The Oriental Desk.

One of the antique shops in Bryan has had an Oriental secretary-desk in one of the dealer booths for just about four years now.  We don't go into that shop every time we drive into Bryan, but I think I had seen that desk about three times in the last two years. 

The first time I saw the desk, I think I gasped at its height and its uniqueness... the curved wood top, little cubby-holes in the cabinet above the writing desk, all the original hand painting on the top, bottom, sides, drawers..... it was just a beautiful piece of Oriental workmanship. 

The second time, I think I said out loud: "Why hasn't anyone brought you home yet?" Then I opened one of the smaller top drawers (lots of dust), peeked into a few of the cubby-holes (so perfect for a porcelain collection), and ran my fingers across some of the paintings (very dusty).

The third time we went into that shop, I looked at that desk and said "I can't believe you're still here." Once again, I peeked into the cubby-holes (more dust) and ran my fingers across the paintings of Geisha girls and Oriental children.  "Look at this, just look at this," I said to my husband.  "How can something so beautiful still be sitting here?"

And where would I put such a big piece of furniture.... that's what I was thinking that last time in the shop.  I could hear my husband's mother saying "Buy what you love, honey, and you'll always find a place for it."  But I didn't buy it, didn't even ask for a better price, didn't even think about it after we left the shop.  We have a house filled with furniture, I didn't need another desk, no matter how old and unique and beautiful it happened to be.

My husband came home from work last week and gave me a little red gift bag. He told me to open it up.... which is unusual for him, to say the least, because he's a firm believer of never opening gifts until the very day of the holiday, birthday, whatever it happens to be.  He stood there holding that little red bag, insisting that I open it up.  Inside the bag was a cell phone.  "You bought me a new cell phone?"--- then I realized that it was his cell phone inside the bag.

"What do you want me to do with your cell phone?"  My husband took the cell phone out of my hand, pressed one of the buttons, and there on the little screen was that Oriental secretary-desk.... sitting in that same booth in the antique shop. I looked at my husband and he said "Merry Christmas.... I'll pick it up on Tuesday."

Speechless.  Totally speechless.... something that doesn't usually happen to me.  My husband had gone back to that shop on his way home from work one day, talked to the dealer, and got a fantastic price on the desk because it had been sitting in the shop for so long.  He did indeed pick up the desk this past Tuesday, and now that beautiful Oriental piece of hand painted furniture is sitting in the main hallway of the second floor...... looking gorgeous as you walk up the staircase, and I can see it right here from my little desk in my sitting room as I type. My collection of porcelain ladies (mostly vintage  Josef Originals) now sit in each one of those little cubby-holes.

I was going to put that Oriental desk in my room here, but it's massive, and it just needed a much bigger space...... our second floor hallway is a huge rectangle-shape..... there's other furniture in the hallway as well, and that one spot that you can see as you walk up the staircase seemed to be the perfect place for such a substantial piece of unique furniture.  I had a smaller curio cabinet in that spot, which I moved into my room here...... the bookcase that was in my room is now in the TV room downstairs. ("Buy what you love, honey..... you will always find a place for it.")

The Oriental desk has been polished with orange-oil furniture wax............. all of the dust is gone, the paintings are more beautiful than ever, and the desk looks like it was made for the spot it's sitting in. The walls of the hallway are white....... they will soon be painted a soft beige, which I had wanted to do anyway, but now that the Oriental desk is there, even my husband noticed that the walls needed to be something other than stark impersonal white.

I have walked up and down the main staircase over and over... just to look up at that desk.... to see the little porcelain ladies protected in their individual cubby-holes of the upper part of the cabinet...... one door of the upper cabinet is open, one door is slightly closed..... the porcelain ladies peek out at you as you walk up the stairs.  On the writing desk, I have placed a small vintage Oriental lamp which I found at a thrift store last month.  A Japanese vase of flowers sits on the floor at one side of the desk; a gold and burgundy chair sits on the other side.  As with all of our vintage furniture, this wonderful old Oriental desk looks as if it was always meant to be right where it is, in this 1907 house.

Truly a Christmas surprise.... even before Thanksgiving.  I'm guessing that my husband's mother is sitting on a cloud somewhere, smiling, smiling, smiling....