I'm Not Old, I'm Vintage

"Vintage Markets" seem to be quite popular at garden shows of late.  I admire the "shabby chic" look but when I try it in my house it ends up just looking shabby. (That was being kind, it really ends up looking crappy.)   Nonetheless, I'm a fan of vintage markets and the cool stuff to be found there.  Here are a few shots of the vintage market at the Tacoma Home and Garden Show that Alison and I attended last weekend.

Dig the golf club coat racks.  What a great way to repurpose these.

One of the things that appeals to me is spaces filled with treasures.  I love having to move cool objects to see others, to have to study a space for a while to see all that's there.  The three-dimensional collage  is a wonderful place to be!

Spring chandelier.

So, you're telling me that this is a vintage item?  What do the kids play their records on these days?

As I said in the title, I'm vintage.  Old is someone who once owned these vintage glasses.  You know who you are!  It's o.k. I love old things.

 

Old meets new.  Victorian baskets and the neon art at the Tacoma Dome.   There were baskets like the silver painted one that lived at the little church I went to as a youngster and they were hauled out to hold flowers for weddings and funerals. 

These aluminum chimney top thingies, the official term for them, have always fascinated me but I'd never thought of bringing one indoors.

These lockers would make great planters for anything that likes good drainage.  I took the card of the local lady who has these for sale as I didn't want to haul them all over the dome.  The price is fairly low and I think that six of them stacked in a pyramid and planted with succulents and cacti would look smashing!

This screen almost came home with me.  Would be perfect in my house but I don't really know where I'd put it. 

A wonderful new life for the front panel of an old upright  piano. 

 Technology has certainly come a long way in a short time!  Some of us learned to type (that's another word for keyboarding) on something that looked like this and now often only use our thumbs to write texts on miniscule lighted flat surfaces.

 

Speaking of keys,  I hope you're as keyed up as I am about the Northwest Flower and Garden Show that opens on Wednesday.  It'll be nice to see gardens in bloom!  

 

 The weather here had been fairly dry and warm for a while and it felt like we were going to have an early spring but with temperatures forecast to go into the teens, it seems that winter is making a repeat visit with another deep freeze.   Alison and I are going to Seattle for a preview of the show today so I'll post some teaser pictures tomorrow.   Keep warm everyone!

More Fun from the Tacoma Home and Garden Show

Like Alison, I bought some lily bulbs at B & D lilies.  Some Casa Blanca, a few African Queens, and a variety new to me that I can't remember right now.  It was such a treat to smell lilies in bloom at this time of the year. 

But this fragrance really belongs to high summer when it meets that of brugmansia and honeysuckle as the sun begins to rise.  When I plant my bulbs this Saturday,  I'll be thinking of those glorious and warm days to come. 

B & D was also offering Musella lasiocarpa.  This sight made me wonder if I could overwinter other bananas with less soil and avoid hauling huge pots to the basement.

So, what do you think of this  boulder with a glass table top?

Through the glass you can see water collected on the surface of the rock.  It would be a job keeping the glass table top clean.

 

Raintree nursery has a great catalog and sells a lot of unusual and hard to find berries, fruit trees, and all kinds of unusual edibles.  Of course, they also have more popular varieties as well but this is the place to go to find olives, meldars, papayas, paw paws, and others. 

 

 

I know that one sees these in a lot of places but they still thrill me.  Maybe my classroom needs a few of them?

Always a joy are the bright and cheerful watercolors of Gig Harbor artist Kate Larsson.  Kate will also be at the Seattle Flower and Garden Show.

Don't know who makes these but they're interesting.

Carman at Mad Mozaics was as delightful as her work, sharing her techniques  and material sources. 

Her work was all wonderful and you can see more of it on her website.  I like Carman's technique of reusing old windows in their sashes by gluing stained glass on the existing clear glass and covering the whole with epoxy.  There's a little more to it than that and Carman teaches classes in your home if you can get together a minimum of 5 people.  What a great party idea!

No show in Tacoma, Dale Chihuly's home town, would be complete without some blown glass garden art.  Here we have  work of Studio Rynkiewicz from Everett. 

 

This trio of bowls could come home with me if I could only find space for them.

Glass is such a beautiful material and many nothrwest gardeners love to include it in their gardens. What do you think of glass in the garden? 

I'm a fan of anything shiny, like the sun which I hope you'll be seeing a lot of this weekend!  Happy Friday everyone!

A Novel Idea - A garden by Olympic Landscape and Irrigation

This being my first visit to the Tacoma Home and Garden Show,  I was delighted that we were greeted by strangers with candy.  Thank you Bay Equity Home Loans for starting the day off in a sweet way!

Also very nice was "A Novel Idea,"  the creation of Olympic Landscape and Irrigation.  It is my understanding that they have, for many years now, put together a garden for this show.  There is no show garden competition in the Tacoma Home and Garden Show so it was great to see some gardens and vignettes at the show. 

The pink/purple on the leucothoe leaves echoes that of the phormium.

 I'd not seen the name of the garden and couldn't figure out why books were hanging from the trees.

 Interesting to be sure but I wondered why one would a) do this to a book and b) place it outside where it would certainly not last long.

 

 I am fond of the way the stepping stones went through the lawn, continued into the flower beds and kept going right through the middle of the water feature. 

 

 

Garden furniture and décor are from Summer House. 

Another book taking flight.

Fountain by Tom Torrens Sculpture Design.

Am I the only one who wants to pick up the books?  Maybe it's because we're in the Pacific Northwest in the middle of the rain festival (October 1 - July 5.)

 Viburnum "Pink Dawn"  adding its fragrance to that of sarcococca (not pictured.)

 

 

Finally seeing this sign helped me to understand the books lying and flying about.   A nice garden that was fun to walk through!

Turning around, there were some folks discussing plans for their own landscape design. 

Blackwaters Metal - Cool Stuff & NWFGS pass up for grabs

Visiting the Tacoma Home and Garden Show was a delight both because of the company and because there were so many great things to see.  Blackwaters Metal work  appealed to me both for the quality and low prices. In checking out their website, I learned that they were at the Seattle Show last year and will be again this year.  

Alison and I each bought a cute bat.  I'm hoping he brings more to the NWFGS because I can think of a certain older (much older, thank you for asking) sister who definitely needs one of these hanging around her garden.

Speaking of hanging around, wouldn't this chandelier look great hanging over your patio table? 

There are a few places in my garden that could use a crow.  These can also be powder coated just about any color by whoever does your other powder coating.

A dragon flew home with me.  I'm not sure where it will end up but I'm wondering how hard it would be to have one attached to my car as a hood ornament. 

Pileated woodpecker.

So many cool pieces, it's hard to choose a favorite!

 

I'm pretty sure that a green man and a Claddagh circle will be coming home with me from the Seattle Show! 

And speaking of the Northwest Flower and Garden Show, I have a two day pass to give away if anyone could use it.  If you'd like it, say so in a comment and if there is more than one person who replies, I'll do a drawing.  

 

Only eight more days until the show!