Ironing Boards

So, walking around Brimfield (or actually any multi-dealer antique store) I usually find that there are one or two items that I keep seeing. I don't mean something like teacups, or figurines, but one particular item that seems to be something that obviously is an item du jour so-to-speak.

What was that item at Brimfield? Well it was ironing boards. My guess is no one wants the ironing board when an estate is sold or a house is down sized as I hear that nobody actually irons these days (sorry Jill, I know you do!).

I would say that every fifth booth had an ironing board of some description for sale. I say some description, because some of them had seen way better days and really were not suitable for taking the time to add padding and a new cover. Tell me, what would someone do with an old ironing board?

(Okay, had a flash back to a quilt shop in Buellton, California and the owner there uses old ironing boards to hook items for sale onto and also in her displays of quilt fabrics, so take that back. That is one use).

 So those were just a few of the ones I saw in half a day and believe me there were more!

There were also a few old irons, but not ones I would want to use!

 

Meet me in St. Louis!

Come and meet me in St. Louis!

Are you going to the SAGA St. Louis Retreat (October 12-15)?  There are still classes available and time to sign up!

Just visit the SAGA website www.smocking.org and follow the links!

See you there I hope!

My Brimfield Find

My day out at Brimfield was great fun. It was hot and humid, but then it is July in New England! Lisa and I arrived early as we knew that rain was due early afternoon and there is nothing worse than walking around the fields in the rain-think mud, mud and more mud!!

The first field that we walked around was the one we parked behind and it was a mix of good quality antiques, collector items, junk and ethnic crafts- basically a mix of everything you find in all the fields. We wandered in and out of the tented booths, neither one of us with anything special we were looking for, but obviously our attention was caught if we spotted sewing items or vintage linens or clothing!

My only (!) purchase was this box. It was actually Lisa that spotted it and knowing I have a Singer Featherweight, pointed it out to me.

I looked into the box and saw the contents and then asked the booth owner the price. The price was right ($5) so I bought it. I wasn't sure if I had any of the attachments it contained, but at that price I didn't want to loose the chance of adding them to my collection.

Binder foot with guide

Ruffler

Adjustable Hemmer

Edge Stitcher

Gathering Foot

Lisa and I walked another field before we decided to leave and avoid the rain that was imminent.

Two new packs of needles

(It turns out that I do have all of these feet with my Featherweight, so I will be looking to sell them, but I will be keeping the needles!)

What else did we see? I will save that for another blog soon!

A Day Out

I am looking forward to a day out today with a good friend as we are heading to Brimfield, Massachusetts.

Why Brimfield? Well it is one of the largest antique shows in New England and even the country.

The event takes place in the fields that line Route 20 in the small town of Brimfield and it is fields and fields of vendors selling everything from the smallest items to huge pieces that you could never fit into your car.
                                    
The show is held three times a year, May, July and September and starts on Tuesday of what is known as 'Brimfield Week' and ends on Sunday, but not all fields are open all week (a marketing ploy to make you stay in the area maybe?).

So fingers crossed that the weather stays good for most of the day as we walk through some of the 21 fields and visit some of the 5,000 vendors with 20,000 plus other visitors!

I will share some photos in a future blog!

Happy 4th!