Vintage Junk in My Trunk

Antique Etchings and Spidey Senses

I was so flabbergasted by the hoarder estate sale from Saturday that I forgot to show you the stuff I got at the first yard sale of the day.

I found a bunch of these letterpress collections of etchings and photogravures from the late 1800s. They were published by Selmar Hess of New York as individual issues and then bound in hardcover books at a later point.

Each etching has an onion skin paper in front of it which has protected it through the years. The pages are very fragile and flaking, but the drawings are in very good condition, and the detail is exquisite.

There are lots of these types of images. 

I'm not sure what to do with them. Sell them as is, individually or separately? Sell just the drawings? Scan the images and sell the pdfs? What do you think?

Also found this Hungarian German Language Practice Primer from the late 1800s as well (I love you, internet).

Lots of ads and dictionary pages.

Sweet chippy vase featuring delicately painted flowers.

That was it! There were a few wild goose chases -- people posting on Craig's List that either decided not to have the sale or never were having a sale in the first place -- so I was a bit disappointed.

The (hoarder) estate sale was listed as from 1pm to 5pm, which is an unheard of late start in this area, and there was no address, so I thought that was a scam as well. I emailed the seller and got an address, but went cautiously and carried my iphone. I wouldn't have gone in if there weren't other people around; make sure your spidey senses aren't tingling! (unless they're tingling for junk!)

Um, Understatement!

I found an estate sale listed on Craig's List for Saturday. When I got there, the seller’s first words to me were: “My mother was a bit of a hoarder.”

This was one of the more accessible ones, but every room looked like this:

And reeked of cat pee. [I know.]

Fortunately, I didn't come across any carcasses, although I was a bit leery.

But I believe my intrepidness paid off. Here's my haul.

Lots of fabulous pottery. I’m no expert, and I've got a lot of research ahead of me, but most of them are marked. And in pristine condition. These lovely Arts and Crafts-style vases are signed ”Weller” on the bottom.

Hull USA pink, gray, and aqua spattered planter. 

I think it says “Brush” (McCoy) USA on the bottom of this yellow spattered vase.

Royal Haegar pink pitcher with roped handle.

Unfortunately, these Hamilton Beach drink mixers are not vintage (although I saw the aqua one listed and sold on at least two occasions on Etsy, which is a no-no). But I liked the retro look, and will probably put them on Ebay. Or make a cocktail. One of the two.

Cool vintage silver handled urn. This guy is heavy.

A too-cute vintage pottery deer lamp.

A pair of gorgeous big cut glass lamps. I found one upstairs, and the other in the basement. You don't want to see a picture of the basement.

Although I was avoiding all things porous and absorbent, I couldn't resist this little Peter Rabbit book. Amazingly, no odor!

Beatrix Potter penned the original Peter Rabbit tale but Henry Aletemus realized her publisher did not copyright the book (1903) so in 1904 Altemus copied the book WORD FOR WORD and PICTURE FOR PICTURE making it part of a six-book series “Wee Books for Wee Folks”. This is a 1917 edition of the Altemus Peter Rabbit Series.

Some sweet little made-in-Japan doggie figurines rounded out the score.

They are going to do another sale next week, and by the looks of the boxes upon boxes piled up, there will be more treasures to find then.

I am linking up my weekend yard sale finds with Apron Thrift Girl’s Thrift Share Monday and Her Library Adventure’s Flea Market Finds.

To Market, To Market

So in less than three weeks I will be selling at my first fabulous vintage and handmade show. I've done a few small craft shows and fall fests in the past, but this is my first real foray into the world of vintage and artisanal handcrafted goods.

Clover Market is an upscale vintage outdoor market located just outside Philly featuring original art, antiques, vintage jewelry & clothing, artisan crafts, and handmade items. The Market is held one Sunday/month in the spring and fall.

There are over 50 confirmed sellers, including Colleen of Fresh Vintage fame.

I'm going to be selling all kinds of stuff. There's really no rhyme or reason or theme to what I have been hoarding storing.

Definitely a lot of handcrafted-from-vintage, like my plate trays. These pack surprisingly well in big plastic tubs and should be easy to transport.

And vintage glass, brass, and porcelain door knobs turned into wine bottle stoppers.

Industrial vintage.

Kitchen vintage.

Timely vintage.

A variety of old dolls, lobotomized and otherwise.

Should I bring Christmas? [Definitely no ornaments though; too fragile!] Any tips from veteran show vendors greatly appreciated. I feel so scattered!

