With the holiday season (which for me includes Halloween) arriving soon, Patrick and I have been hitting up more flea markets in search of fresh vintage Halloween decor to add to our home, and after witnessing and overhearing certain things at the flea market I decided to go ahead with a dos and don’ts for flea markets. The same of course can be said for antique shows!
After only a month in Orange, Patrick and I had to make a trip back to Portland. Our trip was mainly for a friend’s wedding, but also for Patrick’s work, and it also happened to fall around the time of the October antique show at Portland’s Expo Center.
I honestly didn’t find too much at Expo, but I also did a bit of shopping around Portland, and I thought I would share with you my treasures that I brought back home!
The October show is an interesting and fun one, while not having as much clothing as the summer show, the October show boasts a lot of Halloween decor (as it takes place the weekend before Halloween) and Christmas decor as it is the last big show before the holiday. I was tempted by a great number of pieces for both holidays, but ultimately only came home with two Halloween pieces, which will sadly have to be tucked away until next year. The first was this dapper paper cat.
The other piece of Halloween decor is this redheaded witch pin-up from Petty. I often see this piece as a calendar page, which is smaller, so I was delighted to find this larger centerfold.
And speaking of records, I also bought this Disneyland Haunted Mansion album, which also features an illustrated story too.
What is so wonderful and interesting about this story inside is that it features the legendary Hatbox Ghost, even describing the ghost’s gag of his head disappearing and reappearing in this hatbox. It is this creative gag that was the ghost’s downfall, as late 60s technology proved not up to the task to make the gag convincing. He was removed from the attraction very shortly after the Haunted Mansion’s grand opening in August of 1969, and has since seeped into legend and become a beloved icon of Haunted Mansion fans. Sometimes I wonder why Disneyland does not bring back the Hatbox Ghost, as I think the technology of today would make the gag work now.
I added to my anti-Vietnam War/LBJ button collection. These ones are some of the harshest ones I’ve come across. You can read and see more of my collection here.
I couldn’t help swinging by my old haunt at Antique Alley to peek in to see what was new and visit with my pals there. While walking about, I stumbled upon an original of my favorite game ever, Barbie’s Queen of the Prom. The game was reproduced in 1994 and it quickly became a staple of slumber parties at my house. The funny thing about the game is that the boyfriend I always had to have (as part of the game includes getting a boyfriend) looks a lot like Pat in some ways, redish hair and glasses!
I also bought two blouses, though they have already managed to land themselves in my repairs pile! But I’m sure you’ll see them soon!
Well that wraps up my treasures from Portland! I hope to share more of our apartment with you soon too!
Over the weekend I took a break from packing to travel south to visit with my dad and go to two antique shows, Albany’s Antiques in the Streets and the Coburg Antique Fair. Both started early and my dad and I walked up the rows of canopy draped vendors who had their vintage wares out for sale. From ancient Native American baskets to turn-of-the-century oak furnishings to rhinestones glinting in the sunlight, both shows had a lot to offer. But sadly, I walked out of Albany with only a black velvet painting. And please pardon the boxes, as we are in the midst of a move!
But Coburg proved to be a much better show for me and I came home with quite a few goodies.
As we will have a patio at our new place I have been on the look out for fun and colorful planters that I plan on filling with cacti, including a wonderful figural Madonna planter.
I picked up this vintage ashtray for Bali Hai, the renowned tiki bar in San Diego that we visited when we were there last.
I was happy to also find more star patterned vintage glass ornaments, as I decorate our trees in space themed ornaments.
I also added to Patrick’s camera collection, with this unique Color-Flex dual lens camera.
I love anything vintage Disneyland, but I especially have a soft spot for the vintage ticket books. For those who don’t know, prior to the “passport” style of ticket that Disneyland now has, where one ticket gets you in, as well as allows you onto all of the attractions, Disneyland had a ticket book system, where attractions were graded based upon their thrill level and complexity. Tickets ran A through D prior to 1959, but in 1959 the E ticket was introduced. A tickets were the slower attractions, like King Arthur’s Carousel, working its way up to more intense attractions. E tickets were the most complex and usually the best. When the E ticket was introduced in 1959, attractions like the Matterhorn and the Submarine Voyage were E ticket rides, and in the following years, Pirates of the Caribbean and the Haunted Mansion joined their ranks. Soon the term “E ticket” became synonymous with something being awesome or really exciting. Since E tickets were what guests would exchange for the “best” attractions, finding vintage ticket books with E tickets in them is quite rare, but when I was at Coburg I found a ticket book that still had three E tickets in it! Ticket books met their end in 1982.
