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Tag Archives: auction

Columbus, Ohio Pickin’ Trip Part Three – Andre the Giant and Auction Time!

12 Friday Apr 2013

Posted by opidells in Pickin' and a Grinnin' - Chad's Rants from the Road

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andre the giant, antiques, auction, heywood wakefield, picking, sunday

Part Three

My prayers of completely bypassing winter for warmer days of Spring went unanswered. The whiteness illuminating from the reflecting snow outside crept into our room far too early considering our diligent tour of as many of the city’s sights, sounds and tastes as palatable in a single evening. We slowly began gathering our things, resembling a pair of zombies searching for their morning “Brrraaaaiiinnnnsssss.” Grunts and moans were all we used to communicate while the antidote for our sickness in the form of thin hotel room coffee brewed atop the cabinet. Showered, shaved and ready to meet the world, although we were not fully awake, the cold Ohio air would soon remedy that.

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Breakfast was one of the best I have had in many days. Grumpiness soon began to lift, no match for freshly brewed coffee, eggs, turkey sausage and a big stack of buckwheat pancakes with organic syrup and fruit. Usually I opt out of the fruit-on-pancakes option fearing healthy food would throw off my delicate balance permanently. But the combination was wonderful. I emailed myself a note to learn how to make buckwheat pancakes. Jill, sensing our trendy surroundings, and gazing at me head first in my portable device, said, “You’re such a yuppie. You know you fit right in.” I would argue, but with coffee in one hand and an iPhone in the other, I looked like the plus sized poster boy for Apple.

Plump and happy, our final stop was on the horizon. Jill had found a sale where some elusive Heywood Wakefield pieces would be on the block. Given their rarity in these parts, we had to go wade in to see if we had even a grim chance of acquiring a couple of pieces. We were once again venturing into uncharted territory. Sunday auctions are infamous for commanding larger prices, at least in our experience. That coupled with heavy advertising, and our chances were slim.

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(We think this was Ursula from the Little mermaid as a brunette...)

(We think this was Ursula from the Little mermaid as a brunette…)

The auction was held in a large warehouse on the outskirts of town. We parked and headed in amongst trucks with trailers, trucks with campers and several box trucks lettered with their companies names. Not a good sign. Neither was the scene inside. The place was packed. I mean packed. I actually had a concern that if we were able to bid, the chances the auctioneer could see us amongst that sea of people was slim. The auction crowd filed in while I observed them, totally unaware of my secretive judgments. Townsfolk laughed and joked with each other, kidding that they didn’t even bring money to the auction today, just wanted to get out of the house. Others downplayed their interest in a particular item they happened to be examining or hovering above for the better part of an hour.

Low bid numbers lingered. High bid numbers feverishly searched for particular items they had on their checklist. I sat back an watched the floor come alive with bidders and gawkers alike. The items sat in their prospective spots, shiny and proud, awaiting their appearance on the grand auction stage. A half-hour before the auction began, the auctioneer began piping in twangy old country music thru static filled speakers. Since my location was not in some dive bar way too early reflecting on my misreable life, I did not need the accompanying soundtrack. Especially not at a packed auction house on a Sunday morning.

Sounds of Conway Twitty’s “Play Guitar Play” filled the room, along with laughter and unwinding tape measures. Note to self…bring ear plugs to the next auction. I watched as an old farmer inspected a beautiful nude painting well beyond a comfortable time period. I’m talking, closer to five minutes, inspecting only one particular area of the painting. It was a site to beyhold, though it seemed everyone was straining not to see this particular site. I recall jotting down several notes to remember to write about the experience: John Deere hat, farmer long stare, over-the-shoulder exposed boob. Think that about sums it up.

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Lingering a little too long in front of the topless art…

The auctioneer was friendly and full of energy. He started with the standard terms and conditions of the sale, buyers premium, pick-up and obligatory praises aimed at the snack bar located in the back, although nobody in the house could ignore the presence of the snack bar, especially its wafting smells. Like an explosion, the auctioneer perfectly timed the collective coffee surging with the bloodstream and his opening cry of, “Hey, Hey Mama, let’s go!!” We all jolted forward in our seats and the auction was off.

