From Out Of The Woods Antique Center

Do you have any ideas that you would like to share with us?

Do you create items from antique fragments and findings?

We would love for you to share your idea, or maybe we could sell your items here at Infusion New Hampshire.

Please CLICK HERE and tell us your idea and we will contact you.

This is what I do with all the things I don't know what to do with but love. I took an old frame (actually two and put them together), I used cork as a back ground and covered it with antique quilt fragments. Then using common pins I began filling it with all the hidden treasures I didn't get to see before. (In reality it is all my junk from my drawers). 

Now I get to see it all the time. Fill it with your hidden treasures or memories.

I love decorating with architectural fragments. This one is just an early pieces of base board in blue paint. I can't say how many people say what is that? When I tell them they love it. I love it too. When we did construction of our home (which is from the early 1800's) I saved lots of pieces to decorate with but you can find some at antique shops, flea markets, auctions etc.

Pick up what you like and have fun decorating your style.... 

“MAKE-DO'S”    Noun:  Make shift

Yankee Ingenuity?  Waste-not-Want-not?  In today's world, what exactly is a “make-do”?  The term refers to an item which has  been broken, and then saved by improvising some sort of a repair – often using a second item in the repair process.

An example of this might be a glass kerosene lamp which was dropped.  In the fall, the “neck” of the lamp (between the kerosene bowl and the lamp base) was broken, so the in-tact bowl could be saved and “married” to a block of wood which would be used for the base, thereby allowing the kerosene lamp to continue in its usefulness.   Also, rather than throwing out the otherwise useless glass base, the woman of the house might create a cloth filled and cloth covered pin cushion which could be attached to the glass base, thereby making an attractive and useful new item for the household.  In this case, one broken item was transformed into two distinct and useful items.  This frugal practice was often the only option when the local store was a two-day horse ride away and/or there was no money to pay for a new kerosene lamp.    Such was the way in early colonial times. 

Rodents were a way of life in early American life.  Has a mouse chewed a hole in the back of your cupboard where you keep foodstuffs?  Flatten an old tin can with a hammer and cut out a piece of tin to tack over the hole.  Another form of make-do!

Broke the handle off Grandmother Emery's pitcher?  Send it out to the workshop with the man of the house and have him make a new handle of tin, then hold the tin handle on by running a couple of straps of tin around the barrel of the pitcher.  A couple of solder spots, and Grandma's pitcher is once again useful. 

Why is the make-do so collectible and rare today?  It was often the everyday utility item that was repaired.  As times changed and decades passed, the sentimental reason the piece was originally saved has been lost; the frugality of earlier times no longer applies; and who would want an old  broken item that has been repaired?  Make-do items are highly sought-after today.  It is a very specialized and limited field that few people understand or appreciate.  Also, there simply are not a lot of surviving examples of the make-do.

This is a difficult collection to build – but a highly rewarding one.  Think about it!

In Victorian times, when an heirloom from grandmother's generation was broken –  make-do repairs again came to the rescue so that new life could  be breathed into the broken item and thereby retain the beloved keepsake.  One common Victorian make-do repair was the “stapling” of broken antique china.  A shattered platter, for example, could be reassembled much like a jigsaw puzzle, and then metal “staples” would be affixed to hold two pieces together.  This process was repeated among all the pieces until a whole platter was once again formed

Today these charming relics of the past are often under-appreciated, and therefore reasonably priced.  They can often be found in yard sales, flea markets and antiques shops.  Start a new collection, and let your imagination run wild with the stories that these endearing items can tell you about their past.

So whether created for sentimental or practical purposes, the “make-do” has been a fact of  life for  many centuries.  Often these endearing and well-loved fragments of the past are under appreciated, and can be found in antiques shops or flea markets for a very little investment.  What a unique collection to start......

I am Donna Welch - an antique dealer with an Antique Center in Southern New Hampshire for and have been for the
past 20 years. I conduct my business by buying from local estates and then selling back into the community. Approximately seven
years ago I purchase a simple but useful piece of furniture from an estate. The piece was called an oak commode in it’s time.

Commodes were used in the 1800’s and even earlier, for wash basins and towels. They were very important pieces of furniture in a time when you needed to have water inside available for washing.

