Man, October flew by.

Greetings, dear readers.  The clocks have been set back and November is here and I swear October still has two weeks left in it.  It has been a very busy month going to auctions, visiting favorite haunts and spending a weekend in Arlington, MA visiting my youngest grandson.  Arlington is about an hour from Boston and 10 minutes from Lexington and smack in the middle of our country's history.  I love everything about this part of our country except when it is wet and cold...I was blessed with gorgeous, autumn weather with a clear blue sky, crisp air and leaves in all stages of color.  

Brilliant orange and yellow foliage against a blue sky.

My stepdaughter and her husband live along a gorgeous bike path that is busy with walkers, runners, riders and families.  This beautiful tree was along that bike path and I shot the image as I walked to Trader Joe's for some groceries.  

Amazing colors, there is nothing like a New England autumn.

Sweet Evan had a blast at the park.  Lucky boy, it is just a 5 minute walk from their house.

Sunday morning, we made a trip t0 Wilson's Market for some vegies right off the local farm.  Joyful pumpkins abound and were in the most interesting colors. 

 Examples of their bounty were visible on the outdoor shelves on the side of the building.

 Huge, pink pumpkins were beautiful and if I had to take one home I would have a hard time selecting as the were all so pretty,

 These pale, blue green pumpkins were very seawitchy.

 Nothing like offering pumpkins the size of a Volkswagen.  These bad boys were big enough to make a kiddie play house.

Wilson's of Lexington, Mass is a farm market in the truest sense.  From the smells of the frying cider donuts to the rooms filled with all natural foods fresh off the farm, I understand why Evan's mom and dad shop here weekly.

Back home and I had lots to do to get ready for the upcoming Open House at the Buford Queen of Hearts the first week in November.

Did a repaint on a scratched piece of furniture from Goodwill.  Pretty gray milk paint with a Kona wax finish.

Hit an auction on Saturday and came home with some great wins.

 Won a pair of antique Persian rugs.  Hand knotted with brilliant, natural dye colors.  

One of the rugs was a gorgeous runner.  Both are in my Victorian booth at the Buford Queen of Hearts.

 Lucky me, won a box of American flow blue pieces, all from the early 1900s.  Pretty little creamer pitcher, covered serve and a selection of bowls.

 Abbey blue transferware bowl was another find in the flow blue lot.

Made a visit to a favorite haunt, Vintage Village and found treasure there as well.  

Lovely, hand hammered pot is a keeper.

Picked up these adorable Americana trees there too.  They match up beautifully with the felt stocking.

Spent Saturday evening working up tags and Sunday afternoon loading up both spaces with Christmas items.  Still lots more to bring in before the Holiday Open House next week.

Santas, trees, nativity scenes and antique ornaments can be found in my main booth.

I love the look of an "Old Fashioned Christmas" and this part of my booth is filled with those items.

Santas, snowmen and gravy boats.  Everything you need for the holidays.

Holiday silverplate and an Eastlake marble table can be found in my Victorian space at the Buford Queen of Hearts.

Sweet Gynness says good night.  She has had a busy weekend with the trick or treaters and sniffing all of the holidays items I brought in to the house to price.  She wishes everyone a great week and blessings to you and those you love. Sea Witch

Weekend Auction

A gorgeous fall weekend.  Temps were cool enough that it called for pants and long sleeved shirts or a jacket but the sky was a rich autumn blue, the wind was moving through the trees shaking leaves gently down to the ground and the air was clear.  Perfect to be out and about and at my local auction house, the Atlanta Auction Company.

You never know what you will come home with from an auction and although I didn't win a lot of items, I am "over the moon" with my weekend wins.

Do, doot! Doot, doot, doot, doot, doot. Do, doot!  Hey, you know the theme to "I Dream of Jeannie" and that is exactly what this gorgeous decanter remind me of.  My first win and I knew it was going to be a good sign of things to come.  A gorgeous, antique Bohemian - cut to clear cranberry-ruby glass decanter.  The cut glass has a variety of beautifully cut imagery including trees, a deer, bird and a church.  Possibly an unsigned Volmer piece. Circa 1860-80s.

