Vintage Soul & #SpreadTheKindness Link Up #106
There’s a tiny little shop tucked off in the corner of Main Street in Watertown, New York, that is bursting with the most inviting nostalgia of bygone years. Warm and friendly, kind and welcoming, this charming shop entices your sentimentality with the most delightful relics from the past and makes you yearn for a simpler time. It’s like taking a few steps backwards straight into an uncomplicated era where people lived to work and worked to live and had pride in their endeavors. I stopped in Vintage Soul Antiques this past Saturday when the temperatures were double digits below zero and as I crossed the threshold into the warmth of the shop, I was met with the same friendly cordialities one would expect by entering a fire lit cabin in a Dickens novel. And oh, what a wonderful feeling of reception that can be.
Neighborly in every way, the proprietor of Vintage Soul Antiques, Jenn Baker, meets you with the most exuberant of greetings making you feel as if you were an invited guest whom she has been expecting. But then again, that is her business philosophy, in the timeless and very wise words of Mahatma Ghandi, her appreciation for every person who walks through the doors is prominently displayed ensuring that we, the customers, know that we are her purpose and her passion.
“A customer is the most important visitor on our premises. He is not dependent on us. We are dependent on him. He is not an interruption on our work. He is the purpose of it. He is not an outsider on our business. He is part of it. We are not doing him a favour by serving him. He is doing us a favour by giving us an opportunity to do so.” -Mahatma Ghandi
And Jenn’s sole employee, Tara, her right-hand gal, exudes the same appreciation for the customers as well as for the beautiful memorabilia that fills the shelves and decorates the windows of this tiny shop on the corner of Main Street. Heirlooms galore surround you in this place, but it is the feeling of being welcomed and appreciated that really draws you to return time and again.
If you are unfamiliar with the antique market, as I am, Jenn and Tara are both very educated and knowledgeable about the items that stock Vintage Soul. As they explain the antiquated uses of certain items, you cannot help it as you get pulled into the story and suddenly find yourself wanting to know more. Each trinket, no matter how big or small, has a story, a unique and fascinating tale particular to itself which creates vivid images of the way that generations before us lived their day to day lives.
I took my 7 year old with me and I had no idea that he would be so completely fascinated by antique and vintage items. We left with a small scale replica of a Ball and Claw Bitters bottle and a teeny tiny wooden casket with tongue and groove edges that now houses his miniature weapons arsenal for his inch tall Army guys.
I, of course, picked up a Vintage Soul tee shirt for myself which is crafted from the softest cotton and makes for perfect layering during these freezing cold months in the North Country.
Honing in on my son’s enchantment with the items in her shop, Jenn so generously escorted him to her “secret storage room” and sent him home with an old wooden clock and another bottle constructed of vintage green glass. Days later, he is still talking about this “secret storage room” and has all of his new “old” treasures proudly displayed for any and all visitors in our home to see. He very eloquently weaves the story of how these items came into his possession and shares all of the information that he apparently absorbed like a sponge during the brief time we spent in Vintage Soul.
So whether you are an antique and vintage collector or just have an interest in learning more about items from the past, I highly recommend paying a visit to Vintage Soul. Jenn travels the country finding the most unique and interesting artifacts to bring back to the North Country and her passion for these items shines bright. She grew up with a love for all things vintage and established her shop in honor of her mother who instilled this passion in her. It is well worth the trip down Main Street. I promise you won’t be disappointed. If you are not local to the Watertown, New York, area, you can follow Vintage Soul Antiques on Facebook to see the latest additions to her intriguing inventory. Also remember that by supporting shops like Vintage Soul Antiques, you are also supporting a locally female owned small business.
I hope you have enjoyed my little photographic tour through Vintage Soul Antiques. You can find Vintage Soul on Facebook and Instagram. Go ahead and give them a follow! And let me know…are there any artifacts here that have tickled your fancy?
And now your featured favorites from last week.
