Vintage Archives - Page 3 of 5

Beacon’s Retro Arcade Museum

April 16, 2009 RH 1 Comment

The Retro Arcade Museum opened up about a month ago on the west end of Beacon, NY’s Main Street. OMG, OMG, OMG, you have to go!! We’re talking completely cool arcade games from the 50’s-80’s.

Here’s how it works. It’s $10 per hour and then all the games are free. No quarters involved. Pinball machines from the 60’s and 70’s, back when they were good. Speed racing. Shooting games. Awesome.

But that’s not all folks! The digital juke box has every imaginable forgotten band of the 70’s. Oh yeah, other decades too, but I’m focusing on my own childhood. David Soul’s “Don’t Give Up On Us”! John Travolta’s “Let Her In”! Cher’s “Bang Bang”!

And there’s video too. You can put on old Lucy or Honeymooners episodes while playing. Or Chips or Starsky and Hutch. It’s pretty much like taking a step back in time.

We spoke to Fred, the owner while we were there. He’s originally from Canarsie, then Manhattan, and is now living in Hopewell Junction up here. He started collecting 6 years ago and already has a warehouse full of stuff, plus all the games in the shop. He restores them himself. I’m, like, totally jealous.

Retro Arcade can be rented out for parties. There’s a 50’s era kitchen in the back. It’s just too much fun! Forget DIA. Just go to the arcade!

Elephant’s Trunk Flea Market

April 6, 2009 RH 3 Comments

Yesterday was opening day 2009 of the Elephant’s Trunk Flea Market in New Milford, CT. I had heard so much about it from other dealers, but I never had a chance to get there myself.

My girlfriends and I trekked over from Beacon. Our first impression was that it was smaller than we had thought. We all agreed that it was no Stormville. But still, there was plenty to see and we spent the entire afternoon. Oh yeah, about the afternoon….this is an early market! Vendors start setting up about 5am and people are there with flashlights looking through their trucks. I know this from hearsay as I was in bed at 5am. We didn’t arrive until 11am when the booths looked fairly picked through. By 1pm, vendors were starting to pack up.

I was a bit shocked by some of the prices. I saw tschotckes there for $20 and up that I would be selling for $5. The fact is that vintage and antique prices have come down quite a bit due to the recession. It’s like nobody told some of these vendors. Hey, more power to them if people are still paying these prices! Personally, I think you can find better bargains at the Brooklyn Flea, but maybe I’m a bit partial.

Not everything was overpriced. There were deals to be had, especially towards the end of the day. We picked up a kick ass velvet painting of a dog for $5. The ultimate in kitsch decor! My friend bought a lovely shabby chic Victorian dresser for $50.

My best find of the day was the skeeball! I didn’t get a deal on this, although I tried my darnedest. But it was too cool to pass up. 1910 from Asbury Park. I shall try to sell it, but if I don’t get the $325 I need, it’s going to find a new life as a hall tree in my Bed Stuy brownstone. Picture some shelves, some hooks….not a bad little find.

Preparing For The Estate Sale

February 6, 2009 RH 3 Comments

I’m teaming up with Beacon clean out guy Mario to do our very first estate sale. He’s on schmoozing and pricing and I’m photography and marketing. The home is in Hartsdale, Westchester and the date will be Feb 28/March 1. Mark your calendars! I’ll post more details as we work them out.

But let’s talk about the house for now. It’s a 1950’s not-much-from-the-outside. The interior is pretty cool! There’s a pink tile bathroom as well as the fabulous one in the photo. I was just loving all the gaudy little details like the door pulls and light fixtures. Very “Aunt Lenore has plastic slipcovers”. Disclosure: My Aunt Lenore had plastic slip covers.

Obviously, the furniture and tschotskes reflect the style of the house.

Sneak peek at Flickr photos.

There are 2 crystal chandeliers and a crystal lamp for sale.

Lovin’ My Ebay Finds Today!

January 23, 2009 RH 8 Comments

I’ve been rediscovering Ebay after a bit of a hiatus. Reason being, I need to come up with some smaller items for the Dumbo market since the larger stuff was not walking away with the Eurotrash shoppers. My lazy ass is too slow to come up with all of those upcycled Reclaimed Home specialties by next weekend, so I’m getting by with a little help from my Ebay friends.

I purchased three lots last week. Two of them arrived today. The dolls and the salt and pepper shakers. I’m in love with all of them! I don’t want to sell them.

How cute is this baby? I have to figure out if this stuff is worth anything before incorporating it into other pieces. Anyone know anything about dolls?

At least this one was just a head, so I won’t feel bad about ripping it apart. I wish they were all just heads. Less work for me.

