Last Saturday, 1/18, Gary and I attended an on-site estate auction at a house in the suburbs of Charlottesville. The auctioneer was from Grindstaff Auctions out of Hanover County, about an hour and a quarter from here.
This was an out of doors auction, and the temperature was cold. Not as frigid as it got later in the week, with several inches of snow and temps well below freezing. But with a high temp of 36 degrees, pretty cold nonetheless.
Some box lots, mismatched chairs, outdoor things, and the like, had been set up on tables in the yard of the home, and they were sold first.
I acquired a smallish oak chair with a narrow caned seat, just the right size for my frame; it fits perfectly with the old desk in my study.
The bulk of the sale was housed in a large tent set up against the built-in garage of the split level house, and a couple of large propane fueled heaters with electric blowers did their best to heat the space.
Other than the cold, this was the kind of auction I especially love – an apparent lifetime of accumulation, furniture, dishes, quilts, linens, glass, books, and ephemera, art and kitsch, well-loved and well-cared for, and now seeking new homes. Many others clearly felt the same, as there was a good-sized crowd.
In addition to the oak chair, I acquired several old dolls. The composition dolls remind me of the Sonia Henie doll that had been handed down from my mother to me when I was a child. She had soft blond hair, tiny pearly white teeth, and several lovely outfits. The skating costume with tiny skates, the skis, and the white fur stole are the ones I especially remember. Somehow one of Sonia Henie's feet got broken, and she wound up being handed on to my sister Kathy – to this day I am not sure if that was before or after the broken foot, or how the damage happened.
There were also three cloth dolls dressed to represent different countries, with faces that seem to be fabric stretched over papier mache. They were part of a larger box lot that I have destined for Goodwill – a plastic baby doll, a Cabbage Patch girl with curly hair, one of those boy dolls designed to be propped against a wall and viewed from behind, two partly dressed G.I. Joes. There was next to no interest in this box lot.
But I was happy to take home those three cloth dolls. They remind me of the vintage cotton-stuffed Polish doll with scarf and thin plastic face that I still have from my childhood, the last of several, if I recall correctly, sent to me by Grandma and Grandpa Wolinski in the 50s or early 60s.
Final treasures I acquired at this auction were a low Roseville vase with a sunflower motif, at a very low price,
a small milk glass vase with clear glass acorn and flame-like foliage attached,
and a tiny porcelain bell with violets – bargains all.
Gary also found some treasures.
When we left, after more than five hours in the cold, the auction was not yet over. But we were ready for home and warmth.
Gary also found some treasures.
When we left, after more than five hours in the cold, the auction was not yet over. But we were ready for home and warmth.