Tag Archives: Junking

Answering The Call

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My restless, roaming spirit has called.

“Traveling is like flirting with life.  It’s like saying, I would love to stay and love, but I have to go; this is my situation” Lisa St. Aubin de Teran

The Coop is currently at an all time low in the junk department.  While I love pouring over beautiful catalogs, ordering from a catalog pales in comparison to the joy I experience junking, and meeting up with my friends who deal in the coolest junque!  “Chief Junker” is my favorite hat that I wear at The Coop.  Returning to The Coop with a trailer load satisfies my restless, roaming spirit with adventure.  I hate to leave my beloved Burton, but I have to Fly The Coop.  This is my situation.

The Coop will be closed January 14th – 23rd

Jeff and I are answering the call with a road trip to Ohio.  Armed with audio books and a journal for my crazy ideas, we’ll hit the road next week.  The hours on the road often feel endless.  If I’m lucky, we’ll stop at a few interesting places on the way.

I know once we make it to our destination I’ll have plenty of treasures to pick from.  I have an idea of what I’m looking for, but am always open to the unexpected.  On our last trip Jeff bought a stack of eight foot church pews (the seats and backs, without the ends) from our friend Ken.  I wasn’t 100% sold on the idea.  They took up a lot of room on our trailer.  There were enough ends to make four pews.  Jeff cut the eight foot pews into four foot sections and added a galvanized detail to the ends.  The finished product turned out fantastic.  The owners of The Grand Texana saw the pews Jeff crafted and commissioned him to make eighteen short pews out of the remaining stack of eight foot pews.  I shared this story with Ken.  He laughed and reminded me, “Tiffany you weren’t even 40% on those pews.”  Lesson learned.  Jeff and I will never question each other’s wisdom or sanity when junking.

I am on the hunt for specific treasures for a few of our customers.  I enjoy the satisfaction of finding the perfect piece and their delight when it is delivered.  Email me what you are looking for at eckhardt.tiffany@gmail.com if you are interested in this service.

Remember to stayed tuned to the Flown The Coop Facebook Page and Instagram account @2FlownTheCoop!  We’ll share our adventure on these two platforms.

Flown The Coop Reopens January 28th

The doors will reopen on Thursday, January 28th.  Will you answer the call to fly the coop?Plan a road trip to be the first to pick from the treasures we bring back to Burton.  While your here, show off your wings by taking a picture in front our Gen.U.Ine Free Spirit mural.  Tag them with #2Flownthecoop so we can celebrate all our free spirits!

#BringmetoBurton

Happy Trails!

~Tiffany

And the birds fluttered around her writing “YES” in the sky.

Urban Market Houston

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This coming weekend is Urban Market Houston weekend!  The fun starts on Saturday, Feb. 8th at 3pm and continues through Sunday at 4pm.  We are excited about another Urban adventure in our own backyard.

We’ve been working on projects at the Flown The Coop headquarters in preparation for this weekend.

Here’s a sneak peak…

These corbels from Ohio have been updated with a metallic finish.  The table below has the same finish.

Guess I’ve had a little too much fun with my new paints and techniques I learned in Vegas!

After several different techniques, I think I can call this workbench finished.

In addition to the projects, we have several pieces from the last Ohio buying trip and new pieces from recent auctions.

Hope to see you this weekend…  Spread the word & bring a friend!

~Tiffany

And the birds fluttered around her writing “YES” in the sky!

I took a leap

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And now I’m flying!

Two years ago I took a leap with my friend Kristie Herlong (now owner of Dorcey’s).  We naively set up at the Springfield Antiques Show and Flea Market in July, a traditionally slow month.  Kristie and I had NO idea what we were doing, but embraced the adventure and figured it out.  We were thrilled with our sales and decided to launched Flown The Coop.  I had no idea that a little experiment with junking would turn into a passion and sustainable business venture.  Making it up along the way and carving out our individual niches, Kristie and I have both “built our wings.”

These little wings have flown some distance since then.

Last month I shared a space at the Dallas Market Center, Vintage Home section with my good friends and mentors Brian and Meloney Russell of the Seed Box Designs.  Needless to say, I am in awe of where Flown The Coop has taken me.

It helps to have talented friends in the business!  Congrats to The Seed Box Designs for winning Best of Vintage Home!!!

A flight home

This month I will return to the Springfield Antique Show and Flea Market.  Two years ago I would have never guessed that I would travel such a distance to shop the flea.  I am still excited about the journey and the unpredictable flight pattern.  I’m so glad that I took the leap, Flew the Coop and continue to build my wings!

