Well, it has been a little bit since we've updated this main blog as you may be able to see. But Icouldn't bear to do two Christmas posts right next to each other so I am, in keeping with the season, doing a fall post instead.

November in Texas is wonderful! The weather isn't hot but it isn't too cold either. It could be considered pretty perfect weather really. The shop, while rarely changing on the outside, smells like fall on the inside. I have been excited over the last year to watch our shop transform. Every time I come in there are new and different displays, fascinating items, and one of a kind pieces.

Here are some things we are quite excited about!

Check out that piece of machinery! This is an old boar trap and it still is functional! Eee-Gads! I wouldn't want to step on that thing!

I myself am a huge fan of this old church bell. The metal is weathered and and piece just has lots of character!

Now aren't these carvings just gorgeous?! They are from a church c.1700. You really don't get craftmanship like this anymore...

This piece is also a rarity. It is quite a large confit pot, but green on one of these pots is quite rare. The mix of mustard yellow, grey, and moss green is just a fantastic combination, not to mention the rustic feel of the whole piece. Plus, there are so many things you can do with a good pot as far as decorating is concerned.

When I was a child, my father (one of the owners of Black Swan), would drag me and my 3 siblings around searching for flow blue pieces at flea markets, antique shops, etc. After many months of searching we finally found a piece that he thought was worth buying. That piece couldn't touch this one with a 100ft pole. This piece is from late 17C-Early 18thC and a well known blue willow pattern, but how many blue willow patterns have you seen that have that much flow? What a beautiful plate! On a side note - you may notice that unlike the pattern of today, this plate is missing the birds. In fact, those were later additions to the picture.

I shall stop there becasue there are just so many exciting things to talk about, but I hope you have gotten a taste for the wonderful gems in our store.

Please come visit us soon!