Our Dandy Little Story!
Ruby's Farmhouse Boutique is a fun little shop for retro enthusiasts. We sell authentic reproduction kitchen wares, and a handful of other items, to vintage lovers far and wide. Translation: we sell new stuff that looks old to people that love that kind of kooky thing.
Our first collection is by Moda Home. These are the sweetest little items for your home - aprons, tablecloths, kitchen towels, and gift items. We hope to add other collections that catch our fancy as the store grows.
Our goal is to provide the most charming, adorable, authentic, genuine, fun loving, and affordable pieces of retro home goods anywhere on the Web! And we will scour the earth to find these treasures and share them other retro enthusiasts like ourselves!
About the Owner
Hi there! My name is Cindy and I am a complete 100% vintage enthusiast. If it's old, I love it! Doesn't matter what it is. I imagine stories about old objects and who could have used them, touched them. I love the history, mystery, and lovingly worn character of antiques.
I live in 1950's ranch house. I have a turquoise and white checked kitchen floor. I own the most amazing vintage O'Keefe and Merrit stove - and I use it every day. I'm a major retro enthusiast!
I'm also the lucky mother of 3 young children. A few years ago I began creating vintage inspired aprons that could hold up to the sticky, messy demands of tiny toddler fingers. I also began searching for vintage housewares to decorate my home. Unfortunately busy toddlers and priceless, antique linens aren't really a good combination.
While I was searching for reproduction fabric for my own line of aprons, The Apron String, I came across an AMAZING collection of authentic reproduction kitchen wares by Moda Home. This stuff is so fun I can't even stand it!!! And guess what? It's ok if it gets dirty. Just throw it in the wash.
My talented husband, owner of Artesian Design Inc, agreed to help spread the retro cheer to other enthusiasts far and wide. Voila' , Ruby's Farmhouse Boutique was born!
Is Ruby Real?
Is Ruby real? You bet she is. Ruby Norman is my great grandmother. She was born in the tiny town of Millsap, Texas in the year 1900. She's the reason for my vintage obsession. She had only one daughter, Betty Jo, and so her family heirloom treasures were passed to us.
She grew up on a farm, and then moved to small farmhouse closer to town. This is where my memories of her begin. My childhood visits to her home were my favorite time. She always wore a long skirt and bonnet. She made hot tea with milk and honey ( I still love it today). She kept a cookie jar with vanilla wafers. She had a screened in porch, where my parents loved to sleep on hot summer nights. She burned her trash in a metal barrel in the backyard (she didn't have much trash). And she bathed me and my sister outside in a Number 5 washtub.
Her house was near the town church, elementary school, and down the road from the little town store. She was a faithful member of the small Baptist church, and encouraged the pastor until she had to move. She lived on her own in that little farmhouse well into her 80's.
We inherited her hand made furniture, riding blanket, and storage trunk. We even have her ration cards from the 40s. My favorites are the linens: bonnets, embroidered pillowcases. pot holders, tablecloths, and quilts. We have 2 quilts that were made by the entire community - each square embroidered with a different family name. My grandmother, Betty, has a story about most of the fabric scraps in the quilts. This piece from a dress, that one from an apron, those from a feedsack.
The most valuable thing we inherited is her heritage. Ruby was a faithful woman of God who chose to bless, serve, and encourage others. She was a simple woman, but had a great impact on my entire family - even to the fourth generation.