The Estate of Things

Traveling to the flea market at the NC Fairgrounds in Raleigh on Saturday yielded these,

a set of 4 Thonet chairs for children, I’m not sure what I’m going to do with these yet because I don’t really have room for 4!

The purchase power fizzled out after that but we did meet a friendly vendor named Gene Foust. One of the pieces Gene had was this lovely antique glider. It was $50.00.

Gene specializes in antique gliders and he restores them. Gene has a permanent space at Lot #421. If you’re in the market for an old glider contact Gene about what he’s got in stock, he can be reached at 336-327-9309.

A lot of records were thumbed through…

And we saw some Pollack-esque paintings

I like these as a nod to a trend that I was just about completely past.

Spotted at Downtown

175 antique dealers will be in Raleigh, NC for an Antiques Extravaganza. The event will take place January 15-17, fork out $7.50 for a weekend pass. Visit the event website for more info.

This solution is the answer to high impact on a low budget. Making a colorful statement with an old piece of wooden furniture goes beyond trend. Its a really practical way to recycle old furniture and get excited about it again, not to mention save some duckets, something I’m sure I’ll push hard to do as I’m thrifting my way into new apartment decor. (If I can ever find a suitable apartment!!)

I caught a feature noting a few before and afters of this trend in my new Fresh Home magazine that arrived in the mailbox yesterday. I mention it now, not b/c I have these images to share with you, but because I figured that if you are into painting furniture, then you may be interested in keeping an eye out for this mag. It’s similar to ReadyMade in that it includes guides for easy DIY projects around the house - its a little less hipsterish and more homemakerish.

Jenny of Little Green Notebook might be into it. I noticed today that she snapped a pic of the magazine cover and posted about an Ikea Expedit project.  She is an example of someone who has turned some old furniture dogs into vibrant statements. Check out a few projects we grabbed from her site to show you!

Jamie of I Suwannee is about it as well. Not only is she refurbishing furniture for her own home, but she’s made it a valuable part of her Design Services and now the exciting new store front that she is opening later this month in Raleigh, NC. See this great “day in her shoes” post from a fellow blogger, High Heeled Foot in the Door.

The grand party of the Furbish Studio opening is November 21st. Please go in my absence, and tell her that I love her and I’m so excited to see this coming together. Here’s one of many pieces that you can buy while you are there!

Fall is less about yard sales and more about estate sale shopping.  The advantages are many and I find even if I leave a home empty-handed, I almost always come away with a fresh perspective on interior design.  They are like snapshots from another time.

Armed with my bag:  small camera, tape measure, notebook with my paint samples/fabric swatches, alcohol-free baby wipes (good for checking if an item can be cleaned or is too gunky to be salvaged).

This is how I approach a sale:

Take a cue from Cher in Clueless and do an entire lap before you commit. My first lap is for scouting out the items that I need for the shop or want for my home and must grab immediately (cathrineholm, white porcelain figurines, etc.).

My second lap is for really digging and making sure that I have checked the top shelf of every closet and looked under every table in every room.  Look in the bathrooms too!  Sometimes they display additional jewelry or small pieces there.  Use your peripheral vision.

On my third time around just do another lap to be sure nothing has been put back, moved or otherwise unseen while Ive been running around all sweaty and nervous trying to score the goods. I recently found this amazing collection of vintage Japanese kokeshi dolls and bought them all for the shop.  They are available now and one lucky reader will be chosen on Friday to receive their own little doll.

If you find THE item (my fantasy PUCCI dress Rutthie Sommers wore on the first cover of Domino) remain calm!  Although you want to shriek and dive on the object you must remain calm.  I have been in situations in which my total spaz-out caused the shop owner to become suspicious and actually tell me the price was mis-marked and try to double it!  Yikes!

The way to get the best stuff is by shopping the first day where you get first dibs on full-price items.  When it is a larger sale I usually swing by on the last day too to take advantage of deep discounts and make offers on bulk purchases like holiday decor or amazing clothes they really want to get rid of.

I also like to get to know the people in town that hold estate sales.  Get added to their mailing list and say hello.  It will make a difference when they add up your purchase and they are more likely to take a check for larger items or hold items while you get more cash.