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Opening prices were high, as they usually are. Early on everyone has buying fever and many let the auction format get the best of their judgement. The “buy, buy, buy” frezy is difficult for anyone to thwart. During the show, I noticed a frail lady directly in front of me. She wore square glasses and a lacey shawl, delicate clothing to match her equally delicate disposition. I noticed she was constantly scanning the marketplace for her mate. Every few moments she would begin her laborsome task of moving her tiny frame into position to scan up the long isleway to look for her fella. Sitting directly to her left was a portly lass sporting an Ohio State crochet bonnet and matching sweatshirt. The big gal kept edging closer and closer to the frail lady, practically edging her out of her seat. Now, as a big fella myself, I can tell you this move was intentional. Just because you have extra meat on your bones does not mean you are unaware of your outcroppers. She was annexing the poor little old lady’s space like Germany annexing Poland. I immediately had distain for a person I had never even met. Here’s the most annoying part: while the little old lady turned to scan the crowd, the big gal would peer over her shoulder to see what she had written down about the previous or upcoming auction items…a definite breach of auction eddiquite and ethics. After edging the old lady for about an hour, the little old lady got up to look for her fella. The portly gal immediately gave her seat to a couple who asked if the seat was avalible. I began to say something but didn’t. Turns out, the new couple were even more annoying and, while sitting on each other’s lap, slowly edged out the portly lady until she left…never to be seen from again. Mu-ha-haaaaaa.

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There were some memorable moments at the auction. The auctioneer, when things were lagging, would sell items to the cadence of one-little two-little three-little Indian. That was odd. As was his bid-calling assistant who, as far as I can tell, was a bit shell shocked from the auction format. He would yell a hearty “Yuuuup!” at weird times, and twice when the auction was over and the auctioneer was describing the next item. The auctioneer would make a quip at his expense and the sale would continue without missing a beat. Once while auctioneering a pool stick set, the auctioneer said, “What-ya-got-thar? I can’t see on-a-counta the rack.” I leaned to Jill and said, “He’s talking about you, you know.” I giggled despite the swift elbow to the ribs. There was an Andre the Giant look-alike that helped display items.

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Andre the Giant as a Cowboy

He had a chew in the entire time, never saw him spit once. And his greasy finger-nailed hand would proudly display some of the finest antiques in all of Ohio. Then there was the flannel clad chunk that also helped hold up items. When he did, his big round belly would show and Jill would snicker every time. And lastly was the apprentice auctioneer. Described by my partner as a Mad Men stand-in, he was handsome, well groomed, well dressed and, well, out of place. As the final items crossed the block, he was called in as a sort of third-string auctioneer. Fortunately he did a nice job coming off the bench.

The auctioneer’s had two O’s in his name. As a huge James Bond fan, I automatically gave a lot of favor to anyone with double-o status. It was a fun auction. Jill won some, and lost some. Most importantly she won the main couple of items she wanted, which included her coveted Heywood Wakefield night stands, now a welcome addition to our bedroom. I loaded while Jill paid, our standard end-of-auction arrangement. Afterwards we headed to a local Mexican restaurant, another post-auction tradition. Jill had a glass of wine and I had a beer. No margaritas due to some oddball local blue-law that said those two alcohol drinks were ok, but hard liquor, like the kind found in a Margarita, were bad. I’m sure the Lord would be pleased that little town took such a hard stance. We enjoyed the momentary downtime as we prepared to head south again.

“I had a good weekend,” I toasted. “Me too,” Jill returned. “This has been a pretty lucky weekend.” “What do you mean,” she asked. “Well, you were lucky to win the original auction items. Afterall, that’s why we came up in the first place.” “True.” “And we were lucky to find the first ever February Garage Sale.” “Don’t know if that was luck so much. That was just bizarre.” “And how about the room? That was lucky.” “More for you! Since it was right in the middle of the cheerleader invasion of 2013.” “Well then, you have to admit the luck we found in this place. Probably it’s the luckiest ever!” “That’s true,” she said. “I did get some furniture I’ve been wanting for a long time. You’re right, we did get lucky.” “Hmmmm. That’s not what I was talking about. I meant here…here. We are lucky to find this place. Afterall, this is the first Mexican restaurant ever that has delivered our food without the plate being hot. ‘Hot plate.'” She giggled. And I’m serious. It’s the Mexican restauant Holy Grail. It’s called Fiesta Tropicana in Lancaster, directly across from Carnival Foods. Good food, good prices and no hot plate. (Feel free to use that catch phrase fellas. I got plenty more!)

