Mary Gets a Proper Frame

The grand, turn of the century home received us warmly as if it had a presence. Mind, I think it felt like our home right from the first viewing. I was so excited! Moving day was hectic but fun. Everything went well. We found what we loving called treasure in the form of antiquities. Canning jars, old wooden crates, an old silver fork with worn down tines and a grape design on the handle. There were some old wooden pieces from the original porch as well. The best find was in the attic. We found a portrait of a woman wearing old Scottish garb, decorated with pins and hair accessories of the 19th century. Sadly, the photograph had been removed from its frame and it was leaning, picture side, against the wall. It was sandwiched between a dirty and cracked pane of glass and what must have been the backing of the old frame. I knew right away that the lady in the photograph had to be the original owner.

We took our find to an antique shop in Port Elgin with the hope of buying a replacement frame. Granny; the wise and educated woman who owned the shop, watched us closely as we carried our portrait around the tables stacked with china, past the silver laden shelves and on to the front of the room where an old cloak stand stood supporting the largest hat collection I had ever seen. There were only a few frames to choose from hanging on the wall. We decided on a fuchsia coloured frame with a fancy scrolling leaf design that appeared to have been glued in place over painted wood veneer. It had contoured square corners on the perimeter with an entwined pearl design around an oval opening. I explained to my daughters that I could fix the colour and paint it a heritage green and gold to suit the decoration of the tearoom. They, in turn, rolled their eyes at this comment and stated, Mom, you paint everything green and gold.

We took the frame to Granny. She looked over the portrait, gave us some hints as to how to care for and clean it. She also offered some insight regarding the age of the portrait according to the clothing worn by the proud woman. She guessed it was around the 1880s. Granny felt that this woman was set in her ways and was a determined soul. She also noted that the person in the photo had caught our attention in more ways than one. There was a spiritual feeling about the photo. Granny was indeed wise. Out of the blue, Granny asked if we suspected who the woman in the portrait was. If that wasn't enough, she then answered her own question with Yes, I believe she is.

We paid for the frame and headed home filled with curious thoughts in our heads. In particular - confirmation of my gut feeling that the portrait had to be of Mary, the original owner of the home.