Tasha Tudor Day

A view of the top of my refrigerator...

Happy Birthday, Tasha!  She is among the women who have inspired me greatly who are not professed women of Faith.  As I pondered what to share that would be Tasha-esque, I thought of my love for all things vintage and handmade... worn by use... Velveteen Bunny real. 

Have you ever walked through Colonial Williamsburg and felt you could leave behind the 21st Century and move into one of the homes then and there?  I have.  Throw in electricity and indoor plumbing and one can remove the For Sale sign out front... I will take it.

Now, I understand that daily life was demanding in the old days but what a sense of tranquility these homes bring to me in their simplicity, where one can look around and enjoy true art created by craftsmen (and women).  

Few of us (if any) would go to the extremes Tasha did to live in the old ways.  But what can we take away to merge into our own life, into our surroundings?  What would mesh with our needs and preferences towards home and all things domestic?

I realized long ago that my home should be a refuge in the storms of circumstance.  I saw it as a blank canvas on which to paint the background of my days... and that of my family.  Only in the four walls of my house and on our property can I truly create the atmosphere desired... not that of another century such as Tasha but perhaps a time when the home arts were desired and craftsmen appreciated.

Not only are old things on display (such as the vintage items on the top of my refrigerator shown above) but the vintage and antique items are actually used and not set aside for a future generation to pull out of a drawer or off a shelf to be dusted.

As I tie an old apron around my waist, pull out the modern but vintage looking stoneware bowl, and assemble ingredients for the soup my mother made and her mother before her... life returns to Due North and all is well.

To wrap it all up, I think Tasha's best inspiration for my life was just the simple fact that one can change their life simply by deciding to live in their desired surroundings.  Not what others like or what glossy magazine pages demand... no, what brings peace to my soul.  That is a good legacy for anyone to pass on.  :)

For more information on what others are doing on Tasha Tudor Day, hop on over to Clarice's lovely Storybook Woods blog... here.