My Weblog

Customer Creation Spotlight! Ken & Debbie Gralley's Beautiful Door Restoration!

Ken & Debbie Gralley have a beautiful home in Salem City.  They open it regularly for our Christmas and Spring Tours.  They have done a beautiful job restoring their home.  Recently Ken sent me a photo of a door restoration he did using a door he purchased from us.   He also shared with us an earlier photograph of their home's original door style.   I would say it is as perfect a match as you can get.  Great Job!  Thank you for sharing both photos. 

Customer Creation Spotlight, Sharon Huey's Room Divider!

Sharon Huey and her family were looking for a creative way to divide a long room into two rooms without actually putting up a traditional wall.  They looked at all of the many doors we have inside and out of the shop.  They found one of my favorite styles, the early barn door slider with original hardware.  Sharon's very handy husband had it in place in no time.  It looks great and allows Sharon to have a studio space as well as a family space while adding interest to both sides.   It also adds a new space for hanging artwork or Sharon's beautiful photographs.  Thank you for sharing your photo.  We love the transition.  Suzanne

Customer Creations Week! Molly Agosta's Wedding Day Creations!

Molly Agosta and her Mom stopped by the Royal Port throughout the year looking for various items for her July 2011 wedding.  Now that the date has come and gone and life has finally slowed down for Molly, she shared with us how she used some of her purchases.  We always have wooden boxes and drawers for sale.  Molly used one to hold her beautifully hand done wedding programs. I love the look of the green paper and natural string and burlap details against the wood bin.  She also used an old minnow can as a planter for their unity tree.  This photo looks like something you would see in a magazine.  So beautiful.  They welcomed their guests by using open window panes to hold their escort cards.  And finally so that guests could leave their wishes and advise for the newlyweds, Molly created a sign using an early cabinet door to guide guests to her book.  Thank you for sharing all of your beautiful photos!   Best wishes for a beautiful life together!  Suzanne

Where Has January Gone? Check out What's New at the Royal Port!

Hope everyone is having a happy and prosperous New Year.  Sorry for the late post.   We had some hardware technical difficulties but I am up and running again.   The new camera is ready to take some great shots of all the exciting inventory that will be coming our way!  I posted a few new things on the January Album.  I will add more items this week. (Many things came and went before I could get them on the album.)  One of my favorite new items is this old wallpaper table.   It has both a country and an industrial feel.  The table top panels have breadboard ends.   Since it was meant to be a portable worker's table, it all comes apart and the base folds up.  It could always be converted to a stationary table.  Another great addition to this month's inventory is this pair of early step back cupboards. They are each 2 piece.  They are from the Carter Building in Woodbury, NJ.  The top cupboards have adjustable shelves for display or collections of books, while underneath is a terrific space for displaying prints, fabrics, or any storage needs. Terriffic pieces for the home, office or retail.  We continue to get some great architectural pieces.  These early 20th century carriage style garage doors are in good shape.  They would be perfect for any space, hinged or on sliders. They are stained on one side as seen in this photo and painted on the exterior.  Check back this week for additional photos.  I will also be posting Customer Creations in the upcoming week.  Thank you to all of our creative customers who have shared photos of their great ideas using things that they purchased from the Royal Port.  I always look forward to posting them.  Don't forget to check out the January Album.  Suzanne

Royal Port Wishes All a Very Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year!

Michael, Sammy & I would like to wish everyone a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!  We were out buying this week and picked up some nice things.  I added 32 new photos to the December Album.   For those of you who need to do some last minute shopping, I added some new setups throughout the shop.  We added a beautiful appliqued quilt along with a diminutive redware crock.  We have a nice supply of dough boards and cutting boards which are always a favorite.  For the gardener we added some wheelbarrels to our porch inventory.  Take a peak at the December Album for all the other new inventory items.  We will be here tomorrow from 10am-4pm.  Gift Certificates are available for that hard to buy Antiquer! Stay tuned for updates to our show and events schedule for 2012.  Have a Happy New Year!

The Royal Port is Brimming with New Inventory this Christmas Season!

Last week kept us very busy getting ready for the Yuletide Tour. A few things got stashed away until this week.  This week has been catch up week.  As I post this Mike is cleaning some great pairs of doors to add to the shop.  I have been cleaning and tagging many new smalls for the shop.  I took a break to post a new album for December.  The album consists of a nice mix of architectural, furniture, smalls and industrial.  (the usual and unusual)  One of my favorite photos is of a nicely detailed painted mantel along with some newly added spindles.   The arched detailed middle of the mantel would be complimented well with a nice arched window hung above. (hint hint Mike).   Another new shop favorite is this 4 door cupboard.  The cupboard is not very deep but is perfect for small storage or collectibles. Our new stock of early mason jars makes a beautiful statement for the holidays.   Take a peek at the rest of our December Album for the rest of our favorites.  Just a few reminders for Christmas Shoppers.  We do offer layaway.  Gift Certificates are available for your loved ones that shop here.  Don't hesitate to stop by to make a wish list.  And finally, stop by anytime for a nice cup of Joe or hot chocolate and some cookies.  It's always ready!  I will post updates on facebook as I add new photos to the December Album.  Keep checking.  Suzanne

Christmas 2011 at the Royal Port Antiques!

