hunting down great Florida finds,last week of January.

Rick and I have completed our second Mount Dora Antiques Extravaganza, as well as three each of the monthly Arcadia Antiques markets and West Palm Beach Antiques markets, where we set up under our business name, Gardentiques. Not much left of what we brought down from Michigan in November, and the push is on to continue re-stocking. We have a show every single weekend through mid-March, and the goal is always to return with a completely new and exciting load for the early spring Michigan shows, while continuing to thrill Florida shoppers until then, with great booths each week in a new location.
At both the Mount Dora and Arcadia shows I was able to buy a few items, most of it iron that will be re-purposed or re-configured into great garden merchandise. There was also an extraordinary gothic looking birdgage which was purchased in Mount Dora and found a new home the following week in Arcadia. I wouldn't have minded keeping that one for my own house.

It's funny how you really have to check out all kinds of sources for hot new product. Trying to keep costs down, I thought on Sunday that I would try shopping a few local thrift shops down near Fort Myers Beach. Most of these turned out to be closed on Sunday, or had extraordinarily high prices, (higher than I could ever ask from a retail antiques show client.) I was somewhat disappointed, but decided to change my strategy to a hit and miss combination of estate/garage sales, along with whatever shops I found open in the McGregor Blvd Antiques District. Even though it was late Sunday afternoon, I came home with some very nice items that included 6 new pieces of mercury glass, ironstone, artwork, and a wonderful, tassled rusty iron fern stand. Along with the great Adirondack chair and the old Japanese umbrella stand (already sold) which we found at the side of the road last Tuesday, plus the choice grouping of tropical vintage smalls from the area's 2 weekly flea markets, and a pair of wonderful 1930s Spanish chairs with original coral-color upholstery, it was a pretty satisfying week.

Tomorrow morning the cycle begins again, with the first local flea outside one of the area's biggest tourist traps, The Shell Factory. Wish me luck, because whatever I find will be offered to all of you through Gardentiques at shows in Florida and Michigan in the coming months, or through http://.gardentiques.net.  In the meantime, happy hunting!http://.gardentiques.net