If you have a dream, take the leap!  You’ll figure out how to build your wings on the way down!  If you are a leaper, what is your experience?  I’m sure there are kindred spirits who could benefit from sharing your experiences.

~Tiffany

And the birds fluttered around her writing “YES” in the sky.

 

One Crazy Month!

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Updates from our continuous flight…

 

Not one to sit still… we’ve been in continuous motion for several weeks now.  It has been hard to write about every adventure.  So here’s a little recap of the highlights.

 

 

May 30 – June 3  Our last month in the field at Canton was bitter sweet.  We won’t miss battling the elements, but already miss our friends!

June 4  Move into our new “coop” at Chippendale Eastlake Antiques.


June 8 – June 17  Trip to Ohio.  Oh… where to begin?  Life is not all work… we all need to be refueled by fun times with family and friends!  This trip was the perfect mix of junking (aka work) and creating memories of fun times!

Ever wonder where I get my spunk?

Grandma Maggie is 92 and loving life.  She inspires me!  🙂  She took me to many garage sales over the years and is an excellent negotiator.  I got to spend one day taking her to lunch and shopping at the Goodwill.  🙂

Hanging out with my parents… they truly have a better social life than Jeff & I.  🙂  Had lots of fun at dinner with them!  They sent me home with a treasure that I’ll never be able to sell.  Dad gave me grandpa’s tool chest filled with antique tools.  It now has a new home in my living room.  🙂

I was very thankful to see my kids and my sister’s family too!  I miss them so much!!!!

Enjoying life with friends

Had more than one adventure with this group of ladies… Kristie Herlong, Kelly Gingery and Michele Savoldi!  🙂

While in Ohio, Michele Savoldi hosted a Girlfriends and Grapes night at her house.  The evening was over the top wonderful!!!!  Michele thought of every detail creating a wine tasting with three whites and three reds, pairing each with delicious bites! Above is a picture of us on the “step and repeat” she created for the event.

Kelly organized a fun night on the town, hopping from Milestone 229 to The Jury Room… what a fun group of peeps!  A few of us even went to Skully’s to dance to the 80’s!

We had the chance to hang out with many of our friends throughout the week.  It was also fun running into friends at the Depot Coffee House!  Gosh… I miss ya’all so much!

I really DO have the best friends in the world!

Junking… of course!

Isaac Cohn, a young entrepreneur from Urbana, Ohio struck the jack pot while I was visiting.  He won the bid on an attic full of vintage clothing.  We helped him sort through his booty and had fun trying on his vintage treasures.  I am so proud of this young man!  Stay tuned for more on his thriving vintage clothing business, Montage!

No trip to Ohio would be complete without a visit to my favorite junk store.  I was all prepared with my clip board and everything.  I wasn’t prepared for the emotional break down I had though…. who cries over missing a junk store?  GEESH!  It was worth it.  I uncovered some really cool junk and one of my favorite pieces… check out this cabinet I scored!  It is proudly displayed at Chippendale.  I think it could be a great piece as a vanity in a bathroom or as a buffet in a kitchen or dining room!

The Green Owl at The Boston

A huge highlight for me was spending time with my friend and original Flown The Coop partner, Kristie Herlong.  One day, with a bottle of wine and the Dixie Chicks blaring, we had a blast re-staging her shop at The Boston.  It was just like ole times.  🙂

Wow… we fit A LOT into those five days!

Sadly, we had to pack up our treasures and hit the road again….

June 18  Redo my booth with all my new treasures!

With only a couple days to redo the booth at Chippendale, I worked hard to fit all my new treasures in.  I definitely need to learn the balance of getting a lot of junk in the space and setting up meaningful vignettes.  No time to fret with it… I had another adventure to get to.

Driving into the sun once again… 🙂

June 19 – June 22 Dallas Market

Brian and Meloney Russell of The Seed Box Antiques invited me to help them for a couple days at their booth at the Dallas Market, Vintage Home FINDS.  I was excited about this adventure for several reasons.  I had never been to market before.  Seeing the world trade center for the first time was a bit overwhelming.  I really enjoy hanging out with Brian and Meloney and am always challenged to work harder on my business.  Also, I love seeing all the regulars that set up around Brian and Meloney.  I don’t mind being their plus one.  🙂

As always… their display was over the top!  Check out my album on my Facebook page for more pics!!!!

