Come For A Visit

I would like you to visit my daughter's website today, at

kelliebrown-ethiopia.blogspot.com

Kellie is an articulate writer, an awesome woman and an incredible citizen of the world.

She is raising three wonderful children, two of whom she and her husband recently adopted from Ethiopia.

Enjoy!

Changing Our World

Home after a long day at the shop. I had a nice jaunt the other day with girlfriend Lisa . . . . and OH did we shop!! I'm still unpacking and cleaning and pricing and displaying the plethora of treasures.

I felt the need to shake it up a little, change some things around, freshen my perspective.

I decided to reconfigure one area of my display, so I pushed some furniture around and created a fresh pathway, then spent the day freshening up the 'Joy' displays in the shop.

I began with a white cupboard I just bought, and loaded it with European zinc pots, bread boards, graters, candles, jars, old shoe lasts, and all of the 'tin', wood and glass I could squeeze in. Next, I loaded a table with stacks of glass cake plates, mercury glass and ironstone, surrounded with old mirrors. Lots of white seashells and starfish and creamy buttons . . . . French flashcards under glass cloches . . . . and ooh la la !

Lots of terrific suitcases to stack up and use as organizers, some rusty/crusty crates (used for who knows what???), several benches and tool boxes . . . . silverware . . . . little pewter pots with wicker handles . . . .

Bird nests, feathers, quail eggs . . . .

My fav find of the day was a 3' high, hotel champagne bucket stand: silverplate! It's glorious.

You'll love it!

The weather is balmy - can you believe it reached

56 degrees?????

I've spent the past week saying Thank You, Lord, for this beautiful weather, the great sales we've been enjoying in the shop, the treasures I've been finding . . . . so many things that have gone smoothly . . . .

Each small blessing is to be savored.

There are so many wonderful people in this business.

Imagine how sweet we could make the world, if each day, we went out there with a smile and a hug and a kind word for the people with whom we interact.

I believe we could change the world!

My Friend

There is much to accomplish today, but I wanted to share a little morning greeting with you.

I was conversing with a sweet friend who has been going through some rough times.

I have experienced a fair number of rough times myself throughout my life.

I know we all have.

While thinking about her, I began to ponder the things that made me smile during those hard days and nights. I know you'll guess that my faith in a loving God is number one. My unshakable belief that He is in control, and has a plan for my life that's way bigger than I'm capable of discerning.

Beside that, there were numerous people who brought me joy and comfort, in material ways.

There has always been my daughter, who, throughout all my difficult days, was sunshine in my life. Just the thought that she was there, and that she loved me was reason enough to persevere. The thought that she might be watching how I dealt with my struggles, (oh my!), usually caused me to think about my attitude and demeanor. I am far from perfect, and I know I'm not the best role model, but I will always strive to get through the trial of the month for her sake. Hopefully, when she's an old woman, with much grace and a somewhat dimmer memory, she will think back and say "my mom got up, did what she had to do, and got us through it".

In addition to my daughter, there have been those dear friends who reached out to pull me up from the depths and warm me and give me respite. There have been friends who prayed for me. There have been friends who brought me gifts. There are friends who ran my business when I couldn't. There have been friends who sat and listened to me cry and wail and gnash my teeth. There have been friends who shared their supper table with me. There is a friend who carried me to the hairstylist, because that's what I needed. (There is friend who came and cleaned my house!) Most importantly, there are friends who have believed in me, when I couldn't even believe in myself.

There is something about going through trials that makes us more tender hearted, more understanding, more grace-full, and more willing to see our lives as a process. The process takes us up hills and dumps us into mud puddles and lifts us back up, only to toss us into a raging river current . . . we struggle across dry deserts, are whipped by hurricane winds and dropped over cliffs. There is fire and flood and hunger and loneliness.

The lesson is that we are to tend to others the way we needed to be tended.

Some days, the only things that keep us going are those small kindnesses that give us a ray of hope when we have misplaced ours. Some days . . . . the word of encouragement and the reminder that, "you are not alone". The friend who admires your ability, your spunk, your integrity, your whole person. The friend who shares that she respects you and will walk beside you, through it all. She believes in you!

It is good to remember that everyone goes through these seasons in life. None of us are immune, and those who pretend to be on top of the world will, sadly, be falling off their own cliffs and plunging into that icy river.

We each take our turns.

So, sweet friend, know that I believe in you. I respect you. I delight in your faith and your spirit and your integrity. I am wowed by your creativity and beauty and thought process. I will be there for you, any time.

