Here is a really cute and fun crocheted Pumpkin Pie Brooch that is totally guilt-free!! A fun craft project for sure that you can use your vintage yarns for and it is sure to be a “hit” year after year. Visit Craftzine to get the pattern and insturctions.

I love going to flea markets and junk shops and I always see lots of old funky trunks and  suitcases and also lots of tattered cabinets and display shelves that would be GREAT storage cabinets and miniature armoires if repurposed with flea market fabrics, walpapper, and some ribbons. If you are asking “how to repurpose flea market finds” DIY Ideas has a great flea market project for this so if you are looking for ways to put your stash of flea market finds to good use then you will enjoy this one!

I find it’s more and more common that when I am out antiquing, thrifting, or junking I end up in conversations with folks that tell me they are Pickers. I regularly receive emails from my online stores from folks identifying themselves as Pickers. I’ve only been involved with antiques and collectibles for a handful of years and have not heard the term PICKER as often as I do now. Perhaps we have mainstream shows and television networks like the American Pickers, HGTV, A&E, Cash and Cari, Storage Wars, Bargain Hunt, Auction Kings and Pawn Stars to thank. I was even recently contacted by a casting agent to be featured on a new type of Antiques/Collectibles/Pickers television show so this tells me being a “Picker” is a very hip and happening thing these days!

I am constantly researching and learning about antiques and collectibles and am honing my skills. Since I really have a passion for antiques and collectibles I can say I fully enjoy all the learning! I have written many articles right here on my blog sharing tips with my readers about selling online, selling at antique malls, buying and selling at flea markets, antiques and collectibles shops, thrift stores etc. The best tip I can share is for you to become an Expert in whatever it is you buy/sell. You almost must have a Niche and Specialize.

5 Tips for the novice Picker:

1.    Research. If you follow my blog then you know I am always touting the term “Research” as the more you know about a variety of items the better Picker you will be and the better Seller your will be. You need to know what items are collectible, what items no one really want and what items to specialize in.

2.    Getting Dirty. Don’t be afraid to get dirty. Sometimes you have to crawl around in an attic, basement, or out-buildings to Pick the treasure. No one said Picking was easy. Heck, even at flea markets and garage sales you will find dirty or grimy items, items in need of TLC. Also, don’t overlook dumpster diving especially when you see someone is moving or being evicted (good idea is to check to make sure you have permission from the people or landlord to go through the dumpster).

3.    Learn to Negotiate. You must be respectful of other people’s stuff….they are attached to their stuff so if you want their stuff you need to learn how to negotiate. Remember “He Who Speaks First Looses” so you need to learn to get the owner of the stuff to first let you know if its for sale and then how much they want for it.

4.    ReSelling. Pickers pick as a business and must have a way to off-load the merchandise.  Make contacts with thrift shops, antiques shops, decorators, designers, dealers (jewelry, coin and stamp), flea market vendors, online sellers etc. You can re-sell to these folks and charge a commission. Once you develop a reputation for sourcing or Picking great merchandise you can certainly make a steady and very profitable income being a picker, re-seller or personal shopper.

5.    Make sure you talk to a lawyer, CPA or account to get setup as a legal business with your state and learn all you need to learn about running a business as being a Picker is very hard work, demands many hours, and you don’t want to over-look any legalities.

Taking a coffee break and looking at the Country Living website I notice some really nice beaded bookmarkers and thought how neat it would be to make these (the instructions are below and look kinda easy) with actually vintage beads and baubles, that would surely make them one-of-a-kind and unique….might just make a fabulous stocking stuffer for Christmas too!!