June 23  First day working at Chippendale

Starting off with a sidewalk sale!  I love jumping right in with Shop Heights 19th Street Summer Tent Sale.  It felt like I was back in the field as we set up our tents and filled it with fun “junk” from the shop.  It gave us a chance to display a sample of all the great merchandise inside Chippendale.

It was a great day!  I love the vibe on 19th and how the locals show their support!!!

What’s next?

Not sure what July will bring.  As of this moment we don’t have any July travel plans.  I do, however, have a list a mile long of projects that I’ve collected.  I am always up for an adventure though!  Stayed tuned.

Dedicated to those who can’t be caged!

~Tiffany

And the birds fluttered around her writing “yes” in the sky!

Urban Market Houston

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My weekend with the pros….

Making friends in the field

I had the privilege of meeting Brian and Meloney Russell of The Seed Box Antiques last March at Coles’s Antique Show in Warrneton.  I really can’t say enough good things about this couple.  In my opinion, they take merchandising to another level.  I was impressed with the buying frenzy that took place when they unpacked their trailer for the show at 7am on a Monday morning. If you went to Warrenton in March, you definitely saw their load of body parts.  On top of all that, I discovered that they are genuinely nice people with generous hearts.  Oh… and they brought their adorable grand daughter Ivy to the show.  Ivy stole everyone’s heart and had everyone at Cole’s wrapped around her finger (including me).

Fast friends, I was excited to have veterans to talk shop with.  They invited me to have dinner with them and introduced me to more of the “pros” in the industry.  One night at dinner Brian asked me if I’d be interested in helping them a couple days at the Dallas Market.  I’m not sure how to convey my excitement.  My reply without hesitation was…

Are you kidding?  I’d work for FREE!  🙂

The Seed Box at Urban Market

I was really excited when I learned that Brian and Meloney were setting up at the Urban Market in Houston.  I hadn’t been to this market yet, but had heard that it was the premier show in Houston.  I volunteered to help for that one too!

While they take their work serious, we had some serious laughs hanging out all weekend.  I even got to go “junking” with them on Saturday.  EEKS!

Their displays are so inspiring…

I love Meloney’s display of her cuff bracelets “SKINS”…. each a one-of-a-kind design using the skins of baseballs.

Willow Nest

Brian and Meloney introduced me to their dear friends, Ludmil and Linda Marcov of the Willow Nest.  They had a gorgeous display at Marburger Farms!   The Willow Nest is a lovely mix of French country and unique treasures that Ludmil designs and meticulously hand crafts himself.

I was delighted to help the lovely Linda on Sunday.

Linda’s displays take you to the French countryside!  I was inspired by her as well.  It really was a privilege to help out… I learned so much!

I wish I had taken some good pictures of Ludmil’s bird houses.  Check out their website!  They are amazing!!!!

J Hill Designs

Several months ago a sweet couple stopped to talk with me while I was set up at Canton Trade Days.  I had a really nice chat with Billy and Judy Hill without realizing that I had met another “pro” couple.  Their J Hill Designs display at Marburger Farms in March was fabulous!  I was excited to see them at Urban Market.  They are another couple that is genuinely nice and exceedingly talented!

Just beautiful…

New Friends

While at Urban Market I met some new friends and had dinner with these creative folks on Saturday night.

Susie Skinner and Hector Vasquez of Fundustrial, along with their friend Mindy were so much fun!!!  I was in my element talking BIG IDEAS with Hector the Collector and enjoyed getting to know Mindy and Susie better.  If you are a regular at Warrenton…. You know these three talented pros!!!!  I went home with a few new pieces from their shop…. EXCITED!

Check out some of their displays….

I went home with a vintage mail sorter just like the one on the left!

New friends, Don and Kathy Gross of austinWOODHENGE are artisans that create handmade and hand painted items.  I love their paper boy bags!!!!  I am the proud owner of one of their creations!!!!

My prized new bag!

Totally inspired!

Urban Market is definitely the premier market in Houston and a must see.  Mark your calendars for the upcoming market October 27 & 28.  You really don’t want to miss a chance to see so much talent in one location!

 Come early… there was a line both Saturday & Sunday

Flown The Coop plans

Spending the weekend with the pros will have a lasting influence on Flown The Coop!  This week I’ll be hard at work on my final display in “the field” at Canton Trade Days.  Frankly, I was tempted to pare down my display in preparation for my space in Chippendale Eastlake Antiques.  No chance of that… I am inspired to rock it!

Hope to see you in a couple weeks at my home in the field!  May 30 – June 3  (Click on the map for an enlarged image)

 

 Happy Junking ~ Tiffany