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Antiques
Antiques

Lucketts Spring Market 2023

I feel like I’m going home in a way!  The Lucketts Spring Market was a big event in my business for almost a decade and it’s so fun to be back.  I’m just going as a shopper on VIP day, which is a lot less work than being a vendor!  In case you have never heard of Lucketts or you need a refresh (or just some interesting backstory about gritty entrepreneurs), let’s rewind. The Old Lucketts Store is an antique/home decor/everything store that probably never should’ve been a success.  It is an 1800s general store/boarding house in a one-stoplight town on a pokey two-lane road in the farms and vineyards of Loudon County, Virginia that will never, ever get foot traffic.  At the time the old building became an antique store in 1996, Loudoun County was still mostly cornfields.  It wasn’t the bustling DC suburb that is one of the

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May 11, 2023 13 Comments
Antiques

favorite things | concrete garden accessories

Most of the things I love as an adult can be traced somewhere back to my childhood.  Such is the case with concrete garden accessories.  My Oma and Opa had concrete planters, a bird bath, and a bench in their yard in both of the houses they lived in when I was growing up.  And most of those pieces were passed down from their parents.  I remember sitting in the grass and using that bench as a counter for all sorts of creative outdoor activities.  I would make mud cakes to serve at an imaginary restaurant and line up small stones to make patterns.  I didn’t need much to entertain myself! When we cleaned out my Opa’s house after he passed away, I really wanted to take the bench and birdbath, but they were just too heavy and my van was already loaded.  We left them with the house, but

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April 11, 2023 27 Comments
a slice of life

my 45th year

I have been sharing here on this blog since I was 31 years old and today I turn 45.  If you’ve followed me since the early days of blogging, you might remember my boys streaking across photos in diapers and little addendums to my posts about the funny things they’d say.  Now, both boys are in high school and my oldest just got his learner’s permit.  Oh, the passage of time and I’m definitely feeling it today.  Not in an arthritis-in-my-joints kind of way, but in a way that reminds me the time we have is precious. This year, I told Jeff that my birthday could be low-key.  I’m getting a kitchen for my birthday.  And, it can be rightly argued that I got three 1800s ironstone cake stands for my birthday. But, then I confused him a couple of days ago by saying that I want to make a

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April 4, 2023 95 Comments
Antiques

the white art supply cabinet

As we were preparing to move from our house in Minnesota, I decided to sell the green art supply cabinet I was using.  Selling my art supply cabinets seems to be a tradition when I move.  I also sold THIS ONE when I moved from PA to MN.  They are usually big, heavy pieces and it makes more sense to find a new one that is just perfect for my new creative space.  I shared about my trip to Ekster Antiques when I spotted this amazing cabinet for sale, but I haven’t really featured it in my studio and shared how I am using it now. I realized this when I was taking pictures of the completed painted studio and the cabinet just looked gorgeous!  It was always a little underwhelming against the half-painted minty-green wall, but now it really looks lovely.  This piece still might get stripped or a

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March 27, 2023 21 Comments
Antiques

ironstone cake stands | the holy grail of antique ironstone

Jeff and I were planning to work on the hall trim on his day off a couple of weeks ago, but the weather was rainy and cold and it was not the best day to set up a miter saw on the driveway.  On top of that, I was pretty tired from the long workday I had with my parents.  You can read about what we accomplished HERE.  So, I suggested we go out to breakfast and then hit some antique and used furniture stores to see if we could find a piece to use as a printer stand and for office supply storage.  Something for this spot… So we went to a couple of my favorite local spots and, when I rounded a corner, I spotted ironstone. I am at the place in my ironstone collection where I only buy pieces that are really special, but I still have

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March 15, 2023 39 Comments
Antiques

ironstone pitchers | which way should the handles face

This post has been sitting in the drafts for a while and I opened it up, looked at the pictures, and it made me smile.  So, let’s dust it off.  This post draft came from a few comments I’ve received over the years about the direction of the handles on the ironstone pitchers in my photos.  Obviously, I place things carefully and intentionally but had never thought about which way the handles should face.  I just arrange them in a way that looks aesthetically pleasing to me. Over the years, though, several blog readers have pointed out that most of my handles tend to point left.  Then people ask if I’m left-handed.  I’m actually right-handed, but I play several sports as a lefty.  I do left-handed cartwheels (when I did cartwheels), play mini golf, and hold a bat as a lefty.  I throw with my right hand, though.  All of

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February 22, 2023 38 Comments
Antiques

my favorite source for antique European antlers

I was at an antique store years ago with my mom and I spotted a pair of antique German stag antlers.  I immediately felt drawn to them.  I couldn’t express why at that particular moment, but I kept going back to them and finally took them carefully off the wall of the booth where they were hanging and claimed them by tucking them into a cubby by the checkout counter.  When I took time later to reflect on that purchase, I found vague memories of antique stag antlers mounted on beautifully carved wooden hangers in places we stayed when traveling around Germany and Europe.  I remember them hanging on the wall over corner benches, next to checked curtains.  I remembered them in restaurants and Gasthauses (a German “guest house” aka bed & breakfast that was often like staying in someone’s home.) I don’t remember taking great notice of them at

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February 1, 2023 15 Comments
Antiques

$40 dining room table & chairs

Since we moved into our house in September, I have been hunting for a dining table and chairs.  The dining room has been a bit of a storage room, so it hasn’t felt like too much of a priority.  I was looking forward to eating in there, though, and using the table for puzzles and projects.  And I was looking forward to it looking and feeling more like a proper room.  It was funny…we had our electrical panel replaced and the electrician looked a little stumped when he was trying to label that room.  From the studio, I called over, “It’s the dining room!” I found a few on Facebook Marketplace and at local used furniture and antique stores, but they were either too expensive, not quite the right style or the table or chairs were rickety.  I knew the right set would come along at some point.  I just

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January 16, 2023 47 Comments

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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