Chew on this Silver Baby Rattle
SM sent me a simple little silver item with three bells on the bottom, and a whistle at the top, about four inches long, slightly chewed on. He asked, “what …
Pandemic Lessons About Objects
The adrenaline rush of a short-term disaster, such as the Thomas fire, is the kind of crisis we have trained for. But we haven’t trained for THIS Pandemic disaster. In …
Oak Dresser FREE or NO?
SS sent me a turn of the last century Golden Oak dresser, in Quarter Sawn Oak, with a serpentine front. It looks like a dresser but the drawers hardly slide …
Antique Trunks
JE sent me two very interesting leather covered domed antique trunks, complete with leather straps. This prompted me to write about something everyone seems to have, a steamer trunk. We …
A Big Little Books and Disney
KM sent me a treasure from his mother’s childhood. A tiny little newsprint book, in a somewhat worn condition: Mickey Mouse: The Mail Pilot, Big Little Books #731 (Disney file …
Vintage Couture: It’s Back!
As woman who loves flashy clothes, when EJ emailed me a photo of a 1980s “CD de Christian Dior Robes de Soir” ball gown, with huge shoulder pads and sixteen …
Grace Howell Gentlewoman Painter
Another fabulous piece in MMG’s art collection, signed Grace Howell in the 1930’s, caught my eye. In the first two quarters of the twentieth century, a career female artist member …
Pewter Plates with a Royal Feel
EW sent me two scalloped pewter plates, one with a lion and the other portraying a lizard or dragon. Both are pewter, eighty-five percent or so tin with lead and …
How to Date an Ancestor Portrait
MMG crammed many lives into one glorious one as a tennis pro, interior designer, and antiques dealer, and now wants to downsize. She sent me photos of her collections. One …
Pandemic “Home-Work” Part Two
This COVID experience taught us that no one lives forever, and the importance of certain tasks: insurance, heirship decisions, donations. Situations call us to act from our center, and we …