Mega Blowout in Brookfield!

This is the weekend of the estate sale for my late Uncle Frank and Aunt Mary Lou. Though the sale is being professionally run by Lynn's Home  Estate Sales (see her website link below) , Merikay and I helped out a bit.

This may have been one of the last public appearances of Judy Baar Topinka. She was known for frequenting estate sales in her area and sure enough she showed up. Sadly, my picture of her was too blurry to include here.

Lynn and her merry mob of helpers always do a fantastic job of staging the house and every room was packed with goodies. Here they are getting ready for the onslaught

 

The main attraction besides magic paraphernalia , was my uncle's camera collection, including choice Hasselblad and Leica examples.



 
 

 The Garflex 23



Plenty of film developing tanks. There were also several professional lamps and enlargers.




 Hammond Organ in excellent condition.

 

The attic was challenging but worth the effort.

Dale guards the basement.

Plenty of camera equipment, old books and magazines.

Rare photo of yours truly was expected to go for top dollar. (but didn't)

Tickle Me Elmo in with box!
Cousin Sue got all the good stuff.

 Vintage Lady dresses to the nines when she attends sales.

This was day 2 and the line to pay rarely let up.

I'm surprised nobody grabbed these first edition Mad paperbacks on Day 1. The Mad Reader was the very first Mad paperback and this is first printing.

 Tomorrow (Sunday) the whole thing wraps up.

Lynn's Home Estate Sales

Second Day 'Melee' Action in Elmhurst or What is the Best Day to attend an Estate Sale?

What is the Best Day to attend an Estate Sale?

I rarely show up for estate sale openings; the earliest for me will usually be noon on day 1.

First of all I have a job with somewhat regular hours, so I usually can't make the opening bell even if I want to. But I rarely want to; I prefer to drop in after the crowd has dispersed a bit and the euphoria has eased.

I'm not going after the same stuff as everyone plus I'm looking for a bargain, so I'm hoping to find the overlooked gem at a bargain price.

I missed day one on this sale so I found myself visiting on noon of day 2. 



This was a majestic older colonial house in Elmhurst. Stuff outside is always a good sign.

Nice, overloaded living room.

Deluxe bedroom set.

Supply of vintage women's hats.

Uh oh -- vintage coffee carafes....and they look like some I haven't yet seen....

I met the lovely proprietor of Shop Melee, Suzy Marcus. Shop Melee has really taken off. They do a mix of Ebay consignment, a consignment showroom on Frontage Road in Hinsdale/Burr Ridge and have been gaining momentum in the estate sale arena.

We will be crossing paths again.

Shop Melee's website:

Junking in Hixton Wisconsin Pt 2: The Village Peddler

The Village Peddler

One of the best shops in Hixton Wisconsin

Lots of stuff outside

The Junk Hole was the back room...not for the faint of heart... some real rough stuff back there

Excellent 8th grade math book from the 1930's. A future post will explore this book in depth.

Burke's Law Comic Book. The Dell TV and Movie comic books are looking better all the time.

Classic House in Hinsdale

This house on Washington Street in Hinsdale held promise:

But looks can be deceiving. These people were just too tidy. They had a few interesting items but nothing really spoke to me.

View from the back. Huge 4 car garage. Check out the lamp posts.

I ended up spending 50 cents on this California Raisins sun shield:

Junking in Hixton Wisconsin Part1

First stop in the Wisconsin trip was the Hixton School House Antique Mall.

The old high school makes for a huge antique mall.

We like to see piles of stuff stacked outside.

The proprietors were friendly.

Nice Helmscene with motion.

No shortage of stuff here.

I liked this painting:

They offer gift certificates (hint)...

 High school pictures

Fantastic adventures from 1954

Kitchen utensils

Very nice neck tie for 2 bucks.

The Hixton School House Antique mall was definitely worth the trip. We hurried through it since we had several other stops to make. The variety is great, prices reasonable. You cannot visit this place and not buy something.

Next stop: The Village Peddler in Hixton

Double Dis in Hillside

 So far so good. This is the age and style of house we like.

a

Stuff overflowing into the yard. A good sign.

Unfortunately, it was day 3 of the sale, not much left of interest. And what was left was overpriced. The folks running the sale seemed lethargic and weren't trying to get rid of stuff the way they should have.

I did pick up a 60's coffee carafe. Not sure why this beauty lasted until the final day. Could I be the only one who appreciates these gems?

While in Hillside, followed some signs to a second sale. This one appeared to be people moving out and maybe hoping somebody would buy something. Not gonna happen.

 

All in all a disappointing day in Hillside.

The Paper Boy

I didn't realize I was into paper until an antique dealer who lived nearby informed me of the fact. I realized he was right. Vintage graphics from any era get me excited (to varying degrees; I tried not to get too worked up)

"Here's How to use wine graciously and economically" - screams early to mid '60's

Cooking brochures from the 40's and 50's accompanied kitchen appliances.

Not sure how good the recipes are but the servers capture your attention.

Nice paperback.

Many people oppose the death penalty. But how else do you deal with someone who puts masking tape price tags on vintage paper?

The above was in an envelope addressed to the Hinsdale Nature Center, which I found in the attic of a Victorian house in Hinsdale. Apparently the dam was never built.

The above letters are hand typed by artists to a woman who had enrolled in the Famous Artists Painting Course.

Ed Wynn on the cover of Playbill.

 

Can't beat a vintage paperback with a scantily clad Elizabeth Taylor on the cover.

My old stamp album. One of the few things my dad tried to get me interested in  where it didn't click. I never got that into stamps. Maybe I'm not into paper that has adhesive on the back.