On the road again: Brasiliafest and more

Once more my daughter and SIL loaded up our two little MCM pickers-in-training and headed out on a road trip in search of more great pieces for the store. And what a profitable trip it was!

They mined an unlikely motherlode of Broyhill Brasilia in the small town of Dexter, Missouri, which is a 10-hour drive from Dallas. They came away with a dining table and six chairs, including two armchairs, all with original upholstery and all in pristine condition. They also got a Brasilia buffet, a Brasilia room divider and a Brasilia side table. As if that weren't enough, they scored an American of Martinsville bedroom set, a Kipp Stewart Drexel Declaration side table and a great sofa from the same seller.

While on the road, my SIL an managed to place a winning phone bid at an auction in Oklahoma for another great dining set, which they'll pick up on the way home tomorrow. 

I only have a few photos, which include the predictable estate sale knicknacks and gewgaws, so I'll post more when they get home and everything is in the store and cleaned up...with our knicknacks and gewgaws on them. :)

Brasilia dining table and four side chairs

Plus two of these Brasilia armchairs...all with perfect original upholstery

Brasilia buffet

Brasilia room divider

Right before they left, my SIL picked up these pieces locally. The coffee table is a 70" long Lane beauty with brass trim. The Brutalist wall sculpture is approximately 30" wide and 20" high, not nearly as large as the C. Jere' pieces we have in the store, but perfect for a small space. He also got a great dresser and chest, but it sold immediately.

Lane coffee table with brass accents

Coffee table detail

Coffee table detail

Brutalist wall sculpture

Unmarked dresser and chest that sold before we identified it
Anyone know what it is?

Estate sale etiquette

A few days ago, my SIL went to an estate sale. He usually gets to promising sales very early, but he had overslept a bit and was fifth in line. Ahead of him was one dealer he knows, and a few places behind him were a couple of regular customers at our shop, but he didn't recognize anyone else. The wait in line was uneventful. Conversation was pleasant, and it looked as if everyone would probably walk away with some great buys.

The first person in line was a well-built, good looking young man about 6'3" who appeared to be in his early 20s. He didn't join into any of the pre-sale banter and wasn't remotely on anyone's mid-century radar. Pictures online had included lots of outdoor gear and Marine Corps memorabilia, and if anyone had really been paying attention to the kid, they probably would have thought that was what he was there to buy

Moments before the sale began, he started stretching, flexing his muscles and doing a nose-breathing routine like an athlete before an event and then almost knocked down the older sale worker who opened the door. He left the front porch like a shot, literally running through the house at flat-out speed, vaulting over things and grabbing tags as he covered what was obviously a well-planned route.

Other sale attendees were so shocked by his behavior that they watched from the doorway in disbelief as the kid careened wildly from spot to spot, arms pumping, almost knocking over items and ignoring workers as they yelled at him to slow down and let others inside. In a matter of seconds, he was standing at the checkout table panting...with a fistful of tags from all the good mid-century items everyone had stood in line to buy.

Unanimously, everyone expressed outrage, including the estate sale workers, who apologized and said they would figure out a way to keep this sort of behavior from ever happening again. The consensus was that it's fair to scope out a house, look in a few windows when you get there to get the lay of the land, study the sale ads and photographs and come thoroughly prepared. It's also fair to enter the house and make your way through at a fast clip, even doing a little unintentional jostling in the process...but not OK to run through the house like a linebacker, ready to knock down anyone who gets in your way and making it impossible for anyone else to come inside and have even a remote chance to get anything good. Everyone there agreed that this tactic was way over the top and that they'd never seen anything like it in all their years of going to sales.

Here are a few of the pieces the kid got...and was later seen loading into the truck of an older man. Incidentally, the most expensive item was the sectional, which sold for $50. Everything else went for $25-30...even the desk.

Are there some unspoken rules that apply/should apply to estate sale behavior? What is acceptable...and what isn't? Was the outrage justified...or just sour grapes?