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Heywood Wakefield Bedroom Makeover Part Two…

02 Saturday Mar 2013

Posted by opidells in Using Vintage in the Home

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auction, bedroom makeover, heywood wakefield

So the Heywood Wakefield bedroom makeover is slowly but surely coming along.  The room is painted a lovely shade called Polar Gray, which is a soothing soft, icy bluish gray color in semi-gloss just perfect for peaceful slumber.  The bed will arrive Monday, March 4rth and I’m so excited I can’t stand it.  Anyhow, I have collected the rest of the Heywood Wakefield bedroom pieces from the Encore line in wheat finish, including a high boy chest of drawers in excellent original finish, a Mr. and Mrs. dresser in very poor condition, and two extremely hard to find nightstands that were recently refinished by the eBay seller from which I bought them.

The High Boy Chest of Drawers

The High Boy

The High Boy

So after ordering the bed, I scoured online auction sites within a tri-state area for upcoming sales of Heywood Wakefield furniture.  I found one up north that had the High Boy, a set of end tables, a Chair, and a full sized bed.  As well, I found an online auction with a Heywood Wakefield buffet and a table with four chairs.  The pick up point for this auction was only 30 minutes from the other day-of auction, so I placed my bids and crossed my fingers.  I ended up winning the buffet and dining table set and so Chaddy Daddy and I made a weekend trip out of the deal.  It was the first week in February 2013 and, of course, a snow storm had to hit….

Karmatic Snow Storm

Karmatic Snow Storm

The highways were so bad that only one lane was really navigable and we slid several times.  I began wondering if Heywood Wakefield furniture was worth dying over…and decided we should continue on.

So the first stop was to pick up the table, chairs, and buffet.  The buffet was in good condition, but the table and chairs were very poor and will need refinished.  Loading solid wood furniture in the sloshy wet snow was undeniably no fun….

Chaddy Daddy looking not so happy to be doing my bidding in the lovely weather...

I’m pretty sure I photographically captured the moment Chaddy Daddy was either plotting my murder or his own suicide. What’s he going to do with that rope?

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The buffet barely fit in the back of the Suburban…

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These chairs will need TOTALLY refinished…summer project.

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Oh, one day you’ll look so lovely in the future dining room Chaddy Daddy has no idea I’m designing…

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So after the pickup we headed to the big city hotel and partied all night so we would be nice and exhausted for the next day’s auction…

We saw an arrest made after a brawl in front of a...clinic of some sort...

On the way, we saw an arrest made after a brawl in front of a…clinic of some sort…

We ate and drank a lot!

We ate and drank a lot!

...and Chaddy Daddy did some more skydiving...

…and Chaddy Daddy did some more skydiving…

So the next day, we got up bright and early, ate breakfast, and headed to the auction house…

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I was hoping the weather would deter most people from attending, but I think everyone had the same hope and came out anyway to see if they were lucky enough to be right…

The place was packed full of antiques, mostly glassware and guns, with a small assortment of antique furniture as well.  I spied the Heywood Wakefield grouping quickly, as it looked a bit out of place amongst all the old mahogany pieces.

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Full Sized Bed in Champagne Finish

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My High Boy

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A chair and two end-tables I had to give up on and walk away without…bummer.

So in the end, I won the High Boy by gritting my teeth and bidding up to my top dollar number.  Fortunately, my top dollar was $10 higher than my competitor’s and I won the piece by the skin of my teeth.  I also won the full sized bed at a surprisingly low price and had several people tell me later that I was lucky to have “stolen” it.  Sometimes the auction gods are in my favor…what can I say?

The Mr. & Mrs. Dresser

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The Mr. & Mrs. Dresser was a Craigslist find I came across three hours away in northern, Ohio.  The seller said  the piece was structurally sound but the finish was in poor condition.  After haggling an extra $50 off the already low price, we agreed to meet in the parking lot of the seller’s local Wal-Mart, as is standard with most  Craigslist transactions.  Although the seller’s description of the piece was honest, I forgot to ask, and he did not disclose, that the piece came from a smoking household.  By the smell of the piece, this was a chain-smoking, non-filtered Camel Reds kind of household with no windows or ventilation system as well.  We put it in the bedroom and now fear we’ll contract black lung from the very odor it emanates if we don’t hurry up and refinish it soon!

This is the top of the dresser after some sanding, which I did in the bedroom knowing I wasn't supposed to and got caught!

This is the top of the dresser after some sanding, which I did in the bedroom knowing I wasn’t supposed to and got caught!

