I first went to the Vintage Charlotte Market in June, and I liked it enough that I made the trip for their holiday show. I was not disappointed. The show is not just for vintage clothing, but rather, is a mix of all kinds of old stuff. The vendors were well stocked and prepared for the 10 am opening. By 11 the place was packed.
Many of the vendors did have clothing, and so there was quite a bit to look through. I bought a pair of 1960s bowling shoes from the owner of this booth.
With Christmas and the Holidays coming up, there were boxes of vintage decorations. I can remember when these could be found for a dime each at the thrift stores. That was before Martha Stewart showed the world how to make a wreath from them.
The fishy bag was unsigned, and was a craft project, maybe.
This basket bag was not a craft project, as it still had a JC Penney tag attached. I can remember when these were popular in the late 1960s. I made one from a fruit basket and some red, white, and blue canvas.
The dress does not look like much in my terrible photo, but it was very nice. It is net with appliques and an attached under dress.
And here is a close-up of the sleeve.
I had these shoes in the 1980s, and if these had been my size I would have bought them. Made by Hush Puppies, they were the most comfortable shoes ever. It is a bit of a bummer seeing the very same stuff you wore not too many years ago being sold as vintage, though.
From 1968, this “Misses Gay Nineties Costume” might be something to carry in the back of my mind just in case a weird “old” bathing costume comes my way!
The market was held at the Fillmore Charlotte, which is a music hall located in an old industrial building. The only real problem with the set-up is the terrible lighting. The room is dark, as you can see, and all the lights are extremely bright. The lucky sellers were located near a window because they could get a little natural light.
So pretty… so distracting…
Finally, the mustache craze makes sense to me. Isn’t this the best food truck?
At the last minute I decided to drive a few miles to Concord, NC, to two malls I’d heard of but never visited. First up was The Depot at Gibson Mill. Housed in an old cotton mill, the building itself was very interesting. Best of all it is huge. I could have spent the entire day there, and by the time I’d seen it all, I was pretty much out of energy. I did manage a quick walk-through at the White Owl Antique Mall, which was also nice.
Concord is in the middle of cotton country, and today there are dozens of the old factories standing empty. It was great seeing the Gibson Mill being used not only as an antique mall, but also housing offices and other businesses. The community around the old mill consists of mill houses, many of which look to have been restored and nicely maintained.
My eight-year-old self wanted this badly.
I’m always happy to see Vera Neumann designs. This is a tablecloth.
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I’m looking at this Yuengling calendar, wondering why I did not buy it. Why?
What is it about old letter sweaters? I love them so much.
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This beautiful old tennis graphic was glued inside an old box, which I assume held lawn tennis equipment at one time. Still, the box was a real find and it was in nice condition except for the crack. It also was not for sale.
More tennis, a few decades later. This is a poster ad for tennis shoes.
All in all it was a great day. I’ll share what I bought in another post.
The Vintage Traveler 