On Sunday we made the trek to Yarra Glen for the swap meet. We went last year and were eager to go again this time.
Something for everyone. Jack stands, wheels, chooks…..
This swap meet (as are many of them) are really just an excuse for the owners of cluttered sheds to chuck everything in a trailer and try to make a few bucks from it.
Because of this you never know what kind of interesting treasures you might come across.
The Man had a wish list of parts for the cars he is doing up, but the kids and I went shopping with no expectations whatsoever.
To keep everyone happy, as soon as we arrive the Man wanders off to look for those special items and the kids and I just mosey around looking at everything.
When the Man gets to the end of his searches he calls my mobile to find out where we are and catches up to us. It is the perfect arrangement because, boy, is he whingy when the rest of us want to look at every single stand.
Masked monsters.
By the time the Man caught up to us Number 2 had spent his pocket-money on two treasures, an old, battered, carved wooden mask, and a spring-loaded toy lightsabre. Eclectic tastes, that child.
Number 2 had won over the guy who was selling the mask with his mad antics while wearing it, and ended up getting it for a fraction of the tag price with barely any effort at haggling.
The lightsabre salesman jokingly warned Number 2 to be careful with such a dangerous weapon, only to have his leg unexpectedly severed, complete with sound effects, as soon as the money was exchanged.
We continued on our travels and I found a man with a box of the old bottles I love. “How much are these, mate?” “Ummm… five bucks each”.
I love it when they don’t really care how much they make, they just don’t want to take the box of crap home with them at the end of the day.
We had a bit of a rummage through and I bought three. The kids also found one with a small amount of the pink contents still swirling around inside.
They asked the stall holder what it was and he had to admit he had no idea. Typical bloke though, he took the bottle off the kids, unscrewed the lid, took a big sniff, and pronounced it to be “A bit vanilla-ish”. He then crumbled to dust right in front of us.
Just kidding about that last bit…
I did suggest that he remember this moment if he was rushed to hospital later in the day though.
We bought the kids an ice-cream and continued our meanderings. We saw plenty of things we wanted but our budget didn’t lend itself to. Oh well, I am sure that we will come across them again at the next swap meet!
There were many lovely old cars both in the car park and in the grounds, and I am sure there were a lot of proud owners nursing their aching polishing arm and sitting off to the side watching their pride and joy shining in the sun.
Shiny.
Buried words and Bushwa. 
With the picture I was worried you were swapping your chickens! You do get bonus points for the use of the phrase “mosey around” as you don’t hear that nearly enough!
FM
The chooks haven’t started laying yet and the Man has been up there a few times to tell them he’ll make dinner out of them if they don’t get a move on, maybe we should have tried to swap them for these very cute ones!
I thought ‘mosey around’ sounded better then ‘wandered aimlessly’ 🙂
Sounds like great time was had by all except maybe the other half.
The Man was still pretty happy, he got to have a look at mountains of car bits without us slowing him down, and we got to look without him waiting imaptiently in the background 🙂
He was the only one who came home without a treasure, but we did buy him an ice-cream so it wasn’t a complete loss.
Beautiful picture of a 1930-something Ford convertible. Worth a pretty penny, I’d imagine.
I expect that there was a huge amount of dollars in the old cars parked in the vicinity. Even the car park was a show of its own!
Photos never do justice to the real level of shininess of the cars though.
If I ever want to chronicle the downfall of American industry, all I have to do is compare the US-made automobiles of today with those of 1930s-60s. They made not have had cup holders and rear-window defrosters, but they sure looked a lot classer, cost a lot less and tended to last a lot longer.
And they really had that ‘thing’ that made you love them too. Can you imagine anyone ever getting excited about finding the car you drive today under a dusty tarp in a shed in 50 years time?
Almost anything made in the last 30 years is just too generic and boring for words 😦
Yes, someone 50 years from now finding a minivan or a hatchback under a dusty tarp in a barn isn’t going to give two hoots. The only thing it would be good for is rolling down the windows and using it as a henhouse.
As you would be able to guess, I love a swap meet 🙂 You were fortunate to have good weather for it. There’s nothing like strolling around in the sun, taking your time and looking at other people’s treasures they no longer have space for which they are regrettably letting go and will shed a few tears over… I might also consider your explanationn “cluttered sheds to chuck everything in a trailer and try to make a few bucks from it.” 🙂 It always makes the G.O.’s day if there is a sausage sizzle on offer as well.
