It’s been almost a year since I opened my vintage booth. Let me share with you why I did it and how it’s going.

January 2021. Living almost a year in near solitude really makes one take stock of life, am I right? Just months before, my husband and I had recovered from a rather nasty version of COVID-19 and I was feeling pretty grateful that we had made it through relatively unscathed. Entering a new year, especially one where there was still so much unknown about the pandemic, really had me thinking hard about what I wanted the future to look like, or at least a future that I could sort of control.

One of the many visions of my future that has stayed consistent over the years is to have my own business, where I sell vintage and antique goods to like-minded folks who love this stuff as much as I do. Some of my fondest memories from my childhood were when we loaded up in my mom’s station wagon and headed out to auctions or estate sales in the country. I was completely fascinated by all the amazing furniture, clothes, and jewelry that came out of old farmhouses in cardboard boxes to be bid upon. It was like opening up a time capsule except you could buy it – a passport into other past lives that was like heaven for a chronic daydreamer and play-pretender like me.

As I grew, my love for old stuff never really waned. I liked trolling antique malls and the occasional garage sale for things to decorate my spaces. I poured over magazines, and later Instagram and Pinterest, to research items or trends I was coveting. Eventually, I became an informal expert for friends and coworkers seeking advice on how to style their homes or where to find particular items.

Fast forward to January 2021. As I sat down at my kitchen island to scroll through my phone for the umpteenth time out of sheer boredom and desperation, I read an article by a gal who had opened up an antique booth at her local business co-op and described in incredible detail how much fun she was having.

I would love to have a little fun, I thought. If this lady can do it, then anybody can do it. Hell, I can probably do it. I sat up in my chair a little straighter. Why not me? I can do this. Now I was getting excited. I CAN DO THIS!

For the next three months if I wasn’t working or taking care of my family I was neck-deep into sourcing inventory, setting up spreadsheets, researching, pricing, and making a plan to stage my wares. My dining room acted as my make-shift workshop (and still does) where I cleaned and organized my items. It was exhausting, time-consuming work, but I was loving every minute of it!

I officially opened my booth in April 2021 and as more time goes by the experience gets better and better. I’ve gained so much – new confidence, new friends, and a healthy new respect for others who are side-hustling to do what they love. This project has been so inspiring that it keeps me primed to try pushing myself a little bit further whether in my family life, my day job, or with other pursuits (the extra money hasn’t been bad either, but I’ll do another post on that later).

If the pandemic has been good for anything in my life, it’s been an all too stark reminder that life is short and there’s no time like the present to shoot for a goal. My vintage booth may not be the biggest or the best thing that’s ever happened to the world, but it has meant the world to me, and that’s all that matters.