One week, two farms.

It’s been pretty darn quiet here lately while sequestered on the couch with The Foot.

I solemnly swear these will be sewn into something useful.

Daytime tv has a LOT of room for improvement and with every book & magazine in the house read and reread, I eventually turned my time and attention to ebay and etsy and the vintage fabrics waiting for me there.

I heart the internet.

I think the Doctor said "No ironing." At least that's what I heard.

And my broken foot and I are thrilled to have been promoted recently from the robotic velcro boot to an equally hideous item of medical footwear I refer to as The Shandal (shoe + sandal) because now I can drive again!

Footwear design inspired by the spatula.

Freedom!

Yard sales!

My antique mall space!

My fingers (and some toes) are crossed that The Foot will continue to heal because I have big plans next week that involve driving.

Road trip!

photo courtesy of Meadowbrook Farm

First stop, beautiful Meadowbrook Farm.

photo courtesy of Meadowbrook Farm

I have the magical powers of vintage tablecloths to thank for this visit. And a generous invitation from Teresa of Meadowbrook Farm, of course.

Because it would be weird to just show up, right?

I thought so.  

After seeing her incredible photos on her blog for a few years now, I am giddy with excitement to see Meadowbrook Farm in person.

From Meadowbrook Farm, I’m off to Farm Chicks! This will be my second trip to Farm Chicks and now that I know what to expect (great vintage junk, amazing displays, zillions of people’s behinds),  I’m feeling more prepared.

Last year I experienced vintage junk overload as soon as I walked in the door.

Just hoping no one steps on my Shandal this year.

Any big plans for Memorial Day weekend?  Hope it’s filled with fun things to do!

 { Thanks to all of you for your kind words, comments & emails about breaking my foot. You. Are. Awesome.  XO!!  -amy }

Ker-Plunky Goes the Maiden

That’s right.

About ten minutes into the frenzy of unloading my U-Haul full of junk at the Plucky Maidens event this past weekend, I managed to spaz out trip on the truck ramp, bend my foot entirely the wrong way and, in an attempt to be an overachiever in field of self-inflicted injuries, break a little foot bone.

( You know how people say "Oh, if it were a broken bone, you'd know it!"  My response to that: “You might not.” It took an x-ray two days later for me to know it. )

Luckily, I injured myself while in the midst of some of the nicest people on the planet. Many of the Plucky Maidens vendors very generously provided ice, manual labor (unloaded my truck!), ointments, candy, wine, advice, hugs & moral support.

Of course, now I'm kicking myself (with my good foot) for doing this at the start of yard sale high season.

To my gas pedal foot, no less.

So I have just the one photo of my double space at Plucky Maidens. I meant to take more but decided to sit down instead.

Happy to report that despite The Foot, I sold a lot of junk.*

Grateful.

 (*I’m always curious what people are buying – here are some of the things I sold:  mid century modern chair, rusty window screens, old single pane windows with chippy paint frames, a dresser without drawers converted into a potting table, galvanized metal tubs, metal numbers, two concrete deer (one of which was resold to someone else before it left the building!), garden chair, tall wood ladder, misc. metal cabinets and carts, all sorts of odds & ends, garden bench, milk glass vases, vintage suitcase, clipboard chalkboards, vintage tablecloths (I can’t keep them all … or can I?), chippy paint stepladder, garden books, wood/painted drawers, vintage pennant banners, typewriter, globe, mcm metal shelves)

Painting, wallpapering and a little graffiti

My free side-of-the-road chair, which has faithfully posed for many an etsy photo with a pillow or stack of vintage tablecloths on it, is getting ready to start over, this time in a lovely shade of aqua.  

A change in the seat cover fabric to follow as well. Something with red, I think, although I'm open to suggestions.

Brass frames have been quietly multiplying in a corner of the doily factory so they’ve been separated, decorated and will be shipping out to my antique mall space this week.