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Dresser Front…this thing can hold a lot of clothing! It may be called Mr. & Mrs., but it might end up all Mrs.!

The Night Stands

Encore Night Stands

Encore Night Stands

I bought the nightstands off eBay from a Pennsylvania seller by the handle name jwb213.  I almost lost them at the last minute, but won them by a hair because I put in my maximum bid early and beat out a last minute bidder.

My little night stand pod!  Isn't is cute!

My little night stand pod! Isn’t it cute!

So all that’s left is the bed, which will be here Monday!  I’ll be sure to post about it as soon as we get it up and functional.  Still have to refinish the Mr. & Mrs. Dresser as well, but that’s a whole other post in itself.

Losing an iPad – by Chaddy Daddy

08 Thursday Nov 2012

Posted by opidells in Pickin' and a Grinnin' - Chad's Rants from the Road

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antique, auction, collecting, ipad, picking, VINTAGE

There are going to be bad days.  Lots of them.  Sometimes it seems that the bad days pile on and consume what few good days we are fortunate enough to have.  Of course, that sentiment is usually reflected while in the eye of a really bad day.  And even though our pickin’ days are usually filled with fun, sun and lots of bidding, this would not be that type of weekend.

The day started dreary and cold.  There had been so many nice days leading to this day, you would think I could remember those nice days just recently in my wake, but I couldn’t.  Bone chilling air tends to erase the memory of anything other than the previous cold breath hanging in space in the form of a personal dark cloud.

I was already a bit grumpy because I was to strike out on my own this morning.  Business was doing well so Jill opted to man the warm shop while I set out in search of elusive goodies.  To clarify, I was grumpy since I would not have Jill to chat with while riding the rolling hills of Kentucky, not because she would stay behind in the warm shop.  Ok, I have described it as “warm shop” twice, so maybe I was a bit envious.

The first sale was a couple going thru, what the locals tell me, a bitter divorce.  I speculated that the morning matched their expectation for the mood the sale would soon establish.  Not much to pick from, but I did find some unexpected treasures in the form of a custom dresser, a sewing table and a couple of hand-made wood sculptures.  The church pew went for way too much.  As did the pie safe.  As did all the miscellaneous beer signage and collectables.  The auctioneer thought they should have gone for even more money!  “What, no Catholics in the crowd?  They usually pay tons for these things!”  Auctioneers are not yet bound by the laws of political correctness, far as I can tell.

I enlisted the help of a skinny armed 15 year-old to load my trailer.  This time I had the open trailer, regardless of the possibility of inclement weather.  Fuel prices had killed us on the last run with the covered trailer so I was determined to use my pilot abilities to dodge the weather, and use my expertise in tarp-tying to protect the goods.  The skinny armed boy huffed and grunted to help me with my purchases.  He finally gave up on the dresser and I was left to load the big unit myself.  We chatted about his upcoming car fantasies, even though that dream was a good year off being realized.  He told me of some possible treasures he saw hidden in the basement while they were staging the auction.  I gave him a few bucks for the info and assistance, finished the auction and headed down the road.

While en route, I passed a downed road sign.  I have a thing for road signs.  My garage is nearly covered with them.  I even have friends and family bring me signs they have found or purchased.  The way I figure, if the sign has been laying there long enough to grow grass, it’s fair game. I chalk it up as my own Kentucky beautification project.  I went past the sign, turned around in a driveway and headed back for my roadside prize.  Checking that the coast was clear, I stepped from my truck and begin masquerading as though I was looking at my trailer.  Then I heard it!  “GRRRRRRRR!”  I turned around to find a pair of Pit Bull dogs staring at me with the same intensity as a Grizzly stares at a steak.  As a Biker stares at a Beer.  As a West Virginian stares at a math problem.  I mean intense.  I eased around the back side of my truck, always facing the dogs and occasionally gruffing “No!” or “You be good.”  I got to the front the same time they did…damn dogs, always finding a short-cut.  I eased in the driver’s seat as a car popped the hill.  The dogs scurried away, and so did I, although only one of us had their tail between their legs.  Those beasts can have their sign!

Chased by a dog!  Hmph…not a bad day yet.  I continued down the road to the next auction.  I knew I would be arriving late, but I figured I would give it a shot.  By the time I found the place, parked and found the entrance it was pretty much over.  I didn’t even bother getting a bid number.  I asked one of the ring men if they were wrapping up.

“Yep…we’re ’bout done.”

“I guess I should have been here sooner huh?” I said, just trying to be nice.

