Spring has returned. The Earth is like a child that knows poems. ~Rainer Maria Rilke

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Vintage Thursday: Recycled Shutters and an Old Enos bottle


This is my kitchen window. It faces south and up until last year, I never liked it much because it seemed too big and too open. I finally found the answer last year when I bought an old four sectioned, wood louvered shutter at Room With A Past in Walnut Creek. It didn't need paint and only has two broken louvers that I have never fixed and I like to think of it as ~antique ambiance ~ (that's a synonymous expression for "too lazy to fix it")
Last week I pulled everything out and cleaned the whole window . What a project, but it was worth the effort. Everything looked so good that I thought I would take some pictures and do a post on it.
I love these shutters. I can adjust the light as much as I want and still see outside. It just feels cozy and looks a lot better. Getting the shutters in, out and around the window frame is a bear so I won't be cleaning it again for a long while.

The weekend before last The Prospector and I stopped at a yard sale and I found this old bottle. I paid $4.00 for it. I love the color and the silvery residue on the glass. It's a nice complement to the only other old bottle that I own (next to it in the photo).
When I researched it I found out that this was not a rare or unusual bottle. It was very common in fact and a remedy that was very popular.

We certainly wouldn't want to feel "out of sorts" or "bilious", have a sluggish liver or constipation. This magic elixirs, only a teaspoon in a glass of water, was the answer to all kinds of upsets. Bilious (interestingly spelled with two "L"s in England) has to do with liver dysfunction and also means irritable and ill-tempered. Eno's Fruit Salt was made in England, but lots of these bottles were found in the ground... HERE. It was probably imported to Canada and the United States for good reason.... maybe... hangovers? What do you think?

Please go over and visit Colorado Lady's blog for more vintage stories. 
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17 comments:

  1. You did a great makeover on those shutters. That is definitely an old bottle.

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  2. Those old remedies are fascinating. I wonder what was really in it.

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  3. Your new window arrangement looks just lovely. And the bottle is wonderful. I would have bought it, too.

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  4. Love the shutters! Great research on that bottle, I love the old adds and "cures." Thanks for sharing, Anna

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  5. Oh, what great stuff today.....love the shutters but that old bottle is amazing in color!! I just love that! Have a great VTT and thanks for linking in with us today!!

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  6. The shutters look great the way you've set them up! And I love your old blue bottle! I have some old blue ones, but they're not as pretty of a blue.

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  7. love the idea of the old shutters, I have ONE old one and can't decide what to do with it. Guess I need a few more!

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  8. Great shutters and I love your yard sale find. The color is very in now and of course being vintage makes it even more special.Annette

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  9. Your shutters are great. Gives the window a lot of charm. Old bottles are fascinating, love the color and your description of what was in it. Have a blessed day. Madeline

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  10. the shutters look as if they belong there...so pretty. I've always loved shutters...something old world about them. p.s there's been a few mornings I could have used that potion after a good bottle of wine!

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  11. That looks very nice...I love the beach them!!! Great job!!!

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  12. That looks very nice...I love the beach theme!!! Great job!!!

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  13. I love your old bottle! I am a sea glass collector and am anxious for the day when I find an intact bottle like this washed up on the shore- they're just so lovely! Your window looks so relaxing, I think I could probably stand in front of it and wash dishes for hours without complaining! Happy VTT!

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  14. Hangovers often come with an upset stomach, retching, etc. So, in lieu of much else that can help (you know how that headache feels...) I guess a pharmacy could sell something like this. It's probably just basically like alka-seltzer. First came out in 1850 - I can imagine that firewater sold in the gold rush towns was pretty potent. So, yep, it could definitely be hangover cure, such as it is.

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  15. The window looks so pretty. Love, love the bottle. Eno's is still sold in England today and around the world (Spain, India, South Africa, Thailand but just not here, hmmm) -- 30 million pounds worth a year in sales! That's a lot of fruit salt. Apparently it really works for indigestion, and in a pinch you can use it for baking powder, ha! Hat tip to Wikipedia, knower of all things obscure and trivial, love it.

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  16. I grew up with Eno's Fruit Salts in Aus. A little more info on "bilious"- it comes from the root word "bile" which is manufactured in the liver & stored in the gall bladder & lots of people[myself included] have had "bilious" attacks from a malfunctioning/diseased gall bladder. The bile is released after eating to help digest the fat in your food, all more info than you ever wanted, I'm sure!
    As far as I know Enos' Fruit Salts may still be available in Aus, I haven't checked lately!

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  17. What a lovely old bottle! Tha k s for the info on it and sharing it :)

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