Silver by candlelight

Candlelight, crystal and silver make any table setting romantic and festive. Pasadena Antiques and Design has a stunning display of sterling silver and silverplate serving pieces and candlesticks. Our favorite: the unusual candlesticks with removable butterflies from Thistle & Bee of London (top). The graceful water pitcher is the "Lancaster Rose" pattern by Poole Silver Plate.
 A real statement piece, the solid silver Spanish tray from the 1920s (bottom). See more of the collection on their Facebook page.

Remember these?

Albany Antique Mall in Albany, OR has a new dealer specializing in old advertising signs, some with chalkboards, some with thermometers. Visit the store's Facebook page, at Albany Antique Mall.



Albany is gearing up for their 18th Annual Antiques in the Streets and Classic Car Show on Sept. 12, when antiques, vintage finds and classic cars will be on display on the downtown streets. For more info, go to their website.

News Flash: Scottsdale, AZ

Antique Trove in Scottsdale is midway through a storewide three-day sale. Visit their website at www.antiquetrove.com, and see their Facebook page — lots of irresistible items! Shown here, a color-themed shot (in my favorite blues!) of garden décor, a beautiful wicker buggy overflowing with flowers, and a very decorative birdcage.

Lighting up the night

Last night was the longest night of the year, and it's no wonder everyone's turning on the lights.  No matter how you celebrate Christmas, chances are you're adding some lights to warm up the long, cold, dark nights.

Here's how Solvang Antiques in Solvang, CA dressed up their storefront with lights. Lovely!

We hope your holiday season is filled with light and joy.

Going Glossy

For our 26th annual edition of Cochran's Collector's Guide, we're taking a big step in changing its appearance: the stock used in our color section is going to be 70# glossy. Big deal, you might say, but it makes a big difference in perception of our travel-size map book for antique stores and shows. For years we have dreamed of stepping up to gloss, but the cost seemed prohibitive. But this year our printer told us the stock we had always used is no longer being made and the other choices he offered weren't satisfactory. Rather than taking a step down, we decided to step up.

Hopefully, the glossy color section will also make for a more durable book. After all, people carry them around for an entire year.

The antiques business may be changing, making room for vintage, repurposed and recycled merchandise. But the people who know Cochran's still find the Guide the most useful publication out there for their shopping tours, from Washington State to Arizona. People still walk into the stores with copies of the Guide in hand.

We're starting to hear from store owners that shoppers are consulting the downloaded Guides on their mobile devices as well...45,000 downloads were made of the 2013 Guide. And this year we made the download even easier, by putting a QR (Quick Response) Code on the front cover. Just aim your smartphone at it, and in seconds you've got an even more portable copy.

Meanwhile, we're still getting calls from store owners who only recently became aware of the Guide and want to be included. It's too late to get anyone else in the 2015 hardcopy Guide, but it's still possible to be included in the online version, and start reaping the benefits before this Christmas. Then your store would automatically go into the 2016 Guide when we go to work on it next June. Just give us a call at 866-585-6162 and we'll make it happen.

Look for the 2016 Guide somewhere around Halloween at your favorite antique stores or find it here on our website.

What else we do...

The Cochran's Duo is in the depths of deadline drudgery right now (naaah, it's not really all that onerous, but it makes for good alliteration). But after we go to press, get the 2015 Guide shipped out to our distributors (coincidentally, our advertisers) and get the new version uploaded on this website so the rest of the world can browse it, we'll keep busy doing animal rescue. Yes, we're big softies who take in homeless, abandoned dogs and cats, give them some rehab and find them new homes.

Click the "RESCUE" tab on the menu above to see the rest of the story...

Taking it outside: Parking Lot Flea Markets

In the dog days of August, almost everything seems to take too much effort. But in Beaverton, OR, the owners of Curiosities Vintage are going the extra mile by planning the Beaverton Flea Market this Saturday, August 16, from 10-4. Knowing they'll draw folks who can't resist a flea market, Jenn and Travis at Curiosities are offering an extra incentive. They've got a big parking lot, and they know how to use it! From the looks of vendor signups, they're looking forward to the biggest flea market yet, with more than 50 sellers. Here's a video showing a recent one, just to give an idea. The booths wrap around the store entrance, for security and (of course!) to offer shelter and more shopping options inside!

A big parking lot has so much potential beyond a place to park cars! Magnolia Antiques Home & Interiors in Carmichael, CA puts on three annual Saturday outdoor marketplaces (Sept. 20, 8am-3pm, is their next one), renting space for $30 along a shady line of big trees at the edge of their parking lot. They've built participation up to 70 vendors. And of course shoppers are naturally going to wander into the air-conditioned store as well to cool off and do a bit more browsing. How can they resist?

Another antique store that has Peddlers Parking Lot Sales the first Saturday of every month (weather permitting) is The Antique Warehouse in Salida (just north of Modesto, CA). Here's a shot of their August 5 event, which is held in a more secure parking lot behind the store. You'll notice they have a vendor selling pizza and hot dogs. Setup starts at 6am with the sale officially beginning at 8, and vendors can download an application online at their website. Check it out at their next one, September 6.

Make no mistake, putting on a parking lot sale/outdoor market/peddler's fair is a lot of work, both for the store owners and the vendors! Setup usually starts in the early morning, and the work goes on until late afternoon with cleanup. The best sales are those that have vetted vendors' stock to ensure quality displays. But often flea market shoppers will also discover the store for the first time, and just might come back some quieter day. If it's planned well, and approached with a sense of fun and enough workers to cover all the bases, a parking lot sale can do a lot to stimulate new business.