piddlin'

Oh Piddlin-Trips!

Charlotte, NC / Columbia, SC

One month ago, while piddlin’ I came to the conclusion that I had seen all the antique shops in town (and surrounding area) and decided it was time for another trip to Metrolina. After quickly checkin out their schedule for upcoming “extravaganzas” I called our dear friend, neighbor as well as my own personal antique collecting muse, Jessie.

[piddlin’] is about having an eye for certain items that you may or may not be in need of and having an intutive sense of what these items can be used for.

A little background: Jess is a sun-kissed yankee transplant, a vivacious + passionate mother of two all-american kids that do it all. Being originally from Upstate NY, Jessie was always exposed to some fine + primitive antiques + her love of such started at home- with her mom. I don’t know how she does it, but mygoodness this lady can piddle with the best-of-em. She even takes along her special piddlin’ bag for the occasion, loaded with her favorite piddlin’ snack: almonds + dried cranberries…yum! One of the many things I have learned from Jess is that piddlin’ is not only about finding a diamond in the rough piece, its about having an eye for certain items that you may or may not be in need of + having an intutive sense of what these items can be used for.

I’ve picked up quite a few great items lately, so this update will likely need to be spread over the course of a couple entries (so check back soon)…

Suffice it to say- the antique show at Metrolina in Charlotte was a great time , although not nearly as hustlin + bustlin as the usual show in Fall.

Here are a few items found last weekend:

RCola — …another coke crate for my RC Cola lovin beau! I recently found out that RC stands for Royal Crown, it being based in the Queen City- Charlotte, NC! I also love that these are his + my initials.

"Little Queen" — …another coke crate for my RC Cola lovin beau! I recently found out that RC stands for Royal Crown, it being based in the Queen City- Charlotte, NC! I also love that these are his + my initials.

crock 1 — …another coke crate for my RC Cola lovin beau! I recently found out that RC stands for Royal Crown, it being based in the Queen City- Charlotte, NC! I also love that these are his + my initials.

I did find a few other items however they are being stowed away for a special occasion {shhhh… don’t tell Ryan}

| to be continued

____________________

Well there’s more where that came from! How about these fabulous chippy shutters with that black on blue patina?! Found these in the little fox den of an antique shop nestled right over the Gervais St Bridge in Columbia, SC…who knew!!?

I had lots of fun picking out these fun vintage bottlecaps out of one serious collection @ Metrolina, now, they’re magnets for the fridge at the townhouse!

I snagged this beautifully aged nautical flag for $12 also at Metrolina…it represents the letter “X” or can be interpreted alone as ” Stop with your intentions” as a means of boat to boat communication. SO. COOL. and such a great find!

Asheville2010 - 743

The ultimate find of this particular weekend must remain a secret, but will be revealed after the 2nd weekend in May when I present it to Ryan for his birthday! I think he’ll really like it…

…what will it be!!?

| check back soon!

mcwd-charcoal-marycatherine-script

Pickin’ + Piddlin’

american-pickers

“We’ve all heard of antique dealers, but most of us know next to nothing about antique pickers. And yet these specialists are a crucial link on the chain that drags valuable relics out of obscurity and into our stores, museums and living rooms. In fact, if it weren’t for expert pickers like Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz, many antique stores would go out of business. Some historical artifacts would never have made their way into display cases. And an entire fleet of classic cars would still be up on blocks.

These self-described “modern archaeologists” are a far cry from dumpster divers. Ask any American picker, and you’ll probably learn there’s a science to their scrounging, a method to their memorabilia-seeking mission. Antique pickers like Mike and Frank travel the country, meeting collectors, hoarders, amateur historians and other individuals who all have unique stories to tell. Each and every treasure they uncover is a new history lesson, providing a glimpse at American life in the recent and distant past.

And then, of course, there’s the thrill of the hunt. Sometimes, it’s a race against time, with various pickers traveling from far and wide to check out–and compete for–a hot lead. Working for clients such as set designers, photographers, decorators and dealers, pickers go on wild goose chases for anything from motorcycles to military regalia to Ferris wheels.

So where do pickers track down their wares? Often, it’s way off the beaten path, in rural towns across the country, or right on the side of the road, especially on garbage pickup days. Sometimes they literally end up going from door to door, hoping to explore an abandoned barn or a basement packed to the gills with junk and gems.

Like antique dealers, pickers need a fabulous eye, especially when evaluating potential purchases that are covered in mildew, buried under dust or broken into fragments. It’s a risky business, too: after all, one person’s trash doesn’t always translate into another’s treasure. Or, as Mike and Frank put it, ‘You’re only as good as the last deal you made.’ ”

Source: http://www.history.com/shows/american-pickers/articles/what-is-picking :

pickin’ or piddlin’- call it what you will- these guys have definitely got the right idea!!! http://www.history.com/shows/american-pickers

Check out the American Pickers every Monday @ 9pm on The History Chan! *update: now catch them on Wednesdays at 9pm.

Between Piddlin’ Trips

iron "doorstop" — a little piece of history for my architect beau; seen here as a front door stop

My mom has updated her booth recently! Sterling Silver Tradition has traded two dusty cases for a beautifully aged wood + glass case…swoonworthy.