As you can see the piece was around a lot longer than the seven years that I’ve traced its travels.

I purchased the oak commode, which had been in the seller’s family for several generations. The seller said she had remembered it in her grandmother’s bed room and then passed to her mom, who had it in her front hall - then to her. She had used it in her den to display a quilt.

After deciding to move South and lighten her amount of furniture for the move, she called me and I purchased it from her.

I brought it back to the store in the original finish that it has had on it since the late 1800’s when it was manufactured. I cleaned it up and put it on the floor for sale.

Within a short time I sold the commode to a couple who were about to have a baby. They purchased it to use as a changing table and place to store baby items. That was seven years ago; they continued to be regular customer to the store and have changed their use of the piece of furniture twice since they purchased it. After using it as a changing table they moved it to the kitchen and used it for their micro-wave and kitchen towels. Then, later, after moving into their new condo they changed the use again and placed it in the bathroom using it to display a Victorian bowl and pitcher (the type of wash basin and bowl for which it was made). That’s where the piece had been for the past couple of years.

Now just recently the couple has come back to me to sell it back because they are now moving to Germany due to the husband’s job.

Important note here is that I purchased the item approximately seven years ago for $220.00 then sold it to them for $300.00. I bought it back from them for $240.00

Because I have known these customers for the past several years, they asked how to get rid of the other items they didn’t want to bring with them. The antique items I told them they would have no problem selling. The newer might be able to be sold in a consignment store. They did, and were successful in selling some of the modern, mass produced furniture at 5% of what they paid for it.

The down side to this story is that a lot of the modern, mass produced items (furniture, dishes, and decorative items) were not easily marketable at this time (they did give some to shelters and other donating agencies). So the rest went to the local landfill.

My reason for writing this story is to show people that a way to help keep the planet GREEN is to purchase what we already have here. The new, (most of it) while it has its place, is not made to withstand the test of time. The old has been here, has established its value and found modern day uses. It is a smart way of making an investment in your furnishings, old keeps its value and has a market to sell to. The old becomes “new “again with each reuse.

So if you want to help keep it Green. Get out there and buy what we already have and mix it up a bit with the new. Antiques have proven to be worth it, collect part of our history.

Dear Kathy,

As you may know, I often have an opinion - especially when it pertains to antiques. I wanted to share with you my observations on this year's Antiques Week in Manchester. I made it a point to attend all shows this year, and was impressed. I observed lots of traffic and many desirable red "sold" tags on merchandise. And can I say “WOW” how impressive some of the presentations were. The dealers represent New Hampshire well.

Recently I read an article in the Union Leader, the theme of which was that people are nervous this year with the economy, higher gas prices, etc. There is no doubt that the economy is changing and that this change is having a real impact on our business (and every other business for that matter). However, in my Goffstown shop we had very strong year and great sales during Antiques Week. Sales figures were comparable to those of the last couple of years.

With the changing times, I think it is absolutely imperative that we realize that unusual and good items sell! These items must be carefully selected and priced to accommodate the times. This means we all must constantly adjust our perspectives and natural inclinations. I am lucky to have several foresighted dealers in partnership with me in the shop, and many of them reached far into the four digit dollar range during Antiques Week.

Luckily, there are still some very good shops here in New Hampshire. That is indeed not the case in many parts of the country. However, New England's quality shops are diminishing. How many shops do you personally know that have closed or slid downhill during the past year? We _must _ work hard, individually and mutually, to continue bringing good customers to New England. This year demonstrated to me that they will continue to come, and they will continue to buy in spite of gasoline prices! New Hampshire and New England in general continues to be the best antiques shopping in America - and we need to work smarter and harder to hold onto this heritage.

Sincerely,
Donna Welch
From Out Of The Woods Antiques Center

1- What you bought this weekend will be worth what you paid for it or more within a short period of time.

2-That something you find - might be the start of the next trend in decorating (and impress your friends)

3- Your collection might be the talk of your neighborhood

4- That you would be doing your part in keeping everything GREEN

5- That what you are buying today was once used in someone's life and comes with a whole lot of History

Have fun with it! - Donna Welch