Because the past 3 years have been so consumed with health issues, the poor blog here has taken a sharp back step. It gets hard to write about "things" when you can only focus on making the ol' body better. One Day at a Time... I guess that's the story - find the health and beauty of each day as you move along!
Looking at my sweet storage shed and the office shelves piled thick with vintage goodies is, in all honesty, kind of a perplexion at this stage of life. As a long time antiques dealer I've counseled many many people over the years about the process of letting go. Now I find myself trying to counsel .... my self! Lots of trendy sites and coaches will tell you "get rid of it" if you haven't used it in a year. Well - I never subscribed to that and I still don't. Best advice I ever got was from an old time toy train dealer who visited the shop over the years: store it - they don't eat anything! It's your 401K. 😀 He was a hoot.
So true and yet as I start to move through the 70s decade, time seems more urgent. I want to share what I have accumulated in a respectful way. Selling online has become .... a chore ... as the marketplace giants have really taken the fun out of it. In 1998 when I started selling online it was exciting to sell to folks around the country. In 2008 when I started
the Etsy shop, it was like people walking into my small town store in Caledonia! Some came from as far away as Australia! How fun.
Politics - worldly situations - marketplace regulations - federal and state rule changes and of course covid have changed the platform. And quickly I came to the other side of 40+ years of business. So it's time to re-think again.
The antiques business model has stretched, evolved, shrunk and changed greatly. Lately I find myself yearning for that cozy old co-op setting where one can touch, smell, and ponder in peace upon the items present. There is a definitely aura in an antique shop you just can't find anywhere else. Talk about a life lesson on being present!
If I decide to re-open a local shop, I'll let you know! Till then - I invite you to come and say hi through the online shop.
