You could spend the weekend cleaning out the garage, putting away the snow shovel and doing all those early spring chores that need to be done. Or, you could poke around in someone else's garage and find a treasure to bring home. Easy choice, right?…
Since I started writing my Treasure Hunting column in 2003 (I started the blog in 2004) , I’ve written a lot about my fondness for vintage clothing. I dressed in silk Flapper dresses while in college and was married in a delicate 1900s cotton lawn…
Admit it. All this gray-skies-and-rainy-weather atmosphere has gotten to you. Wouldn’t it be nice to do a little shopping and bring home a pretty vintage treasure? You bet it would. I feel the same way. That’s why I’m looking forward to Fielding Chelf’s Spring Opening…
(photo by Cheryl-Anne Millsap) Each week I record my Home Planet column for my Sunday Morning Essay program on Spokane Public Radio. After my studio time I always try to stop by The Vintage Rabbit, which is located on the street level of the same…
Snow may be in the forecast, but collectors are getting spring fever. They want new vintage finds to chase away the winter blahs. I got the note below from a reader north of Spokane. She and some friends are going to be in Spokane in…
There are finds and then there are the finds you find all over again. In 2006, I was invited by a Treasure Hunting reader to join her for a day of antiquing. I met her at Apple Annie Antique Gallery in Cashmere, Washington and joined…
This Thanksgiving, as I usually do, I'll decorate the table simply with a few favorite items: a carved wooden pheasant, a vintage table cloth, the family china and silver. We'll sit down together to eat favorite foods, celebrate and enjoy one another's company. But this…
This morning I packed yet another lunch. I've been getting school lunches ready for more than 20 years so it's second nature to me now. My first child started school in 1991. Three more followed. Now, the oldest is out of grad school and part…
Dear Cheryl-Ann,I have read everything you’ve written since I moved to Spokane in 2002. I especially love your pieces on antiques. I’m a true collector and find myself drawn to flea markets and thrift stores. I can spend hours looking and imagining how I would…
Too often, women who love to spend hours looking at vintage items at a flea market or in an antique mall, do it entirely on their own or they go with a group of friends. They wouldn’t think of having a husband around. This is…
Often, for those of us who are drawn to ordinary objects that have been used and loved, the things we rescue become part of the family. This is especially true of Gladys Hanning. “I have collected and brought home many pieces of furniture, paintings, books,”…
Continuing my Treasure Hunting series featuring noteworthy collectors, creative types and entrepreneurs, I’m introducing Jana Roach. Roach lives near Kalispell, Montana in the beautiful Flathead Valley, and as one of the creators of Montana’s Vintage Whites Market, she spends a lot of time searching for…
Those of us who love old things, ordinary objects that show the wear of many hands, are the curators. We gather and collect and admire our finds. We bring them out for others to admire. We hold onto our treasures. And when those pieces have…
Sometimes it’s hard to remember just when we fell in love. Was it at first sight, or did the feeling grow from familiarity and time spent together? Looking back, I can’t remember when I first fell for time-worn objects, for items that had a history…
I got up early to get started on what promises to be a busy day. My first stop was the Boutiques and Blooms sale at the home of Holly Dalke. The sale is part of the Inland Empire Gardener's Club Spokane in Bloom Tour. Dalke's…
So, if you're looking for something fun to do before heading down to the Arena for the live broadcast of A Prairie Home Companion, here's a little treasure hunting tip:Moran Vista Senior Living is hosting their 3rd annual Flea Market.Here are the details:What: Moran Vista…
The predictable thing about spring and summer is that it's the time of year that treasure-hunters are out in full force. And all that shopping and prepping and months of hard work done by dealers pays off in a big way. This is the season…
Some people read thrillers. They like high-flying espionage and doomsday scenarios or murder mysteries with gory homicide cases solved by little old ladies or wise-cracking private detectives. This is the polar opposite of their ordinary life, but then that’s what makes the plots so exciting.…
You know there's a diamond in the sandbox. Somewhere. All you have to do is find it. That's what it feels like to shop for one small thing in a crowded market or antiques show. There are so many things to look at, there is…
This was one of those wonderful Spokane weekends. When there is so much to do it's hard to decide where to go next. Saturday morning I was out at the Fair and Expo Center to be a part of the fun at the Farm Chicks…
The thing I love the most about spending time at events like this weekend's Farm Chicks Antiques Show is that I get a chance to spend time with old friends. Over the years, I've written about so many of the dealers and vendors I've gotten…
I headed out the the Farm Chicks sale early. I wanted to see how many people would be lined up and waiting for a chance to do some serious shopping.The photo says it all.By 9 a.m., the lined snaked all the way from the ticket…
I stopped by the Spokane Symphony Associates Upscale Sale today. I had too many commitments yesterday and couldn't make the preview sale but wasn't worried about it. The way I see it, if there's something there for me, I'll find it. If not, well, I'll…
So far, the weekend is pretty sloppy. What with Art Fest, the Symphony Associates Upscale Sale and the Farm Chicks show, the weather could put a damper on all the fun.So what? True treasure hunters never mind a little inclement weather. We've got all the…
I'm curious. How many of you will be going to this weekend's Farm Chick's sale or Spokane Symphony Associates Upscale Sale in the company of friends? Do you hunt in a pack or are you a solo stalker, preferring to troll the aisles alone?What's your…
Cheryl-Anne Millsap writes about antiques and collectibles and the love of all things vintage. Millsap's Home Planet column appears each week in the Wednesday "Pinch" supplement and she is The Spokesman-Review's female automobile reviewer. She is a regular contributor to Spokane Public Radio and her essays can be heard on Public Radio stations across the country. Cheryl-Anne is the author of "Home Planet: A Life in Four Seasons."