Every person attending has a version of this photo on their phone. It's Farm Chicks law.
After several
hours of driving and Skittles-eating, my traveling companion, Pam, and I arrived
at the Farm Chicks Antique Show a few hours after the event opened on its first
day and I made a beeline to my favorite vendors, the Vintage Linen People.**
I immediately gave them all my money (holds up hands and says “I have this many”) and then got to work
selecting the items which would ultimately return home with me to join their
friends who were eagerly awaiting them in my vintage linen hoard/stash
/collection/whatever-we’re-calling-it-these-days.
I was
recognized right away by one of the Vintage Linen People thanks to my repeat
performances on the exact same spot in 2011 and 2012.
Three years later they still remember me because of my previous summit attempts on their vintage linen mountain.
Three years later they still remember me because of my previous summit attempts on their vintage linen mountain.
Vintage barkcloth 1.o
Once
completed, this transaction resulted in a drop-off trip to the car because it’s
physically impossible to navigate the aisles of Farm Chicks while carrying a
garbage bag stuffed with vintage tablecloths, barkcloth and doilies. Trust me
on this.
(I
secretly suspect those shoppers pushing baby strollers through the Farm Chicks venue
don’t have human babies tucked away in there. I now believe their strollers were filled with toddler-shaped gobs of vintage tablecloths in an effort
to avoid multiple trips out to their cars. Smart.
Note to
self: Begin bookmarking folding baby
strollers on eBay.)
Vintage barkcloth 1.2
Occasionally
I would cross paths with my friend Ethel and her rock star, vintage-toting mom,
signaling acknowledgement with just a friendly wave and a nod because Ethel was in her ZONE,
a ZONE which prefers to skip over non-essential chitchat while there is still vintage
goodness to be discovered.
That’s
why dinnertime was invented. For the chitchat.
And I get that.***
Wrinkled. So very wrinkled.
The
second day of Farm Chicks was very similar to the first day for me. I spent
some time with the Vintage Linen People (they had replenished AND FOLDED (!) their
inventory) and then I moved on to some general junk browsing since the crowds
were lighter this morning (that changes quickly as the morning goes on).
This
day I was actually able to see more of what was for sale rather than who was in
front of, behind and all around me, buying it before I could reach it.
I
exercised great restraint and these signs were my only other purchases and I plan
to resell them.
As if I
need one more thing. Or one more vintage tablecloth.
Except maybe for these.
The
drive home included one small unscheduled detour because someone was talking
while her smartphone GPS was waving its arms in the air, pointing and shouting
to let us know TAKE THIS EXIT. NOW.
Whoops.
I made
it home eventually, happy with my very own mini mountain of vintage linens.
------------------------------------
*See
what I mean?
**Vintage
Linen People, if you have a formal business name, I apologize for not knowing
what it is and for bestowing you with such a McBasic (yet apt) descriptor.
Maybe hang a sign or something? Or not. Whatever. I love you.
***One
of these days I’ll write a post about THE SECRET TEST**** Ethel gave me the first time I ever went junking with her.
****I
passed. (spoiler alert)
