The Doherty household was up early this Sunday. Justin and Miles were scrambling to get out the door for a tournament on Long Island. James and I were readying ourselves for our first flea market outing of the season. James is my new flea market buddy. He started to go with me last year. He is the perfect partner. We work well together. He knows that for me, it is serious buying for the shop. I have interests and he has interests. He is thirteen and is very strong willed. "No way Mom is that ever going to sell." "If you buy that I am not going to help you take it to the car." "Oh, that is so cute." "I want to help you build your dollhouse." That's my James. I love everything vintage. It is the backbone of Cici Crib. It's inspiration for the new stuff in the shop. It is about finding vintage accessories to go in the shop.

It was a dusty, gusty start at the flea market. We arrived after eight. I knew from the amount of cars in the lot that we were too late for uncovering any super treasures.

I found a few pieces of art. But as I laid them out at home, I realized that they will need a ton of clean up and repair before they are allowed into the shop. Sigh...

The Currier and Ives print is so lovely. The little girl has a cane in one hand and her doll in the other. Perfect for a little girl's nursery or bedroom. It's title, "Grandfather's Cane." The dealer asked if I was a cane collector. No just a shop owner.

The 1960's Circus litho is so stylish. Really nice in a modern nursery. Needs a hefty cleaning.

I bought a group of children books from the 1920's-1940's. They are not in great condition. But the illustrations are crisp and vibrant. Time to talk to Judy at Framings, an absolutely top notch frame shop across the street from Cici Crib.

The dealer told me Rags was a precursor to Raggady Ann.

Mother Goose

Peter Rabbit

Wynken Blynken and Nod

I found a little metal train. Inside the train, it reads Midge Toy, Rockford, ILL. USA.

One day I will make my own dollhouse. I had a great one growing up. For now I collect items for it. Maybe when I retire I will make one. I found this metal refrigerator . The dealer and I think it was an advertising piece from General Electric. It is the perfect size. It will fit into my imaginary dollhouse 1/12 scale.

James was happy with his purchases. He found some steel pennies from 1943. He is discovering political memorabilia. We came home with our little treasures. It's back to reality. Time to prepare for the week ahead. James tells me about his 5:00 A.M. departure for Washington DC this Tuesday. Oops, I forgot about his field trip. Time to get packing.

See you.

Christina

Nature decor will definitely be a reoccurring theme in my blog. I am forever inspired by the outside natural world. Our family's annual ski vacation was in Stowe, Vermont this year. I was able to steal away one morning from skiing to check out some of the local shops. I found a beautiful antique shop, Alpine Home. Alpine Home is owned by an energetic woman named Cheryl Shields. Cheryl shares her time between Stowe and NYC. She is a nomad shopkeeper. From Maine to the Hamptons, she finds little places to hang her sign. Not only does she search the world for weathered antiques, but she also forages forests to make her creations.

I am apologizing in advance, as my photos were taken with my cell phone. My camera was left in the ski jacket.

She creates this enormous canopy from grape vines and feathers. The fabric is velvet. It almost looks like an enormous birds nest. Her chandelier is made out of branches that have been painted white. It is an enchanted forest. It reminds me of a children's book, The Story of the Root Children(carried at Cici Crib).This book was published for the first time in the 1920s by Sybylle von Olfers. The root children live underground and come up when awakened by Mother Earth in the early spring.

The root children would definitely use these night lights that just came into the shop last week. They were created by two sisters in England.

Happy dreams.

Christina