You may recall my post last August about my first (yes first) time antique shopping. Until the last year or two, I was never into antiques, instead preferring a more modern style. But as my life slowed down and I returned back to basics, so did my appreciation for the way “it used to be.”
Now, there are a lot of tacky vintage/antique goods that I can’t stand and I definitely look for more of a shabby chic style, but it’s so fun to go back in time and imagine the history of each of those items.
Today we went to my favorite antique mall near Denver. This particular place is huge, the size of an average Best Buy, with about a hundred or so booths sponsored by individual (unstaffed) vendors. It takes a good 3-4 hours to go through the whole place and it’s a very nostalgic process. I see old rustic, silver spoons and jelly jars reminiscent of my grandmother. I see old corelle dishes with the same patterns my mom had when I was growing up. I even see old toys I once played with 30 years ago.
And I also see stunningly beautiful antique furniture circa the early 1900′s, old Victorian photos and even kitschy Americana.
I snuck my camera in today and snapped some pics of my favorite finds…
First, there is nothing more that I love than really old wood (peeling paint a bonus!) and galvanized steel/corrugated tin items…like:
Watering can birdhouses anyone?
Along these lines, I’m also drawn to old wooden crates…
Old mason jars…especially when tinted blue/green or adorned with rustic lids like these…
and antique washboards…
There were kitchy, retro and/or silly things like:
Look, less fattening and cooked in hydrogenated oils! 
Yes, eat all you want! :0
These "chapeau's" remind me of my grandmother!
Now I'm kinda wishing I bought this crazy photo!
And of course, being in Colorado, there were lots of Old West goods…
Old skis and bindings
Barbed wire collection, anyone?
Ah yes, it was a good day…and although I didn’t manage to keep my wallet at home, I did leave only $50 lighter (antique box, antique frame and some old Victorian pics). And to think I used to hate antiques before, oh the horror!
What are some of your favorite antique finds?
I love antique very much too. You know I were born in the time Vietnam was very poor. We had to wear clothes til they worn out and couldn’t wear anymore. And because we were children growing up every year at that time, our clothes would be passed to smaller children, to my cousins who’re few years younger than we. It’s absolutely insane if you threw something away when it’s still usable. When I was high school student I had just few shirts to change and knew nothing about trends or fashion. But even at that time I loved to design my own clothes… Now the society changes… We have so many styles and I have too many clothes… Sometimes I feel I have too much to appreciate each items. Some people just wear a shirt few times then throw it away. Considering environmental issue now, this habit is disastrous for our planet. So the slogan “One’s trash can be other’s treasure” is perfect for our time.
ANd I love vintage too, love clothes that don’t depend on trends…
I totally hear you on the “having too many things to appreciate” – that’s when I know it’s time to purge and donate for someone else to use (and I really don’t spend a lot of money right now anyhow as our discretionary spending budget is quite low now…but I’m much happier!