This baby has been with me for ten years. It came into my life the first month my shop had moved to its West Broad Street location. A lovely woman walked in, saw me ringing people out on a card table and said "Honey, you need a COUNTER." Turns out she was a retired antique dealer and this 1800's North Carolina general store counter was stashed at the very understanding, long suffering friend's house. She ended up selling it to me for a very reasonable price. I felt like a legit shopkeeper right then and there. A couple of neighbors and Randy's macho pickup delivered it to the shop. We literally carried it in by our fingertips because it cleared the door by a scant half inch! (And no, I did not even think to measure the door!) This counter was the epicenter of activity for years. I dragged it from Falls Church to Lewes Delaware to Coastal Virginia where it has taken center stage in my studio. The only issue with that is it really to short to work from so it mostly just acted as storage.
Karma came knocking when my friend Anna took me on a whirlwind tour of Hilton Village in Newport News. We popped into Design & Consign and met owners Stephanie & Robert. Design & Consign's two locations are packed FULL of lots of vintage goodies, furniture and home decorating elements. Lots of chatting ensued and they are now the proud owners of both the counter and the revolving cases. I am happy they have found a new home where they will live out their intended purpose and will be enjoyed by more than just me.
Let's be real- it's bittersweet to sell the counter. I have wrestled in the year since my big move whether or not to open up another shop. I miss the community we created and the friends I made through running the business. But I must confess I enjoy the freedom of not being a 7 day a week retailer and I am thrilled with the leaps and bounds my art practice has taken. I am hoping when Bob retires this fall we will be able to have a life balanced with creating, playing, online work and shows. Fingers crossed it will actually happen.
The counter has been around almost 200 years and it will be around for another 200. If you want to go visit it, either in person or online, you can check out Design & Consign on Facebook
here. The new location opens in June!
PS I have been invited to do a collaboration with Stephanie & Robert. Stay tuned for details!
2 comments:
Some pieces we become short term curators of; then they most move on and continue their life. I am beginning to try to figure out how to transition into retirement. Enjoy your time with Bob.
On July 23, 2010, I placed a standing frame listed as" Edythe Marie Klapka standing frame, $30," along with a few other items.
I had a dream about this item on Sept 30, 2019, roughly 9 years later. I believe this frame also held my Mom's photo.
Do you have an idea how I can locate this item. It was unique. A 1930 picture frame on a stand. I am so sorry I let it go. Sincerely Irene McDonnell Falls Curch VA
703-820-5950.
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