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Do you remember
the old catalogs from
Sears and Roebuck,
J.C. Penney,
or even the
Montgomery Wards
stores?
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| Sears and Roebuck 1909 |
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| Montgomery Wards 1949 |
Well, I kind of do
(in the 60's and 70's)
and as I recall,
these oldies
did not do a very good job
of creating room scenes
to display their products for sale
in an attractively staged home setting.
Like you see here:
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| Source Perrier catalog |
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| Williams Sonoma Home - 2008 Catalog |
And maybe I was too young,
or not "in the market" for home goods
until later years to notice them evolve,
but I do know that current catalogs
are phenomenal at putting together
rooms that you can
find yourself wanting
every little thing!
Do you know of a catalog
that affects you in that way?
There used to be a catalog called
Source Perrier
that first knocked my socks off.
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| This was one of SP's room scenes. Do you see what I mean? There's even a dog! |
:(
It is no longer in business,
but another company took over
and you can find them here
in a much more
scaled down version.
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| This was one of Source Perrier's table settings. |
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| One of many gorgeous accessories from Source Perrier Catalog |
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| Another room image from Source Perrier. I could sit there and read a book for hours, couldn't you? |
Then came along
Williams Sonoma Home catalog
that had me drooling over
every
room.
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| WSH - 2008 I know, put in the plaid and of course I go mad. :D |
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| Williams Sonoma Home / 2008 |
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| More of Williams Sonoma Home |
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| Williams Sonoma Home |
But then they quit
sending out their lovely
"Wish Books"!
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| Art print from Williams Sonoma Home online, Link here. |
Good news!
I understand that they are
bringing this catalog back
effective immediately.
Looking forward to that.
Here are some new and current images
that will be available in their catalog:
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| Classic summer house beach accessories. WSH 2013 |
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| Framed blue agate slices |
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| WSH horn collections |
So tell me,
what is your
most favorite catalog ---
new or old?
22 comments:
I am so happy they are bringing that catalog back! Whooopppeeee! I like PB, too-especially the one for kids' rooms. When I was a kid I LOVED the Sears Christmas Wish Book.
Oh those lovely and wonderful catalogs...you brought so many memories, specially of the wall panneled living room, as we had one like that when I was young at my parent's. Thanks for sharing, I'd love to see all the old catalogs back, with that warm and homy touch to their pages.
FABBY
Wow its amazing...every single picture is droolworthy. To me nothing beats flipping through a magazine, as wonderful as websites are..they just cannot compare to touching the pages!
Momma worked for Sears & Roebuck for 27 years, retiring as a buyer and Dept. mgr. for Ladies ready to wear, Sportswear, Millinery, Ladies Foundations, and Juniors and Girls wear. The best part of Christmas was getting the Sears Christmas Catalog in early Fall and wearing those pages out making a wish list for Christmas. I will never forget the exhiliration of recieving that catalog in the mail. What a thrill. And after the holiday? Well, those catalogs stayed tucked away under the coffee table until the new one came the following Fall. They were much loved and a constant in my childhood. As a grew up through the years, Momma branched out as a buyer for several other companies, and often found herself in market in Dallas, Atlanta, and New York. The most wonderful catalog as a teen for me was the Neiman Marcus Christmas Catalog. Talk about a real Wish List! Wow!
What wonderful memories you must have!
Your mother must have been one very creative and fashionable woman, ahead of her time. Holding a catalog knowing your mother was part of the selection process must have made it even better!
The Neiman Marcus book is still quite a thrill with some of their over-the-top offerings! Thanks so much for weighing in and sharing this very personal recollection with all of us!
I agree with you, Tina. I still have many subscriptions that I cannot part with.
On the flipside -- Pinterest helps to fill in the blanks for those images in other magazines that I do not subscribe to -- images I might not have otherwise seen. I find it highly addictive for that reason!
Your blog ALWAYS features photos that I am constantly inspired by!
Thanks for weighing in!
:)
Hi Fabby!
Do you get a lot of catalogs in your mailbox in Ecuador?
Is that a normal thing there as well?
You will have to let us know. Sometimes my mailbox has 8-10 catalogs in it and that happens 3 or 4 times a week! Kind of crazy.
Thanks for commenting!
xox
A
I forgot to mention PB and Restoration Hardware!
I had written about them in an earlier draft and then my computer crashed this afternoon while I was editing and I lost everything.
Had to go back and recreate and inadvertently left out the paragraph about those two catalogs.
Yes, Pottery Barn does have a wonderful children's room collection.
So does Restoration Hardware --- their baby rooms are regal in many ways! Little princes and princesses would feel right at home in their room spreads! Lovely!
Thanks for stopping by ND!!
Alison... that is one of my sister and my favorite catalogs. Turns out the ladies who started that catalog had a warehouse in Conn. near Sister's house. We made out like bandits!!
Il y a de nombreux catalogues anciens qui me plaisaient autrefois...
merci de partager avec nous ces belles photos et de réveiller de bons souvenirs...
Je ne bois que du PERRIER!!...
Gros bisous
I do remember all the catalogs you mentioned and i LOVED Source Perrier!!! I would drool and dream when it came. In the 70's my kids were little and would get the JCPenney Christmas catalog and circle all the things they wanted Santa to bring:) AHHHH, such memories. XO, Pinky
Alison I remember the Sears and Roebuck catalogs and circling what I wanted, so fun. Now I do like Pottery Barn and William Sonoma a lot. I love to get ideas and improvise!
I think you will like my latest post!
2013 Designers Series
xoxo
Karena
Art by Karena
What girl doesn't love a Wish Book? I always loved the old Sears And jc pennys Christmas catalogs
And I have a 9 year old grandson who loves toy catalogs he wears out the pages LOL, he takes after his precious Grandma LOL
I love Love Love Wlliams Sonoma
Oh yes, I remember those catalogs quite well, especially around Christmas as I circled and circled things for Santa to hopefully bring! Now that I'm all grown up, I love Ballard and Pottery Barn catalogs. :)
I was so sad when SP closed. Didn't know someone has revived it. I do love getting catalogs. I find myself keeping many if they have room inspiration such as these. I won't part with my MacKenzie-Childs catalogs, and I used to keep Pierre Deux catalogs too. Beautiful images, Alison. Yes, I could sit in that room and read for hours or stitch needlepoint. '-)
I see other commenters have said the same thing I am. As a kid in the 50's wearing out the big thick Sears catalog picking out the Christmas toys we wanted over and over again. Years later, as a homemaker I loved the Spiegel's catalog. Great post! :)
Love Williams Sonoma Home !...I have re-subscribed via email as your posts have dropped from my emails...do not know what happened!
The catalogs I remember most were from my childhood...the Christmas toy catalogs from Sears. We lived in a small town with very few stores, so the catalogs were wonderful.
The SP catalog had gorgeous rooms, but it definitely was a "wish book" for me.
The only catalog I get now is Pottery Barn, but I like the in-store displays better than the catalog ones.
Alison,
I loved Source Perrier, Pierre Deux and WSH. I often saved pages in my file of rooms I particularly loved. What a fun post.
I'm bummed because for some reason, that only the computer elves understand, I no longer get emails when you post. I tried to re subscribe but it tells me there is already a subscription with my email. So, sorry for the late comment.
Karen
I remember looking forward to traveling to Pennies and Sears to pick up the catalogs, there isn't a catalog area anymore. I miss that.
betsy
Great picks and style images, you have exquisite taste!!!
Best, Karolyn
Just so you know- I can't find any way to leave a comment on your post about foyers. Is something missing or am I just not seeing it? Anyway-love that post- xo Diana
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