My mini-weekend get away was a lot of fun, and now it’s back to packing. We have about two weeks left in Portland, and lots still to pack. Once again, I’m not too sure how much blogging I’ll be getting in between now and the move. I really hope to get at least in a few posts!
Oh my, it has been awhile, hasn’t it? If you like Atomic Redhead on Facebook then you’ll have maybe seen the status update making note that I have been incredibly stressed out lately, which has lead to a lack of blogging. And while I have done some fun things (which you may have seen if you follow me on Instagram, and if you don’t follow me, just search for atomic_redhead) including going to the drive-in a few items, out to drinks and coloring (yeah, it’s a thing I hope to blog about soon!), the coast for a photoshoot for my friend’s cosplay business, and even to the kitsch-tastic Enchanted Forest for a friend’s birthday, I really just kind of wanted to relax and enjoy those events without really having to worry about photographing along the way for my blog. As much as I adore blogging, it can be an added stressor, as well as time consuming. Okay, enough with that. Let’s move onto something more pleasant! Treasures!
Over the weekend I drove down to Eugene to spend the weekend with my dad and go to a small antique show in the town of Brownsville. There wasn’t a whole lot with regards to clothing or jewelry, but I am okay with that, as both my closet and jewelry boxes are bursting at the seams! But I didn’t come home empty handed by any means!
I bought two ceramic planters, one shaped like a stagecoach and the other a donkey and a man taking a siesta.
I hardly have a green thumb, but I’ve been finding creative uses for vintage planters. Using them for make-up brushes, hair doodads (think Spanish style hair combs, or hair sticks) and I’m sure these two will find uses soon.
I picked up this ashtray from the Horseshoe Club in Vegas.
I’ve always loved vintage Vegas items, though my dad seems to love it more than me, and most treasures end up at his home, but this baby came home with me. Now, I don’t smoke, so you may be wondering what on earth I use vintage ashtrays for, and if you were to ever visit you would notice many of them scattered about our living room. I use them as coasters! Most of the circular, flat bottom ashtrays are the perfect size for glasses or cans of soda.
I was delighted to find this vintage California souvenir scarf too. I adore its bright colors and fun illustrations.
When rummaging through vintage charms I came across this delightful Egyptian sarcophagus pendant, which even opens! Alas, no mummy inside.
I also picked up some Christmas decor. Including two more of what I like to call demented reindeer and a little ceramic girl who matches this girl here (sixth photo down) though in a different pose.
And last but not least, I picked up a bundle of patterns. I have yet to go through them all, but I’m sure some will end up in my Etsy shop.
Speaking of my Etsy shop, it’s important to note that it will be going into Vacation Mode this Wednesday! Patrick and I are headed to California for a vacation at the end of the week. So if you are interested in any patterns, purchase them now! Especially if they are in the Last Chance section! As they may very well expire while I am out of town, and they will not be renewed.
Well, that wraps up the weekend. I hope to get a blog post in before Patrick and I hit the road! I hope you all had a lovely weekend!
This weekend was one of the most anticipated events in my calendar, the summer antique show at the Portland Expo Center, aka Expo. While Expo happens three times a year (the other two shows being in March and October – learn more about Expo by visiting their website) the summer show is often the best, as there are 400 additional dealers, bringing the total number of dealers to 1,400. So when you see “Expo” listed as the source of an item in an outfit post, it came from one of three of these shows.
This show I had the goal of purchasing more turquoise jewelry and more Egyptian themed jewelry and I would say I was quite successful in those two areas. I also made a few additional purchases.
While walking down one of the many aisles at Expo we stumbled upon a table with loads of half-sheet size movie posters on it. I can never resist movie posters. Seriously. As I sifted through them I didn’t come across any titles I was familiar with, though my dad most certainly did, and most were of the late 60s and 70s B-movie variety. But then I stumbled upon a poster for one of my favorite movies, The Assassination Bureau. Now, I’m not sure what that means for the status of The Assassination Bureau…I mean, I guess it is a little hokey…but I do love it. It stars one of my biggest idols, Diana Rigg, some of you may know her from The Avengers, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, and most recently Game of Thrones.
I was also thrilled to find most more barkcloth, as I’ve been going a bit pillow-making crazy lately (as you might have noticed if you follow me on Instagram). I was extra excited when I found a more abstract print, instead of the more traditional floral print.
