I am so exited to be in the land of “bloggers “!! Thanks to my brother Greg I now have a place to share with you my experiences and journeys in the world of antique hunting, yard sailing, and interior decorating. Since I was a young girl I can remember going to yard sales with my grandmother. We would see my grandparents every other weekend. My grandmother new all of the local haunts, and would get me up early to drag me along with her to find everything one could imagine. The thing I loved the most was finding old Barbies along with the latest Barbie fashions. Even though I hated getting up early I new that my grandmother couldn’t pass up a good deal for a bundle of Barbies.  I guess this is where I got bit with the bug and satisfaction of finding the things you love for pennies. It wasn’t until I was in my early twenties did I truly appreciate just how many other cool things you could get for so little money at a yard sale. When I rented my first apartment it wound up being furnished with many yard sale finds including lamps, shelves, and various other decorative nick nacks.

Along with going to many yard sales I have hosted many of them. I have had so many of them that some of my family members call me ” The Yard Sale Queen ” My mother has always been my partner in crime when having the sales. The majority of sales that we have had have been at her house. That is until I purchased my own house and discovered that the location of my house is better suited for that sort of thing. Not only are yard sales a great way to make a little extra cash but they are a great way to meet your neighbors. Just last year I organized a neighborhood yard-sale. It was a great success and now it could quite possibly be an annual thing.

Tomorrow I will be attending a church rummage sale. Those of you not savvy in yard sale lingo are probably wondering what a rummage sale is. Let me give you the rundown of the different types of venues to purchase things cheaply.

1. Rummage Sales-are generally held in churches to help aid the parish. Some charge an entrance fee others don’t. The church is usually sectioned off into different categories including books, linens, general housewares.  My favorite room is called Grandma’s attic. This is where you can find some vintage or antique items.
2. Yard, garage, tag sales-are all the same thing with a different name attached. They are all held at ones house. This is where the owner of the house sells any items that he or she is sick of looking at around their house, and hopes that another will love it. I know it’s cliche but it is so true that another mans trash is another mans treasure.
3. Estate Sales- take place on the estate, which can be anything from a mansion to a small apartment. Generally their is a company that will run the sale. In some cases they will distribute numbers to the people waiting to get in the sale. Getting to these sales early is a better way to ensure a good number so you can get all the good stuff. These sales are typically more expensive than the other types of sales, but you can usually find better quality furniture here.
4. Flea Markets-can be either indoors or outdoors.  The merchandise can range from either the latest brand of snazzy sneakers or can be antique related. Brimfield is one of the most famous flea markets which I have been fortunate to attend.  I am fortunate to live about an hour away from the show. They hold the sale three times a year, May, July, and September. It is by far one of largest venues to hold a flea market. People from around the world attend this week long show and will get there at the crack of dawn to get the best deals and finds. My mother and I will be attending the May show to get some more goodies for our shop. This brings me to the next # on my list.
5. Antique Co-op- These are shops that rent out individual spaces to dealers like myself. We then sell our wares. Every shop is run differently but the jist of it is that you are a sole proprietor in a shop with a bunch of other dealers. Some shops prefer that the dealers work a few hours a month. This in turn is great for the dealer because she or he really gets to see current trends in antiques and can be there to talk about a particular object in their booth.

That concludes my list, but brings me to the point of why I started this blog to begin with. I recently became an antique dealer, and have been selling my wares in a local shop in Mass. My business is called Antique Therapy. I chose the name because it’s exactly what antiquing and yard-sailing is for me. Therapy. When I am out scoping and looking for new items for my shop. I loose myself and forget about all of problems and stress of everyday life. I truly get a thrill from finding beautiful and unusual things from the past. I wonder about their sense of history and admire the craftsmanship that goes into a fine piece of porcelain or a lovely piece of furniture.

Currently I reside in a shop in Sterling Mass called Simply Home. Here’s a picture of my space at the store.

While I have enjoyed meeting new friends and being in this great little shop, I feel it is time to move onto a town that’s claim to fame is Antique shops along with a quaint historic setting. For those of you non history buffs Concord is where the Revolutionary War started. And where I hope to make some history for myself. The new Shop where I will be in about thirty days is called North Bridge Antiques, for anyone who knows downtown Concord we are next to the Walden Grill and across from the cheese shop. Our space is in the very back of the store. I am extremely exited to start there and will be posting pictures of the shop shortly. Until then, I will hopefully post again tomorrow about the great rummage sale we went to. Good night and happy hunting!!