Old friends, (formerly) unfamiliar faces

My daughter and SIL sold their house, so they moved out the furniture they wanted to keep, and over the weekend we had the big sale of all the pieces they staged the house with, and a very successful sale it was indeed. In fact, they may be out looking for a sofa and a bed as I type this.

Even better than the money they made was running into people who "knew" us...but didn't know they knew us. OK, I'll explain. My daughter and I are pretty talkative, so we would chat up the customers about their love of mid-century design. Time and again, people would say something like, "If you love mid-century as much as we do, you ought to go to this cool shop we found in Dallas." And, yes, every time it turned out that the shop they were talking about was ours. They'd look at my daughter and say, "OMG, you're Joe's wife???" And then they'd look at me and say, "And you're the one who writes the blog???"

In turn, we would say, "Oh, you're the ones who bought the yellow Danish chair?" or "Wow, you got that great credenza, huh?" It was so much fun to meet all those folks and to put their faces with the items they bought. Since my SIL runs the store, my daughter and I miss out on meeting people most of the time.

The sale customers who made my weekend were a delightful couple named Angelica and Guyton. They were absolutely over the moon for a pair of black barkcloth pillows they had bought from the store, and when they realized we were the other two-thirds of Mid2Mod, they were thrilled. They're moving into a new apartment soon, so they were having a ball buying things to decorate with. They fell in love with a little record player that my daughter and SIL had in their rumpus room. They also got a wonderful C. Jere' style metal wall sculpture, a coffee table, a picture and a sofa and chair set. Their new place is going to be spectacular! I loved their enthusiasm for mid-century design, for each other and for life in general. Being able to play a small part in outfitting their new home was a real pleasure.

Here are the pillows that they adore so much. I've promised to look for more of that fabric so I can make a matching round one.

Angelica and Guyton's pillows

Won't they look great on the yellow sofa they bought?

Angelica and Guyton's yellow sofa

Everything you see in this picture is sold and has gone on to new homes. The sale of Jenn and Joe's house will be final on Wednesday, and then it's onward and upward to the next Mid2Mod adventure...because now that they've moved to Dallas, I'll be getting my house ready to put on the market and move there too. Stay tuned for the continuing saga...

In (and out) of the store: Estate sale success

My SIL hit a pricey estate sale this weekend. He put bids in on a pair of Milo Baughman chairs and a Burke dining set, but there were a few things he couldn't resist bringing home on the spot.

This beautiful walnut room divider sold so quickly that I didn't get to see it. In fact, it was gone before I even got a picture of it for the website. We've had some fast turnover, but I think this sets a speed record.

This swag lamp caught my SIL's eye immediately, and he called me to tell me about it before he made it back to the store. I haven't researched it yet, and I'm eager to find out more about it. I think it has a cool Asian feel.

I've also got to do my homework on German pottery. He bought these two pieces, which I also haven't seen in person yet, so I don't know if they have any markings. I did a little preliminary reading about "fat lava" pottery, which piqued my curiosity for more research. (I feel a post coming on.) I don't know if that's what these are, but I think they're gorgeous.

Update: When I finally got to see the pieces, I found that the vase is actually Italian...possibly Raymor or Rosenthal Netter. The pots is, in fact, West German fat lava by Bay.

Making room for more

Yesterday I was reading about another MCM blogger’s garage sale. She posted about it after the fact, and her readers were disappointed that they hadn’t had a chance to buy some of her treasures.

My daughter, son-in-law and I closed our mid-century booth in an antique mall a couple of months ago and moved everything into my workshop, leaving the narrowest of paths so I could get in and out. Then, a few days ago we picked up the last of the free MCM furniture my friend gave me after her estate sale. Now there’s not even a path, so we decided that a garage sale is in order. After all, how can we justify buying more if we don't have anywhere to put it?

Here’s a small sampling of what we’ll be selling, in case any of you want to jump in the car and take a road trip to Texas. Hey, we squeezed three adults, a baby and two dogs into a Honda Insight and drove to the Denver Modernism show, so I guess anything’s possible.