Keep the faith, and know that it is vital to have friends.

We will need their love and kindness, and they will need ours.

Your friend, Joy

Putting Away Christmas

January 6th was my grandmother's birthday. It has traditionally been my day for packing away the Christmas ornaments, cleaning up the pine needles and redecorating with a fresh winter theme.

I always remind myself during this process that 'tho Christmas is officially over, I want to keep it alive in my heart all through the coming year. That means kindness, giving of myself, reaching out to the less fortunate, and celebrating the birth of Christ, no matter what month it may be.

With Christmas over and the lovely ornaments and decor being packed away, I will miss the festive aura I was enjoying. I decided to keep some of that cheery atmosphere a bit longer by reinventing my displays throughout the house. I adore candlelight and greenery against silver, so I'm continuing to use it in every room.

I will keep my mercury glass votives and silver trays and introduce a spring green with a few fresh plants and potted herbs. Friends tell me that they keep their natural pine wreaths on their front doors for months, and mother birds build nests in them.

I have cleaned out the pantry, (again), and have washed some wonderful antique European canning jars, and am using them on my counter for coffee and lovely raw sugar. I have a glass spooner filled with antique silver spoons . . . . so inviting in the morning when I prepare breakfast.

There is always a bright side to a frigid winter's day . . . . much can be accomplished in the house if you're lucky enough to be able to stay at home and putter.

Running a business, teaching, entertaining and a myriad of other responsibilities preclude my having many "leisure" days, so there is something very satisfying to me when I can sort, clean, redecorate, dejunk, and "play" at home.

I read recently that we should strive to eliminate one unnecessary or worn out item from our lives, each day. I took up the challenge the day after Christmas, and have been tossing and donating things I no longer want or need.

Of course, everyone does this at this time of year . . . .

but I'm going to keep doing it.

I always begin by starting a pot of homemade soup, and usually end in a cozy chair with a good book and a cup of tea. Some books you just have to keep and re-read . . . .

I hope you'll find great satisfaction in beautifying an area of your life.

Enjoy your winter days.

January, 2010 Victoria Magazine

January, 2010

Hello again, dear friends. It's January, and I must share some sweet news with you. Patina Antiques and Home is featured in the January/February issue of Victoria Magazine! We are delighted to have been chosen for a feature spread , following their tour of Denver. I hope you have an opportunity to take a peek at the issue. I know you'll want to subscribe when you see the quality of this publicaton.

This was icing on our cake after being voted the

NUMBER ONE ANTIQUE SHOP IN DENVER

by voters in the Channel Seven "Best of Denver" competition. Of the more than 30 antiques shops nominated, Patina Antiques was chosen as your favorite.

THANK YOU ALL!!!!

The Christmas season was superb, thanks to our loyal and thoughtful customers and friends.

I can't tell you how many times we heard the words,

"we'd rather be shopping here than in any mall".

You were searching for that special gift, and we are always honored when you purchase something we've searched out and brought home to you.

Thank you for your kindness and consideration sweet friends!

You are what makes us successful!

We're looking forward to a fresh new venture in the new year, sprucing up and working harder to make your shopping experience even more fun.

It's cold here in Denver, and I'm bundled up and enjoying a second cup of coffee. Many of our customers are out on the ski slopes where there is plenty of new powder! (More snow to come tonight in the mountains.) If you're a skier considering a visit, now is a perfect time.

You'll find several charming suggestions in the Victoria Magazine issue for exceptional places to shop, dine and relax.

If you're an antiquer, we are all stocked up and ready for your visit. Come peruse the lovely items we've found for you!

At Patina, we have something for everyone, with treasures as diverse as concrete gargoyles to Civil War era transferware, to urban chic, (vintage), metal tables. You'll find botanicals, flower carts, French flower pots, and garden shears sporting heart shaped handles. There's an early passenger train bench seat, Swiss Army (WWI) supply baskets, Scandinavian ice skates, a prize German kitchen cupboard and fine English chintz teapots amid our ever changing assortment of handpicked delights.

The newly added finds are too many to list here . . . . but remember, you can visit our website:

http://www.patinaantiquesandhome.com/

anytime, to see some of the beautiful photos there.

Don't delay, come and see us. We'll send you on to several other incredible shops in the vicinity when you're finished here.

Have a blessed New Year!

Joy

That Time of The Year

How the year is flying by . . . just when I'm in the part of the year I enjoy the most! Autumn is my season to evaluate my progress for the year, walk outdoors and observe the color changes, remind myself to say more prayers of thanksgiving and take a deep breath and appreciate how blessed I am.

