Category Archives: antiques

Down the Rabbit Hole

Image April 8, 2023 Karen Tashkovski Leave a comment

I am always falling down rabbit holes. This morning I spent an hour on Facebook looking at the photographs posted by At the Farm LLC. Then I decided to go there. It is located at 5501 Bartell Road, Brewerton, New York 13029, and is a twenty-plus vendor antique shop. Currently, you will find a lot of Easter related items – bunny molds, cookie cutters, stuffed bunnies, ceramic eggs, baskets, etc.

It was a surreal experience, as there were so many incredible treasures to see and so many things that I totally already own. I saw an identical copy of my great-grandfather’s black GE oscillating fan.

And this glass lemonade pitcher. Its doppelganger and Poplu’s fan are on the front porch of my home.

And my mother has that small Shirley Temple blue-glass pitcher. Even though I had never been there before, the place felt so familiar. I loved it there! The cool thing about taking so many pictures is that when I go back through them, I see things on the shelves that I don’t remember seeing. Cool things that I want to own.

Is collecting vintage items still a thing? Do younger generations do this? They must. Because even though it’s best to live in the present moment and all, nostalgia never dies. Things turn to thoughts of the past and they usually trigger fond memories. I love going to flea markets and antique stores because I always feel like I’m being directed or drawn to something, like the universe needs me to find it – to find the memories. So amazing. This makes me smile.

I’m not sure if they will be open tomorrow because of Easter Sunday but they are usually open Saturdays and Sundays 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM and also Wednesday through Friday noon – 5:00 PM. Call (315) 668-8800 for the deets.

antiques, art gallery, furniture, Karen Tashkovski, store

Antique Wonderland

Image August 24, 2022 Karen Tashkovski Leave a comment

Soflea has added a second location for antique shopping fun. Antiques at Railway Commons is located at the corner of Burnet Avenue and Catherine Street, at 400 Burnet Avenue, Syracuse, NY. They are open from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM every day!

Soflea is a play on her name – Sophia Tashkovski, who has a specific eye when it comes to her found object finds. Her shop contains an array of vintage denim clothing and patterned shirts, bar carts, glassware, pottery, brass goods and so much more in the category of chic bric-a-brac treasures, Oh, and Adirondack-style furniture and Americana accessories that would look great as camp decor or in a rustic family room.

Her prices are very reasonable, I think. I bought this little sheepskin rug (below). Pablo loves it!

There are several other vendors in the store. Their areas are delineated by bookshelves and larger pieces of furniture, Each vendor uses different price tags so that the cashier can document sales.

An art gallery is housed upstairs, as well, run by Peter Svoboda. His former location was in Shoppingtown Mall in Dewitt.

Time Traveling in da Nook

Image August 18, 2022 Karen Tashkovski Leave a comment

Last year when I attended the Madison-Bouckville Antique Fest, I spent two additional hours looking for my car. I don’t know how I became so mixed up that day. Too much to see, really.

This year I stuck to one area. I parked in the location called Butternut Hill and just walked around and through those tents – for three hours! The whole thing is a time vortex. In the search for the old stuff of yesteryear, you can conceivably lose all track of time.

You still have three more days to take that drive on Route 20. From Syracuse, New York, head to Manlius, which will take you through Cazenovia and Morrisville to Madison.

I paid $5.00 to park but there is a possibility of finding free parking. And it is free to attend. Dealers are on both sides of the road (over 2,000!) set up in tents and there are also several antique shops along the route. There’s lots to see and plenty of food vendors too.

Before you go, set your intention to the universe in regard to what you are hoping to find. Then let yourself be guided to it. I purchased a bag of found object items to use in my artwork. I also enjoyed seeing old money, glass containers, and plenty of nostalgia. In addition, I stumbled upon lots of things my mother likes – porcelain figurines, crochet goods, teddy bears and baubles.

The best part was conversing with the vendors, all lovely people from here, there and every where. One man brought his antique store goods in from Louisiana. Another was from Fulton, NY. One lady from Pennsylvania told me that vendors pick the same or similar locations year after year. The Butternut Hill spot had excellent facilities for dining, showering and other aspects, she said.

Even if you don’t particularly like shopping, this festival is good exercise. It’s open 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM through Sunday. You can hike around for miles while time traveling. Now doesn’t that sound like a magical way to spend your day?

