We've lived here in the country, in this old house, for five years. It was built in 1919 and in addition to a parlor, a family room with a brick fireplace, a sunroom, and many updates, this house also has two quaint upstairs rooms that are perfect for sewing and displaying some of the toys I had as a child. The one thing that was missing from my vintage toy room was an old iron bed. The space is small, so I wanted a single or daybed, something that would fit the scale of the room.
On a visit to one of my favorite shops - Talmadge Rd. Mercantile, in Clayton, OH
https://www.facebook.com/TalmadgeRoadMercantileLlc/ - I saw a little bed I wanted. The price was reasonable, the look was vintage, and the size was perfect. I didn't want to buy it that day, as I didn't really want to invite questions from my spouse. He was about to embark on a trip and I thought I'd go get the bed while he was gone. So he left on his trip and the next day I drove his truck to the shop and bought that little bed, but wondered all the way home if I would be able to get all the parts of it to my upstairs room without help. The stairway here is original to the house, so it's a bit narrow and the stairs are a fairly steep. It was a challenge, but I did it. After putting the bed together, I knew I needed to search for mattresses. I'd already secured sheets, a mattress pad, protectors for pillows and mattresses, and a bed skirt. I couldn't wait to put everything together. I had a quilt in mind that I thought would be perfect, so I was all set.
I took the truck to pick up the mattress set and again wondered if I could get the mattresses out of the truck, into the house, and up the steep stairs by myself. Some days, I think it just takes an attitude of determination to accomplish something I ordinarily wouldn't tackle by myself. This is something I wanted to do on my own, but I knew if I needed help, my spouse would lend a hand when he arrived home. I just didn't want to have to ask for the help. I'm stubborn sometimes.
So I now have a sweet vintage bed in my quaint little toy room and I'm very happy with how it looks up there. I will continue to do some tweaking and re-arranging I'm sure, but I'm glad to have the bed and linens in place. In fact, I took a short nap on my new/old bed after I had it all put together. It felt cozy and somehow reassuring to look around the room and see so many things that reminded me of a simpler time in my life. There's an addition to this story that added to my adventure. My spouse, who had been out of town, arrived home from his trip and for practical reasons, I did not tell him about the bed. He would most likely have asked why I felt I needed it, and I didn't really want to be questioned about my purchase. Some time went by and I needed him to help with a curtain rod for an upstairs window and thought, he'll see the bed and start asking questions. He went upstairs with me and I showed him what I needed him to do. He actually put his tools and the curtain rod ON the bed, but didn't say one word. He seemed to not notice the bed at all. So I didn't say anything about it either. We got the curtain rod up, I added the curtains I wanted, and we went back downstairs. Still, not a word was said about the bed. This went on for weeks - I said nothing about it and he didn't act as if he had noticed it. One day he was taking a vintage sewing machine upstairs for me - it was something I found at a second-hand shop and thought would look great in that room - and when he came back downstairs, he very casually asked, "How long has that bed been up there?".... I was tempted to ask, "What bed?", but instead, I responded that it had been up there for quite awhile, which was absolutely true. His reply was, "Huh". That's it. He didn't ask when or where I'd gotten it or how I'd managed to get it upstairs by myself. To this day he hasn't said another word about the bed. I actually wonder if he decided we must have brought it here when we moved in and he'd just forgotten about it. That's fine with me. I have my little bed and didn't have to play 20 questions with my spouse. Now...if he'd just go on another trip, maybe I could buy some new bookshelves!
On a visit to one of my favorite shops - Talmadge Rd. Mercantile, in Clayton, OH
https://www.facebook.com/TalmadgeRoadMercantileLlc/ - I saw a little bed I wanted. The price was reasonable, the look was vintage, and the size was perfect. I didn't want to buy it that day, as I didn't really want to invite questions from my spouse. He was about to embark on a trip and I thought I'd go get the bed while he was gone. So he left on his trip and the next day I drove his truck to the shop and bought that little bed, but wondered all the way home if I would be able to get all the parts of it to my upstairs room without help. The stairway here is original to the house, so it's a bit narrow and the stairs are a fairly steep. It was a challenge, but I did it. After putting the bed together, I knew I needed to search for mattresses. I'd already secured sheets, a mattress pad, protectors for pillows and mattresses, and a bed skirt. I couldn't wait to put everything together. I had a quilt in mind that I thought would be perfect, so I was all set.
