It was the opening weekend for the Aberfoyle Antique market! One of my favourite things to do when the warm weather arrives. It runs every Sunday starting April 24th all the way to October 30th! It's an outdoor market so its a great way to enjoy the nice weather and to spend the morning/afternoon surrounded by antiques. They also have a hotdog and ice cream stand in case you want to stick around and make a day of it (Trust me there is plenty to look at) I always find something to bring home every time I go.
The Aberfoyle Antique market is Canadas oldest antique market. It started in 1961... which is crazy to think about the types of items they were selling back then ! Probably some amazing Edwardian and victorian pieces and maybe even older. These days you can find some items dating back to the late 1800s all the way to the 1980s... probably early 2000s, I'm just refusing to believe thats considered vintage lol...
So I grabbed my saddle shoes and headed to the market! I went in with an open mind, since its opening weekend I just wanted to look around and see what caught my eye. As always I have my eyes open for hats. Aberfoyle has such a nice mix of items; jewellery, home decor, furniture, records, books, and some fashion items. There is a little bit of something for everyone!
I saw a bunch of paintings, if you are looking for paintings in a more "traditional or classic style" this is the place to look! I love paintings with faces and people I don't know why I just really like them. I love the rococo era so anything in that style always catches my eye. I also really love round paintings and frames, I don't see them very often at thrift stores or regular stores for that matter, but I think they are SO elegant and much more interesting than square/rectangle ones.
Here are two items I regret not buying...I saw tons of these flower "figurines" (I'm not sure what the proper name is, but there were a bunch of them) I see them at thrift stores occasionally but they are always chipped or have broken petals. The ones I saw at the market were in much better condition and there was a variety of designs and sizes... They were actually cheaper than thrift store ones too. I should've bought one I don't know why I didn't.... I guess that means I will have to go back again this summer!
Another item I regret not buying is this wall mount picture frame! I saw it right when I walked in, which is a blessing and a curse because I wanted to see what else there was. So I took a photo to remind myself to go back for it at the end... not that it worked because I forgot. Now It might look like a typical frame but what I loved about it was the curved glass. I think it's stunning. Hopefully it's there next time I go back.
This little desk is completely impractical as a regular desk in the modern age because we use laptops and the writing area is on an incline, but how amazing would it be for drawing! Some of you know I love to draw portraits, it's something very personal to me, I have to be in the right head space to draw but its a big passion of mine (I once thought I would turn it into my career) Maybe this is why I like paintings with faces? anyway... how perfect would it be as a drawing desk! I could store my supplies on the side drawers and my most used items on the top storage area. Unfortunately I don't have the room for it so I left it behind.. one day I will own a little drawing desk!
I HAD to stop at my favourite booth! Monica'S Magical Trove! This seller has a few booths around the GTA including the Hamilton antique mall, and a stand at the Toronto Vintage Clothing show. But I most frequently visit them at Aberfoyle. It's a girls DREAM they have everything you could want. Hats, Jewellery, scarves, gloves, items for a vanity, teacups, art and much more! I'm not exaggerating when I saw I could spend HOURS looking around.
One of my favourite things that I saw was this white wicker handbag, I fell in love with it as soon as I walked in, in perfect condition. Unfortunately it was a bit out of my price range so I left it behind. But how perfect would it be for summer!! I hope it goes to a good home!
Here are more photos of the same booth, look at all of those handbags on the wall and the jewellery boxes on the stand... oooh and the rack of gloves by the leather jackets. This is what I mean there is just so much to look at! You could get lost just in this booth alone.
There is this one booth that sells more refurbished pieces in a shabby chic style, not my particular taste but its very popular. However On the outside of that booth they had some regular vintage furniture and THIS BEAR! I have 4 stuffed animals already and I don't need any more. so I didn't check how much he was... but now looking at the photo I'm regretting it! He is such a distinguished gentleman with his little outfit and his little chubby body is adorable. If he's still sitting there next time I go I might check the price.
That pretty much wraps up my day at the antique market! I had so much fun shopping around, it was actually quite busy because the weather was beautiful. I also got so many compliments on my outfit! I was shocked because I wore something casual due to the nature of the market but a few people stopped me saying they liked my style. The sweetest older gentleman said I reminded him of being in High school, which as anyone who dresses in a vintage style will agree, is a top tier compliment!
