Between a rock and a curio cabinet

A quick post to show you my latest LOAD layout which was created from my May Counterfeit Kit.  The prompt for "Tough Topic Tuesday" was to scrap about a conflict.  The wooden frames and woodtone letters worked perfectly for this layout about furniture.  And I'd like to think those tags are reminiscent of goods for sale at a Parisian market.

 

In case you can't make out the journaling, this will explain the conflict part:

When Dad got something in his head that he wanted to do, it was futile to attempt to change his mind.  One year for Mother’s Day (I’ll guess it was about 1989), Dad decided he wanted to buy Mother a curio cabinet for the living room.  At the time she was very interested in watching the Home Shopping Channel and ordering special finds for herself.  She started a porcelain doll collection, as well as Lenox bird figurines (those were not part of HSN).  Dad thought she needed a special place to display her fine collectibles, although Mother never expressed this need.  So, the day before Mother’s Day, Dad informed me that I was to go with him to choose a curio cabinet.  The only thing he told my Mother was that we were going “out”. We traveled up and down Route 22 stopping at every furniture store from Watchung to Clinton only to find curios that were too large or not the right woodtone or not the right style, plus we really did need one that would fit in a corner.  The salespeople would  direct us to a huge catalog of beautiful furniture that could be ordered, but Dad insisted that we were coming home with a cabinet that day…come hell or high water!  So on we traveled to the next store.  I was starting to feel the pressure from my Dad as he would say to me, “But what is wrong with this one?”  It’s not that there was anything wrong with it, it’s just that I wasn’t sure my mother even wanted a curio and now I (as a 16 year old) was picking out a substantial piece of furniture for my mother’s living room.  I also knew my Dad was not going home without a curio in the back of his van.  Finally, after exhausting all the possibilities, we returned to Martin’s Furniture and re-examined one that seemed like a possibility.  It was a corner cabinet.  It was roughly the right woodtone.  The style was perhaps a little more Victorian (?) with the rounded glass, but it was the best we could find.   My Dad said, “Let’s load it in the van and what do I owe you?”  After hours of searching, we arrived at home.  My Dad could hardly contain himself with excitement as we carefully carried the curio into the house.  And Mother’s reaction…“Why did you buy me this?”  “Well, to display all of your dolls and birds, honey!” he said in a very proud way.  Mother studied it over and politely thanked my Dad and while he wasn’t looking, gave ME the evil eye and gestured, “Why did you let him buy this?”

What?  Do you think I could stop him?  Ugh!  We quietly argued back and forth about the situation.  I was tired and aggravated and went to bed.

Well, Mother kept the curio and luckily it did grow on her.  It fit nicely in the corner of the living room.  It had a light that illuminated her treasures and she actually loved changing out her collections.  From her dolls, to her Lenox birds, to her Willowtree Angels or just a mix of her favorites, she enjoyed having a show case.  In the end, I’m glad she learned to love her curio.  I just did not enjoy the process of her obtaining it.

Thanks for stopping by!