Glass Swan Symbolism Still Lives
TY sent me a pink blown glass swan, and a green blown glass swordfish, about a foot tall each. The swan is Italian (Murano), the swordfish is Mexican “end of …
Tea Caddies Tell British History Tale
My southern grandmother, Ruth Sophia, and her family loved tea. Aunt Kathleen and the elder Aunt Sylvia drank tea all day long in old Saint Louis. I inherited that love, …
Highbrow, Middlebrow, Lowbrow: to Judge or Not to Judge
For a year I’ve appraised items in Paradise CA destroyed in the fire of 2018. I’m amazed at the variety of objects treasured and collected by many folks in that …
Reader Makes Skram Connection
I get in trouble because I make connections which may not exist. On the other hand, I succeed in drawing conclusions because of my experience with connections which SHOULD exist. …
Demetrious Created a Local Legacy
JH inherited this twenty-six-inch-tall sculpture. She knows a Santa Barbara artist with a Greek name created it. I found that artist, our local genius in metal, Aristides Burton Demetrious (1932-2021) …
Brewer Medical Stool Comes With Fond Memories
Sad but true…I need a hip replacement, and can hardly walk these days. So my partner bought me a 1950s rolling medical stool at a thrift store. I refuse to …
Restored Tandem a Piece of American Biking History
This tandem sat in a garage, then a storage locker for 25 years. Twelve years ago a bike shop repainted and “repaired” it, then it went back in storage. The …
Two Bizarre Real Art World Amusements
Occasionally the art world becomes very bizarre. Picture yourself as a middle aged Italian sewage worker hired to drive a bulldozer to uncover old sewer pipes close to the Apian …
Print Illustrates Hoop Skirt Symbolism
GE sent me a Daumier print of a Parisian woman with a huge bell shaped hoop skirt catching the falling snow. GE asked if women really wore this fashion. What …
A Washboard Eased Laundry Day Ordeal
JE owns an early 20th century American washboard use by 1860s across the nation. Stephen Rust of New York invented it in 1833. He patented a wood frame that held …