Halloween Store display ideas- fall edition

I have been out of commission for about a week with the flu. Between sleeping and drinking chicken broth, I have cruised Pinterest for ideas for my Halloween display at Hanna Antiques. Here are some of my faves.

here

I've got mirrors that look like these cookies and with be great with Raven heads on them. image from HERE.

This cute images comes from my friend, Nancy Heard. I have some tarnished tea pots and pumpkin candle holders that would look great styled like this!

I love the ghost in the mirror idea, this might be too much, but it is something to ponder. found HERE.

my Roseville Jardinere- piece by peice

Pottery collecting ain't what it used to be. Back in the day (early 1990's) when the money was still flowing from the 1980's stock market, people collected pottery Roseville, Hull, Hall, Occupied Japan, Flow Blue, Weller, McCoy, etc. However, these days people are not amassing large collections and these items are going for a song! It will come back. If you love it, buy it now and don't wait until it's in vogue again. If you wait, you will be adding at least a zero behind any price you see now- possibly more.

Then again, I started buying stock in 2010 when it went... uhhh... on sale, shall we say. So my purchasing logic and level for risk might be different than others.

Last week, I found this lovely piece of Roseville. It is called a jardiniere (read as a planter or cachepot) and sometimes comes with a base. My find didn't have a base, but I would have liked to have one.

Imagine my surprise when I found a base at an antique store turned upside down as a vase. I recognized the glaze pattern immediately. I have married the two, even though it is not optimal in the antique business. But what a pair!

Will I be collecting Roseville? Probably not, however, this is my second large pottery piece from the early quarter of the last century! And, I have learned a great deal from researching the base. The bases come marked and unmarked (unmarked is older), some are glazed on the inside, some not, some are completely hollow, some have a solid top, like mine. Right now, I will just think it is pretty and I hope the next owner thinks so too! It will be going off to Hanna's next month, after a good clean-up! I am adding my mid-century items to the booth at Hanna Antiques in August. We will see if Birmingham is ready for this national trend!

Before and after- Chair makeovers, furniture flips

I love taking a piece that needs a bit of attention and making it into a star! It is even better when I take two vaguely related pieces and make twin stars.

One of my clients needed a pair of chairs with a British Colonial feel. I found these chairs with good lines and some caning, a hallmark of British Colonial design, at Hanna Antiques.

In a very "his and hers" classic look, one of the chairs is a bit taller than the other... it is also my fave! The wood splat is a firm support for the back with the caning adding all the character. The client also requested that the backs of the chairs be attractive since they would be seen from the back when entering the room. The second chair in the pictures offers all the good looks from the back, too!

To unify the look of the chairs, I choose to go with the same fabrics for both. I think they look terrific! The small red custom pillows brings out the reds in the fabrics. The pale blue-green background looks great in the greenish blue room.

We are not done yet! Tomorrow brings in the matching pillow for the cane back chair so they match, visually, from the front view. And, the TV "cabinet" is coming tomorrow, too! Later on will be new lighting.

I have added many pieces to this space from Hanna Antiques. I have shopped there since I was in high school and I am proud to be a dealer there now. Antique stores are a great option for those who are looking for well made pieces, with great style at excellent prices! Items used to be made to "last forever", we now call them antiques. Break with the disposable design style and add some vintage/antique into your space.

New items in the shop. Great ideas for Mother's Day!

With the sale of some great items, it was time to re-arrange, add, and spruce-up! I've been adding tea cups and saucers, sweet little porcelain bowls, and leaded crystal bowls. More items arriving daily!

Great items for Mother's day!

Big sale! Laurl Designs at Hanna Antiques

It is time for a big sale! I need to move some beauties to make room for new items. Items from 20% to 40% off are now tagged!


I love a great sale. I hope you do, too!


Hanna Antiques is located on 7th Ave South near Highway 31. Look for the big signs above the building.



Here's a peek of the items on sale!

newly upholstered chair with pretty nail head detail!

great size on these Staffordshires!

Green Mohair, caning, pretty legs... and a comfortable seat!

Cloverleaf table at its best! Perfect height for a side table.

I love this gold settee, pretty as is, or it could be recovered!

Green silk table with removable skirt!

Table from Bromberg's with a weighted base. Perfect for a lamp with the weighted base preventing tipping.

Beautiful leaded crystal lamp. Has really pretty sparkle. Custom shade.

