A couple of weeks ago, Jeff declared that we needed a little getaway. I am a homebody and I love my work, so I don’t usually feel like I need to get away, but he’s almost always right with that sort of thing and it ends up being really great.
He always picks the destination and accommodations, so the arrangements are not on my shoulders. And I love that. He always does a fantastic job in the planning. This trip, he chose Skytop Lodge in the Poconos of Pennsylvania.
It is a beautiful lodge that was built in the 1920’s.
It was rainy, misty and/or foggy the entire time we were there, but we still managed to get in some outdoor activities. I’ll share more about the lodge next week.
Since the weather was a bit of a bummer, Jeff suggested something he knew I would enjoy…hitting a few antique stores. What a guy. He scored some major points with that suggestion. We checked out a few stores, so I thought I would share some of the ones I liked as well as my finds.
The first spot is The Old Sandhouse in White Mills, PA. It’s one of those roadside stops that has just the right balance of junky stuff and cool stuff outside to lure you in. The guy who runs the place, Christopher, was friendly and knocked a bit off the prices, which is always nice.
I bought a set of vintage darts (made of wood and feathers)…
…a couple of ironstone plates…
…and a chandelier that’s just my style.
Well, I will have to do something about those candle sleeves. The gold band at the top detracts from the beauty of the fixture, in my eye. What’s cool about this chandelier is that I found one very similar…almost identical, I thought…one on Craig’s List just a couple of weeks ago. I have several of chandeliers in this style, but none of them are matching.
As I’m dreaming about the day when I finally have a studio space, I picture twin chandeliers over a large work table. I spotted this chandelier and pointed it out to Jeff. Thinking the chandelier was probably in the $200-300 range, I started to say, “I just found a chandelier almost exactly like this on Craig’s List for $70…”, but I circled the chandelier and was surprised when I saw a $75 price on the chandelier. The comparison to the Craig’s List one seemed silly, since there was only a $5.00 difference in the price. So, instead I said, “That chandelier is coming with me. No doubt.”
They are not identical, but they are the same size and scale, so they will do just fine…when I get a studio…
We also stopped in a shop down the street from The Old Sandhouse called The Picker’s Find. Both of these shops are the kind of places that are packed full of stuff, so you have to duck, dodge, watched your step and hug your purse to fit through the aisles. You really have to dig and scan to find things that catch your eye, but I think those are the kinds of places you can find good deals. At Picker’s Find, I bought this beautiful, old ironstone casserole…
The handle had broken off, but fortunately, it was inside and can easily be glued.
I also found this old “wheat pattern” gravy boat…
…a mixing bowl…
…a beautiful old blue & white bowl that I bought to use as a prop for my “Flow Blue” photo shoot…
…a gorgeous old pitcher…
…and a tool tote with beautiful patina and a cool handle.
I just had to show off my lavender, which I planted in the fall. It’s starting to bloom! I don’t know why I’m surprised at that, but I am.
Anyway, I’ll be sharing more finds, great shops and other fun things about the trip in the days to come…
21 Responses
Loved seeing what caught your eye when you were on your trip! Marcy
Marian, great finds! Your pitcher has the kind of registry mark I was referring to in my comment on your ironstone 201 post. I have a reference book and looked yours up. It is ceramics (IV), Registered (Rd) in 1849 (S), on April (H) 2nd (2). The 5 at the bottom represents a parcel #, a code indicating the person or company who registered the pattern or the ware. Very cool! That kind of diamond mark was in use until 1867. 🙂
Susan C. I have the side arrows on my page to flip forwards or back through. That being said, they do take some time to load, and are the last items on the page to load. Alexia, I also was wondering about the crazy comments, I always scroll down to read the comments because you end up with such cool information like, today from Rita C telling you how to read the stamp from ironstone.
We are getting ready to go on family vacations back east to see my family and I love to antique shop there. Where we live there is very little in the way of antiques because very few packed up everything to move west, they usually left it behind. I try to keep all the information that I have learned from here to look for items.
I do like the new layout, I can find most everything.
My spam filter has been missing a bunch of spam comments lately. I usually stay on top of deleting them, but I was at church this morning, so they were piling up. Grrrr! They are deleted now.
Yes! I thought of you when I saw it. How cool to know it’s from 1849. I know it’s just a pitcher, but it’s so amazing to me to use a pitcher that predates the civil war!
