Monday, September 10, 2012

Vintage Treasures And A Soup Tureen

Hope ya'll had a fantastic week and weekend. Our daughter had a week off of college while the Democratic Convention was in town, so we headed on up to Chicago to visit Mr. Fanatic's mom.
We drove.
It was a lonnnnnnng 13 hour + drive.
Each way.
I don't want to eat fast food for awhile, which is all that's available on a long road trip.

Our daughter celebrated her 19th birthday on Friday and we went to a restaurant where the chef was a cast member on Hell's Kitchen, which is one of her favorite shows. We also drove into Chicago, so she and the friend she brought on the trip could go shopping. Mr. Fanatic and I found a HomeGoods and TJ Maxx, then stopped off at the Corner Bakery Cafe because they had wireless internet. After that we stopped off at the Marriott, found some comfy chairs with ottomans, put our feet up and I got somewhat caught up on my blog visiting, while the girls finished shopping on the Magnificent Mile. 
As you can tell, I'm not one for shopping for new stuff. Antique shopping is another story.

Now that you're all caught up, I wanted to share a few things my mother in law gave me. The first photo shows a closeup of the detail of a vintage embroidered linen tablecloth. I'm a sucker for these lovely handmade beauties. She said the tablecloth was her mother's (and she's 91).
The tablecloth has been very well taken care of and seems to be made of cotton, as it's very soft. 

Here you can see the size of the tablecloth. It will be perfect to use as a topper on our dining room table .

My mother in law also gave me the white soup tureen. I've been looking for one just like it for awhile now on ebay for a few years, but hadn't been able to find one. I can't wait to use it in a few weeks for my chicken stew.

The tureen is in perfect condition and even has a ladle.


The stack of cloth napkins have embroidered cutwork.
Can't wait to set a gorgeous table with all the new treasures.

The question of the day is would you rather go antique shopping or clothes shopping?

Pam






20 comments:

  1. That's a tough one! I like to do both! You got some great pieces from your MIL!! Sounds like a great trip, minus the long drive!!

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  2. That is so pretty Pam! We loved the city of Chicago. When our boys were smaller we went there for a week family vacation. It was one of our best ones. We did so much, walked and ate so much we were exhausted by the end of the week.

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  3. Pam, these are beautiful treasures from your MIL! Chicago is such a great city, with so much to see and do. Sounds like a great time!

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  4. Definitely antique shopping - I HATE shopping for clothes!

    Your new treasures are so pretty :-) It was really sweet of your mother in law to pass along her mother's tablecloth to you :-)

    Thanks for your kind words about my DIY sea glass project. I guess they didn't turn out too badly, but I'm going to keep trying till I get a smooth finish.

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  5. What absolute treasures! I had MUCH rather shop for treasures like these than clothes shop. My husband actually BEGS me to go shopping for clothes. (I know, there are a lot of women who would love that!)

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  6. Oh my such a beautiful tablecloth. It is truly lovely and the soup tureen is gorgeous. Makes such a beautiful tablesetting. How lucky and what a nice gift. Thanks tons for joining TTT. Hugs, Marty

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  7. Antique shopping of course. Or rather thrifting in general. Which might include clothing at some point. The tureen is delightful Pam. What a family treasure. xoxo, olive

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  8. What treasures! I hate shopping for clothes, despise malls, don't like shopping of any kind, except thrift stores, antique shops, yard sales, auctions, LOL. Those, I can do all day, any day.

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  9. Bonjour Pam,
    I just found your blog and became a follower. Can't wait to find inspiration here!
    I wrote because I just bought a tureen & platter like the one on your table on Ebay. Mine does not have a lid, and that's okay, I will just fill it with hydrangea's or something, but I was wondering what the lid looked like - and now I know!
    Don't you just love all the surprises that blogging serves up in the most fun & interesting ways?!

    Merci,
    Cathy

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  10. Bonjour Pam,
    I just found your blog and I can't wait to find inspiration here!
    I'm writing because I just bought a soup tureen & platter like the one on your table. Mine does not have a lid, which is okay, I will just fill it with fun things, but I was wondering what the lid looked like. And now I know! It's lovely!
    Don't you just love all the surprises that blogging serves up in delightful ways?!
    Merci,
    Cathy aka Cathyology@aol.com

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  11. Pam, I love that table cloth! I have some beautiful ones from my aunt.
    For some reason, I have been under the impression that you call your husband Mr. Fanstastic, and only today I realized that it is Mr. Fanatic... (here I was thinking you were going to tell us about something fanatical Mr. Fantastic did instead of the usual fantastic stuff Mr. Fanatic does...)
    LOL

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  12. Hi Pam-
    What a lovely treasure your mother inlaw gave you! Love the linens- they're really beautiful! Thats such a nice soup tureen too- how lucky!
    I lived in Chicago for two years and I used to love shopping for clothes! I loved the variety of choices- but now it's far less important to me. It takes us 13 hrs to get over to see my son now so I sympathize with ya on the length of the trip!

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  13. What sweet treasures, Pam! The tablecloth is so delicate, and I love the soup tureen! Sounds like you all had an action packed trip!

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  14. Hi Pam: I love all your neat vintage items. The linen tablecloth is gorgeous, and that soup tureen--wow! I like vintage and clothes shopping--I'm easy!

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  15. Pam...I am in love with that beautiful tureen and tablecloth...it is so wonderful to have such beautiful family heirlooms to treasure and enjoy!!...They look gorgeous on your table!

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  16. Love the table cloth, so very pretty! Glad you had a great time
    XO
    Kristin

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  17. I would much rather go thrifting or to an Antique mall - I love your white soup tureen. I found one not long ago and am selling it on my Etsy store {JBsCountryCottage.Etsy.com}, but I would never sell one if it came from family. Great blog - Found you on 'Between Naps on the Porch.'

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  18. is the soup tureen made in Italy? I recently found one at a garage sale and it is very similar to yours. Four pieces, in perfect condition. It was embedded in dust but after I cleaned it off, I had a treasure!

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    Replies
    1. My soup tureen doesn't have a mark on it as to where it was mmade. Yours sounds like it's really nice!

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