Huge Wilmington Toy Auction!

 It was a totally amazing huge toy auction today in Wilmington.  Put on by Boston Auctions with our beloved Vinnie as the auctioneer!  This was their first vintage toy auction and it was better than any other one I have ever been to.  Everything from dolls~ Barbie, Shirley Temple, and Madame Alexander to name a few, to trains and car race tracks complete in their boxes.  Something for everyone~ especially us baby boomers looking to buy pieces of our childhood!

Just to give you an idea of the typical Wilmington set-up the first photo is across the front behind the auctioneer, but the covered carts aren't usually there~ they were up for auction today.  Second photo is some of the rows of tables that are to the right of the audience.  Third photo is the left with rows of tables in the opposite  direction   from the other side.  The quantity must be seen to be believed! 

Biggest sale of the day was a Barbie lot.  There were many of them~ dolls, cases, clothes, etc.  The one I thought looked interesting was a bunch of clothes, many rumpled, but there were many many accessories.   Who doesn't love Barbie's "stuff"?  She had, actually still has, it all!   So it was time for this rather messed up box of goodies.  I wasn't the only one who noticed it...  It started at $20, like many of the lots were started at, and it went higher and higher...  Finally ended at $350!!  The winning bidder just sat there like she was at a funeral.  I hate that.  I know everyone "plays" their own way, but come on, when you win it's cause for celebration!  And so tomorrow, or maybe later today I guess...  I will tell you what I won that gave me cause to celebrate!  And celebrate I do!  With a sitting happy dance!  Just ask Vinnie~ he kind of notices  :)  You want a clue?  I WAS celebrating Mickey Mouse's birthday!!

 

Taunton Grey Barn Auction!

Totally awesome haul at the Grey Barn Auction house in Taunton on Monday night!  You must visit here if you have a sense of adventure at auctions!  I have unfortunately heard this place as auctions that are the result of dumpster diving  :(  Not quite, but often stuff that you wonder why anyone would buy it.  But I know for a fact there are plenty of people who wonder why I buy what I do!  You roam all over a giant barn during preview and yet, you don't see most of what is put up for auction!  So when they held up a little old sewing case full of notions and they said "sewing stuff" my head did one of those swivels...  lucky I didn't get whiplash!  Anybody want this sewing stuff?  $2?  Pick me!  Pick me!!  Then a bag full of "sewing stuff"...  $2?   Mine!  All mine!!  Mint in package notions.  A fishing lure in its box.  An awesome map from 1967 with all the fish you could find in North America at the time.  A 1969 graduation tassel.   A fabulous vintage dress pattern that is on its way to a friend in CA who is sewing for Disneyland's Dapper Day...  and more and more...  All for the grand total of $4!!  And then the adrenaline rush with anticipation for what I will find!  Oooohhhh I do love this game!!  Now time for Wilmington and a huge antique toy auction.  Probably won't get anything but should be fun!  Vinnie's the auctioneer and that's always a great time!
Happy 84th Birthday Mickey and Minnie Mouse!! 

Sports Collectibles Show!?

Hi everybody!  Can't believe it's been so long since I decided to chat with the world!  I don't think I went anywhere in the month of October and unfortunately it took its toll on my disposition  :(   Now it seems, life is full of adventures again~  Hooray!  I even made my way to my sewing table for the first time in a couple years.

My first adventure after going basically nowhere for the month (well, I did see Frankenweenie twice!) was to a Sports Show.  The Greater Boston Sports Collectors Convention.  Yeah, me at a sports show...  Kind of like, well...  I think my sons have more interest in a visit to a fabric store with me than I have in sports.   I went because my son wanted to go see some of the celebrities.  And there were plenty scheduled.  Actually paid money to go in and look at balls...  walls of balls!  Mostly signed by baseball players.  All prices.  Saw a Walter Johnson for sale for $64,999!!  Always something like that to keep me paying attention.  But my adventure was looking for Mickey Mouse!  As always, I guess  :)  Very hard to find there.  But I did find him on one wall.  Also found a fabulous little wall of Lego figures!  And my favorite chat was with Gary Sohmers~ King of Pop Culture~ at his booth.  Always count on him to have some pixie dust to make me smile.  Turned out to be the highlight of my day as Gary had a Disney dream pin~ a tiny cast member silver pin that says DREAM on it~ stands for Disney Resort Experiences Are Magical!  So my journey into the world of sports ended with a little magic to bring home... as all adventures should!  Lots of auctions coming up~ tell you about some tomorrow!