“Yea man!  Things went cheap!  I mean, you see that couch right thar?”  I looked where his crooked finger abstractly  pointed.  Now I am not exaggerating…before me sat the ugliest couch I have ever laid eyes upon.  It was so ugly, it wasn’t even cool ugly.  I was just plain-ole UG-LEEEE!  “Well sir, that thar couch only sold fer a doller!”

“No kidding.”  I returned, again just being nice.  And a little sarcastic.  “That’s pretty cheap.”

“Hell yea it is.  Tell you what, what’ll ya give me fer it?”  He bought the couch!  And he was trying to up his UG-LEEE investment on me!

“Oh, I don’t have any room left on the trailer, but believe me, I would!  That’s a nice ‘en.”  I quickly scurried off for the second time in a day.

Chased by a dog and missed an auction.  Ok, still pretty good day.  Afterall, I was heading to the shop to unload my finds and see my Jill.  After a quick assessment and needed validation of the days labor, Jill and I headed out for a bite-to-eat and beverage.  We chatted about the day, the dogs, the couch and such.  I could tell she missed going to the auction, so I told here about one more sale within driving distance that didn’t start until 6:00.  It wasn’t far away.  We woofed down our final bites of food and headed to the house for a quick equipment change (unloading the trailer and putting on clean clothes) and headed out.

The drive was a bit longer than I calculated.  I usually under-estimate time figuring I can make up the difference by driving a smidge below maniac classification.  But this was a narrow two lane highway and we got stuck behind a school bus.  To make matters worse, the school bus had one of those flashing bulbs on the roof.  Why do they do that?  I know the claim is that the flashing lights make it easier to see the bus, therefore more safe, but you can’t see when you are behind flashing lights in the darkness.  It practically blinds you!  Can’t imagine how that makes if safer, having a bunch of blinded drivers bearing down on the little ones.

A short while later, following the recovery of my rods and cones, we arrived at the last auction of the day.  We walked inside to find this little middle-of-nowhere packed to the ceiling with people.  And although the stuff was really neat, it was going for astronomical prices.  Where did this auction house get such cool stuff?  And where did all these people come from?  It was a little Twilight Zone-ish.  I was tired, Jill was tired, and the horrible PA system was getting on our nerves.  I can only assume the auction house bought their speaker second-hand from an old Long John Silvers drive-thru because that is what it sounded like.  We decided to ditch the auction, lick our wounds and head home to a warm bed.

Chased by a dog, missed an auction and had to ditch an auction after a long drive.  Still a good day.  At least we would be home soon.  We arrived home about an hour later.  Jill headed to the computer to check her emails and I hit the couch for a much needed review of some bad television.  I had just gotten comfortable when I decided to check my email.

“Jill, where’s the iPad?”

“I dunno, you had it last.”

“I thought you had it.”

“Well I know we had it at the auction…”

Any married couple knows the scene that followed.  Code red, thrashing thru the house, dismantling the Suburban, searching every nook and cranny…to no avail.  We had somehow left the iPad at the last auction house.  It was a two hour trip far, far away from my comfortable couch.  We weren’t sure who left it, but it didn’t matter.  We had to go get it.  We called and called, trying to reach the auction house to see if our trip was even necessary.  We figured it was long gone.  We finally did reach the auction house about 10 minutes out.  They hadn’t seen the iPad but promised to make an announcement to see if anyone had found it.  By the time we arrived the iPad was sitting up front waiting for us.  GREAT!  What a relief.  We gave each other a glance and finally…finally…were headed for home.

Chased by a dog, missed an auction, bad auction house, lost iPad.  Ugh…what a rough day.  The final nail in the coffin came from my trusty GPS.  Apparently the “Geep-Us”, as I call it, was tired as well.  It routed us home a different direction than our inbound route.  I just figured she must have found a quicker route.  Maybe the “Geep-Us” knew of an unpublished route, or maybe a bridge to a teleportation wormhole that would instantly return me to my couch.  No such luck.

For some reason she took me the long route, increasing our time home by half.  I had been on the road over eight hours thru the course of the day and never left Kentucky.  Hell I hadn’t even gone more that about an hour and-a-half from home at any given time.  I was exhausted.  Ok, to sum up:  chased by a dog, missed an auction, went to a bad-loud-expensive auction, lost my iPad and “Geep-Us” took the long way home.  Pretty bad day.  But I still wouldn’t change it for anything.

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