pushing the envelope usually pays off

yesterday it rained like crazy. staying in, warm and dry was very appealing. plans made the previous day with much zeal were withering away - quickly. but this vignette was all ready to go and i was truly tired of it under foot in my dining area. finally, a break in the rain showers allowed me to load the truck.

this little lady is a bed doll in original dress and is perched on a child's rickshaw dated 1910. it has wire spoke wheels w/fenders. she has composition head and arms with cloth body, original wig, and lashes. she is very pretty. only a little crazing by the mouth.

the white painted piece under the rickshaw is oak w/2 curved bottom doors and 2 drawers. original hardware. great for bottom of bed. strong enough for sitting. absolutely adorable.

before i reached home, the white piece was put on layaway.

everything else seen in the pic is still for sale at:

serendipity

main st

temecula, ca

951-5064446

bad days and good days

missed a post last night. was just "one of those evenings". family issues - issues that i really believed would be and should be non-issues at this point in my life. anyway, by the time the dust settled or should i say, the volcanic ash settled, exhaustion had set in. settled down with a glass of wine and the laptop and while i thought, i dozed off. you know the kind of dozing off - the one where the glass in your hand starts to slip sideways and you jerk back, almost, to reality.







that was yesterday, this is today.







got up early, plopped open the classifieds with a cup of coffee in hand and realized i needed to get my butt up and out. lately i've been hearing about fabulous sales that somehow i am always a day late and a dollar short for. can't run this business this way!







being at the boyfriend's house, i quickly made the bed, straighten the den, tidied the kitchen, got dressed and left. had it been my house, i'd have dressed and left!







the line had started. an hour to go before the doors opened. dealers kept showing up. impatience grew. and, believe it or not, before the line departed into the house, a swarm of buzzards were circling above us. must have thought us all dead since we hadn't moved for an hour!







a friend and fellow dealer had joined the line. we chatted and decided that this would be a quick in and out deal since there was supposedly a bigger and better place to shop at. we were 2 of the last people to leave this estate sale - go figure. lots of treasure.







off to the bigger and better - yes, it was. more treasures. more business inventory.







it was a good day. a fun day. a day shared with a very good friend.

wickedly wonderful wednesday

took a break mid-day and snooped about town for just a hair. thought i should just in case some tantalizing treasure showed up in the last couple of days. nada. back home and polished (literally) the rest of the afternoon off getting stuff ready for the stores. really do love days like this - nothing like hair pulled up, wax under the fingernails and tons of sanding dust glued to the eyelashes.




finally finished the farm table i've be fixing. she is destined for country roads hopefully within the week. she's nice and wide about 6' long, i'm guessing.




another fabulous find - i've had for a while - is in the hopper. very cool, very old wood wagon. heavy as hell, large metal spoke wheels, under chassis is a work of art. i'd guess made for a child but large enough to haul stuff about in a garden. but she is tooooo nice to be put to work. definitely a must-have!! it will debut at country roads.











got a pretty primitive peely red paint wood standing coat rack done up. destination unknown at the point.











a large floor standing easle in light yellow worn paint. looks so delicate and elegant - like a stork. destination also unknown.







a half pillar in white over red crackled paint - also unknown.







today was a productive day . . . . . a wickedly wonderful wednesday.

squirt

unfortunately, i had to make that decision. squirt, my cat, could not be saved.

i seemed to have misplaced my pics of her as a kitten with her siblings and mom. thought i transferred them from my old laptop to this but guess not . . . she was a cutie - looked like her mom, sophie - hence the name squirt. she was the last of that litter.

she was almost 5 years old.

a little out of sorts today.

back to business tomorrow.

it's been a long kinda blah sort of day.



started off with a betrayal of trust. got a cat with some sort of absess or tumor inside of the nose. been trying to catch her off and on but she got wind of the intentions and has sidestepped us again and again. this morning she let her guard down and slam into the cage she went. felt like a rat. can't tell her it's for her own good. tonight she's confused and afraid at the vet's awaiting surgery tomorrow. this put the blah in my day.



the long came about with doing all the tedious little mundane fixing and finding and fiddling. stuff that's been put into that "i hate this chore" pile was being pulled out today. just enough work to help keep my mind off my cat but nothing that cranked me up.



as lame as this sounds, i will be praying tonight that it is only an absess. don't want to have to make that horrible decision of putting her down . . .

tonight

tonight i have writer's block.

tales/tails of raccoons - - trip to costco - - internet surfing - - id check - - marygold - - neighbor chat - - sago palms - - no phone calls - - cancelled dinner . . .

bits and pieces of my sunday but can't get any of these rambling thoughts to gel together for a post.


good night.

joe stack

at what point did the world get so crazy? what triggered the current intensity of violence? who said it was okay to take the lives of others when desperation sets in?







