My Current Kenrick Covet List

Pardon my alliteration, but I'm a bit enthused about some of the items my fellow Kenrick Antique Mall sellers have on display, and I thought I'd share a few with you tonight, so you know there are treasures to be had inside this weekend as well as outside at the flea market:

This toy oven may be a little the worse for wear, but I love it exactly the way it is!

In the same booth as the above, this little blue owl pitcher is both adorable and handy!

This ceramic and wood pendant light fixture is so mid-century sleek.  Sexy!

This little lamp, I'm guessing from the 30's or 40's is such a pretty blue.

And for Halloween, a couple of exceptionally awesome scary clowns:

Love/hate!  The one on top is super duper scary - he looks frantic!

And just so you remember, here are a couple of the treasures still available in my own booth, #78:

The adorable sad-faced basset hound planter is willing to sell you his tiny shades!

I love this kind of old suitcase - great for an overnight or to carry your laptop.

There is something freaky about this little girl and her birds... Halloween-appropriate!

I think this little pitcher with its star bursts is more fun than the usual Blendo style.

My clown is a little more mid-mod dignified than the others, and not as creepy.

Don't forget, Flea Market at Kenrick Plaza in Shrewsbury this Saturday, sponsored by Kenrick Antique Mall, inside of which you can find all of the above, and lots more great deals.  Everything in the 2ndhand Moon booth (#78) will be 25% off all weekend!

New alley-shelf and a whole lotta Swiss Alpine

When I first rented booth 78 at Kenrick Antique Mall, I had lots of items to sell, but not a lot of good ways to display them.  Here's how it looked, last February:

A fair bit of inventory has come and gone since then, and lots has changed, but until today, the crummy little shelf in the third picture above has remained in the space.  It really was a crummy little shelf.  It's former owners thought so - they hadn't even bothered to donate it to a thrift store.  I found it in an alley shortly before the date I was supposed to move into the booth, and gratefully hauled it home in spite of it's slightly warped and wobbly nature so I would at least have something to display items on.  A few days ago, on one of my alley "shortcuts" I occasionally take for this very purpose, I found a somewhat less crummy shelf!  So today, Alley Shelf #1 was retired (I did donate it to the Value Village next door to the Antique Mall, because while it's crummy and warped and wobbly, it is still a shelf, not garbage), and replaced by New Alley Shelf.  Here it is in the booth:

New Alley Shelf in his new home, next to the Globe Drug liquor shelf I picked up a few weeks ago.

It fits perfectly in the same space as Alley Shelf #1, but is taller and deeper, which opens it up to more light, so the items displayed thereon are more displayed than just stored.

I also added a few recently acquired treasures to the booth, to gear up for the big sale this weekend!  Wanna see?

First, some more vintage clothing for Halloween costumes!  Zombies are the best scary creatures, in my personal opinion, and I think High School aged girls are probably the scariest zombies of all, so I brought in some dresses from various times and styles, so you can be a Prombie!:

Prairie/granny prombie

Square Pegs prombie

70's flamenco prombie

Floral curtains prombie

And a couple of other 70s pieces:

Men's floral 70s shirt

Blue lace polyester jacket

I also added this awesome vintage wind-up alarm clock that I picked up at an estate sale:

Now there's ticking in my booth.  If you stop by, give it a wind, will ya?

And I forgot to show you a couple of last week's additions, this pair of Glasbake dishes with a pretty autumn leaves pattern, and this cool mid-century magazine rack:

 

Back to today's new additions, I found this adorable little picket-fence shelf-thingy at the Goodwill pound store awhile back, and finally got around to fitting it in once the bigger shelf and the magazine rack made a little extra space on the blue and white table:

It's for sale for $14, but in the mean time, it's displaying some items that have been in the booth way too long.  This cute set of milk glass cups and saucers:

 And these Southern Comfort glasses:

Both of the above have new, lower prices on them, because they deserve happy new homes, sooner rather than later!  I didn't mark them with sale prices, just put new tags on, because that way they'll be 25% off even of these new prices over the weekend.  When you do a percent-off sale in your booth, the mall doesn't count items already marked as on sale.

And the best new addition this week, is a pretty big lot of some very pretty dishes.  Made in USA, too!  I read somewhere that they were once a promotional item given out by service stations.  I adore the pattern, with it's pretty blues and greens and the sort of star burst the layout forms on the dishes.:

The set is pretty big.  2 large plates or small platters, 5 regular sized plates, one large bowl, 8 berry bowls, 8 saucers and 4 cups.  The strangest thing is that I sold a sugar bowl of this same pattern very early on in my booth, in February or March, and since then I've acquired 2 more of the exact same sugar bowl.  All three have been in good shape with the lids intact, but I have never once found a creamer.  Also, I forgot to bring one of the 2 sugar bowls I still have at home with me to add to this lot.  Oops!  If it's still there after this weekend, I'll add the sugar bowl to the set for the same price, but at 25% off $46, I'm hoping it will all be gone!  Besides, I love the pretty pale blue on the sugar bowls, and the matching pair of them would be cute little cotton ball and swab holders in a bathroom if I sold them together!

