Warrenton IS all that — a brief review of a day well spent

It was like going home.  Only I was 2.5 hours away from home.  And I believe if roll call was taken, almost all the Texas junkers I know would be accounted for.  And then there were a couple of virtual blog buddies that I finally had the pleasure of meeting face-to-face.  Sweet.  The highlight of my Warrenton day trip had to be all the lovely conversations.  Low point would be returning to my car — near heat exhaustion, mind you — and discovering that I’d left the lights on all day, and the car battery — much like my OWN battery — was dead.  Luckily a saint, disguised as a man in a pickup, happened to be headed my direction …and ever-so-kindly with hardly a roll of his eyes jumped the car back to life.  Whew.  So after driving around Bar W field until I looked like a crazy lost woman who couldn’t find the highway, I finally felt the battery was charged enough to chance turning off the ignition for a bit more junking.  My haul was pathetic, despite the mass of cool goods offered by so many vendors.  I fell in love with, but didn’t buy, a beautiful $300 Christmas wreath covered in vintage Christmas balls.  The strangest thing I saw was a pair of break dancing gold-leafed cherubs.  (I kid you not.  Go to Carmine and see for yourself.)  MIA:  The Pink Elephant, whose Bar W finale was last spring.  (I miss her and her fantastic accent.)  My theme of the day:  horses.  What I forgot:  Blog party…but I was in the middle of a car crisis.  My feet hurt, my sunburn hurts, my hair has turned into something that’s not usually mistaken for human hair, my feet are filthy, and I’m way behind on sleep.  Would I do it all over again.  Heck, yeah.  And I plan to.  Next Saturday.  Will I see you there?

Texas Monthly feels the love for Llano

Just a quick heads up to let you know that Texas Monthly, THE magazine of Texas, will be doing a small feature on Llano, Texas — home to my far-away space in Whimseys — in their November issue.  A reporter and a photographer visited Whimseys, so we’re hoping to get a mention in the article, but since the focus of the article is on the town as a whole, it may only vaguely mention antiquing.  AND…I heard tale that the photographer snagged one of my bottlecap charms on his visit — what a good eye he must have!  In case you don’t remember just how fabulous Whimseys — and Binky la Faye — is, let me share just a couple of pictures.

I feel some junking comin’ on!

Smashing Sidewalk Sale Set for Saturday

Warrenton…really?  I don’t THINK so!  Not THIS Saturday.  This Saturday, September 26,  is reserved on MY calendar for the sidewalk sale at Homestead Handcrafts in San Antonio.  10-6.  Great bargains outside.  Some sales inside.  200 vendors at each store.  Something for everyone, as THEY say (and since I joined the “Society of They” on FB, I guess I am They).  Hey, Warrenton lasts all week.  This sale is one stinkin’ day now…  and another one in about six months.  So there.  What’s for sale?  Well, I can’t give you specifics, but I’m guessing some good stuff and some other good stuff.  I’ve picked up cheap suitcases and art.   Someone had an excellent clock table at the last sale, but I couldn’t figure out what to do with it, so I didn’t buy it. Will it be back?  Who knows?  Why not stop by to find out?!  I’m not sure what I’ll be carting to the sale.  But … I will be having a one-day sale inside.  I haven’t quite decided on the discount, but it’ll save customers a few bucks.  And I have those excellent mirrors from Europe again.  Plus … I’m pretty sure “My Favorite Things,” the space I share with about five other peeps, will be transformed into a rough-and-ready sale in the back of the store by Saturday.  We’ve all got some stash that needs destashing.  Oh… and while you’re at the shop, be sure to check out the perfectly cute Halloween pendants on a tree branch on the front counter.  They are, as we say in Texas, cuter than shit.  Can I say that here?  And since it’s a cardinal sin to post without a photo, here’s a peek inside the shop…

 And after Saturday, you’re free to go ahead on to Warrenton.  Those are my plans anyway!  May your junk be plentiful…

Return of the Ouija meets return of the blogger

I’m such a slacker.  Don’t know what’s come over me.  Actually, that’s not true.  I’ve gotten a little carried away with the soldering iron.  It’s overtaken all my free time and most of my conversations.  And today I spent all my free time hauling junk for my space in Llano!  (Well, actually that was two days ago!  I’m just now finishing this post!!)

But…let me get to the point of this blog.  The alleged stolen Ouija has resurfaced.  It was stuffed behind a bunch of stuff somewhere else in the store.  The planchette has yet to be recovered.  And since I can’t think of ANY other use for such an item, I’m left believing it’s stashed somewhere in the shop as well.  The question that will never be answered remains … did someone hide the Ouija so they could be sure it was there when they had some available Ouija cash? Or … was it stolen, only to be returned due to the baaaaadddddd curse it was sure to bring to the thief?  Guess we’ll never know.  So, indeed, this little bit of information left me no other choice but to FINALLY sit down and blog.  The soldering iron has been put to bed for the evening, just like my entire family.  And I do have pictures from the shop to share tonight.  They were taken a couple of weeks ago, however, so some of the merch has already sold.  But at least you’ll get an idea of what I’ve been finding.  I didn’t go to many estate sales over the summer.  I’d read the listings, and everything sounded too new.  The couple of sales I did force myself to attend weren’t up to par.  So I’ve been relying mostly on my secret sources — HA!  Some secret — and the flea market.  I’ve always had a theory that there’s plenty of junk to go around.  But after a summer of slim pickins’, I’m left to wonder if, in fact, the world can run out of junk.  The love of old stuff seems to maybe skip a generation, so what if we’re approaching a change in generation, huh?  Pretty morbid thought, I know, but I honestly thought about it after seeing new crap everywhere I went over the summer.  But back to those secret sources… The source I stalked forever is, like, junk goddess to the masses.  I’ve run into a number of professional junkers on my visits to her.  In addition, she’s sold to Robin Brown of Magnolia Pearl and to the owner of a local store called Me & My House.  ::pressure::  I do have one anonymous source that I can’t reveal.  She’ll give me the boot if I do.  She said so.  Our meetings remain one big happy secret.  On my part, at least.  And any success that I’ve earned so far is a credit, in part, to her good eye.

