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Favorite Finds

All Things Home

gold rush days finds | antique papers & books

I was going to share all of my Gold Rush Days finds in one post, but when I started editing the photos, I realized that would be a pretty long post.  It’s not that I bought so much stuff, but each piece has a story with it and different aspects of it to show.  I didn’t want to rush through it, so I’m going to break up what I purchased into a few posts.  Today, I’m going to share some antique papers and books I found. One booth was curated by a woman who obviously appreciated old letters, photos, albums, etc.  I lingered there for quite a while, picking through the boxes and flipping through books.  She was selling several bundles of letters for $10/each, tied up in a light blue ribbon.  Let me just acknowledge that I do not need any more old pieces of paper or people to

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All Things Home

gold rush days 2021

This weekend was Gold Rush Days in Oronoco and Rochester, MN!  We don’t have a lot of antique shops in my immediate area, so I look forward to this event every year.  It’s actually the same event held in two separate places.  The original Gold Rush Days takes over the small town of Oronoco, MN and a spin-off event happens simultaneously at the Rochester, MN fairgrounds.  They are both large events and it’s worth going to both if you have the time. I started out of Friday meeting Cheri, my antiquing buddy.  We’ve been to Gold Rush Days twice before and we always have a good time together.  We have similar tastes and are familiar with each other’s styles, so we help look for things on our lists.  I had actually made my Gold Rush Days list weeks ago, so I could be focused and intentional about what I bought. 

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All Things Home

the story of the antique copper bundt pan

Whenever I share my kitchen on social media or the blog, I almost always get comments about my pot rack and the collection of copper I’ve amassed over the past decade or so.  My love of quality cookware started with an epic Tuesday Morning find – a set of stainless steel pots and pans for 90% off.  My love of copper, though, started with an epic yard sale find – an antique copper bundt pan for $25.  I don’t think I’ve ever shared the story of when I found it here on the blog and it popped in my mind over the weekend, so I thought I would share it today. This is the gorgeous antique copper bundt pan I’m referring to… When Marshall was a baby, we had no expendable income.  And, when I say no expendable income, that is very literal.  We could pay the essential bills, but

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Antiques

marian parsons – hobby historian

“Great thoughts go best with common duties. Whatever, therefore, may be your office, regard it as a fragment in an immeasurable ministry of love.” ― Brooke Foss Westcott I received a new parcel from Julia of Ponder & Purchase.  We initially connected through the antique sketchbooks of G. Herbert Kitchin and, since then, she’s been on the lookout for antique art supplies and other goodies for me.  It works out great for both of us since she is frequently out shopping to supply her Etsy shop (and selling things directly to me saves her the time of listing the items), and most of the antique and vintage art supplies seem to have congregated in the UK.  Maybe Americans just pitched theirs?  Maybe hobby art wasn’t as big in the late 1800s – early 1900s here?  Either way, she has a knack for finding little antique treasures to outfit my studio –

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Antiques

my other pennsylvania antique purchases

Before I get into today’s post, I wanted to share that my next original art sale will be this Wednesday, May 12, 2021, at 10:00 am CST.  The paintings will be sold in my online shop HERE.  I’ll be sharing a preview post of the paintings that will be in the sale along with the prices tomorrow. I can’t believe I still haven’t shared all of my antique finds from my day out shopping with my mom when we visited Pennsylvania!  I took pictures a couple of weeks ago and they’ve just been hanging out, waiting to be shared. I went out to antique stores with a pretty specific list of things I was looking for.  I also needed to be very mindful of space in the van and the fact that I don’t sell antiques currently, so I didn’t need to load up on a bunch of stuff for

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All Things Home

French chair from Dreamy Whites

Disclosure: This post is a part of an ongoing collaboration with my friend and business owner, Maria of Dreamy Whites.  Over the years, I have promoted Dreamy Whites as a paying customer in addition to promotions in exchange for products.  All opinions, as always, are honest and my own. Any time I’m scooting furniture around in the studio, Jeff laughs and says, “Well, I’m sure you can figure out how to fit one more piece in there.”  My studio isn’t small, but it’s not big either and I ask it to be a lot of things.  I’ve learned that I need a ton of storage, lots of work surfaces, good task and room lighting, thoughtful solutions to things like drying wet paintings, and chairs/stools for several different activities. I had a desk chair for my desk, a stool for the drafting table, an architect’s drafting chair for my easel, a

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Antiques

the antique sketchbooks of George Herbert Kitchin

This story starts several months ago when I was doing one of my regular check-ins on The Creative Exponent Community Facebook page.  I was scrolling through the recent posts and stopped immediately when I spotted a grouping of photos of the most wonderful sketches.  They were pencil sketches and watercolors of English cottages with thatched roofs and half-timber or brick construction.  I was immediately smitten with them and clicked on the caption to find out why someone was posting these pictures on the forum.  Julia of found these antique sketchbooks at a local estate sale (she lives in England) and was asking for advice on how to handle selling such a special find.  My first reaction was, “Sell them to me!!!”  But, I gave a more professional, objective answer.  These are special and they should be researched and perhaps sold at an auction house where they could fetch a high

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All Things Home

A house full of favorites

While purging and no-spending through February and into March, I found myself thinking a lot about my favorite things vs. things I have as a default.  No matter how many times I’ve purged over the years and taken the oath to be intentional about every single thing that enters our home, it’s so easy to be a lenient gatekeeper and to become complicit in bringing in things that are not well-loved and/or well-used.  When you’re managing an entire house – bills, laundry, meals, schedules, homework, not to mention work, it can be a low priority.  Sometimes you just need to grab something quickly.  Sometimes you buy things on impulse.  Sometimes a bargain was just too good or it’s hard to refuse a hand-me-down.  But as I’ve been thoroughly cleaning out cabinets and drawers, closets, and cupboards and I’ve been living with it, I’m getting so much more joy out of

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I’m Marian, a painter, writer, and lover of all things creative. From art and antiques to home projects and everyday life, I share my journey in hopes of inspiring you to embrace your own creativity and make beauty in the spaces you live.

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May 20th, 2026 at 1pm EST

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