21 Friday Apr 2017
Posted in Brooklyn, Our Etsy Store, Shop, Vintage
Tags
Brooklyn, Brooklyn Flea, Dumbo, Etsy Jeanne Rondeau, flea market, flea market finds, vintage finds
Come out and say hi this Sunday, April 23 from 10 am to 6 pm at the DUMBO location of the Brooklyn Flea. We will have tons of fresh, beautiful and useful vintage treasure. Brooklyn Flea Market, Manhattan Bridge Archway, 80 Pearl St., 11201. Have a great weekend and we hope to see you there!
08 Wednesday Feb 2017
Posted in Inspiration, Vintage
Tags
antique ironstone, antiques, beach house, Carnegie Hall, Clewell pottery, flea market, life with kids, Ocean Grove NJ, Victorian flower painting, Vintagedoors.com
Some images from the last few weeks…
*Huge Vintage Quilt Hoop in our Etsy shop. I like this hanging on the wall on its own.
*Spindles from a beautiful custom screen door made by Vintage Doors. All of their doors are made by hand in the US.
*Wild Rose detail from an Antique Victorian Painting. Women often painted as a hobby in the early 1900s and I love the look these slightly folky flower paintings.
*Empty Carnegie Hall. We took the kids to a violin concert this weekend. It was inspiring for four of us, and not for the youngest of us.
*Antique Ironstone Cup with ‘Safe Harbour’ transfer design. The perfect toothbrush holder.
*Antique White Petticoat. I love wearing these as skirts in the summer, especially at the beach and for walks on the board walk.
*Vintage sailboat painting. I bought this to sell and then couldn’t part with it. The colors are pretty perfect.
*Antique safety glass in the front door at the Ocean Grove House.
*Vintage Clewell copper-coated pot. I had never seen one of these before. It has a pottery vessel inside and a copper coating for a skin. So cool!
29 Tuesday Mar 2016
Posted in Brooklyn, Inspiration, Likes, Projects, Uncategorized
Tags
Asbury Park, Asbury Park NJ, beach, family, family vacation, flea market, Jersey Shore, Kids, Ocean Grove, Ocean Grove NJ, summer rental, vacation home, VRBO Ocean Grove
We have fallen in love with a magic little town on the coast of New Jersey. Chris and I drove through Ocean Grove one day and were charmed by the tiny square mile of preserved Victorian homes perched close to the shore. The houses were impossibly detailed and cared for and the town was beautiful, quiet and slow-paced. The beach in Ocean Grove was voted one of the world’s 15 best by Fodor’s Travel. A quick stroll on the boardwalk or over two footbridges brought us to newly revitalized Asbury Park. We joked that we would have to retire there when our kids were grown.
When I learned about the town’s twice annual Giant Flea Market I marked my calendar. The drive from Brooklyn took me less than 1 1/2 hours and the first time I went to the flea I was hooked. Wandering around town felt like a dream and each time I visited I liked it even more. When I returned to the flea this past May I called Chris to tell him I was going to talk to a realtor. In the whirlwind that followed we ended up looking at 10 houses. Our plan was to find a house that we could rent when we weren’t using it. The house we fell for was built in the 1880s and was owned by one family for more than 70 years. After talking to many incredibly friendly residents we decided Ocean Grove would be the perfect spot to spend time with our girls while they are still young.
The house at 6 1/2 Heck Avenue is calm bright and airy. It stands fifth in from the beach and has beautiful ocean views. Many of the home’s original antiques are in use throughout the house. The town of Ocean Grove was founded by a group of religious leaders as an ocean side retreat in the 1860s. Our home feels like stepping back into Ocean Grove’s early days when families would escape to the shore away from busy lives. The home is simple compared to some of its brightly painted neighbors and we love that it retains its original details and quiet beach cottage feel. Visit our Instagram feed @oceangrovehouse for more photos.
We are honored to be able to care for the home at 6 1/2 Heck Avenue and excited to share it for 2016 rentals. For rental inquiries and questions please contact Alfredo Fresnedo at (732)-763-2961, alfresnedo@yahoo.com. We still feel like we discovered a secret hideout every time we visit our home in Ocean Grove. So many memories have been made in the short time we have owned the house. We are so happy to share our home with visitors and hope 6 1/2 Heck will be a place for memories of your own.