We had a great Salem Yuletide Tour and Open House last Saturday!  My friend and fellow dealer Michelle Quigley visited our tour for the first time this year and sent me a note that follows, "Wow!  Did we ever enjoy the Salem Yuletide Tour!  I can't wait to come back again next year.  You guys sure do it up right!  I will recommend it next year to anyone who will listen.  It was really just great!"  That was it in a nutshell.  The town was booming with visitors from all over.  The Homes and Historic Sites were busy throughout the day with tour goers.  Our shop is all decked out for Christmas!  We have added a lot of new inventory which I will post in an album tomorrow.  I wanted to share the Christmas Album with you today.  We had fun decorating.  Mike & Sammy planted seedling in vintage pots to decorate the deck.  They are a big hit!  The rest of the shop is decked out in its usual natural decorations of greens, fruit, paperwhites and of course my pine cone collection. (kind of a sickness)  Thanks to Bill Breneman for spending a rainy day with me cutting greens to decorate with.  That's always a nice outing.   Looking forward to next year.  It will be a special 25th Annual Tour of Historic Salem.  Stop by soon.  Don't forget to leave me a wish list for spouses, Mom's, Dad's and friends.  Suzanne

Some Great Examples of Industrialization in the New Inventory Added to the November Album!

This month we added several things that are testaments of what the Era of Industrialization was all about as well as the Small Business Person peddling their trade in their city or town.   We have had many interesting early inventions come and go in the shop over the years.   One of our latest pieces is the Chatham Cranberry Sorter.  As you pour in the cranberries and turn the handle the cranberries are screened and sorted in the trays below.  This is a small version as compared to larger scale ones I uncovered in my research.  The sorter has its original paint and stencil decoration.    It is in excellent condition.  Another interesting invention is this early meat grinder.  Very intricate in its design and very sharp.  (my hand witnessed this while I was cleaning it)   You feed through the top, turn the handle to rotate the blades and voila ground meat out the side.  I would not be interested in cleaning this after every use.     And my new  favorite piece to the shop is what was used by the common man, a cobbler's box.  I was pleasantly surprised when I opened this box.  The exterior of the box with its leather hinges was beautiful by itself but when you open the box it tells a different story.  The interior of the box was outfitted with all the tools needed by the cobbler.  There are several shoe lathes and hand tools as well as the small nails, needle and thread and sanders.   Leather is tacked on the sides to hold the tools needed in place.  This is the type of piece I think of when I hear someone ask "What is an Antique?"  This reminds me of simpler times in America.  Please enjoy additional photos of these items as well as the 60 photos of new inventory added to the November Photo Album.   It is mid November and there are already 125 photos in this album.  Make sure to check out the albums throughout the month.  I update them as new inventory is added to the shop.   If you see something feel free to call or email.   Enjoy the new photos.  Suzanne

Where has the Time Gone? November is here with a Bang!

October has come and gone.  It was a busy month for stocking up the shop.  We also had a very successful Ghost Tour, selling out again this year.  We look forward to our next big event in Salem, the Yuletide Tour which is December 3rd from 10am-6pm.   We should have tickets/booklets early next week. Today,  I added a November Album of new photos of all our recent finds.  It includes a variety of things especially small things perfect for Christmas Gift Shopping.  One of my favorite setups from our new inventory is this Salem County, NJ Pie Safe.  It is a perfect height and size for a kitchen center island.  Wooden or yellow ware bowls would fit nicely underneath to hold potatoes or fruit.  You could even store your pots and pans.  The screening is in perfect condition.  It has a nice red patina.  Displayed on top of this pie safe is also a nice one door cupboard.  I have it displayed on a surface but it would also make a great hanging cupboard.  This type of small cupboard is perfect for displaying that small collection.  One of my other favorite photos has my favorite little guy in it.  Enjoy the November Album of photos.  Please feel free to email or call with any questions.  I will be adding more photos throughout the month.  Follow us on facebook for updates.  Suzanne

Royal Port's Fall Inventory is Showing its True Colors this October!

This is a fun time of year to display new inventory in the shop.   The hues of Early American Antiques and Primitives echoes the colors of the Fall Season.   The October Album is up for your viewing with new architectural pieces, furniture, treenware, ironware and more.   A few of my favorite setups include this primitive industrial cart on castors.   It has a nice 2 board top and is a great height for food prep.  I added a dough board to create a shelf for extra storage.   The colors of the hand woven splint basket, early yellow ware and treenware and the iron balance scale add to the table's appeal.   It is all about the Primitives this Fall.  I also love this primitive 3 board top farm table with a grain painted base.   Adding baskets and wooden ware along with a painted chair creates a nice simple setting.  See what else is new in this month's album.   Don't forget that the Royal Port will be hosting the 5th Annual Walking Ghost Tour of Salem City on Friday Evening, October 28th at 7:00 pm.  All sales benefit the education department of the Salem County Historical Society.   We still have tickets available at the shop.   Have a great Fall Season.  Suzanne