Warrenton draws me like a magnet

On Friday, my sister and I got up early and drove over to Warrenton. We saw houses for yard birds . . .

 . . . and houses for song birds.

This bench had so much cool all over it. It would be perfect on someone's front porch. It wouldn't be for mine because we barely have a porch on our house.

I even saw my sister kiss a pig. It belonged to Oleta of My Pig Flew. I scritched its snout. I certainly had no interest in kissing it even though it was a friendly pig. I guess most pigs are and I hear they make good pets. I just would have to be paid or lose a bet to kiss one.

I even spotted a metal weinie dog.

I bet Mike Wolfe would be all over this one!

Some people are just plain genious. How fun would this be as an entrance to your side yard?? I saw many, many more really fabulous items, but as usual, my camera stayed in my backpack most of the time.

Now Saturday was another story. My sister had to work so she couldn't join me for a second day of shopping fun. The radar made it look like the rain had moved east, so I decided to drive back over there only to have the sky opened up and dump some much-needed rain to the area about an hour after I arrived. It made shopping incredibly challenging. I wouldn't recommend it. You have to be made of tougher stuff than what I am made of.

The ladies that I usually see at Warrenton have moved over to Marburger Farms which opens tomorrow. I sure wish I could be there!!

Antiques Road Show Veteran

I am now an Antiques Roadshow veteran. My sister and I got up at the butt crack of dawn to drive to Corpus Christi to get there at 7:30 am. I am NOT a morning person so getting up and functioning at that hour is a major feat for me.

We got there just on time and scored an upfront parking space. Being from here, I knew one of the best places to park. Tee Hee.

Once inside, we walked 1/4 of a mile to the other side of the building and got into one of those cattle lines. Since my sister and I were among the first to enter the building, we weren't too far back in line. The first stop is at a table where you are given cards to indicate which line you are to get into next.  Everything flowed very fast and I was in the first line only about a minute.

I was given a ticket to see an Asian Arts appraiser but this item was really an item that a Metalworks appraiser needed to see so I had to take my referral ticket and get in a different line.

I was next up so no big deal. The appraiser told me that these two pieces weren't originally together. They had been "married". He said that the cloisonne egg is modern and the egg cup is English 19th century. I told him that it was a May-December romance. He valued the egg at $10 to $15 and the egg cup at $50 to $75. Based on what I bought it for, I did good. I picked it up at Mary Lewis Kleberg's estate sale.

My next item took me to the other side of the venue and I was first in line for that one as well. I bought a set of books that were all written by Rex Beach at the turn of the century.

All but one book was inscribed by Caesar Kleberg. I guess someone somewhere along the way didn't return his books. LOL The book appraiser said that these books would fetch more $$ around here since not everyone is familiar with the Klebergs or the King Ranch. Living in Kleberg county, we know exactly who the Klebergs are and all about the famous King Ranch.

Even with that, he appraised the set of 7 books to be worth between $250 and $300. SCORE!!

Since both of my items were once owned by very important, local people I was sure that they would want to film me for the show. I guess not.

 

Renaissance Antiques

One of my favorite spots is the Renaissance Antiques shop in Corpus Christi. It has a very different flavor. It feels like a shop you might find in Austin. Kind of has a Bohemian feel.
It is right next door to Betty's Trash to Treasures where I have two booths.
The upstairs is dedicated to vintage clothing and cool accessories.

Today, I was handed the keys to my very own display cabinet. I am just plain giddy!! I feel like I've been invited to sit at the cool girl's table.

Mega-shopping in Warrenton

Part of the fun of shopping at Warrenton is the friendly faces I see. Here, I am standing with Debra, Robelyn, Cindy, and Sandy. People come from all over to participate in the fun. I wish that I could bottle all of the creativity that is wandering around the place. I also wish that I could post the links to their blogs, but Blogspot is being a brat not being nice today.

I also stopped in to see Theresa. She hosts a super blog party that I love to attend. I sadly missed it this year. :( My time was split between seeing my Mother-in-law, my parents, and SHOPPING!

Since I only got to shop for 2 days this time, I didn't get to go everywhere I wanted. Most of the people in this line were headed to Marburger Farms. Maybe next time. There were cars as far as the eye could see. It took us about 15 minutes to travel 1/2 mile.

You never know what you will find. If a giant moose is on your shopping list, you're in luck!

It's amazing how many lovely treasures can be packed in one tent. I filled up the back of the truck at this spot.

This sign would be fun at a birthday party. I would have liked taking more pictures, but when I am shopping, I am on a mission and forget to take my camera out of my pocket.

