Antique Tool Chest Before, and After.

 

Remember this from yesterday's post? Well, I got to work on it right away.... scrubbing off layers of dirt and caked grease. Dawn dish soap did the trick. 

Much, much better. I am not going to touch it. No paint, nuthin'. Perhaps a little wax for protection, that's it. I love the rustic, industrial beat-up-ness of it.

Auction Junque

Hubby and I spent two days at a local estate auction and we really hit the box jackpot.

Because of work I had to be in and out and couldn't stay, so I had pointed out this box to him and said I had I had my heart set on it.

Several people told me it was from the WW1 era, but I am not sure about that. I am sure that it is filthy, and full of junk, and also that the wood underneath the filth is gorgeous. Kevin had to buy a whole "row lot" for $30 to get it, but by gosh, he got it for me! I am so happy with it.

I also got this wood box for $2.... it's pretty big - steamer trunk size.

This was also on top of my list:

 

I have been  hoping for, and kind of looking for, a set of metal lockers for a while. I have been falling in love with industrial looking items, for incorporating into my farmhouse decor... and I wanted a locker for storing my crafty stuff and my paints/tools in . This one is pretty beat up, but reparable... my buddy Carolyn and I decided to split it, if we won it - which we did, for $100.00! We're going to split it in two lengthwise, one part for me and one for her. :) I almost can't believe I got it.... wow. 

We got two truck loads of stuff.... and Carolyn's husband got the locker on his trailer and moved it. As usual, much of it gets taken directly to the dump, because you end up with so much garbage when you purchase row lots and box lots. There were tons of goodies as well, though... lots of industrial stuff, since it was a  shop and old country store they were emptying out. Fantastic junk!!!

 

Things I've Been Working On....

 I found this church pew as-is and put it directly into the shop! 

 I've been doing a lot of hand painted signs; this one I painted white and used a crackle medium to get the chippy old wood look. It turned out awesome! 

 I scored these at a huge charity shop in a nearby big city. I liked their unusual tall and narrow shape. I wanted the drawers to be a bit more of a pale aqua; but since I didn't want to buy more paint, I tried to mix my own, and it turned out darker than I planned. Oh well! 

 

 My mom had these cast off wood drawers from a desk that fell apart. I painted them and turned them into storage boxes! The one in the middle has chalkboard paint on the front so the contents can be labeled. 

 

 Chalk board sign.

 

 Hand lettered "Farm" sign! 

I gave this vintage table a tea dyed finish. 

Check out my new business page on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CarolinaVintage

Market Warriors: A Rant

 (Photo: PBS website)

Okay this is going to seem like crazy  nonsense if you don't know what the "Market Warriors" show is on PBS. But I just have to get this off my chest. (If you want to know what I'm talking about, you can watch episodes on the website. They're quite amusing.)

I have a intense love/hate relationship with that show. Mostly hate; but just enough love to keep watching with sick fascination.

I am no expert - this is just my humble, by-standing opinion. They're PBS, and I suppose they know what they're doing...... 

Okay. First of all, I cannot stand Miller. They need to let her go! Her and her whiny voice, prancing around the outdoor markets like it's some kind of beauty pageant stage.... please. 

Also: they have the whole premise of the show backwards, in my opinion. The contestants have to buy items at "flea markets" (pppppfffffffttt - the big Liberty, NC antique show? NOT a flea market.) where most of the vendors are professional antiques dealers. These people do shows for a living..... it's not a "flea market"!
So, because of this, the contestants on the show are pretty much buying at retail.... anyone can see that.
Then, the items they bought are expected to make money at auction?! Seriously? I thought everyone in this business knew that you buy cheap at auction and flip your item for more money in a retail setting such as a booth or shop or outdoor market type of thing.
How can you be expected to buy at retail and flip it for profit .... at auction?! C'mon. I just don't think it's realistic. Not one bit. All dealers know you go to auctions for dealios,  and mark it up in your shop/booth/shows.

One more thing: the items the contestants go for. I know they're given target items for the target rounds and those items have to fit criteria... I get that. Okay.
But in the Shop Till You Drop rounds? They're going for these smaller, decorative type items.... like tramp art boxes, and needlework samplers, and folk art, lamps, pottery, art glass, and stuff like that. Half of the time, I'm looking at items just off camera, that I know cold be sold for bookoos of money, just based off what little I know from the home decor point of view. From things I have seen sell for tons of money right now. Case in point: in one episode, one of the guys is looking at a piece of pottery for a couple of hundred bucks, and right behind him is a vintage wood card catalog. Now, I don't know what the dealer wanted for the card catalog, but I guarantee you, that contestant would have been able to make some kind of money on that card catalog, just based off how I know card catalogs are selling right now because they're so wildly popular!! He got the pottery, and lost several hundred dollars on it when their items went to auction. Meanwhile, I am screaming at my TV screen.....

The only dude who I think had half a clue was the bald guy they replaced this season with the new lady. He was a professional decorator or something like that... so he knew what people were buying! He always went for the mid century stuff, chairs, tables, etc. and he usually did really well when his items went to auction.

They have a good idea for a show but they need to seriously re think some of the rules and the "bones" of it, and re cast the whole thing. Get some fresh blood in there; liven things up a bit.... keep it different. Let them sell in other venues besides auctions. Let them pick their items from some place besides these glorified "flea markets" populated by professional dealers. Visit a real life estate sale; or a country auction, or a thrift shop, or a big church rummage sale.... or something.... Puhleeeeeeeze?

Okay, rant over.

:)

Check out the show: Market Warriors