Carole’s Country Store Blog

When I was about 10 years old my dad bought 200 acres of land from a farmer in Rising Sun, doctor Maryland. The town Rising Sun was located in the disputed “Nottingham Lots” along the border between colonial Pennsylvania, for sale  and Maryland, in the early 18th century. This area was claimed by William Penn, and settled by the Quakers in 1702, over the objection of Maryland. When Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon conducted a survey of the order in the 1760s, Rising Sun was found to be located in Maryland, not Pennsylvania.

My mother and dad loved going, it was a great getaway for them, but my brother and I never wanted to go. We were kids, and just wanted to be with our friends. My mother suggested inviting a friend to come along, so that’s what I did. Better!

There was a beautiful creek that ran through the property. We loved walking on the rocks. My dad had a log cabin built, and I remember the fun my mother had furnishing it, making curtains and filling her cupboard with treasures. There was a huge pond and we loved going swimming. Then one day my dad bought me my own horse, and my little brother, a pony. It was a dream come true! I spent most of my day riding and taking care of my horse. He became my best friend. I loved him so much.

There was an old barn too. Inside was a red jeep. I can remember my dad driving it, as my mother, grandmother and aunt held onto the sides as we bounced around laughing and sometimes singing, as we drove over hill and dale. That was a long long time ago, and it’s nice to think about those times again. So, thank you TJ and Barbara for asking me to write about my horse. It was fun reliving those memories, and looking at old photos again. I wish my dad was still alive so that I could tell him how much I appreciated all that he did for us. Maybe I did, and just don’t remember.

HAPPY DAY

Carole

I just got my shipment of Early Homes magazine. It has all kinds of interesting ideas, patient plus 44 sources of historical paints, see stencils and wallpaper. Primitives too! This is a wonderful magazine, but it only comes out twice a year. I have 12 issues, only $6.99 a copy, including shipping, so don’t miss getting yours.

Have you noticed the birds chirping, it sounds like Spring already! Did we have a Winter? We had no snow this year, maybe an inch, but that’s it. It wasn’t bad at all, was it, but it didn’t seem to put much of a dent in my heating bill. Nothing changed there. Springtime always motivates me to freshen up my house. I need to paint my kitchen and laundry room, but dread having to take everything down off the walls and shells to prepare for it.  It’s a great feeling though, don’t you think, after it’s all completed? Everything feels so clean and fresh.

Thanks for stopping by friends.

HAPPY DAY

Carole

In the mid 19th century, hospital hair work was a popular drawing room pastime. It was as fashionable as knitting, tadalafil and crocheting. After ladies became knowledgeable about this art, and much practice,  young ladies were able to create hair braiding of beloved friends and family members. The heart shaped braiding in the photo below might be a mourning keepsake of a loved one. Notice the 2 braided hearts. The dark blue ribbon is original to the piece.

The photo below could also be an example of a mourning piece or maybe just a keepsake. Original ribbon is attached, along with a Dresden decoration. Dresden, is a hard paste used in the early 19th century, and was often used in the making of pottery.

School girls often braided pieces of their friend’s hair. They made albums with these tiny braided keepsakes of friends and relatives. This is an example of an early page, probably from a school girl’s album,  done on early lined school paper. I am reminded of when I was a young girl. We had something called a Slam Book. Inside there were pages and pages about classmates and my friends. Everyone wrote about one another. It was a treasured procession of mine, wish I still had it. We also had autograph books. Do you remember those? All your friends would write in it something about you. Maybe this is the the equivalent of those, because there are names written under each braiding.

If you have any interest in any of these items,to see them soon, click on this link Carole’s Country Store , and it will take you to my website.

HAPPY DAY EVERYONE!

Spring will be coming soon. Hang in there!

Carole

I have 12 issues. Don’t miss yours! Click on this link Carole’s Country Store to get your copy.

HAPPY DAY

Carole

A couple of months ago, rx I commissioned a Peaceable Kingdom painting from my friend and artist, cialis Carole O’Neill. Yesterday, while antiquing in Chadd’s Ford, Pennsylvania, and while I was in the area I stopped by her house to pick up the painting. I think it’s just beautiful, don’t you? Many of Carole’s painting are sold in a gallery in Chester County, Pennsylvania. I am excited to offer one in my, American Artisan store this weekend.

Peaceable Kingdom paintings were originally done by the artist Edward Hicks. This is his first painting done in 1826.

Edward Hicks was born in his grandfather’s mansion in Langhorne, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, on April 4, 1780. His father was a Loyalist, who was left without any money after  the British defeat in the Revolutionary War. His mother died when he was 18 months old. A close friend of his mother raised him as her own. She taught him the Quaker beliefs. At age 13, in 1800, he apprenticed as a coach painter, but soon became unhappy with his life, and gave it up. It wasn’t soon after that he began attending Quaker meetings.

In 1812 he became a minister, and by 1813 he began traveling throughout Philadelphia as a Quaker preacher. In order to meet his expenses for traveling, Hicks began to expand his trade by painting household objects, farm equipment and even Tavern signs.

Ornamental painting was upsetting to the Quakers, it contradicted the plain customs that they respected. By this time he had married, his wife expecting their 5th child, so he gave it up and tried his hand at farming. He soon realized that he didn’t have the experience he needed, so he returned to decorative painting for an income.

Hicks’ work was influenced by a specific Quaker belief referred to as the Inner Light. This “Christ in You” concept was derived from the Bible. Hicks depicted humans and animals to represent the Inner Light’s idea of breaking physical barriers, working and living together in peace. Hicks used his paintings as a way to define his central interest, which was the quest for a redeemed soul. Many of his paintings were depictions of Native Americans meeting the settlers of Pennsylvania, with William Penn among them.

In his lifetime, Edward Hicks was better known as a Quaker minister, then a painter. It was not until 1960 that his first major exhibition took place in Williamsburg, Virginia.

I hope you enjoyed learning a little bit about Edward Hicks, I know I have. After reading about him, it has given me a whole new appreciation for his charming paintings. I think I am going to have to talk to Carole about another commission, maybe for me this time.

HAPPY DAY

Carole