A Great Antique Mall and an 'Antique Capital' Joke

Last weekend we went on a road trip to DC to visit our son.   We stopped on the way at Medina Antique Mall in Medina, Ohio (near Cleveland).  I took lots of pictures, which unfortunately were accidentally deleted.  I wish they hadn't been, because it was one of the best malls I'd been to in years and I took lots of pictures of displays and booths that I wanted to remember!   I've borrowed a couple of pics from the internet to show you, though.

It's in a building that was originally a grocery store & it's really big, bright & open.  The staff were all super-friendly and there was a variety of merchandise -- high-end and inexpensive, 1800s to mid-century retro.  They do a couple of things there that I wish our mall did.  Right by the front doors was a display of the 'dealer of the month'.  It had her name & booth number and several pictures from her booth.  I don't know if she got some sort of bonus or reward (a rent or commission discount) for this, but it certainly got the shoppers' attention.  They also had framed 'Inaugural Dealer' signs in the booths of those dealers who had been with them from the beginning.

I found some real bargains and got quite a few things for not too much money.  Christmas was everywhere, which is always a good thing!  It inspired me to come back and plan Christmas for my booth (that's another day's post).

We stayed that night in Somerset, Pennsylvania and woke up to this happy surprise!  Mr. KV gets credit for being prepared -- the last thing he threw in the car before we left was the scraper. 

We ate breakfast in the Summit Diner in Somerset.  What a treasure!

It's a 50 year old diner, complete with lunch counter, boomerang formica tables and a pie case with mile-high pies! The food was wonderful and I was in 50s heaven.  I can't wait until our next trip to DC to visit Medina and the Summit Diner!

By the time we got to Maryland, the snow was gone and the day was sometimes cloudy and sometimes bright and sunny.

Our next stop was New Market, MD, the self-proclaimed 'Antique Capital of Maryland'.   If that's the case, Maryland is antique-deprived!

 Does this look like a bustling antiques district to you?

We were there on a Friday (a prime antique-shopping day) and, of the 8 shops, all but 2 were closed. The two we found open were REALLY high-end and expensive (think $200+ teapots) and small.  In the one, the owner told us that lots of the shops are closed on Fridays and that some are 'tax accountants and doctors' offices.'.  Really?  As though we couldn't tell the difference between a tax accountant's office and an antique shop!

What New Market IS the capital of, though, is expensive soup!  We ate in the only eatery to be found in the 'shop' area -- a pizzeria & deli.  We each had an iced tea (in styrofoam cups) and a bowl of soup (no crackers, no bread) served in a pottery bowl nested in a plastic basket.  We had to get our own small plastic spoons and napkins from the ice-cream bar.  The cost of that feast?  $15.50!

Oh well, at least we didn't waste much time there and got to DC even earlier to see our son.  He told us he would have recommended going to Hagerstown for antiques, which we'll do on our next road trip.  It may not be the 'Antiques Capital of Maryland', but at least it has a few malls!