Category Archives: Antique Stores

First Weekend Finds of 2018

Over a recent weekend, Chris and I drove out to Chicago to attend the wedding of friends. When asked by people whether we would be flying, I replied “No driving, you can’t get antiques on a plane.” So setting out on a Thursday evening we headed west. Reaching Cleveland by midnight, we called it quits. By early Friday afternoon we had reached Elkhart, Indiana and decided to try our luck. Our first stop was the 820 Antiques at 820 N. Ward Street, Elkhart.

 

820 Antiques entrance.

Entrance to 820 Antiques at 820 N. Ward Street in Elkhart, Indiana. Photo from Facebook.

820 Antiques is a good size mall, with a friendly staff and a wide variety of items that makes browsing fun. This visit we only bought a souvenir spoon from Chicago’s, 1933 Century of Progress World’s Fair. But should we ever be in Elkhart again we would definitely stop in.

 

 

Here’s a lesson to never let a name trick you. While looking up antique stores in Elkhart, one of the stores that came up in my Google search was The Amish Mall. I have to admit the use of “Amish” was a turn off for me. As we were heading back to the highway and to Chicago, we stopped at a traffic light on W. Bristol Street. Directly across the street from the light was The Amish Mall. Because it was right there, we thought let’s try our luck.

Elkhart Indiana's The Amish Mall.

The Amish Mall at 1216 W. Bristol Street, Elkhart, Indiana. Photo from Facebook.

They do sell Amish furniture and goods and hence the name of the store. But they are multi dealer shop selling almost anything you can imagine.

 

Always keeping an eye out for Deco at the back of the store we found a Royalchrome desk. Online searches for the desk have attributed the design to Kem Weber and Wolfgang Hoffmann. Both men did design for Howell in the 1930’s and 1940’s. But we have not found any proof as yet if either designed this desk. We believe this desk was the design of an anonymous company employee creating in the style of Weber and Hoffmann. So far the only period reference I’ve found is a 1947 advertisement from ebay that shows a desk similar but not exactly the same.

 

1947 Royalchrome Ad.

1947 Royalchrome advertisement showing the chrome tube metal desk. Image from Ebay.

 

Chris really liked the desk and with a price of only $100.00 it was too good a deal to pass up. Chris’ desk is black metal, with chrome tube legs and an ebonized wood top. It’s a striking piece of furniture and its in very good condition. Our biggest concern was, will it fit in the car. It did.

 

 

Like the staff of 820 Antiques the staff at The Amish Mall were friendly and helpful. We would stop back there should we find our selves back in Elkhart. Now it was on to  Chicago and the wedding. Before leaving Chicago on Sunday Chris and I visited two antiques malls on the North Side. Stop one, the Edgewater Antique Mall. On this trip we did not make a purchase, I know we will go back in the future and will buy something.

 

Edgewater Antique Mall in Chicago.

Edgewater Antique Mall, 6314 N. Broadway, Chicago, Illinois. Photo from edgewaterantiquemall.com

The Edgewater Antique Mall is a multi dealer shop. Most of the dealers specialize in Mid-Century Modern, at fair prices. There is also a nice selection of Art Deco objects and a great choice of items from the 1933-1934 Chicago World’s Fair.

 

 

Just a short distance down North Broadway is the Broadway Antique Market, located inside an former 1930’s department store.. This mall offers 75 dealers on two floors, with objects from many eras, but with a large array of Art Deco and Mid-Century items.

 

Broadway Antique Market.

The Broadway Antique Market. 6130 N. Broadway, Chicago, Illinois.

 

Chris and I felt right at home at the Broadway Antique Market. Items we took a pass on, two, three tiered, ebonized wood and chrome tube side tables. These tables (sold by two different dealers) definitely designed by Wolfgang Hoffmann were in great condition, but we had no room in the car and they cost just a bit more than we could spend.

 

Wolfgang Hoffmann side table.

A three tiered side table by Wolfgang Hoffmann for Howell. Painted white, unlike the black painted ones at the Broadway Antique Market. Photo from 1stdibs.com

And a pair of Norman Bel Geddes, enameled steel, club chairs. Unlike the one in the photo below the chairs for sale had a light brown upholstery, with metal painted to look like burl wood. They were very nice and also out of our price range.

 

Bel Geddes lounge chair.

Norman Bel Geddes enameled steel lounge chair, circa 1932. Photo from 1stdibs.com.

