In The Garden

Do you mind another look at scenes from Historic Deepwood Estate? On my recent visit there, after the photo-shoot inside the wonderful, old mansion was completed, I wandered around the grounds and captured bits and pieces with my camera. The gardens are big and ever-changing; there is never enough time to spend there. You can read more about the gardens here. Let’s walk through the gardens and enjoy the beauty found there on a recent Fall day.

As I walked through the gardens and around the estate I met a furry, little friend. He was busy gathering his winter’s supply of food but he had time to stop for a minute to meet me there.

Fall is quickly fading and winter is close at hand – but Spring will come again. In the garden.

In The House

I promised to share glimpses of the inside of Historic Deepwood Estate in Salem – as seen through my camera! I know you’re going to love what you see.

A corner in the front parlor calls you to come in and make yourself at home.

The beautiful stained-glass window above the parlor mantel adds beauty to the front parlor.

Details of the carved woodwork above the mantel are enhanced by a gorgeous, red candle lamp.

On a nearby table, a beautiful chocolate set and an old, brass lamp welcome frequent guests.

Would you care for a cup of chocolate, my friend?

Seen from the top of the stairs, the lower landing is a beautiful place to rest a bit.

An old, oak-framed mirror reflects the intricate details of the paneling in the entryway.

A beautiful silver service and crystal candleholders are displayed on an exquisite oak buffet.

Afternoon sunshine and shadows dance across the original leaded glass door from the dining room to the side porch.

Around the corner from the dining room, teapots in the Butler’s Pantry wait - ready to serve tea to visitors who stop by.

A cupboard in the Butler’s Pantry holds dishes, cups and saucers and serving pieces.

A wonderful, old Victrola adds music to the beautiful, old mansion.

An old organ lesson book from days long ago is displayed on an antique pump organ.

The Carriage House is seen through a beautiful stained-glass window in the bathroom off the downstairs ‘master bedroom’.

Forgive me is I take you back upstairs to see a display that is dear to my heart. Just one more peek – please. I want just one more look at my yellow depression glass collection before the display is taken down.

Tomorrow – bits and pieces of the autumn garden at Deepwood. And a ‘visit’ with a furry critter who happened to get very close. Please join me for another part of this beautiful, old home. I’ll look for you.

Deepwood Revisited

It hardly seems possible that it was more than a week ago that I drove south to Historic Deepwood Estate to do a photo-shoot. We had a great time and I learned a lot – a lot of information about customs during Victorian times and a lot about photography and lighting. I came away realizing there is so much more I’d like to learn, skills I need to fine-tune and equipment to upgrade or replace. I’d love to share some of the photos of the ladies in their vintage-reproduction gowns but I need to be sure I have the appropriate permissions before I let you see what we did.

After the photo-shoot was finished and everyone was gone I decided I might not have another beautiful (and dry!) Fall day to wander about and take photos outside the mansion. So – that is exactly what I did! I grabbed my camera and tripod and went about the grounds of the estate. Wherever my heart desired!

It doesn’t seem to matter where I go on the grounds, I find myself totally enraptured by the mansion and everything around it! Glimpses here and there always seem to capture my heart.

And one last look back before I go!

Glimpses inside – tomorrow! There is more to share – soon I go for another photo-shoot. This time the mansion will be decorated for the holidays and I get to capture it all behind-the-scenes and when it is finished. I will take you to places the public normally doesn’t go – up into the wonderful attic (and the enchanting attic window!) and into nooks and crannies that call to me each time I visit. There will be more to share and you will share it with me when I visit Deepwood. Again – and again – and again.

Mercy

There’s a wideness in God’s mercy,
Like the wideness of the sea;
There’s a kindness in His justice,
Which is more than liberty.

There is no place where earth’s sorrows
Are more felt than up in Heaven;
There is no place where earth’s failings
Have such kindly judgment given.

There is welcome for the sinner,
And more graces for the good;
There is mercy with the Savior;
There is healing in His blood.

There is grace enough for thousands
Of new worlds as great as this;
There is room for fresh creations
In that upper home of bliss.

For the love of God is broader
Than the measure of our mind;
And the heart of the Eternal
Is most wonderfully kind.

If our love were but more simple,
We should take Him at His word;
And our lives would be all sunshine
In the sweetness of our Lord.

It is God: His love looks mighty,
But is mightier than it seems;
’Tis our Father: and His fondness
Goes far out beyond our dreams.

But we make His love too narrow
By false limits of our own;
And we magnify His strictness
With a zeal He will not own.

Was there ever kinder shepherd
Half so gentle, half so sweet,
As the Savior who would have us
Come and gather at His feet?

Song: ‘There’s A Wideness In God’s Mercy’
Words: Fred­er­ick W. Fa­ber, 1854
Music: Well­es­ley, Liz­zie Tour­jée, 1878
Click here to listen to this hymn

Saying ‘Thank You’

Thank the Lord because He is good.
His love continues forever.
Psalm 106:1

Worship is when you are aware that what you’ve been given is far greater than what you can give. Worship is the awareness that if it were not for His touch, you’d still be hobbling and hurting, bitter and broken. Worship is the half-glazed expression on the parched face of a desert pilgrim as he discovers that the oasis is not a mirage.

Worship is the ‘thank you’ that refuses to be silent.

We have tried to make a science out of worship. We can’t do that. We can’t do that anymore than we can ‘sell love’ or ‘negotiate peace’.

Worship is the voluntary gratitude offered by the saved to the Savior, by the healed to the Healer, and by the delivered to the Deliverer.

from ‘In the Eye of the Storm’
by Max Lucado

Comings And Goings And A Handmade Chair

Autumn days are flying by. The leaves are falling from our big maple tree just outside my front window and the chilly nights signal the soon arrival of winter. Thoughts of Christmas have begun to swirl in my head and plans are being made for holiday celebrations with those dear to my heart. Nights are chilly but the last few days have been unusually warm – and gorgeous! The weather has begun to change and soon our clocks will change, too! I love this time of year – it’s a time of change and time to bring out special things carefully packed away for the last months.

Today was my weekly trek out and about with my dear, little mother and my cousin. We headed south a ways to one of my favorite places. A visit to Historic Deepwood Estate to share the joy of seeing my yellow depression glass on display with my sweet mom, lunch out together (joined by a sweet friend) and a bit of thrifting along the the way added treasured memories of time spent together.

Tomorrow morning I will return to the gorgeous mansion for a photo-shoot. I am excited and feeling a bit stretched and challenged with the task at hand. The ladies who ‘do’ the teas through the year at Deepwood will all be there, dressed in vintage and vintage-reproduction gowns and I – yes, that’s right, ME – I get to do the photography that may be used on the website, in advertising and perhaps on the hoped-for blog that may begin in the near future. In a couple of weeks I will return to the mansion to take photos as this wonderful, old home is decorated for the holidays. I will watch as this special house is transformed into a place of holiday beauty. I’ll be sure to share with you, my friends – don’t worry about that. I won’t forget you!

I thought you would enjoy this little hand-carved chair we saw at a historic site in the eastern part of our state earlier this year. It’s a bit rough and I’m sure not too comfortable. Perhaps the lady of the house made cushions – perhaps not!

I hope you take time to slow down and ‘sit a spell’ this weekend. And I hope – oh, how I hope - you find a soft place to sit!