If you are local, please stop by and say hi; I think it will be tons of fun, with lots of great food, vintage, and handmade items.

I purchased a tent, so that means it won't rain -- hope to see you there!

Red and Yellow…

Two yard sales and one estate sale (which I visited three times), and everything's coming up roses! 

Literally, as seen on this vintage canister set. First yard sale find of the day.

Our teeny cozy kitchen has pale yellow cabinets and white bead board with bits of red wall showing. This exact shade of red.

I bought these intending to put them in my Etsy shop, but geez, they would go really well in my kitchen!

Also found this cute set of retro stainless steel canisters, marked "Made in Italy" on the bottom. This is less my look, so no angst here regarding selling them.

A few lovely pink and brown dishes from which to make the cake trays... more roses!

Paid $2 for this sweet little silver-plated tea set for my little miss to play with.

And how about this fabulous find? Very sweet small metal cabinet with white enamel top. With a drawer! And shelves!

Yes, it's yellow, and yes, it would also look good in my kitchen...minus the hideous 70s contact paper...

But this would look even better! My estate sale purchase -- had to return with my muscle (and transportation, and laborer).

Although there is no space for it, I would love to put this gorgeous white and red cupboard in my kitchen (sorry for the reflection on the photo).

Hmm, maybe I don't need that space for the trash can after all...

I am already imagining those shelves with some checked fabric and the red canisters on them…

Sadly, I didn't come home with this lovely 1940s red accented porcelain-topped table with two folding drop leaves. And four matching chairs with red cushions. It was still there and marked down a bit at the end of the day. Drool.

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Once again, I am linking up with Apron Thrift Girl's Thrift Share Monday and Her Library Adventure's Flea Market Finds.

Also hooked up with It's a Very Cherry World and her “Rednesday” post.

Color My World

Hello vintage friends -- pardon my absence, but I have been dealing with a recalcitrant kidney stone and have been neglectful of so many other things while I writhe in pain. I think it's wise to save you from the gory details; suffice is to say I thought my days of giving birth were long gone.

I didn't even browse the paper or my iphone apps last weekend for any sales, so you know I was not in my right mind. Fortunately, I made up for it yesterday.

Look at this fabulously yellow 1950s Detecto metal hamper with floral tole painted front. So shabby chic!

Love the industrial look and especially the aqua color on this Eskimo-brand fan.

This bingo game and its vibrant green cards appear unused.

Some pretty bling for those elusive necklaces I'm crafting.

I thought these boxed 1950s Christmas books were pretty cool, but even more so after I got them home and did a little Googling. The artist is Charlot Byj, who started out by creating her famous redheaded children and others as greeting cards. This brought her to the attention of the Goebel Company where they turned her artwork into three dimensional figurines (like Hummel).

The bound books inside are in excellent condition (since they were protected by the box), each with its pop-up pages and original toy attached. 

This one has an original metal fish whistle attached.

There were four boxes with matching spiral-bound book; this one has a cute little chiclets box adhered to its pages. They seem pretty collectible, so they'll be going on Etsy (or Ebay?).

More colorful finds today -- stay tuned!

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I am linking up to Apron Thrift Girl's Thrift Share Monday and Her Library Adventure's Flea Market Finds.

For Japan, With Love

Please help in any way you can.

ForJapanWithLove.com

ShelterBox.org

RedCross.org

Thank you.

 

Favorite Bloggers

How nice to be noticed by a fellow vintage blogger! Susanne of zueeuz.blogspot.com honored me with a Stylish Blogger Award! I started writing this post weeks ago and then got sidetracked, so here it finally is. Thanks, Susanne, what a nice thing! 

So, following the rules, I must reveal seven things about myself and then pass on the honor to ten of my favorite and stylish bloggers. (Please feel free to play or not play at your discretion.) So here goes:

Seven Things You May Not Know About Me

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1. I am a dyed-in-the-wool baseball fanatic. My head is full of vintage baseball statistics. I have been to spring training. I count down the number of days left until opening day (22 as of today) -- which is always the symbolic first day of spring to me. I had vintage stadium seats in my apartment before I got married (the rest of my vintage baseball collection is packed away in the basement; I really should get that out. It's only been 15 years). 

My stadium seats looked like these, only green. The thing I most regret selling.

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2. I originally went to college for Engineering. After a year of calculus and other mind-numbing courses, I ran screaming to art & design school.

