Fridays at Home: The Sofa

12th October 2012

This one… (Me…in my thin days)

And this one… (My MawMaw…lovely as always)

…is about to be mine. So a couple of months ago, my grandmother called me and asked if I would like her sofa as they began to consider selling her house (she had been making the rounds between my mom and aunts’ houses). The appropriate response? Most definitely. She said she couldn’t imagine anyone else having it, and I was honored.

So tomorrow? I’m heading over to my grandmother’s house to go through things and help get the house ready for an estate sale. And…to measure this sofa. I promise as soon as it’s in my possession, I’ll give you the tour, complete with photos. I can’t imagine anything more special.

  • heidenkind

    (((hugs))) Your grandma looks like a very stylish woman!

    • She definitely was. 🙂

  • Steph (@ 20 Years Hence)

    What a great memento from your grandmother! It’s a beautiful piece and I know you will find a way to do it justice! Can’t wait to see how you incorporate it into your own home!

    • Thanks, Steph! I’m so excited to get it home.

  • I love that couch. Getting ready for the estate sale (and the sale itself) will be hard, but it will also bring you a lot of good memories. It’s always bittersweet.

    I can’t wait to see the photos of the couch in your house. I think it will fit right in.

    • Well, my mom and aunts have done a ton of work (they don’t work and have time during the day), so I’m hoping with the day-to-day stuff gone, it won’t be so bad. It’s been neat to see some really old family pics.

      I can’t wait to get the sofa home!!

  • Julie Merilatt

    Aw, what a nice legacy sofa! I have my grandma’s dining set including the hutch where I set up her nativity every Christmas. So now I continue the tradition years later….

    • Julie – that’s so special. LOVE that.

  • What a wonderful memento!

    • I certainly think so. 🙂

  • I covet that sofa so hardcore — it is amazing — and so wonderful your grandmother gifted it to you. Before my wife’s grandfather passed, he asked us to take some pieces of furniture that held meaning to both of them, and they’re among our most treasured items. They make a house a home, as cheesy as it is, connecting us with our loved ones, linking memories, etc.

    • Isn’t it just beautiful? And not cheesy at all. I’ve always loved antique furniture, and this will be all the more meaningful.

  • Love this.

  • What a beautiful sofa! Unfortunately, at the end of my grandma’s life she had severe demetia so she let her cats completely destroy her beautiful antique sofa and it was pretty much junk by the time she passed. 🙁 That will be a wonderful item full of memories for you to have.

    • Oh no! So sickening to see something like that happen.

  • Charlie

    So nice, really elegant. I’ve a couple of ornaments from my grandmother’s house though nothing like this, full of memories.

    • Aren’t they so special? When I was there Friday, I ran across this tiny child’s mug with an alligator whose tail turned into the handle on the mug. I had totally forgotten it, but the memories flooded back.

  • That sofa is lovely. What color is it? I imagine it in aqua. We were supposed to get some things from the grandparents when they passed. That was 5 years ago and my husband’s Dad won’t let us have the pieces since he is renting out their old house. We weren’t grubbing for stuff but it was the rest of an antique bedroom set that my daughter already has the bed to. So now…she is 5 years older and still using a mismatched set. I am thinking she will never get it. She won’t want it as a teen.

    • It’s actually a chartreuse, a really pretty pale green. Nearly the same color as the sofa in my bedroom, so I’m going to exchange it for that one.

      And ugh. I hate that for you and for your daughter. Unfortunately, it seems that that type of pettiness comes up a lot after someone dies.

  • claire (kiss a cloud)

    I’ve been an admirer of that sofa ever since, from your picture here on the blog. I thought it was yours.. now it really is going to be. Happy for you!

    • Oh, thank you Claire! I never imagined it would be mine, but I’m very excited to have it.