Bama Planter

Well, I sold her yesterday on Ebay. She was never happy here. I think being English, a log cabin in central Alabama wasn't her style. She went from wall to wall, room to room, but just didn't seem to fit in. She's moving to San Francisco,  and I can see a slight smile has formed on her face. Her eyes have a sparkle now. Understand, she never caused any trouble, never complained, never made any noise in the middle of the night. She patiently waited on me to realize that her time here was just a waiting game for something better. Maybe the ghosts of the plantation children who died in my house made her nervous.    Maybe the family portraits who actually belong  never welcomed her.     She was always an outsider. She's leaving tomorrow, and I do hope her new home far away in California will be everything she is looking for, and that at last she can find the contentment she so desperately sought but was denied here. (Update: My new buyer friend in San Fran...

This Saturday in Hanceville Alabama will be the place to go  for some fine Primitives.  How about seven pieces of Southern stoneware pottery?   I think back row number three has great color. An early cherry corner cupboard. If I bought this, I don't think I could ever sell it.  A Sheraton Work Table pre-1850.  A walnut pewter cupboard. Pretty spectacular. A walnut stepback cupboard that appears to have original  finish. The top should lift off the bottom for easier moving, but each part will still be heavy. I've never been to the Hanceville auction, don't know anyone there, so I want to see if the prices are cheap or sky high.  If the Atlanta or Nashville dealers show up,  forget it.  They never run out of money. 

While looking over the auctions for this weekend in Alabama,  I found some really good primitives that caught my attention. This baby cradle in pine with dove tails is really nice. It will be at  David Tims Auction in Pell City, Alabama.   For English and French antiques, his shop is the place to go, but if you like American prims, you can find some real gems there, also.  I love this Southern Walking Spinning Wheel,  going on the block at Whits Auction in Attalla, Alabama.  I used to think these were called "walking spinning wheels" because the legs looked like they were ready to walk across the floor.   Tasha Tudor said that it's the spinner who does the walking; that in a normal spinning session the spinner will walk back and forth for a mile or more . Maybe she was exaggerating a bit.   Whit's Auction is also offering this Federal mirror; circa. 1800 , I think.   They are a love-it-or-leave-it t...

  Several outstanding pieces are going on the block here in Alabama next Saturday at a local auction being held in a lovely old country town, and I hope that someone ( including me) will be there to give each of them an appreciative home.  I can't buy them all, but I might be lucky enough to bring one home.   I always keep the philosophy that if  I don't get anything at an auction, I can at least study what they have and learn something new.     Above is a cherry three door chest made by an early Southern cabinet maker sometime between 1830 and 1850. The pulls and the legs appear to be original.    The drawers should have small elongated irregular dovetails with a shadow of the cabinet maker's pencil marks.   Here is the back of the chest showing its age and authentic wear.  If this one comes home with me, the first thing I'll do is take the drawers out and use a flashlight to search inside for the maker's...

 About four years ago some sort of purple thistle appeared on the farm. They are quite spectacular and grow six feet tall in the fields.  The blooms eventually turn white, producing whispy white seeds much like dandelions do.  On a windy day they will catch a breeze and float away for miles.  Since my father is not living here now,  the front field has not been cut so the thistle is having a fine time being free to reach its full potential without any fear of mowing machines.  Don't get too close.  Those little thorny things on the stems can stick you.  This is a strange little blue wild flower that comes up in the same spot every year. I see them in many country gardens here but no one has ever told me their name. They only bloom for a couple of weeks but can put on a nice show while doing so.  These aren't wild flowers; they are my grandmother's oxalis.  She had them in her yard as far back as I can remember and probably ...

 I loaded a bird's eye maple library table and 4 Drexel ladder back chairs on my truck and headed to Clanton with the intention of returning home that afternoon with something primitive or something old and interesting.   My first dealer friend couldn't use a table and chairs that were blond ,  as his customers aren't the blond furniture type.   My second dealer friend thought they were just fine, and told me to look around to see if there was anything he had that I liked so we could make a swap. I spotted the children's buggy in two pieces on the floor behind a large brown break-down pie safe.  I love anything old on wheels, so my estimation of the value of the buggy was higher than the value of the table and chairs and I really was looking for a flat out swap without any money being involved.   " What about this? "  I cautiously asked.  My friend advised that I had made an excellent choice, as he had no time to restore any...