Wednesday, February 12, 2014

What I Didn't Buy: A Pecan Park Flea Market Excursion. Vintage and Mod Galore.


Pecan Park boasts the claim of being Jacksonville's largest flea market, and with its winding indoor corridors and never-ending barrage of object-stimulation I believe it. It practically threatens to swallow the diminutive, cozy RV park next door where cross-country travelers can escape Florida's oppresive summer heat in their small pool after browsing 750 small store fronts in labyrinth to their left. I didn't come home with much, here's what I didn't buy:


I'd heard of this record store in Pecan Park before I might have even heard of the market, it was recommend after I posted I was on the hunt for Michael Jackson's "Off The Wall".


This was the first hint that this is a secret vintage shopping spot, everything before this was a lot of used VHS/Made in China Offerings.


My mom packed Pete the Chihuahua for our trip, I love this little dog. He was the runt of our litter and he was born afraid of everything. YEP, he's full grown and the size of a New York Sewer Rat. We love your silly face, Pete.


Mugs! My nemesis! I have two cabinet shelves of cups and mugs that need to move over to eBay where they're more likely to sell. I always pass them whenever I can. Too many, and they don't sell locally. Though they do fetch a pretty penny online.


I've only sold one of my three-fondue-pot collection so this guy had to stay behind. Love the color.


This bring back any memories of late 80s outdoor lounging? This brings back early childhood memories of everything in the household being sepia-toned and tacky.


As you can see Pecan Park is very divided into different shop spaces, the prices are high like many of the less "junky" flea markets readers tell me are prevalent where they live. It's a "retail" environment that doesn't help me as a reseller, prices are too high for me to resell without having to really jack-up prices. There's a mix of old ad new all around. Made in China juxtaposing Mid Century Modern.


Not For Sale for good reason, look at that atom on the dial! Gorgeous atomic era piece.


I do well with those Smurfs glasses online but left those and the desired camera behind, too expensive.


Charming breakables. Mom really liked the beautiful 1920s-40s chicken you can barely see to the upper right there. Love that expression.


I liked the mouse and seat here. This stall had a lot of beauties but all priced out of my range.


I had that same pottery teapot with the green glaze mixed in there. More pretty breakables to admire.


And yet more breakables. I liked the little animals and yet another chicken pitcher, this time in blue.


And for my fellow pop culture nerds there was on requisite toy stand. These X-Men toys are from my generation (now vintage, the Oldz, I can Feels it). I loved that series, the saturated primaries and secondaries and bold typography from boy's cartoons of this era have a huge influence on Thrift Core's branding style. (And also literally put the "Core" in "Thrift Core"- I was inspired by Hardcore kid's shows.) In retrospect I wouldn't have picked the FIRST name I thought of (always a bad idea) but four years later I'm stuck with it.


He had a lot of beautiful pop culture goodies and in-box toys.


And some of the oldest comics I've ever seen. This is the oldest Batman comic I've ever seen in person, absolutely beautiful. Admired observing how different the paper quality is from today's comics, matt vs. glossy. Definitely prefer matt old comics.


And requisite manly toy box Roman Orgy! There's one happening at every flea market. Right before our children's eyes!


And more X-Men! Did you watch/read X-Men as a kid? My favorites (who could pick one) were Nightcrawler, Rogue, Gambit, Wolverine, Storm and Cyclops. Damn that series was good in the nineties.


And right outside this stall, a class case of cow and alligator skulls and other bits of beasts.


And a glass case with more beautiful action-figure goodness.


There was touristy shell-galore in one stand. A friend in Philly would kill to see this "Tropical" display.


This ignited my not-so-secret desire to own a tropical hut full of mid century modern tiki goodness and tacky shell and shark galore. The Kahuna from Gidget style.


A beautiful assortment of orbital stimulation. Love that hangings shark.


All of this brings me back to my early tacky Florida adoration when moving here as a 9-year-old. Makes sense to have touristy fun with an RV park next door.


And had to stop for a photo of this hideous knock-off Pikachu-thing with Pimp-Hat wearing Tweety Bird riding a boat on the front? Brilliantly bad, I almost want this monstrosity now.


And damn, phone galore. I was looking for phones to diversity my stock, may come back for some once I've sold more inventory.


Loved this gorgeous huge string-ship, I've seem them on plaques but never stand-alone. He was $100 so he stayed behind.


Boat shared space with this beautiful piece! Couldn't have it of course but enjoyed looking.


And across the way, a clandestine cluttered cubbyhole of curiosities. So much cooking ware and random vintage bits.


