Covid Journal, Day 296: Booth Update

30 yesterday morning and this morning, gray, cloud-covered. It is supposed to get nice today; we'll see.

Today is hog-butchering day. My part, thankfully, is to just package it all up, season the sausage, and get it in the freezer. So while the guys are hard at work this morning, I have some quiet time.

Yesterday was booth day. We went to our Marietta booth, where we have only been re-stocking once a month during the pandemic. It's 70 miles away and in another state so seems better to limit the trips. We did take a good bit of new things, and pulled out the retro dinette we had there. It will go into our Ravenswood location, where furniture sells better.

Here's a few photos of the changes we made.

This space in front was where the dinette set was. A lot of small items can fit into the space that a table and chairs takes up.

I am not sure why my photo came out blurry. Same camera, same settings as I always use.

I had this little record cabinet in my living room but replaced it with a stack of suitcases. So out it goes.

Lots of smalls. That is all we sold at this location last month. I am thinking to go to all smalls here, and take out all the larger furniture pieces which often sit for a year or more. I am not sure why furniture doesn't sell well here, but it's a slow mover.

Ceramic kitties and a wicker frog. 

More smalls--a wood child's swing, galvanized tray to add to the items already in the booth.

These are HUGE ginger jars, and a big ol' red bull too. 

Vintage kitchen utensils are a steady seller.

That's the tour. A lot of changes--now I just hope sales will get a boost. They've been extremely slow for the start of the year. Fingers crossed.

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.

Covid Journal, Day 272: Catching Up

A light snow cover, 30 degrees. Fog rising. The past week has been day after day of similar temps--up in the 40's, down to the 30's at night. Yesterday, rain before the snow, so not much of the pretty heavy snowfall stuck. 

So, what's everyone been up to?

It's been a busy week for us, and I expect the same is true for most of you, too. Larry and I got into cleaning, a good deep cleaning that this house really needed. Just the bedroom is left to do now. It's been nice to work together like this--we're a good team. The house will be sparkling for the holidays. 

Yesterday I packed all the family gifts for mailing today. With the mail slowdown, I'm a little concerned that they might not arrive in time, but since these are all in-state, I am hopeful. I ordered online for my Florida son and his family and had those gifts shipped direct. Fingers crossed that all arrive by Christmas.

Last week I worked on furniture all week, and we took those pieces to our booth. The table and chairs sold within a few days, the third set this month. I am wondering why--is it that people are home now, and want a family table again, after years of just using the breakfast bar in the kitchen? Or is it parents buying them for "school" tables, for their children to do homework now that school is virtual more often than not? I will have to scramble to find more chairs for a table I have ready to go--but no painting for me until after Christmas. I need a break.

Here is the set that sold, and the finished buffet:

And here is the aqua Formica and chrome set that sold 2 weeks ago, in its new home. So thrilled that a friend's sister bought it. She sent me photos, and is so happy with it.

And a better photo of her stove. I love it.

Today, I will be making cranberry sauce to can, and also some firestarters  that are made with wax and lint. I made them some years ago but forgot about them until my oldest son mentioned them. So I'll send some to him when they're finished--an after-Christmas gift.

Larry and I had planned to buy gifts for each other this year, since we've done so well with our booths. But when we talked it over, we decided that we really didn't want to shop in stores because of this pandemic, and neither of us could think of a thing we really wanted and needed. We have so much, compared to many others. We are well-supplied with food, it's almost an embarrassment of riches. Our closets are full, we have movies and music and books, tools and good vehicles. Our family is all well and fortunately all kept their jobs. So we decided to donate the money we would have spent to a local organization that helps families. They run a thrift where I have found many amazing bargains, so it's a thank you to them for that. It felt good to hand over that check. 

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.

Covid Journal, Day 240: Marietta Booth Update

43 and cloudy this morning, quite a chill in the air. I believe we're heading for a hard freeze this week. Yesterday was warmer, but blustery and with some heavy rainstorms. 

It was a good day to go to our Marietta booth--pouring rain, wild winds, and generally unhospitable weather. We hadn't been up there in a month, so I knew it needed attention. So after a good Larry breakfast, we headed out. 

The impact of the coronavirus' spread was evident. Traffic was lighter than usual, and few people came through the mall while we worked. This is odd because generally a Sunday gets pretty busy in the afternoon. I was worried about that. Would it be safe to be working if the mall got crowded? As it turned out, it was no problem at all. 

Here's a look at what changes we made:

I pulled together the Jadeite this time, thinking red and green. I didn't bring in any Christmas items this year, so I will have to work with glass and other things to add a little holiday glimmer if I want that.

The cart is still there; I was kind of surprised as these usually sell fast.

Lots of miscellany on the shelves. I try to keep them full, since we have such a small space now compared to what we used to have at this mall. 

I may be moving this cabinet to Riverbend next time around, since it hasn't had any bites in the months it's been at this mall. Furniture is a hard sell here, for some reason. We make most of our money on smalls.

I had this lamp in my bedroom for 2 years but after moving out one chest of drawers, I had nowhere to put it. I do love it, especially the silk painted panels that light up so prettily when the lamp is on.

We brought in the little red table I painted last week, and a rustic chair.

This piece of furniture may move out soon too. I can use the space for more shelves for small items.

I lucked into a lot of blue and white things recently. 

The mirror behind the horse is another new addition this trip.

That's about it. Nothing terribly exciting this time. Sales are slow, slow, slow right now at this location, and I hope we'll see an uptick after Thanksgiving when people start thinking about Christmas. But virus statistics may continue to play a role as the numbers climb. We'll be able to hold on, as the rent isn't too bad, and perhaps next year when the vaccine becomes more widely available, things will start returning to normal.

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.

Covid Journal, Day 246: Riverbend Booth Update

48 again this morning, chilly and cloudy. Clouds off and on all day but it warned up to almost 60.

I thought I'd share photos of the work we did in our Riverbend booths on Wednesday. It took a while to rearrange to my liking, but worth the effort.

The table I posted the other day, all moved in and set with Currier and Ives china. The china sold within a day.

So that's the tour. Lots of stuff---now to hope and pray that it all sells. The coronavirus is surging in our area, as it is across the country, making people wary of coming out to shop once again, I think. We may be in for a rough winter if the virus continues to spread as it is now. I do my best to stay safe when I have to go out, but I believe we will have to cut back even more on our trips out. They're so limited already that I hate to reduce it even more--and I so miss my sons who live far away. Perhaps the vaccine will come soon and we can all get back to something like normal.

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.