CLOCHE ENCOUNTERS...

I'd like to thank Kris at Junk Chic Cottage

again for the feature in her Saturday Spotlight.  It was a wonderful experience and I appreciate all the hard work she puts into it.  I'd also like to thank all of you who responded with such kind and positive comments and to give a warm welcome to my newest friends.

A cloche is a very elegant way to display a cherished item.  It takes that item and raises it to a level of importance...

...or it can take an item of less importance, such as the lowly butter dish above, and by adding a treasured teacup and a couple of prized books, it becomes charming and significant.

Cloches were of great importance in the Victorian era.  Then, like now, there were fads and collections.  A well-heeled Victorian household would most likely have a presentation of flowers, made out of human hair or preserved birds or butterflies that all needed to be kept clean and free of dust.  The easiest and most decorative way to display these would be under the safety of glass.  Hence the cloche.  It was attractive and practical.

A.

B.

Cloches come in all shapes and sizes.  The two above are great examples...

A...Was a gift to me from my first boss in the business world.  He was on a trip to Paris and picked up the beautiful little bottle of Joy perfume. This was around the late 1950's.

B...When my mother's twin sister passed away, I was asked to pick out anything that I would like to have to remember her by.  I chose this elegant little cloche covered lady which was also a perfume bottle.  Her head is attached to a little dobber.

This beautiful and delicate doll was brought to me by my cousin when he came home from the Korean conflict.  She is around 60 years old and I was never allowed to play with her, to my chagrin back then, but many thanks to my mom and grandmother now.

In today's market cloches are often fashioned out of more than just glass...

...they are all just as special and elegant as the cloches of old but with a new and modern twist on the original design.

The first pair of baby shoes that my kids wore.

For those of you who may not have heard this story:  Back in the early 60's and before, keeping your children's baby shoes by bronzing them was all the rage.  You found an ad in a magazine and for a nominal fee you would send the shoes in and they came back to you preserved for life.  Of course, after the deed was done, I realized I'd made a horrible mistake so the only thing I could do was get out the old paint brush and bring them back to what they originally looked like.  The sad thing is that incredibly sweet softness was lost forever.

Happy Mother's Day to each and everyone of you. Tami is having her annual yard sale to benefit breast cancer, so I will be spending mine by the ocean.

...Judy...

Sharing today:

Wow Us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style

What's It Wednesday at Ivy and Elephants