Inspiring displays and new purchases

When my interest in antiquing first went from shopper to potential vendor, I did a lot of online research and used Blogger to find great leaders in this industry. I don't remember how I came across Theresa and her amazing blog Garden Antqs Vintage, but ever since I first discovered it, I have been an avid reader. I took a slight detour from my route to IL this summer to swing by McKinney to see Theresa's booth at the Antique Company Mall, and I was so excited when I learned she joined the awesome Binky La Faye store in Llano, my favorite shopping town in the Hill Country. I have visited with her at several shows, including Warrenton and City Wide here in Austin, and she is just as nice as can be. She is so very talented! I have purchased several small items from her, but I love them each so much that I am not sure I can part with them just yet; I will 'store' them in my house for now!

The pictures above are from her booth near Zapp Hall in Warrenton last week. She can make any combination of vintage items look great together! I particularly loved the ironstone displays and vintage Christmas ornaments this time.

I went back to Warrenton yesterday with my mother-in-law, her sister, and a friend  - the other two ladies are from New York and I thought they would really enjoy this exposure to Texas culture! We all had a great time, and they even came home with some purchases! I (of course) filled up the car yet again - here are some of my finds.

And here are a few pictures from my newly redecorated space at the Austin Antique Mall. 

Traffic jam in Warrenton! My fellow shoppers from New York could not believe this tiny little town had enough traffic to take an hour to go one mile.

And one more picture to wrap up this post....

You never know what you will find in Warrenton!

-Sarah





The Austin Antique Mall

The Austin Antique Mall has been a fixture in this great city for over 40 years. I consider myself very fortunate to be a vendor there and to have secured a space just as the mall was beginning a more 'modern' transformation - if modernizing is possible in the world of vintage and antiques! I love this place for so many reasons, including:

-the location: it is less than five minutes from my house and located along Burnet Road, the vintage headquarters of Austin
-the staff: they are so very friendly and will help you haul in your junk, even in 112 degree heat
-the hours: the mall is open every day from 10-6! Great for sales and for finding time to tend to the booth
-the customers: friendly shoppers who dish out compliments
-the merchandise: you can find everything from Halloween costumes to furniture, decore and dishes, junk to gallery antiques, vintage to primitive
-the online access: ability to check daily sales online each evening and easily track inventory
-did I mention the friendly and helpful staff?!

This place is great and I am really so thrilled that I got a space when I did; even though they had a waiting list this past spring, I believe it is much more lengthy now; the new vendors coming in are more 'trendy' and 'hip' than ever before! I am loving the new spaces and am happy to shop where I sell. I have been fortunate to meet the owners of several of my 'favorite' spaces, and they couldn't be a nicer bunch of people. I have run into these other dealers in Georgetown, Llano, Austin's Citywide Garage Sale, estate sales, and the Fredericksburg Trade Days. Here are a few of my favorite spaces:

This is the space I have admired since before I was a dealer in the mall, and it belongs to a sweet mom and daughter duo, Mickey and Brandy (hope I got the names right). They also have merchandise in the awesome 'Gatherings' of Georgetown.

The next few pictures are from my FAVORITE new vendor, House Wren. I first met this husband-wife pair at Austin's Citywide Garage Sale. I bought an amazing chicken nesting box from them and admired their beautiful industrial-styled custom lamps, as well as the tin roof panels that lined the walls of their booth. I was so excited to find out that they were joining the Austin Antique Mall, and now I can admire their creations frequently! I bought a great rusty bin from an old scale from them today.
  

This space is just down the aisle from me; while they are more industrial with their style, we have featured several of the same items: rolling metal racks, old mailboxes, locker baskets, and even the exact fan in the picture. They have great lighting fixtures as well.

The owner of this space bought some Mason jars from one of my friends at Burnet Road Flea Market when we had a space there in July. She has a great eye for eclectic pieces.

This space is always filled with vintage old-school goodness, like lockers, student desks, classroom maps, lab stools, etc. Love the maps!

The picture of this booth on the other side of the mall does not do it justice. They used to have this huge industrial silver metal table...would love to know what purpose it is serving for its new owners.

I absolutely love globes. Again, old school goodness. This vendor has a knack for blending delicate items with more the more masculine industrial style.



And what would a retail shop in Austin be without 'weird'? You can find it all here at the Austin Antique Mall! Be sure to stop by on October 1st and 2nd for storewide discounts, live music, and food.