Vivien Cord and Ed McClure concluded their 36th year of outdoor shows on a high note with the Lasdon Labor Day Antiques Fair at Lasdon Park on September 4. “Everything was a perfect ten,” said Vivien Cord, “the weather, the crowd and the buying.”
Sally Wistman, an antiques dealer who with her husband Karl has done the show for years (rain or shine), observed “that Vivien and Ed cover all bases from the free breakfast from the caterer of a bacon, egg and cheese sandwich to start the day on the right foot, to the music by the talented duo Bob and Norm, the quality of the lunch menu and the above average customers.”
The Wistmans had a good show as did every dealer the promoters checked with. There was an obvious turnaround in the spirit of the shoppers who found functional furniture as well as fine early country and primitives. The attendance reached 1,300 people but of special note were the young customers with baby carriages and young children being educated in the way things were done in the days before technology, along with the seasoned familiar faces of the loyal followers of Cord Shows.
The Hennemans (father and son) of Wappingers Falls, N.Y., and dealers in fine porcelain broke their record at Lasdon, which has always been one of their best shows. Mother and daughter team, the Beyers of Torrington, Conn., offered fine Orientalia and early transfer ware and were astonished at how well they did.
Rug dealers Amine Noori of New Milford, Conn., and Jorge Vasquez of Peekskill, N.Y., expressed their successes as they drove out after closing. Jewelry dealers Michael Weinstein, Susan Vatell and Joan Eden all reported having good shows. Teresa Toussaint and Mark Ridgeway of Mahopac, N.Y., sold a vintage slant front desk with all sorts of compartments. Quilt and textile dealers Connie and Steve Brown, Norwalk, Conn., sold well including two antique quilts right at the closing bell.
Larry and Marie Butchen of Wantagh, N.Y., threw kisses of joy as they drove out with a lighter load of antique tools for the kitchen and hearth. They were going home to pack for another buying trip to France. Carol and Bill Freeman of Montgomery, N.Y., also offering kitchen items from France, specialize in colorful enamelware that seemed popular with the customers.
Adam Handler of Katonah sold several signed lithographs and etchings. Greg Jackson of Connersville, Ind., was on the mark selling ten times his booth rent in vintage designer costume jewelry, fine porcelains and Victorian glass. Dealer Nigel Johnston of Yonkers, N.Y., bought well as well as selling furniture and elegant accessories. Robert LaVallee of Lutherville, Md., celebrated his 70th birthday at the show. He said, “He loved this show and would never miss it.”
Eric Stang of Portland, Maine, told Cord that she should have come earlier to take pictures of his booth, which had become sparse but still offered treasures for sale. Offering Native American jewelry including belts in silver and turquoise, Joy and Eugene Starr of Englewood Cliffs, N.J., had another successful Lasdon show.
Two events remain for Cord Shows Ltd before it enter its 37th year. On October 21–22, the second annual Antique Ceramic Arts Expo will take place in Danbury, Conn., and on December 10 (a week earlier this year) the show with a “little” something for everyone, known as the 21st annual Antique Stocking Stuffer Show and Sale, will be at the Civic Center in Old Greenwich, Conn. For information, www.CordShows.com or 914-273-4667.
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