Weekend Finds: Flea Market and Beyond

Good morning!

Ooooh, confession time: I was very bad this weekend. While I did manage to release almost a trunkful of goods from the green room back out into the wild, I cannot tell a lie-- I bought some really fun stuff this weekend. Between the flea market and a spur of the moment trip to Gallatin, I was feeling the white hot heat of a junk buyin' streak. While I did manage to stop myself from picking up a few extraneous items, these were too good to live without!

Item one: VINTAGE BABY KEEPSAKE 3D COLLAGE. I about died when I saw this in the Creative Arts building on Saturday morning, where my dad and I were taking temporary refuge from the frigid temperatures dehors. "Dad! Go look over there, I gotta talk brass tacks with who ever's running this booth!" I said, making a beeline past a man-high display of lace doilies to the shelf where the photo was perched.

As you may remember from the last time I showed you nightmare fuel, I have another little baby photo like this with REAL HUMAN HAIR AAAAH. This little pretty only has a blanket, pillow, and onesie, but the dreamy three dimensionality of it sucked me in and I managed to dicker the booth's owner down to a outside-dealer rather than inside-dealer price. So spooky! The dealer said, "It's unusual, isn't it? It's funny, but I've been in the business twenty-five years and I notice you young folks, you like WEIRD stuff nowadays. I can't hardly sell any of these tablecloths and perfume bottles like I did ten years ago, y'all want kind of strange, off the beaten path stuff, you know?" Yes...I do know, sir. Though I've bought a pretty thing or two in my life, act like my heart's blood isn't the wacky, almost macabre stuff you see lying on that road not taken as two paths diverged in a yellow wood. It is what it is!

I got these two watches in one of the animal sheds, and the little celluloid pin in the Creative Arts building. The watch on the left works, but runs WAY too fast. I wound it, heard the brisk marching heartbeat of the timepiece, and had a Twilight Zone like thought for a moment, thinking of how it would be if you wound the watch and suddenly the speed at which time passed was dictated by the little cogs and wheels inside the watch back! Luckily, I am still little old 28 year old me, and not a thousand year old crone by now, but it was a cute thought. How do you like the Art Deco face on the other one? I'm going to try and take them to a watch man across the street in the old Harvey's building and see if it works! (Also, it's an excuse to go up in the old Harvey's building...it was a famous department store in Nashville in the forties' and fifties' and still has office space in the old storerooms!) The pin was there last month and I was eating my heart out that I didn't snatch it up-- it refers to the Sadie Hawkins-like practice of women being able to propose to men in the leap year. Yeah, I know, you're a liberated 21st century women, you can "speak dear" whenever you want these days, but isn't this a sweet little piece?

I was walking through the Antiques shed when I picked up this black fur piece to see what it was (I am always trying to emulate Marlene Dietrich in Shanghai Express; I am never stopping). The lady running the stall flew by me with a handful of other things she was laying out on a table and hollered over her shoulder, "That's cheap, honey; I'd let that go for five dollars." It was only then that I realized....THE FUR PIECE HAD A FACE. I know you're going, Lisa, you no good rotten double crossin' face-ownin' fur wearer, but five bucks...and if I tuck it a certain way, you can't see the face! (#stillguilty) As we made the transaction and I dug a five dollar bill out of my purse, the woman's mother, an older woman, came up and said, "Oh, that just looks like you. I bet that piece was waiting for you to come by and snatch it up." I love how flea vendors always peg me as "that kind of person who would buy that". What does that mean?! I'll try and take it as a compliment, I guess!

These 1940's or 50's "Pic-Tiles" by Mary Allen show you what life would be like if you were made out of household vegetables. I looked and looked for more of these but there were only two; at fifty cents apiece, I would call them a steeeeeal! How cute it the little burrow? I am now thinking of tiling the under-counter space for the sole purpose of being able to incorporate these guys into the tile.

That did it for the flea market-- my dad bought a huge Japanese flag from the forties' or fifties' for $30, and we both went home with high feelings of shopping satisfaction. 

But that wasn't all, folks! Friday, I visited the Gallatin Goodwill and scored this sweet piece of swag:

Which is chiefly, this (ignore flyaway beehive, need more pins)...hellllllooooo 1950's sweater. This ding dang wonder of a beaded sweater was winking at me from the sweater section of the Gallatin Goodwill on Friday afternoon. I hardly ever look at the sweater section except for black, wool cardigans, but as I was cutting across to the dresses I caught a glimpse of the crazy beadwork out of the corner of my eye and walked back to see if it was what I thought it was. I try not to get excited in situations like this, because Lord knows I've been known to mistake some ugly 90's juniors' top for a bohemian, seventies' peasant blouse, or a bright, gorgeous green might sadly be attached to a 3X paisley blouse instead of the vintage pullover I thought it was...but this was the real McCoy! Lined on the inside, and look at that beadwork! I forgot to photograph the label, but it features the maker and the boast that this piece is 100% pure cashmere, and I believe this to be the truth!

There was also this sixties' box purse, which opens like a makeup case. Ain't it a "peacherino", as someone put it in a forties' movie I was watching the other day? I love the handle! I swore off purses last week, but here I am again on my own.... 

And last but not least, I dropped in at the Gallatin town square to visit Tina at Country Mouse City Mouse Estate Sales. When she's not running her fabulous in-house tag sales across Davidson and surrounding counties, Tina runs a storefront on the square that specializes in gorgeous, extremely reasonably priced vintage furniture and antiques (look at this chair, and then look me in the eye and tell me you don't want it). While I would have loved the joint anyway solely based on my affinity and deep love for her waist-high standard poodle, a "store dog" who greeted me at the door by walking up, leaning against my hip, and patiently waiting to be petted with the elegance of small, graceful pony, I can't lie, I also LOVED, LOVED, LOVED the inventory. Check out what I got!

I bought two blouses and sweater that all had THE CUTEST matching skirts and shorts...sorry for me I am a size four or six on top and a 12 on bottom, as the matching skirts to these separates were about a size 0-2. But I did manage to get into the tops! The one above features a sailor/nautical print and is JUST AS ADORABLE IN REAL LIFE. Look at the closeup! (And also note that these whites will be much whiter when I hand wash them in my trusty Biz):

Look at this batik/tiki print/patchwork thing going on with this! You love it!

And this batwing mint green sixties' sweater was just like "well, I'm here, lemme get this one, too."

This was super cool-- Tina gets these rings from a woman in town takes clip on vintage earrings missing their mates, or too huge and doorknocker-y for us modern gals to wear (I know, you find it hard to believe, but there are some earring that are too out there for ME) and turns them into cocktail rings. I resisted at first, but this gorgeous, over-the-top hand ornament finally won my heart. $9! And KILLER DILLER. If you're up for a tiny little road trip, you should head up to Gallatin (it's like 10 minutes past Rivergate, East Nashville girls) and visit Country Mouse City Mouse, it's a heck of fun place! :)

All right, I've gabbed on way too long-- what did you find out in the world this weekend? Which of these finds is your favorite? Expert tips for working the flea market to your maximum advantage? What kinds of things make YOU break your self imposed strictures on what you should or shouldn't buy? Let's talk!

That's all for today, but I'll catch you back here first thing tomorrow. Have a great Tuesday! Til then.