The best part about the doll package was that they all came in this case. Am I the only one who’s scared of dolls? This bride looks like she’s dead in a coffin. Kids play with this stuff?

Ok, I might have to keep this one for myself or ask my mom if she wants it. My father did a mean Geraldine impression.

The flip side of Flip is Geraldine! Too bad the voice pull doesn’t work. That would be killer!

My favorite salt and pepper shakers are these clowns because it’s two sets in one if you turn it around.

I’m in love with the fawns as well. All of these were made in Japan.

L@@k Ma, I’m Famous!

January 7, 2009 RH 4 Comments

The NY Daily News did an article yesterday on Brooklyn Flea’s Winter Pop Up Dumbo market. The online post gave mention to a few vendors, but ’twas the Brooklyn section of the print edition that had the photos I’ll be sending off to Mom.

The Dumbo market will be less flea/more vintage shop. In other words, we won’t be showing as much “junk”.

I’m pretty happy about the free publicity, but I’m still trying to figure out if I’m going senile or if the reporter made a mistake. It states that I’ve been renovating my Bed Stuy brownstone since 2002. Come on, now…. We’re not THAT pathetic! We bought the place at the end of 2005. We’ve been living in construction zones since 1994, but it wasn’t all one house.

Anyway, cool article.

The market begins this weekend and will go until the end of March. As it stands now, Reclaimed Home will be participating on January 24/25 and a few weekends after that. Check out the Flea Blog for more info on all vendors.

What’s In, What’s Out: Antiques

December 22, 2008 RH

‘Tis my day off so I’m just going to do yet another cheater post and go back to sleep.

I received the following email from Vintage and Modern. It fills us in on what’s hot and what’s not and gives us an outlook for 2009. Interesting.

And take it away good ole’ cut and paste…..

“2008 YEAR IN REVIEW:

The product that sold better than any other piece of furniture on-line was… The X-Brace Low Bench in Steel with Chrome finish and Black Leather upholstery used in front of beds

The collectible category that made the most ground was… Palissy ware ceramics and Austrian ceramics

The Furniture item that lost the most value… 1950s mass-produced designers like Paul McCobb

The paint color that got the most play in interiors was … Grey

Some of the slowest selling furniture on-line was … “Brown” Victorian style furniture

The product that flooded the market the most on-line was… 1940’s-1960’s Italian glass table lamps

The product that dropped the most drastically in selling popularity was… Mirrored Furniture

WHAT’S AHEAD FOR 2009:

One of the big trends will be…

Japanamation….Asian will be taking another turn in the spotlight. It will be a bold Pop graphic Asian and 80s Mr. Roboto Asian. There will also be more interest in black lacquered items.

The Serious Furniture Collector will want… Memphis style furniture from the movement that brought Pop and De Stijl to the 70s-80s, as well as mosaic ceramics from the likes of Antonio Gaudi assistant, Jujol.

The Hot Collectible will be… Very large scale Italian colored glass, American designer art glass of the 80s and early Italian industrial design.

The most overused colors for interiors will be… Black and white with pops of red (or the transitional alternative grey and white with pops of red)

The largest change in attitude will be… Moving away from the luxury trend of the early 2000’s to a sensible VALUE oriented (not cheap but correctly priced!) 2010’s.”

Brooklyn Flea Heats Up In Dumbo

December 9, 2008 RH 1 Comment

The Brooklyn Flea is moving indoors for the winter! The last day of the outdoor market in Ft Greene will be December 21st. It will return in April as the weather warms up.

Since Brooklyn can’t live without her antique and vintage goodies, Jon Butler and Eric Demby (flea fathers) have decided to launch a temporary pop-up market in an empty storefront at 76 Front Street.

The Dumbo flea location will be open on Saturdays and Sundays, 11-6 and runs from January 10th to March 29th. Hours and dates may shift due to unforeseen events or indeciciveness.

There will be approximately 30 antiques and vintage vendors and this heated space with electricity will be a bit more upmarket than the Ft Greene location.

Gothamist

NY Mag

Vintage Explosion!

November 14, 2008 RH 5 Comments

My Living Room! 🙁

How did this happen? How did the tschotskas eat my house? I keep buying all these wonderful smalls for the Flea and I’m not selling them as fast as I’m purchasing. They are taking over!

My Dining Room table! 🙁

So you know what I’m doing this week? I’m putting together some vintage holiday baskets. I took some less expensive items and I’m making theme presentations for the holidays. Although I took the time and effort to carefully construct each container, I’ll allow shoppers to substitute items because I don’t want them giving me tsoris.