This is the most vibrant, Pheasant feather vintage hat I have every acquired.  Brilliant colors and the hat is in excellent condition and is now in my main booth at the Buford Queen of Hearts.

Fabulous, Iris Paris Opera Glasses, Mother of Pearl and gold washed brass.  The mechanicals are in good working order and the lenses are clear.  Beautifully matched MOP sections on the barrels are in excellent condition. The MOP eyepieces are each hallmarked "IRIS - PARIS” and it comes with the original leather with red silk case.  Circa 1880s

Beautiful pair of antique Majolica platters.  Gorgeous colors and the Fern and Basketweave pattern.  

 Ten, flow blue with gold lustre berry bowls in great condition.  Couldn't decide if I wanted to keep them or sell. I put them in my Victorian booth today, but if they don't sell by Christmas, I'm bringing them home.

Five flow blue butter pats, each has a slightly different design.

Pretty, American Brilliant cut crystal serving dish.  I have such a weakness for these pieces as I adore the way they throw light and prisms.

 And now, an unexpected win.  A museum quality, huge mounted hair work piece. This baby is BIG with multi colored braided and woven human hair in the lucky horseshoe pattern.  This is not a memorial piece as there is no photograph or date notation.  Victorian hair work pieces were not always memorials and were often "love tokens" that displayed family and their loves hair.  The small, framed pieces bring high prices and this very large piece is a great win.  It will eventually go into my Victorian booth but for now, I am reaching out to museums who are looking for this kind of piece.

 Finally brought in the late Victorian four panel screen.  Lovely oak piece with turned spindles at the top.  It was missing the fabric screens so I added a rich jewel toned burgundy.  It is in my Victorian booth at the Buford Queen of Hearts.

 Spray painted black, a spun steel candelabra that I picked up on the cheap at a local goodwill. Added burnt orange tapers and now it is ready for a Halloween mantle or table.

Royal purple feathered hat and box finally made it into my main booth.  I was waiting for the cooler temps to arrive before I brought them all in. 

This burnt orange feathered and crushed velvet hat is a beauty and is in gorgeous condition.

Finally, the biggest witches hat you will find this year is very wearable and fun for Halloween.  She is on my dress form at the Buford Queen of Hearts.  

It was a fun weekend with auction wins, clean and prep and price pieces and fluff up both of my booths at the Queen of Hearts.  

Gynness and I had such lovely walks as this fall weather just energizes both of us.   Have a marvelous week and blessings to you and those you love.

Meandering in Monore

It was a gorgeous weekend, perfect for a day of meandering in Monroe, Ga.  Wanted to stop by at a few of my favorite shops and see what kind of treasure I could find.  

First stop was Hodge Podge Art, Antiques and Interiors located in a gorgeous old cotton mill.  Lots of dealers with diverse merchandise and friendly staff make this a must stopover.

Fall decorative elements are everywhere and make the spaces festive.

Gorgeous Egyptian carved frame.   This almost came home with me.

Clever way to display your favorite Life magazines.  Frame them.

If I had a boat load of fun money to spend, this bad boy would come home with me.  Can't you just hear the sloshing of the suds and water and clothes?  I'm head over teakettle with this copper washing machine and would use it.

This business can often see a turnover of dealers and I was disappointed to learn that one of my favorite dealers, who always offered delightful seasonal items, was no longer there.  I purposely come to purchase her items and it was a bit of a letdown to not walk out with bags of her Halloween goodness.  No worries, on to the next shop.

Right next store to Hodge Podge is their sister shop, Market Place Antiques and Gallery.  Gorgeous gallery displays in large spaces, it is like walking into private rooms.  Large pieces and full rooms of furniture and decor can be found here.  Prices are geared to the design crowd, but there are some amazing offerings.

Laughed out loud when I saw this wild boar rug.  Loved the apple in the mouth...nice touch.

SOOOOOOO, love this. 

This is a lovely shop to visit and to see how decorators put a room together.  Didn't purchase anything as most items were out of my budge range, but there was lots of treasure to select from. 

Now off to my favorite shop in Monroe, Davis Street Antiques.  Davis Street was recently selected as one of the top 10 antique shops in the nation.  Couldn't agree more as Davis Street offers many "true" antiques within.  In addition, owner, Jimmy, is such a sweet soul and so fun to talk with that you feel like you are hanging out with family.

