If I Ever Own A Castle...

It was a lovely day in Belgium to go out Antique shopping with friends, so of course, who am I to refuse such an opportunity? Off we went. I love this place. Each time I go, they have new and wonderful items to examine, as well as some old friends who are simply biding their time until they find their new home. This table falls into the second category. It's been there since my first visit. It's quite possible that there isn't much call for a dining room table that seats 22 people. I have no idea why. This is #1 on my "If I Ever Own A Castle" shopping list. The first thing I'll do is pick this baby up. Just think of the dinner parties! (I imagine that if I can afford the castle, surely I can afford a cook as well. If not, I'll just bug Erika until she folds and bakes me all sorts of her Pampered Chef goodies.) This beauty is on the list, too. I love all of the intricate carvings on it. I didn't even glance at the price tag. After all, if you own a castle, you don't have to ask. I'm just saying...I don't know where these beauties will fit in the castle, but I'll take them just the same. Again, the attention to detail is amazing. Oh, well. Until I get my castle, I will just get items that fit in here. I've been on the prowl for a coat rack for the entry way since I moved in, and today...score! It's wooden, so it doesn't weight nearly as much as the metal ones, and it's in excellent shape.
This item is one that I've been eyeing since I first started going to this store. It's an old tiered bread board stand. I can't believe it was still there! We'll call it fate. Thanks to my enablers (Erika, Melissa and Denise), it found it's way into my van today and is now relaxing in a quiet corner of the dining room. I'm sure it will be very happy there.

In case you were wondering about the trog that I picked up the last time, here it is in all of it's Christmas finery. Russ calls it the holiday trough. I had pumpkins in it for Thanksgiving, and now it is all decked out for Christmas. We'll call it a new tradition. I'm sure the animals won't mind.

To Antique Or Not To Antique, That Is The Question!

Such a deep topic for a beautiful and relaxing Friday afternoon, but it does seem to be the question of the day. The hubby and I were talking about the chairs I found yesterday at the Antique shop. Let me just start by saying that Russ is pretty easy going, and rarely comments about anything I spend money on. (I say rarely, because we've all had those moments when we've brought something home and the hubby says "You spent good money on THAT?????") Anyway, I've been looking for a couple of chairs for our living room for almost two months now. We've been to furniture stores, antique shops, etc. I've found lots of things I like, but not the perfect item yet. (It doesn't help that I'm easily distracted by all the other goodies that they have at these places!) Last night, the hubby asked me these questions: Do you really want an old chair that hundreds of strange butts have been sitting on? Why would you spend that much money on a used chair when you can get a brand new one for the same price--or less? He does have a point. Technically, something has to be at least 100 years old to be a true antique, but there is a lot of gray area here, depending on who you talk to. How do you decide whether something is antique, or just old? It does seem like a strange practice to get old furniture from someones house and then put it in your own. Technically, that would mean that antiquing is nothing more than a snobby form of garage sale shopping. Just the word makes the item so much nicer. Think about it. I got this chair at a garage sale. Eeeeeeewww! I got this chair at an antique shop. Oooooohhhh! I guess the hubby does make some sense after all. Now I'm back to searching for chairs in furniture stores. Check out this FABULOUS coffee table I found while looking. Wouldn't that look great in the living room? (Didn't I mention that I'm easily distracted?) Besides, it's not my fault. The hubby sent me here to shop. Oh, in case you are interested, when Russ came home last night and saw the pig trough sitting in the corner of the dining room, he took one look and said, "Do I even want to know what that is?" "Uh, no," I replied. "You don't."