Instructions From Country Living:
Velvet ribbon in nine-inch lengths.
Ribbon clamps the same width as your ribbon use flat-nose jewelry pliers to affix clamps to both ends of each ribbon.
Finish by attaching charms, trinkets, or vintage earrings to the clamps with jump rings

Pictures from AndreaSingarella.com

I recently found a terrific website for locating Estate Sales across the country called Estate Sales.Net. I am so excited about the website that I kinda feel like I have uncovered an Estate Sale Secret! The website is very user friendly and you can search for an Estate Sale in your area easily via zip code or city/state. Results are displayed via title and location and many listings have a little camera icon next to them so you can actually see what is for sale and then read a description of all the items listed for sale so you can know pretty quickly if it is a sale you want to go to.  I really like the website and hope it is useful for all of you who enjoy Estate Sales.

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It has been a while since I posted some tips and advice and if you are a follower of my blog you know I usually post tips and advice revolving around selling antiques and collectibles at flea markets, online and antique malls. Today, I am posting a tip about how to make money with your blog via your antiques and collectibles.

Did you know that having a blog today is just as important as having a website? Did you know that search engines like Google, Yahoo, Bing, MSN, Alta Vista, Dog Pile, etc. index blog postings and rank them based on search criteria? Did you know that having a blog could improve your sales?

A blog helps build relationships. When you sell online antiques, collectibles, vintage, and retro items a blog can bring customers to you 24/7 and from around the world! Once you develop a following, you can communicate with your readers and share information as well as let them know about new items and treasures you have added and even take requests for special items. A blog can also help you increase sales as you can direct folks to your “for sale” items and let folks know how they can go about purchasing your items. A blog can also be utilized to communicate special events, sales, and promotions.  If you are selling at a flea market or upcoming event then you will certainly want your followers to know this. If you sell at an antique mall or collectibles shop you can let your followers know about it too.

Having a blog does not have to cost a lot. You can start a free blog via Blogger, WordPress, and Typepad. A resource I found really easy to understand and follow along with is by a fellow blogger – Tara Frey of BellaPink  – BLOGGING FOR BLISS. Lots of great ideas, details, and information.  BLOGGING FOR BLISS introduces you to some well-known bloggers, including Vintage Indie, Little French Garden House, The Farm Chicks.

If you are interested in beginning a blog, looking for tips and ideas to beautify and improve your blog via banners and photos, or are an experienced blogger already, you will get lots of good information that you can apply right away and start making money via your blog. Crazy4Me highly recommends Blogging For Bliss.

Send me a note and let me know how things are going with your blog and if you are seeing sales results!!

I LOVE this idea!  For those of us that collect vintage and heirloom brooches, have inherited a large brooch collection, or , know someone getting married why not turn those baubles into a one-of-a-kind bouquet? These vintage brooch bridal bouquets are stunning and are sure to start a tradition.  For instruction guide please visit Off Beat Bride. Pictures shown here are from: Studio Del Fiore, PDX Neat Sheet, and Green Wedding Shoes.

Now that Spring is officially upon us and we will all most likely start doing a bit of “Spring Cleaning” in the coming weeks, this does trickle down to cleaning many of our prized Antiques and Collectibles and in order to keep these treasures looking their best, below are some tips and tricks to help do the cleaning and help to preserve these treasures.

Exercise Caution First:
If you have any doubts about cleaning your item then it is best NOT to. You do not want to damage an antique that is over 100 years old with improper cleaning so, when in doubt – just don’t clean it and contact an expert.

Many people mistaken dirt and Patina. Patina is a natural process that occurs with the item over many, many, many years and is something collectors and enthusiasts look for on items so if you are not sure if your item has natural patina or dirt, Do Not attempt to clean it and contact an expert. Usually “dirt” can be removed with a bit of water and super light brushing where as Patina cannot and requires more aggressive methods. Removing the Patina from an antique will immediately lower its value! Exercise caution.

Cleaning Porcelains & Ceramics:
Start with warm water and a soft cloth. Porcelain is rather hard and durable and Bone China even more so. If you have some tough dirt or spots, add a bit of dish soap and make sure it is mild. If the item you are trying to clean needs a bit more aggressive “cleaning”, try adding a very soft toothbrush to the process (run the tooth brush through the warm soapy water) and this really should do the trick. Be sure to always clean/brush “gently”.  Also, adding some salt to the damp cloth will act as a very mild aid that can also lend some help with the cleaning…just don’t be too aggressive.