Elizabeth of Natty Gal shared her post, 3 Easy Tricks for an Organized Coat Closet. She has shared some really great ideas not only for organizing your closet, but many can be used to organize your clothes and other things as well.
Nina of Sharing a Journey shared her post, Get Your Diet and Exercise Routines Back on Track. Another worthwhile read to get yourself organized for the new year.
Keeping it on the edge,
Shelbee
Linking up with these Fabulous Link Ups.
56 Comments
Kathrine Eldridge
I would love to have a shop like this is my neighborhood! Love all the decor and your tee is so cute. Thanks for the link up Shelbee!
https://www.kathrineeldridge.com
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks so much, Kathrine! Jenn came in to the consignment shop one day wearing her Vintage Soul tee shirt and I knew immediately that I had to have one for myself!
xoxo
Shelbee
Kellyann Rohr
Oh my gosh I want to visit Vintage Soul – my husband and I would be in heaven! What a cool place. I absolutely LOVE the quote about customers – that is something I find is missing in so many businesses lately. I plan on writing a post about it because it is driving me crazy!
Thanks for sharing this gem with us!
xo,
Kellyann
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Kellyann, thanks so much for stopping by! It really is the cutest little place and Jenn really does live by the Ghandi words! I look forward to reading your post on the topic!
xoxo
Shelbee
Chrissy
What a cute shop!! Looks like there is something for everyone there. I’d be sure to fill up my walls and shelves with unique goodies. And I would need a t shirt like that. Love the grey. 🙂
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks for stopping by, Chrissy! The tee shirt is the coolest, isn’t it?! I am sure if you wanted one, you could contact her and see if she would ship it to you! It is super comfortable and I love the gray and the fun lettering.
xoxo
Shelbee
Michele Morin
My husband would wander around that shop for HOURS! What a great place!
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks for checking it out, Michele! I could get lost in there for quite some time myself!
xoxo
Shelbee
Suzy Turner
WOW, it looks like such a wonderful shop, Shelbee. I’m a huge fan of antiquities of all varieties. We did pop into a couple of antique shops whilst in Ireland, but sadly were unable to purchase anything because we were limited on space and weight due to out flight home. Some of my favourite TV programmes are about antiques! Antique Road Trip is a current favourite – I don’t know if you’d get it in the US because it’s a UK show. You might find it on Youtube though!
Hope all is fab with you, gorgeous friend!
Hugs
Suzy xxx
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Suzy, thanks so much for reading! I do love looking at all the antique things as well. There is so much history and stories in each and every piece. Too bad that you couldn’t purchase any Irish antiques! We do have the show Antiques Road Show…I wonder if it is the American version of Antique Road Trip. Have a fantastic day, my friend!
xoxo
Shelbee
FancyBoy
Love how into it your son was— fun shop. The piggy cutting board is adorable!
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks so much, Becky! I was surprised at how excited he was about all the old things!
xoxo
Shelbee
jodie filogomo
What a fascinating place, Shelbee. And look how you even wore a t-shirt with basically the same theme. I wouldn’t have thought of that!!
XOXO
Jodie
http://www.jtouchofstyle.com
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks, Jodie! I bought the tee shirt from her shop and purposely styled it for this post! Ha. I am a clever one!
xoxo
Shelbee
Lisa Richardson
Such a fun store (and love the tee) I wish I had a better knack for mixing old with new because I just love the character. She has a real eye for displaying things. I can just imagine how excited your little guy was getting to see the “secret room”. Big stuff! 🙂
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Lisa, thanks for stopping by! It really is a very cool store and her displays are amazing! Jenn and Tara often come help us with displays in the consignment shop, too. It is a really amazing community of women entrepreneurs helping each other out! And yes, my son felt so special!
xoxo
Shelbee
Amy Ann Arnold
This looks like such a fun shop!
Amy Ann
Straight A Style
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
So many cute things to be discovered in there, Amy Ann! Thanks for stopping by!
xoxo
Shelbee
Susan Marinelli
Loving Vintage Soul! It looks like my house!
