Treasure Box Thursday: Victorian Cards, Cut-outs and Cuties

Over the weekend I'd done a little shopping in Pittsburgh's Strip District (don't worry-- no stripping involved!-- it's a warehouse district where you can buy all sorts of interesting fresh foods). And this is also the location of Mahla Antiques. That's where I picked up a few examples of paper history-- some Victorian fringed greeting cards and some brilliantly-colored paper items once in a Victorian scrapbook.

One of the cards is as pretty on one side as it is the other...
And it's hard to believe after all these years the fringe is still bright and intact!...
This is the second of the cards I'd gotten. I thought it was particularly interesting because, even though it's a Christmas card, too, it doesn't have the look of what we think as "Christmas" today...
We tend not to use bouquets of flowers to represent the season these days unless they're, perhaps, red roses or holly.

Last is the bag of cutout goodies. I particularly wanted it for the cherub and the dove... They may get displayed at Christmas somehow with the cards...
And that pretty much seals up this week's Treasure Box. I'm sorry I'm late with it this week. I actually forgot what day it was yesterday and went off to work without posting!

Bad blogger! BAAAAD blogger. :)

Hope to see you again on Sunday for the next post. That is, if I remember when it's Sunday. :)

Treasure Box Wednesday: Forgotten Furnishings and Painted Putti

The last few days have been full of surprises for me. Things I've put away years ago, to decorate the blue bedroom my friend was using, have suddenly been unearthed and brought to light.

It almost feels like one of those time travel films, where Past Me leaps into the future and plants the seeds of things Present Me might need now.

Let's hear it for Past Me!

One of my favorite finds was this trio of cherubs I'd painted a good long while ago...

No masterpieces by any means, these whimsical and ornery-looking putti (based on the cherubs at the bottom of the throw I'm using on the couch) have certainly made me smile. I have vague memories of giving them irreverent-- yet appropriate-- names...

Like Buster...
Butch...
And, something like Bud...
Perhaps they'll serve my decorating needs yet as I continue to pull that blue room together!

I also have been dusting off some flea marketed lyre furniture. I have two endtables like this, and a coffeetable, all with about the same level of poor finish...

But I'm thinking a lick of off-white paint will both brighten them up and hide all of the dings and scratches in that veneer.
Don't worry, they're not priceless Chippendale or anything. They're probably from the Depression era.

I thought you'd also like to see that framed tapestry now that the frame has been gold-leafed...

It's much cleaner from the chipped dark brown it was, and in the daylight in that room, gives off a nice inviting glow.

Lastly, I forgot all about this thrifted needlepoint stool I got to go with my thrifted chair. This was just a few bucks from the St. Vincent de Paul thrift store in Monroeville a few years ago...

So, I feel like things are really coming together. I need to make some decisions about what goes where, and I need to invest in a tin of cream paint. But I'm excited about the way it's turning out.

At the very least, it's keeping me out of trouble.

The same, however, cannot necessarily be said for those mischievous cherubs.

• If you missed the first post on decorating the blue room in a day, you can check that out here.

Otherwise, I'll see you Sunday, perhaps, for our next post and hopefully a bit more progress!