2 Storeys Antiques

As you may have read in my previous posts, I kinda' have a collector's crush on Carter's Creek Station Antiques.  Slightly off the beaten track in just barely Columbia TN, it's an old general store and grainery that houses many, many booths of antique-y goodness.  The grainery is a separate building across the street from the main location that has been growing and evolving over the past couple of years.  There is a space in it that had been converted into a funky, little apartment at one point, but recently has opened as its own antique store.  Carol and Bubba Storey have been one of my two favorite vendors at Carter's Creek ever since I bought my 1963 combo record player/hifi/TV from Bubba and he drove it all the way to Nashville and helped me load it in the front door.  I have since made many a happy purchase from the 2 of them and I am thrilled that they've opened their own spot in addition to their existing booth in the grainery, 2 Storeys Antiques.  They could not be more fun-loving and friendly and they always have fantastic deals on great items.  Below is just the tiniest selection off items available at 2 Storeys.

Gorgeous metal file cabinet and sundries

Amber luster glass with a carry rack

Funky, chippy radio cabinet, gutted and ready to store your unusual treasures

 

A view of the front and loads of adorable lawn furniture

Like Carters Creek Station, 2 Storeys offers layaway.  Their hours are Thursday - Saturday 10-5 and Sunday 1-5.

Rumours East Wine, Chocolate & Shopping

 

I'll be at this event with a small sampling of handmade and vintage goodness along with a host of other vendors.   Remember, the shopping is free to enjoy, but you'll have to pony up $20 for chocolates & wine, but it is WELL worth it!

November Porter Crossing Arts Market

The November Porter Crossing Arts Market will be from noon until 9pm this Saturday, November 12th.  I'll be there with vintage clothing, furniture and household goods, as well as handmade jewelry, art and decor.  There has been such a great selection of vendors at the past 2 events, I can only imagine that it will get better in these last 2 shows seeing as how we're getting close to the holidays.
Check out details on their Facebook event page.

Antiques at the old country store

Carter's Creek Station in Columbia, TN is another one of my favorite places to shop. Owned and operated by Linda Jones-Lloyd, it is a wonderland of the old and unusual. Every time I visit my grandmother in Columbia (which admittedly is not as frequent as it should be) I stop by this old country store in the middle of nowhere. My mother and I are often the only visitors when we're shopping (no worries though, they do alright) so it's as though you're exploring a place that no one else knows about. The shop consists of a 100 year old general store and "The Granary" which is across the street right on the tracks where they unloaded deliveries from the trains oh so many years ago. There are several rooms filled ceiling to floor with every era and kind of antique imaginable. Everything from fine Victorian furniture to primitive pie safes to mid-century modern kitsch are represented and affordably priced.
Generally speaking "The Granary" contains the over-flow merchandise or things that are maybe a little too junky (my favorites items, by the way!) for the antique store proper. I find it handy to have my digital camera with me so that is there is something without a price tag I can snap a picture and show it to Linda when I walk back across the street. (it beats awkwardly trying to describe it and where it's located in relation to other items) Linda, the owner, is a doll and as funny as they come. I once weathered a tornado in her shop and the entire time she was cool as a cucumber, cracking jokes and talking about the fortitude (or lack thereof) of the building we were in. She is often out of the store at auctions, estate sales, yard sales and the like, but not to worry the folks she leaves in her stead are just a kind and helpful and Linda is always available by phone to help price anything unmarked or find something she set aside for you. Once she gets a feel for items you may be looking for she often adds them to her shopping list and brings you back treasures from all over the Southeast. It is not merely her finds in the store, she rents booth space to several people adding to the eclectic flavor of the store.
There's almost always something I have never seen before at Carter's Creek Station. Things both sweet & traditional and that which is funky & bizarre. Over the years I have purchased an adult tricycle, countless furniture items, Indonesian Buddha heads, architectural findings, dolls, jewelry, men's ties, crocheted doll panties (yeah, you read that right!), the list goes on and on, but suffice to say that there's plenty to choose from and the price is always right. I challenge you to not find something you want to take home! I always find some treasure (more often than not several treasures) there every time I visit, not to mention that the bucolic setting and a profusion of eye-candy, make it a must see if you find yourself in the area.
Carter's Creek Station Antiques is located at:
2984 Carter's Creek Station Road
Columbia, TN 38401
931-486-0405

Thursday - Saturday 10 am until 5 pm (sometimes later)
Sunday 1 pm - 5 pm
Monday - Wednesday by appointment call 931-270-0720 or 931-619-1072

Antiques Roadshow here I come!

