Mary's gift

My mom stopped by this week for a short visit this week, and her timing couldn't have been better. For Christmas this year she had my much admired friend Mary paint a table and wall mirror for me. And Mary dropped the pieces off this week. I am so excited to share them with you.

First, the wall mirror, which I had requested that Mary paint with a black & white check border. Quite sharp looking, wouldn't you agree? (sorry about the blurriness of my photo... I was hurrying to get the daylight and my rushing around is reflected in the blurry edges of the picture.)

A close up shot so you can see Mary's attention to detail. I wish I would have taken a 'before' picture. The wood on the mirror was dark and shiny. It was not bad...but this is so much better. I don't know how Mary keeps such a steady hand to paint all of those little squares. I had an opportunity to watch her once, and it really is amazing. She just steadies herself, and then - paint paint paint - out come the little checks from the end of her paint brush. What a gift she has for creating beautiful art!

Next, the round table - the 'fish table'. Previously this was a dark wood piece as well. I have it stationed in a nook at the top of my stairs and since the sun was starting to set, I picked it up and brought it into my bedroom for you to see in the sunlight. Can you see all the detail? Please click to enlarge - it's worth it!

The table's base...more defined now with the gold running vertically down the pedestal. The blue and yellow check was inspired by one of my favorite pieces...this is how they look on the inside of my butter dish. And they look so friendly and right at home on this beautiful table.

A close up of the blue & yellow going around the edge. Can you tell in the photo...the wood is uneven between the top and bottom row. Don't you think what Mary did looks fantastic!

I actually stole this last shot from Mary's own blog. She did a better job of photographing the table in its entirety. I think it looks very pretty in her home as well.

Thank you for sharing in my joy by looking at these pictures. You know me and you know my obsession. So you can imagine that I am in seventh heaven right now!

Have a great weekend!