1966 Disneyland Map Auction!

This past Sunday was another glorious almost fall day here in New England!  Wanted to go for a ride anywhere...  So off we went to Wilmington to the Boston Auctions and Antiques auction.  They are Auctionzip auctioneer #29986.  We decided to head that way because of a photo they had of a mixed lot of Mickey Mouse goodies.  Nothing special in the photo, but I couldn't tell what was beyond or under what showed in the photo...  Mickey, as always, was calling my name! 
So we got there with plenty of time to preview all the great box lots and everything else.  All box lots start at just $2!  Wonderful mixed lots.  Mickey's box wasn't very exciting.  But right next to that box was a great looking lot of bright Japanese goodies.  As I was picking through it, I opened up a small cloth bag that contained a vintage View Master and about two dozen reels that went with it.  I took them out and started reading them~ Badlands, Yosemite, Disneyland!  Then 9 more vintage Disneyland!  I put them back and noticed a large folded paper against the inside of the box.  I unfolded it and it was a vintage souvenir map of Disneyland!  I had to run to my seat to get my glasses...  Read the info printed on the map and it said 1966!!  I HAD to have that map! 
The auction started...  We won a sound board for our son for just $10.  A pair of hand painted artist signed and dated chairs for $5 each.  My conservative husband liked them because they were nice sturdy chairs... I liked them because they were different.  Won a ton of cookie cutters in three lots.  So inexpensive I bought them all~ $5, $8, and $9.  Holidays, letters, animals, etc.  A souvenir package of cactus cookie cutters~ so cute!  Would take many photos to show them all.  Assorted decorator's tools too.  And wouldn't you know right in the middle of the first big basketful was a Mickey Mouse cookie cutter!  Can you find him in the photo? 
Two Colonial re-enactors showed up!  VERY cool!  They were sooo old and grizzled, and their uniforms were so real, they looked like ghosts who were visiting auctions and anyplace else where they might find whatever it was they left behind...  The one time I forget a camera...
While chatting with a lovely lady and admiring a box lot she had won, I commented on the cool purse that was in the box~ it was made from telephone cords!  She gave it to me!  That's the kind of people that tend to be at the Wilmington auctions~ we all share.  Especially with box lots where you often only want one or two things. 
Then it's time for the box lot with the Disneyland map!  Starts at $2 like all of them...  I put up my bidding number and have no intention of putting it down until I win...  Somebody bid against me!  I get weird about people bidding against me for certain Disney items.  I want to turn and look at them and say "don't waste your time, it's mine!"   Especially vintage Disneyland treasures.  What I consider the original batch of pixie dust~ when Walt Disney still walked the park! 
Oh!  I almost forgot to tell you~ I am sure you already figured out I won the box lot with the map, but I have to tell you it was only $22.  Did my happy dance right into the evening!  Even better~ when I got home, I looked the map up and one had just sold on ebay for $44~ and mine is in better condition!
But to me it's... priceless  :)   
Makes me wonder~  What makes you do YOUR happy dance?  
Have a magical day!!

Brimfield Flea Market

Where has all the time gone?  Am I the only one who never has enough time?  Seems like only yesterday I went to the Brimfield Flea Market but it has been weeks! 

The Brimfield Flea Market is an amazing expanse of flea market fields.  Both sides of the road for as far as the eye can see...  It is always rated in the top five flea markets in the country with any publication that makes these lists.  Many many fields, one after the other~ all with names to make it easier to keep track of your traveling companions!  You collect something or actually need something vintage, there is a good chance you can find it here!  Tons of vintage clothing and linens.  That's my favorite.  That was my big find for the day~ a large box of vintage linens, about 50 nice clean assorted pieces for the grand total of $10!  I bought it, as my son said, in the first ten mintues of getting there.  It turned out to be THE bargain of the day!

Many many other booths full of linens, aprons, clothing, fabrics.  It took great self control to not get tempted into examining every single piece.  But as my son said, everything I looked at looked the same.  And there were SO many other treasures to discover!  Amish carts, suits of armor, buggies, dishes, skeletons!  Oh my!  And a lion, of course!

I do have to tell you the one thing we did not find much of at all~ sports memorabilia.  My son, Sam, who joined me on my flea market adventure, is an avid Red Sox fan (yeah, I know, poor Sam), and collects autographed baseballs.  And I thought linens were expensive...  We only saw one booth with sports memorabilia.  A nice assortment of balls, bats, and paper, but that was it.  Not much anywhere else in the whole flea market.  Of course I guess the sports guys could be in the areas that charge admission.  Yes, there are some flea markets with fended in dealers that charge admission.  I don't see why anyone goes in.  Why waste money looking at another couple hundred items when there are thousands to look at for free? 

That is part one of our Brimfield Flea Market adventure.  So many more photos to show you.  Lots more color.  And I haven't mentioned all the fabulous food yet!  I won't stay away so long this time.  Come back soon and I will introduce you to my new Disney friend I saw and fell in love with at the flea market!

