Silver and me, we’ve been together for over 30 years, and our love affair is still shining bright. Nearly everywhere you look in my cottage, you’ll find evidence of my enduring passion for this precious metal: trays, urns, candlesticks, boxes, you name it! Like a lot of us who fall in love, I was set up by a friend.
Nancy is 20 years older than me, and we became fast friends when I was in my late 20s, just starting Nell Hill’s. I was still evolving my personal decorating style then, and in the blink of an eye, Nancy, with her fresh take on feathering your nest, became my muse and definer of all-things-cool in interior design.
The first time I visited Nancy’s home in the country, I was like a sponge, absorbing everything I saw in her impeccably decorated home. I’d never before seen anyone approach decorating like Nancy did, mixing together the rustic and the refined to create a visual contrast that was intriguing, yet satisfying in its simplicity.
Before I met Nancy, I thought that formal pieces like silver serving trays and tea sets should be displayed with deference in a china cabinet. But here, on a rustic farm table so worn it looked like it might cave in, Nancy had placed an elegant five armed silver candelabra and a huge blue and white porcelain bowl filled with natural treasures she discovered on her treks through the countryside: a beautiful pebble, a fallen bird’s nest, a pine cone. In her kitchen, a gleaming silver food dome that looked like it belonged in an English manor home rested on an old washed pine sideboard. It was mixed up, and I loved it.
For a girl who watched Out of Africa at least ten times in order to drink in the romantic décor of the African plantation home (and maybe Robert Redford!), Nancy’s home was heaven. And, the soil from which I grew my own style. I started to collect silver pieces and experiment with how to display them in my home to create a feeling of relaxed elegance.
To my delight, I discovered that my mother-in-law Mimi was a kindred spirit when it came to silver. She, too, had collected it for years. And, to my even greater delight, she wanted to share it with me! I told her never to shop for me, to instead hand down to me pieces in her collection she no longer wanted.
For Christmas or my birthday, if I was on Mimi’s good side, I would unwrap a piece of her treasured grape-leaf-pattern silver plate. When I was in the dog house, I received things like an old dusty basket that had been buried in her garage for years. One year, she gave me her divine silver tea set, which I displayed in my Atchison home for years. When we moved to the cottage, we just didn’t have a spot for it in our snug little space. So I passed in on to our daughter Kelly, who now displays it on her dining room buffet. Some day, it will be my granddaughter Maeve’s.
When we moved, I had to carefully curate my new little home because we didn’t have a lot of spots to display my treasures. The silver pieces I could not bear to part with are the highlight of my displays.
Tiered silver servers hold delicacies when I entertain. You’ll find silver pieces dotted about in my bookcases. A silver coffee urn and silver candlesticks perch on a shelf above my stove. Silver trays and platters are the base for many of the displays on my tables.
Some people really like the aged patina of tarnished silver, but for me, the more brilliant the shine, the better. Bright, sparkling silver is one of life’s little luxuries. So the silver gets a good polish every few months — and always before Nancy comes over — making my whole home feel a bit more inviting, a wonderful place to welcome guests!
Next Week … Want to make your bedside tables beautiful? I will have four looks to inspire you.
2022 Decor Trends: Plush Curves and Sculptural Shapes
New Year, New Bedroom
2021 Trends We Want to Bring Into the New Year
After the Holidays Refresh: Declutter then Re-Clutter
Karin Rooney says
June 6, 2016 at 9:11 amI have yet to find a good silver polish. What brand do you use?
Mary Carol Garrity says
June 7, 2016 at 3:04 pmI don’t have a particular brand to recommend, unfortunately.
Connie J. LaRue says
June 6, 2016 at 11:49 amYour words, pictures and stories transport me to another place….away from and cares or momentary worries! Thanks for that peace and joy, Mary Carol!
Mary Carol Garrity says
June 7, 2016 at 3:03 pmSo glad to hear this – thanks for you kind words!
