Siena’s Spectacular Cathedral

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This gallery contains 12 photos.

The stats are in.  I should never post late at night. I got the history of Siena’s Cathedral mixed up in my last post. The cathedral we see today was built between 1215 and 1263.  Years later, the Sienese planned … Continue reading

Florence~Rich in Art and Architecture

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This gallery contains 21 photos.

Florence is a beautiful city, busy, bustling and full of people, walking, riding bikes, Vespas, motorcycles and driving cars.  The Arno River runs through the city and under several bridges that were built in the 1200-1300”s.  Only the Ponte Vecchio … Continue reading

Weekly Photo Challenge: Urban~Chicago

“URBAN”

1. of, relating to, or located in a city.

2. characteristic of the city or city life.

 ~ from the Free Dictionary

Buildings in Chicago display a variety of architecture.

Urban foot and vehicle traffic is very congested during rush hour.  

(or whenever we are on the road) 😉

Thanks for coming to one of my favorite cities with me!

Judy
All text and images are copyright © 2002-2012 and are the exclusive property of Judy Johnson (unless otherwise indicated). All Rights Reserved. All Images are protected under United States and International copyright laws. None of the images on this site are in the Public Domain.

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Simple

                                                               Simple~”Shaker Box”

Mother Ann Lee founded the Shaker* movement in England. The Shakers desired freedom and religious tolerance.  Mother Ann and eight followers came to Albany, NY in 1774 and formed a settlement there.  Shaker life was very simple, driven by religious convictions, and hard work.

Their architecture followed their lifestyle.  It was almost stark in its simplicity, but served these economically conscious people well.  Mother Lee would remind them not to waste a thing.  The interior of their homes were simple as well.  “Shaker Peg” hooks lined the walls and served as a place to hang coats, hats, as well as chairs, when not in use.  Shaker furniture was plain with clean lines.  The furniture was often made from pine which was durable, yet lightweight.

Mother Lee , a firm believer in hard work, reminded them to “Put your hands to work and your hearts to God.”

The Shaker box, as I have pictured above, was meticulously built individually so that each lid fit perfectly upon each base.
Craftsmen still make Shaker boxes the same way today, using the tools that the Shakers would have used.  The boxes were used to hold everything in a Shaker household from buttons, to dry goods, from shop tools to kitchen items.  In addition, they were made in sizes for nesting.  When the boxes were empty, they could all be nested together into the largest one.  This would fit with the Shaker’s philosophy of keeping things neat, simple and not wasting space.

The Shakers were responsible for the invention of many items including the clothespin, circular saw, flat broom, Babbit metal, a wheel-driven washing machine, and many more.

*The original and proper name of the Shakers is the United Society of Believers In Christ’s Second Appearing.
**Credits to: http://www.wikipedia.com and http://www.shakerboxesnb.com  for information.

***Thank you to my friend Tom for making my Shaker boxes. I have a nest of 6; this is the largest.  Each box in my set has a Bird’s Eye Maple top.  I wish you could see it clearly.  They are truly a work of art….

Good evening friends!
Judy
All text and images are copyright © 2005-2012 and are the exclusive property of Judy Johnson (unless otherwise indicated). All Rights Reserved. All Images are protected under United States and International copyright laws. None of the images on this site are in the Public Domain.

Christmas at the Durham~

Hello dear blog readers!
This evening we are going to the Durham Museum in Omaha, Nebraska.

The Durham Museum was originally the city’s train station, called: Union Station.  Union Station was built between 1929-1931, when it began serving railroad passengers.  It continued as a train station until the early 1970’s, when it was closed.  At that time it became the Western Heritage Museum, with a small regional display of artifacts.  A large renovation took place in 1995, at which time the present Durham Museum opened its doors with a larger display of different modes of transportation, local historical displays, a gift shop and more.

The Durham is designed in the Art Deco fashion.  Note the ceiling, wall and lighting designs in the photo below; all popular during the Art Deco period.

Christmas at the Durham Museum, Omaha, NE.

I will post more photos of the Durham Museum in the upcoming weeks.
Thanks for stopping by!
Judy