The Man is doing up “cars” plural? You ARE a good missus! 😉
Not only is he doing up two cars, although one is for me, he is also doing up 2 motorbikes.
Don’t think I haven’t reminded him how tolerant I am on a regular basis, especially when he starts trying to clutter up the house with more of his crap. I suggest to him that he has more than enough space out there and that if he wants to move some stuff in here he is welcome to, as soon as he makes a space for me out there… 🙂
We were very lucky to have such great weather. It was bright and sunny and no humidity and the perfect weather for strolling. There was a sausage sizzle too. They have it at the Yarra Glen Racecourse which is quite an impressive country racing facility so there are lots of shady trees and lots of nice grass. At the start of the morning there were a few races being called too so that was an interesting backdrop to the day 🙂
We have a “you house – me shed” agreement although there’s a small cross over, which a bit unfair as the G.O. doesn’t actually have a shed (other than the space in the corner of the yard which is a shed in the etheric realm waiitng to be born into its earthly existence), just a workshop under the house at TA.
The G.O. keeps saying he doesn’t have the interest any more but if he found the right project I’m hoping one day the time, space and opportunity will all come together 🙂
I don’t think there are too many blokes who would have an actual shed and say they don’t have the interest, do you? They can’t resist. They might say it but I doubt there is a shed in the world that is empty.
The G.O. might not want to do up a car or bike but he might do some metal working or carpentry, or take up knitting chain mail or something. 😉 I think that just having the space and no need to clean up the kitchen table each night means that thing you always secretly wanted to do can drift to the surface.
I would love my own shed, I’m not sure what I would do out there, but just having a space of my own and being able to spread out all my stuff would be wonderful. I think the attraction is being able to walk out each night and keep the train of thought going without having to unpack it each time. 😀
I’ve never been to a proper swap meet but we used to go to a huge trash and treasure place when the Daughter was little. Hmm… maybe next Sunday?
The first Sunday of every month there is a big market at Healesville, we haven’t been for ages but it was always a good one. I remember going to Caribbean Market all the time when we were kids too, maybe I should drag the kids down there and see if is still a good one.
Which market was your favourite?
Do you remember the days when Croydon Market was a proper market? They used to have pony rides and handmade crafts, fruit and veg, animal auctions… everything! We went a few years ago and lasted about 5 minutes. It was terrible! Such a pity.
There is a Sunday market in our town every Sunday and I think Millgrove has been having a regular one too. Hmmm… Maybe I should start going to them more regularly.
For trash and treasure, I love the one on/near? Burwood Hwy near Wantirna. I can picture it so clearly but I can’t quite remember the location.
For Sunday markets I love the one at St Andrews. I haven’t been for about 10 years so I hope it’s still there. I remember loving the food – lots of organic stuff but so very tasty.
That would be Caribbean Market, it is near the intersection of Stud road and Burwood hwy and has access on both roads.
The St Andrews market was a good one, we haven’t been there for many years either. That was something of an alternative lifestyle market wasn’t it 🙂
Ah so that’s what it’s called! Yes, that’s the location. And yes, the St Andrews market was a bit hippie but in a nice way. 🙂
Sounds like great fun!
There’s a couple of urban versions of this in NYC — no sheds with stuff to shed, but the lack of storage in NYC apartments make shedding an important issue.
One is the stoop sale. This is especially popular in parts of the city with old, small buildings with (you guessed it) stoops. My friends from Brooklyn have bought and sold many treasures (books, clothing, dishes) on stoops. It can be fun and the people you meet are always characters.
The other is a Clothing Swap. So far as I know this is only for women and the format varies but the theme is always the same. Clean out your closet and pick from the stuff that the other women are getting rid of. Just last night a top I cleaned out of my closet two years ago danced by at a Tango dance. The day before, I was wearing lovely velvet trousers that were too short for the girl who originally bought them. LOL…
All of these recycling efforts are great!
Those stoop sales sound great. I just imagine someone sitting on the steps in the sun with a book while interested people wander past perusing their bits and pieces. There are far worse ways to spend an afternoon.
I love seeing all these old things going to a person who is going to give them a new lease on life and stop them going to landfill. Someones trash is always anothers treasure 🙂