Getting Back on the Show Circuit

As my shoulder continues to improve with physical therapy I'm slowly getting back on the show circuit. Although I skipped Brimfield for the second time this year, I did set up in Dorset, Vermont, in July, and then in New London, NH, the following weekend. My camera batteries failed to take a charge the night before the Dorset show, so I have no image record of that show, which is a biennial show on the lawns and marble sidewalks of the village... very picturesque. It was a hot day for us all, but the crowd turned out all the same and I think it's fair to say that the dealers held up their end of the bargain too. There were some gorgeous antiques for sale in Dorset that Saturday.

A week later, with brand new batteries in my camera, I made my way to the Garden Club Antique Show in New London, New Hampshire.

The town green was absolutely full of dealers, and despite the heat of that day, once again the crowd turned out. There was a strong shower just at the start of set-up, so probably only half of us were ready on time for early buying, but the upside was that we stayed cooler than expected for nearly all the morning, and although the afternoon got quite warm, the humidity was pretty much gone. I heard no one complain.

Making its first appearance at a show was a ca. 1800 Blanket Box that that I had bought at an estate sale while vacationing with the family on the New Jersey shore in early July. I really hadn't intended to buy anything at all while "on vacation" but so much for that resolution.

Five of the six boards are White Pine; the sixth, the bottom board, is Chestnut (now it could properly be called wormy Chestnut) and it retains its original hand-wrought iron hinges and its old green paint. Given my shoulder problem it's only the second piece of furniture that I've added to my offerings this year-- everything else has been small and light. I guess it's a sign that my shoulder really is getting better, that and my fondness for pieces still in their old paint.

So what else is new?

A three-legged Cast Iron Pot, most recently used as a plant holder, but what its original use was I really don't know.

A cast iron Radiator Cover that could be used as a trivet or hung on a wall for its interesting pattern.

A set of 1-1/4pound Wood Dumbbells, something any of us with shoulder injuries could still use.

And a Farm Tractor and Trailer. Sorry, but this one is not going to be for sale. Instead it will go to my 13 month old grandson, Finn, when I see him later in August. Every boy needs a tractor to drive around.