Alameda Antique Faire

Hi, all! It's Jessica, and I'm still around. My days have changed, however, and more often than not I'm behind a computer. An important detail is that I'm happily behind a computer. I'm loving the work I'm doing with Code for America and learning as much as I can. I can be found in coffee shops in SF and Oakland or at the fantastic office of ours at CfA. So, while I'm still making things, they contain strings in code more than strings of thread. But, I promise projects from me won't be disappear completely, they'll just happen when they do in this new schedule of mine, and whenever they do, they'll definitely be posted here.

Moving on, I did go out to Alameda, an island just west of Oakland, to visit the antiques fair (or to them, faire). It's the first Sunday of every month. There is an admission to get in, which I thought was a little odd, but if you go around 10 (I know, late by antique market standards) it's just $5. The place is huge and if I weren't on my fellowship salary and basically already in possession of most things I need in my life right now, I would have gone to town. To. Town. I did pick up a couple things, though. I got 7 hankies, because I use hankies. Everyday.

If you're in the area, it's definitely worth a go -- even just for the view of downtown San Francisco.

Below you can see that we're not in Kansas. Oakland has a big port and these giant shipping crate dinosaurs provide the backdrop for rugs, old dressers and Fiestaware.

collecting - cast iron pans

I bought my first cast-iron skillet as a fledgling baker in high school, looking for a proper vessel for making pineapple upside-down cake. It was actually a completely uneducated buy; I was at the late, lamented Lakewood Antiques Show, saw a wonderful, smooth 9" cast-iron skillet for $18, and talked them down to $12 (it was a Sunday, the last day of the show, after all). I didn't know anything about seasoning the pan, and I bought it in part because, frankly, I didn't know that new cast-iron pans were still manufactured. It's turned out to be well worth its $12 price, and sits permanently on top of our stove, stacked with a number of other cast-iron pans that could double as anti-burglary implements, if it ever came to that.

Brimfield - Summer

I went to Brimfield Saturday. This was my first Saturday visit, I usually go during the week. It was also my first July visit. It was so much smaller - so much smaller that we probably covered 90% of the fields and went from end to end. But, it's still Brimfield which at its largest is an unimaginable large - this was a very real, imaginable large. Talking to folks we found out that it's the heat that keeps vendors and visitors away during the July show and our heat has really been something lately. But I'm from Middle Georgia, so it ain't no thang to me.

I bought two more picnic blankets, for no other reason than true love. I love their weight, the linen of the pastel one and the deep blue of the check. I'm thinking of ways to turn them into blankets/throws for chilly nights. I bought two Royal Albert tea cups, one with a floral pattern to add to my 3 cup collection, and one with a french blue and gold inside that makes me feel lucky to have found - and they were just 50 cents each! As were the two small blue plates! I bought some bias tape, 3 for $1, some blue beads for a big, bold necklace that's floating around in my head, an impeccably made crochet doily (hope this inspires me to do my own) and finally 3 more silver plated salad forks for my collection.

Some more show photos after the jump.

Great day at Todd Farm!

A quick post just to share about a great trip to Todd Farm Antique Market! [You can read my post about the market here] The morning was lovely and for the first time, for me, when we got there the front parking lot was full! I got two lovely, lovely print hankies ($1 each); an antique glass doorknob (my apt's bathroom has not had a doorknob at all since I've lived here! $9); a couple of small milk jars (one from Mass and one from Maine 2 for $5) and canning jars ($2 each); a fantastic structured, real leather satchel ($15) and a free Martha Stewart back issue (July 2002) to boot!

It's only 30 miles north Boston folks, smell the grass, see the Colonial homes and get bargaining.

Great day!

places: SOWA Market, Boston Sundays

The SOWA Market in Boston's South End is in full swing! This year the market has moved from its old spot next to Gaslight, to just a bit further down Harrison Ave. (but still close enough to grab brunch at Gaslight before heading to the market). This new spot is fantastic for the market. It's at 460 Harrison Ave, which houses many of Boston's talented artists, their fantastic galleries and studios. There is an outdoor section with food vendors - and to my delight, Dels (now I can have some between Brimfields and trips to RI); an outside market and interior vintage market that's a lovely addition. I couldn't get to Todd Farm Sunday because of the rain and so I took trips instead to Cambridge Antique Market and SOWA and my need for Sunday antiquing was met. Check it out this Sunday!

More photos and details after the jump.

Brimfield - This Week!

Just a reminder that this week is the first Brimfield Antiques show of the year! The show runs from the 11th until the 16th. I won't be able to make this one but will definitely make one or two of the next two. More information on this (the largest Antique Market in the country) can be found here on a previous post.

Todd Farm Antiques

Glory be, it's flea market season in New England!

Brimfield Antiques Show

Brimfield is the largest Antiques and Flea Market in the country and lucky for me it's just an hour or so outside of Boston. I made my visit there for July's show. A friend and I Zip Car'd a Honda Element and set off for treasures.