Summer Solstice Porch Party

It's a Porch Party!

Rhondi @ Rose Colored Glasses is again hosting her popular Porch Party to celebrate the first day of summer. Please, come in.

It's already hot here in Texas, so I thought we'd relax out in the sunroom. Originally this room was a screened in porch, but we added doors and windows with Phantom Screens in order to enjoy this space year round. We open it up when the weather is agreeable, but we can also heat and cool this space. It is where we spend much of our time reading and relaxing.

I've been reading LOVE AND OTHER IMPOSSIBLE PURSUITS. It's a great read, and I'll tell you all about this book at the next Food for Thought. I have a stack of beautiful books on Americana that I've been enjoying again this summer.

Have a spot here on the chaise; Uncle Sam is already here. I know it's still two weeks till we celebrate the 4th of July, but summer here at HFTS means we enjoy red, white, and blue and all things patriotic from June through August.

This space is the perfect spot for a few indoor plants . . .

And tabletops to display a bit of Americana.

Vintage post cards and a few Uncle Sam figures share this space.

I've filled the Nantucket baskets with fresh flowers.

Blue iris, white stock, and summer asters

The Uncle Sam figure is paper maché and was made by Carole Watts in 2002.

With the hot weather here in Texas, I thought you might like a glass of ice cold tea with fresh mint sprigs.

I made you a little something sweet. We have tangy lemon bars and rich chocolate brownie bites.

Fresh cherries are abundant in the summer, so as long as they are available we have a bowl full at the ready. Help yourself to a few of these sweet treats.

Would you like to take a stroll outside?

During the cooler months of spring and fall, we like to eat meals out here on the terrace.

There are lots of large old trees back here so this is mostly a shade garden.

The white hydrangea seems to like the conditions in this garden, though it's still a small plant.

We had a severe winter this past year, and little that was planted in these urns survived. I replanted them with geraniums, coleus, and a variety of ferns.

I planted a variety of white geraniums in some of the urns and beds. They must like the shade conditions because they are still blooming while the geraniums in sunny spots have all stopped producing blooms.

It's always calming to hear the sound of the fountains.

Oh, Mr. Rabbit wants me to remind you that this upcoming Saturday, June 26th, is the date of the 2010 Mad Hatter's Party @ A Fanciful Twist. Click on the button on my sidebar for all the details.

Thank you for stopping by today. Click here to go over to Rhondi's to see a list of others participating in the 2010 Summer Porch Party. Thank you, Rhondi!

This post will also be linked to the following weekly memes. Thank you to all who host these fun events this week.

Blue Monday @ Smiling Sally's

Rednesday @ Sue Loves Cherries

Outdoor Wednesday @ A Southern Daydreamer

Show & Tell Friday @ My Romantic Home

V is for Vintage

"Vintage" is one of those words that has multiple meanings. Officially the dictionary meaning refers to the year a wine is harvested.

But to many "vintage" is used to refer to anything that is considered "old" or "old-fashioned". My interests are certainly eclectic and range from country quilts to the whimsical art of contemporary artist Mary Engelbreit; from antique and vintage French faience to the contemporary pottery of MacKenzie-Childs; from the French country feel of blue and yellow to the patriotic trio of red, white, and blue. So I'm frequently drawn to "vintage" things. I'm intrigued with the stories that these items have to tell us.

Those of you who are frequent visitors to HFTS know that the summer months here give a nod to the patriotic theme. Starting with Memorial Day, the red, white, and blue begins to make an appearance in abundance. When neighbors gather on the 4th of July for local neighborhood parades, vintage cars are a popular sight. Isn't this 1952 MGTD a beauty?

It's also traditional in many areas across the United States for outdoor patriotic concerts to be held under the stars the evening of July 4th. Many end with spectacular fireworks displays, and all are the perfect venue for a summer picnic. My vintage picnic basket is from the 60s, a gift from my father the year I went off to the university.

Vintage 4th of July themed post cards are an interesting aspect of Americana. Raphael Tuck and Tabor Prang were two of the prominent artists whose work was produced on post cards as full-color lithographs. Vintage postcards often include a handwritten message and canceled postage.

Of the cards in my collection, three of them are postmarked: one dated 1907 and the other two dated 1912. You can see that one was postmarked from the "S. S. Colon" on Independence Day, 1912.

If you visited Monday's post: National Flag Day~June 14th, you know I attended the OpSail 2000 in NYC. I purchased these post cards depicting US stamps used through the years that feature Lady Liberty.

I had them specially 

postmarked that memorable day.

These charming ice-fishing decoys were a find at the NY Pier Antique Show in 2000. They are unsigned, but definitely vintage. I wish I knew more about the folk artist who carved and painted these patriotic creatures.

I doubt that the patriotic motif is typical of most of these vintage ice-fishing decoys, but it was the stars and strips that caught my attention.

Can't say that this Uncle Sam fishing lure is particularly handsome, though it is in the original box which provides documentation that this piece was sold as a souvenir during the 1976 Bicentennial Celebration of the USA.

Two of the hand-carved Uncle Sam figures here at HFTS are vintage. This Uncle Sam with the walking stick is unsigned, but carved from wood and pegged into the base.

This Uncle Sam is only five inches tall and badly faded, but someone took great care to carve this gentlemen. It is signed and dated 1940.

