I went to the Alameda Point Antique Faire this weekend. It was hot – and several of us have the sunburn to prove it – but so worth it. This is the first time we have been and I would venture to say that a holiday weekend is a good time to go. The crowds were really reasonable.
I didn't bring my camera and once I got in and starting seeing the fabulous linen vendors I even forgot to snap any with my cellphone.
I had one goal – to find a mantel mirror. I've been looking for a mirror to hang in the space above my living room mantel. The walls are shorter in the living room because the ceiling slopes down in that room. Plus the fireplace sits up higher than usual. The result is I don't have a lot of wall space above the mantel to hang a picture.
A wide, short mirror is the way to go. I have been looking for a couple of years now and my criteria was rather specific. I wanted the mirror to be divided into three sections and I wanted the frame to have nice detail. I didn't care so much what the finish of the frame had, figuring I could just paint it but a shabby white paint job would be a bonus.
Rather macabre – a tray full of heads and body parts.
Once we got going I kept getting beguiled by the linen booths. There were a number of them with a fabulous inventory of European linens. I started dipping into my mantel fund. I bought two pillowcases with crocheted trim, a lace tablecloth and a cut-work tray cloth. I figured I wasn't going to find my mantel mirror anyway.
Well of course after I spent half of my money I found it. It was priced above my budget but the buyer was willing to come down in price and I got it for the high end of my budget. My budget that I already spent on snowy white linens. So there were a frantic few minutes where I was calling the other people in my party to track down my sister. She was about five rows ahead of me but she trudged back with her wallet and I bought my mirror.
I'll take a proper photograph once I get it hung but here it is in all its perfectness. The center piece doesn't have the original mirror but the two side mirrors have just the right amount of patina.
It’s perfect! Let me know the next time you all go, I will come along for sure!
Beautiful! Isn’t it wonderful to find exactly what you wanted.
That’s just one of the reasons I would LOVE to have a sister! I love the mirror and your story. My mantle is sad and pathetic, it lacks personality, if I promised you all the caramels you could eat, would you be tempted to decorate mine!?