Archive for the ‘The World of American Harvest’ Category

SPRINGTIME 2011 AT AMERICAN HARVEST

We have been really busy finding great vintage collectibles and antiques.  It is amazing how great vintage and new items blend together when decorating your home.  We have been inspiring home decorators for over 14 years.  Daily, we are told by those visiting our shop, American Harvest, how wonderful our displays are.  We appreciate those nice compliments.  We continue to set the bar even higher, when it comes to decorating with new and old.  With Mother’s Day right around the corner, we hope that the following images bring a smile to your face, a lift to your day and inspiration to your home.  What does Mom want for Mother’s Day?  Well, we guarantee that flowers are nice, candy is sweet, but what Mom really wants….a gift from American Harvest that inspires her home decorating!

Santos stand proud in front of a large “Ave Maria” mirror.  We use lots of vintage books for risers.  These great old books complement the vintage inspired Santo and bust.  By placing objects in a glass cloche, you can make a statement that these collectibles are truly special.

This late 19th century French Wedding Cushion has a new crown that is set on top.  It is rare to find the actual bride’s headpiece that would have been made of wax flowers.  The crown looks perfect in this arrangement.  We like to use mirrors in our displays to give depth to the collection and to reflect light.

Two antique books (“City Ballads” and “Country Ballads”) set the tone for this display of city and country vintage items.  The large barn vent is newly made with vintage woods.  The city is represented with the topiary on the left and the wire cloche on the right.

Old cameras are one of my passions now.  I have brought in many vintage cameras and they have flown out the door.  I find one or two at a time at good prices and have been able to sell them at very low prices.  The sweet tags are handmade with high quality papers and ribbons.  The images are of Coco Channel and Audrey Hepburn….two women whom photographers loved to capture with their cameras.

As all of you know, Debbee Thibault is one of our finest artists in our American Harvest Family of Artists.  We carry an important collection of her outstanding creations.  This photo shows some of the pieces in her latest collection for Spring and Summer.

I have always loved to cook for my family.  My personal collection of antique spice tins has gotten so large that I decided to part with  some of them.  My favorite is the Martha Washington spice tin.

These two beautiful hand blown glass lamp shades are from the Phoenix Art Studio.  These were made in the 30′s.  We have a very good collection of them for sale.  These beautiful creations would look great in your home to replace those tired looking standard fixtures in your bathroom.  We have also used these lamp shades as backdrops for other collectibles.

These lovely bird jewelery pieces are a small sample of the fabulous jewelery we have for sale at American Harvest.  The birds definitely say “Welcome Spring”.

I did not grow up Catholic, but was always fascinated with religious icons.  Most of my friends were Catholic, as I grew up just two blocks away from the historic Mission San Jose in Fremont, CA.  These religious medals date from the 1920′s to the 1960′s.

I also have a sweet collection of Bunnykins plates, bowls and cups.  All of my pieces are from the 1930′s.  You can buy new dishes still, but look for the vintage ones.  I am selling my duplicates now.  All are in mint condition, as I am very select with this collection.  Tip of the day….Pass up dishes with chips and hairline cracks.

At American Harvest, we love all things French.  The above pillow is one of the many French-inspired decorating items we have in stock.

We sell many books about France, Paris flea markets and Provence markets.  This is a new book for us and we love it.  The book is about authors from all over the world, who were inspired by France.  Pictured on the cover is F. Scott Fitzgerald and family.  He wrote Rodger’s favorite American novel, The Great Gatsby.  Rodger’s all-time favorite novel is Les Miserables by Victor Hugo.  Of course, it is set in France.

The Eiffel Tower art tag is made by one of our great AH artist.  She uses the highest quality of paper, glitter and ribbons.  We have a wonderful selection of her French inspired images in various sizes.

Here is a fantastic display of vintage-inspired ribbons.  These are all hand dyed and sell for very reasonable prices.  Call us for colors and minimum yardage.  Perfect for tying special packages and for draping with your collectibles.  Use your imagination…the possibilities are limitless.

I love old books, Bibles and prayer books.  I know that many people are ripping off old book covers, tea staining the pages and tying these “worn” books with ribbons.  I like that look too, but cannot bear the idea of destroying old things.  I buy books for the cover, the stories, the pictures and the COLOR.  COLOR??? yes, use them as risers with similar color tones found on different objects.  This really makes for outstanding vignettes of your collectibles, including Debbee Thibault collectibles.

Speaking of Debbee Thibault…..Don’t you love this outstanding Patriotic creation from her new collection?

Well, Happy Spring to all and please have a wonderful Mother’s Day with your families.

MORE CHRISTMAS PICTURES FROM AMERICAN HARVEST

Many of you asked for more pictures of the shop at Christmas time…so here they are!!!

Sharon with Nicol Sayre

All of “les jeunes filles” wore hats or musical antlers on Open House day.  Pictured are

Monique, Sharon, Jan, Laura and Marian.   Ooh La La!!