Combination lamp and walnut table with tile top

Black upholstered chair with blonde legs

Wrought iron and glass fruit bowl

Clear and gold glass leaf bowl

Herman Miller Eames chair with Eiffel rocker base

Paul McCobb Jackson China restaurantware

Sputnik-shaped lamp with 33" tall shade

Green ceramic ashtray

Thonet stool

Barkcloth pillows

Blonde step table with black legs

Heywood Wakefield Ashcraft step tables

One last thing about the free stuff

Saturday we picked up the last two loads of free furniture left over from my friend's estate sale, and I got excited all over again.  We filled my workshop to capacity, and we plan to have a big sale of our own in a couple of weeks.

I thought my daughter and son-in-law were going to take several pieces, but as it turned out, I got to keep everything.  I suppose it was an unselfish, motherly gesture to offer them anything they wanted, especially since my wonderful son-in-law did all the heavy lifting, but my greedy little alter ego was secretly delighted when they didn’t take some of the things I was coveting.

The huge Van Hoople picture that I was certain would be hanging behind the their sofa right now is prominently ensconced behind my own, and the blonde bookcase has been repurposed into a small bar/glassware display.

After more discussion with my daughter yesterday, I learned that she may actually want the blonde bookcase, although she thinks she might prefer the bottom section of the china cabinet, which was not a piece I needed. Naturally, if she chooses the bookcase, my motherly instincts will kick in again, and I'll gladly let her have it.  After all, this was a windfall, and it should be shared.  To be honest,  I get almost as much pleasure seeing their 1950-built house evolve into a mid-century gem as I do decorating my own. For now, though, the little bookcase looks great in the corner of my dining room.

I promise this is the last time I'll post about the free stuff.  It really is kinda tacky to keep rubbing it in, isn't it? ;)

Van Hoople painting over my sofa

Blonde bookcase repurposed as bar

To buy or not to buy?

On the second day of my friend’s estate sale, she called to ask me about several items I’d been looking at. Did I want to buy them on Half Price Day or wait until the sale was over? Puzzled, I asked what the difference was. She laughed and said, “Well, if you get them on Half Price Day, they’re...uh...half price, but if you wait till the sale is over, they’ll be free.” FREE? Whoa…I hadn’t expected that. “Yep,” she said, “the owners said to sell whatever we could and to give the rest away when the sale is over. They don't want to store anything.”

Immediately, the big question loomed: “Do I buy the things I really, really want when the sale opens the last day, or do I gamble that some of them will still be there when the sale ends?” I’m not much of a gambler. I’ve never bought a lottery ticket, and when I go to a casino, I limit myself to $40.

But FREE? That’s a very strong incentive to gamble. So, after agonizing all day Saturday and forcing myself to stay home when the sale started this morning, I watched the clock in nervous anticipation of the 3:00 closing. At 2:50 I jumped in the car and headed over to the sale, telling myself not to be too disappointed if everything was gone.

To my surprise, every single piece of furniture I wanted was still there. They simply hadn’t drawn a mid-century crowd, and my gamble had paid off…in a huge way! I ended up with a small blonde glass front bookcase, two green glass lamps, a huge Van Hoople picture, a blonde china cabinet and matching table, another piece of Blenko, and an Art Deco chest, dresser and night stand.

A stroke of luck like this might make me rethink buying a lottery ticket every once in a while.

Van Hoople painting, 59" x 29"
(You can see how much bigger it is than my fireplace.
Oh, and did I mention all these things were FREE????)

 Glass lamps with walnut and rattan base
(Yes, I'm doing the happy dance.)

 Blonde bookcase with sliding glass doors
(This was the piece I wanted most.)

Blenko pitcher, 569P
(Looks great with the decanter I got the other day.)

And she scores!!!!

The big estate sale was today. My daughter and I went with my grandson in tow, which is no mean feat. She took the first leg of shopping in the back yard and two outside sheds, while I watched Holden. She found a teak coffee table base and matching end table base for $4 each. She also picked up two great suitcase-style album cases for old 33 1/3 LPs for $3 each.

