Coming Together
Last weekend when my old friend L. was visiting from San Francisco, we went to the Georgetown Flea Market (which oddly enough is now located in Arlington, Virginia, but still called the Georgetown Flea Market). I wanted to see if I could find a vintage tablecloth or runner for my new table.
No luck there, but I was stopped in my tracks by a very unusual -- and unusually compact -- rocking chair in very good condition. I wasn't positive I had a spot for it in my still-evolving living room, but I was strangely taken with it. I thought about the chair more when I got home, but L. -- though she is in every other way the most supportive friend anyone could ask for* -- was not too encouraging in seeing a place for it.
Well, I found myself thinking about the chair all week -- and there's usually a reason something like that won't let me go. So I went back to the flea market today and bought it, having decided that with a little nudging and rearranging of other furnishings, I would probably have room for it. There was a possibility it might look cramped, but I took a chance.
Verdict: It's beautiful, it goes great in the space, and I couldn't be happier. It's a Colonial Revival platform rocker, probably from sometime between the turn of the century and the mid-twentieth century, according to woman who sold it to me.
Usually, at flea and antique markets I'm overwhelmed with the wares and don't know how anyone sees through the mass of merchandise to pick out a gem. But this was one of those times a voice spoke to me, and I listened. I needed another seating element opposite my sofa, and this is just the ticket. It's comfortable and sturdy.
As long as I've got the camera out, below is the famous custom-made table that I drove to New York City to pick up. The way the photo is cropped, you can't see how well the proportions -- 25 by 48 inches, with 12-inch extenders on either end (not pictured) -- work in my small living room. But trust me, they do.
_________
* L. and I met 19 years ago in graduate school. She's now married with two little boys. Three-plus years ago, when I e-mailed her that my ex and I had broken up and I'd moved out, she wrote: "I don't know what to say -- except would you like a visit?" And within weeks she was here, having flown across the country, leaving her boys with her wonderful, handsome husband. And she did it once again this time -- though the occasion last weekend was a retirement party for two former professors of ours.
No luck there, but I was stopped in my tracks by a very unusual -- and unusually compact -- rocking chair in very good condition. I wasn't positive I had a spot for it in my still-evolving living room, but I was strangely taken with it. I thought about the chair more when I got home, but L. -- though she is in every other way the most supportive friend anyone could ask for* -- was not too encouraging in seeing a place for it.
Well, I found myself thinking about the chair all week -- and there's usually a reason something like that won't let me go. So I went back to the flea market today and bought it, having decided that with a little nudging and rearranging of other furnishings, I would probably have room for it. There was a possibility it might look cramped, but I took a chance.
Verdict: It's beautiful, it goes great in the space, and I couldn't be happier. It's a Colonial Revival platform rocker, probably from sometime between the turn of the century and the mid-twentieth century, according to woman who sold it to me.
Usually, at flea and antique markets I'm overwhelmed with the wares and don't know how anyone sees through the mass of merchandise to pick out a gem. But this was one of those times a voice spoke to me, and I listened. I needed another seating element opposite my sofa, and this is just the ticket. It's comfortable and sturdy.
As long as I've got the camera out, below is the famous custom-made table that I drove to New York City to pick up. The way the photo is cropped, you can't see how well the proportions -- 25 by 48 inches, with 12-inch extenders on either end (not pictured) -- work in my small living room. But trust me, they do.
_________
* L. and I met 19 years ago in graduate school. She's now married with two little boys. Three-plus years ago, when I e-mailed her that my ex and I had broken up and I'd moved out, she wrote: "I don't know what to say -- except would you like a visit?" And within weeks she was here, having flown across the country, leaving her boys with her wonderful, handsome husband. And she did it once again this time -- though the occasion last weekend was a retirement party for two former professors of ours.
posted by Billy at 9:43 PM
5 Comments:
Cool chair! And the table looks great too!
lovely! the only thing that it might possibly be missing is a fine lacy afghan draped on it. :)
are those dates?
it's a lovely chair. will you actually use it or is it a decorative element only?
It's a chair. Of course I'll use it.
"To be possessed is an admirable reason for possessing." Good for you for following your heart. A good chair is a kind of home. And good for L for knowing that sometimes the most important thing you can do is to say "hineni" -- "I am here."
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