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Showing posts from September 21, 2014

Loathe or Love? Decorating with Antlers and Transferware

Antlers.  Love them?  Loathe them?   I posted about antlers a few years ago and there were lots of comments but very few of you were sitting on the fence when it came to using them as design elements.  Some of you flat out said, "no way".   Some of you loved them and use them yourself.  Antlers make a statement in a room for sure.   I have really grown to love the very European, organic, natural look of antlers.  They feel so English Country to me, so old world.   Though they are currently a design trend with manufacturers producing them in resin and even starkly painted white,  Charles Faudree, just to name one very famous designer, used them for years in his timeless interiors and they've been used to decorate the finest of European homes, and castles, for hundreds of years.  These days they are seen in everything from modern, high rise apartments to the very traditional English trophy room.   Because I'm so keen on transferware , I've decided to share mos

Panier a Champignons - Foraging Baskets & More of my English Cottage Living Room

Around this time last month I showed you part of my English Cottage style living room and mentioned that I was working on a post about a recent find which wasn't transferware ; an item shown in the picture below.  Guess what it is?!? Have you ever been introduced to a particular type of item and then decided you've got to find one for yourself?  A few years back I discovered foraging baskets attached to walking sticks.  I have been a little enamored with them ever since seeing one in a decorating book and then finding one in an online antique store.  I finally found one for myself…see it in the pic above, just to the right of the fireplace? The Foragers Walking Stick basket is usually constructed of a hand made wicker basket built around a rustic walking stick or cane.  They have been popular in France for many years and are known there as "Panier a Champignons" or mushroom basket.  Traditionally, they were used for collecting wild mushrooms be