Photography by Donovan Roberts Witmer
Call them antique, or call them vintage.The pieces from our collective past evoke memories, banish the blues and add a splash of style to our lives. Whether it’s fun and funky or ornate and impressive, every antique is distinctive. The local mall is not the place to find that blonde wood bedroom suite or that 1980s jumpsuit with leopard collar and cuffs. And like antiques themselves, no two antique shops are alike. Most carry a full range of items, but each has its own character. Try these Susquehanna Valley spots for your antiquing expedition.
Deck the Walls: At Building Character, vintage, recycled and handmade wares all find a home in one historic warehouse. More than 40 shops offer clothing, décor, architectural salvage and handmade goods. Fill up your bare walls with reclaimed-wood wine racks, window frames converted to mirrors, pastoral paintings in elaborate frames, jewelry organizers fashioned from salvaged wood and metal, lighted beer signs and vintage photos of 1920s lacrosse teams.
Building Character | 342 N. Queen St., Lancaster | 717-394-7201 | www.buildingcharacter.biz
Deck the Halls: The true antiques-hound will have a field day at Antique Marketplace of Lemoyne, where more than 170 dealers display their pre-1955 treasures, and no crafts, collectables or reproductions are allowed. So, face it. Your house needs a lighted Santa for Christmas. This is the place for holiday décor that doesn’t mimic your neighbor’s. Get holly-jolly with Shiny-Brite bulbs, tinsel and fat-bulb tree lights. That Bing Crosby LP will really help to make the season bright!
Antique Marketplace of Lemoyne | 415 Bosler Ave., Lemoyne | 717-761-2865 | www.antiquemarketplaceoflemoyne.com
Garden décor: The massive Tollbooth Antiques Marketplace offers surprises at every turn. The former clothing factory occupies a city block, with soaring ceilings, huge windows and hardwood floors. More than 200 vendors span the antiquing spectrum, from Americana such as milk cans to your childhood Smurf glasses that are now, sadly, “vintage.” Spruce up the garden with tulip chairs, garden gnomes and a genuine traffic light or convert a bird cage to a hanging planter.
Tollbooth Antiques MarketPlace | 215 Chestnut St., Columbia | 717-684-5555 | www.tollboothmarket.com
Party Time: Redeux Marketplace packs co-op fun into a former furniture and appliances store. Situated in Royal Square, the latest entry in York City’s renaissance offers curated vintage and repurposed items, with such finds as a Free Spirit bicycle and breezy sundresses. Break out the Dr. Pepper cooler and Flamingo insulated jug and treat guests to lemonade served in colorful aluminum tumblers. Pump up the jams on the one-piece stereo with pull-down turntable. There’s even a vintage rentals vendor offering retro chic for your upcoming celebration.
Redeux Marketplace | 113 S. Duke St., York | www.redeuxmarketplace.com
Mad Men Panache: Give your home office the feeling of a real workplace with furniture and décor from The Scarlet Willow. Surround yourself with a sturdy wood desk, file cabinets, a rolling desk chair, fiberglass-shaded lamps, a stereo cabinet and an ashtray stand, and you’ll be less tempted to watch cat videos all day. Stock a shelf with a crystal decanter, etched glassware, and Ice-O-Mat ice crusher and the beverage of your choice for that end-of-day reward.
The Scarlet Willow | 320 Queen St., Lancaster | 717-945-5883 | www.facebook.com/TheScarletWillow
Bling City: Rose Marie’s Antiques is a treasure trove of estate, antique and vintage jewelry. One-of-a-kind finds suit every style, from Victorian lockets and hat pins to giant 1920s onyx rings and even bigger 1960s jade cocktail rings. Drape a gemstone pendant on a chain, adorn your wrist with a delicate watch and pin a fabulous costume brooch on your lapel. Complete the look with a beaded clutch purse. Hours are limited, so call ahead.
Rose Marie’s Antiques | 2136 Market St., Camp Hill | 717-763-8998 | www.facebook.com/Rose-Maries-Antiques
Don’t know what you’re looking for until you see it: If you have a space to fill with that elusive something, Burning Bridge Antiques Market is the place to find it. It’s a three-story former hardware store with a tin ceiling, sliding oak doors and a stone cellar. Booths brim with the finds of more than 250 dealers. An oak armoire, a drafting desk, a telephone table, a glass-topped patio table and metal chairs with orange-and-yellow floral seats, a Suzy Homemaker vacuum (with attachments!), an Underdog bank, a wall of post office boxes. Let your imagination run wild.
Burning Bridge Antiques Market 304 Walnut St., Columbia | 717-684-7900 | www.burningbridgeantiques.com
Soft, Pretty Things: Step over the mosaic-floored entrance into the bright old storefront, and start smiling. Mommalicious blends cheerful vintage and repurposed items with selected new stuff that fits the esthetic, like kids’ classic toys that include a Brio bumblebee and a Schylling Bake Set in a Box. Gather the embroidered linens, diner-style coffee cups, delicate cream and sugar set, and appliqued pillows for your next tea party. Dress in the sleeveless maxi with red plaid skirt for some Mary Tyler Moore style, while your guy sports a wide green tie adorned with paisley hearts.
Mommalicious | 310 N. