The Demise of Retail Shopping

Have you heard? Retail is dying. People still shop but not in retail stores like we once did. I’ve been reading and hearing lately that the way we shop is changing. Malls around the country are standing empty just like downtowns did when the malls were built. Even the big box stores are closing being forced out like they once forced out many mom and pop businesses. Here’s a report about it. 

If you haven’t ordered something from Amazon you are in the majority. Many people have Amazon Prime. We pay monthly for the privilege of getting free shipping as well as digital movies, books and music literally at our fingertips. Online shopping is replacing store fronts. 

There are many advantages and some disadvantages to online shopping. Many times you have a huge selection and you can comparison price. You can search for exactly the item you want from the comfort of your home. Recently I was shopping for drawer pulls for a dresser I was painting. I went to several stores including a big craft store that I prefer not shopping because of their support of organizations that I do not support.  But when I’m desperate I go there. They had the pulls I liked but they were $5 each. Often this retail craft store will have the pulls at half price. But not that day. $40 was too much for me to use on a dresser to resale. While waiting my hubby to foo oath shopping in a sports store I searched online using my phone and found 10 beautiful pulls  for $15 from Amazon and they arrived 2 days later. That’s what is killing retail. Online you have multiple selections, fast delivery, easy payment and you can buy from home, your car, vacation or anywhere you have cell service any time. 

Of course there are disadvantages with online shopping. If you like to actually touch and feel the article you are buying you are  not going to do that online. This is especially true if you are buying clothing. And if have trouble finding the right fit in clothing, online clothing shopping will be difficult for you. I recently decided to try Switch Fix and luckily everything fit perfectly. Switch Fix is an group that will choose an outfit for you based on a survey of your likes, activities and preferences. Again ending the need to go from retail store to retail store putting an outfit together. Here is my first Switch Fix and thanks to losing 100 lbs over the last year and a half everything fit. 

Another disadvantage is the delay in arriving. With Amazon Prime most packages arrive in 2 days. Anything shipped USPS Priority Mail will usually arrive in days. Shipping costs is also an added disadvantage when you not using a service like Amazon Prime. 

Damage in shipping is another disadvantage. I’ve had good luck with shopping for the most part. A set of foam tiles in a plastic box was delivered from Amazon but the box was cracked. After contacting Amazon I was given three choices of which I chose a 30% refund which I thought was very fair. I was delighted to receive an email that since I was such a “good” customer  they were refunding all the expense and my grand daughter’s teacher ended up with a free box of foam tiles. Let's not discuss how "good" a customer I am. 

For elderly folks or those that do use computers the demise of retail shopping makes it harder and harder for them to find the things they need and want. I order things for my 91 year old mom all the time. Most recently a carpet sweeper. But many people in this situation don’t have someone to order things for them. 

What does this mean for small business owners like me? It means I should be prepared for change. Boutiques and specialized stores are still surviving. Many in those small downtowns that were displaced years ago by big malls. With the addition of great restaurants, craft beer businesses and other unique stores places like the antique store where I have two booths are surviving.  There is a trend to buy handmade and artisan products. And thanks to Joanna Gaines, from HGTV’s Fixer Upper, antiques and vintage items are all the rage now. 

But a business like my antique and collectible business cannot rely solely on a storefront for all their income. We have to have addition revenue sources. I sell on eBay, I have an Etsy shop (GoodsonVintage) , I sell on Facebook Marketplace and occasionally to friends and family as well as the store where my booths are located. Many vendors like us sell at Vintage Market Days which are much like the craft shows of years past. Some even have their own "Barn Sells". 

So we live in a rapidly changing world. Being prepared for changes will enable to deal with these changes in a smooth and seamless way.

Remember to buy what you love. 

Pumpkins from Jar Rings

I have a crafters heart. I used to have a craft business, and I actually sent my son to college on my crafting business in the late 80's. When I can, I create items for my booth that I have crafted from something vintage. In this case, it is these cute pumpkins made from canning jar rings. Here's how to make your own.


Materials:

18-24
canning jar rings
Washi tape in Fall or Halloween prints
White Glue
Twine
Burlap for Leaves
Stick for stem
Orange spray paint (optional)
*Not pictured
wax paper
dowel stick or pencil

Directions:
If desired spray paint your jar rings on both sides with orange paint.

When the rings are dry press the Washi tape on the outside of the rings. If the tape is larger than the ring, clip the edges and fold over to the top or trim the tape. You may need a little white glue to hold the tape down on the top of the ring.

Continue covering the rings until you have enough to create your pumpkin.

Thread twine through the center of the rings and tie securely. The more rings you have the larger you pumpkin will be. Spread the rings out until they are separately evenly.

Find a stick that is the size of the hole in the center of your pumpkin. Cut two leaf shapes from the burlap and glue to the bottom of your stick. I tie mine on with a piece of twine to secure until it drys.

To make the curls for the top take twine and dip in white glue.Wind twine loosely around a dowel stick or pencil wrapped in wax paper, and let dry at least an hour before removing from the dowel stick.

Glue the stick you chose for the stem of the pumpkin to the inside the pumpkin with white glue and add the curl.

You can get jar rings at any grocery store or variety store but I like to find used ones at estate sales.

Learn more about estate sales in my other blog posts.
Enjoy making your own pumpkins. Or you can stop by Goodson Vintage Treasures in Just Around the Corner at 120 East Main Street, Lincolnton, NC. and buy one from me!
Check our my Facebook Page or Just Around the Corner's Page.

Letter? Letter? What to do with these letters?

Signs are all the rage now and I have quite a few in my booths. I also sell Scrabble tiles and tile holders, and they are great smalls to sell. Today we hit an estate sale in a nearby town. I had noticed on the photos they posted before the sale that this home had sign making materials and what looked like boxes of letters ( read my post on Junkin 101). Sure enough I found 3 boxes of letters at the sale, and I bought them all.

A huge milk crate full of black plastic letters.

A box of large orange letters 

Rest of the black letters on plastic and under them were red letters.

Now my dilemma is what to do with them. So naturally I went to everyone's favorite resource in this business....Pinterest. Here's a link to some projects I found.  https://www.pinterest.com/search/my_pins/?q=plastic%20sign%20letters
If you don't use it you should. First I found several links to Etsy. With those links I saw that some folks screw them to old white washed boards, hand them with clips on twine to make a banner and even create trays like in Scrabble to hold the letters. I love all these ideas and can't wait to try some them. Of course hubby will need to come up the the letter trays, but honestly he can do anything.

We also bought these old lead and glass flower frogs. I love these and use them around the computer as pencil holders and scissor holders.

Floral frogs make great desk accessories. 

We also purchased this small table. I'm going to paint it. Not sure what color yet. Suggestions are appreciated. I also found one bubble light and a roll of copper wire. We also stopped by a flea market and I bought some old Christmas post cards and some old gas station maps. All in all it was a fun morning and as usual I bought things I love. I'll blog about those letters when I do something with them.

Old Table

Update: Here is the first sign I made from my letters. I sprayed the red ones orange and mounted to a barn board. I love it. 

I hung this style on clips and sting. 

Paper Dolls

Box of Vintage Paper Dolls

Did you play with paper dolls when you were little? Uh Oh I think I just gave away my age. When I
was young paper dolls were a popular toy. Last year I bought a box of old paper dolls at an auction. Hubby thought I was losing it, and I really had no idea what I was going to do with them. But as I always say, "Buy what you love." and I loved paper dolls as a child.

So for the last year those cute paper dolls sat on a shelf in the storage side of my basement, but in the back of mind they were floating around. I researched Pinterest a few times but found few ideas I liked. Then one day I decided to frame some of the dresses. I found an old shadow box type frame at a flea market to use. I took the art out of the frame and glued some blue scrapbook paper to the inside for a background. Then I took mat that came with the frame and spray painted it a contrasting color of orange. I chose a couple of cute 60's style dresses and glued them to the background. I spray painted the frame white and sanded it to give it a worn look. Finally I put the whole thing back together. I like the results.


A few days later I found another bargain shadowbox frame that was a little larger. This time I used some cute striped paper as a background and used some washi tape on the mat. Washi tape is a beautiful type of paper tape sold as most craft stores now. I chose several great old paper doll outfits to glue to the background. As before I painted the frame white and sanded it a bit.

For the next box I found a cute idea on Pinterest where they created a clothesline and hung the paper doll dresses on it. This time I took and old silverware box I had and found a frame that fit it. Then I painted both parts. I made a clothes rod out of a wooden skewer and attached it to the sides. I used pink scrapbook paper and another cute washi tape to cover the insides of the box as well as the mat. I made hangers out of craft wire and glued the clothing on it. On the skirt I used little clothespins. Then I attached the frame to box. In this picture on of the dresses is crooked but I can shake it an straighten it out.

The final paper doll item I created was a clothesline banner or garland. I used twine and glued a selection of vintage paper doll clothes to the twine. Then I tied the string in bows at the ends. I love how these turned out but with anything new I have no idea if they will sell. I'll keep you updated.

Estate Sale Friday and Saturday - How I Love you!

Well we had a great time at a local estate sale this weekend. Around here estate sales are on Friday and Saturday which is super for us since we are retired. As I shared in my blog post Junkin 101 (http://goodsonvintagetreasures.blogspot.com/2017/04/junkin-101-if-you-love-junkin-as-much.html). I prepared by researching the sale, arriving early, taking my big Ikea bag and returning on the second half price day. We had great success both days and spent a bunch of cash on some awesome items. The lady that had owned this house was a collector who loved yard sales and had a great eye. This was a great sale for smalls, and smalls pay the booth cost!

I love Christmas collectables. at this sale I scored Santa and snowmen blow molds (a hot collectable now),  a strand of snowball ice lights, great little pixie elves, Shiny Brite ornaments and celluloid reindeer. I will sell all of these at my booths, on Ebay or use in my configuration boxes. Remember to buy what you love. Well, I might have to hang onto a pixie or two.

Of course we also found lots of other treasures for our booths. Blue jars,  a vintage pink tole trash can, a mannequin head wearing a beautiful headpiece, vintage compacts, McCoy bowl, sewing basket, McCoy cream and sugar, cookie cutters, salt and pepper shakers, marbles, wash boards and much more. Hope your weekend was as fun as ours.