I have mentioned before of my life long love of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers movies and indeed musicals and movies in general. It was this that led me to my first furniture love affair and the first item of furniture I ever purchased and which I recently mentioned, in a previous blog, that I still have. A few people were curious as to what it was so ..............
here he is......
Yes it was love at first sight for me and this humble trunk. Over the years I may have had some smarter examples, although I still think he is is a beauty, but I cannot part with him. I purchased him from my older brother Chris when I was 12. Chris had 3 stalls in The Paddington Antique Centre, having got addicted himself to the Antiques game as a young man. Chris was more a restorer of big furniture and he could repair and colour match anything so he was happy to off load this trunk on me. I paid him five dollars a week for I don't know how long for this trunk and also put in many hours of sanding at his work shop in my school holidays...ahh young love...But I had to have this trunk.
The clincher for me was the original paper label inside the trunk, sorry about the photo, with its glamorous makers address, on Broadway in New York. My young romantic heart imagined the endless possibilities for Hollywood icons such as Fred or Ginger to have perhaps sat or rested, as in the top photo, on such a trunk..........Needless to say it has developed in me a life long love of travel or steamer trunks.
I use this little fellow as a side table.
This chap is a bedside and would originally have been for hats. I think they are just so romantic and have endless uses..my big fellow also has the added romance for me that Kristen restored and cleaned him for me as a wedding gift. Good old boot polish for the canvas...does wonders. He was one of the first bits of furniture in our first little flat in Bulimba and was our coffee table.
Sons friend " Katherine.....what's with the horse head in the car???"
Husband to wife " Honey...when you get a chance can you just check out that mower????"
"Mum can I have a lift?" ...."Yes ..but first can you just put those dummies under the house?"
Alas every day there is something that comes out of someone's mouth in our house that if you stop and think you'd say..."did I just say or hear that ?" thank goodness we have lovely neighbours other wise they may just wonder...."What's going on next door?"