Robin B. says
June 6, 2016 at 11:56 amI use my silver trays throughout my home! And love this blog about silver. For whatever reason I set silver trays out for display on New Years Eve and Day along with all my Battenburgh lace tablecloths. It gives the sparkle of the new year!
Mary Carol Garrity says
June 7, 2016 at 3:03 pmSounds beautiful, Robin.
Vicki Sewell says
June 6, 2016 at 12:30 pmLove scoring thrift stories for vintage silver. Also Scotts Antique market, that comes to Atlanta once a month, has beautiful silver
Mary Carol Garrity says
June 7, 2016 at 3:02 pmI love rooting around in thrift stores and antique stores for buried treasure!
Sallie Vaughan says
June 6, 2016 at 1:39 pmI love the way you mix the rustic with the formal. I have a large amount of silver from my grandmother and enjoy using it but have trouble keeping it all polished. Any tips or suggestions to offer?
Mary Carol Garrity says
June 7, 2016 at 3:02 pmSo great to inherit beautiful pieces. I think if you keep up on it, polishing regularly, it’s easier to maintain. I do mine every few months.
Karen Hay says
June 6, 2016 at 1:44 pmI have my big silver tray on my coffee table now cuz of you Mary Carol and never thought of putting a big plate on it that I have – thanks for your inspirations!
Mary Carol Garrity says
June 7, 2016 at 3:01 pmIt’s fun to experiment with different looks. Trust your gut, and start playing!
Linda L says
June 6, 2016 at 1:45 pmWhat a beautiful story and gorgeous pictures Mary Carol. I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed this. You are such a great teacher and a great inspiration. Over all the years of visiting your home and stores and through all of your books I have fallen in love with silver also. You convinced me that I was worthy of enjoying it in my home too and I didn’t have to live in a mansion to do so. I love the lesson you learned from Nancy to counter the glitz of the silver with nature’s gifts and some rustic decor. I’m so thankful that you passed this love of silver on to me and your other followers. And I’m thrilled that you carry antique silver pieces and glassware such as compotes in your store. I have bought both at your store many times and enjoy them so much. And even purchased some for gifts. I didn’t want your story to end. I like all your blog posts but these personal ones are my favorite. It made me wonder what Nancy’s home looks like today and if she is still enjoying her silver. I hope she is. Friends like her are a rare and wonderful gift. And so was your wonderful mother-in-law. In photo #2 I purchased the dessert stand shown in the forefront at your Atchison Nell Hill’s years ago and I like the other larger one also. I haven’t seen any like these at your stores for a number of years and wish you carried more of them. I’ve seen that you have some more rustic ones but nothing like these elegant ones. They are so fun to use as you have done here. Keep the good stories and inspiration coming our way. It really gets my creative juices flowing. And then of course I want to jump in my car and head to your KC store. I prefer my silver polished to a brilliant shine also.
Mary Carol Garrity says
June 7, 2016 at 3:00 pmLinda, I’m so glad you have found some treasures at Nell Hill’s! That makes me really happy!
Agnes Shaw says
June 6, 2016 at 1:49 pmWhat cleaner do you recommend for silver?
Mary Carol Garrity says
June 7, 2016 at 3:00 pmI really don’t have a favorite. It’s a tough job, whatever you use, I’ve found.
Lynn says
June 6, 2016 at 1:50 pmI LOVE these posts about your lovely cottage. I just want more and more pictures to salivate over. I wish I had met a friend like yours when I was 20! Thank you for the inspiration and please keep it coming.
Mary Carol Garrity says
June 7, 2016 at 2:59 pmThanks so much, Lynn!
