Our Own Booth!!

We stopped in at the Antique Mall yesterday for the final day of a 4 day sale. Found a few items we were interested in, including a needlepoint sampler from 1880 & a vintage wicker rocker for our future front veranda. The sampler was set at a beginning price of $250 but at 50% off, it was a consideration. However, it wasn't grabbing both of us & there were a few things that made us not snatch it up. The size was quite small for the price (other samplers on site were listed between $45 & $76 for the same size or bigger), it had an ornate but broken frame, & finally, there was a lot of red & teal, colors we don't have in our decor. But it was a lovely picture. 

The wicker rocker was in great condition, very sturdy & comfortable, clearly vintage & painted a lovely sage green. We were running out of time & decided that we didn't have a spot to store it until our new house is ready, so off we went to our final Fringe performance for the year.  And it was only 10% off so we weren't in a big rush. 

During the set up at the theatre, the quick rehearsal of lines & then the performance, I kept thinking about the rocker, intrigued by it's look & color. Realized at one point that it would fit nicely on our back deck, under the gazebo, where it would be partially protected from the weather. Or we could put it in our front room & when we order the POD in the spring to store our extra furniture once our house goes up for sale in the spring, it could go in there. I decided half way thru the performance that if it was still there if we stopped in when we left the theatre, it was ours, but if it was gone, it wasn't meant to be but I'd know what to watch for once we move out to the country. So I let it go for the rest of the day. 

Show was amazing & everyone was happy. We tore down the set, packed it up, then bid our goodbyes to head home before the cast party. Mentioned to my dh that I wanted to stop to see if the rocker was still there & he said he had thought of the same thing while he was on stage. Love this guy!! So off we trekked, fingers crossed that in the 4 short hours since we had left the store that it hadn't sold. 

And it hadn't! So now we are the proud owners of a green vintage wicker rocker. And on sale, even if it was only 10%. We ended up paying $84 so we're very happy with the price. We looked at one last year that was really beat up & missing lots of wicker, with a broken back rocker, a very faded grey color, with lots of webs & dust. The price: $185. And it sold the day after it was set out, full price!! Ours also has a diamond design in two spots, so it's not as plain. This was our late anniversary gift to each other & we're so happy with it. Funny how sometimes purchases take time to happen but are so right in the end. 

Now the good news. We applied to have our own booth at the Antique Mall in April of 2012. They told us there was a long wait list, so we've slowly gathered items to sell but haven't gone overboard as we have limited storage space. Yesterday we thought while we're there we'd ask if we've moved up on the list. And we have! We may get a booth as early as November 1st. On the main floor! Not sure where but all I wanted was main floor. Even with an elevator & 2 sets of stairs, we do notice that some people do not venture upstairs, so main floor is the best. We're excited to try out this venture. Not to make money but for fun! Lots of work & we've talked to enough vendors to know the highs & the lows but we'll still have a big learning curve. One of my tasks today is to lay out what we have accumulated so far & start to list our  items in a spreadsheet so they are ready to go when we get the call that a booth is ours. 

Do you enjoy browsing in an Antique Mall? 

What brings you in? 

What kind of items would you buy? 

What things do you avoid? 

Have you had a booth in the past 

or do you have one now? 

Any tips you can share? 

I look forward to your comments!