Saturday Finds - More surely to Come!

On our way to Mocksville for pond supplies (because spring is just around the corner!) we came across this old farm house antiques shop and what we expected to be a quick stop turned into a two hour treasure hunt! We learned from Dee, the owner of Dee's Antiques that she buys estates in the area and boy, oh boy does she have some interesting stuff - and what's better, everything she has is in almost-perfect condition.  Fantastic! Oh, oh, oh... forgot to say that most everything is half price too! Dee explained that once she makes her money back on the estate, she marks every remaining from the estate down by 50%. She's my kind of business-woman! 

Any way, the house is a treasure in itself; built in 1850 on what once was an 800 acre farm, I could have spent all day just piddling around the house and grounds. I started in the kitchen where all the kitchen stuff was displayed and the first thing that caught my eye was this two-handled bowl but I left it behind. Just outside the kitchen, there is a narrow hallway where I excused myself to step in front of the only other customer there, and just as I rounded the corner I saw this 6-gallon pickling crock sitting on the floor under a table. Usually I find these with chips and cracks in them but not today! This one is in perfect condition... Also, I usually cannot find one this size priced under $100; however, this one was priced $94 - But! It was half-price so I paid only $47.oo! And there was added fun because just as Dee followed me back into the room to unload all the plastic flowers she had in it so I could carry it away, the customer I swished past said to me, "Are you buying that crock?" When I told her I was, she said, "I collect these and it's about the only thing I'm here to find, and it's a 6, which is a size I don't have yet." I tried to lessen her disappointment in missing out on this one by reminding her that the hunt is the best part of collecting (so hunt-on, sister), but I don't think she was buying my enthusiasm for her continued search. 

A second pass through the kitchen brought me to these darling 1950's cherry drinking glasses (also half price) and in the bathroom I found this 1950's medical instrument sterilizer - half-price as well. Dee said she knew the doctor this belonged to... I told her he was either very careful with his equipment or he wasn't very busy because I've never seen one in such great shape and when I do find them the enamelware insert is usually missing. Update - I took the tray to work this morning and filled it with paper clips - Now I get to use it every day - And, as you can see, I went back this evening for the handled bowl!

The history buff I love found two framed English indenture contracts dated in the 1700's - Dee said they came from an estate she bought but she can't tell us any more about them. She said that if we end up on the Antiques Roadshow and they wind up being worth a lot of money she hopes we'll remember where we got them! I told her we're not that lucky and my money is on the fact that we've just bought two expensive old frames. Nevertheless, the frames are nice and writing on the contracts is beautiful so they are worth the trouble to hang them.  

Needless to say, we're adding Dee's farmhouse shop to our list of weekend hunting stops!