Yeah it's been a while...so sorry about that! My hands have been in the throes of painting/cutting/gluing/sanding. Just today Aaron went over to my cousin's house to finalize some wall painting designs for their nursery and my cousin told Aaron: "I'm starting to think that Jenny doesn't exist." Because Aaron has been over there like 4 times so far and not once was I able to break away to go with him. That's kinda the deal with me and Aar. You either get one or the other but almost never both, because one of us has to man the controls back home. Well last weekend I had Aaron hold the fort while me and my sister Missy took a trip to my favorite antique shop. I've brought this place up before but it bears repeating. It's in Englishtown, NJ and it occupies and old grocery store. And I mean a full size grocery store! I just can't begin to explain the depth of what you will find there but I say without exaggeration that it's stacked ceiling high. Curiosities and artifacts fill shelves, drawers, cabinets...things are stuffed, squished, piled, and filed in every inch of available space. If you have a few hours, a bottle of Purell, and a dream, you are very likely to walk away from there flush with treasures.
It was a rainy cool day when we went and that's probably the best time to go. It was me, Missy and her teeny tiny Papillon named Jack. (Both pictured above...check out that tiny vintage shopping cart!) As soon as you walk in the door, which is your typical super market entrance vestibule, you are faced with a wall of yard long vintage photos. The kind that feature huge groups of people...swim teams, ballroom dancers, soldiers, women's auxiliary, etc... Unfortunately these are NFS. These have been there since the first time I ever went there years and years ago. The owner, Perry, keeps these as his private collection as well as the gigantic movie posters way high on the walls and this drop dead original peeling paint white armoire that I've wanted forever. NFS has been the story of my life. And by the way, that's a picture of Perry there with the sign listing the store policies above his head. The last on the list is my favorite: All children left unattended will be sold!!!!
Perry's daughter Leah runs the place and she is so so sweet. She's about my age and has spent her whole life in the world of antiques and collectibles. Leah told me that recently someone came in and mentioned that they heard of the place on my blog. That's so cool. So if you're out there reading this and you're the gal, shoot me a comment!
On this trip to Englishtown I think I left with the least amount of stuff in my history of going there. I guess this mission was more about getting me out of the house and hunting for stuff for my sister's new apartment. She's got a Mexican/western theme going on and that can be really really fun stuff to shop for. Where my colors are pale pink and aqua, hers are bright pink and dark turquoise. You almost let your eyes find the color and then you figure out what the heck you're looking at. I do remember a couple of finds that I wanted for myself but then Missy rounded the corner and made the "but I want that" face so I easily relented and let her take it, knowing that my apartment is already full to the gills. I especially loved the tiny little cowboy boots, still caked with mud.
I took some pics of the few things I managed to grab for myself. Two new pieces of tarnished silver...a compote and plate to add to my collection, as well as a tiny lil trophy style cup. A super cool styrofoam cap with a red, white and blue band. A bunch of glass Christmas ornaments that have nearly lost all of their color...I love that!...I may add some glass glitter to them. An old bottle brush tree...I plan on either painting it white or flocking it. The thread spools are from a previous day of antiquing but I thought they looked awesome in the compote so that's why they're pictured here. I love the grungy, aged patina of the thread and the pink cardboard center of the turquoise spool.
The photo mosaic is a sampling of the stuff I got from Englishtown Antiques over the years. You would not believe the amount of cups, saucers, plates, glasses, and silverware. Furniture, rugs, kitchenware and room teeming with old books is where I always lose Aaron. He leaves with stacks of stinky old books every time. If you look around our apartment you will find 1-2 item from Englishtown in every corner of the place.
Oh, and by the way. Now that Missy has her new apartment which has a big crafting room I made her promise to start blogging. She met so many people at Silver Bella and I'm often asked where the heck she disappeared to so now she'll be able to keep in touch and get in some swaps etc...here is a link ...stop over and say hi!! Tell her Jenny sentcha!
My friend Anna sent this huge heavy box of stuff! First off, all this amazing melamine dinnerware. The colors are edible...like salt water taffy! The millinery bits are also part of the haul as well as a whole mess of vintage cards and this very cool plastic pink clown whistle, which lived on Anna's computer monitor for almost a year but she's a sort of foster parent when it comes to good stuff. She lets things pass on to another place to live with new eager parents. There's actually way too much stuff to show and tell about...as always. Anna is the best personal shopper a gal could have. She never sends duds. I soooo wish she had a blog. Her scribbled notes and sharp quips and opinions that fill front and back of old yellowed envelopes and cards are just so fun to read. I could only imagine what she'd let lose in blog format. The wit and wisdom of Anna would be blog gold!
A while back I showed you pictures of my page for the itty bitty robins egg blue book. Well the finished book has arrived. It really is itty bitty but man is this little gal FAT! I could stare and stare at each page. So many people put in so much work. The trims and glitter and charms are too much. It's really so cool to flip through and let each tiny piece of art engage you. Mary Ann was the host and she totally went above and beyond to make this a magical little keepsake that you can have foreverand ever.
Cerri and I swapped way back. It was the For the Love of Supplies Swap that Artsy Mama hosted. I actually missed the deadline for sign ups but Cerri agreed to take me on as her partner. I showed you what I sent her awhile back and now I can show you her end. Right around swap time Cerri's life got a bit busy so I had to wait a bit for my package but that was absolutely no problem and as you can see...it was WELL worth the wait! I love everything so much! The tin is so fab...it sits on our mantel right now. And inside every bit and piece is so up my alley! Love everything Cerri! I'd swap again anytime!
I thought I'd get a jump on summer and show our newest 4 x 4 plaque. We hope to do a lot more summer stuff...well, ever year we hope to but by the time we get around to it...bam, September. Well at least we got this little guy done. I love the denim-look trim. What's more American than blue jeans? We hope to have it listed on Etsy later tonight!
One last thing before I go and try to grab myself a walk in the park. This sign was commissioned by the super sweet husband of the amazingly sweet & talented Analise. It was a total surprise for her as well as a ton of other stuff he pulled off for her big day. Sugar Sugar is the name of her business and me and Aar were thrilled to do this sign because her work is just so inspiring and perfect and we'd love any connection to the magic. Getting the colors right was easy squeezy since we seem to share a common palette.
Ok, thank you all for your patience with me. I hope to post again before the weekend because it's gonna be a busy one. Me and Aar's 15th anniversary, Walt's 18th birthday, and Mother's Day! Whew! Three in a row!
See ya soon!
xoxo Jenny
Oh....before I go..some Flickr eye candy...and a happy little vignette here in our apt.