reading the story of joe stack in tonight's paper added another notch on my bedpost of disbelief.







flying a plane into a building because of hate, feelings of betrayal, or just plain "pointing the finger" is not excusable. if a person's life is beyond bearing . . . well . . . that choice is that person's and that person's alone. but to pull other unsuspecting folks into the malay is not right.







it gave me chills to think that at any time, any one could just do this. no one is safe anywhere.

possibly a child on a playground, a couple having lunch in a cafe, an employee at work . . . .







sorry this post is not upbeat tonight - that story really bothered me.

stacking, sexy black, square footage

prepping is key. planning is important to pull off the stack below.

for most dealers, a vision does not translate into fact when we get inventory to the store. every thing is off by an inch, colors clash, shapes scream "stop!".

while painting the featured black table, "square footage" repeated in my head. with a 5' diameter - at $$ per square foot - the mental calculator was in overdrive. yes, display is everything but could i pull off drama, display, and not discard dollars??

the circa 1940's drum table demands the same attention without stealing the limelight in original colors of cream, pale green and gold. classic french ribbon bows dance around the apron.

a stylish vintage iron table with tulips in chippy, deep, drab gold tops the drum table without stealing it's thunder. not too small - dimensionally perfect.

new, white and silver birds clipped to an old general-store-counter-top-bag-holder in black iron adds just the right amount of wimsy.

it's a "must see" at:

serendipity

main street

temecula ca

951-5064446

a perfect day

spent the whole day immersed in howard's wax (beating off the bees),rags, and steel wool. never got out of my grubbies all day. always look forward to days like this when i am housebound by design.



today's effort turned several sows' ears into silk purses. they are fab and will be tantilizing customers soon. for now they perch waiting for dispatching.



even an invite this afternoon to preview an estate sale day before opening could not tempt me to leave my property.



no pics. i'll wait till they arrive at their respective shops.

wood box - grain bin

i love this guy. he is rugged and handsome.

all original paint. wood box/grain bin - but lets not limit him to that! repurpose him - a great laundry hamper, kitchen trash can (large enough to hide a couple of nasty looking plastic bins), seasonal bedding storage, xmas junk, etc. thick board pine - fabulously aged to perfection. clean inside/out and ready to take home.

these lidded lovelies are getting harder to come by. don't let him slip away.

find him at:

country roads

chapman ave

orange ca

cubbies!

i love these partitioned d00-hickies with their promise of organization. most times tidiness was the builders goal. hand-made and usually task specific, they are very adaptable for today's usage.

this gem is not for the faint of heart regarding color. deep peacock bluish-green. wood w/3 rows of 5 cubbies per. originally a chicken condo. hangs neat and tight. measures 77" wide by 24" high.

clean and ready to go.

it may be purchase at:

country roads antiques

chapman ave

orange ca

tomorrow . . . is only a day away!

did a mad person driving marathon today. before leaving riverside, paid a visit to home depot. my beloved neighborhood hardware store moved and i couldn't find it yesterday. so very reluctantly off to home depot i went. still too fresh in my memory to relate that aggravating episode right now. lets just say, I HATE THAT STORE.


there is a reason for neighborhood stores - service. and our money stays within the community.


then off to lake elsinore to deposit new stuff and fix a piece (home depot part) which didn't pan out. then off to temecula to fix a piece - not satisfactorily. then off to perris to pick up a couple of fabulous heat/steam radiators. that experience is for another blog. then off to orange to drop them off. thank you bryce and matt!!!!! 2 hours worth of traffic later, i arrived back in riverside.











that bottle of wine never looked so fine!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!









"tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow, is only a day away!" have i mentioned, that song has been stuck in my head since the play - annie - at THE FOX on sunday?

sprucing it up

did a bit of sprucing up of my back porch today. with our huge weekend sale approaching, it needed a facelift. check it out.

i'm planning to be there saturday and monday and itching to cut deals.

this weekend is the time to take home that treasure you've been eyeing.

the grass is always greener . . . .

this quandry presents itself over and over again in life. it applies to almost every living creature with whatever ability to weigh the pros and cons of a situation.

employees, lovers, dealers, folks waiting in line, cats . . . .

this morning as i drank coffee i enjoyed watching this common occurrence at my residence: the one who is in, dreams of being out. the one who is out, passionately desires to be in.

there are key words in the statement above.

sammie was pondering on this very sunny morning - after she had been fed, of course, had slept in bed with me under the covers all night, had washed and groomed and was very bored - on how she might just kinda sorta want to stroll out the back door, thru the grass, and then dash back in quickly before, god forbid, she'd get her fur messed up.

spot, who spent another night in the cold, would hand over all her teeth and claws, and subject herself to being shaved if it meant she could possess the distinction of "house cat".

so they stared at each other thru the glass door considering the others lot.