Linking up tonight to these great blogs/link parties:

Apron Thrift Girl's Thrift Share Monday, Me and My Shadow's Magpie Monday, Coastal Charm's Nifty Thrifty Tuesday, Cap Creation's Thrifty Love Link Party, and Chic on a Shoestring's Flaunt it Friday.

Something you won't want to miss

I'm excited for October, you guys!  I've always loved October.  When I was a little girl that was largely because of my Birthday, and Halloween.  I suppose those are still two of the main events, but the attractions are numerous:  cool crisp weather that allows for layers and sweaters; Fall leaves that look beautiful, smell kinda spicy, and swish and crunch underfoot; apples, apple cider and apple pie (more on that soon!); the return of my favorite earthy colors to clothes and home decor; the smell of wood smoke on the air; snuggling under blankets; unexplained bouts of nostalgia... need I go on?

But now there's one more thing to add to your list:  The Kenrick Antique Mall-sponsored Fall Flea Market, next Saturday, October 6th! 

Now, I've been to a few flea markets in my day, and I want to be clear.  Sometimes, when people say flea market, I've gotten all excited and shown up and it looks like this:

Or like this:

On the other hand I've also, in my days in Brussels in the 90s, had the great privilege to go to the Saturday market in the Place du Petit Sablon, which was like this:

Unfortunately, I can't promise you that next weekend will be like the Antiques Market in Brussels, but I can promise you it's not going to be just knockoff handbags and sunglasses, or three guys with some books spread out on blankets. There will be tons of vendors, this much I know.  And last time (in the Spring), they had food, so there's probably that to look forward to again.

I, unfortunately, will be stuck at work the day of the sale, but I've seen it twice now, and it's prety big, with lots of variety (Kenrick Plaza's parking lot is super huge, and much of it will be taken over by vendors.  I think the last I heard it was 80+, and the smallest vendor space is the size of a parking space.  Not bad!  And don't forget, the antique mall itself is open, and practically every booth inside will have a sale going for the weekend.  The 2ndhand Moon booth (78, as if you didn't know, 2/3 down the 3rd aisle, on the right!) will have 25% off every single item, no exceptions, so it's a good time to snatch up something vintage for Halloween, or a Treasure Craft candy dish or planter,or some cool vintage luggage, or a bit of Pyrex, or even the gorgeous Mad Men-esque chair, seen here if you missed it!  And as if the flea market and the antique mall weren't enough, don't forget there's also the huge Shrewsbury Value Village right there - literally next door to the mall, in the same plaza!

So if you go, let me know how it went?  I'll be stuck indoors away from the nice Fall air and all the treasures, so I need someone to give me the scoop!

Right spiffing, innit?

So I spent some hours Tuesday at the booth trying to spiff the place up a bit.  Spiffing isn't always my strong suit, but I think I've made some progress.  I had decided a week or two ago that the blue industrial cup-washing rack thingies in the booth had to go.  I love the idea of them.  There a bright cheery blue, and kind of swirly looking:

I loved how they looked as a backdrop, like to this cute mushroom mug set (still available, by the way!)

And I thought they'd be handy for displaying things like scarves and small linens and things:

Here they were with a few little bits inside - still looked kind of fun.

But as the booth got more... I'll just say it: crowded, and more and more of the little cubbies in the rack got filled, I think it just became too much.  It was like visual noise.  It just didn't help show off the merchandise anymore:

With all that crammed in, it just looks messy.

I had already planned to take them down and do a bit of an overhaul of the space, and now, thanks to the  lead from my Mom and Dad, I had found a great shelf to help in reorganizing.  

You may remember that a couple of weeks ago, someone bought my little book shelf, and I replaced it with a somewhat rustic little blue and white enamel-topped table, which had already opened things up considerably.  I went from this:

Still a bit over-crowded!

To this:

A bit more open - making progress!

So Tuesday, I did the following:

1. Took down the blue crate/cup-rack things.

2. Stacked the small table that's hidden behind the suitcases in the above picture on top of the little wooden cabinet you can barely see since it's stacked with blue cup racks, overflowing with linens and piled with merchandise.

That gave me this:

A little more space for the eye to see, and with one door closed, maybe people will even
be able to tell the little cabinet exists!

3. I moved the suitcases back up against the back wall, stacked them and used them to show off some of the cute vintage purses, shoes, etc.:

Vintage suitcases are a personal weakness. A stack of three serve as an end
table in my living room, too!

4.  I brought in the new shelf.  You've already seen this pic if you saw the blog yesterday, but here it is again, in context of the overhaul:

I need to improve the display-quality of those linens.
Too much of a good thing is too hard to see.

