Once upon a time, long long ago there was a dressing table. It was the fall of 1912 and this dressing table had an oak framed beveled edge mirror.

The year passed and one day, about 100 years later the mirror ended up on the wall of the Community Warehouse Estate Store.

We’ve no idea where the dresser went (or when) which is a shame because this is a very nice mirror and we presume the rest of the piece was nice too.

Such is the way antiques become rare . . .

The mirror is 19 by 23 inches. It is in good shape and has a wire so that it can be hung on the wall. If you really want it to stay put it retains the original mounting hardware so it could be screwed into place too.

This is a neat old piano stool / chair. The seat height is adjustable thanks to a big iron screw thread.  The letters cast into the iron are too faint for me too read so I don’t know the manufacturer of this component.

The rest of the chair is wood and is generally simply styled except for some patterned veneer in the upper chair back and carved claw feet. Unfortunately one of the chair back uprights needs repair (see slide show below) but otherwise it is in good condition.  The top of the back is about 37 1/2 inches tall.

These vintage salt and pepper shakers were made in Japan and they are marked with a letter ‘F’ on the base. They stand about 5 1/2 inches tall and the screw top appear to be made from real lightbulb bases (and are usually reputed to be on other, similar pieces).  Some folks say that they can also be used for liquids, like vinegar or oil.

I’d be tempted to install them in an overhead light fixture and when you guests ask for the salt (or pepper) stand on a chair, reach up to the ceiling fixture, unscrew them and then sit down and hand the set over.

Highly recommended for the first dinner with your in-laws as guests. You’ll definitely make an impression and even if the relationship doesn’t work out you can guarantee that you’ll be the subject of dinner conversation for years to come.

Manning Bowman model 401 table-top sandwich cooker, design patent number 97660, issued 1935.

After the end of the second world war this model would be modified a little bit and reissued as model 412 (As seen in this ad: It grills – cooks  – fries – even makes waffles!).

Ours appears to be a prewar model and only has the flat sandwich making plates. These are removable so I presume that there were probably waffle cooking plates that got lost somewhere along the way.   Since this predates the widespread implementation of planned obsolescence in manufacturing it’s not surprising that it still works.

We’re closed today since it is Memorial Day. We’ll post a couple items over the course of the day to keep with our usual pattern. Meanwhile, check out our ebay store or if you see something you’re interested in here contact us and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.

We’ll be open again for walk-in business on Thursday at 10 am.

The story of thread ad told by the folks at Coats & Clark in 1962. Stretching from the earliest piece of sinew to the most recent (then fifth generation) leadership of Coats & Clark. This piece was produced to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Coats & Clark thread making empire, which is still going strong at 200.

This glass tid-bit serving tray is in excellent condition, in fact it appears unused, and it measures 9 inches by 6 /4 inches.

Tanker; rhymes with . . .?

To be honest every time I see a tanker desk I think how good a mooring point they’d make, but this one isn’t too heavy. In fact it is light enough that one scrawny used stuff slinger can move it (with a hand truck) across level ground without additional help.

Moving up or down stairs could be another matter.

The desk measures 50 inches wide 24 inches deep and 29 inches tall.  Although there is one small crinkle in the front right corner of the left side drawer stack it is in good shape overall. The drawers and slide out writing shelf all work well too.

Although the paint is in fine shape as is it’s rather drab by modern standards. Maybe post-atomic apocalypse bunker is your decorating scheme (that’s OK) but if not this would be a great candidate for repainting .

Think candle apple red, mandarin orange or blue lagoon. Yowza!

In honor of Memorial Day we’ll be closed on Monday. We’ll return to our regularly scheduled programs on Tuesday.

These mushroom shaped salt and pepper shakers are straight out of the mid-1970′s and are in that lovely shade of gag-reflex green that was so popular in kitchen appliances and Volkswagen buses.

The great thing about time is that it marched on, the Volkswagen buses rusted away, the avocado kitchen appliances burnt out and all that remains are cute kitchen knickknacks like these, which evoke a sort of nostalgia for the era, without the actuality of it.

They are also perfect for use in an ultra low maintenance terrarium. The tallest one stands about 5 inches tall.

Mr. Chair is sitting at the Community Warehouse Estate Store West waiting for you. He is all alone, wondering if he is just too ’50s for this modern world. Mr. Chair was designed by George Mulhauser  and made by the Plycraft Co. of Lawrence, Massachusetts. Although Plycraft was well known for attempting to “borrow” Eames’ stylings, Mr. Chair was a design of their own.

Mr. Chair is almost 3 feet tall, likes to recline, swivel and provide much needed relaxation time. He is in good shape for his age and reclines with only slight groans. Are you the one to bring Mr. Chair home?

Come visit Mr. Chair and more at Community Warehouse’s new west side Estate Store on Friday through Sunday 10-4.

503-612-0020