I want to see what this week’s hunting trips bring so I promise to share with you my past and present favorites and hope our readers will do the same.  I love junkin’ by proxy.

Happy Tuesday, All and good hunting!
xoxo Alia

Catch Alia’s first How To Thrift Post here.

A friend recently showed me a collection of vintage postcards she purchased at a yard sale.  They have been sitting in storage for quite some time now because she isn’t sure what to do with them. Framing them is an option for cheap art, you could have them blown up and applied to a canvas (remember Blueprint enlarging a playing card) or you could just mix them in on your inspiration or bulletin board, punch them out for gift tags or decoupage them John Derian style.

Telegram notecard from Paperwink

These are polaroids but the same look can be achieved with postcards.

postcards used in a kitchen backsplash

If you’ve collected a bunch of holiday themed postcards, they can go on the tree if you have one or string them on some ribbon and have a postcard garland. Images above from Pottery Barn.

But here’s a display I keep running in to, postcards stuck in the molding around door frames or in this case topping the wainscotting.

Cookie Magazine

All images in this post are from Apartment Therapy unless noted otherwise.

There is a local antiques festival that happens twice a year in a small main street town in Cameron, North Carolina. There are hundreds of vendors and while I’m positive it pales in comparison to Brimfield or Round Top, I always find something there that I treasure and there are often times very sweet deals. Wonder if Alia was there?

Antique bentwood chairs, $100 for all 4, wouldn’t they have been fantastic painted black a la SJP’s house in the Hamptons

There are tons of these on Etsy spelling everything from “FART” to “JACOB”, these blocks were .50 each

There are small wooden child-size chairs at the bottom of the image, collecting several of these can get you this…

image via Country Living

These were a great display item, they had a whole laundry basket full of these, this was all that was left at 11:00 am.  A man standing nearby said he was from the midwest and they were called hedge apples planted or placed around the house to ward off spiders. Also referred to as horse apples, mock oranges and the Osage Orange.

image via Cherry Hill Cottage

These looked like they were straight out of the Anthropologie playbook, the patina on these antique metal spice boxes was incredible.

Storage for your craft room or English garden shed?

This funny little car was parked next to a booth to draw gawkers of all ages. Not for sale, fun to look at. It’s a Fiat Nuova 500 complete with wicker seats.

So long Cameron, see you in the spring.

I go to thrift stores and estate sales every week in search of items both for my home and my Etsy shop.  In the years I have spent dragging junk home I have narrowed down the best ways to do it.  These are the essential rules for getting the goods.

Be nice.
I say hello when I go in a store, I help when someone is struggling with a heavy object and I try and buy even a little something every time. This will pay off on future visits. Shop owners will often put aside items they know I like or offer me a discount on a larger purchase without my having to ask.

Don’t dress like you have money to burn.
This is pretty obvious: don’t dress like a rich hipster or break out a wad of twenties when you’ve just haggled something down to 7 bucks; it’s insulting to the seller.

Don’t haggle when the price is good.
Some people insist on haggling over every item. If you think a price is fair and you love the item, cough up the cash. Again, you want to build a relationship with the sellers and showing them respect will earn their trust.

If you’re iffy about something grab it.
It doesn’t cost anything to stick it in your cart while you decide. Walking past something you aren’t sure about only to have it snatched up by someone else once you’ve made up your mind will haunt you. Forever.

Bring your own shopping bags.
This makes for much easier toting of stuff while you shop and you won’t be overloaded with yucky plastic bags. at the end of the day.

If you are in Eastern North Carolina and want to know my favorite haunts, I am more than happy to share them.  You can see some of the spoils from my jaunts in my Etsy shop - SWEETSHORN VINTAGE and have fun on your next outing!

There is something about this photo that is inspiring to me. A lot of texture, many layers of years of life.

Photo by Chris Marsh

This is one of many images that I enjoyed while browsing through the website for a Johnson City, Texas Antique shop called Pieces of the Past.

Details like this are fodder for fantasy! Retail Fantasy!

These photos were taken at a new store that opened last week in historic downtown Aberdeen, NC. The new shop is called One Eleven Main. The amazing original architectural features of the building set the right tone for the sale of personal accessories and new and antique home furnishings. We look forward to visiting again and seeing the change of the shop’s contents. Thanks Betsy!