DRESDEN LACE

  My computer and I have been fighting. If I could afford a new one, I might just pitch this one in the Mississippi River. I am sure it is more me than the machine. I hope this post gets to you all ,as I am not sure the way it has been going as of late. Some one emailed me after the last post and said that the post did not show up on her dashboard,headboard,surfboard,some kinda board. Well, I have to get back to you on that one, as the only dashboard I thought I had, was on my car. I guess if I knew more about what I was doing it would help. You see I work this machine kinda like I type, hunt and peck!  If one button don't work, push 2 or 3 more. Putting all that aside, what about this weather??? We had snow yesterday and they say we are about to get it again. I say, Mother Nature needs to go on with her life,before Father Nature comes by and Bitch slaps her. I saw this little verse that I thought was really cute. Spring has sprung,snow has fell,Mother Nature is mad as Hell. Soon it'll be rain,then a flood,we will be cleaning up mud. Mother Nature please start acting right -cuz someday id like to take a nice long hike! Very true for me as I live on the river.

  After all that, finally the post about my Dresden Lace. In the town of Dresden Germany there was at one time more than 200 factories that made and decorated porcelain. The items produced from these factories soon became known as,"Dresden," So the term refers to more of the style, from that one town, instead of any one  manufacture.And we all call these items,"Dresden" .Dresden is sometimes confused with Meissen. Meissen is another town in Germany were fine porcelain was produced. Where the Dresden pieces can have any numner of makers marks, the Meissen always has one, the blue crossed swords.

  Dresden made many types of items,  but were most known for the figure groupings.They were made in large quantities and are still produced today.The famous,"Dresden Lace", was a method developed by Dresden decorators in which real lace was dipped in liquid porcelain and applied to the figure by hand. The results were stunningly delicate and appears to almost look like real fabric. The real lace would burn away when the porcelain was fired. This process made the items not only beautiful, but very fragile and it can be damaged almost by just looking at it. The most famous Dresden figurines are the,"crinoline' groups which portray various aspects of court life,such as dancing or playing musical instruments. Various sizes from the very small to the very large  have been produced. People have been collecting these for years. I once bought a ladies collection of 200 and  moving them became my biggest nightmare. I sold most of them in my antique shop, but have keep a few and I want to share them with you today. The detail  and work in them is amazing. All hand applied. Some of there faces are just wonderful.

  Stop by anytime for a tour at My Old Historic House. I will leave the lights on and Sissy Dog will meet you with a jump and a kiss. Have a great day and I hope no snow comes your way!

A Odd Couple, Ruth and Huck

Ms. Ruth

  First of all, I would like to tell everyone about the progress of the article, that is coming up next month in Victorian Homes Magazine, about My Old Historic House.I got an email from the editor yesterday with a first look proof. I had to sign ,saying I would not print or use the pictures at this time. Putting that aside, I have to say the pictures are beautiful. And it looks like a 10 page spread with several centerfolds. I am sorry I keep going on and on, but I am just so excited. I always wanted to be published and it looks like it really is going to happen. The book will go to print on Monday. And yes, Sissy made the cut. In her basket on the kitchen floor beside the fireplace. I will have a copy e around the 10th of April and I am sure there will be a blog post,soon after.
  

         
    My house has two parlors, which was pretty much typical of that time and period. One is the Gentlemans Parlor, and the other The Ladies Parlor. Standing guard in  the Ladies Parlor is a marble statue of Ruth, from the Bible. She is Italain and sets on a marble pedestal .. Standing guard in the Glentlemans Parlor is a marble statute of Huck Finn. He is also made in Italy and  also on a marble pedestal. Both statues are from the late 1800's and are almost 3 feet tall. I love them both and I placed  them so they can be seen side by side, yet seperated. Huck is facing the Mississippi River, which is very apporiate and he has a straw hat and a fishing pole. Ruth has  wheat in her hands as she often would go work in the fields.
   I hope you enjoy seeing them as much as I enjoy having them. Please drop by anytime for a tour, I will leave the lights on and Sissy Dog will meet you with a jump and a kiss.
  

And on the 8th Day the Lord made Pink Bristol.

A pair of pink Bristol Lusters with Hand Painted Portraits.



