As we are making our journey to Mt. Dora Florida we have taken three days to “tiquie shoppiing” our way there. Courtney has dubbed what we are doing as “Tiquie Shopping”. The big myth is you can’t buy items for resale in an antique shop or mall, but that is where people have been missing out. Keep in mind every dealer doesn’t know everything. Sometimes the best finds are in an antique shop. You can find information about shops in many different antique publications across the country. In Florida stop and pick up your free “The Florida Antique and Collectible Peddler” guide that covers most every area in Florida. I really found mine extremely helpful.
We decided to focus on a small area of Florida located about two hours outside of Mt. Dora. We started our shopping with probably my favorite find of the trip so far. We stopped at this great shop called Valentino’s located in Green Cove Springs. It was very organized with very nice quality antiques. He had this darling piece that he had labeled as a pickle fork. I’m not sure what it is but I think I am going to try and sell it as a pendent. It is sterling silver and about 5” long. I think it will make a great focal point to my jewelry case.
Jacksonville
We traveled down the road a ways to Jacksonville. We decided to start in the Historic Riverside District. Our first stop there was the store Fans and Stoves. It was a very nice antique mall. I could have spent hours there. So much to see and dig through. It was simply unbelievable the variety that they had and I felt they had very nice reasonable prices. Next we went to the 5 Points Antiques. They had a very nice selection of vintage clothing and modern glassware. Now don’t get me wrong they also carried all other types of antiques but those were the things that stood out to me most.
We then traveled a ways to the Avonlea Antique Mall. If you have a day you should go there. They even had a very nice café set in the middle of the perfect atmosphere of 40,000 square feet of antiques. The organization and layout was neat and unique. Every isle/row was labeled a different street. They made it easy for you to not get lost or retrace your steps. I believe there was something there for absolutely everyone. Right next door was a very nice privately owned antique shop called Enchanted. It had a great layout and variety.
Palatka
To finish out the day we traveled to this great little town. While Courtney napped I shopped through “Elsie Bells”. When you first walk through the doors of this shop you will see a large selection of vintage candies of drug stores gone bye. I was amazed at how they had them displayed. It was like stepping back in time. They also had a great setup and were very festive for Valentine’s Day coming up.
Next by accident I found a great little shop, “The Gypsie Palace”. It was a nice shop with some beautiful light fixtures as well as glassware and furniture.
Micanopy
A friend suggested we stop in this wonderful little Antique district and it definitely was how one should be run. Every shop is friendly and open. Aprox 17 shops in a small area. You can park and walk through most of them. Everyone offers different specialties of fine jewelry, musical instruments, glassware of all calipers, one shop had over 1500 cameos in inventory. And a wonderful café for lunch. Would make a great day trip,
This darling cat greeted us inside a jewelry display cabinet in one of shops in Micanopy. Courtney was fascinated by the fact she liked to hid in it.
Also along the way we went to an estates sale in Gainesville. We also stopped at Waldo's Antique Village in Waldo. I really enjoyed the 2 hours I spent in their antique mall.
Towards the end of the day I found my favorite type of shop a variety shop, I don’t see many variety shops anymore. This one was owned by a lovely lady and yes every bit of merchandise was hers. The store was called Avis’s Attic, located in Stark, FL. I forgot how much I loved this type of shop, you know the kind you never know what is coming in from day to day. There is a mix of clothing, toys, glassware, house wares, linens, jewelry, electronics, furniture, collectibles, and so on. If I lived close to this shop I would probably have to check it out 3 or 4 times a week. So whatever you do if you get by Stark at least stop and go through. I was pleasantly surprised with what I found there.
Now we travel on to Mt. Dora where the next part of our month long adventure continues…
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