose photos.

I enjoy being home, but I miss flea market shopping. There are treasures out there waiting to be discovered. Oh well, for now I dream of how it used to be.

This practice of wearing masks and gloves is not fun. But to get the virus would be worse. Until life returns to the way it was

Lost in Art

When I open my art journal I never know what the blank page will become. But I do know it brings peace of mind. Creating is relaxing, and time is forgotten.

I like the colors in the following art picture. It was hanging in a stairway in the Louisville home.

 The home had so many lovely furnishings. This arrangement was in the bedroom I used. Books for reading were available between the horse heads.

I think every home should have lots of art. Whenever I go flea market hunting, it's art pieces that give me the biggest thrill.

Below are the three Edward Hopper prints that I added to my postcard collection. 

And a story goes with each belonging...

Do you ever wonder what will become of treasured possessions that are  important pieces of your life? Who will know the stories that go with each one? I have no idea if anything I own will be kept... much less treasured. All I can do is keep enjoying them myself plus writing and sharing and hoping that my children or grandchildren will appreciate the stories.

And a story goes with each belonging...

This is very true of almost every item I own. The school bell was a Christmas gift from TK in the early years of our marriage. The books were used in my classrooms. After lunch I would read from chapter books, trying to instill a love of reading in my third and fourth graders. Ellen Tebbits was definitely a favorite, and Caddie Woodlawn managed to touch the hearts of girls and boys.

I bought the schoolhouse when I first started teaching. It's a windup and the door opens and a teacher comes out as it plays "School Days."

This basket is coming apart due to age. When I bought it at an antique store in Dyersburg named The Odds and Ends Shop, there was a typed note that explained how it was an early basket used by schoolchildren to carry their lunches. Whether true or not, I always liked that idea. From this shop I also obtained two other special items - a long wood piece with a carved design and 

a tall wooden clothes rack. Sadly I would learn that the nice, attractive owner of the shop later committed suicide.

When my college friend Carla and I were apartment renters and young beginning teachers, we decorated our walls with posters and art prints.  Recently Carla bestowed upon me the Antiques print by Alex Blum because she knew I always liked it. The Edward Hopper print has been a personal favorite all through the years. So now they hang together in my house like they once did in the apartment.

The  painting of the man in the chair was a Goodwill find I found not long ago. If you remember it has a painting on the other side, too. Whoever painted it was very talented in my opinion. The billiards are special because of the numbers - 4 when TK, Ryan, Lauren, and I were a family; 3 for when it was only me, Ryan, and Lauren; 7 for the blended family of Joseph, Jason, Ryan, Lester, Lauren, Corkey and me. 

Well, I need to come to a stopping point this Wednesday afternoon. Until next time...

Sincerely,

Sandy