Antique Shopping at the DC Big Flea

Raise your hand if antique shopping is one of your favorite activities. 

If your hand is in the air, and you live anywhere within reasonable commuting distance to DC, you MUST make plans to attend the DC Big Flea.

Look at the genuine distressed finish and gorgeous color on these balusters!

The DC Big Flea is huge antique show, held five times a year, that attracts dealers from all over the east coast.  It is held at the Dulles Expo Center, with hundreds of dealers in two HUGE exhibition buildings. 

It's hard to decide what to drool over first?  The desk, the chalkboards, the clock, the cupboards .... oh, my.

The Husband and I went on Saturday afternoon.  The Big Flea has been a tradition for us since it started in the early 1980's at the Richmond Fairgrounds.  Many wonderful treasures have been carted home from Big Flea dealers.

This antique greyhound print was really cool!

Our house and garage are so full of stuff right now that anything we find at an antique show or shop has to REALLY rise above for us consider bringing it home. 

If you didn't get to go to the show, come along with me, and I'll show you some of my favorite things that I found.

What a wonderful display of enamel pitchers!

There were some really good bargains to be had.  This traveling shoe salesman's trunk was amazing and the price was right.  I already have trunks on top of trunks, with trunks to spare.  No more trunks for me, darn it.

How about this chopping block?  The top of it is a section of a slice of a huge tree, and I love the galvanized base.  You can't beat genuine patina like this.

The Husband and I both looked at each other when we saw this doll, and said, "We gotta get this thing out of here!" ... referencing the Post Office post-Christmas TV commercial with the scary clown doll.

The house number on this piece of stained glass is off by only one number ... if it was 335 instead of 336, it would live here now.

This little mohair elephant was just about the cutest thing I saw all afternoon!  Doesn't he look like Mr. Snuffleupagus from Sesame Street?

This little work bench, with its wonderful drawers and unique style, was totally TO DIE FOR!! 

Another great piece with drawers ... a nightstand with a zinc top.  Notice the 'sold' tag on the metal cabinet in the background.  There were a lot of 'sold' tags on some beautiful pieces throughout the show.

The price on this set of US Navy china seemed a bit high to me.  I don't remember exactly how high it was, but the sign by the spoons says that they are $15 apiece.  I sure love the look, tho.

Here is another display with more wonderful things.  The cupboard on top of the pie safe, with the beautiful armoire in the background.   The rug ... and the firkins!

Those among us who are in love with everything linen and grain sack would love this booth!

More grain sacks at another booth.

I have such a huge weakness for wooden crates.  At $20 each, it was hard to pass on these.

Whenever I'm out antiquing, I always keep my eye open for ironstone pieces for our dear friend Kat.  These pitchers could have been perfect.  The prices were a bit too high, otherwise I would have called her right away.

This was probably my favorite booth of the whole show.  There isn't anything in this photo that I didn't fall completely and madly in love with. 

I saw this scarf in a beautiful booth full of Victorian items.  It's totally 'me', don't you think.

What did I get, you ask?  I was thrilled to find something that will be a present for a loved one, so please forgive me for not showing it to you.  For myself, I bought a lovely rose book.  I always have room to add another rose book to my collection.

The next DC Big Flea will be March 5 and 6.  The Fredericksburg Big Flea, in a smaller venue with fewer vendors, will be February 5 and 6.   Anyone want to come with me?

Peaceful Morning ... With Snow

Shortly after I let the dogs out at six-thirty this morning, it began to snow.

It only snowed for about an hour and a half ... just enough to whiten the ground, and dust all of the trees.

Everything always looks so peaceful when it's snowing.

Here is a video I took, with the view from our deck. Enjoy these 50 seconds of falling snow, and the quiet of a country morning, with only a couple of Blue Jays to break the silence.

I hope you have a peaceful weekend!

(photos in this post were processed using ShadowHouse Creations 'Mixed Bag #3' texture)

Poodle for a Day

While Emma and I were zipping along a winding country road, heading to Manassas (about an hour away) for her accupuncture appointment, we spotted a POODLE running toward us on the double yellow line in the middle of the road.  This particular part of the road has two blind curves (and no one goes slowly or carefully through there except me, I think), so this little guy was in serious peril. 

I stopped the car right there, hopped out (praying that no one would hit me), and called him.  Fortunately, Poodle was very friendly, and he came right over and jumped into the car.  I snapped a leash on his collar, tied him to the handle on the Jeep's dashboard (to keep he and Emma apart), and I drove to a nearby parking lot to read his tags and call his owner.