I see Vintage Soul has used my idea to put baskets into the chest of drawers instead of trying to replace the drawer front. I love that and have two dressers that have baskets.
I, too, love antique kitchen stuff! I have many of my grandma’s cooking utensils, and many of my mother’s as well. I don’t keep them unless I use them, and I use grandma’s pasta pot to the exclusion of all others. In a feeble attempt to swipe grandma’s pot, my brother purchased me a new pasta pot, and matching pasta bowl, which I returned to him, along with the knowledge that I was wise to his ulterior motives. One of my favorite things is my mother’s cookbook, which she received from someone in 1948. It is held together with a rubber band, but wonderful reading, and contains some of the best recipes ever! The older cookbooks will tell you things like how to cut up a chicken (there’s an art to it), and how to make wonderful sauces without using canned soups. It taught me how to make slippery dumplings and after many tries, how to make a decent pie crust. My brother has a state of the art, brand new shiny kitchen, and yet, I am the better cook. Well, except for steak, which he does exceptionally well. I am now on the hunt for a glass, stove top percolator (circa 1960) like my Mom used to have, as it makes the best coffee. I also collect old bottles, but only if they are cobalt blue, or from a locally owned dairy. One must institute some standards or risk turning one’s home into an antique shop. Too late for me!
You look absolutely beautiful, as per usual
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Susan, I love every little tidbit of information in this comment! And old cookbooks are absolutely the best by far! Now I want to come to visit you and see your house filled with all of your wonderful old things!
xoxo
Shelbee
Susan Marinelli
You are always welcome Shelbee, Just make sure you are wearing that leopard coat. I want to pet it’s fur.
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Ha! Thanks, Susan! I wore my long black faux fur coat to my dentist appointment on Monday and the hygienist couldn’t help herself…she just started petting me!
xoxo
Shelbee
Lauren Sparks
I love getting lost in those kinds of stores! And I love that your son was so mesmerized! laurensparks.net
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
It was really a fun place to look around and it was super fun watching his excitement! Thanks for stopping by, Lauren!
xoxo
Shelbee
Patrick Weseman
What a cool place there, i would love to go there and spend some time. Looking nice you are. Oh, tomorrow night I will be going out of my blog comfort zone and posting a post that you inspired. Anyway, I hope that you have a wonderful week.
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks so much, Patrick! It is a very cool store, for sure. I will be sure to stop by tomorrow and check out your post! I am super excited for it!
xoxo
Shelbee
Jessica A Jannenga
A cutie in a cute tee! 🙂 I enjoy shopping in vintage and thrift shops, this looks fun and I love to browse through to see the treasures. Keep warm friend!
jess xx
http://www.elegantlydressedandstylish.com
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks so much, Jess! There were so many really cool things to see in Vintage Soul, for sure!
xoxo
Shelbee
Anna at Muttonstyle
I would just love to browse that store. Have a good week and thanks for the linkup. I’m starting mine on Monday called muttonstylemonday so hope you’ll join it and spread the word
https://www.muttonstyle.com
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thank you, Anna! It really is a very fun store to browse around. I will add your link up to my page of link ups. What a fun name for it!
xoxo
Shelbee
Suzanne
What a post Shelbee! I’m pinning like crazy. I love the saying about customers, so true. And can I tell you, this is my kind of place, I loved window shopping with you here…aren’t little shops just the best? AND I have that pig cutting board in my kitchen, I use it everyday 🙂
Oh what fun! Thanks for sharing!
xx
Suzanne
http://www.AskSuzanneBell.com
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks so much, Suzanne! I am so glad you found so many fun things to pin! My mom had that same cutting board, too. And my mother-in-law has a similar one, too. How funny! I will be checking back periodically to see all the new things she gets in.
xoxo
Shelbee
Laura
This looks like such a fun store! I could probably spend hours (and a lot of money) in there! We have a similar market in a nearby town and I got a few of the cutest items for our house!