While normally I am banned from buying glasses, I couldn’t resist this set of glasses depicting four of California’s missions, including Mission San Juan Bautista and Mission San Francisco de Asís, also known as Mission Dolores, both of which appear in Hitchcock’s masterpiece, Vertigo.
I also picked up two tooled leather purses. Though…like I need more? I mean come on, $10 a piece?
I was pleased to also add to my Egyptian jewelry collection with a scarab ring and scarab earrings.
I was bummed that I didn’t find much Egyptian jewelry that fit my quest of not buying necklaces. I told myself to focus on buying anything but necklaces, as I have so many necklace options, but most of what I stumbled upon were necklaces, and none were super amazing to me. But what I did buy a lot of was some gorgeous turquoise and sterling pieces of jewelry.
I purchased another sterling saddle ring, a much daintier one than the one I purchased in Bakersfield back in spring. This one in need of some polishing…
I also bought three sterling and turquoise rings.
But by and large, the best pieces I bought were a trio of Kachina sun face pieces – a bracelet, a brooch (which has a loop so it can also be worn as a pendant!) and a squash blossom necklace. All are a little different, but that’s what makes them interesting.
The squash blossom necklace is stunning and is a piece I am very happy to own. It’s also surprisingly light for how intricate it is.
But just because the summer Expo is over, doesn’t mean summer antique shows are over! Summer also offers three more antique shows, which I am greatly looking forward to.
Although right now I should be packing! I’m tagging along to Patrick’s business trip to San Diego. For all of my trips to California, I’ve never actually been to San Diego, mainly because most California trips end in the LA and outlaying areas because that’s where our family members are. I’m eager to go though because I’ll get to visit with Suzanne, of Sweetie Suz, who I’m eager to see again after the fun we had together at Tiki Day at Disneyland. I also get to meet up with Carla of Tiny Angry Crafter! There also appears to be loads of vintage shops and antique malls to visit and I’ve created a list and mapped out all the places I want to go. Hopefully I’ll blog from the hotel! Otherwise it’ll be when I get back!
This last weekend was one of the more anticipated events of the year, the thrice annual antique expo. With the upcoming Palm Springs trip looming in the back of my mind, I spent a reserved amount of dough and only a few things came home with me…
While there were a few dealers with clothing, there really wasn’t anything that I felt I absolutely needed, so the only clothing item I bought was this matador themed scarf…
Now while I didn’t really expand my wardrobe, I did expand upon my charm bracelets… I bought a little moccasin for my western themed charm bracelet.
To coincide with our upcoming trip to Palm Springs, I found this delightful Palm Springs aerial tram charm to add to my California themed charm bracelet, which is in desperate need of more charms!
At the last show I purchased a Mickey charm that I said I hopped would be the start of a Disney themed charm bracelet, and I am so pleased that I found two more charms to add! Sleeping Beauty’s castle, complete with Disneyland hang tag and Tinkerbell! Now that I have three charms, it’s time to get a bracelet to attach them too!
I do have a bit of a thing for charm bracelets. I think I may steal Butterflies and Daisys’ idea of a “Show and Tell” series and highlight my charm bracelet collection.
Speaking of Disneyland I picked up this Annette at the Golden Horseshoe 45, along with a Raiders of the Lost Ark book and story on 45!
Also, let’s talk about how spectacular Annette’s costume is here! I want it so badly.
I love unique Christmas decor, so I couldn’t resist this point-of-purchase standee featuring a darling gal with her arms full of presents…
The standee was at one of my friend’s booths, and we got to chatting and I told her about the summer show where I found the wallet that featured my grandfather’s name, Ray, and race cars, and she immediately took a bracelet off of her wrist and put it on mine, as I looked down I saw that it read “Ray”. She was kind enough to give it to me as a present.
Alright, back to the grind! I do a mad cleaning before leaving for any trip so we have a nice clean apartment to come back to. I hope you all had a lovely weekend!
The Portland Antique and Collectable Expo is about the vintage lover’s equivalent of a marathon. Or remember those Black Friday ads that Target had awhile back of a woman training for it? Yeah, it’s a bit like that. But instead of once a year, it happens three times a year. With over 1,000 booths to visit, there’s certainly a lot to see and buy, but, depending upon your interest, very little time.
To make my Expo (or any antique show, for that matter) experience a little bit better, I plan ahead. And thought I’d share with you some of my tips to make shopping at antique shows easier.
