Vignettes....one definition is "a grouping of treasured items arranged artistically on a table, shelf or piece of furniture."(source) I live in a home that is a blend of curiosity cabinets and personal vignettes.
I do not live in a pastel world...I like dark, rich environments. Everything has a story and a memory.
Everything on my desk has a story, the sea shells from trips to see my daughter, my taxidermied mouse under the glass dome from Paxton Gate...notice the lamp shades are a little wonky, that tells me the cat walked across the desk last night and her tail made them tilt. She is forbidden on the furniture but takes delight in the night walking across things! I straighten them daily....ahem...
The lamp that was my mother's, the luna moth found in the front yard after a storm...
My beautiful parrot feathers from Patrick Gracewood mixed with goose feathers from my daughter along with my love of fossils and minerals....
I love opening my cupboard and seeing lace fragments from my Mom...I love all my blue and white and think they belong together.
My spices from Paris...
A vignette is a grouping of treasured items...a mask from Venice, a clock from Paris,and a picture from a party with Chihuly....
"la vita e bella"...Life is beautiful!
9 comments:
Thank you for bringing back memories and inspiration,also gave me direction on how to merchandise in the home.How long did it take for the beautiful bonzai?
What lovely collections (and your desk is really cool!) Years ago I had a large vitrine of oak and glass rescued from a now-defunct museum, and was able to make changing displays of my collections of bizarre and pretty things-- It's really much more effective to display collections together. but eventually I needed another bookcase and now those things are scattered about, and i can see the entire house turning into a live-in wunderkammer.
What lovely fun I had wandering through your vignettes, Theresa! They are like little shrines - reminding me of walking through Florence and happening upon an unexpected shrine in a wall or above a door.
lol - I think all cats are alike...walking in the forbidden zones after dark.
Theresa, so nice to see the beauty that surrounds you in your home.
What I love about vignettes is the ongoing compositional possibilities. Memory is juxtaposed with object- which is more real? Like things contrast with their opposite.
Composing with objects instead of notes gives us visuals that sing to us.
Dear Theresa,
What a pleasure to step into your world! I too enjoy arranging objects on my end tables and bookshelves. There's a flatfile top in my studio that I think of as the altar. Not only does every object tell a story, but it feels as though they each have their own life. We are simply their guardians for the time being . . .
Dear Theresa, What wondrous finds, what lovely objects and so beautifully arranged and displayed. Each vignette a perfect pairing of objects from around the world. And what makes each vignette even more special is that they all hold within themselves such perfect memories. ox, Gina
Oooooohhhhh! That sneak peak of your kitchen made me gasp for more! What fun. Adore the desk. I've been on a one-woman show denouncing all white/gray rooms. It creeps me out. After living in a mostly all white house (my choice 29 years ago), I've crossed over to the dark side.
I love that your house tells your story, that objects are tied to memories, that collections show where you have been. Can we talk about the mouse again?
Hello Theresa! I'm Kyoko, Michel Nadaï's wife. I loved your blog on the Vignettes, I think that the word 'shrine' was a good way of describing those spaces. I think that we all like to consciously or unconsciously gather objects that are tied to memories. Thanks for sharing and taking us on your journey around the world. Hope you'll come by and visit our corner of the world one day! Cheers, Kyoko
Hello Kyoko!
I do hope to come to your corner of the world one day.Thank you for your kind comments!
Theresa
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