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Laura, thanks for stopping by! It was such a fun experience and I was so cool to see my son get that excited over antiques! I will definitely be checking back often to see all the new “old” stuff!
xoxo
Shelbee
Carrie @ Curly Crafty Mom
Now, this is my kind of store! I could spend hours in there and I know I’d come home with some treasures. I love your tee and that statement necklace with it. It goes perfect with the store! 🙂
Carrie
curlycraftymom.com
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks, Carrie! We had so much fun in there checking out all the old things and hearing the stories of how they were used. My son was so excited, it was too cute!
xoxo
Shelbee
Cheryl Shops
That sounds like such a fun shop for treasure-hunting. I’m so glad places like this still exist in the world!
Cheryl Shops | http://www.cherylshops.net
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks, Cheryl! It is a great place to find unique treasures, for sure!
xoxo
Shelbee
Maureen
What a cute shop with so many vintage finds! That emerald orb does look fascinating. Was there a story behind that? I bet my son would love that secret room. It looks pretty intriguing to me even I would probably won’t stop talking about it! Cute graphic shirt. I love graphic tees – always so cute and can’t forget comfy. I hope all is well and happy Tuesday!
Maureen | http://www.littlemisscasual.com
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks so much, Maureen! Unfortunately I did not get the story behind the green glass buoy, but I will have to inquire next time I pop in!
xoxo
Shelbee
Darlene
Shelbee,
What a fun store–one of those places you could spend HOURS in, for sure! Thanks for sharing.
Your 7-year old is SO cute. Looks a lot like you!!
Have a great week,
xx Darlene
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Darlene, thanks so much! I definitely could have spent way more time browsing through Vintage Soul except my cute little 7 year old was starting to get antsy! Have a wonderful day, my friend.
xoxo
Shelbee
Tianna
what a cute shop! I love shops like this 🙂
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Tianna, thanks so much for stopping by! Have a great day!
xoxo
Shelbee
stephanie
Love all that stuff! so cool!
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks for checking it out, Stephanie! It is a really cool place with a lot of really interesting antiques.
xoxo
Shelbee
Tamar Strauss-Benjamin
What a lovely shop! So many great treasures.
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks for checking it out, Tamar! Have a great day!
xoxo
Shelbee
Emma Peach
What a charming and fascinating place! I love the old ice skates! My mum lives in a very old house and a lot of the contents have been passed down through the generations as my great grandparents also lived there. Kids find old things so interesting because they can’t believe we had to live without the modern technology they take for granted!
Emma xxx
http://www.style-splash.com
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks for stopping by, Emma! I am intrigued by antiques items because I can’t believe that we functioned before technology! Ha. I will never forget one time I used the phrase “like nails on a chalkboard” and my son responded with “what’s a chalkboard?” I laughed so hard and felt so old! They haven’t used chalkboards in schools in years…everything has moved to whiteboards!
xoxo
Shelbee
Liz Klebba
What a fabulous place to lose yourself for a few hours! (The trick is to get out with your wallet intact!)
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Liz, thanks so much for stopping by! I totally agree! I did pretty well managing the money spent. But if my son had his way, we would have brought home the entire contents of the store!
xoxo
Shelbee
Jill
What a neat little store! I love the “outrageously cool junk” sign! It would definitely draw me in. And I adore the pig cutting board! I’ll have to see if they sell things via fb!
Jill
BrokeDolly.blogspot.com
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Jill, thanks for stopping by! I am so glad that you see some fun things that you love. Definitely check out the Facebook page. I am not sure if she ships things or not, but Jenn can definitely answer that for you. My mom had a pig cutting board like that one and it brought back so many memories for me!
xoxo
Shelbee
LORENA
I enjoyed looking at all the things they carry – I am an all around vintage lover – starting with old homes, on to items and clothing.
The tee shirt was soo cool and its so neat your son appreciated the things in there 🙂
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks so much for reading, Lorena! Vintage things are so much fun. Someday when my children are older and stop destroying everything in my house, I think I would love to have vintage decor in my home. There is so much nostalgia in it all.
xoxo
Shelbee