Who Doesn't Love Pottery?

If you were to ask my husband or any of my friends, "What does Carolyn love to collect more than anything?" Unanimously they would chime, "Pottery"! Some of you may have thought it would be transferware, sterling silver napkin rings, creamware, on and on and on! But, if you really know me…you know my love for pottery defies the normal limits! It all began with a love unsurpassed by many for McCarty Pottery and Peter's Pottery!

( which are somewhat intertwined!)

Then, it progressed into a love for "potters" in general and my obsession for Charlie West's Roosters took hold of my heart! We would travel to Highland's, NC for a get away and I would return home with my treasures! Oh, how I love my Charlie West Roosters!

At one point, I really thought of asking him to put them in my shop…but I knew it would be nothing short of a selfish venture…no way would I sell any of them!

They are just too wonderful to describe! I'm considering having one of them made into a lamp like my friend Sharon did! It's so pretty! Check out his fabulous work! 

Charlie West's Pottery

For a while we were lucky enough to carry Caroline Rheel's incredible pieces of pottery! When she moved away from Birmingham we were not able to keep doing that but we sure do miss her! Take a look at some of the pieces we had and some that are now in my own home!

To see more of Caroline's work you can check it out HERE!

But back to my obsession with McCarty Pottery and Peter's Pottery…It is so versatile and functional…we've used it a lot at our events at Mulberry Heights.

I think I have every serving piece known to man…dinner service for 12 as well as the luncheon size dinnerware! I love it! I love the fact that it is made in Mississippi, my original stomping grounds…right on the state of Memphis, TN and Southaven, MS.  I love the Mississippi River trademark running right through the pottery to let you know, "Hey, I'm from the Delta!"

This is my every day dinner ware….so much fun to use! It mixes great with everything! Those square plates are fabulous and those are the Luncheon size. Those small soup bowls are fabulous for a dinner with soup and sandwiches or for using as serving pieces along with the large platters.

Then, I learned about Peter's Pottery…a former employee at McCarty that began his own line.

I love his textures, color variations, quirky animals and fabulous platters! I've collected many a piece while visiting Holly in her short stint in Jackson, MS as well as just calling up ole Peter himself! Both Peter and McCarty's are so easy to talk to and have your pieces shipped right to your door!! Love that about them! I also once talked to Peter about selling his wares at Mulberry…again…it would've been a selfish venture!

But, when I discovered DK Clay in New Orleans while shopping with Holly one afternoon, a quick friendship was developed and now finally…we are carrying pottery again!

 I love it and I can tell it will be a big hit at Mulberry this Christmas and hopefully throughout the year!

What fun gifts these will make! We paired some of them with our cute Christmas spreaders for that easy, pick up gift to take as a hostess gift or to just give to a special friend!

I love her variety of color, shapes and sizes in her everyday pottery. She swears it is microwavable and dishwasher safe! Hmmm..

Take a peek for yourself and see if there is something you just can't live without! I can tell you, they are already flying out the door!

One last thing and then I will go! I hope all of you have a wonderful Thanksgiving and have some quality time to spend with family and friends.

 I am thankful for each and every one of you and cannot even tell you how I appreciate your sweet comments and emails. I am thankful for the friendships I have made through this blog.

Thank You!!

What If Wednesday's….What If I Could Get Married All Over Again?

That got your attention now, didn't it?

Well guess what? I would! To the same wonderful man that I've been married to for 29 years this August! But….I might do things differently now…I might register for completely different china and silver…I might wear purple instead of white! ( not really…but play along with me!) All of this got started in my brain after I helped give a shower for a very special friend's daughter this past weekend. I love giving parties like this because it's pretty much the only time I see a lot of my old friends! So I started thinking...

What if we could have wedding showers all over again when we reached a certain age just because all of our old stuff was worn out!? How fun would that be! What if we let this Wednesday's 'What If' post be a little more lighthearted and focus on parties and Party Planners!

I've often said that should be a new tradition we start! Just when we are tired of all of the things we chose when we first started out we could start all over if we wanted to! 

This past weekend I helped give a Champagne Shower for a dear friend's daughter…it was a lot of fun!

It was a simple but elegant Champagne and Hors D'oeuvres shower and was very enjoyable! Especially because I got to catch up with old friends! Especially these two since they both used to work for me at Mulberry Heights!

I was truly enamored with all of the beautiful floral arrangements! 

Just look at that incredible copper planter! We will actually be getting in a lot of this line very soon and I can hardly contain myself! The entire line is incredible!

The mother of the bride sure did look radiant in her beautiful aqua colored top! 

And I certainly loved all of the beautiful gifts the bride to be received! I had never even seen this Juliska pattern! My daughter registered for another Juliska pattern and I fell in love with that just a mere 3 years ago! And now I'm loving this as well!

Here it is paired with my daughter's pattern Berry and Thread by Juliska! 

Our hostess gift was this incredible 'Peter's Pottery' bowl above that the main centerpiece was arranged in as well as the candlesticks below. I can't believe I'm actually seeing a piece of this pottery that I don't already have…I started collecting this pottery about 15 years ago…it is our every day dinner ware and it has so many wonderful "extras" that go along with it! We also paired it with Annieglass and it all worked quite well together!

Can you tell how glad I am to be seeing this girl? We've been friends since I was pregnant with Holly who is now 25 and she also practically ran my shop for about 10 years!

Julie's table looked so beautiful with everything on it! Her house is breathtaking to begin with!

The food was pretty exceptional! I have been dreaming of it ever since I first smelled it Saturday afternoon!

Luckily, my sad looking Brie in puff pastry turned out ok…in the beginning I was quite worried as all of the cheese began oozing out while it was baking! No matter! The pear preserves covered it up nicely!

I loved our elegant but understated monogramed napkins!

Our cake from our local Olexa's bakery which is right around the corner from my shop was exceptionally beautiful and delicious as usual! You just can't beat her cakes! ( and I'm coveting that Annieglass cake stand!)

The kitchen was set up beautifully for the wine and the champagne!

For some reason that I'm not really sure of all of this made me remember the time that Jim and I were attending the Nashville Antiques and Garden Show when Bunny Williams spoke along with Colin Cowie!

He was so entertaining and so well spoken and gave the most wonderful party tips!

I wish entertaining was as effortless as he makes it appear! He is a gracious host and wonderful speaker if you ever get the chance to hear him!

Just look at these ghost chairs on the beach!

And these incredible "mini" wedding cakes!

 This would have to be my "Bride's Cake!" However…I will say that my daughter's cake was so incredibly beautiful, I think it tops even this….

I've never seen anything else like it!

 And I sure do love this for a reception….

 but I still think Holly's was my favorite!

I never wanted this night to end…it was super special!

And there are no "What If's" about it…I would do it all over again if I could…and I WOULD choose different china and different silver…I might even choose that pretty Juliska pattern!

And, if I could get married all over again…to Jim again of course... I think I might just hire Colin to be the "Event Planner"! What if I could? It would be a dream, no doubt! His work is incredible!