Eileen Richards Antiques, Harrisburg, Penn.

Review & Onsite Photos by Madelia Hickman Ring

HARMONY TOWNSHIP, N.J. — “It’s already been one of our best years,” said Warren County Antiques Show manager Chris Beatty, when Antiques and The Arts Weekly stopped by her booth in the early afternoon of Saturday, August 26, just half-way through the first day of the Warren County Antiques Show, which she’s been doing for 17 years. “There are a lot more cars than we’ve had in previous years and almost everyone I see leaving is carrying something, which is great.” She noted that of the more than 100 dealers in attendance at the Warren County Fairgrounds, about 10 percent were new to the show.

After the rain the night before that made the fairgrounds a bit damp, with some muddy or flooded areas, the day was hot and humid but neither dealers nor shoppers seemed to mind. A majority of vendors were set up in table-top booths under one of several pavilions around the grounds, while a few had their wares under tents pitched on the grass.

Few vendors bring furniture but show manager, Chris Beatty, had a few small pieces. Her airy booth was just within the show’s main entrance, with a full view of the crowded parking lot.

Beatty herself is one of the latter but adjacent to the main pavilion just inside the main gate. She had several pieces of Midcentury Modern furniture but also tables with coffee-table design books and other decorative smalls.

Beatty’s neighbor Rae Tamashausky, Oxford, N.J., was in her usual spot just inside the gate and had a great display of stoneware crocks, jugs and bottles, as well as a rack laden with jacquard quilts. A small table laden with at least a dozen redware molds — which she described as “Turk’s Head Molds” — was advertised as 20 percent off.

Another of Beatty’s neighbor’s — Barbara Fernando who is from Mount Laurel, N.J., and does business under the name Barbara’s Unique Mix, had a varied assortment of vintage Christmas decorations, jewelry, miniature pictures, glass and ceramics and a small selection of Hummel figures.

If Barbara’s selection of Hummel figurines were not sufficient for your collecting needs, Mars Most Antiques, Netcong, N.J., had a much larger selection, which paired nicely with the dozens of Austrian blown egg ornaments they had that were hand-painted, carved and jeweled and priced at just $6 each. Also on offer were selections of hand-colored prints and political pins.

Cash was being transferred between a fire-fighting antiques collector on the left and Bruce Egeland, Lake Country Antiques Consulting, Howell, N.J.

Bruce Egeland of Lake Country Antiques Consulting, from Howell, N.J., specializes in military surplus and both vintage and antique fire department collectibles. While we were in his corner booth, he closed the deal on a vintage fireman’s helmet. Taking pride of place in his booth was a .50-.70 government wood cartridge box that was described as “extremely rare.”

“I don’t need them but I love them,” a woman was overheard saying about a set of three vintage child-sized gardening tools: a rake, hoe and shovel. She paid Donald O’Connor cash — the preferred method of payment though most vendors did also take checks and payment through Venmo — for them. O’Connor also had a Mickey Mouse shovel that he had priced at $179 and a good selection of vintage advertising, toys and magazines. When he spotted our camera, he directed us towards an early 1940s rare Coca-Cola sign that was painted on tin. He said it was rare because most signs from that period were printed on cardboard to save metal for the war effort. He said he’d had it for about 20 years but couldn’t remember where he got it.

Donna-Marie and Ed Saultz, Old Picker of Phillipsburg, N.J., were doing the Warren County Antiques Show for just the second time. These longtime dealers, who used to be associated with several auction houses in New Jersey, specialize in Nineteenth Century Czechoslovakian and Victorian glass.

Sold tags were hardly needed because buyers took things with them. A rare piece that was left behind to be carried out later was this blanket chest with The Cellar Door, Belvidere & Washington, N.J.

Because most of the items sold at the show left immediately after buyers paid the sellers, it was sometimes difficult to know — unless one saw something being carried out — what was sold. But we spotted a sold tag on a large blanket chest in the booth of The Cellar Door, which specializes in antique and vintage furniture and operates out of both Belvidere and Washington, N.J.

From nearby White House Station, Steve Ziuky specializes in old tools. When we were in his booth, an old acquaintance he had not seen in a long time came through and the two looked like they were having fun catching up.

Ziuky’s neighbor was Pat Raynock of Flower Field Farm, of Buck’s County, who was heard telling shoppers that she was already packed and loaded for Brimfield, where she shows on the New England Motel field. Her booth was one of the few with free-standing walls, which she hung with paintings that set off her tables of decorative smalls.

Frank’s Rough Cut, Succasunna, N.J.

Frank and Ronni Stroessenreuther can take their wares with them from Succasunna, N.J., to wherever they need to be. Specializing in “hand-crafted items, vintage finds and other cool stuff,” which they sell under the name “Frank’s Rough Cut,” they have outfitted a vintage trailer with striped awning that creates a different but welcoming aesthetic for shoppers of all ages.

In Building Four, Rich and Barb Feltmann had the unusual pairing of lime-green Uranium glass and collectible Barbie dolls. But given the summer blockbuster movie, Barbie, they figured it was the right time to put them out for sale.

Pink and green was also visible elsewhere in the show. A larger selection of Uranium glass was with Eileen Richards. She said she’d been collecting it for the past five years since it “became a thing.” Noting it was becoming harder to find good pieces, she was pleased to have a few pieces that she said were from the Nineteenth Century. Her assortment of cranberry glass provided a pleasing comparison.

Regina Hawn was asking $350 for this late Twentieth Century Hawaiian quilt. She said she’d send a portion of the proceeds of its sale to help Maui wildfire victims. Clarke House Antiques, Point Pleasant, N.J.

Regina Hawn had several quilts, one a large vibrant one in red and orange in a pattern she couldn’t remember but which she said dated to about 1983 that she’d acquired in Maui. She said she would send some proceeds of its sale to help those displaced by the recent Maui wildfires. She was asking $350 for it.

Peter Sutor, a member of the Bucks County Antiques Dealers Association who trades under the business name Mill Road Antiques, had a good selection of antiques, including a table with small objects and baskets, the latter of which he was advertising as 30 percent off on Saturday only.

Fine art was in good supply with Ivy Iris, also of Bucks County. Of noteworthy mention were a selection of hand-painted black and white photographs from California photographer Martin Roberts.
Blairstown, N.J., dealer Tom Keady sets up in a small stand-alone building and brought a great selection of Americana, from baskets and ceramics to pewter and small pieces of pewter. When we came through his booth at midday on the first day, his selection had a number of noticeable gaps, a sure sign of a successful morning.

For information, www.warrencountyantiqueshow.com.