Five Ways to Use a Vintage Sugar Bowl!

Hi Friends:

It's no secret we love layering in one-of-a-kind vintage items to create warmth and charm. Repurposing pieces extends their usefulness and adds an unexpected element. With that said, here are our top five ways to use a vintage sugar bowl:

 Add flowers and you have a sweet vase. A large silver plated sugar bowl looks great with a small ivy plant tucked inside. 

Cut glass sugar bowls add a little functional elegance to cosmetics and toiletries.

A great way to corral office supplies!

Perfect for serving nuts and candies!

And then, of course, you could use them for sugar!

Find them at antique stores and flea markets or contact Georgia's if you see one you can't live without; we keep them in stock!

Chicago Botanic Garden Antiques and Garden Fair!

Hi Friends:

What have we been up to here at Georgia's? We've been buying, polishing, and arranging our finds for the Chicago Botanic Garden Antiques and Garden Fair. We are celebrating spring at one of the most beautiful shows in the country and will be taking lots of pictures so you, too, can be inspired! Have a look at some of the garden inspired finds we are bringing along:

 Antique cast iron planter sporting ivy, golden moss and calandiva.

Dessert plates: Limoge, Spode, Royal Albert and more!

Victorian cast iron flower basket door stop. Perfect for welcoming spring!

A great collection of vintage wicker wrapped bottles.

Vintage china place setting cigarette holders repurposed as mini planters.

We'll share more next week, in the meantime, have a great weekend from Georgia's!

Top 3 Places for a Mirrored Vanity Tray!

Mirror, mirror on the vanity? ...or dresser, or chest of drawers, or even the wall! That's right, we are talking about mirrored vanity trays and the three places we love them most.

Here goes:

1. We love a mirrored tray where else but in a bathroom. These vintage beauties, that come in an array of shapes and sizes, are perfect for  perfume bottles and miscellaneous vessels that hold everything from jewelry to bathroom essentials.

2. How about placing a large tray on a dresser or chest of drawers in the bedroom. Not only will the gold filigree add elegance and charm to your dresser top, but the tray is also a perfect place to display a cute flower arrangement or corral sentimental collectibles.

3. And finally, on a wall. Add a mirrored tray to a gallery wall or display a collection of vanity trays on a wall. The possibilities are endless with these oh so usable relics from the past.

Tole Tray Display!

Walls. We all have at least four of 'em. We can paint them and wallpaper them but sometimes they just need a touch of something extra -something that will provide depth and charm, visual interest and intrigue. 

I love displaying collections on my walls - from silver tray arrangements (click here to see my post "Silver Tray Array") to a grouping of mismatched plates to a gallery wall that displays a myriad of pictures and memorabilia. Displaying our collections is a great way to express who we are.

So here's a new idea to spruce up the space between your four corners - a collection of tole trays displayed as wall art!  

It's so fun scouring markets and antique shows for tole trays. Traditional trays were made from thin metal (typically tin) covered in a black coating (originally a mixture of asphalt and shellac) to keep the trays from rusting. Today, you can still find these beauties in a variety of colors, shapes and sizes.

What makes these trays so spectacular, however, are the colorful designs they feature. Most designs were influenced by folk art and depict floral displays or fruit arrangements in perfect pastels, muted hues and everything in between. Some people collect only fruit designs while others collect only trays with pastel coloring. But most people, however, collect the trays that speak to their heart. 


So have fun scouring, then put your trays on display for all to enjoy. 

Happy collecting!

Lisa and Nikki's Friday Finds!

Happy Friday Friends:

What has inspired and delighted us this week? Here they are - the sights, sounds, tastes and one-of-a-kinds we loved!

We have a crush on this vintage hat rack! It's sturdy enough to hold heavy winter gear, back packs and more!

Vintage leather chairs - yes please! And we'll take an afghan, cup of tea and a good book, too! These were spotted at Jayson Home, one of our favorite stops for unique finds.

When we found this large hammered metal bucket we were sure it was copper. Not so! A little polishing has revealed that it is brass. We love the leaf and vine details in the handles! Wouldn't it make a great container for a large plant or filled with fire wood? 

 About the only thing thriving in our neck of the woods is Tillandsia (air plants). We love this vessel designed especially for these botanic wonders. 

Ginger Molasses Cookies - perfect with a hot cup of coffee or tea. Click the link for Georgia's tutorial on making these spicy, chewy treats!

Valentine's Day is next Friday. With that in mind, we wanted to share the late Eva Cassidy's "Songbird" with you. It is a beautifully sung love song from an immensely talented vocalist and guitarist known for her interpretations of the classics.

Silver Tray Array!

Hi Friends:

Ok... So before I get started I should come clean about something: I absolutely, positively love silver in all shapes and forms.

From silver candelabras and candlestick holders shined to perfection to gleaming vintage ice and champagne buckets, gorgeous antique cutlery, bud vases and more. I mean how can you pass up a flea market tent or antique show booth that overflows with silver? Well I for one can't.  And needless to say, my home has quite a silver collection. Sterling or plated, I have bits and pieces of it all.



While many people prefer perfectly polished silver, I have a not-so-secret love for the tarnished variety as well. Especially when it comes to trays that many people call ruined. I call them fabulous. I mean just look at this collection of trays that I picked up from markets!

The tarnish! The patina! The character! 

You may be thinking, this girl has gone crazy. But, before you succumb to that thought and click the red "X" in the top left corner (yes, I am a PC user as well), first check out what I did with these beauties.

I live in a modern loft with high ceilings and WAY too much empty wall space. So to quell the overwhelming light gray that surrounds me, I arranged the trays into wall art and hung them near my dining room table.

Hanging the trays was a snap, literally. I used 3M Fasteners with Dual Lock technology. You can find these at any local office supply store; Walgreens and CVS stores tend to have them as well. These fasteners made hanging the trays a breeze and the strips won't harm walls.

So here's the finished array, what do you think? 

Lisa and Nikki's Friday Finds!

Hi Friends:

What has inspired and delighted us this week? Here they are - the sights, sounds, tastes and one-of-a-kinds we loved!
Vintage alabaster lamps! We think they provide sculptural interest and add elegance to any room.

Say it with framed flash cards! We often come across boxes of vintage flash cards and pick through looking for just the right word or words to express a meaningful sentiment. Simply frame and you have a great gift or decor piece. This one from EyeSpyPix on Etsy is just charming.

Another favorite gift from the holiday - a flower (Mum) brooch made from a tie my husband wore back in the day. Klosti reTIEd Blooms hand stitches each petal "to create a lightweight accessory that highlights the beautiful color and fabric of the original necktie. One entire necktie is used for each brooch and the original brand/label is stitched to the back." What a wonderful way to hold close the special man in your life. Find her on Etsy by clicking the link above.

You can buy cacao pods! With Valentine's Day just around the corner, we thought you should know where chocolate comes from. These pods grow on the Theobroma tree and contain the seeds/beans used to make chocolate. Take a look at this explanation from Live Live & Organic and share it with the children in your life.  

This week saw the release of High Hopes, a new album from Bruce Springsteen. The album features original and cover songs that had been recorded live over the years. This fan couldn't be happier to see another album from him. I love his heartland rock and Americana sentiments and am determined to get Nikki to a live concert! What's your favorite song by "the boss"? 

Next week Georgia's is all about Valentine's Day. Until then, have a great weekend everyone!