The small individual vintage flags on metal stands were once used on student desks in a classroom. The silk flags show 48 stars, the flag used between 1912 and 1959. The 48 star flag was the second longest in use. The round vintage tin depicting Betsy Ross sewing the first flag also features The Pledge of Allegiance to our country's flag.

No patriotic parade, concert, ceremony, or party would be complete without the ubiquitous paper flag to help one cool off in the summer heat. Through the years paper fans in a flag motif have always been a popular item.

I hope you've enjoyed seeing some of my vintage patriotic things. If you want to see more patriotic posts with a vintage twist, visit Joan @ Anything Goes on June 30 for her Vintage 4th of July Blog Party. Joan invites you to "share your love of vintage red, white, and blue and all things patriotic!" Click here to get all the details and add yourself to the list of those participating found on Joan's sidebar.

For more "Lesson V" posts, click here to join Mrs. Matlock's Alphabe-Thursday class.

Thank you for stopping by to visit. This post is also linked to the following weekly memes. Thank you to all who host these weekly events.

Vintage Thingie Thursday @ Colorado Lady

Show & Tell Friday @ My Romantic Home

A Few of My Favorite Things Saturday @ Bargain Hunting

and Chatting with Laurie

Summer Sundays @ The Tablescaper

Blue Monday @ Smiling Sally's

Rednesday @ Sue Loves Cherries

National Flag Day ~ June 14th

National Flag Day ~ June 14th

Although many states had designated a special day to honor the US flag each year, it wasn't until 1949 that President Truman signed an Act of Congress designating June 14th of each year as National Flag Day.

Here at HFTS the US flag and other patriotic symbols of our country are front and center during the summer months. Affectionately known as Old Glory, the Stars & Stripes, or the Star Spangled Banner, the American flag is a Grand Old Flag.

Long an enthusiast of Americana, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to attend the special exhibit, STRIPES and STARS, A GRAPHIC HISTORY OF AN AMERICAN ICON. The AIGA National Design Center hosted the STRIPES and STARS exhibit, at their 5th Avenue center in NYC the summer of 2000. The exhibit was an amazing collection of US flag related items assembled by Kit Hinrichs of California. The large poster lower right in the above mosaic is from the exhibit. I had it framed, and it is now part of my American collection.

The exhibit, a mere sampling of Mr. Hinrichs collection of flag memorabilia was so well received that Mr. Hinrichs decided to publish LONG MAY SHE WAVE. This large, beautiful book documents the complete collection of over 500 items with incredible color images meticulously photographed by renowned artist, Terry Heffernan. Mr. Hinrichs' collection has been "hailed as a marvel of folk history and a time capsule of cultural commentary." The exhibit catalog notes "Despite legal restrictions adopted by Congress in 1912 and 1934, the exhibition illustrates that popular interpretations of the flag motif have continued to proliferate, resulting in a rich visual history of a true American icon."

UNITED WE STAND, by Peter Gwillim Kreitier, is another wonderful book for those interested in the American flag. In response to Pearl Harbor, to celebrate Independence Day in 1942, every major US magazine featured an image of the American Flag on its cover. This book reproduces more than 100 of those magazine covers that saluted Old Glory across the nation July 1942.

Mary Emmerling's AMERICAN COUNTRY FLAGS is a charming little book of various flags in folk art. The page features beautiful full color images and quotes related to the American flag.

The US flag is often found on United States Postage Stamps. In 2002, perhaps in response to Kit Hinrichs' popular exhibit, the U. S. Post Office issued a set of five Americana stamps featuring flag ephemera. A small booklet that featured other flag folk art images and included twenty of the 37-cent stamps was available from the U. S. Post Office.

In 2000, I purchased this sheet of 33-cent U S postage stamps that commemorate The Stars And Stripes with various images of the U S flag through the years.

I had my sheet of flag stamps specially stamped for the occasion of OpSail 2000, the Parade of Tall Ships on the Hudson River and New York Harbor.

After 9/11 American patriotism was very popular. The American flag was seen being flown at almost every home in many neighborhoods. Flags flew on antenna of cars and trucks, and many wore a small American flag pin on their lapel. The top and bottom photos of the above collage are pins in my collection. The center card is an advertisement from Maximal Art's Vintage Americana Collection. You can find Maximal Art online at www.maximalart.com.

These small individual vintage flags were once used on student desks in a classroom. The silk flags show 48 stars, the flag used between 1912 and 1959. The 48 star flag was the second longest in use.

Its red for love, and its white for law,

And its blue for the hope that our forefathers saw,

Of a larger liberty.

Unknown

Mary Emmerling's AMERICAN COUNTRY FLAGS

The ever entertaining Sue @ Collectin Texas Gal has an informative post on Flag Day in Texas. Stop by and give her a visit. And stop by to wish Sonia @ Miss Bloomers a Happy Birthday today. Sonia was born on Flag Day and is sharing some beautiful images of the American Flag that she photographed while on vacation in Santa Fe.

Flag Day is also my brother's birthday. Happy Birthday, David!

A special thank you to all the hostesses of the following weekly memes:

Blue Monday @ Smiling Sally's

Mosaic Monday @ Little Red House

Three or More Tuesday @ The Gypsy's Corner

Rednesday @ Sue Loves Cherries