“The Victorian” consists of a vintage bear wearing some antique lace attire, a figurine, 2 framed ballerina prints (not shown here) and 2 photos in a sewing basket that’s 1940’s but looks old. I have this priced at $65. That basket is what makes it pricey.

The Man Box is $40. This has a timer (maybe from a darkroom), a manly ceramic figure (ARRG), a drunk guy ashtray, a bell and an antique planer. All in a manly Herman Munster lunchbox.

This is The Patriot. Vintage flag pin and scarf, plus a shower/window curtain set. I’m throwing in a spare Obama/Biden sign. Well, that’s not vintage but goes with the theme. And it’s free. I haven’t found a container for this yet so it might just go in a basket. $35.

I also put together a toy one, a camera one a New Years one, a cooking one……I did twenty! I hope they sell. :0

Retro Countertops

September 12, 2008 RH 6 Comments

**Archive. Originally posted January 30, 2008.

Since we looked at vintage cabinets yesterday, we figured we would give you some options for matching retro laminate countertops.

Formica’s Classic Boomerang: Coral

We all know the biggie: Formica. Their “Classics” collection includes Boomerang, originally designed in the 50’s. This pattern bounces back to us (Get it? Because it’s a boomerang) in 4 historically kitsch colors, including aqua, coral, charcoal and skylark.

Formica’s Classic VirrVarr: Light Blue

Also available from the Classic collection is the VirrVarr, a European pattern. VirrVarr means criss cross in Swedish. This only comes in white and blue.

Read about Formica’s participation in environmental programs such as LEED and Greenguard here.

Nevamar, from Panolam Industries, came out with the Twist N’ Shout retro design not too long ago. There are 3 different color options: orange, blue or yellow.

Nevamar’s LamMate’s “Way Cool Encounter”

Nevamar offers custom print laminates that can allow any digital file to be incorporated into the laminate. They also offer some funky solid colors. They are not as readily available as Formica, so check out their dealer locator.

Nevamar Laminates are Greenguard certified.

Wilson Art’s Retro Mint

Wilson Art offers 4 “retro” designs under it’s Indie Collection. They also have some groovy retro looking designs such as:

Kaleidascope

Mondrian

Plaid

See here for Wilson Art’s Green Guard certification and other environmental info.

Back To The Flea

September 5, 2008 RH

Golden Horse: $ 85

After a summer hiatus we’ll be back at The Brooklyn Flea every weekend starting this Sunday. As long as we can handle the cold and people keep coming to shop, we should be there through the holiday season.

I’ve been trying to get inventory ready for our double space. I did manage to restore and update a few pieces, but I’m bringing quite a few inexpensive chairs that need reupholstering. I’ve got a handful of vintage fabric left also!

Stop by to say hello. Space C5 or thereabouts.

Green Closet: $150

50’s Stools: $40 each/2 for $70

Antiques on the Internets

July 22, 2008 RH 2 Comments

As an antiques buyer I usually just hit the local flea markets, yard sales and Craigslist. Now that I’m exploring different venues as a merchant, I’m discovering some sites that I knew about before but never really used.

Sometimes you don’t have time to shop around and if you’re looking for something very specific, it’s best to get it online.

For smaller vintage items, such as fabrics, linens and kitsch tschotkas, Etsy is the place to be! I’ve always loved Etsy for the handmade goodies, but it’s a great source for straight vintage as well.

Mitzi from Vintage Goodness recently started an online directory called The Vintage List. There are very few vendors on there as of yet, but help spread the word! If you build it, they will come.

Everyone knows about Ebay. I found many a bargain in my day and I’ve also had some let downs. Buyer beware. As a seller, I find their fees a bit too rich for my pocket.

Two antique malls I just signed up with are GoAntiques and Tias. I’m still working on uploading to both of my online stores so I can’t say how they are for merchant sales. One good thing about GoAntiques from a seller’s point of view is that they’ll automatically upload items to Ebay auctions, no fee. And unlike Ebay, these sites separate the reproductions from the real antiques. How many times have you done an Ebay search only to find new items sneaking in with “vintage” or “antique” in the description? I hate when that happens! Anyway, my take on these sites: Fewer bargains, but higher quality merch. It’s my impression that these sites are geared more towards collectors and dealers than the general public. I’m kind of lost there myself, but I’m learning!

Ruby Lane is the third big not-Ebay antiques mall. I really haven’t dealt with them, so I don’t know much.

Did I miss any? I’m sure there are lots out there!

Estate Sale In Newburgh Saturday

July 17, 2008 RH 3 Comments

7 piece bedroom set: $1600. Northern Furniture

Last week I hooked up with Aline and Gio from Bleecker Street Antiques to preview the estate sale they’re holding in Newburgh this Saturday. The woman who lived there didn’t update anything since the 70’s. Walking into the home is like going through a time warp. Strictly mid century furniture and tschotskas! And it’s all in perfect condition, albeit the woman has a smoking habit.