 Jimmy always has something interesting displayed at the entrance.  Today it was farm equipment.

Davis Street Antiques truly is a place to stop and linger.

Where to begin, so much to want.

Pretty purple antique bottles.

Jimmy knows how much I adore vintage/antique cut crystal so he showed me these two pieces a dealer had.  The price was a steal...a steal, I tell ya and I had to have both of them.

Lovely zipper cut crystal with starburst vase.  This came home with me too.

Pretty pair of French grammar books for children.  Early 20th century, both have delightful illustrations.

Finally, I find a Halloween piece and this up-dressed hat is too Halloween cha cha for words.  I carried everything up to the counter and as I checked out, Jimmy and I chatted about the biz and the upcoming holidays.

What I like about Jimmy is he shares my same philosophy that other shops are not competition -- but family.  He knows that people who live and love antiques and unique decorative elements may not buy something this time around, but they will be back in the future.  We both enjoy hearing about the "good" sales that dealers may have and we understand that it's about traffic.  Buyers may not have come specifically for anything or  "your" booth, but active traffic means you have an opportunity to sell from your space.  As I was telling him that I miss my seasonal decor dealer from Hodge Podge, Jimmy shared that she may have moved over to Ian Henderson's Antique Mall.  What?  Another place to seek treasure.  This is what I mean, he is not afraid of sending folks to other antique shops/malls in the area if he did not have it at Davis Street Antiques.    So, with my purchases in hand, I am off to Ian Henderson's Antique Mall.

Ian Henderon's Antique Mall is housed in a gorgeous antique mill on beautiful grounds and Ian, himself, was outside greeting customers, new and old.  

 Huge, Huge, HUGE!  Rows and rows of large spaces and two floors. Be still my heart.  This mall offers carts to make your selections easy to carry and I loved the sounds of the carts rolling on the old wood floors.

The spaces here are filled with antiques, collectibles and mid century pieces of every kind and priced for every budget.

Really liked the architectural salvage that was available in the spinning room.

On to the second floor, it was hot out so I grabbed a courtesy fan to use as I strolled.

 Sweet little antique crib is a delightful decorative element. 

Lots of large pieces like this delightful mercantile carriage.  I could so see me traveling in this in another life.

Several sleighs can be found at the mall as well.

WoW, guess who is at Ian Henderson's antique mall?  Yup, my favorite seasonal dealer.

She always has the most delightful displays and her prices are fantastic.

 Picked up this pair of halloween cat pin cushions...

this adorable needlework picture and a few window pieces that I forgot to photograph. LOL - yes, I am a natural blonde.

A gorgeous find, nice Brush McCoy art pottery in mottled cobalt blue.

Mid-century cookie tin of George Washington.  These were purposely made with a handle to be later used as a sewing or button box.  This is a keeper for me.

Marvelous Goofus glass bowl with original paint.  Ian Henderson's Antique Mall is now on my list of places to visit while in Monroe. Can't wait to see what they do for the holidays and a big "THANK YOU" to Jimmy from Davis Street Antiques for turning me on to Ian Henderson's Antique Mall.

As always, my Sunday afternoon was spent fluffing up my two spaces in the Buford Queen of Hearts.   Brought in lots of Halloween items as well as well as some of the treasure found in Monroe.

 

Witch's hat and framed needlework piece look great on this antique, bentwood and caned chair.

The black cat pin cushions look right at home with the primitive kitty all nested in a vintage, wooden bowl.

 

This happy guy can sit anywhere and truly is an ambassador for the month of October.

Witch figurine just belongs next to a working hourglass.

Sold a few of these last Halloween and these are the only two I have let.  Giant metal spider are the coolest decorative element.  Wish I had more as these tend to go fast.

Victorian pieces lend themselves so well to Halloween decor. 

Victorian high top boots, bowls full of china doll arms and legs, antique bottles and drippy candlesticks are all made for Halloween.

I know this post was a big photo heavy but I had so much to share from my buying trip in Monroe that I just couldn't make this post a short one.  Wishing everyone a terrific week and blessings to you and those you love.  Sea Witch