Nothing Chair Has Glamorous Past!

This poor chair has been with me since 1994, when my son was born and I was setting up my first, very own “home”. It was, undoubtedly something that my grandparents picked up years ago at an auction, as they were known to do that here in Clay County.

Let’s see – this chair has moved with me no less than 10 times (let’s see: Pittsburg-Topeka-Creve Coeur-Overland-St. Charles-Virginia Beach-Virginia Beach-St. Charles-St. Peters-Miami-Liberty-Baltimore-Liberty) in that time. I never paid much attention to it. If it’s had a place in my home, it’s had a slip cover on it. It has always looked just as it does in this pictures: Blah.

It was only recently that I checked the underside to find this label: Brent’s Homes furnished Complete 716-722 South Main St. Los Angeles, Calif. Naturally, I was curious. And guess what I found? Practically NOTHING! The only thing I could find was a reference in the Advertising Cyclopedia, using their catchy “Homes Furnished Complete” slogan as a teaching tool, and a 1922 Los Angeles Directory with their name included.

Not one piece of furniture, not one ad.

So here it is, world, the only surviving piece of Brent’s Furniture.

And it has a weird splatter paint on it and nasty blue corduroy. There is another layer of fabric underneath the blue, and the deep maroon color holds some promise, with the understanding that the spatter paint goes and this is as gorgeous as I think it is underneath. I would guess it’s oak. We shall see.

Another project just made the list.

antique chair labeled Brent's Homes Furnished Complete 716-722 South Main St. Los Angeles, CALIF

antique chair labeled Brent’s Homes Furnished Complete 716-722 South Main St. Los Angeles, CALIF

antique chair labeled Brent's Homes Furnished Complete 716-722 South Main St. Los Angeles, CALIF

antique chair labeled Brent’s Homes Furnished Complete 716-722 South Main St. Los Angeles, CALIF

antique chair labeled Brent's Homes Furnished Complete 716-722 South Main St. Los Angeles, CALIF

antique chair labeled Brent’s Homes Furnished Complete 716-722 South Main St. Los Angeles, CALIF

antique chair labeled Brent's Homes Furnished Complete 716-722 South Main St. Los Angeles, CALIF

antique chair labeled Brent’s Homes Furnished Complete 716-722 South Main St. Los Angeles, CALIF

Photo History Right Here, Folks!

PICTURE-TAINER photo protectors are a thing of the past.

Picture-Tainer photo 04

I found these at a thrift store some time ago – no particular use in mind, but knew they still had some life in them somehow. So I did my usual thing: I checked out their story online and here’s what I know:

Picture-Tainer photo 01

Trademarkia had this to say: “Picturetainer: photographic packaging; namely, plastic box-like containers for holding photographic pictures and accompanying negatives”

Picture-Tainer photo 01

I found this cute little ad from a 1967 The Bulletin ad that says:

“That’s right! With every order you’ll receive a FREE Picture Tainer, obtainable only from KING SIZE PHOTO. The Picture Tainer, made of plastic polypropylene, is a KING SIZE patented, exclusive packaging for your precious photos-the perfect way to protect them from bending, tearing, folding or soiling. Best of all-it costs you nothing!”

According to the Spokane Chronicle, King Size Photo stores (in Spokane) were operating under that name until 1983 when they were sold.

Home is Where the History Is: Liberty, Missouri

And history there is!

My husband and I have lived in this quaint little slice of heaven, just north and a little east of Kansas City, Missouri for just over two years but my roots run deep here. Liberty was settled in the 1820s and eventually became home to many notable rogues: Jesse James, the Dalton Gang, the Younger Gang, and so on. So it’s steeped in real “Wild, Wild West” kind of history. And it’s where my father’s mother and father’s kin settled back in the early origins of the town.

My grandmother’s line is the most notable, with relation proven back to both the Youngers AND the Daltons. My grandfather’s family was said to have been related to the Jesse James family (one story says his parents were friends with a great aunt of my grandfather or something) but don’t quote me on that. The Cates family name can be found in some of the county’s earliest publications and there is a natural greenway also that bears our name.

My grandmother’s beloved uncle (by marriage) was the County Coroner in the 1940s, and his wife filled his seat when term limits require he vacate the position.

image

But that’s not the point: the point is that there are so many old treasures in this part of the country that I’m finding I need to sell a few things to make room for some of the things I’m seeing but can’t justify (our house is tiny, after all). So I’ll be listing some things on eBay and Etsy for fun.

Today I got to list this license plate that I found at an estate sale in Leavenworth this morning. I imagine it being bent along the bottom so it can be used as a desk name plate, but that’s just me. What else could it be used for?KS 1990 Pearl License 07