According to the tag, the Poodle's name was Puffy and he had a local phone number (no address).  I dialed the number  ... and the automated phone woman informed me that the number was no longer in service.

Plan B.  His rabies tag was from my vet's office, so I called them to find Puffy's owner.  The receptionist told me that she didn't have a current phone number, but she gave me Puffy's address, and she said that Puffy is a repeat offender.  She gets a call at least every other week from someone looking to return him to his owners. 

By now, I had spent too much time on the phone, and I didn't have time to take Puffy home. If I did, we would be late for Emma's appointment, so Puffy had to come to Manassas with us.

He was a polite little car rider, tied to the dashboard like he was, and he alternated between watching cows or people or construction equipment, and lying on the seat with his head on my hand.  His personality changed drastically, however, when I got to the vet's office and I took Emma out of the car ... he started barking and whining and carrying on something awful.  I explained the situation to the receptionist, (and apologized for being late) ... just in case anyone came in to complain or to express concern about the poor, unhappy dog trapped in that car.

Fortunately, Puffy settled down fairly quickly, and he politely waited for us to return.

I returned him to his house on our way home.  His parents weren't there at the time, but the man at the house next door agreed to take him for me.  I wish I had the chance to get their phone number, to update his record at the vet for the next time someone called about him.

Puffy's trip to Manassas could have been avoided if his ID tag was kept up to date.

My dogs wear Boomerang Tags that have their name, our address, our home telephone number, and my cell phone number ... and they have microchips.

Do your dogs wear tags, and are they up to date?

My Rose Gardening Calendar

It is only natural, at the beginning of this new year, for me to look ahead and plan for the gardening year to come.  All of the roses in the garden are sleeping right now, but they will awaken in a few months, and there will be much to do.  I am often asked about my rose care program.  Last year I wrote this all out and put it into a one page handout, which I will share with you ... along with some of my favorite photos from 2010.

Bella Donna

A Year in My Rose Garden

January/February. On those few nice winter days we get, work on my ramblers and climbers. Remove old canes that are woody and flowered out, and rearrange the remaining canes on their structures to make room for new basal canes in the coming season. Evaluate once-blooming Old Garden Roses, reducing their height by up to one-half, and removing bloomed-out canes, if necessary.

Banshee

March. Prune repeat-blooming roses when the forsythia is blooming. Pull winter weeds, reapply mulch, test irrigation system.

"Portland from Glendora"

April. Begin fungicide spray program as soon as roses leaf out, for best success at blackspot prevention. Mix fungicide according to label directions, and spray at the recommended interval. (I use Bayer Advanced Disease Control every 14 days) Fertilize roses as soon as the soil warms and the roses are growing vigorously.

Innocence

May. Enjoy the roses, because there are new ones every day! Continue fungicide spray program. Remember to water the roses if there hasn’t been sufficient rain. Modern roses will benefit from an application of organic fertilizer toward the end of the month.

The Rose Field

June. Most of the roses should be blooming really well this month. Japanese Beetles will arrive at the end of the month, just as the roses are finishing their first flush of bloom. (I hand pick beetles, or just ignore them)

"Arcata Pink Globe"

July/August. Modern roses are usually resting in the heat of summer. Chinas, Teas, and Polyanthas continue their show. Be sure the roses are getting enough water. Pull weeds, or spray herbicide, as necessary. Spray fungicide every two weeks.

Zephirine Drouhin

September. Enjoy the beginning of the fall flush of flowers. Apply organic fertilizer. Continue fungicide spray program.

Crepuscule

October. Fall flush continues, especially for the Polyanthas. I usually need one last fungicide application in the middle of the month.

White Pet

November. The roses are beginning to sleep for the winter, as temperatures cool and daylight gets shorter. I don’t winter-protect my roses, but you can mound mulch or soil at the base of more-tender roses after a couple of hard freezes.

Marie Pavie

December. Enjoy the Holidays, and dream of the rose season to come. The cycle starts over again in January.

Saint Nicholas

Sweet Inspiration

I was digging through my photo files a little while ago, gathering photos for a couple of other posts I'm working on.  In a file from 2006, I found THIS ...

I took this photo outside Caravati's, an architectural salvage yard in Richmond.  Little did I know at the time, but I guarantee that there will be elements of this gorgeous Victorian gable repeated later as we renovate one of our outbuildings into a guest house.

THIS is why it pays to ALWAYS have a camera in your purse!

Sunday Snapshot ... Watching the World Go By

The Family Room bay window is one of Alice's favorite places to sit keep an eye on whatever is going on outside.