This change in our daylight and leaf color slow me down and cause me to take notice of where I am, both physically and spiritually. There is a subtle change in my thought process and energy level and a renewed desire to cook and to feather my nest. I always experience an urge to be out with the old and in with the new . . . like you feel when you know it's time for spring cleaning and throwing open the windows. No doubt this is built into us, and has to do with the importance of harvesting and canning and stockpiling firewood, and storing up for winter. These preparations were required for our ancestors who did not have the convenience of living within walking distance of King Soopers or the bus stop. Nearly everything is accessible to me, year 'round, and still I experience a 'gathering and stockpiling' sort of mood.

I awoke this morning to frosty windows and a beautiful covering of snow on the ground, accompanied by that peaceful quiet we get in Colorado when it snows. A sort of insulation from the usual morning sounds. The birds are already hunkered down in their properly insulated nests and the squirrels have their acorns cupboards stocked. I suspect that some of my neighbors managed to find a reason not to leave their houses this morning . . . staying in their p.j.'s with an extra cup of coffee and a good book . . . just to celebrate the change of weather.

I have no doubt there will be another warm, sunny, Indian summer sort of spell, following this cold snap . . . . because that's Colorado, after all . . . .

but for now, I'm content to take a day off, watch a few home decorating programs and sort out my paperwork in my home office. I'm simmering some homemade soup on the stove and thinking about Patina's "Christmas Open House", the first weekend of November.

There is much that must be accomplished to be out with the autumn decor and have Christmas ready for our retail customers to peruse. Ah . . . another new beginning to contemplate!

Hello Again

Yes, I AM still on the planet . . . or maybe hovering just above in the stratosphere . . .

My two little adopted grandchildren from Ethiopia are settled in, and my four year old grandson has proudly received them as his very own "brodder" and sister! They are learning English and adapting to our foreign culture quite nicely! Family is a wonderful thing . . .

Autumn is in the air, and my mind wanders to Thanksgiving, and what it will be like to celebrate such a holiday with these three little ones gathered around me. God is good! They will be experiencing "firsts" for some time to come . . . and this Thanksgiving will be a very special "first" for them. What will they think of Halloween???? Oh My!!!!

The Pumpkin Patch visit will be upon us any day now!

Business is bustling, and I'm just back from a fruitful road trip with a truckload of antiques.

Alice and I hitched up the trailer and set our sights on the Amana Colonies of Iowa . . . where we wandered through beautiful countryside to "Simply Iowa". Barb's show was fabulous - and the consistent rain, coupled with fog and temps hovering around 40 degrees were a moody backdrop for some of the most enjoyable days of treasure hunting! Candles provided a warm glow in her outbuildings, tents and fabulous shop. Barb is one of those wonderfully charismatic, kindred souls that I clicked with immediately. Arriving at her shop was like coming home to a familiar and happy place. Barb sent us on to a wonderful set of shops named Bloom and Sisters. They were just my cup of tea!

We headed to What Cheer the following day, already content with the booty we had stashed away . . . and encountered mud, mud and more mud, rain and cold and ummmm what treasures! I always laugh to myself when customers comment on what a perfect and lovely life I have - buying and selling antiques . . . . and visions of these days pop into my head . . . .

rain, mud, cold, fog, or on some trips, days so hot I melt into a puddle . . . mosquito bites, humidity, broken down vehicles, my trailer with a broken axle, and other assorted hassles, headaches and heartbreaks . . .

but, truth be told, I wouldn't trade it for any other lifestyle! There is something so exciting about the hunt, the find, the negotiation, the purchase, the ownership, (even tho' it's temporary), the travel, the unpacking and cleaning and pricing and inventorying and display and finally, the sale! It's not even the sale, as much as the delight of the person who purchases my finds!

The stay was sweet, and we were hosted by Alice's delightful daughter & son in law,

Susie & Mike. Susie is the best at locating the perfect haunts for great finds.

I have unpacked many of the wonderful things, and they're already being seen today at PATINA.

We're basking in the warm glow of being named

Denver's

NUMBER ONE

Antiques Shop,

by Channel 7's A-List.

We won the spot through the loyalty and support of our

incredible customers

and the community of dealers and buyers and friends who cast their votes for us.

Thank you, thank you, thank you! We love you all, so much!

Come see the wonderful treasures we've found for you . . . .

Joy