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3. Speaking of numbers, my birthday is 6/12, my son's is 12/6, and we were both born at 3:55pm. Additional note: I was pregnant (with my daughter) at my 40th birthday party. I do not recommend this.

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4. I don't drink hot liquids. Not even coffee. My caffeine of choice is Pepsi. And no, it's not the same as coke.

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5. I am allergic to turkey. I don't know why; I eat plenty of chicken, which is sort of related. So Thanksgiving is a little weird, but believe me, I have no problem finding something else to eat.

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6. Also, the sun makes me sneeze and I can't HEAR without my glasses. Yes, I'm a mess.

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7. William Shatner was my first celebrity crush. The vintage 1960s William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk, not the 2011 William Shatner who appeared on American Pickers. You have to admit, he was a fine specimen back in the day. And his shirt matches my blog. You would be correct in assuming the rest of my brain is filled with useless Star Trek trivia, and that I am a geek at heart.

 

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My Ten Go-To Vintage Blogs

Sooo hard to narrow down. There are so many vintage blogs with fabulous photos, pretty vignettes, chippy white stuff... absolutely drool-worthy!

But these are the ones I look forward to reading the most. I enjoy the musings of these writers in addition to the yummy photos. Here are my selections (in alphabetical order). Maybe there will be a few that will be new to you.

• 52 Flea. Laura has the most gorgeous photos, posts almost every day, and makes even the tiniest, junkiest thing look amazing!

• Apron Thrift Girl. I recently found Salina's blog, and she has some great ideas, advice, and business sense. I've learned so much in just a short time.

• Fresh Vintage. Colleen is a total riot, finds lots of cool stuff, and has tons of technical information regarding blogs, Facebook, and anything web-oriented.

• Into Vintage. Amy’s blog is also relatively new to me, but I feel a great kindred spirit and quick camaraderie with her. She also just started a cool new blog called Vintage Market Guide that will list every vintage sale in every state all year long! (No pressure, Amy!)

• Itsy Bits and Pieces. Linda is by far the sweetest, most encouraging blogger ever. And she's got cool stuff, and TWO Etsy stores.

• My Vintage Soul. This Linda is another vintage Christmas aficionado. Can't wait for the next Bouckville hook-up with my new-found New York pals.

• Oodles and Oodles. I really like the way Barbara writes -- very casual and funny. Plus she enjoys the occasional Shiny Brite.

• Shabby Vintage Junk. Tamarah, my Australian buddy, seems like a hoot! And she organized a whole vintage extravaganza on her own Down Under! Hope to meet her in person some day.

• Vintage Rescue Squad. Sue is the Gold Standard. I'm pretty sure this is the first vintage blog I found. Even more funny and irreverent in person!

• Vintage Sue. I'm amazed by this Sue's constant creativity while holding down the fort as mom to two little people. Her banner changes almost every week, she is always making tons of crafty things, and I really have no idea how she does it all.

Thanks again to Susanne for the shout-out!

Desperately Seeking

What day is it? I am still encumbered by the 1000-day-old cough, as Mr. VJIMT refers to it, and although he exaggerates, he's not that far off. It usually catches me in November and drags on for about 6 weeks through the holidays. I was fortunate this year in that it held off until February so I could enjoy the holidays, but really, I've had enough. 

I've tried just about everything through the years -- vodka martinis seem to be the only thing that curb it a little! -- but if you have any other home remedies you think may help, please post them! Since the only time I'm not coughing is when I'm eating, it has to be fast as I'm running out of drawstring pants!

Luckily, there hasn't been a whole lot going on in the vintage world around here that I've missed. I did drag myself off the couch (again!) to go to one measly estate sale on the weekend. I got a late start since the kids were asleep and the husband wasn't home, but I managed to find a few things (envious of you all who have the late-starting-time estate sales; ours are usually at 8am). I choose not to think about what I missed! 

Vintage "Mad Men" style phone from the late 1950s. I never thought I'd be buying these (although I do miss the sound of that rotary dial!), but this look is selling, so...

Another pair of vintage German "sputnik" style plastic candle holders. I blogged about the cool orange ones I got here, and both are listed in my Etsy shop.

Vintage faucet handle to be repurposed. Wine bottle stopper?

A set of “Learning French” record albums from the 1950s. Nice graphics on the box, and four still-in-their-sleeves record albums inside.

The French Cupboard is hosting a French-influenced blog party every Thursday, so I thought this was an appropriate end to this post. Head on over and join Gypsy Brocante Jill for some French inspiration!

I wonder if they have any pastries...