I am addicted to Antiques Roadshow on PBS, I can't get enough of it. I am not as concerned with monetary values (although that is a fun aspect) and more intrigued by the unusual items that people bring in and their history. (I especially like it when know-it-all people get shut down by the appraiser when they tell them that their "provenance" is pure B.S.!) You always see those people who find something in the trash or buy something at a yard sale for 25¢ and it's worth thousands of dollars, well that yahoo may soon be me! I bought the planter/bowl/random art pottery below for a whopping 5¢ at an estate sale. I just liked the coloring and its "art nouveau-ness", turns out when I got it home there was a mark on the bottom. It was back to back "A"s in a box and a cursive signature that I couldn't make out. After some arduous poking around on the internet I discovered that it was a Van Briggle! (probably made in the 30's judging from the signature)

Here's a bit of the history from the Van Briggle Pottery website:

Artus Van Briggle, an American artist of Dutch descent, was established as a world class painter in Europe. Having been trained at the finest academies there, and with paintings accepted by the Paris Salon, he received the highest honors for a painter in his day. Yet his artistic passions would ultimate lead him away from his brush, canvas, and easel toward another artistic pursuit that would ultimately define his genius. Though Artus was a brilliant painter, his artistic passions were most eloquently expressed in the forms and colors of one of history’s oldest arts – pottery. From his years as a celebrated artist at the famed Rookwood Pottery in Ohio he knew first-hand the extraordinary range of expression an artist could achieve with the potter’s materials. His pursuit was the creation of exquisite satin matte glazes, like those he’d seen on ancient Chinese masterworks, in a palette of glorious colors, never achieved by any artist in modern times. The materials this brilliant artist would use for his greatest artistic pursuit would be minerals from the earth - clays, feldspars, oxides, - and the glowing orange flames of a fiery kiln. When transformed by the creative mind and the skilled hand these materials become the essence of both humanity and nature blended in unity. Clay and glaze are indeed extravagant media, offering the artist a lifetime of challenges and rewards. Artus, however, didn’t have a lifetime – tragically, he had contracted tuberculosis and, though a relatively young man, his future was uncertain. Artus had achieved some success in discovering a formula for these beautiful matte glazes prior to his arrival in Colorado but he continued his work there, seeking a standard of perfection not yet achieved. Pottery is a melding of art and science, and during the time when he conducted his experiments Artus knew success could not come without the patience of a scientist and the passion found in all great artists. He pursued his vision with tireless effort, though the effects of failing health often interrupted his progress. No specific date is recorded, but one day in the spring of 1901 he reached into the kiln, with the anticipation known well by countless potters throughout the ages, and finally held in his hands the perfect, rich, matte-glazed pottery he had sought for so long - the first pieces created in centuries, the first ever on this side of the world. Against the odds of failing health and a pursuit which no western artist had ever achieved, he succeeded; his passion was realized - a lost art was now reborn. The world would once again see and touch of the soft marble-like glazes first known by ancient Chinese masters half a world and so many generations away.

Read the rest on the Van Briggle Pottery history page.

I have yet to pinpoint the value of my particular piece, I have found the color and pattern (which I believe is called "spade leaf", the color is Ming Turquoise, priced in the $2000-$2500 range) and some pieces with another pattern of the same size & shape (for about $150-$250) but nothing that matches mine exactly. Right now I am unable to pinpoint if it is the glaze/pattern that is desirable or the kinds of pieces that I have seen it on that make up the bulk of the value. Either way a pretty good return on a nickel!

Behold my stellar find!