This Piece Has History

I am happy to return with another post from my series, This Piece Has History. If you read last week’s post, then you know it’s been about a year since this series was a regular on the blog. I wanted to bring it back to remember the importance of collecting and having things in a home with memories and meaning. Today, I am showing our secretary desk.

I love this piece of furniture, because it definitely has a fun past to tell! When my husband and I lived in Germany, I started going to flea markets and antique fairs to begin to fill our empty nest. One weekend, we went on a trip to the Netherlands and Belgium for their famous antique markets. I stumbled upon our secretary desk while at the market in Tongeren, Belgium. I loved it right away, as I had been recently browsing through magazines with similar desks. We drove to the markets in an SUV, so this filled the entire back of our car on the way home! I knew it would be a practical purchase for us, because we didn’t have a ton of space in our apartment. We were living in a 700 square foot apartment, so smart shopping was key! Not only was it beautiful, it became our desk for our laptop. Now that we are no longer cramped for space, the desk is now a place to store books and meaningful accessories. The coral was a gift from my mom, and the book it sits on was a gift from a dear friend. You may have heard me say before, that I am constantly moving things around in this house. Accessories don’t sit in one place for long. So now that the coral is here, I may need to shop for a new accessory for my living room dresser! The shelves are filled with pictures, including one of my husband when he was little.  This desk also holds some of my blue and white china collection that I started while living overseas. This may not be a furniture piece that we use every day, but it has meaning and special memories attached!