She jumps over there from the back of a wing chair, walks across the window sill, and noses under the curtains.  The only clue that she's there is her fluffy big-girl tail hanging down.

We plan to take down the Christmas tree later today, while watching football games.

How to Prune and Train Ramblers ... starring Albertine

When I tell folks that rambler roses can grow to be more than 20 feet across by the end of their third year, I usually see a look of fear spread across their faces.  With this post, I hope to show you that these roses are well within the reach of most gardeners ... and are a beautiful asset to the garden.

This is 'Albertine', a Hybrid Wichurana rambler introduced in France by Barbier & Company in 1921.  She will be our demonstration rose for this lesson.

Ramblers are once-blooming roses, which bloom profusely in the late spring on canes produced during the previous year.  New canes, which are long and flexible, grow from the base of the rose each year (called 'basal canes').  If left unpruned, a Rambler will grow into a large mound and spread across the ground.  Pruning them is very straight-forward, and can be accomplished on a large rose in about an hour. 

I find it best to do this in winter, when the canes are leafless and it's easy to see what I'm doing.  It feels good to get outside on a mild winter day and accomplish something in the garden.  (Temperatures here in Virginia have been in the upper 50's for the past two days ... perfect pruning weather!)

The older canes on 'Albertine' are those that are already attached to the fence.  The new canes produced during the growing season are the ones arching away from the fence.

The goal is to prune out old, excess canes and spindly, unproductive growth, keeping ten or twelve canes, and attaching them to the fence in a fan-shaped pattern. 

My ramblers each grow with a clematis in them, so I have the quick extra step of cutting off and removing the tangled, dead clematis stems.

This is what 'Albertine' looks like from the back of the fence.  Throughout the season, she sends shoots through the fence, seemingly heading for the neighbor's house.  Most of this growth will be removed.  Sometimes I will retain a particularly nice cane from the back of the fence, if I can maneuver it through the fence to the front side.

It is important to remove any canes that are dead or broken.

I cut out old, woody, unproductive canes, stepping back from time to time to get a good overview of my progress.  While I'm working, I keep my goal in mind ... retaining the long younger, flexible canes that will flower best in the spring. 

Don't be afraid to cut!  'Albertine' lost about half of herself while I was sorting canes and cutting.  Alberic Barbier, another rambler I pruned today, lost at least 3/4 of his canes.  He was REALLY overgrown, because I hadn't pruned him at all last year, and I only pruned lightly the year before. 

When in doubt, cut it out, is my motto.  If you cut a cane that you regret, arrange those that remain and you can cover up your mistake.  Ramblers are vigorous growers, and they recover quickly from hard pruning.

The old canes are gone, leaving the flexible new canes in the front.

The back of the fence is all tidy ...

... and the canes that remain are ready to be arranged and attached to the fence.

At this stage, I look at what I have left to see which canes will naturally go right or left, high or low.

I fine-tune my selections, and I sometimes discover that a cane is too stiff or pointing the wrong direction to go where I want it to go.  The cane marked below is healthy and I would love to have kept it, but there was no way I could have bent it enough to attach it to the fence without breaking it.

One by one, I attach the canes to the fence in a fan shape, as horizontally as I can get them without bending or breaking them. 

When rose canes are trained to at least a 45 degree angle, they produce more flowering laterals, which means that you will get more flowers. (Canes that are trained vertically will only bloom on the ends.)  The photo below shows one cane last spring, with its flowering laterals.  Look how many buds there are!

When we planted these roses, we stapled a single strand of fence wire between the boards of our fence to make it easier to attach the roses to the fence.  That's why it looks like the canes are floating between the fence boards.

Want to see the result?  I left 'Albertine' with ten healthy, flexible canes (five per side), attached to the wire.

Here is the pay off ... a well-tended rambler that produces maximum flowers on a healthy plant ... and, the way I do it, it only takes an hour or so per year to achieve.  (I'm using Leontine Gervais for this example, since these are such a good photos to show how many flowers ramblers produce.)

I make no secret of the fact that Ramblers are one of my favorite classes of roses.  Their flowers are beautiful and fragrant, their leaves are resistant to disease, they grow despite drought and neglect, and they are a powerful presence in the garden.

This is the upper part of the Rambler Fence in 2009.  The roses, left to right, are Alberic Barbier, Paul Transon, and Aviateur Bleriot. 

If you have any questions about Ramblers (or anything about roses, for that matter), send me an email or leave a comment.

'Albertine' wants to thank you for coming, and she hopes you will consider adding a Rambler or two to your garden.