Summer Pop-Up Update
We started preparation for our first ever summer pop-up sale on Tuesday. It will put the cars out of the garage for three weeks but I think it will be worth it. Kelly and Mike came over on Tuesday and they set the foundation for the sale. I wanted to stay and help but I needed to take Mother to her occupational therapy appointment in the late morning and Vivi to her annual checkup in the afternoon. Driving to the first appointment was unexpected but 24 hours notice is needed to arrange for bus pickup. Between appointments we ran over to Fratello's in Rolling Meadows which is across from the rehab center. Unfortunately Mother did not care for her Italian beef sandwich, she said it tasted like squirrel (eeeek!) My grilled chicken sandwich had a highly processed piece of white meat chicken, it was just OK and I would not order it again. The onion rings were good and they gave us a couple of little chocolate chip cookies which was awesome. The jury is out on whether I would go back again.
Kelly and Mike were able to make a lot of headway without me though. The tables are up, the cash wrap is all set and most of the perimeter of the room is underway. Mike laid out all the jewelry for me to organize, the next step will be for me to put the like items together and that will be way more efficient to display. Mother offered to come over for a day to fill some of the cases. Many of the pieces in the photo above were priced in Arizona over the winter, shipped here but have not been put out for sale yet. There is a lot more where this came from - costume jewelry, sterling silver pieces and Tucson Gem Show finds.
Kelly and Mike were able to make a lot of headway without me though. The tables are up, the cash wrap is all set and most of the perimeter of the room is underway. Mike laid out all the jewelry for me to organize, the next step will be for me to put the like items together and that will be way more efficient to display. Mother offered to come over for a day to fill some of the cases. Many of the pieces in the photo above were priced in Arizona over the winter, shipped here but have not been put out for sale yet. There is a lot more where this came from - costume jewelry, sterling silver pieces and Tucson Gem Show finds.
Last Sunday evening I posted the above jewelry lot online. All of the earrings, the pin at the center front, the liquid silver and turquoise necklace, the cuff bracelet at the lower center and the Effie Calavaza snake ring have all sold, the remaining items are available. I am surprised that the beaded and turquoise chunk necklace at the center did not sell. It is really unique and the beads are outstanding with gorgeous stampwork and great patina. If no one claims it in the next few days I might just keep it. It is a little short on me but I could make an extender for it as I have some extra Navajo pearls from other projects. The pendant to the right is super cool as well, the turquoise is gem quality and at $150 shipped is a reasonable price.
I took some time out on Thursday afternoon and evening to try posting some Southwest Style turquoise jewelry online. These are all quality items by Desert Rose Trading. Unfortunately there were no takers - some people liked the items but did not buy. Others did not like them and made their opinions known. I ended up taking one of the postings down due to three negative comments. I never engage with internet trolls but feel people should read the group rules before they spout off. I see plenty in these groups that people think is wonderful but is not my taste, for example piling on 50 random pieces of jewelry at a time or wearing cuff bracelets that are way too small for their wrist size. I just hold my tongue and keep scrolling in those cases. Differing opinions is what makes the world go round!
We got some great news on the medical front - Mother went for her eye test on Friday morning and I am so happy to report that she passed! She was allowed to take the test without a mask this time which made all the difference because the screen and her glasses did not fog up. The doctor was really happy for her as well, he is a low-key man but he clasped and shook her hand when he gave us the news. Mother proceeded to read the eye chart from across the room, a good 25 feet away even though he did not ask her to. She got the first three lines with no problem and the fourth line on the second try. The doctor had us leave before she could try the fifth line. We also found out the assistant who was so nasty to both of us got fired.
To celebrate the good news, we went to TJ Maxx/Home Goods in Palatine which was not far away. I did not find anything but Mother zeroed right in on the Liberty Of London handbag and wallet collection on display. She chose a bag which was totally different than the others - a black and white carpet bag with a geometric print. She just loves it and it looks very chic without being heavy. There is an extra pocket on the inside which is a perfect place to store her cell phone. She picked up some great cookbooks and a new shirt as well. She found a brand of knit tops which she really likes and the price is a fraction of what she normally pays for tops at Eileen Fisher outlet. They are cute and cozy, maybe they will not last forever but they are a nice change of pace. Eileen Fisher knits are very pricey, even at the outlet but tend to pill quickly anyway.
After the shopping trip I decided to take us back east on Dundee to Walker Bros Pancake House. A new pancake house is opening up in Mount Prospect where Greek Feast used to be. We have many great diners around our area but the one thing they have in common is that they all close at 2:00 or 3:00 PM. The closest 24-hour diner is Omega in Niles. I was talking about how much I enjoy the bacon pancakes at Walker Bros and it sure is nice that they are open for dinner as well. It was a calorie splurge (they now post the calories for everything on the menu!) but worth it. These are not my actual pancakes but this is how they look. I think I had more bacon and less butter on mine. Mother had a BLT which looked deluxe and we shared an order of hash browns. The service was great, usually at these places they do not check on you but our server checked on us several times and kept our water glasses full.
On Saturday I took Mother for a quick trip to Wisconsin to visit extended family. I have spoken about these folks before - Mother was adopted and in recent years was able to reconnect with family on her birth mother's side. Judy was married to Randy who was Mother's half brother. Sadly we were never able to meet him as he passed due to complications from diabetes but Mother and Judy have become close friends. Judy has three sons and we visited her eldest son Toby's new home just over the border. It was an easy drive of about 50 minutes.
We took a detour and went down to Sweet B's, Mother ordered a dozen of their amazing homemade poptarts to bring along. They were so nice to whip up the custom order with no notice on a Saturday morning! Unfortunately we were not able to arrive at the get-together in a timely manner, I was tied up with estate sale matters in the morning and it took extra time to get the poptarts and drop Vivi off at my house. They had already eaten (we would not have expected them to wait for us) and many of the people left within the hour after we arrived. But Judy stayed until the end along with Toby, his wife Kim and their son Andrew and they all endured the endless embarrassing stories from Mother about my childhood and other subjects. Finally I said, OK - just choose one more story to share! They were all very gracious about it. Their home is just beautiful, the landscaping is fantastic with gorgeous blooming flowers everywhere like roses and hydrangeas and the backyard is built for entertaining with a wonderful inground pool and dining areas. The poptarts were a hit and a great accompaniment to the brats, chips and pasta salad that was served. Mother was disappointed that she did not get any but I will get her some soon.
Back to the grind today - I will be posting another lot of Native American jewelry this evening. I just received some great new pieces including this wonderful graduated sterling silver beaded necklace as well as two amazing belts, one with huge sterling stations and one with a sterling buckle. I had some great belts before but ended up selling them to a dealer for what I paid because I was not sure how to easily photograph them for sale. He put them on eBay and made a huge profit on them. This time I am going to sell the belts myself. I did a little research and found some ideas on how to photograph them. I also have a dress form I can use so people can see how the belts look on.
Goals for next week will be to get a shoebox filled with jewelry polished, priced and put out for sale every day. It is an ambitious goal but I have so many great items to share. I was saving my amazing Mexican jewelry collection to post online but I have not had time to post it so am going to launch it at the pop-up. I also have the incredible jewelry by Federico to launch. We are in the dog days of summer but it is not too early to think about holiday shopping! I will be back next week with another pop-up sale update. Until then, have a good one!