A trip to the River Market

This Friday, I headed to the City Market to eat, shop, and explore with my sister, her hubs, and Ryan. None of us had ever been before, so it was all new to us. We ate at a yummy little place, Cascone's Grill, and then walked by the farmer's market before heading to our final destination, the River Market Antique Mall. We walked in and WOW...the place was so large! It was 4 floors split into tons of different booths/rooms that housed tons of treasures. I'd never seen anything like it! These pictures will give you the idea (note how it's room after room after room...with shelf after shelf after shelf!)






We were there for almost 2 hours, but we really only checked out the first floor fully. We spent so much time browsing that we had to rush through the second and third floors, and couldn't even go to the fourth! But from what I did see, I know that the place is amazing and definitely worth a trip. I saw tons of beautiful blue glass mason jars, which are pretty rare.

Of course, as with most antique stores, among the many, many gems there were also some very hideous things (which Ryan took tons of pictures of), but overall the place was so interesting to browse around! I did bring some things home, but here are some snaps of the things I resisted:

I am collecting decorative letters -- I hope to have all of the letters of the alphabet, to have a fun feature wall (or perhaps just to place them around the house). This "F" was right up my alley, but it was so large and a bit pricey, so I passed on it.


I loved this kitschy old cupboard door turned mirror! It's just the right combination of old and chic for me. However, I took this as more of a DIY-inspiration....maybe in the future I can find a door and make my own!

These retro spice jars were adorable and colorful (I love that spicy orange!) Again, they were a bit expensive, so I passed on them...but their little cork toppers still call to me!

Of course, being a lover of thrifty finds and eclectic decor, I had to snatch up some things. When we first walked in, I spied this cute little sea-green clock sitting on a weathered wooden shelf. I can already picture it in our place!

I also snagged a trio of the aforementioned blue mason jars in 3 different sizes. I love the original zinc lids and the cool glass-loc lid. I have already snagged some clear masons from other thrift stores, so I'll have a cute little collection for storage in the kitchen (and maybe even the bathroom...wouldn't they be cute for stashing toothbrushes or cotton balls?)


I took a close-up of the bluest one so that you could see the jar's true shade.


I also found a great stash of letters for my eclectic alphabet collection!

This one looks like it was from an old sign or something, because it has large screws attached:


And Ryan found these awesome old print press letters. Coincidentally, the only large letter was a backwards R, which he of course loved because of his name. He also picked out an apostrophe and his favorite number, 19. The aged letters are a really cool color and are completely one-of-a-kind. I can't wait to show after pictures of them in our new apartment :)


I really want to go back to the antique mall to check out the other floors...I'm sure I would find some other goodies! Unfortunately I'm swamped with last minute packing and pre-move errands this week, so I don't think a trip is possible before I head west! I do think I'll check it out before Christmas for potential gifts, though :)

Speaking of all of that stuff I have to do before we move...I have some posts and projects that I'm hoping to get done this week -- I'll try my very best to get them up! Next week (2 days of traveling, tons of unpacking) will be when chaos truly ensues, so posts will probably be few and far between then.