HYACINTHS FOR THE SOUL

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

W is for Wonderland

Alice in Wonderland

Summer Sunday in Central Park

is for

Wonderland

Vintage Copy of Alice in Wonderland

That magical nonsensical world Alice

fell into as she swirled down the rabbit hole.

The strange characters of Lewis Carroll's

Alice in Wonderland

were etched into my memory as a young child.

Did you know there is a bit of

this magical world in Central Park?

Oh, yes!

You will see Alice there!

You'll find Alice sitting

with her sweet little kitty, Dinah.

The March Hare is there,

umbrella in hand . . .

Rushing past in a hurry . . .

With his watch out of his waistcoat pocket

"Oh, dear! Oh, dear! He must be late!"

"I dare say it's a French mouse,

come over with William the conqueror."

"Don't be startled by seeing the

Cheshire-Cat sitting on a bough of a tree . . ."

The Mad Hatter will greet you.

You won't find a tea party,

but you're welcome to sit among the mushrooms.

There, right by the little Dormouse.

There is plenty of room.

Yes, many of my favorite curious characters

of this literary nonsense tale are there,

a tangible presence waiting just for you and me.

You'll find them up the path from the model boat basin

with its miniature sailboats skimming across the water.

This 11' bronze sculpture

is one of Central Park's most beloved.

Unlike other statues, this one was built with children in mind.

One can climb and crawl all over Alice and her curious friends.

Circling the base of this sculpture are bronze

plaques within the pebbles of the terrace.

Each features a different inscription from the story.

The impressive sculptural group was commissioned by

philanthropist George Delacorte in 1959 as a tribute to his wife,

Margarita, and a gift to the children of New York City.

Jose de Creeft,

a Spanish born French-trained sculptor,

is the artist of this whimsical sculpture.

Fernando Texidor

was the project's designer.

Please come back on Saturday.

The Mad Hatter will be serving tea.

No doubt you want to spend more time in the park, but you can't be late for Mrs. Matlock's class. There are more "Letter W" lessons waiting for you here.

This post will be linked to the following weekly memes. A big "Thank You" to all these hostesses.

Vintage Thingie Thursday @ Colorado Lady

Summer Sundays @ The Tablescaper

Outdoor Wednesday @ A Southern Daydreamer

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Summer Solstice Porch Party

Americana

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

Monday, June 14, 2010

V is for Vintage

A Few of My Favorite Things

"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.