Brimfield July 2019: Summer Vibes from Cape Cod to Hawaii

Flying solo at this July's Brimfield Antiques Show was a mellow-cool time on a sizzling-hot day. Fewer dealers and fewer crowds made the pace more relaxed, and parking was just $5! It took me awhile to hit my stride, but after lunch, I discovered a handful of treasures.

Though I've visited Cape Cod just about every year since I've lived in Boston (since 1993!), I still felt a twinge of nostalgia when I discovered these charming paper place mats, probably from a long-gone seafood restaurant, or maybe a diner.

"Welcome to Cape Cod...now stop gumming up our bridges."

"Thar she blows...there's a perfect storm a-brewin' matey!"

Note pre-cut hanger hole on the place mat's right – so these were not for one-time-use.

I especially like the green and brown printing colors, and the paper has an interesting texture. The dealer had four of these at $1 each, so I bought all four, complete with vintage food stains.

Moving across the country and out to sea, I came across this hand-painted bud vase, made in Hawaii.

Though this vase only measures about 1-ft. tall and 3" wide at the base, it has bold presence. The unique shape and earthy brown tiki colors definitely caught my eye.

After doing a bit of research, I discovered this was most likely made in the 1970s or 1980s. It's in excellent condition with no chips or crazing. And, it was a bargain at just $20 – hello Aloha!

Whether you're in Cape Cod or Hawaii (or Beantown), you need a place to put your drink down, so this cute patio table will come in handy. And, it comes with its own bouquet of leaves.

The square glass top measures 10.5" and the metal white painted base is a little over 19.5" high. This piece was probably the deal of the day at just $12.

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The dealer who sold me the Cape Cod place mats also sold me this 22.5" x 18.5" black frame for $5. I hung it casually on my hallway bistro wall for now.

I especially like the decorative gold border detail.

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I don't usually buy vintage vinyl records because I don't have a good record player or stereo to play them on, but these were $1 each, and I had never seen them before so I thought I'd go for it.

Growing up, we had some of these "Great Songs of Christmas" albums, but this Album Four we didn't have.

My Dad had a copy of Herb Alpert's "Whipped Cream & Other Delights," which I believe was released around 1965, but I've never seen "Volume 2." After a bit of research, I learned this album came out earlier around 1963. Herb's first album was "The Lonely Bull."

The original A&M Records sleeve is pretty cool, too.

The back cover is in black and white with the track listing, and Herb's photo.

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My treasure splurge of the day was this pixie elf cookie jar, in, I think, mint condition. It has no chips or weird discolorations, though it does have crazing, which is normal for ceramics this old. It probably dates to the 1950s or 1960s. There are no markings on it, though it may have been made in California or the midwest, perhaps.

Since I have an ever-growing collection of felt-clothed pixie elves that come out at Christmastime, this will be their all-seeing mentor. I've never seen a cookie jar exactly like this, not even on online auction sites, and usually they're at least $50 plus $12 or more for shipping.

It was one of the first items I fell for, and when the dealer said $50, I wasn't quite sure. But by late afternoon, I was still thinking about it, which is usually a sign you want it bad, so I went for it.
He was really dusty, but when I arrived home, I gave him a good wash to make him squeaky clean.

I think I'll take my hat off and stay awhile.

 

For the time being, I'm keeping him in my office/play room, where he'll feel comfortable with other mid-century treasures. 

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I didn't come across many photo ops, but a couple of things did amuse me enough to take a snapshot.

This "Mediterranean" dining set was interesting, especially the black metal scrolling on the chair backs. Usually I've seen this "Spanish colonial" style of furniture with red upholstery. The green here is a bit unexpected.

Finally, the Jarts game at the bottom of this pic gave me a chuckle. My Dad and grandfather used to play this in our yard fairly often. You had to throw the "jart" (a hybrid dart-javelin) into a plastic ring about four yards away. The jarts are made of hard plastic with heavy metal tips – yikes, kids, look out!

Scary.

Scarier.

Scariest.

See you in September for another treasure-hunting adventure!

Brimfield Treasure Hunt, Wet Not Wild

Despite on-and-off rain showers, the first Brimfield Antiques Show of 2019 yielded its share of unique treasures, and, as always, a fun time hanging out with friends.

For many years, I've collected vintage clothing, partly because I enjoy wearing items that aren't cookie cutter styles, and I like mixing vintage pieces with newer items for a unique look. Also, I think a lot of vintage clothing is made better and with more attention to detail than newer items.

My first find of the day was this amazing oversized mohair cardigan sweater, in a beautiful chevron pattern in black and chartreuse green with a shawl collar, and two slanted front pockets. I especially like that it's trimmed with black, and I like the black buttons as well.

 

There are no labels or tags on it so I don't know who made it, though the dealer who sold it to me for $25 said she thought it was 1950s or 1960s.

This photo shows one of the pockets and buttons.
For some reason, the color looks more gold/tan in this photo, but it's really the chartreuse color in the previous photos.

