Spring Mantles

We're lucky at Linderhof to have three mantles

In the living room, dining room and master bedroom

Linderhof is a cottage

It was unusual in the 20s for a "cottage" to have as many fireplaces

There was always central heat, after all

So a fireplace wasn't needed to warm the room.

But Mr. Sechler, who built Linderhof had money

And with his money he added fireplaces

to his cottage

We're glad he did

We change the mantles out some

The living room especially for we add seasonal elements to it

A pair of Federick Cooper candlesticks; an English match strike; an old mantle clock which we bought at an antique shop in Topeka, Kansas years ago when we made trips to the State's capital to testify before the legislature on issues regarding our business; a pair of bronzes bought as a Christmas gift for Husband Jim shortly after we moved to Linderhof; an Asian vase that this spring is filled with forsythia branches.

I don't change the mantle much other than adding seasonal touches.    I'll keep forsythia or pussywillow in the vase as long as I can.    In the summer, the vase is always empty!

The dining room

has an old French mantle clock as it's centerpiece.    A recent find.   It only strikes the hour once -- it doesn't count the hours!     The lamps, too, are a recent find.    I've always admired lamps with crystal drops and this pair seemed special.       The ginger jars are cloisonné, bought by Husband Jim on a trip to Hong Kong in the 60s.     I've always adored them and they look good no matter where we put them.

The Master Bedroom

My parents wedding present clock takes pride in place on the Master Bedroom mantle.   It's has Westminster chimes and was in their living room.    As a child, it was always comforting to wake in the night and hear the chime -- it made it seem to me, a small child, that all was right in the world.    I still wake and hear the chimes and know that all is right in the world.    It's comforting.    My ladies dance across the mantle.    A part of my collection of Royal Doulton figurines.    These ladies acquired one at a time -- mostly as gifts for Christmas or birthdays.     

It's always fun to decorate mantles and although we don't change them a lot, there is something about the flat surface of a mantle in a room that can be decorated like no other piece of furniture in a room.