Pass the cigars, it's a GIRL!

Ain't she purty?

Her name's Fantine.

Me and my gotta-have-it-right-now, impatient self
has been seriously jonesing for a dress form for what seems like forever.
My junking budget has taken a serious hit this past month or so
as I try to stock up on merch and props and such for my upcoming booth.
So a real live, busty, beautiful broad in the form of a female dress form was gonna have to wait.

In the meantime, I stumbled upon Jules, who I introduced you to last week.

Meh. He'll still come in handy, but he wasn't what I was truly looking for. 

Yes, I admit it....I was just using him until something better came along. 

Lookin' for the Junk BBD, no shame in that, right? 

So why do I feel like such a hussy, then?  ;-)

After Mass on Sunday, I set off just down the road
for some window shopping in the fab little town of Fredericksburg. You know, home of Red and the legendary Homestead stores, yada, yada.
Oh, and to grab a bite at the yummy well-known eatery, Rather Sweet ....
OMG, if you haven't eaten there, you simply must!
This chick is one seriously talented chef,
and she's been mentioned in scads of national mags
and been on the Food Network. Just go. Get the berry tart bar. Prepare to swoon.

Anyhoo....just window shopping. Yep, that's all I  planned on doing, yessirree. 

Was doing great until we hit the city limits 

and I saw a flashing "Antiques" sign I had never noticed before. 

"STOP THE CAR"  I screamed at my junking buddy 

who was driving. Turns out it's a brand spanking new Antique Mall 

which just opened a little over a month ago. 

They seem to have terrific stuff and mostly great prices. 

And that's where I found her....

She was nestled away in a corner behind a bunch of
Pepto Bismol pink frou frou. Almost passed her by,
and would have had she not whispered to me in French
"C'est un plaisir de vous rencontrer".

And with that, my resolve melted like a puddle of sorbet.

She isn't vintage, but that's aiight, I have plans to tea stain her soon.
And she comes on a really sturdy, solid rolling stand.
The best part? I was able to get her for a song,
and nope, it wasn't La Vie En Rose, either.

I picked up a few more treasures at my newfound junk source, 

as well as got my name on the waiting list for when a booth opens up. Score!

Here's another nifty little find which caught my eye the minute I walked in the front door:

It's an egg carrier-sorter thingamabob! A little too pricey for me,
but representative of some of the unusual things they have there.

Next installment, I'll give ya's a peek at the darling scales
I practically stole from them they were so cheap!

Have a fab Monday!

~ Anne

Introductions are in order....

I've never truly felt that I had a junking day
where the junk gods were smiling upon me. 
My junker GPS always seems to direct me towards
the overpriced or the not-quite-right.
Oh sure, I've had days where I've found remarkable treasures,
but never at such a steal that I was positively giddy with delight. Until today.

Meet Jules....

As I muster up courage to move forward with my plans
to get a store space/booth, priority number one has been
trying to build up my inventory. I've been in search of
vignette backgrounds and display objects,
but I absolutely refuse to pay upwards of $50 for
chippy old screen doors and windows.
I mean, I know that things like that are pretty much a staple in vintage shops, but still....

Today is proof positive that the very best finds
are often stumbled upon purely by accident.

Discouraged from finding nothing of interest at several thrift stores,
I took a turn off the beaten path and found
a store I never even knew existed...it was the Habitat for Humanity Re-Store,
and it promises to be a never ending source of junky goodness for the forseeable future!

Row after row of chippy doors, windows, shutters, plumbing. And all for next to nothing!

I spied this huge rustic window screen lounging against a far wall
and almost keeled over when I viewed the price tag:
THREE DOLLARS!!!!

I was pricing these just last week in the antique malls,
and it was impossible to find any for less than $30.
Score one for the virtue of patience, something I'm not commonly known for.

The next row over, I came across these chippy white window screens for $6. Double score!!

These babies will be the perfect backdrop 

for some killer vignettes I have in mind.

But back to Jules.

It's a male form, but I'm sorta thinking I'm gonna 

androgynize (is that a word?) him up a bit. 

Add some pearls, some vintage millinery. He'll look dashing.

True, I've primarily been searching for female dress forms, 

but hey, for $20, I'll take a fella home with me instead, no problem! 

Uhhh, wait, that didn't come out right....  ;-)

The staff at the store said that in all their years of operation,
this was the first time they had acquired dress forms.
Turns out a lady who runs an antique shop
about 30 miles up the road was clearing out her garage
and donated about 20 to the shop....on the very same day I stumbled upon
this trove of treasures...purely by accident.

Or was it? I'm thinking that maybe those benevolent junk gods
were actually trying to quell my fears and guided my path
to this newfound nirvana. You know, to assure me that my
junking radar is spot-on and to embolden me to press on with plans for my shop.

Welcome home, Jules!