My husband and I bought an old farm house that

My husband and I bought an old farm house that is over a hundred years old. The house sits on the shores of a huge freshwater lake. Through the years the house has been added on to and remodeled. The couple that had the house before us made several improvements. One of the best things they did was build a large gazebo in the front yard overlooking the lake. The gazebo has combination windows, lights, a ceiling fan and an electric space heater. The gazebo is octagon shaped. I thought it was going to be great fun to furnish the space.

Once we settled into the rest of the house we decided that we would concentrate on decorating the gazebo. I was thinking that wicker furniture would be nice in the space. The gazebo is surrounded by perennial flower gardens so the setting is very picturesque. I thought wicker furniture would complete the old fashioned feeling of the setting. My husband was thinking that we should have a table and chairs in the area so that we can eat meals in the space as well as play cards. We decided that we would compromise and look for a table and chairs in wicker.

We started at a furniture store. They had wicker furniture; however it was white and had bright colored cushions. I thought the set looked cheap. I asked if the wicker furniture was available in brown. The clerk said it was not, however she did mention that we might want to check at an antique furniture store. She explained that brown wicker furniture was very popular about eighty years ago. She gave us the address of a furniture store as well as the name and phone number of a person that she knew that used to restore wicker furniture. She thought that person might be able to tell us where to find a set.

We went to the antique store. In the display window was the perfect set for our gazebo. There was a round table with a tile top that would comfortably seat four people. There were four matching chairs for the table, as well as two high backed side chairs. The wicker furniture was a dark tan color. The cushions had animal print fabric, but I could recover them. The owner of the store was arranging the set in the window when we walked in. He explained that he had sent it out for repairs and had just gotten it back. He was placing it in the window because he had no room left in his store. He gave us a great deal on the set. We bought it and placed it in the gazebo, it looks wonderful.