THE HAUL
Of course you guys know I can't go to an antique market and come home empty handed. I spent about 2 hours at Aberfoyle and found some amazing gems, I'm sure if I took my time I could've come home with a lot more haha. Anyway here is my little haul:
The first thing that I found was this little pill box, I have been looking for a new one for my purse for a while now but I haven't been able to find one that I like or at a reasonable price. This one immediately caught my eye! Its a square little box in a gold tone with a pearl layer on the top, it has these thin hand-painted purple lines and tiny crystal gems. But my favourite feature is the embroidered flowers on top, I'm not sure how they got that on there! it looks like its actually embroidered on to the pearl (Obviously its not, but its so well done it looks like it is) I forgot to take off the price tag but as you can clearly see it was $12. A bit expensive for such a tiny item but it's so intricate and unique that I think its very reasonable. The lady from the shop said it was from the 1930s.
Ok before you start judging and commenting that this looks like a sea urchin please look at the photos below because it will make sense... and to be fair the hat would photograph better on my head or a proper hat stand instead of flat on top of my bed haha.
Here are two photos of my beautiful Grandmother! These are actually my favourite photos of her. Before she passed she gifted me the fur collar she is wearing in these photos, she even fixed up the lining for me so its good as new! Its one of my most prized possessions. Since then I have been on the lookout for a hat like the one she is wearing so that I can recreate this exact look. Now I know its not the exact hat, my grandmas was most likely all cream to match the fur and it looks like a thicker feathers, but this is the closest I've been able to find! The seller was super kind and sold it to me for $20 which I thought was a good deal. I have seen a hat like this at another antique market in a bright orange colour and it was $60 so I'm happy with the price I paid. I think its a really fun hat and I'll get some wear out of it, i'll keep an eye out for a more exact replica of the one my grandma is wearing in the photo but in the meantime this will do great! Oh and it also fits my head perfectly, I don't need to pin it to keep it in place,
I've been talking about how gloves are going to be huge accessory for me this spring and summer, I have a few cotton white gloves but I wanted to add a few more sheer ones. I got these for $8 each which isn't a bad price....however I have bought some at other antique markets for $3-$5. These ones were a but more unique so I decided to splurge. The one on the left is plain sheer with a ruffle cuff that closes with a little faux pearl button, super elegant. The one on the right has little pin stripes! I've never seen one like this before so I grabbed it. they are both in excellent condition! The seller at this stand had tons of gloves ranging from $5-$25. There were some GORGEOUS ones but of course they were on the more expensive end haha.
This was my biggest splurge of the day, I got this late 1940s SILK VELVET dress. It is absolutely stunning. If you don't know silk velvet is the epitome of luxury fabric. It's been woven from silk since medieval times and has been worn by royalty for decades. The difference between silk velvet and regular velvet is in the weave. Velvet is short and dense while silk velvet (which is woven from silk) creates the silk velvet (you can read more about the process and more information about silk velvet here). Silk velvet is the most expensive velvet available because of its shine and softness. And honestly I can tell you this is the most beautiful fabric I've ever touched, its so soft and sturdy, it is literally velvety smooth. It's really hard to photograph but in person it looks so plush and the light makes it shimmer in the best possible way. It has these two strands on the neck to tie a knot or bow and it also comes with a small "belt". The belt is a bit too big for me so I'm torn on if I should add another clasp to cinch in a waist more or if I should leave it. I showed my mom and she said to leave it but I'm not 100% sure yet, maybe I'll create a poll on my story and see what you guys think.
Last but not least! I got this fur brooch. The lady said it was real fur (its quite obvious when you touch it) but she didn't remember what type of fur it was. It's original from the 1950s, the lady actually said I should put it on with the outfit I was wearing because it would match my whole look haha. I love these little fur pins I think they are a great accessory for winter. I have another brooch exactly like this in a dark brown that I found at a thrift store. Funny enough I paid $10 for this one at Aberfoyle which is the same price I for the other one at the thrift store. And for a real fur brooch from the 50s in perfect condition I think its a great price!
Overall I had an amazing day at the antique market! It was the perfect weather and I'm really happy with everything I found. I have a feeling I will be back again this summer to see what else they add to the market! Have you ever been to Aberfoyle??