once in a while, spot will venture in and she and sammie will rub heads, sniff noses, and quite possibly whisper in each other's ear - "bitch!".

is "the grass greener on the other side of the fence"?

most times not.

brain freeze

do you ever wonder just how much data our brain contains? do brains need to be defragmented like hard drives? how many phone numbers, birthdays, songs and jersey numbers before we run out of space? does quality info suck up more area than superfluous b.s.? what unit of info breaks "the camel's back"? can we flex it and stretch it in order to stuff more in? how can we dispose of old/no longer needed facts in order to store something new? where is the drain plug? do we all have the same space capacity? does the "needle get stuck in a groove" when we repeat? how about that name you can't quite remember, is it a bad spot on the disc?







tonight mine is in drain-mode. no wait, maybe i hit that bad spot on the disc. nope, definitely frozen - like a rusty nut on a bolt.





i promise you better tomorrow.

signs - the sky - stacking

love to stack!

love to get stuff up high. it seems to create drama.

love drama in display - (hate it in my private life).

every thing at one level is not me. unfortunately, my house has 8' ceilings - so country roads feeds this need to exceed. with the back room and back porch the sky's the limit - almost.

when shopping or just visiting, please crane the neck to find some of the best.

signs - being my passion - need space to display. talking mostly monster signs. this one is special. double sided. wood. framed. the hotel conneaut side is sort of reflective. check out the website for the hotel conneaut - an old victorian hotel.

none of my signs are crafts - they are all the real thing off of/from the real thing. this guy is fab!!!

the open all night sign is fun. heavy, large, double sided, enamel - white letters on a deep blue. wonderful.

the sidebar of this blog has a couple of my other signs.

at the back porch there appears to be a 2nd floor. all is for sale. not display only.

you should see the sign i have in my dining room. spectacular. heavy. solid wood. the letters are carved up out of the background in old english script. 10' long by 2' high. a spot, a spot, my sign for a spot!

white cupboards/white cabinets

tonight's blog must be dedicated to business. but my mind is buried in "titanic". it is on the tube again and i am watching it for the nth time. it's the mystery and beauty of the ship, the costumes, the defiance of young rose and the passion of the old rose - that captures my attention each time.

pictures of white cupboards/cabinets:

she is a big girl at 83 1/2" tall by 50" wide. a glass door topped stepback 12" deep at top and 15" deep behind solid doors bottom. newer white paint outside and old vanish inside. perfect for white china and pottery. steal at 689.00

another "hauled from iowa" piece - western border. old pie/food safe with punched holes sides. very solid. all wood. 2 top, 2 bottom paneled doors and 2 middle drawers. original white enamel paint outside and white/yellow wash paint inside. old cup hooks remain. great size at 71" tall by 37" wide by 15" deep. traditional, fits-anywhere style. very adoptable at 575.00

this stalworth fellow was hauled from carroll, iowa. heavy, thick, wide board construction. panels in the doors are hand shaved to fit. old crackly white paint over others. slightly tapered legs. very chunky look. not proud just functional. very primitive. love, love, love this piece!!!!! stands at 60 1/2 " tall by 44" wide by 14" deep. old - very old. i am getting low on treasures hauled back by my brother and i from the midwest. so they are very special. great price at 889.00

this little gem is a pie safe/food safe/cupboard with the cooooooolest ventilation air holes ever! as you can see they run diagonally in each of the 4 doors and are backed with screen. the old white paint is wonderfully worn. cleaned and waxed to seal it from further loss. she measures 41" tall by 43" wide and 16"deep. cutest little ovoid wood wheels on bottom. side handles made of turned wood made her easy to move about. old. very unusual, very sweet, yet very primitive. a local find. 575.00

here are the above 4 in my back space building at country roads in orange ca. tried to do a kinda large to smaller, white w/red accents thing-y. visual impact.

country roads antiques

chapman ave

orange ca

ask anyone at the front desk and they will gladly point you in the directions of these guys.

a magnificent old lady

a date! remember the excitement a date created? i got the same rush today.

instead of a baggy tee-shirt, got to slip into something female. a black leather jacket over something slinky really ramps up the amps. don't do this much so it was a real treat.

the event - a play. then dinner.

a magnificent old lady and still THE FOX:

not me! HER.

she has been restored. finally. she hosted the premier of gone with the wind. decades later she hosted porno flicks. as she huddled in shame for years on this corner, she was vandalized. her elegant lobby was divided up and rented out to small businesses that eventually went seedy. the whole neighborhood went seedy.

today, young and old flowed thru the entry doors. some filled with memories but most for the first time. i was a first-timer. i was impressed. she is beautiful.

should you ever get the chance, visit her. she will host plays and concerts. the city of riverside must have info on their website.

by the way - she is THE FOX theater.

thank you all !!!!!!