A Pair of Vases with Hand painted Birds and Flowers




Unusual Shaped Pair of Vases with Butterflies and Flowers.




Another pair of Lusters.





This Pair of Vases were my first pieces of Pink Bristol. I was teaching school and just out of college. I put them in lay-away at a shop in my home town.Clarksville,Mo.

 

3 pieces of Bristol that are in my Guest Room.

   Once when I was out antique shopping with  my friend, Sali , in Chicago, I looked at a beautiful pink Bristol vase and I said ,"I think the Lord made all the pink Bristol in the world ,just for me". latter that day when we got back to my friends home she handed me a bag and said,"the Lord just bought you a piece of pink Bristol." She had bought me the vase that I was looking at,when I was not looking. I am sorry if I have stepped on some toes talking about the Lord, in this way, but I asure you I ment no disrespect.I only ment that He had been good to me and made it possible to have so much beautiful pink Bristol. I had at one time a lot of pieces. Two of my favorite pieces I broke. Yes, Me. Not the kids,dogs,cats or cleaning people,ME. One was a tussie mussie vase. A spelter dog with a pink Bristol bud vase. My dearest  friend,Blossom, had bought it for me for my birthday. We were on a shopping trip and I was saying I was hoping to find a piece of pink Bristol. She saw this precious piece and said,like magic, here it is. Well I broke the bud vase part. The dog is fine and I  have since then found another Bristol bud vase that fits, but it is not PINK. The other piece I broke was another tussie mussie. I guess I should stay away from them. It was a beauty. A gold wire frame held this wonderful pink vase that was all covered in jewels. I found it in Kansas City , again with my friend Blossom. The shop was not open and this vase was in the window. I made Blossom stay over night so I could go in that shop and get the vase the next day. Now it too is broken. But, I have those memories.

  Victorian Bristol glass is known for its delicate and hand painted motifs. The more desirable pieces show off finely drawn and fanciful decorations. The finest glass was made at Bristol.England during the middle of the 1700's. Advances in production allowed for the glass to become more affordable during the 1800's. Today, the Bristol name is sometimes more synonymous with the lesser quality of opaque glass, typically decorated with hand painted flowers, portraits,birds and scenes. Bristol glass ended up being manufactured in Germany,France,Bohemia and Spain, besides in England. None of the glass produced outside Bristol was equal in quality to that made in Bristol. Real Bristol glass is rare and most glass that dealers and collectors call Bristol today was actually made in Germany. So the name Bristol Glass has been attached to the type of glass not the maker. A old time antique dealer friend of mine told me a long time ago, that one call always tell Bristol glass, if you hold it up to a very bright light and look through to the bottom you should see fire. Try it!
    These mold blown vessels made of semi-opaque and opalesent glass are rich in color and decoration.White is most common,other colors include blue,amber,green ,pink,custard,fireglow and clear. The glass is usually decorated with bright enameling  and gold trim. The name Bristol refers to one of the arears in England where glass was originally made. Other area of England that produced Bristol are Sunderland,Stourbridge,Newcastle,Chespstow,Warreington and Birmingham. Production is believed to have originated in the Bowles factory in Southwork. Because of similarities in decoration and possibly lack of research it is difficult to  distinguish the origins of various pieces.

 Bristol reproductions are rare and noticeably inferior quality. so buyers do not need to worry if it is a real piece or not.
    I did an antique show many years back with my partner, Louise. We wanted to show off. We rented 2 booths and after looking at each others mercandise, we decieded to call our booths, "Party on the Porch". It was spring. I coverd our fake walls with brick looking wallpaper. We put white lattis on the ceiling. I had a beautiful sign made.She had a lot of wicker,iron furniture and country pine. I have always had the more formal junk, so I had silver,glass, needlepoint pillows and to show off again , I took a lot of my pink Bristol glass. We both had tons of blooming plants that we latter used in our gardens. Can you see the booth??? Well the time was right and people bought all my pink Bristol.. My partner said," now you have all that money". and I said, "yes but no PINK BRISTOL".Sometimes money does not always buy happiness.  Well, I managed to save a few pieces and I am sharing them and my stories with you all today. Come by for a tour anytime. I will leave the lights on and Sissy Dog will meet you with a jump and a KISS!