I love looking at vintage bottles, but who buys these? Big collectors online for these I assume? They're certainly expensive locally wherever I go. There's something so charming about seeing mundane things in retro-style that drives casual vintage shoppers crazy.


Really loved this mirror and it wasn't too badly priced at $20-$30ish but it ended up staying. Maybe another day if it's still around.


More steins I'm forbidden to possess. This stall had a lot of Mid Century Modern glassware and quality vintage pieces. She had quite the collection.


I especially love that case back there, beautiful shape and nice that it's white, too. Great for home vignettes.


So many beautiful shapes and colors in this collection. With some war memorabilia mixed in.


I explored this booth for a while wanting to bring home a lot of it but unable to afford it. I did end up leaving with two (PRICEY) pieces you'll see next Monday.


Loved these ash trays but as I've discussed before, those tend to sit way too long so I left them behind.


She had very nicely organized displays, loved the pop culture glasses, those sold well for me online.


And enjoyed the pattern on this casserole dish perched atop a burner to keep a dish warm while entertaining.


Really enjoyed the pensive/hesitant expressions on the little fish salt and pepper shakers, too.


I was told the groovy leaping fawn there was not a vase but a bottle missing its cork. Love the atomic legs on the silver serving set there, too. Fussy meets streamlined modern.


I desperately wanted to bring this fawn home but the lowest she'd go was $15. Could you imagine anyone buying this form me for $30 to $45? I left her behind.


Loved the car mirror here, helmet and gorgeous coffee caddy. This booth inspired me to hunt more to find some really good retro finds.


I looooved this retro kitty Halloween sound-maker but at $25.00 it had to stay behind.


This was one of the largest shops, full of beautiful colors glass breakables and paperback books. They stayed busy with people buying books. Not a bad shop model.


I was enchanted by one of his glass front cases full of colorful glass pieces under a black light.


Gorgeous rainbow collection of old vases and pitcher. I just noticed that adorable one with eyeballs in the back!


And look, even Kawaii things from Japan to temp you! There was a small outdoor area with vendors that had some of the lower-priced wares I'm used to. I'm sure in the summer that number greatly increases. A good place to go for inspiration but not the best hunting grounds. It had me yet again dreaming of having some kind of little spot of my own to sell vintage and vegan treats. Maybe someday...

What vintage goods would have tempted you the most? The deer tempted, I'm glad I left it behind though.
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39 comments:

  1. wow, look at all the self control you exhibited! so many fun things there… i know you just reach a point where you have to be discerning about what comes homes and what will have to find a home elsewhere. pete is such a cutie, and i like the fondue pot colour as well.. i have an old le crueset pot that is the same colour. my latest hunts have been for dansk kobenstyle pots. adorable design.

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    1. Very true, I already have so much to sell, I really need to find my mission with the brand before I go on crazy buying sprees. And sell the hell out of what I have! The Pete is hilarious. I wanted to make an animated .gif of him ducking in-and-out of the bag like the little coward he is. Next time :D

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  2. oh, and the rattan set is SO golden girls!

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  3. None of it......Thats sounds awful I know. But I guess 25+ years of buying stuff....Or maybe its just I'm more pulled towards clothes and linens, jewelry (what I sell!). But I would have wanted to know the price on the Garfield phone though. It can go for about $70.00.

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    1. It seemed everything he had was in the $12-$25-$100 range. I want to go back after some research perhaps and buy things but I don't like to spend more than $10 on merchandise. Trying to save and re-do my business plan first before I stock-up on merch. There was some nice jewelry in the mod booth but I didn't have memory card space to take photos. Clothes/Jewelry/Linen is the smart way to go, waaaay easier to pack, ship, and store than the breakables I gravitate toward. Need to switch it up, I'm always doing things the hard way.

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  4. My husband's been looking for an old radio.He wants to gut one and build a computer inside.

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    1. That would be beautiful! They're hard to find. Whenever I do randomly see one they're expensive.

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  5. Aaaaahhhhhh....I want to go to here!!!

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    1. Fun to look at but as warned, not much to buy. I'll go back someday.

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  6. Thanks for the tour. I think I would have left there with eye strain! So much to see.

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    1. It was definitely too overstimulating, would have left with more photos if I wasn't out of space!

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  7. I have that chicken that your mom admired. It belonged to my mom and she gave it to me several years ago. He sits on top of my fridge.

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  8. I love the glow in the dark Vaseline glass but you can't eat off of it (due to the uranium) so would have left it behind too. I collect bottles but never pay more than a buck or two and have found some really cool ones. Being so cheap (me) means I take home less which is never a bad thing.