A Nicol Sayre original Snow Lady Doll

Suan Arnot created this Christmas doll using all vintage materials.

This a great bird cage and stand.  notice the Wendy Addison glittered birds flying by.

Sharon made this incredible wreath with mostly vintage Christmas items and a couple of glittered new items.

Pictured above is a Dee Foust original.  The delightful snowman is carrying a crescent moon.

You cannot have a Christmas in Paris theme without antique Mother of Pearl Opera Glasses and vintage jewelry boxes.

A nice selection of glittered banners greeted our customers as they entered the shop.

Nicol Sayre’s designs have been recreated for us by ESC.  The Angel For All Seasons has six different little trinkets that can hang from her waist.  They come inside the Celebrate box.

A trio of Pastel Snowmen graced our center table.  These whimsical characters brought smiles to the many “children” who attended our Christmas Open House.

It appears that Pere Noel (Santa Claus) brought many vintage toys for the little girls and boys.  There were tonka trucks, snow shoes, a wicker rocking chair, 1930′s tricycle, vintage children’s books, baseball items including a wonderful vintage catchers chest protector, catcher’s masks and gloves ( in honor of the SF Giants, no doubt), ice skates and more.

Pere Noel also brought for Mama these excellent clay French inspired pictures from the 1940′s.

Our Paris theme was carried throughout the store including our office area.  The office became our sidewalk cafe.

Cody Foster designed these magical pastel houses and churches.  You can just imagine them in the French Alps.

I will continue to post pictures of the store displays.  So please check back often.  But for now…Merci and au revoir.

CHRISTMAS IN PARIS, OPEN HOUSE AT AMERICAN HARVEST

Quickly, I will post some pictures of our Open House.  I have just a few minutes before Sharon calls out to me, “We need to leave for the shop!”

Well, that’s it for now, we are off to the shop to open for our 14th Annual Christmas Open House today!   Joyeux Noel….

CHRISTMAS IN PARIS

American Harvest is presenting “Christmas in Paris” for our 14th Annual Christmas Open House on Saturday and Sunday, November 6 and 7, 2010.  We have been busy making and gathering fabulous French related Christmas items for you.  There will be wonderful Santas and Pere Noel, snowmen, angels, vintage Christmas decorations and antiques.  Our award winning window displays are always a special treat for our customers.  This year the window will be decorated as a Paris apartment at Christmas time.  Other featured areas of the shop will include a sparkling Winter Wonderland, a traditional Christmas section complete with little elves in a woodland setting and a Snowman’s Folly.   Our family of American Artists have been creating exciting Christmas items just for you.

Open House hours will be:

Saturday, Nov. 6   10am-5pm

Sunday, Nov. 7th  12-4pm

We will be closed from October 31-November 5th to transform the store to Christmas!

Future events:

Magical Holiday Evening with Debbee Thibault on Friday, November 19th 6-9pm and

Saturday, November 20th, 10am-5pm.

Debbee will be bringing many one-of-a-kind Christmas creations.

We hope to see you this Holiday Season at American Harvest!

DECORATING WITH SANTOS AND RELIGIOUS ITEMS

Religious statues, mosaics, reliefs and paintings were once used to tell Biblical stories to the churchgoers who were illiterate back in the Dark Ages.  Today, these items have become so collectible that it is very expensive to have a Santos that is over 100 years old.  In addition, most churches are unwilling to sell these items to collectors.  The following are pictures of some magnificent antique Santos as well as images of newly reproduced Santos.

Above: a beautiful antique Santos with a metal crown and vintage hair.  Very rare!

Here is an antique Santos wearing an antique crown.  The hands are very elegant and graceful.

More antique Santos with orignal corwns and metal neck wear.

Incredible eye detailing on this antique Santos.

It is so rare to find a glorious grouping of antique Santos.

The Santos above is a reproduction, but still a really nice creation.

A Santos bust with wonderful eye detailing….yes it is new.

Great facial expression on this reproduction.

A new crown on the Santos

This new Santos is wearing an antique parade medallion.

An antique gold rosary hangs from this Santos bust.

SLEEPY HOLLOW AT AMERICAN HARVEST

The Headless Horseman makes his appearance on Saturday August 21st, as American Harvest presents Sleepy Hollow, Halloween event.  Our postcard was designed by Ingrid Pomeroy.

We have been working around the clock to make this event special for all attendees.  April made her magic again this year with major prop building including this large Sleepy Hollow sign patterned after the actual sign at Sleepy Hollow, NY.  Take a guess on how many pairs of recycled work gloves it took to make her haunted tree.

Sharon has created many of the items for this event, including her famous glittered skulls.  Jan pulled out all the stops in creating her vintage inspired Halloween collages.  Susan brought us a wonderful array of her Halloween creations.  Ingrid also made beautiful “floating” clock face necklaces.  And what a nice surprise today, when Laura brought in homemade Halloween cupcakes!  We all needed that blast of sugar!

Glass owls adorn this Halloween feather tree with mushrooms.