In addition to being ready for next winter (or next week, you never know), I'm ready for 4th of July with my wide Bicentennial tie, a $2 bargain.

I will probably wear this "ironically" over a T-Shirt or tank top, just for fun. Or, I may just display it somewhere for the whole summer.

"Imported" polyester – so much better than the domestic stuff.

Puritan Clothing is still in business, with the original store in Hyannis, MA

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I always make room for playtime, and this vintage blond Ken caught my eye. He was buried in a box of Barbies with tangled hair and funky costumes. My other two Kens seemed very grateful when I brought him home. He was another bargain, at just $5, complete with his vintage gay tuxedo outfit, carefully coiffed hair, and no shoes.

Menage á Ken

Menage á Ken again

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A Brimfield day isn't complete without a little vintage Christmas. I went for this Electric C-6 Candolier, only because it came with its original box, which I've never seen before. This was another bargain at just $20.

The price sticker says "MAMMOTH," which was apparently a
discount department store, founded in Framingham, MA in 1956. I think the original price says, $2.19.

This is printed on the back of the box. I couldn't find any info on "Safe-T-Glo Co."

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Here are a few fun visuals that were too interesting not to photograph.
Maybe the sun will actually make an all-day appearance in July. I'll keep you posted.

This giant Calder-esque mobile sculpture would be perfect for my "museum room."

Stolen from Sally Tomato's garage while he was away?

Don't make me get up.

"I say, I say, Joe, I think ya done left yer, ah, Eastah lily in my bahn."

RIP Doris Day (sigh)

Mid-century Marvels in 2 Rooms

On my most recent trip to CT, my brother and I browsed through one of our favorite antiques shops, and I came home with two marvelous new mid-century treasures.

The first has been on my shopping list for quite a few years... a telephone table or gossip bench, as they are also named. Usually when I've seen these, they are made of wood and they are not in good condition, mostly because they were often used daily, so they received much wear and tear.

This one is probably 1950s, and is in excellent condition, with no torn upholstery or broken/missing pieces. (I already had the hotline phone, which fits perfectly, and works!).

The shop had a second gossip bench, identical to this one, except it had a lamp with a fiberglass shade attached to the back of the tabletop. Unfortunately, the table had separated from the metal base, and the particleboard underneath had disintegrated.

I love its black metal base with X-side design, and even all four rubber caps on the legs are intact.
I especially like the striated (they look like free-form horizontal brush strokes) vinyl upholstery with black, gold and beige, and the gold piping on the backrest.

This gossip bench is in my home office/guest bedroom. I placed it next to my groovy green Eames chair, which I've had for many years, also purchased at an antiques shop in CT.

And, of course, part of my cool TV lamp collection is not far away.

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In my master bedroom next door, I've added this vintage metal magazine rack, found at the same shop as the gossip bench. I think it's probably 1960s — it definitely has an atomic age look.

In addition to being decorative, it's highly useful. I'm still a big magazine reader, even in the digital age.

The bottom part, where the magazines sit, is fake wood, which makes me think this could be 1970s, too, since fake wood was popular during that decade.

My bedroom now has a pretty substantial assortment of vintage treasures, including a swivel tulip chair, atomic lamps, etc.

Wild about mid-century treasures

2019 is already yielding some great vintage finds. I can't wait to discover what May's Brimfield Antiques Show has in store!

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Rug Refresh || A Bit Audacious, But With Taste

A little over a decade ago, I redid my living room with a yellow ocher damask wallpaper, red fireplace wall (Benjamin Moore's Ladybug Red) and pink fireplace mantel (Benjamin Moore's Florida Pink). I also painted the insides of my built-in shelves in turquoise, and had Roman shades custom made in a red paisley print with scalloped fringe trim and tassels. For the finishing touch, I found the perfect rug at Anthropologie, with a solid gold center and patchwork square border in pink, brown, gold and grey. This is what the room looked like...

I've since rearranged the furniture a number of times, but I've kept the rug because it works so well. The only thing is, at 4' x 6', it's a bit too small for the room, which never really bothered me until recently. So, I decided to add a couple of rugs to give the room more oomph.

After looking on various websites, I found a couple that worked out well. The first is a 2' x 3' Safavieh "Soho" rug for the room entrance. It's 100% wool pile, made in India, in an oversized animal print.

One reason I chose it is because it complements the round bullion fringe footstool in front of my wing chair.

The late French designer, Madeleine Castaing, would approve, don't you think?

The second rug I added is this traditional area rug, which I placed at the other end of the room by the windows. It's a 3'6" x 5'6" Loloi "Loren Collection" rug, 100% polyester, power loomed, made in Turkey.

I chose this rug because it really ties all of the room colors together – red, pink, turquoise, with bits of brown, orange and cream – and, like the rest of the room, it's about the absence of white. In addition, even though it's new, it has the look of a vintage piece.

Getting back to Madeleine Castaing, she once said, "Be audacious, but with taste."

I think it's very sound advice, and what I often strive for in my home, especially with regard to colors and patterns. It's me.