I hope these photos are eye candy for you:

 

spectacular metal table with glass top is still available.

This is my favorite display space.  While I’d love the cabinet to sell, I’ll miss it when it does.  It holds everything!!

Even with her missing arm, she was a keeper… just not for me.  She’s on layaway for some lucky customer!

Radio is still available, along with 1914 yearbook and boy statue.  Sadly, the pair was split.

Phone cubby only lasted a couple of days in the shop.  Loving cup is still available.

One of my favorite finds ever:  a pair of leather boxing gloves for a child, with laces!  Still available…

old urn is gone.  Book and chair are still in the shop, but have been moved from this empty space, that I kinda just filled to look like a lovely fall garden, to my own space.

I love the colors — or lack thereof — in this photo.  Everything is still at Homestead, with the exception of the spools (which I have more of at home) and the really wonderful crazed and stained ironstone platter.

 

Bowling balls … they’re not just for breakfast anymore…

Steampunk.  Ahhhh.  Headed to Llano soon, since they haven’t sold.  And speaking of Steampunk, Sari Jane now has her steampunk jewelry at Homestead!  I’m a proud owner of earings and a necklace made from watch parts sans rubies. 

The black book with the cross on it has sold.  It was a turn-of-the-century devotional written in a foreign language that looked a lot like Spanish.  But, according to a Spanish speaker, it was not Spanish.  So … I’m stumped.

The mirror sold a couple of days ago.  The metal piece reflected in it, which is another one of my favorite things, is still there.  It’s an old table top that would be groovy above a fireplace.  Or over a bed.  Or in the middle of a big ol’ empty wall.  Or just about any place, really, since it’s so cool. 

That’s it for now.  It’s 1:08 according to my computer clock, so I must retire.  The flea bites early in the a.m.  Hope your dreams are sweet and junky!

Witchful Thinking

Halloween has arrived … well… at the shop and in portions of my house where crafting has taken root.  And every year it’s the same question from my husband:  “Why do we have a (insert Halloween item) in our (insert room of house) when it’s only (enter a date between August 1 and September 30)?  I understand his pain, but he doesn’t understand that Halloween’s in full swing in my head, and that the window of opportunity for Halloween sales will begin closing in just a couple of weeks!  Whew.  Maybe that’s what the lovely lady pictured below is thinking about.  Maybe she’s designing more Halloween charms.  Maybe she has some candle ideas.  Maybe she’s casting a spell on the person who lifted without paying a Ouija Board and a planchette!

Now, if I were to steal something, it wouldn’t be a Ouija Board.  It would be food for my starving baby.  And since I don’t have a starving baby, I really don’t see a need to steal ANYTHING.  Maybe the Ouija wasn’t stolen at all.  Maybe it disappeared itself through a portal it created to another universe.  My husband — this will be the last time he’s mentioned today, I promise — says surely a portal to another universe would be more complex than a cardboard children’s game, regardless of what my friend Karen thinks.  So … I guess I’ll go with the theory that the Ouija was lifted.  As was the planchette.  I’m not seeing good vibes for the thief.  Only bad can come from such a thing.  But … even though we’ve had a small theft, Ouija board sales now are up 300%!

My friend Sari Jane, who happens to be a vendor at Homestead with space across from one of my spaces, has caught the Halloween spirit (no pun intended), too.  Here’s one of her creations:

Technically, it’s a hat.  But in my house, it’s a table centerpiece.  Or at least it will be.  After October 1.  I have a bit of an obsession with steampunk, so I was highly attracted to the watch parts.  But I must say I dig the beaded dreads, too.  Here’s another shot of the hat:

Sari Jane’s a jewelry maker.  She makes some lovely pieces using glass, crystal and semi-precious stones.  She told me last week that she plans to start a steampunk line, so I’m tingling with excitement.  I’m determined to be her best customer, and I’ve yet to see a single piece.  That’s just how excited I am.

Here are some more Halloween goodies available at Homestead:

Candles, scary bottles, Witch art…are you shaking in your boots? 

Surely someone will see the humor in those shutters this year.

The Ouija Board that was stolen was the same model as the one above, I do believe. The mortuary vase has already sold — not to be confused with stolen.

This week I’m hoping to get more Halloween charms done.  I also need to finish a couple of tombstones and cart some Halloween stuff to my far-away space in Llano, since I’ll be starting Christmas preparations before you can say “boo!”