I took the truck to pick up the mattress set and again wondered if I could get the mattresses out of the truck, into the house, and up the steep stairs by myself. Some days, I think it just takes an attitude of determination to accomplish something I ordinarily wouldn't tackle by myself. This is something I wanted to do on my own, but I knew if I needed help, my spouse would lend a hand when he arrived home. I just didn't want to have to ask for the help. I'm stubborn sometimes.
So I now have a sweet vintage bed in my quaint little toy room and I'm very happy with how it looks up there. I will continue to do some tweaking and re-arranging I'm sure, but I'm glad to have the bed and linens in place. In fact, I took a short nap on my new/old bed after I had it all put together. It felt cozy and somehow reassuring to look around the room and see so many things that reminded me of a simpler time in my life. There's an addition to this story that added to my adventure. My spouse, who had been out of town, arrived home from his trip and for practical reasons, I did not tell him about the bed. He would most likely have asked why I felt I needed it, and I didn't really want to be questioned about my purchase. Some time went by and I needed him to help with a curtain rod for an upstairs window and thought, he'll see the bed and start asking questions. He went upstairs with me and I showed him what I needed him to do. He actually put his tools and the curtain rod ON the bed, but didn't say one word. He seemed to not notice the bed at all. So I didn't say anything about it either. We got the curtain rod up, I added the curtains I wanted, and we went back downstairs. Still, not a word was said about the bed. This went on for weeks - I said nothing about it and he didn't act as if he had noticed it. One day he was taking a vintage sewing machine upstairs for me - it was something I found at a second-hand shop and thought would look great in that room - and when he came back downstairs, he very casually asked, "How long has that bed been up there?".... I was tempted to ask, "What bed?", but instead, I responded that it had been up there for quite awhile, which was absolutely true. His reply was, "Huh". That's it. He didn't ask when or where I'd gotten it or how I'd managed to get it upstairs by myself. To this day he hasn't said another word about the bed. I actually wonder if he decided we must have brought it here when we moved in and he'd just forgotten about it. That's fine with me. I have my little bed and didn't have to play 20 questions with my spouse. Now...if he'd just go on another trip, maybe I could buy some new bookshelves!
2 comments:
Hi, Kady,
I live in SW Ohio too...Tipp City, and I have been to Talmadge Road Merc. often. The iron bed you bought is perfect, love the bed, the quilt (is it flannel)? And the curtains. I'm glad you got it in by yourself. I know what you mean about doing it yourself. Since my husband passed (8 years ago), if I want it done, I have to do it myself. I also hate asking for help!
Melinda
Hi Melinda! Tipp City isn't all that far from Talmadge Rd. Mercantile. Isn't that a great shop? Have you met, Lucky, the shop cat? He's a stray that people in that neighborhood looked out for and I guess he decided the shop was the place for him. He's a bit weathered and has an eye problem, but seems happy and Traci really loves him and makes sure he is well cared for.
I'm sorry you've lost your husband. Both my sisters lost theirs and I know of their struggles. I don't think women, in general, like to have to ask for help. We want to be as self-sufficient as possible. I'm not a spring chicken any more and I really did wonder if I could get the bed and mattresses upstairs, but I stood in the middle of that little room and gave a little "yippee", that I actually did it.
That quilt isn't flannel, but cotton. I found it at a Goodwill a couple years ago and just knew I'd find a good use for it eventually. It washes up well and just fits the bed.
Thank you for visiting my blog. I lost a lot of followers when I stopped blogging for a time. My mom had Alzheimer's and we moved her down here (I'm in Germantown, Ohio) so I could look after her. That was a rollercoaster ride and I had to let some things go. I just couldn't keep up with blogging, plus all I had to say was a bit on the depressing side. But now I'm back to it and hope some of my followers will come back, but if they don't, that's ok. Blogging is a nice outlet and I appreciate those who do stop in for a visit. Do you have a blog or a website?
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