Monday at the Mall

No Cyber Monday specials for Antique Company Mall today.  Sorry, folks... just the old fashion kind of deals around here!  It was a great weekend at the Mall.  We are officially in the swing of the season now.  Mrs. 58 is busy cranking out more handmade goodies to fill in the holes left after Black Friday.

Enjoyed a chilly Dickens of a Christmas last night on the Square.  We bundled everyone up, pulled out the double stroller, and did some quick strolling.  Big Brother found the toboggan hill to be a favorite...

The ice skating rink was interesting.... we were amazed that you could "ice skate" on a plastic pond.  The kids still begged us to do it... It was all about the ambiance! 

On the hour, every hour, it "snowed" on the Square.  We were there to catch the last "snowfall" of the weekend.  You would have thought that we had won the lottery!  My kids ran through the snow bubbles (with their mouths wide open) like crazy people.  I had a lady who was working the event, come ask me if they were my kids.  She was concerned that they were ingesting too much of the foam they were using to make the snow flakes.  On the way home, my sweet little girl asked me why snow tastes like bubble bath.  Poor Texas baby!

It's all about the smalls.

Smalls... That's what we call the small things we sell... Not furniture or big ticket items... Just the fun little stuff that sits around and makes things pretty.... it all adds character.

Notice my fave pick from a few weekends ago... the vintage cocktail shaker... never seen one of those.

Smalls is what we sell the most of.  It's fun to go junkin and find these little treasures and then see them go to happy new homes.  This month, I had fun picking up lots of new ones for the booth... cleaned them up in my kitchen, tagged them, and then put them in the booth right away.  Most of these pictured have already sold!  That's the fun part!

Happy Turkey Day to you all.  There are lots of big things to be thankful for this year... but the small things are the things mean the most... right?  Today, I'm thankful for 6 little feet that I can hear pitter patter upstairs, 3 new trees that a special someone planted outside my window, and 1 pretty turkey mug that holds my coffee right now.  God is good all the time.

What "smalls" are you most grateful for this Thanksgiving?  Don't overlook them!

"Sometimes its the smallish things that take up the most room in our hearts". 

Winnie the Pooh

Monday at the Mall

Dickens of a Christmas

Don't fight the crazy crowds this coming weekend... Who wants to really spend their holiday weekend with everyone else in lines?  I have a better idea for you....Downtown McKinney! 

Next weekend is the annual Dickens of a Christmas on the Square.

I can't think of a better way to kick of your Christmas season.  There will be horse-drawn carriages, strolling carolers, visits with Santa Claus, the Christmas tree lighting ceremony and activities for all ages.  We always make it a priority to make our way downtown for this fun weekend.  My kids love the live reindeer, the carosel, and the petting zoo.  Bundle up and come see what McKinney has to offer!

Elves at Work



The Booth 58 elves have been busy. Mom and I spent an afternoon crafting last week. As we approach our moving day, we are trying to keep our inventory stocked with new Christmas items.

We had a fun day brainstorming ideas that kept our hands busy. We always have big plans and there just never seems to be enough time in our days. That afternoon, carpool time crept up on me right about the same time that I was elbows deep in silver glitter. Mom stayed with our napping "elves", I picked up Big Brother, and then returned to crank out a few more bedazzled goodies... all before dinner time.

  

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We use a ton of shipping tags in Booth 58.  We were excited to find a large stash of them at a local office supply store... they are becoming harder to find these days as "snail mail" becomes less and less popular.  We die them with walnut ink.  Mr. 58 even made us this batch of ink... from real black walnuts he found in McKinney!



I made chalkboard tags for Christmas packages.  Each set comes with 3-4  various sized tags strung with bakers twine and a piece of chalk for labeling your gifts.  They turned out so cute, I might just have to make myself a set!

We have a few more treats in the process of being created.  If we could just add a few more hours in the day, that would be great!

Shakin' It Up

A funny thing we've noticed lately:  Moving things around helps sales.

Many times we've moved an "older" piece of inventory around and then it quickly sells.  It's kind of like cleaning out your closet or pantry... When you move things around, you notice a lot you weren't seeing on a daily basis.  Mom calls it "Shakin' It Up."  Makin' things fresh and new... even though it is the same old stuff! 

 (By the way:  We have a goal to bring in at least 40 new items every 10 days... for you repeat customers... We know you like to see new stuff!  Keep coming back to see what we've added!)

Speaking of Moving Things... BOOTH 58 IS MOVING!!!

On Dec. 15th, we will be moving our booth to the front of the store.  Look for us on the right side, toward the front window.  We plan to bring our "famous" white picket fence,our old header, and our green shutters.  Mr. 58 already has "blueprints" for the new area... Lots of cool plans in the works. 

We are excited that our space will be doubling and we will be able to bring more furniture in now.  We've loved our time in our little cluttered corner, but we are really excited about this move!  Come be one of our first visitors and finish your Christmas shopping with us.

Monday at the Mall

He's Making His List 

Lot's of Santa Sightings at the Antique Company Mall this Monday.

 The left side of the mall has a great set of glass display cases. All kind of treasures can be found there... coins, magazines, china, and all sorts of collectibles. Some of them change out with the seasons... like this enormous Santa collection. We spotted some awesome vintage pieces recently. 

Have you been naughty or nice? Come by ACM and see what else you can add to your wish list!

Something to Sing About

 Tis the season to use sheet music!

We are covering the walls, trees, and anything else we can think of with it!  Mom found another stash of it at a recent estate sale, so we are making more plans to use it up. 

  How many ways can we add some tunes to our corner?

Monday at the Mall

Some creative tree trimming that caught my eye this Monday at the Mall....

Nancy from Uncommon Goods has these precious glittered tree ornaments in her booth.

Boot Tree in Cindy's "Old Friends" booth.  Planning on copying this look for Little Mr. 58's cowboy room.

Cindy Gilstrap from Junque Art has this cute buttons and butterflies tree... and it is PINK!

Diane decorated one of her trees in the front window with cookie cutters... Creative!  Perfect for a little touch in the kitchen... or for a centerpiece for a cookie exchange.

Diane's other tree by the front door... decked out with burlap garlands.  You can buy these several places at ACM.

Leave it up to Nancy from Ella Elaine to think outside of the box!  She has several mattress spring trees.... So "Ella!" 

And two more from Nancy.... Industrial style trees and my favorite.....

The tomato cage trees!  Perfect for the gardener... Mr. 58 needs one of these!

Some tarnished silver with our tiny little trees in our corner.

Mom and I trimmed a little Booth 58 tree with these sheet  music ornaments and silver gravy ladles. 

Come by and see what other creative juices are flowing at Antique Company Mall these days.



Book Page Angel Wings

Have you seen these beautiful book page wreaths?

Found this one here

Found this one here .  Loved it because it was different from others I have seen.

Then I saw this version at ACM this weekend...

Gorgeous angel wings....  Isn't this beautiful for Christmas?  So many talented, creative folks!



Constant

One more constant that we keep in the booth... Silver.

We like it dark and tarnished... not shiny and bright.... We like a good patina...Not a display like granny would do  - (You know the one I'm talking about... All polished and displayed in the dining room or china cabinet)  That is pretty, but, we'd rather it be tarnished and stuck in an old suitcase or wooden crate... with some pencils or scissors stowed in it.  Not your ordinary use for silver... a little "off" - but "different" -right?  We like "different" around here, friends!