SoWa~ Farmers & Vendors & Food Trucks!

Last Sunday my oldest son, Josh, and I went off to discover the SoWa Open Market.  www.sowaopenmarket.com   An outdoor market open every Sunday through November.  I have heard about it for years, but never managed to make it there.  A little Farmers' Market, a little Crafts Fair, and a little Vintage Flea Market!  All rolled together in a LOT of great shopping and fun!! 

Park just two short blocks away and make your way down to the first half of the market~ the Farmers' Market with all manner of fresh fruits, veggies, and flowers.  Also plenty of fresh baked goodies, nuts, salsas, and more!  Including Michele's Totally Awesome Gourmet Popcorn~ a recent favorite at the 2012 Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards!  

Then you make your way through the beautiful old factory building, through a grand archway, past the eclectic mix of people munching their way along, to get to the other side of the market.  That's where most of the vendors and all the food trucks are.  I don't know about you, but I think food trucks are fascinating!  Lobster, cupcakes, burritos, veggie sandwiches, grilled cheese, giant hot dogs.. and more, much more!  And these weren't even ALL the ones that visit regularly!  Before this market, my only experience ordering from a food truck was from the soft serve ice cream truck that stopped at the swimmin' hole my Dad used to take me to!  I ordered a fabulous lobster roll, Josh got a giant burrito, and we found ourselves seats at one of the picnic tables.  Not a lot of tables, but plenty of steps and stone walls where you can perch and eat your lunch.

Then it was time to check out some of the vendors~ crafters were all there~ plenty of recycled and upcycled goods.  I was a little surprised at the prices, but as Josh pointed out that was probably because I could make the home sewn goodies myself!  My favorite vendor of the day sold out of her own custom painted hot pink truck!  Lola's Urban Vintage~ Where Street Meets Chic!   

Then it was time to venture indoors...  Following the sandwich board that said "Vintage"!  Slowly made our way into a doorway that seemed packed with people.  Once we were in~ Eureka!  We hit the motherlode!  Clothing, suitcases, shoes, jewelry, shabby chic furniture, you name it...  along with my favorite glasses and dishes from the fifties and sixties!!    Alas, my computer has decided I have done enough for the evening.  More photos will have to wait~ especially the ones of the shops in permanent locations that are open year round.  Including a real hat shop!  With real hats like they wore at the royal wedding!  Now it's time for me to get ready for tomorrow's adventure~ a trip to Brimfield Flea Market~ which is, according to any publication that reports these things, always one of the top five flea markets in the country! 

Just believe...

Here we go! 
My name is Cheryl and I love auctions!  I am planning on sharing my auction adventures with the world through this amazing forum~   The treasures I win~  The ones that got away~  The cast of characters~  And everything in between!  My favorite lots to bid on are vintage Disneyland.  I have been known to hold out longer than much more seasoned buyers when there are original ticket books on the auction block! 
I am always drawn to pop culture, preferably 1950s and 1960s.  Aren't we all trying to recapture our childhood?  I also buy, sell, and collect vintage textiles, especially hand embroidered pieces and bark cloth.  I have never met a vintage textile I didn't like!

My first auction report here is on Ryan's Auctions in Wilmington, MA.  Auctioneer Denise Ryan holds a Vintage Clothing and Textiles auction every three months.  The most recent one was this past Sunday.  She always has an amazing assortment of vintage clothing and textiles up for auction!  Gorgeous Victorian clothing, prom dresses from the fabulous fifties, movie star ensembles from the 1940s~ Denise has it all!  Plus textiles and fabrics from custom French linens in mint condition to oversize boxes full of pieces and yardage of lace and fabrics!  Most bidding starts at $10 and goes as high as, well at this last auction a group of four ladies' tops sold for $1000!  A beautiful Oriental embroidered robe sold for $190~ it was magnificent.  Lucky bidders who stay to the end are usually rewarded with little or no competition and score some great boxes of goodies for $10.

This auction always has the most colorful cast of characters too!  Ladies in long flowing wigs and loads of jewelry buying the remnants of their glory days.  Young ladies who are discovering the fun in wearing the dresses that are mostly from the seventies.  Those granny dresses are the best for comfort!  And of course plenty of dealers who sometimes get rather greedy and can ruin the whole game!  Yes, I look at auctions as a game~  A game that you really want to win!  Denise runs my favorite auctions~ always great treasures, she goes very fast~ no time at all to get bored~ and the friendliest group running the whole thing.  Make sure to look for and say "hi" to Vinnie!  He takes being a runner to a whole new, extremely entertaining, level! 

So this has been my very first post on my very first blog!  If you have read this far~ thank you!  I hope you come back and visit again.