I have spent the last couple of days in our bedroom eating dust! I am working on a small renovation in there. This one has turned into a beast. More on that later but since I had no great renovations in 2021, we needed a break from all the renovations in late 2019, I decided to do a top finds instead.
I thought it would be fun to share my top 10 vintage and antique finds for 2021. More in order of when they came into my possession than best finds it goes something like this.
On a beautiful February Friday I decided to do a bit of exploring and the car ended up in Plattsmouth NE. A pretty little river town right at the (You Guessed It) mouth of the Platte River, Plattsmouth has a nice main drag with a few interesting shops here and there. It isn’t on my main radar but it was fun to pop into an antique shop and actually find something fun. I picked up this crazy bedroom mirror that I realized with a bit of work would be a great edition to my mirror wall on the deck. Of course it was very dark stained wood and really had a case of the uglies
but for a negotiated price of $45.00 I new a bit of paint would work wonders on it. It actually turned into one of my favorites for 2021.
If you want to read about the restoration of this mirror you can catch it here, Creating an Outdoor Mirrored Wall from Vintage and Antique Mirrors.
Another favorite for 2021 was my Restore Store Queen Ann Desk Chair that I picked up for 35.00. Nasty faded leather, the seat falling out of the bottom, ugly stain on the legs and arms. I could see past all that to what it could be. A nice little bedroom chair with a bit of whimsy built in.
You can read about that here New Life for a Restore Store Chair.
In late August I was scouting the local antique mall and I came across this dresser. I had been looking for something to put in our powder room in our lower level. Now it is just a toilet and sink but I have plans! It was part of the 2019 renovation. We got the toilet and sink installed but suffering from burn out we are still missing walls. I need something for storage in this space and though it wasn’t exactly what I was looking for it was a good piece of furniture and I felt I could make it work. 1850’s mahogany I haven’t decided whether I will paint it or just pump up the finish. There are areas that definitely need work but right now I prefer to let it evolve. This piece had me at the inlaid key holes. Of course there isn’t a key.
For now it is in our bedroom and the only thing I’ve done to it is polish 2 brasses. I’ve been trying to figure out what color to paint the bedroom. I have no vision for this room which is always a dangerous place to be. Help I need a Designer!!! This is the room that I have been eating dust over for the last few days. The walls are heavily textured in a faux finish from 2001. I’m more than ready for a new look.
I have no recollection of really purchasing this pretty creamware pitcher except I think I must have bought it at the same time I bought the dresser. Whenever it was I’m really glad I did the price must have been right. When we got home from vacation I found it nestled in with all my iron stone. The tag wasn’t on it but the string was still on it. The dresser I picked up just a couple of weeks before we left.
The rest of the items I picked up on our trip. I like to always try to find an antique while traveling. I picked up this pretty crewel fabric that had been torn off recovered chairs. This was in Vicksburg MS. Loved the faded orange and green. Don’t know what I will do with it yet and of course it has to be cleaned but I’ll figure something out.
Then of course the Iron stone corn flour mold. This was in Franklin TN. We had walked into the vestibule of this shop and it was there behind locked doors. Not a bargain but I have always wanted a mold and up until that point I hadn’t bought much for myself.
Then of course there was the creamware Wedgewood Bowl from the 1940’s. Also a Franklin TN find, different shop. This is the same pattern as my moms dishes that I inherited. Her dishes are from the 1970’s but this bowl is a gem and I am thrilled that I bought it. Again not a bargain but a fair price.
It’s simply a show stopper with it’s footed base and rams heads. I just love it.
And the sweetest find of all. While in Florida I was on the hunt for an antique oil painting for our lower level room. I found one in an antique shop in a small town on the east coast of FL but didn’t buy it. It was an investment so I needed to think about it but, here’s the thing it looked like a snowy NE field.
The painting was a bit smaller than I wanted so I didn’t buy it right away. When I went back to get it on the last day of our stay, they were closed so I determined it wasn’t meant to be. But my oldest daughter and The Husband put their heads together and decided to gift it to me for Christmas. Making this painting very special. Presented to me on Christmas Eve in a black plastic garbage bag with a piece of ribbon stapled in the shape of a bow! The presentation was PERFECT!
I researched it and found the artist. He was from Poland late 19th Century early 20th Century. Oil on board.
Oh, and one last thing. While scouting greens before Christmas I ended up in a funny shop in Valley NE. Low and behold she had a bunch of Shiny Bright ornaments. I have a few from my grandparents but I don’t collect them. But on my grandparents tree every year was a spinner. A plastic cylinder with a salmon colored scalloped edge with a spinner inside. A couple of years ago I told the grand boys that they could pick an ornament off of my tree and they chose the spinner. I gulped because for some reason that stupid ornament means something to me and I have grieved it’s loss every Christmas since, even though a deal is a deal and I was thrilled that it spoke to them too. Anyway I came across the same spinner in this crazy shop in Valley and for 12.50 I snapped it up.
Is that ten? I think it’s only nine, oh well those are the most memorable. Shopping vintage and antique is so much more rewarding than shopping new. It’s all about the HUNT!
That’s it for now. I’m going to continue to eat dust and slog my way thru my bedroom. Pray I don’t die from too much dust!!!
Thanks for stopping
Shelley