Ceramics on the other hand are not as durable as bone china and porcelain but the same methods can get your items sparkling! Starting with warm water, adding a soft cloth, adding mild soap if necessary and finally adding a tooth brush if necessary. Be careful when cleaning items that have cold paint as these can and will flake so be very careful to exercise caution. Finally, if your item has very stubborn sticker residue then adding a bit of lemon juice to the process should indeed do the trick.

Linens and Textiles:
Are you ready to clean the spots/stains out of Thanksgiving’s vintage tablecloth or do you have a Antique tapestry that is super dusty? Soaking your linens in some Biz or using a special “vintage linen safe” product and then treating the tough spots and stains with some lemon juice diluted with water and hanging the linen in the sun will also help to lighten them. CAUTION: Do not use lemon juice on porous materials! Visit the Vintage Tablecloth Lovers Club for a whole bunch of GREAT tips that will help you greatly. If you have a very dusty tapestry or textile you can of course try shaking it out outside to see how much dust you can get to come off and using a barely moisten soft cloth to work out dirt spots and also try a VERY SOFT paint brush to brush away dirt areas. If you have an extremely delicate or ancient linen/textile you will want to use your best judgment and always, always, always – contact an expert if you have doubts or hesitations.

Keeping Your Antique Books & Ephemera Safe and Clean:
Acid-free paper is a great item for keeping your antique books, ephemera, music sheets, photographs etc. safe and preserved. The acid-free paper will protect against sun light damage and fading, bugs, and humidity. Keeping these items stored upright, in a cool environment and even in as acid free paper lined box (especially for those smaller items like photos and letters) will help minimize damage and preserve your treasures.

Cleaning Vintage Teddy Bears & Dolls:
Here is a great tip for cleaning up those vintage dolls and teddy bears. First, DO NOT use water or liquid! Instead, try rubbing some talc powder or some cornstarch into the doll’s fabrics and let is sit for a few hours then brush it away. This will re-fresh those favorite little treasures!  To preserve these items for many more years to come, keeping them wrapped in acid-free paper and stored in a cedar box/cedar chest will keep bugs and temperature changes from causing damage. Keeping all collectibles out of direct sunlight and in a cool environment will help preserve them.

If you have any tips or tricks that you would like to share with us we would love to hear from you…we are all antique and collectible enthusiast so the more we can learn to keep our items clean and preserved the better!

I am looking for some creative and refreshing ways to display vintage collectibles and collections and of course Flickr is a GREAT resource for tons of photos. Here are few I found and thought you might all like them too!! I thought the idea of using vintage Coca Cola crates as display shelves was great and I also found a pic (sorry not posted) of someone who got super creative and used their childhood little red wagon for a shelf; they took off the wheels and inserted shelves and hung it on the wall and it is super cute. One individual also hung some vintage old vanity cases on their wall (they re-upholstered the interior and added shelves) and now it is a totally unique display and filled with their collections.  These photos are from: Pixie’s,  Cotton Blue, Marusica’s, Kitschen Pink’s, Taramariee’s.

I so enjoy the appeal of a retro kitchen and retro aprons and linens. Retro is so colorful and cheerful! Retro encompasses lots of Anthropomorphic elements from vintage Anthropomorphic salt and pepper shakers, Anthropomorphic fruit and veggies embroidered onto tea towels, dish towels and aprons and even Anthropomorphic chalkware wall plaques. EllynAnne Geisel has a couple great books out that bring the love of retro and vintage kitchen linens and aprons to the forefront of today and her website has so many neat downloadable “how to” like making these fabulously neat Original Egg Warmer Designs. Visit here for directions for this fun project! Make the POLKADOT EGG WARMER, APRON EGG WARMER, EGG WARMER APRON, EGG WARMER DRESS.