 And these chalkboard paint clipboards were an impulse project last night, inspired by this emerging young artist, Little Miss VJIMT.  (if you follow the link, scroll down to the inspiration)

In just about a week I’ll be unloading a much-larger-than-usual truck as vendor at the Plucky Maidens Junk Fest in Portland because in a moment of sheer insanity, I rented two vendor spaces.

 

If that doesn’t make some room in the Garage Where Cars Can’t Park, nothing will.



Fear, Optimism and Confusion

Him:  What are you doing today?

Me:  Checking out an entire antique store that’s liquidating.

Him:   ( stunned silence )

Him:  Just calling you back after I missed your call.

Me:   I was at Home Depot.

Him:  Buying shelves for the garage?

Me:  ( hysterical laughter )

Him:  Should we put a trailer hitch on the car?

Me:  Why?

Him:  For when you go to Farm Chicks. Won’t you be hauling a bunch of stuff home?

Me:  ( stunned silence )

And yet another version of my tiny antique mall space.

Hope you have a great week!



Springtime in Oregon

I have something on my mind today.

Not to mention on the ground and trees and roads as well.

Back in January, this scene was lovely.

...and it's still coming down...

On March 21, the second day of Spring, this is enough already.

Is there a form I can fill out to make this stop, please?

Averting my eyes toward the store-bought daffodils.

In other news...

Thank you SO much for all of your encouragement regarding my tiny antique mall space in Portland, OR.

So far, so good and things are selling. Hooray!

There is one little thing that hasn’t sold (that cute blue garden cart which is taking up quite a bit of precious real estate in the tiny space) but the always amazing Monticello Home & Garden Show starts soon so fingers crossed the blue cart will roll on out to its new home in someone’s garden.

I truly hope you’re having a beautiful day where you are. 

If you have some to spare, please send sun.

 



That Time I Thought I Had It Figured Out Before I Got There but Not Really.

Somewhere in Portland, OR, there’s a tiny antique mall space now open and ready for customers.

The (confusing & scribbled) General Idea.

The Dry Run.

The Before.

The During.

The After.

At this point, you might be asking yourself:  Why doesn’t the The After look anything like the The Dry Run? Where’s that white table?

Did it sell as it was being carried it into the store?

No.

No, it did not.

During the dry run, the white (drop-leaf) table didn’t have its leaves in place. I attached them later (er, after the dry run) and those leaves took up just enough space to prevent the garden cart from fitting under the table which prevented the chair from sitting on the table which wouldn’t allow the shelves to go behind the chair, blah blah blah...

The white table is now thinking it over in the garage where cars can’t park.

If I remember to travel with my camera, I’ll keep track of the evolution of this little space on Pinterest.

 I’m happy to report I sold a few things while I was setting up. Woo-hoo!

Hope you’re having a terrific weekend.

Dare to be square.

I’m pulling together the parts & pieces for the set-up of my antique mall space happening later this week and thought I’d share my ‘decor board’ for the space.

That’s right. I’m going all Candice Olson in my 15 square feet.

These are the display elements of the space – the vintage fabrics will become mini curtain panels to add some texture & color, the chippy green boards are shelves that will go on a rusty metal bakers rack, the yellow slats belong to a crusty folding screen and the vintage square dancing wallpaper is just to make it all a little bit fun.

A question about the original use of square dance wallpaper: Which room? I have envisioned this in every room in the house and can’t quite figure it out.

The kitchen is my best guess. Or the ballroom, maybe, if you’re a very dedicated square dancing enthusiast.

And have a ballroom.

Focus.

In an effort to keep costs down (and profits up, please), everything pictured, except the wallpaper, is from my personal stash.

Looks like I’ve been stashing more than vintage fabric lately…

Set up is on Thursday. Woo-hoo!

P.S. I bought the wallpaper here.  I plan to 'hang' it on my mall walls with thumbtacks.

And it turns out Square Dance is the official dance of Oregon.

It really is.