Also, be sure to stop by throughout the week to see SST’s latest purchases fresh from Atlanta to you (via Scott’s Antique Market)

What did she bring home for me, you ask? Well…two very fabulous finds, if you don’t mind my braggin’.

first doughbowl!

…the first being my very own dough bowl!!! at long last, I have one to call mine! Can’t wait to serve up some steamin’ lowcountry boil…I can already smell the ole’ bay! MmMmMm! …can’t go wrong with a receipe like this! (via Garden & Gun Magazine)

The second surcie is equally as fun as it is functional, a pretty antique-French-blue fleur-de-lis which looks great on a bookshelf or even as a doorstop!

fleur de lis

Now- I must add, just a few other finds I’ve been lucky enough to stumble over in the past month:

: This chippy little wooden bucket with rusted bands is perfect for holding my current reading materials + later, just about anything else! (via Northbridge Antiques)

The best part about this desk is how we found its matching counterpart while in Walterboro: a sweet little matching blue school desk chair which will one day make quite the study table.

Cannot seem to collect enough of these antique washboards; they will be so pretty in my laundry closet!

until next time- keep piddlin’!!

| mcwd-charcoal-marycatherine-script

PAST MONTH PIDDLIN’

OK OK so, even though i haven’t been necessarily jotting a record of every trip i make, don’t think that i haven’t been busy piddlin’. i honestly have been to every decent antique mall this side of The Cooper, as well as the other side-a The Ashley. although– i haven’t been downtown one bit–i digress.

let’s see; where to start. since the last post, mom + i had to go back to walterboro one day because for one, she wanted to see about making a deal for THE most gorgeous sterling silver tea set i have ever seen, although, it was to no avail. seems, the people in an unnamed antique shop are above that kind of dealing. also, i had to retrieve my perfectly antiqued boat oar, complete with old antique blue paint that seemed to haunt me since i laid eyes on it…sorry for the tiny pic, still learning my camera settings.

room corner — …a couple of antiques in my room with that oh so pretty chippy, antique blue paint

on the way back into town we successfully made it to Farmhouse Antiques which was both delightfully all i wanted it to be + yet, a slight disappointment + surprisingly overpriced! although the pieces they had to offer were wonderfully original + perfectly aged…they were asking entirely too much. definately stop by the next time you are on hwy 17 though, as it really is guaranteed to take ya back.

i have certainly been busy digging for some serious finds…however it seems I have yet to come across a truly wonderful find here lately. this can only mean one thing...it’s time for a trip to METROLINA!! (already planned for april 3) + next…mom is updating her booth at Southern Accents with a new vintage case this weekend!

| stay tuned

mcwd-charcoal-marycatherine-script

LADY’S ISLAND | WALTERBORO | RAVENEL

when i received a text from mom on friday: ” road trip tomorrow?” i knew this past weekend was guaranteed to be good. we both had long been discussin’ a trip to savannah, ga for many reasons. however, when our dear friend & neighbor, Jessie, suggested we could snag some fab finds a little closer to home, we ran with the idea.

we set out-dunkin donuts’ coffees in hand- around 8am. by 8:30 we were headin down highway 17 s to some of the smaller towns of the south carolina lowcountry.

lady’s island was our first stop. it was our favorite kind of antique store: mini-mall. this is where many different dealers have “booths” under one roof. so it amounts to one-stop shopping for all kinds of odds & ends. it makes for a great day of antiquing, because you never know what you’ll find.

we found these cute little hand stitched pillows for $3 to be used on the two blue chairs in my new townhouse:
handmade pillows

also, a new unusual mason jar for my collection @ $8

mom snagged a handful of $2 vintage green-glass coke bottles for her backporch milk carrier. all the bottles were from near-by bottling plants including: beaufort,sc; augusta,ga; & savannah, ga. too cool.

we jumped back into the car and headed to walterboro, where there are 12 advertised antique shops, so you can imagine, some were quite the tourist traps! all that we saw was so great, each store in their own way. the mini-mall style is always the best, however. we pulled up to the main strip in historic, downtown walterboro and our first stop was a quaint little coffee house where we grabbed a couple bagels and vanilla lattes. {delish!} that gave us an opportunity to get excited about the first store across the street that had at least 4 display windows and a sidewalk, full of wonderful finds:

Ultimately, we just brought home a few surcees, but the find of the day was this old school desk that has a light wood veneer atop a pale, antique-y blue legs! $15!!!!!

We were bummed we didn’t have more time to spend there. We spent too much time in the last store on the street; we really wanted to check out this great little roadside stop in ravenel, en route back to mount pleasant speedin' past Farmhouse Antiques …but of course, we ran out of time. Overall, it was a such a great trip, and a much needed break from reality. mom’s are great like that.

| piddles!

PIDDLIN’

pidd-lin’: v. [slang for piddling] to lollygag around town in search of one man’s trash, your treasure; to dilly-dally enjoyably

| ex. the way it feels to wake up early on a saturday + rolling out of bed, throw on the most comfy clothes, flop on your best worn-in ‘ball cap + snag a piping hot cup-a-joe how you like it to-go, just in time to arrive at the morning’s estate sale + auction. As late mornin’ rolls around, you head on up the road to the local antique market just to see what treasures may have been lying in wait to be discovered by its next interested owner.

…that’s piddlin’ at its finest + I could do it everyday.

| keep piddlin!