I haven’t been reading my blogs the past few weeks and had much catching up to do. I have to say I was so sad to see the new format for your homepage. Before, I could scroll down to the last post I had read, and move forward chronologically. Now I’m not sure what the order is and was limited on how far back I could go under recent links. So thought I would provide feedback on the change. I then thought I would click on the last link under recent posts and use the side arrows that used to pop up to move fwd or backward thru the posts but they never came up. So I have no idea how to go back to find the last post I read and move forward a day at a time! 🙁
Susan, sorry you’re having trouble navigating the page. I am happy to say, though, that the page is still under construction and the “most recent posts” section will look different. Just hang in there as we’re shifting stuff around. The arrows should still be coming up, but I’ll check on that one. I like that feature as well. Thanks for the feedback!
Same exact thing here!!!
Was on vacation, didn’t read for a while, and now Im lost and missing the old format!!
I must say I have to agree with Susan C. that there’s something squirrelly with the new blog format, not least of which is seeing your banner subjugated to a huge Las Vegas ad. I totally understand the value of ads to your blogging business, but they shouldn’t distract so much from your message. Also, why do you suppose you’re suddenly getting so many nonsensical/poorly translated comments? 🙁
Yes, Alexia, we’re still working on the format of the new site, so things are a little off at the moment. I hate huge ads like that, that cover content, so I’ll look into that. I haven’t seen one. As far as the comments, they are spam comments that are making it past my filter. I’m usually able to delete them pretty quickly, but these all popped up while I was at church. Grrr!
Marian,
After reading some of the previous comments on your post, it appears that there is a “hiccup” somewhere as the comments being made are not even remotely related to the subject of your post. Perhaps they are out on another site and getting redirected over to your blog somehow.
That being said, we just came back from the Poconos yesterday after visiting family and it was cool and cloudy both days we visited as well. It can be a mixed bag up there even in summer as far as weather and temps are concerned. BTW… I got lucky and found a nice Ironstone platter at a shop we stopped at on the way up. It was marked Royal Patent Ironstone Wood & Sons, England. I am going to do a little research to see if I can date it. Its plain with no design which I love.
It sounds like we were there the same time! I just got back on Friday. Anyway, the strange comments you’re seeing are spam that have made it through my spam filter. I’ve taken care of it.
I have to share that I’m lining up with Susan C..I hope the construction ‘steps’ make it smoother, because this morning it took me several tries to get the move arrows to load. And finding the ‘skip’ button for some of these adds is difficult as well. Hopefully it smooths out soon.
try not to buy chipped or cracked pieces or all you are left with is a bunch of pieces that have lost their value. We used to buy them and call them “shelf pieces” but, for resale you can hardly get your money out of them..We used to call those pieces “shelf pieces” for obvious reasons (you just turn the piece to hide the damage. There are talented repairers out there who do marvelous, undetectable repairs on damage, but I imaging the cost is prohibitive AND you still have to disclose the repair to the buyer….
Yes, I’m much more careful when I’m buying to resell, but when I’m buying for myself, I don’t mind the cracks, chips and repairs. To me, that shows that the piece was loved enough to repair and keep, not just throw away when it was damaged. 🙂
My husband boys and I went to Skytop last summer and loved it. I loved walking the halls and looking at all of the architectural details. The food was amazing and if you go back and the weather is nice you’ll have to try the zip lines. So much fun.
If we go back I’ll have to stop into some of the stores you liked. i have one I like to go to but can’t remember the name. It too is a perfect mix of antiques and junk.
Hi Marian. I’ve been a big fan of your blog for quite some time. Love your style! My husband and I own a bed and breakfast about 30 minutes from Christopher’s place and A Picker’s Find. Would love for you to stay with us next time you are in the area.
Awesome haul! So many things that just say “Miss Mustard Seed”. Now you’ve got me thinking about running away with my guy. It’s our 20th anniversary in Aug and we haven’t done anything with just the two of us in a long time.
The Other Marian
i am not receiving your posts…had to look this up…please respond.
Looks like a great place to get away, I have never been to the Poconos. I have a similar chandelier that I got about a year ago at a Flea Market, I paint the sleeves after I make hot glue candle wax drips. Congrats on the cover too, I have been catching up on your posts. Last week a man gave me 2 ironstone oval veggie dishes, I think of the ladies who can’t find stuff in California, and here in PA people don’t want them. Hope you sell your house soon. Deb
Hello, I had a chandelier at auction very similar and wondered if it was the same one. It sold for much less. We have so many items comparable to what you have shown in your photos. If you are visiting the Poconos again, try to visit one of our auctions at Winchester Auctioneers in South Sterling! I saw your name in a Facebook post by A Picker’s Find, a place that I also love to visit. Best, Maggie.