9 piece dining room set: $1800. White Furniture Co.

Well, I didn’t completely clean them out. They still have tons left. The vintage clothing is to die for! I got some great items, but I didn’t want to be greedy and take stuff I knew I’d never wear….like the Mary Tyler Moore dresses and the fancy 40’s frocks. I did get me some swell polyester pants suits though, including one sparkly flare pants number I can’t wait to get into! And shoes….there were plenty of vintage shoes.

The furniture from the 50’s and 60’s is still there. It was too big for me to take. My husband would’ve killed me. Good stuff too! What they listed on their site is the real thing, but they’ve got plenty of inexpensive junktiques too. Oh, there were dishes and glasses, linens, artwork, record albums (remember those?) and even a vintage TV and a snow blower. Check out some of my own finds on this flickr set.

So, come up. Do some estate shopping. Have lunch at Macchiato. And then buy a house for under $100k. Sounds like a plan!

Estate Sale
135 West Street, City of Newburgh
Saturday, July 19th
8am-5pm

Wallpaper, Vintage Goodies and Rain

May 19, 2008 RH

Neighbor Stacey of Amazulu was prepared for rain

We experienced sun yesterday morning for the very first time at the Brooklyn Flea. The double wide experiment was doing quite well and we were on a roll. And then the heavens opened up. And the afternoon was a wash out. At least we got rid of some big pieces so we didn’t have much to load up in the rain.

I did get to walk around while the weather was nice. FDR to JFK (no website), booth B14 had some very cool, kitsch vintage wares. Colorful, fun little goodies. They are there every week.

Designer Jill Malek was there with her beautiful-and-not-extremely-expensive hand screened wallpaper. Although they use virgin paper, the inks are recycled! Hey, it’s something. Looks great on the website, but wallpaper is one of those things you have to see in person to appreciate.

A Splash of Color

May 16, 2008 RH 2 Comments

I no longer work on my house. All I do is refinish furniture now. Shame, that. Anyway, wanna see what I’ve been up to this week?

This bed has been sitting in my garage since winter (obviously). It just wasn’t doing it for me. It has nice lines, but it needed some umph.

Too much umph? Actually, I love it. But then I like bright, shiny things. Just like a little kid. The sanding was the easy part. The gods weren’t smiling on me when I was painting outdoors this week. Between the wind blowing the friggen pollen, the bugs and the rain, it took me forever to paint. I’m going to have to charge $20k for all the time I put in.

From lemons you make lemonade. I ripped this painting when I got frustrated packing the van one day. No, I didn’t do it purposely, but I was careless. Anyway, not wanting to throw anything out, I figured I could recycle it as a table. Am I a genius or what? Ok, so I haven’t actually done anything yet, other than place the painting on top of the base and snap a picture. I’ll put a wooden back on it for support and mounting purposes. Then I’m not sure if I’m gonna go with resin or tempered glass. I’ll figure it out last minute….like everything else I do.

Flea Market Kvetch

May 12, 2008 RH 4 Comments

I usually like to take a 5 minute walk around the Brooklyn Flea on Sundays to look for designers who create home furnishings out of reclaimed materials. I did see a ton of new vendors there selling great antiques, but I didn’t take any photos. I will tell you this: The flea is becoming more of a draw for antiques and vintage dealers.

Unfortunately for some of those vendors (me), people are buying the smaller “junk” items more than larger furniture. Another vendor was kvetching to me at the end of the day how he has to schlepp all this stuff back to his house, which is too full to begin with. I hear ya, fella! My storage space is filled floor to ceiling and next week my new items will be going into my living room once again.

Don’t get me wrong. I sell the little junk too. I can earn a few hundred from items under $50. But I’d like to be able to do well with the furniture too. I’d like to empty my storage unit so I can get some fresh inventory.

The market is still in it’s infancy and perhaps it’s not a destination yet for serious furniture buyers or antiques collectors. Or perhaps the economy is just kicking everyone’s asses. I was speaking with another vendor who did Columbus Avenue last week only to break even. And she’s been in the business for years.

In any case, I’m going to do an experiment next weekend. I’ll swing for a double space and put out only the big stuff. I can’t fit many pieces of furniture in my 10×10 booth, so the few chairs and end tables I put out have smaller items displayed on top of them. And if more than 3 people are under my tent, it’s too crowded for others to fit in. So before I lay blame on cheap people, bad weather and holidays, I’d like to see if the fault lies within myself.

I’ll keep you posted!

reclaimedhome.com

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