Lisa Shamhart Maughmer: January 2009

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Spring is beginning to bloom...with new finds

available for purchase here

two sizes of these great burlap totes with vintage wine label graphics

Friday, January 23, 2009

It's moments like these...

I had a moment at the shop yesterday with a little boy, Christian from Bexley (my hometown) that I will treasure forever...for many reasons. He is 7-ish years old, wise and quiet (not bashful or shy, more of a gentleman demeanor) with a beautiful smileflanked by a gorgeous set of dimples. Ever since I met him in December he has reminded me of my older brother. Michael, my brother, passed away in his sleep July 4th, 2002 from an undiagnosed heart condition. We all miss him terribly. On a few occasions the atmosphere around certain situations seem to be steeped with his presence. This moment was one of them.

One of the greatest pleasures I get from my "job" is being there when a customer finds something that makes their heart skip a beat and they just have to have it. Well, this young man's heart did quiet little back flips, I know because I could see it on his face. His mom discovered Urban Farmhouse through the Country Living

Fair and just started coming out recently and dare I say is thoroughly addicted. She was finishing up her shopping and Christian said something about an old camera he saw in the front of the shop, he wondered if it worked. I walked up there (to Lisa Marton's area) with him to let him see it. We were looking at the camera when his mom said something about the Viewmaster. I looked at the next shelf up and there was a vintage black Viewmaster, just like my brother Mike's but black not red plastic. I picked it up and looked through it, it worked and had 15-20 of the round slides too. When I looked down and went to hand it to him the joy in his face was magical! I handed it to him and told him to look in and towards the window...his face was so full of happiness, you wouldn't believe it. It wasn't a "jumping up and down, hyper-excited this is going to pass as soon as I see something else shiny" kind of joy...just pure happiness and joy. He had $20 Grandma gave him and the Viewmaster was $18...more joy.
So I am standing there with eyes full of tears remembering my childhood with my brother. When I raised the Viewmaster to my face I half expected to see the
classic dinosaur images, t-rex and the stegosaurus fighting on the edge of the cliff! I managed to keep my composure, smiling the whole time, kept the tears in my eyes and not streaming down my face. Mom and son stayed right there for a few moments while I walked back up to the cash register. Right there smack in the middle on the expanse of wood of the old store counter was an enamel letter "M". Christian's mom had found it in the store and had laid it there before joining he and I up by the camera. Coincidence I know. But it was cool...like a sweet hello from my big bro Mike, signed even!

Monday, January 12, 2009

A Big Welcome to Romantic Homes Readers!

Okay, pardon the interruption and my apologies in advance for taking a moment here to toot my own horn...but I just have to share this with you. Romantic Homes magazine named me as one of their esteemed "Romantics" this year. I'm just tickled pink (get my cheesy tie-in to Valentine's Day?) But seriously, it is quite an honor for me, especially considering some of the other extremely talented and creative folks that also grace the pages; Margrit Biever Mondavi of Mondavi wines, Libby Langdon of "Small Space, Big Style" on HGTV, Corey Amaro, photographer/blogger, St. Zacharie, France, Kenneth Brown host of HGTV's "reDESIGN", TLC's "Over Designed", and MSN's "Interior Design Expert", Lidy Baars, antiquarian of the French Garden House in California just to name a few. A huge thank you to Jacqueline and her team at Romantic Homes!

I was asked to write about how I live a romantic life (well, anyone out there with three children want to try answering that?) Anyone who knows me also knows I can talk...a lot. But writing about yourself is a whole different thing. I was at a loss and it took me a few weeks to be able to determine my direction because the most important thing for me was that when people read it, they connected to what I was saying. I believe one of the reasons people enjoy coming to the shop is because of the feeling they get when they walk in or look at the website. I am able to generate this feeling because it aligns with who I am deep down inside. All of the things I do (the shop, website, blog, etc) are fun for me because I don't have to think about it, I just do what I "feel". I am connected to the shop and to my customers in a way that I cannot adequately describe and that's what makes it "romantic".

So here it is...the article I wrote and the final photos they decided to use. At first I was very bummed to see they misspelled my last name (it's Maughmer...pronounced Moffmer) but quickly let it go. Truly, in the bigger scheme of things, it's not a big deal. Then I remembered a great quote from fellow blogger Sharon Wilson....

"At this stage of the game, you just can't take anything too serious, it's about life and art and the drive to make it all happen, the humility to keep it in perspective...And a great punch line..."

(((punchline here would be from my husband who reminds me HIS name is misspelled on our marriage license and that's the same as a "Get Out of Jail Free" card)))

This is me being camera shy. I have never seen a photo of me that I have been happy with (oh aren't we women so critical of ourselves?!)

A token of the lover's holiday, a set of hand poured and cut porcelain X & O. This darling duo resides on my husband's nightstand. An elegant and delicate reminder that saying "I DO" out loud is a legal and binding contract regardless of your name being misspelled on the marriage license.

Some treasures I covet...the letters (addressed to Bexley Station...I grew up in Bexley, Ohio) have since found a home with a customer, the quail eggs and cloches I always have in the shop (and at home).

For a little over 2 months the state route near the shop and my house was closed and this is the road I had to drive to get from point A to point B. This particular morning the fog was hanging in the low spots...enough for me to take pause in my rush and admire the simple and amazing beauty of His handiwork. It was a blessing that road was closed.

I don't own this painting nor do I know anything about it. I stumbled on the image somewhere on line and her eyes captured me. They are familiar. They remind me of a beautiful and itelligent young lady I know.

And of course my love of ironstone. The engraved napkin rings made their way to California. A customer was visiting family here and they came out to the shop together. She did not buy the napkin rings during her visit but thought about them all the way home to the west coast. Once home she called to see if I still had them and could I mail them? Yes of course!!