An unexpected development

This is a vintage Harrods tin.  Guess how
I know it's from Harrods?

 

Well here’s an interesting turn of events:

 

We have been offered the opportunity to open a Pop Up shop for a month, starting on 1 July.  It’s two doors up from our old shop in Eumundi, and somewhat bigger than our old shop.

Lucky we have 600kg of newly arrived stock, not to mention the stock already on hand.

So this is the plan:  for one month only, from Tuesday 1 July, on every day except Sundays (when we’ll be at the Markets) we will open Continuum Antiques, the Pop Up shop.

A selection of stock that will be making
its first appearance at Caloundra on
22 June.

Pop Up shops – short term shops - are quite common in the UK, although you don’t see them too often in Australia.  I’ve been thinking about opening one for a while, but the timing and location had to be right.  And now they are.

All of our prices will continue be wholesale, because our short term rent is reasonable – rather than delusional, as we used to have to pay.

So, dang, now we are way busy.  I was gently phaffing about, getting sufficient stock ready to display on a 3x3m Market stand each week.  Suddenly I have to fill a shop, and let me tell you that takes a lot of work.

Being a Pop Up means the shop is not going to look particularly glamorous, or even particularly well organized.  I think I’ll go for the colourful and interesting warehouse look.  And it is going to be way cheap.

Yeah, provenance is always a give-away
when it's written all over the side.  This
vintage tin reproduces a famous tiled design
over the entrance to Harrods' fabulous food hall.

So if you have a chance, come by to have a rummage and say hello to me and the Pop Up shop cat.  Yes, I shall be saddling up Calypso and Caleb (and Mischka, if she wants) to take their turns as shop cat again.  It’ll be fun!  Messy, chaotic, but fun.

In the meantime, we shall be taking our usual stand at the Caloundra Street Fair on Sunday 22 June, and again on Sunday 29 June.  Hope to see you there.

The New Stock Has Arrived!

Some of the enamelware and wood I have
so far unpacked.  Lots and Lots more to come.
 

Okay, here is my quickest blog ever.  And that's because ....

Yes, we have collected the first part of our shipment.  Yay!  It didn't get released by Quarantine until yesterday, so we only had time to get the first few pallets and will collect the rest on Monday. 

You're getting a sneak peak of what Unpack Day looks like - not many people get to see this - the stock before it's been washed and waxed and otherwise tarted.

 

What you can't see are the boxes and boxes behind me, which I haven't even looked at yet.

 

But unpacking is just the beginning.  Next comes cleaning, waxing, cataloguing, description and price tags, repacking into shipping boxes, all by 4.30am tomorrow morning (15 June) so we can start presenting it at the Peregian Beach Market.

 

Yeah, no sweat.

The good news is that we have more than enough to start presenting fabulous new things tomorrow.  I'm planning on there being plenty of enamelware, the start of the wood - Jamie Oliver boards, a dough trough, a printer's tray or two, and a number of those really great giant textile spools.

 

Things like the beautiful linen and books haven't yet been collected, so they will make an appearance in Markets to come.

Is Quarantine appropriately careful
when opening our boxes to inspect
our stock?  You be the judge.

It's been a longer and more frustrating than usual wait for Quarantine to get their act together.  And you can see just how careful they are with our stock - just ripping apart boxes of glass and ceramics. 

Why isn't it possible to simply slit open the sealing tape and leave the box in a fit state for us to transport home and then store while we unpack?  Your guess is as good as mine.

 

Okay, back to work for me.  If you're able to visit us at Peregian Beach Market tomorrow, you will see the start of the new shipment.  We will be in yet another new location at the Market, but our stand is going to look great and you won't be able to miss us.

My twice-yearly brush with Incompetence

Do you know how tedious it is dealing with public servants who couldn’t give a toss about the impact of their actions?  It’s tedious.  Really tedious.  Sigh ….

Fresh out of our shed, beautiful
green enamel ladle & skimmer,
c1930, $24 each

But dealing with incompetent bureaucrats is my lot every single time I bring a new shipment of antiques through Quarantine in Brisbane.  This time they decided a number of metal items needed to be fumigated.  The benefit of fumigating metalware?  There isn’t one.  Any reason for finding them competent?  There isn’t one. 

 

The only result of demands that do nothing more than justify their own existence is to cost me time and money.  But who gives a toss, right?

We are still bringing new things out from the depths of our shed to offer, but I wanted to start presenting the new things straight away.  Oh well, soon enough.  Our shed-excavated items will be displayed at the Caloundra Street Fair this coming Sunday, 8 June. 

Collectorama, the largest antiques fair in south-east Queensland, was held last weekend and we had a great time, as usual.  That nice wooden chopping block I photographed for my last blog sold quickly, together with a lovely enameled French wash stand and a large English Art Nouveau mirror.  All were big things discovered in the far reaches of the shed, but do you know you can hardly see that we’ve been ratting about there. 

Metropolis, one of the earliest science
fiction movies.  We have this large
poster and an even bigger one in red
being offered in the coming week.

I spotted a beautiful, large French mirror that needs to be presented some time, maybe in a local shop, maybe at the next Collectorama.  But first I have to clean the python poop off it. 

In the next few days we’ll also be framing a couple of big prints of movie posters for Metropolis, a very early and now classic science fiction movie.  They’ll be offered in Berkelouw’s Bookshop in Eumundi, so pop in to see them if you have a chance.

In the meantime, Zombie Cat continues to go from strength to strength.  Even though I thought she seemed active enough before her diagnosis, I now realize how lethargic she was when I see how she dashes about like a mad idiot these days.  She has claimed a favourite feather as her exclusive toy and won’t let anyone else have it – even when she’s snoozing she keeps the feather close to her. 

Every morning, without fail, if I don’t awaken early enough to suit her, I am assisted to wake by a little spotted orange cat lolling about on my legs, before selecting one to attach herself to and madly maul.  What terrific fun it is.  For one of us.



Calypso is clearly feeling so much better.  After dashing about chasing her current favourite feather it's time for a snooze - with feather still close to hand paw.

 

And the 4am wild chasey sessions around the house with Mischka have recommenced with a vengeance.  So, Calypso is back to brimming with the energy that a 2.5 year old moggie should have, and it’s so good to see her regaining her health.

So that’s it  - just a quickie this week.  If you can come by the Caloundra Street Fair on 8 June, be sure to visit us to say hello.  Hopefully, by the next blog I’ll have better news about our shipment.  Fingers crossed.  Or, more to the point, get your fingers out, Quarantine!