3 comments!!!!!!!!! never thought something so simply could bring such smiles and satisfaction. i am beyond pumped!! thanks for the support.





tonight, a little vintage shop in riverside had it's grand opening. the windows have been draped in paper for a month while they worked. every dealer for miles could sniff the excitment in the air. some of us have circled the shop like wolves hoping to catch the door unlocked or a possible peek at the treasures piled on their truck or a tear in the ominous window coverings. skillfully they managed to keep all a mystery till 5:00 pm Feb 5th. folks from all over attended. some to eat, some to shop, most to make it a memorable night. and all to lend support and well wishes.





be it a grand opening, be it a discouraged dealer (me, yesterday), be it a friend's affirmative nod on a questioned purchase - we all need and seek approval and encouragment. so once again, thanks for taking the time to read me and i hope to keep you coming back for more.




p.s. the nibbles were great, the shop is adorable, and i spent $$$$$$$$ . . . .

doubts and girlfriends

girlfriends are awesome!



i was having one of those "what the hell am i doing?" days.



the end of the month totals ($$$) at one of my stores was in the red - big bold red. i was questioning my stuff, my display techniques, my business choice. so what did i do??? at 11:00 am - way-ay-ay-ay too early for wine - i called, arrived at and convinced a very dear friend to go junking!! nuts? yes.







being a fellow antique dealer, she nor i need more stuff. of course, dealers are always looking for that fabulous, drool-creating find but that was not the intent. the idea was just to do what we love to do - hunt. the idea was to share the proverbial "shoulder to cry on". the idea was to get some reasurance.





this business is just that - a business. so red ink is disturbing. but this business is also a passion. once you join it, it becomes a way of life. some months are not good and some are.





so after much driving, many stores, lots of looking and commenting - i felt better. as i dropped her off with "thanks" for the counseling, i realized come hell or high water this is what i want to do. and i need to slap myself silly when i get in this mood.





we also realized that we are in the best antique stores.

for me that would be:





country roads antiques

chapman ave

orange ca


moras antiques

main st

lake elsinore ca



precious times

redlands blvd

redlands, ca



serendipity

main st

temecula ca

benches - benches

outrageously handsome, 10' long victorian ferry bench. layers of old paint. definitely makes a statement in any room without being overbearing. turned spindle back. turned legs - 10 total. all dowels and runner boards complete. thick plank seat - 1" plus. 3 arms are heavy metal and allow the back to swing over. reason: old ferry boat benches encouraged passengers to always face the shore the ferry was headed to.




purchase of this fine beauty caused many a sleepless night. my camp over cohort and i dropped jaws when we stumbled upon the bench. though "large" never scares me (one glance at my inventory would prove this point), the bench had to be hauled quite a distance - 100's of miles. it would also suck up considerable truck space and it was early in the yearly treasure hunt. nothing else compared after that. and i had to agree with pat, one fabulous piece is better than a dozen little nothings. 5 days later as i drove out of town, the bench was roped to my truck bed.











just the coolest alligator paint on this 10' long pine bench. discovered this guy at an old chicken ranch being sold. he was buried in one of the sheds along with another - already sold. thick wood. strong, sturdy and straight. just fab! 3 boot jack legs w/brace bars. scrub top. wide enough to actually fit almost anyone's bottom! would spiff up a hall, entrance, or better yet, a farm table.





both pieces are in residence at:


serendipity
main street
temecula, ca
951-506-4446

cupboard, flamingos, doorstops

hi, all. as assumed, pictures were taken after i arrived and got dressed up. the pics are dark and not very good. (sorry, bad photographer) the goodies used to deck me out pop against the black interior.

i love my cottage-y look. and the rumer was true, there are lots of flamigos!!

i am very deep - great for an entertainment center. wide and sturdy. sounds like i should be bearing children!! put me in kitchen, living, dining, or bedroom - i will adapt gracefully. old light green paint and clean new black paint inside.

oh, but the way - that wax job - felt even better than anticipated!!!!!!!!!!

find me at:

moras antiques

main street

lake elsinore, ca

951-245-5326

while we are talking cottage, how about some FABULOUS doorstops??? old and colorful, they add style and class to the decor.

kept safe and secured in a locked case, ask for dealer 1717 at:

country roads antiques

chapman ave

orange, ca

today - tomorrow

this morning i started the day full of piss and vinegar. the truck was packed, the ideas were flying, hopes of empty spaces filled my head, and off i drove.



lots of days start off this way. lots of days go just as planned. lots of days go belly-up.



today went belly-up. emotionally.



yes, i did straighten up, chat with fellow dealers, unpack the truck, add new inventory, and fluff. i took pictures of stuff for my blog, picked up my check, mulled over my tickets, and headed home.



shit happens. the fan was on, unfortunately.



tomorrow i will post pics. tomorrow will be a better day for everyone.