Tuesday, September 8, 2015

Recent Vintage Acquisitions (Aug)

This post is of my recent vintage and antique finds (August, 2015). Acquiring new (old) finds is always fun, especially when you're a dealer of these finds. Consistent with my Gemini personality, I can always argue (with myself) that a purchase can be loved at home for awhile, then sold, or double talk and say, "oh, I'm planning to sell it", and end up keeping one or more finds.

Mr. P and I made another trip to Naples, FL in August, and I managed to either pack or carry on the all the lovelies you see on the lambskin in the photo below.
Collage of Naples, FL Finds - August 2015
The needlepoint pillow had a feather down insert, and I figured I would ditch the insert if I couldn't fit it into my suitcase, but I managed. I dared TSA to open my suitcase and get it closed again, lol.

The gilt-framed, marbled stone relief of "The Calmady Children", was my favorite find this time, and I'll be keeping it. The circular, 7.5" stone has wonderful detail within its 12" frame (notice, for example, the delicate necklace on the older daughter in the collage above). I purchased a huge print reproduction of the Calmady Children oil painting (by Sir Thomas Lawrence) at the Longest Yard Sale several years ago,  and later sold it. Research for this version indicates it is a nice reproduction of the original sculpture by E. W. Wyon (after Sir T. Lawrence), held by the Yale Center for British Art. Wyon's medium was spermaceti (sperm whale) wax and plaster. This reproduction is one of a series of unique reliefs, of which three were available where I found this one.
The Calmady Children Gilt-Framed Marbled Stone
Another item purchased in Naples was this pair of LeMaire (Paris) opera glasses with Mother of Pearl finish and detachable (screw on) handle (below). Patent dates on the brass frame are 1882 and 1895, meaning they were manufactured sometime shortly afterward. These opera glasses always make a nice vignette with my antique and vintage purses, but I'll be selling either these or another pair I currently have in my display case at home.
LeMaire Opera Glasses
The last item I found in Naples was a vintage, silverplate sugar skuttle, with its original scoop. The scoops are typically long lost when the skuttles are found. I put lavender buds in mine for the photo, but bath salts would be pretty, too.
Silverplate Sugar Skuttle with Scoop
All of the above items were found in either a consignment resale or charity thrift store, as opposed to an antique shop. The merchandise in this area is incredibly upscale, coming from wealthy households which either donate items personally, or whose executors / beneficiaries do so on their behalf.

A couple of local estate sales yielded more vintage textiles in August. I can never get enough of these hand-crafted items. Of those you see in the photo below, the set of doilies on the left (12), and the tea towel in the center both have tatted edging, which I love. The center runner (linen) is approximately 90", and the crochet tablecloth is a generous, 56" x 100" oval shape.
Vintage, Hand-crafted Textiles
West Virginia's long history of cottage quilting craftsmanship was formally organized into two cooperatives more than forty years ago (Mountain Artisans and Cabin Creek Quilts), and I scored a couple sets of hand-quilted placemats representing each of those coop's early years.
Vintage, WV Quilted Textiles
I think the green and champagne set would make a nice holiday tablescape, but I may sell the purple-hued set (4), which also came with a nice cotton tablecloth you see under the placemat. Purple always reminds me of my mother, but also my blogger friend Christine, who uses this color a lot in her decor and tablescapes. :)

And then there was this guy.....
Vintage, Ceramic Rooster
Majestic, and full of fall flair, I purchased this estate find from one of our antique mall's dealers, during our anniversary sale in early August. Apart from this cameo appearance, he'll be part of my fall harvest tour, currently scheduled for September 13th, so I hope you'll come back for that.

As always, thank you for your visit. It's a pleasure to have you here!
Rita C. at Panoply
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