A Budding Old Collection

I love collecting, a weakness to which I'm sure most of you will confess, as well!  Who doesn't love to pursue of the next wonderful example of your beloved collection.  I love the plain and simple beauty of white crockery bowls.  My collection is not large, just six pieces, so far.  Just this week, I have added two more bowls (the second and third from the left in this picture.)  I placed them in the center of my dining table for this picture, but they have been moved from place to place many times.

I remember the collection of white crockery that inspired me to begin mine.  For many years there was a spring antique/craft show held in a small town about 25 miles from my home.  The shop was called "The Summer Kitchen," and was a favorite destination of mine.  It was out in the country and consisted of a very old two story home (still lived in by the shop owner) and two small out buildings with a large herb garden in the center.  It was very primitive and "homey."  The owner always seemed to display the most unusual items and crafted many wonderful primitive creations with which to decorate your home.

The herb garden always displayed many antique gardening tools, watering cans,  twig fences, and white painted bee skeps.  The color scheme in her home was white...mostly the "dirty" primitive white which I still love.  There would be white-washed baskets and twig creations,  chippy-painted white rustic tables and old chairs, and lots of old shutters.  There was always an abundance of live greenery and grapevine garlands.  The two other buildings were filled with antiques and vignettes displaying primitives and crafts of all kinds.

In the old two story house, was the largest collection of white crockery bowls I've ever seen.  They were displayed inside primitive cupboards, on shelves, and just anywhere one could place a bowl.  Many were filled with little pillows sewn from old quilts, fragrant whole cloves, whole nutmegs, sweet annie,  and countless other primitive scented items.  It was truly a feast for the eyes!

The owner also had a huge collection of bird feeders and rustic bird houses.  Outside in the garden and under the trees were several sitting areas where customers could watch the many varieties of birds who regularly visited the feeders.  It was very relaxing.

Sadly, several years ago the owners discontinued the shows and The Summer Kitchen is no longer open for business. I really miss going, but have slowly been adding to my still small collection of white crockery. I love the look and am experimenting with ways to display them in my own home.

What are your favorite collections? How do you display them? Do you have favorite places which inspire you to decorate in a special way?

HAPPY COLLECTING!!
Linda