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    1. I never eat off my vintage plate finds, always too scared I'll break them so I used what's been gifted to me/cheap non-vintage stuff. I take home less not just for being cheap but because of lack of storage space and my current mission to revise my business plan before buying much more.

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  9. I've recently found your blog, and as a local lover of all things old (and kitsch!) I'm enjoying following you. :) Haven't been to this flea in years. What would you say is your absolute favorite one in Jax? There's one on the Westside (not sure the name) that I really like!

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    1. I don't have true favorites with thrift stores or flea markets because the finds are so random for each. Bargain House is nearby and is a hidden gem to me if you're persistent. The finds can be super cheap and really good quality. Pecan Park isn't for me until more outdoor vendors return with the warm weather. Thanks for saying hi and for following!

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    2. Love your portfolio/photos by the way!

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    3. Thanks for responding! I like Bargain House too. :)

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  10. JUBILEE!!! I love all those toys! And the pop glasses! Those are my weakness!! Thanks for sharing! I wish I could visit... one day!

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  11. Wow! Look at all that stuff! I especially loved the black cat Halloween doohickey! And haha, I also have that same teapot. I never put it in my shop....I think I kinda sorta kept it. That happens sometimes. That one yellow and orange ashtray was so cool, it almost made me want to start smoking. But not really. I would have bought that, even though it wouldn't have sold. I don't know why I do that sometimes......

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    1. I didn't realize until just now I overdid it on the photos, 47 up there I believe?! Just wanted to showcase the immense amount of stuff there, didn't capture the half of it. Sometimes you have to go with your gut on pieces, they can make great statements online and offline until they do sell at least.

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  12. The vintage Army goggles! This reminds me of Maryland flea markets, a little lacking and high prices!

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    1. Definitely the first of this type I've been to. Not bad, but I prefer the more garage sale types I go to and chatting with/getting to know the regulars.

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  13. I love flea marketing vicariously through your posts, Van. I need some market in my life! This winter business is beyond old at this point. Good resolve on your part not buying EVERYTHING pictured.

    <3 Jackie @ Let's Go Thrifting!

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    1. I can't imagine the arctic zone Philly must be right now, I'm dying biking it 45 degree weather in the morning like a true Florida cold-weather wuss. In the summer I need to go on my some extended Philly exploring perhaps. I was there one night and full day alone and I absolutely looooved it. :D

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  14. The glass, the glass! Be still my heart! So many beautiful pieces! I couldn't pick but I would have spent hours looking at it. Thanks for sharing! :)

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    1. Glad you liked it :D By the way, I sent you a response to your e-mail, wondering if you never got it? I replied fast but my mail provider sometimes gets glitchy. Grrr.

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    2. Yes, I got it. My sister had a baby and I completely spaced it. I'll send it to you tomorrow if you still have time. If not, we can do it another time.

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    3. Aw, congrats. I'd have time, no prob. Just making sure my e-mail was sent, sometimes they vanish.

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  15. Wow that was an epic post. So much to look at and take in. Loved the character phones, I think I'd have come home with a few of those. It's the green uranium glass beautiful?

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    1. I may have to go back for some of those for sure :D

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  16. wow, I feel like I was there myself haha. thanks for the virtual tour! I found michael jacksons 'off the wall' album just on friday at an awesome record sale - such a good album!

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    1. I absolutely love it. The record shop pictured is the one where my brother told me I'd find "Off the Wall" and I finally found it at a different one. Fun times listening to that album, likely my favorite of all time.

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  17. Great tour through this flea market. You know in the past, I would have skipped places like this altogether. That was until I went on that shopping trip I mentioned earlier this week with another seasoned reseller. The first place we hit was an antique mall that had gorgeous stuff, many of which were priced high. But surprisingly, we still found stuff we could resell for a healthy profit on eBay. I've also been watching "Thrift Hunters" on Spike TV about two eBay sellers who go to thrift stores, estate sales, and antique stores to look for stuff to sell online. That too, has been eye-opening as to what you can find. Of course the things that sell for a lot also cost more than a few dollars - something I had to get used to. I mean, we found a gorgeous jewelry casket for over $100 that after doing some research, we realized we could get over $300 dollar for it. Now I was not ready to plunk down $100 for one item, but it opened my eyes to the fact that even in an expensive antique mall, you can find stuff. Like they say, it's like a treasure hunt!

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    1. Yep, I find loads of good stuff (and see others finds some before me when I'm reloading my booths, oops) at my antique mall especially because the prices are low. Makes it hell as a seller for me there but makes for good shopping.

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