Really?

Really?

I love this house, but the children are now grown, and two have children. My children should have somewhere to call home and return when they need to regroup, recharge or restart. The idea of a blended family of generations was just a dream of mine. My mother held on to the family home for years that she and all twelve of her siblings grew up in until everyone had built a house of their own or until someone reminded her that there were too many bad memories inside those walls for them to make it their forever home. I don’t want to go that far. I may be enabling my children; some people have said so.

 I can’t afford to keep heating a five-bedroom house without any updates. My income is barely enough to handle the electricity during the mild months, and I have suffered with fans in the summer since my accident in 98. I couldn’t bring myself to ask all of the guys to move back home because they had their own lives. My youngest son came home to take some weight off his brother’s shoulders while he was getting his business up and running. I haven’t been able to go upstairs for over twenty-five years. We turned the dining room into my main floor bedroom twenty-five years ago. I have known I needed a three-bedroom house or apartment with all rooms on one floor for years. It’s just hard to change in a time of growth. I would say that I couldn’t uproot my children from the only home the two youngest have ever known. Their friends all live within walking distance. After the children grew up, I found new reasons not to relocate or sell; my renters. I have rented the two most enormous bedrooms to college students for years. The class of 2022 lost three football players that I knew from the neighborhood, and my family doesn’t think it’s safe for me to continue being a landlord.

Today is the first time I have had assistance to venture to the basement in years. After my mother passed in ’95, I didn’t want the old in my new home, but I couldn’t bring myself to part with furniture that looked great or reminded me of good times. I only kept a few pieces from around the old house. I have enshrined this blast from the past long enough since I need to sell this vast house and move to something more accessible and affordable for disabilities—time to downsize.

“You’re cheating yourself, ma’am; I can’t take this without telling you what you have. Your suite is gorgeous and grossly underpriced. You’re sitting on a fantastic amount of furniture; it’s an original 1950-bedroom suit; I don’t remember the creator’s name, but on TV’s Antique Roadshow, a dresser like this one alone sold at auction for over $5000. My Grandmother is probably flipping over in her grave, thanking me for keeping you from being scammed out of your treasure, as someone did her.”

My jaw fell open…it’s worth what? Yes, ma’am, if it’s the one in the picture and it is in good condition, you could get $400 from someone looking to rob you if you sell it as is. But I suggest you remove all the mismatched coloring and stain it again. After you renovate it, please call me again. I am a curator, and I will research the history.

 Do you know someone who can help me restore it?

“Try John at Holiday’s Finishing and Restorations. I met him at an estate sale about fifteen years ago. He was recommended by someone who collects unusual antique and period pieces. He is how I know what you have. He knows art history and is reasonable, and I think he will even know the historical facts behind your great pieces. Yup, try John; if anyone can advise you, he can.”

(ring, ring) Hello, you’ve reached Holiday’s Finishing and Restorations. This is John. I’m glad you called; I just hung up after talking to Tyler, and I can come to see it Monday if you’d like, but can I ask a few questions about it? Hang on, please. Let me grab my catalogs. First, how many pieces do you have? Has it been in use this whole time? Where’s the furniture located?

I have three pieces, two nightstands, and a huge round mirror attached behind a four-drawer vanity-type dresser. No one has used this furniture since the 80s; it’s been in my basement for almost thirty years.

I think there is a space in the middle for a stool because the drawers are only about 8’’x 15’’ x 6’’, and a glass inset is about 14’’x14’’x18’’ or do you have the kind that has a lowered center shelf-type vanity that maybe looks like a misplaced seat?

“You have an original Art Deco waterfall vanity with a huge mirror. Tyler sent me a photo. He’s right. Restoring it is your best decision, and I would be honored to assist. I love working on historical pieces. Things from that period were solidly constructed. Things today are glued together, and they can lose their integrity. Do you have an email I can send you pictures of what I think it initially looked like?”

No, but this phone can receive pictures.

Okay, sending it now…

Yes, yes… that is it! I broke the center vanity glass when I was ten playing dress-up. I have both types because my mom and Aunt Peggy often bought the same things as twins. Even though they were ten years apart, they were collectors. I have other kinds of period furniture that I have been reluctant to dispose of, like cedar chests, an early English wardrobe, a left-handed telephone desk, and by far my favorite, a black and white TV/stereo console; both still in working order. If you’ve got enough time on Monday, could you quote me how much it would cost to get refurbished? Thank you! I’ll see you on Monday.

See you then, Ms. Walker.