Debbee Thibault has created 25 one-of-a-kind Halloween pieces for our store.  These are the most incredible items, my pictures do not do them justice!

What a royal Halloween treat is this beautiful queen!

This sweet little lady is decked out for the Sleepy Hallow event at American Harvest.

Debbee’s whimsical creations capture the heart.

Sharon, Monique and Debbee are putting the finishing touches on a Halloween display.

Halloween items by Debbee.

More Debbee one-of-a-kind creations.

Nicol Sayre just surprised us with two Sleepy Hollow inspired dolls for our event tomorrow.  These two original dolls are beautifully costumed and meticulously hand painted by Nicol.  Also, Nicol has brought us five of her designs that are being produced by ESC.  These five designs are not in stock yet, but should be here in time for her signing at American Harvest on September 11th.  You can pre-order these creations tomorrow at American Harvest and have Nicol sign them when they arrive.  You can then pick them up at the Sept. 11th signing…we do expect to sell out of these wonderful creations, so be sure to see them at the Sleepy Hollow event.

We hope to see you on August 21st at 10am for the Halloween event of the year….Sleepy Hollow at American Harvest.

SUMMER FUN AT THE BEACH AND AMERICAN HARVEST

With summer right around the corner, American Harvest is ready for the beach scene!  The store has taken on a lighter look and we are ready for some fun!  You will find great shells, vintage beach chairs, bouys, life rings, fishing nets and fabulous signs.  It doesn’t matter if you have a beach home or not, it is always fun to add a little summer sizzle to your decorating.  Come on in and check out the latest, unique goodies at American Harvest.

A vintage beach chair and beautiful mermaid tags

Bird Bath filled with a variety of shells

Susan’s beach doll

American Harvest’s office decked out for summer!

Customized wood sign, you can have your favorite beach name put on any of our signs.

This inviting window exclaims, “Come in, we are ready for summer fun!”

A soft, white look in our store.

This sign can also be customized for you!

A cozy pillow for your beach chair.

Fishing floats, finger star fish and barnacles…easy items to use in your summer decorating!

FUN TIMES AT AMERICAN HARVEST WITH DEBBEE THIBAULT

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Debbee and Laura are putting finishing touches on the Debbee Display.

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Monique did some last minute dusting.

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Sharon arranged cookies and candy for our guests.

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April moves so fast that it appears that the rest of the world is spinning out of control.

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Bonnie and Roger (first in line again) found great Debbee pieces to add to their collection.

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Karin loves this American Harvest Santa!

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Adora has a great collection of Debbee's Snowmen.

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Bob showing us the "Debbee's" he liked.

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Jann and Joe drove a long way to be at AH with Debbee.

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  Don and Kathy enjoyed their time with Debbee too!

SPECIAL CREATIONS BY DEBBEE THIBAULT

Debbee Thibault has created special pieces for our Magical Holiday Evening.  The event takes place Friday, November 20 from 6-9pm.  These items are one-of-a-kind creations by Debbee, specifically for American Harvest customers.  Can't attend?  Then call us at 925-485-1577 between 6-9 pm on Friday and we can help you.  Remember these pieces are not available until 6pm.

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Santa with package, bear and doll   $205.00

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Santa with Yoyo doll, doll, bag with elephant and house   $205.00

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Ellee the Elephant dressed in white with red poka dots, tea kettle and ornament ball  $160.00

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Small Green Santa with 4 ball ornaments  $132.00

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Ornament Lady painted in silver over blue   $120.00

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Santa on Mushroom with sack and 3 flying Santa Fairies   $220.00

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Candlelight Santa with Elephant  $160.00

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Snowman on log with snowball in the air  $112.00

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Rabbit Snowman with Snowman ball and Snowman on a stick  $120.00

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Santa Rides a Lamb  $91.00

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Heart and Soul with 3 flying Santa Fairies   $345.00

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Parade with boy in blue and stick horse, doll, elephant and bear   $299.00

There are several other one-of-a-kind creations that are not pictured.  We hope that you love these Debbee Thibault creations as much as we do!  Hope to see you at the Magical Holiday Evening or the next day as the DT signing continues(Saturday, Nov. 21).

DEBBEE THIBAULT SIGNING CHRISTMAS 2009

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You are invited to

A MAGICAL HOLIDAY EVENING WITH DEBBEE THIBAULT

at

American Harvest

438 Main Street

Pleasanton, CA 94566

on Friday, November 20th from 6-9pm

Debbee will be featuring many one-of-a-kind creations made especially for American Harvest customers!

These designs will be very limited and no two exactly alike.  The fun will continue the next day, Saturday, Nov 21st as Debbee will be back at the store to sign her work and tell wonderful stories of inspiration.

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If you haven't seen Debbee's new 2009 Christmas Collection this will be a great opportunity to view them in person.  Also, don't forget that American Harvest has a Debbee Thibault Loyalty Club for in store and online customers.  If you are unaware of the club, please call 925-485-1577 or email this link for details!

info@americanharvestinc.com