I spent all day yesterday tidying the thrift store with Ass't Man.
A.M. is (used to be) a graphic designer and he is good at displays, and so am I. He and I are working well together this summer, but we don't usually have time to faff around like this.
It was good.
We were tidying because the store was to host a Community Meeting yesterday evening with cops + city council.
We
figure that's why the police cleared the encampment across the street
the day before--now the neighbors can't point to it and say, "Why
haven't you done something?"
Though they could still say, Why didn't do you anything for four months?
I was not tempted to stay. But I wanted to store to look inviting for anyone who'd never been before.
Among other things, A.M. lined up four vintage sewing machines--the front one is a Singer from 1958.
I cleaned up around the store (not clothes though), and focused on My Books section.
I set up this dinosaur and handmade clay aardvarkish thing in with Science & Nature:
A Walking Dead game on my glass display case, below. The characters are from Season 1, will anyone buy it?
I truly didn't realize it would match the picture that was already there, behind it.
BELOW: I hung Ivorex plaques of Charles Dickens, his books and his London.
("Ivorex" was made by Arthur Osborne in England, late 1800s--early 1900s. He carved a master plaque, then made a mold to make plaster-of-Paris plaques. These were air-dried, hand-painted, then dipped in wax. Not worth a lot, but cool.)
I also spruced up the Cool Old Books section a bit, below--including putting out a box of piano music--some of it quite expensive to buy new.
BELOW: Didn't have an overall theme for my front-facing displays though.
More photos of the bookshelves from yesterday, in post below.