For more information go to www.madison-bouckville.com.

antiques, collectibles, found object, Karen Tashkovski, shopping, store

Owego!

Image August 13, 2021 Karen Tashkovski 1 Comment

Owego is amazing! Quaint nineteenth century store fronts house restaurants, art galleries, jewelry stores and antique shoppes (including a visitor’s center) that border the Susquehanna River in Owego, New York.

It is a beautiful place to spend a sunny summer afternoon, browsing, having smoothies and exploring, which is exactly what we did on Wednesday.

My friend Joyce and I stopped in to the Early Owego Antique Center. It is the old J.J. Newberry Co. building – two floors filled with vignettes decorated by more than ninety individual dealers. I have been a huge fan for a while now – loving everything they post on social media. I think I may have one of those top fan badges.

It was pretty much sensory overload. I was overwhelmed. I mean, so much to discover! So fun! Loved it! I really need to get back there again because now that I have had a chance to look at the pictures, I see things in the background that I didn’t notice when I was there, you know? Antique hunting is all about that thrill of finding something from your past, finding something you didn’t know you needed. Or maybe it is about manifesting something that is in your vortex – something you put there a long time ago and voila! There it is right in front of you!

I found a Wheaton glass bottle on the second floor in a back corner of the store. It is something I had been Google-ing for a while- it was like – what the heck was it doing there? So cool! And when I brought it to the register, I even got a discount on the price!

I highly recommend you take a trip out there. Owego, NY is west of Binghamton. It is a ninety minute drive from Syracuse.

Early Owego Antique Center is located at 43-45 Lake Street (P.O. Box 8) Owego, New York 13827. They are open 10:00 am – 5:00 pm daily (closed on Tuesdays though). Call (607) 223-4723 for more information.

antiques, art, ceramics, family, found object, horseshoes, interior decorating, leather, photography, pottery, retail, vintage

Soflea Sophie

Image January 10, 2021 Karen Tashkovski Leave a comment

My sister owns two businesses: Syracuse Yoga (6181 Thompson Road, Suite 803, Syracuse, New York 13206) and Soflea, a small store operating in the basement of Wildflowers (217 S. Salina Street, Syracuse, New York 13203).

Sophia Tashkovski is part of the McCarthy Mercantile. Her collection of flea-market finds and antiques includes her signature horseshoes, brass trays, statuettes and wicker baskets, as well as furniture and rugs.

Items are one-of-a-kind gems and so, there are always new finds to covet, which always makes the shopping experience a fun adventure.

Hours of operation: 11:00 am – 7:00 pm Tuesday through Sunday. It’s open today!!! (you’re welcome <3) Enter Wildflowers then head to the basement where the collective of shoppes is housed.

antiques, art, art resources, assemblage, found object, Karen Tashkovski, retail

Syracuse Antiques Exchange

Image September 1, 2019 Karen Tashkovski Leave a comment

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I drank a lot of iced coffee yesterday, well after 5:00 pm then I devoured free and salty buttered popcorn in the VIP lounge at the Mary J. Blige concert last night, which caused a totally weird all-night awake fest (thank God for old episodes of Million Dollar Listing on Bravo on-demand). I fell asleep somewhere around 6 am and woke up around noon, thus missing my weekly Sunday trek to the flea market.

Yes, Tuesday’s return to work after eight weeks of summer bliss will be a rude awakening for me. I will need to start getting up at 5:30 am and if I can do that, it will be by some sort of divine miracle.

This afternoon, in order to satisfy my craving for old stuff/junk/treasure, I decided to wander into Syracuse Antiques Exchange (1629 North Salina Street, Syracuse, New York 13208).

The building itself is an antique. Here are some pictures from yesteryear courtesy of their Instagram account/Facebook page.

The place is chock full of antiques. Four floors of vendor vignettes – clothing, jewelry, furniture, sports memorabilia, knick-knacks, collectibles even Tiffany stained-glass windows! Very cool! Purchases are made at the desk – on the first floor by the entrance.

Prices are as marked but there is a little bit of wiggle-room for haggling, like maybe 10% off. If the vendor is available via a text message, you are golden.

They are open every day 10:30 am – 5:30 pm, although they are planning to be closed tomorrow due to the Labor Day holiday. Call (315) 471-1841 for more information. <3

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