01 Tuesday Oct 2013
Tags
family time, flea market, flea market bargain, flea market finds, flea market style, flea markets with kids, life with kids, Todd Farm, Travel with kids
There is pretty much nothing I like better than spending the day at the flea market. Chris asked me what I want to do for a 40th birthday party next year and I told him I wanted to spend the day at the flea. I wasn’t kidding. This past weekend I got to spend a few hours in beautiful fall weather at my favorite flea, Todd Farm in Rowley Mass. We gave the girls $2 each to spend and they were (relatively) well behaved for a few hours while we all searched for treasure. I have an idea to give the girls a larger amount of money when they get older in order for them to buy something of value, resell it and use that money to buy something else…a bit of a financial lesson which they are in no way interested in at the moment. Todd Farm is an outdoor market with over 200 vendors. It is full of amazing vintage and antique finds (and only a very small amount new items, too many of which ruin a flea market in my opinion). The grounds at Todd Farm are grassy and surrounded by trees and parking is free. It is one of my all-time favorite spots. Here are some of our finds from the day:
*Heavy Glass Sugar Shaker (To add to our vintage bar ware) $1
*Spotted Juice Glass (To add to my collection. This just barely made my $3-$4 limit for juice glass purchasing, but it is in perfect shape) $4
*Wicker Trash Basket (To be painted white and put into the bathroom. It will replace a plastic one that has seen better days) $1
*Wooden Beads (For the girls to make into necklaces) $1
*Large Galvanized Metal Watering Can (To water the plants behind the bee hives, out of my reach with the hose. This will replace the ugly plastic one we currently use) $10
Total amount spent on these treasures: $17. Add in the $4 we gave to the girls and the grand total comes to $21. A bargain price for a few hours of outdoor family time and a happy Mama.
11 Thursday Apr 2013
Posted in Vintage
Tags
antiques at home, flea market, flea market shopping, fresh flower arrangement, home, ironstone basin, ironstone pitcher, ironstone vases, life with kids, vintage home
The city is working on some water mains down our block and has shut off our water during “working hours” for the next week. The working hours seem not to fit the schedule of those of us who work at our houses, but oh well. It feels a bit like pre-indoor plumbing days around here and we have pressed some of our large ironstone pitchers into service to hold water reserves for the day. We have been using them to water plants, flush toilets, and wash hands. Every household used to have at least one set of a similar large pitcher and basin for washing hands and faces before faucets spouted instant water. I have always been drawn to the smooth white shapes of these vessels at flea markets. (These two happen to be from the attic of Chris’ grandparents). Sets of ironstone pitchers and basins can be found for relatively low prices these days. We tend to separate the two pieces and use our basins for toy and napkin storage, as well as for hand-washing linens. The pitchers make perfect large vases and are especially lovely filled with peonies. You can find your own ironstone pitchers here on Ebay and Etsy. (Hopefully you will have water from your own sink to fill them with).
14 Monday May 2012
Tags
arts, children's headband crowns, diy, fabric pinwheel, flea market, headband crown, pinwheel, pinwheel quilt, Renegade Craft Fair, sewing, shopping, style, vintage fabric
Pinwheels made from vintage fabric for headband crowns. I found a big box of cut circles at a flea market and the prints were perfectly bright and preserved. I remember a quilt made from these at my Gram’s house when I was little. Yesterday Chris took the kids for the day and left me to a quiet house and NPR Podcasts and production. So lovely! I am working during the kids’ naps and between art projects to get lots of crowns done before Renegade in June. I love a project!
29 Wednesday Feb 2012
Posted in Likes, Organizing, Projects, Shop, Vintage
Tags
children's dishes, Etsy, felting, flea market, Ikea, play kitchen, vintage fabric, wool, wool felt balls
One of our favorite additions to Ada’s play kitchen are these colorful wool felt balls. They have been served as everything from blueberries to soup to tea. It is also easy to make your own felt balls if you would like a simple project. You can find beautiful felting wool here.
The dishes are a lovely ceramic children’s set from Ikea. (I much prefer living with a few broken pretty dishes than ugly sturdy ones). The fabric “pancankes” are pieces of vintage prints that Ada requested from the sewing box. We found them long ago at a flea market and they were meant to become a quilt. A few stitches and stuffing made them into food. I love watching kids invent from beautiful, ambiguous materials.
