Garden State continued...

So off to familiar Red Bank we went. We've been here many times before so no uncovered gems to share. Its a nice spot to go antique shopping since there are a few different big warehouses right next to each other and its in a cute little town with other restaurants and stores.

Our first stop is our favorite one of the bunch, Monmouth Antique Shoppes.

This along with the others we visited in Red Bank are set up like an unmanned flea market. The big buildings are divided into stalls where antique sellers leave their pieces for sale and let the one or two people manning the front desk close the deals. Its a lot of fun to browse and when we are very lucky, we've even found a few great pieces here like our dining room chandelier and a set of vintage cameras.

Its distinctly much more upmarket than Englishtown in terms of organization, pieces for sale and prices. Thankfully, the prices aren't so out of control that its defeating to shop there. And its certainly not a snooty place at all. Its just not the kind of place where you'll find an amazing deals - more of a reasonable deal on a nice item. They have more one of a kind sort of things that are worth their bigger price tag but you only need occasionally.

Case in point, wouldn't this giant Lemonade sign be fabulous in the right kitchen?


Very briefly considered taking this dress form home with me. I have an unnatural desire to own one as I neither sew nor would this be an accurate representation of my body.

Aside from the physical impossibility of fitting anything this large in the car with my earlier finds, I decided I just don't need to spend $200 on something so completely useless regardless of how cool I think it would look :)

Ultimately, we left empty handed.

Next we visited the Antiques Center of Red Bank Buildings II and III. Wondering out loud where building one was, I was told that it no longer exists. I'm glad I didn't look too hard for it.

This place has things a little more fancy, a little more merchandised, a lot more expensive. (At least Building II is set up this way. Building III has more knickknacks and random stuff with the prices all over the place).

Apologies for not taking any interior shots. As before, I was too busy shopping to document properly. The visit wasn't wasted as I found this pair of portraits.

I stopped in front of them and saw a price tag of $150. I mumbled, "too expensive" when the stall's proprietor happened to walk by and hear me. Evidently his wife set the price on those and he wasn't in agreement with her valuation. Long story short, we settled on a price of $40 for both. I guess he just wanted to get rid of them but I was happy to take them off his hands. Not quite sure where they will live just yet - I think they would look nice in an asymmetrical collection of small art. Note to self: find perfect spot for asymmetrical collection of small art.

Also picked up a couple of other milk glass vases to go with my $2 find from Englishtown.

Everything looks better in sets of 3, right?

And finally a duo of these new-meant-to-look-old brass easels.

Wouldn't these be a the perfect spot to hold a dinner party menu?

So that concluded our antiquing portion of the weekend. Naturally, a visit to the 'burbs wouldn't be complete without the requisite visit to Target and Home Goods. Also known to me as the mother ship of budget shopping.

Target was having their Home Event that has been much covered by much more timely blogs than mine. But now that everything is 30% off, I couldn't resist showing you some cool lovelies. Loved the logo this year.

And the theme of the year seemed to be gray. Be still my heart.

The finish on these pieces were a little too rustic for my house but they would be great for a more beachy type feel. The color makes it modern without being too stark.

This bird candle holder was just too big for me to store easily so I passed on it. But at less than $12 - these would make such a great centerpiece for a party.


Aside from the usual practical items we bought like toothbrushes and soap, I picked up 2 Thomas O'Brien mirror picture frames. (Um, why does the baby in the photo look like the StayPuff Marshmellow man? That is freaky. Thankfully, the frame didn't come with that photo!)

Gosh, that was a really long post. Hope you're still with me. In total, I kept the damage to under $200 including the two pieces of furniture, portraits, vases, easels and frames. Not too bad for a carload of crap and I'm doing my part in the economic recovery!