A traditional wedding gift: Corn Flower

Not long ago, I grabbed the girls for an overnight road trip over to Collingwood and down through Creemore with a stop in at the Dufferin County Museum near my friend Claire’s farm. I'd whooshed by this spot countless times, but on this occasion we stopped. I'm so glad we did! The museum has the largest public collection of Corn Flower glass around. I had never heard of this quality glass, which is sometimes called Hughes Corn Flower, but apparently, it was started by a man named Jack Hughes around 1912 and was produced here in Canada until the 1980's.

This four-part relish dish shows off the delicate pattern typical of Corn Flower glass

If you were married in Ontario in the forties or fifties, you probably received Corn Flower items as wedding gifts. I’m not a collector, but the museum's display really intrigued me, so I asked my “personal shopper” Ron if he had seen any in his travels. Sure enough, he showed up the next week with a lovely, delicate little candy dish that any bride would have been thrilled to receive.

Two lovely pieces from my own "collection" 

At least, I would like one if I were getting married . . . which I’m not!

Life's little necessities

New ideas for South Pond have brought with them a new reality: the need for permanent washrooms. (Let's face it--port-a-potties are many things, but pleasant isn't one of them.) So, reluctantly but knowing the importance of handling the situation properly, especially in the country where our water comes from wells, construction has begun.

Preparing the site

 And because we try to make everything we do beautiful as well as functional, this won't be just any washroom. It will be crafted with skill and integrity by fine carpenters and builders who are sensitive to the way that the land falls and rises, to the view from the barn, to the vistas from the pond. That's just how the crew at Ironstone Land and Building Design does things.

Working from the ground up

We'll let you know when they're finished so you can come and see for yourself!