When she paid for those purchases and loaded them into the car, I passed the baby off to her, and I started shopping indoors. I bought a great wire magazine rack for $3, a Frankoma bud vase for $2, a Van Briggle bud vase for $7, a West Bend Penguin Hot & Cold server from the 1960s for $4 and the piece de resistance, a #5815 Blenko decanter designed by Wayne Husted with a sandblasted logo that was only used between 1958 and 1961…for only $22.50. I came straight home and found three identical decanters online, priced at $335, $375 and $395.

My $38.50 purchase is probably worth in the neighborhood of $425-500. You’ve just gotta love estate sales.

1950s wire magazine rack for $3

1960s West Bend Hot & Cold server for $4

Frankoma Plainsman bud vase for $2, Van Briggle bud vase for $7
...and 1958 Blenko decanter for $22.50

Update: The table bases turned out to be by Adrian Pearsall, so I underestimated the value of our purchases just a tad.

One man's junk

A good friend of mine conducts estate sales, and the biggest one she’s ever done starts next week. It’s taken her almost three months to sort through everything, because the owners were hoarders. Hoarders with money.

When my friend started cleaning out the cabinets, she found 37 boxes of Ritz crackers and 17 bottles of Liquid-Plumr. They bought everything in outlandish quantities, including decorator items, linens, jewelry…and, to some extent, furniture, which was lined up around the walls end-to-end.

On my first brief walk-through, I saw several great pieces of Blenko, a pristine Adrian Pearsall sofa and a cute little blonde glass front bookcase that I may buy if it’s still there on Half Off Day. There was also a huge lighted Van Hoople picture, a great china cabinet and a funky blue and green lucite chunk light fixture.

The next day, my friend called to say she’d practically give me the sofa for $125 if I’d promise to come get it right away. They needed the space to walk around more than they needed the sofa.

I know most of you mid-century lovers are already avid estate salers, but if you aren’t, you should give it a try. The treasures are out there if you have the patience to hunt for them…and literally dig them out, if necessary.

Adrian Pearsall sofa at the sale house, lost in "the junk"

Sofa at my house, right before I sold it for a really nice profit

What's a poor girl to do?

Is it possible to have great mid-century pieces if you're on a tight budget? You bet!  Anyone who wants a beautifully appointed MCM home can have one with some dedicated, persistent shopping.  I'm a retired teacher, so I can't afford 1st Dibs prices, but I've found wonderful vintage furniture by shopping eBay, craigslist, thrift stores, and Goodwill.

I had searched for a 1955 Drexel Profile dining room set for a long time, but the best price I could find online was $3500 for the table and six chairs.  I was scouring CL one day, and a very nondescript listing caught my eye.  All it said was "Elegant dining room furniture."  There wasn't even a photo, but my gut instinct told me to check it out.  I called the owner and asked her what she had.  She told me that she and her husband had bought the set at a thrift store when they were newlyweds back in the 1970s, but she didn't know anything more about it.  I asked if it had any markings or labels on the bottom of the table, and she said she'd crawl under there and see.  When she came back to the phone, she said, "It says something about Profile...and Drexel."  I thought my heart was going to pound out of my chest.  I said, "And you only want $500 for it?  You're sure?"  To my amazement, she said, "Oh, that's plenty...and I forgot to put in the ad that a china cabinet goes with it."  I was at her door in an hour, money in hand.

Another find was a metal wall sculpture that came up on craigslist.  I had seen the same one online for $3200, but I got it for $65 from a man in Oklahoma City who had it hanging on the wall in his commercial metal shop, along with several signed C. Jere' pieces.  The one I bought wasn't signed, but it's a great piece nonetheless.

Here are several of my favorite "cheap" finds on craigslist or affordable vintage shops:

Drexel Profile table/chairs and china cabinet found on craigslist for $500
instead of $3500 online for only the table and chairs

One of my most recent purchases...just what I'd been looking for
 and only $725 from Atomica Modern in Dallas, TX

Cool find from Room Service Vintage in Austin, TX...
for only $169

Possible C. Jere' for $65...but authentic or not,
a much better price than $3200 for an identical one
on Center44 web site