Street Fair Photos

My bad about not posting but I'm trying hard to put as much stuff as possible into the antique mall booth AND into my Etsy shop.  Many thanks to those of you who have purchased from me--and if you see something you like, ask about it.  Who  knows what deals might be made?

Some photos from the recent Slidell, LA Antiques & Crafts Street Fair.  Next time I'll do something about the mess on the ground, but we needed to have wrapping materials handy.  I had about two years' worth of saved plastic bags, paper, and bubble wrap.  At the end of the fair, it all went in the trash.  I now regret that, but at the time all we could think about was packing up and getting the f**k outta Dodge!

On Saturday, the first day of the fair, about five different women wanted to buy the hutch.  This previously resided for years in the breezeway at my mother's "farm" and held all manner of tools, paint cans, several bird's nests and an entire sub-continent's worth of spiders.  And for some weird reason the back legs were shorter than the front legs!  I didn't want to sell the hutch, my cousin kept telling me I could get a lot of money for it, and finally on Sunday when a young girl desperately wanted it we told her $200 and then came down to $100.  She had a specific spot in her home for the piece but didn't know if it would fit, so she took measurements and a photograph and went home to talk to her husband.  She promised she'd call back whether or not she was going to get it, and about an  hour later the phone rang.  It was her husband, nearly apoplectic that ANYONE would pay $100 for what looked to him like something going to the burn pile!  But oh, would we take $50 for it?  Needless to say the hutch is back in my garage. 

 I may take it to the antique mall booth where I know someone will snatch it up.  In the world of Shabby Chic decorating, this is a major prize.  Plus we made all four legs the same length.  The hutch isn't crooked--the street slopes a bit. 

If you enlarge this photo you'll see all my beautiful Fenton glass plus so much more.  On the bottom shelf are my three vintage (not Pottery Barn) Eva Zeisel platters, Ben Seibel gravy boat, and four Ben Seibel coupe soup bowls.  No interest from the hordes.  I did sell the "Rustic Line" McCoy vase (on the shelf with the lime green Fenton) that was marked at $15--but of course the buyer asked for a price reduction and I nearly spit in her face.  I mean, come ON!  She put it back but returned a bit later and paid the $15.  Jeeeeeeeez.

More people than I care to count tried on these glasses--Lowly Trooper Sally was in charge of the jewelry/small items showcase and she spent half her time showing the sunglasses.  Women would try them on, look at themselves in the washstand mirror, their friends/family would tell them they look adorable . . . and then they'd say, "Oh, I don't think so.  They're just so WILD, you know."  Um, yeah.  You couldn't ascertain that BEFORE you tried them on?  They've got great big honkin' butterflies and rhinestones for pete's sake!

That's a very old McKee Glass jadeite fridge dish, vintage aluminum tray, Hull figurine, Sierra Vista Chinese man planter, Sascha Brastoff ashtray, Blendo cocktail pitcher and six small glasses, Fire-King Peach Lustre mugs, atomic ashtray . . . none of this sold.  Let me assure you that the prices were waaaaaaay cheap.  Unfortunately, the fact that I wasn't giving everything away deterred many shoppers. 

Antique glass oil lamp, two Siamese cats (one with rhinestone eyes!), barkcloth panels, antique bookshelf, very heavy glass cake stand with cover.  None of this sold either.

I do have to say that I actually came out of this experience at a profit and many of the other vendors didn't.  Between the weather (hot, humid, threatening to rain), the LSU game on Saturday and the Saints game on Sunday, we were lucky we had the crowds we did.  My friend Barry told me it was THE WORST street fair they'd had since they started!  This is also due to the economy, the oil spill, and--of course--Obama.  Or as they like to refer to him down here, "that asshole in the White House".

Do NOT get me started!  Well, here's one little thing more--my sister (you know, Lowly Trooper Sally) and I are confirmed, committed, loyal liberal Democrats.  We've been liberals since college and unlike many people our age (old) we have pretty much stayed the course.  So here it was, with 100% humidity and a heat index in the 90's, and we were offered paper fans, which Cousin Gwen grabbed and started to distribute to us.  When we saw what was printed on the fans, however, we shrank back in horror and refused them.  Cousin Gwen is like my husband--she hates all politicians--but if they're giving away free cooling devices, she's in.  Needless to say she was amazed that we refused the fans, and when we explained to her that they were from DAVID VITTER, one of Louisiana's senators and a politician for whom the term "far right conservative" could have been coined, she looked at us like we were out of our minds.

Lowly Trooper Sally lives in Alabama and wasn't all that familiar with David Vitter, but thanks to the fan she was able to see what he stands for and what he's against.  Pretty much everything that he was against we're for, and vice versa.

So, there we stood, sweat dripping from our brows, down our backs and onto the pavement, making little sweaty puddles.  Cousin Gwen just sat in her lawn chair, laughing at us and fanning away.

Friends, sometimes ya gotta sweat a little bit (or in our case, A LOT) to maintain the courage of your convictions.