New in the shop

It has been a while since I have posted a "new in the shop"... which might mean I have been remiss in updating the store. I have been working on the concept of a wreath of silver platters for a while. With questions like, do I weld them together, epoxy them, make them in sections, how do I make sure they hang correctly... etc. However, with the slat walls at Hanna Antiques, the problem is solved.

Here's the latest updates!

 Umm, ignore my purse and tote bag!

Picks of the weekend...

Sometimes, you know it when you see it. You just know that it is special, that people will love it. There is a British TV show called Lovejoy, about an antique dealer and the mysteries or sometimes murders that happen around him- a Murder She Wrote, but British and antiques, not books. Lovejoy is the main characters name. And he is a "divy" or someone who can tell, by sight, that what they are seeing is "the real deal" or special or valuable. I like to think I am a divy. But, I think it is more that I study the market that I am selling in to know what is going and what's not. It's more trend spotting.

A few weeks ago I found these flocked reindeer. Part of me said, "plastic reindeer?" and the other part said, "magically kitchy" so I bought them and they sold in 12 hours.

Yesterday, I bought a set of glass Christmas trees and they sold in 12 hours. 

Fortunately, I could get more from the second day of the estate sale. Including the 12 inch tree below.

Along with a lovely Nippon tea set, 

a Limoges tray- both in a violet pattern and a collection of pretty demitasse cups and saucers in pink.

Happy Prissy Christmas! And forgive the quick photo-editing!

Doing Scott's Antique Market in Atlanta

Normally if I am "doing" Scott's Antique Market in Atlanta, or Lakewood 400, I am referring to going and shopping, however, this weekend I turned the tables. I was a dealer for the "extravaganza" weekend!

There were many of those "what have I gotten myself into" moments, like when they told me to arrive at 4:00 in the morning to set up. Or, when I drove up, long before dawn, in my loaded-up Prius and got in line with all box trucks and huge trailers on trucks.

This was somewhere between the little engine that could, and that terrible sinking feeling.

Then, there was the actually loading in with huge diesel trucks, diesel fumes, and tons of glorious furniture wheeling off the trucks. Not to mention the beautiful rugs, hides and tapestries. I love seeing all the action, breathing the fumes for 4 hours, I can do without.

Then there was the lovely, rich displays that I didn't feel like I pulled off.

Their display- rich and riotous

Their display- beach-tastic

My display- clutter and contemporary, not to mention overwhelmed by the giant furniture behind me.



However, I learned more than I could have possibly imagined! The dealers around me were gracious, funny, and generous with tips and suggestions. I understand the market better, which will guide my buying in the future. I learning that these folks are successful because of years of building a base of people that come to them regularly. They have a clientele just like interior designers and I plan to count myself among their followers! This is not about showing up with the latest trend and assuming people know the trend, want to adopt it, and will buy. This is about educating the buyer, and yourself, about trends, makers, product components, furniture construction, etc. This is an "always learning, always moving" business and as one dealer told me, "we are gypsies" referring to the always picking for shows and going to them across the country lifestyle.

There is a good chance I will not be back as a dealer any time soon. I have to do some deep thought about it and make good plans. Best of the show was that I made some excellent connections that would have taken years to develop, as just a buyer. Also, I have a new outlook on my space at Interiors and Antiques.

I look forward to going back next month, or maybe January, to shop and see my new friends.

New in the shop- new items in Interiors and Antiques

I have just added some jewels to the space in Interiors and Antiques in Vestavia Hills. Round tables are a coming trend and this channel back chair is great as is or re-covered! Happy shopping.

Great channel back side chair! Neutral upholstery now, could be re-upholstered in something funkier, too!

Love this double armed lamp! It is perfect for the foyer or on a large desk.

This cute little table is a tilt top. Perfect for small spaces where you can tilt the top vertically and store it against a wall.

Super psyched about these two mahogany tables that I just brought in today. Custom glass on the top and pretty finishes. Love the dog paw feet on the lower table and the drawer on the taller one.

drawer detail of the mahogany table

dog paw foot detail of the mahogany table

view of the taller of the two new tables.

If you are interested in any of these pieces, please contact me or head over to Interiors and Antiques in Vestavia Hills. I'm on booth 6 (dealer code LARL). If you have any questions about the pieces or would like the chair recovered, please contact me.

My super fave shopping purchase

Sometimes you find a real treat when shopping... something you need to hold on to for a while... you don't know why, it just speaks to some part of you. My current talker is a pair of altar candlesticks. Brass and bronze with gold gilt. Elegant, historic looking... awesome.