5.  I took the little wire cart that I'd previously crammed between the beat-up low shelf on the right above and the clothes rack, I filled it with the smaller purses, and the scarves, doilies, small linens, etc., and placed it next to the blue and white enamel table at the front of the booth, and tucked the cheery little green footstool/doll table underneat:

I like the pop of green under the table to go with the bright green craft book on top,
and the little cart takes up very little space at the entrance to the booth.

6.  I swung the clothing rack around so that rather than being on the side of the booth, it's along the back wall.  It leaves less room for pictures/paintings/etc., but I'm still trying to make a go of the whole vintage clothing aspect of the booth, so I think it's worth it for a time.  At least through Halloween (because everyone who's anyone is going to be buying vintage awesomeness from booth 78 at Kenrick Antique Mall for the Halloween costume this year!).  

So here's the overall effect.  I don't think I'm done tweaking, but I like where it's going a little better than before:

I still feel like it's a bit too busy, but it's definitely getting better.

There's plenty of room to walk around inside now, and with more shelf space, things aren't as crammed together, so I'm hoping that makes it easier to see and not just look, if you know what I mean.  I think next I'd like to replace the wire cubes on the left wall with something that's less deep.  Preferably something I can put a price tag on and sell out from under my merchandise!  And I definitely need to replace, or at the very least paint the long low shelf on the other side.  That's the one I picked up in an alley a few days before I was supposed to start my booth.  Or possibly just put more tall shelves on one side and leave the other side free for some bits of furniture and wall art.

What do you think?  Is this better?  I'm open to any and all suggestions.  I just want to make buying from my little 2ndhand Moon booth easier and more enjoyable.  Am I on the right track?

Oh, and I keep forgetting to say, go Like the 2ndhand Moon Facebook Page, so you'll know when there's a sale, deal or special event!

Thanks for the tip, Mom and Dad!

I made a pretty good thrift score today.  Something I have been wanting/needing for some time.  A tall, narrow shelf for the booth.  And it's all thanks to my parents, who pointed me to exactly what I needed at a really good price!

I usually try to spend time with my wonderful parents on Mondays, and yesterday was a gorgeous day.  We met up and went to lunch at the Rib Shack on Natural Bridge in North County (very tasty, by the way!), and over lunch they mentioned that they had recently been down to Globe Drug on Broadway, and saw some shelving they thought would fit the bill for me.  I was excited to check it out, but not just then, because after lunch  we decided to have a little fun and visit the Zoo:

Sea lions always seem to be having so much fun.
The way the sunlight dances in the water must have
 something to do with it, don't you think?

I am convinced stingrays come from another planet entirely.
Just look at those alien bodies!  Also?  I got splashed by a shark!

 My favorite little zoo buddies, the Prairie Dogs, for some reason were in a posing mood for me yesterday:

     


The day also included Ted Drewes Concretes, and some good quality relaxing time watching last week's So You Think You Can Dance, which my sweet Mother records for me.  So clearly there was no time for a run to Globe drug at the time, we were too busy having fun!

So this morning after a couple of other errands, I made my way down there and found some great options.  Some of them I would have liked to have snatched up were too heavy and bulky to deal with all on my own, so I went with one that was lightweight and very functional, if not all that stylistically interesting.  I forgot to get a shot of it on its own, so here it is in its new home in Boot 78 at Kenrick Antique Mall, already laden with goodies:

Just the tall skinny shelf I've been looking for.  Plenty of room for treasures!

Stay tuned tomorrow for the big booth overhaul that went along with the handy new shelf.  In the mean time, here are a few other new bits, like some prairie-esque goodness for Fall, in both preppy and hippy styles!

       

And two very different examples of a little too much of everything:

High-collared, puffy sleeves, itty bitty pleats
and lace.  Victorian prim, although that strip
of lace down the front/center is not lined, so
there's a tiny bit of secret raciness going on.

Proof that 1970's craftiness knew no bounds.
A men's work shirt (JC Penney Big Mac)
with bandanna-flower appliques, eyelet lace
trim all over, and fancy red stitching.

And one example where, in my opinion, all the ribbons and lace and fancy stitching gets it just right, if you can see it (I'm not sure if I'm having trouble with my digital images, or my screen display, but everything's looking kind of blown out.  Can you see the details, or is it a white glare?  I just don't know!):

Pale, pale pink vintage Barbizon
bed-jacket (jammies top?)

So yes, if you're wondering, I am gearing up for Halloween costume-y goodness.  And here's one more little unrelated item that is also a bit over the top:

Fun psychedelic satin covered magic magnetic
photo album.  Flower (and paisley) Power!! 

Tomorrow night I'll post about all the rearranging I did at the booth today.  In the mean time, enjoy these fun link-ups I'm joining up with tonight:

Me and My Shadow's Magpie Mondays, Coastal Charm's Nifty Thrifty Tuesday, and, late to the party, Cap Creation's Thrifty Love Link Party.  And say goodbye to Beez Rental Design's Frugal Treasures Tuesdays, where the pretty peacock-y mugs I posted about last week were featured.  She's discontinuing the link-up, but her blog is still a fun read!