My Summer Mantel Display: The Jersey Shore, Vintage Style!

Well hello there! I am happy to be back on my blog again after a brief hiatus called SUMMER!

We were so busy with the store, vacations, summer camps, etc. Always a good thing! We even found time to go treasure hunting! (An even better thing, right, my vintage lovin' pals?)



With all of that behind me now I wanted to do a post on my summer mantel before I change it Mid-September.

 

This is my ode to the Jersey Shore. Not the Jersey shore you saw in a raunchy reality TV show, but the REAL Jersey shore I've known and loved. Born and raised in NJ plus doing a four and a half year stint working at a local TV station for the Atlantic City/Wildwood area, I grew to love my time spent there.

So, whenever I find vintage NJ beach themed items, I pick them up. I have sold some of my Ocean City, NJ things but to tell you the truth, those are hard to come by.

I love mixing old aqua glass bottles with shells, books, etc.
 

This year I decided to also add in my Philadelphia Magazine pictures. I do think these are original covers that were mounted on foam core.

I love them and barely take them out of my office for fear of damaging one as they are dated 1910.

If I ever get a beach house, these will be framed and used for wall décor.

I also thought this little "beach chair" was too cute and had to be added to my vignette. The plate and vase souvenirs made out of china are fun to collect and are perfect for my mantel.

I love the deep navy blue of this pitcher.
I also get a kick out of the caption:
"Bathing in front of the big hotels."

Is that what we are doing? Bathing?
But then, I remember... we are wearing
bathing suits.



This is a close up of a small portion of a vintage painting... it sits below the mantel on top of the fireplace insert.

Hope you enjoyed my "little tour" of the mantel... stop by and say hi if you have a chance, I've missed chatting with all of you!

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While all of the souvenirs in this post are from Atlantic City, here are a couple of other posts I've written about Ocean City, NJ ... just click here and here. 

And while you're at it, you might enjoy this poem by Ogden Nash, titled Seaside Serenade. I wrote a post about it.... Just click here.

Let's Talk Vintage #88: Seaside Serenade with Ogden Nash

Welcome to Let's Talk Vintage!

This is where you can share your vintage inspired projects, latest finds, collections, treasures, and more.

My recent trip to the Jersey Shore made me remember I had saved a poem from a book by Ogden Nash last winter, as it was selling on Etsy.

Thought it was too cute not to share and knew I would be doing posts about the beach:

Seaside Serenade

 

It begins when you smell a funny smell,

And it isn't vanilla or caramel,

And it isn't forget-me-nots or lilies,

Or new-mown hay, or daffy-down-dillies,

And it's not what the barber rubs on Father,

And it's awful, and yet you like it rather.

No, it's not what the barber rubs on Daddy,

It's more like an elderly finnan haddie,

Or, shall we say, an electric fan

Blowing over a sardine can.

It smells of seaweed, it smells of clams,

It's as fishy as first-night telegrams,

It's as fishy as millions of fishy fishes,

In spite of which you find it delishes,

You could do with a second helping, please,

And that my dears, is the ocean breeze.

And pretty soon you observe a pack

Of people reclining upon their back.

(Page 16 from Selected Verse of Ogden Nash)


The book isn't mine anymore, but I can still enjoy this humorous little snippet!

And what's a memory about being Oceanside without a few vintage trinkets:

 

A fancy Atlantic City fan on a hot summer's day...

 

These souvenir plates are fun... especially when

arranged in a grouping on the wall.

 

 

Wondering what it was like the day this

Antique Atlantic City souvenir was purchased.

 

I think this James Salt Water Taffy box is my favorite!

Now let's see who is featured this week:

Rita from Panopoly shared her latest antique booth update... and this wonderful treasure trove of Jadeite!

and Penny of Penny's Vintage Home showed us her patriotic décor for her family gathering. I am a sucker for all things red, white, and blue this time of the year...

and check this out... Heidi, of My Sweet Cottage took an old beat up cookie tray and transformed it into this cool tropical serving piece. Awesome!

 

If you were featured, feel free to

take this LTV blog feature graphic

 and place it on your blog!