Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Reuse: The Beauty of Antiques

On Saturday I had a few extra minutes to myself before going to a baby shower for a girl friend of mine from Ecuador. I was looking for a good old fashioned hand-held mixer, thanks again to my friend at RainGarden. Why didn't I think of this sooner? I've long been a proponent of the handheld manual can opener, why not the handheld manual mixer? (I fully understand electric can openers for those who suffer with arthritis type pain, however, for the vast majority of us -- Why can't we handle cranking our own cans open manually? I'm at a loss. And, electric can openers take up space on your counter. I digress.) I meandered into this tiny antique store that is quite literally "a hole in the wall". To get into the store, you must walk down a set of narrow concrete stairs and walk through a small door. The owner does a great job displaying various things on the sidewalk so that you know it's there, but until Saturday I'd never set foot in the place. When I did, the owner was pounding away on a typewriter. I thought to myself, is this for effect -- to set the mood? I glanced around. I'm amazed he stays in business, but the rent must be dirt cheap. Records, clothing, accessories, costume jewelry, little wooden drawers labelled in typewritten lettering (aaha!) things like: buttons, watches, game pieces, nail clippers. There was an entire selection of vintage fabric divided neatly by color, but in my opinion was way over priced. Finally I asked the man if he had any hand mixers. He started wandering around the store making all kinds of clanking noises here and there, and lo and behold pulled out four of them from I don't know where. 

I tested them all and chose the one that was sturdy and smoothest when the beaters twirled around. It's possible that it cost more than a new one a Target, but I'm certain that it will last longer. They just don't make things like they used to.
I also purchased a few antique hand embroidered hankies. Aren't they lovely? They aren't reproductions fabricated in China (which I have purchased in the past, accidentally) these are the real McCoy. These I actually use instead of tissues. 

2 comments:

Kristi said...

Very pretty hankies and I love your mixer. My Mother In Law laughs at our antiques because when she was young that is what they always used, until they "upgraded". Hmmm...

I went to a shower on Saturday as well!

GE is me said...

Sandy, I think my mom is going to die all over again(at least for me)when her sunbeam griddle bites the dust. This thing is the BEST for making sourdough waffles, french toast, grilled cheese, cooking sourdough english muffins on and I'm sure the list goes on and on. It must be as old as I am as I remember it from when I was a little girl. I actually coveted it before she died.
So, I said all this to say I KNOW WHAT YOU MEAN SISTA'! They don't make things the way they used to. Isn't it a shame?
-Gail