 

What I did find, was an item high on my “Art Deco Bucket List”, a Norman Bel Geddes, Soda King syphon bottle. To me this is the ultimate in syphon bottles. It is ultramodern and looks like a bullet. The evolution of the Soda King syphon bottle can be found here in this article we did a couple of years ago. I call the design for this bottle the “Syphon of tomorrow”. It hit the stores in time for the Christmas season of 1938.  I’ve been looking for this syphon for a number or years. Once I saw one for sale at a NYC antique show for $450.00, way too much for me. Luckily the one for sale at the Broadway Antique Market had a price of $125.00. Not cheap but a much more reasonable price than the one at the antique show.

1938 Soda King Syphon

The bottom of the Soda King bottle showing Norman Bel Geddes name attributing the design to the famed industrial designer.

I know the Broadway Antique Market will always be a destination for Chris and me when we are in the Chicago area. And if you are into Art Deco, Mid-Century Modern or just like great antique malls, you should check it out too. Now lets see what other Deco finds we’ll come across in 2018.

 

Anthony & Chris (The Freakin’, ‘Tiquen Guys)

The Right Shade for the Lamp

It is no secret that I love vintage Art Deco lamps. And over the 2017 Holiday season with time off from work Chris and I hit the local antique and thrift stores. We did have some luck in finding a “treasure” at a bargain price.

 

Greenovation, Rochester, NY

Greenovation on East Main Street, Rochester, NY. Image from Facebook.

Our first stop was Greenovation on East Main Street in Rochester, NY. Located in the former Vietnam Veterans Thrift Store, Greenovation is a combination thrift / antique store. While Chris and I have not have the same consistent luck at Greenovation as we did with the former occupants, we still get an excellent find now and then. This time Chris spotted a great Art Deco / Machine Age table lamp in need of some TLC. I have to admit that when Chris showed me this lamp, I was not enthusiastic about at all. The chrome looked pitted and stained and the black cast iron base was rusting.

 

Chrome and cast iron machine age lamp from the 1930's.

Chris taking the lamp to get rewired at Top of the Lamp in Victor, NY.

There were cobwebs on the underside of the base and in the light socket. We knew if we bought the lamp it would need rewiring, the rubber power cord was crumbling and the plug had melted. Now the moment of truth, how much? Because it was the Thanksgiving weekend Greenovation was having a “black Friday” sale and everything was 75% off. The lamp had a price of $30.00, but with the discount it came to $7.50! No matter what I thought of the lamp originally, at that price I wouldn’t have left the store without it.

After getting the lamp home, Chris started to clean it up. To his surprise, what we thought was pitting and rust was just dirt and tar stains from heavy smoking. The lamp started to come back to life. A little Turtle Wax on the base helped to bring back some of the original crackle paint finish. Now time for rewiring. In the nearby town of Victor, New York is The Top of the Lamp, not only a great place for lamps and lampshades, but also a great lamp repair shop.

Because the lamp is large, we had a three-way socket installed. I have no way of knowing if this was true of the original socket, but I assume it did. With the lamp repaired now it needed a shade that would be period appropriate.

 

Detail of the socket on the moderne lamp.

Moderne lamp socket detail.

 

Created in the mid-1900’s the Illuminating Engineering Society (I.E.S.) studied the relation between illumination and good eye sight. The I.E.S. designed lamps in the 1930’s that gave glare free light for reading as well as providing general room illumination. To do this a glass diffuser is the solution that I.E.S. came up with. These diffusers softened the glare of the light downward, while sending light up toward the ceiling to illuminate the room indirectly.

 

I.E.S. ad from 1935 in the Toronto Globe.

December 20, 1935 I.E.S. advertisement, Toronto Globe. Image from Proquest Historical Newspapers.

 

So now we needed to find a milk glass (called opal in the 1930’s) diffuser. Chris lucked out and found one for $5.00 at a small antique store near Clinton, New Jersey.

 

Milk glass diffuser.

Waffle pattern milk glass diffuser. Image from laurelleaffarm.com

But never use these diffusers for shades. I’ve seen them used for shades in period films, all I can say about that is . . . WRONG!!!!

 

The Aviator, 2004

The Aviator (Martin Scorsese, US 2004) Starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Set decoration by Francesca Lo Schiavo who wasn’t aware that diffusers need lampshades. Image from the DVD.

Finding a period 1930’s lampshade is almost like seeing a unicorn or big foot. On the whole they just haven’t survived. Dark Drum shades were popular in the 1930’s, usually with contrasting stripes. Today it is easier and cheaper to get a solid color shade than have one custom-made with stripes. So a simple black drum shade was our choice, since it would only send the light up and down, not out.

 

 

So if you have an Art Deco lamp in need of a shade,  remember diffusers are not shades. Try to be sensitive to the lamp’s time period. And simple is always better.

 

Anthony & Chris (The Freakin’, ‘Tiquen Guys)