Curtis & Sherrie Chipley says
June 6, 2016 at 1:51 pmI too have a love affair with silver…. and to be honest I have grown to tolerate the tarnished look of it because I cannot find any product that makes polishing it quick and easier….. I have polished my silver and it takes forever, (no wonder the higher society people have servants who do this for them)! But come Autumn I get out my polishing cloth and spend a weekend getting all of the silver ready for its shining part in my Autumn and Christmas decorating. As always I love your blog, and your willingness to bring us into your beautiful home…. sending you Blessings from Northern California where the HEAT is on! Living the life in a tiny hamlet called French Gulch, California…. Blessings to you and yours …. Curtis & Sherrie.
Mary Carol Garrity says
June 7, 2016 at 2:59 pmShining is definitely a pain, but worth it, I think.
Jerry Ballard says
June 6, 2016 at 1:59 pmWe all need a “Nancy” in our life…and you’re mine!!! Your touches are in every room! Thank you! Congratulations on your move to consolidate your stores!
Mary Carol Garrity says
June 7, 2016 at 2:58 pmI agree! And thanks for you kind wishes.
Pam says
June 6, 2016 at 3:00 pmI agree with Lynn…more pictures, please. I love silver and have collected sterling napkin rings thanks to my mother-in-law feeding my love and interest of all things shiny, bright and round. It didn’t stop there though. I would love to see your bookcases and the showcase of your beauties.
Thanks for sharing your love of silver with us all. And I might add, I don’t mind polishing it either.
Mary Carol Garrity says
June 7, 2016 at 2:57 pmThanks!
Cathy McQuinn says
June 6, 2016 at 4:36 pmMay I ask where the muffiny/biscuit things on the tiered tray came from?? LOVE your pics from your cottage! Thank you for sharing your heart with us all.
Mary Carol Garrity says
June 7, 2016 at 2:57 pmThese are goodies from the French Bee, my favorite bakery, located in Parkville, Mo.
Elaine Gitzel says
June 6, 2016 at 4:40 pmThank you for sharing pictures of your silver pieces. I too have a large collection that I love displaying. I also had a friend like Nancy but her name was Irene. She inspired me to be creative with decorating our home; she had so many amazing ideas and her home was so lovely. That was 40 years ago and she still inspires me.
Mary Carol Garrity says
June 7, 2016 at 2:56 pmFriends like these are the BEST!
Judy Davis says
June 6, 2016 at 6:07 pmI was tickled to know you watch Out of Africa over and over for the decor of her plantation house. I did the same thing. And I still do. Another movie home I watched over and over was Something’s Gotta Give. Loved the Hamptons home. I watch both movies every once in a while to get more ideas and just to enjoy the beauty of those sets. Love your newsletters. They light up my life!!!
Mary Carol Garrity says
June 7, 2016 at 2:56 pmLove that movie!
Curtis Chipley says
June 7, 2016 at 11:07 amI left a reply yesterday but I forgot to say I am so happy to know that there others like me who watch movies to see the sets, décor….. I usually go to a movie twice, once to follow the story then a second time to see how everything is decorated….. I am not alone!!!! lol
franki says
June 7, 2016 at 4:31 pmMake new friends but keep the old…some are silver and some are gold!! franki
Lisa says
June 8, 2016 at 8:25 pmI love silver thanks to you Mary Carol. You have made me a total silver addict. I display them everywhere and the other day I was entertaining and this woman said “Oh how clever look how you placed silver trays to hold your silverware, you are so creative.” And I laughed out loud walked into the living room and grabbed one of your books and without saying a word place one on her lap and said, “prepare yourself, your life is about to change.” Thanks to you mine did.
xoxo Love you Mary Carol.
Lisa
Kelley says
August 26, 2016 at 8:18 amI too am a silveraholic! It’s the first thing I look for when I go to an estate sale, trinket boxes, toothpick holders, etc and my latest collection are my english condiment holders. As for polishing ( which I absolutely love to do) I use none other than Wright’s cream. When polishing large trays or tea service sets I just use a normal Cello sponge rather than the small one that comes inside the jar of Wrights. It brings these larger pieces to a gleaming shine in just a fraction of time.