As if November and December are not busy enough months at home, my sister and I found ourselves shuffling arrangements within our antique mall booth spaces several times in these last two months. Here are a few shots since my
last update of our spaces, and how we stand going into the New Year.
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| 1960's vintage New Year's Eve noisemakers and party hats |
This Finch Fine Furniture dining room mahogany pairing (below) is just wonderful, and the acorn and leaf detail of the hardware on each piece is unique. We were lucky to have scored these pieces at a bargain; consequently, our customers will enjoy a considerable savings passed on to them as well.
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| Beautiful acorn detail on the furniture hardware |
A recent estate sale yielded the beautiful, antique settee below, petitely sized. I can easily visualize this in a foyer, under a stairway nook, or maybe near a fireplace. The andirons and tools are at the ready, as are a few vintage books for your reading pleasure, with pretty pictures and titles (such as "An Old Sweetheart of Mine" - indeed!). Or, a series of 1894 leather-bound books, "Great Men and Famous Women" could prove to enlighten you well beyond their originally intended purpose 100 years ago!
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| Perfectly petite, antique walnut settee in super condition |
One of two upholstered chairs had sold from the blue chair grouping we've had a while, so the settee slid into place nicely.
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| Overall view of the dressier booth space |
As I was drafting this post, I received two calls, one saying the stained glass in front of the mirror (above) had sold; the other saying someone purchased the buffet / sideboard from the Finch Fine Furniture dining room pairing. Wasting no time, we hurried into the mall on the 23rd and restyled the spaces again.
The 'dining room' has become a sort of keeping room, shifting the settee and a side chair in place where the buffet stood.
The 'living area' is restyled with a coffee table and wool, hooked rug, opening the space a bit.
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| Before & After: DR space |
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| Before & After: LR space |
Additionally, we've brought in a few additional quality smalls in the past couple of months.
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| Rookwood vase, hand-painted watercolor, and brass caddy |
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| Italian religious triptychs and coordinating, Florentine trinket box |
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| Waterford crystal, bakelite, and sterling tools |
Smalls continuously get shifted around to accommodate showcasing, finishing a new vignette, or to make way for new things coming in.
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| Various smalls in stepback cabinet shelving unit |
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| Vintage and antique mesh and beaded purses |
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| Selection of jewelry and other vanities |
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| Ink wells, crystal chess set, Russian hand-painted papier mache tea caddy |
We'll be pulling all the leftover Christmas items down and boxing them up soon, but first we clustered them and discounted them deeply for last chance purchasing.
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| Christmas items, clustered, for deep discounting |
January and February are (generally) fair months for sales, as shoppers take advantage of their Christmas gift money and even their early tax refunds. As vendors, we try to keep a stash of items, both big and small, to fill the voids of space and keep things interesting until our buying season comes into full swing again in late winter, early spring.
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| A winter frost collage of smalls |
It's always exciting to find vintage and antique treasures that are well-priced and popular for resale, but even more exciting is finding items that are unusual or hard to come by, and know that others love them too. I always thought being a personal shopper would be a fun job, and that's exactly what the hobby of antiquing allows us to do. It also allows the creative license for shuffling things around for fresh looks, something I do a lot less of in my own home.
Do you enjoy the hunt for unusual things from the past, something that stirs a good memory? Or, do you prefer the "less is more" approach to styling yourself or the space you call your own? New or old, what's your preference? Do you like shuffling things around at home for a new, fresh look?
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