I found the perfect way to cool off at Hilltop. Now we're talkin'! It sure was nice to sit in air conditioning for awhile.
Apparently, they move the cows to another location during Antiques Week since cattle do not normally go shopping. Better watch where you step. We are in Texas!

Wimberley Market Days

Next weekend, I am going to go visit my parents in Bastrop. I plan to show up with a loaf of freshly baked orange cranberry bread. My sister is heading up there also. While we are there, we are planning to visit downtown Bastop and check out the sweet antique shops that are sprinkled around. Then on Saturday, we will go and shop, shop, shop at Wimberley Market Days and maybe hit an antique store or two to top the day off perfectly.

Photos courtesy of Wimberley Lion's Club

The Junk Fairy blew me kisses

The Junk Fairy blew me kisses yesterday. I went to the A.R.K. (Animal Rescue Kleberg) sale and loaded up! The old apple crate will be great for displaying items when I do the Bishop Centennial Celebration next month. I was also quite pleased to find a bag full of artificial bird eggs. (They are in the short, squatty apothecary jar). The jewelry box still had its key and is in really good shape.

My plans are to cut up the tablecloth to make a nice liner for my rolling shopping cart. No self-respecting junker can go to Round Top without one. LOL. I just know that it is going to be very difficult to make that first cut, but that is what I bought it for. I am looking for a plastic tablecloth to make the lining and the vintage one will go on the outside. I will be on the lookout for some ball fringe. Wouldn't that be sweet? I would like to take it to Wimberley next weekend, so I guess I better get crackin'.
This Gold Metal Cookbook was an unexpected find. It is 100 years old; copyright 1910. It is in incredible condition, too! I can't wait to try out some of its recipes.

Theresa and Teresa

My trip to Warrenton would not be complete without a nice visit to see Theresa of Garden Antiques Vintage. She is a sweetheart and she throws a magnificent blog party. I wasn't able to get up there in time for the party. I'm still bummed about THAT!
You can find Theresa right outside of Zapp Hall in Warrenton. She's just around the corner from Mindy, Debbie, and Anne.
Theresa has an amazing sense of style and helps you see how you can decorate with the unique items that she carries in her booth.

Mindy & Robelyn

The three of us could have so much fun together! Wouldn't we make a fun group out on the town? You betcha! It was so nice to see Mindy again. I met her in person in September. This time, I also got to meet Robelyn. She has joined forces with Mindy and is creating one-of-a-kind handbags. Robelyn is known around these parts as Red Neck Chic. She makes her beautiful purses in the style of Primitiques 'n Poetry. It is a great pairing. Kind of like chocolate-covered strawberries and champagne. Goes very well together. I hope to have more time next time. In fact, I MUST be on hand for the next Blog Party hosted by Theresa. I'll keep my fingers crossed that I can schedule it.

American Pickers ROCKS!

I have a new, favorite show. It's on the History channel and it's called American Pickers. It may be dangerous for me. I LOVE to junk and this show just feeds that desire. From honey holes to windshield time, get the inside scoop on picker lingo from Mike and Frank. They even have a DVD for sale.They know how to find all the "good junk" and I'm taking notes. Monday's just got fun!

Photos courtesy of American Pickers

Miles and miles of SHOPPING!!

There was shopping as far as my eyes could see and as far as my feet could walk.



I just went from one awesome booth to the next. Most of what I found was in Warrenton. I also shopped Giddings and Fayetteville.

I ended up falling twice on my trip. No one said I was graceful. The first time I fell was when we were buying the trailer. The guy we bought it from had a Segway. When he offered to let me ride it, I jumped right on. He gave me a little lesson on how to manuever on it. He just didn't get to the part about how to get off of the thing. When I went to step off, it put more weight on the right side so it started to turn that way and sent my feet flying. I scraped up my elbow a little.

The second time I fell, I was watching for my DH to come back with the truck and didn't see the pile of stuff on the ground in front of me. I looked like I was sliding into home plate. I had white pants on. How I didn't get dirty, I'll never figure out.

They were even all set for Halloween.


I have spent far more than I had intended to. I just love all of my purchases. Can you see the gingerbread in the trailer? It came from Galveston. Galveston was devastated during Hurricane Ike. So sad. So very sad. I picked up several tables and chairs, a couple of neat dressers, minnow buckets, post office doors, I also found rusty tin ceiling tiles, chandeliers, and lots of other cool stuff. Now where am I going to store all this stuff?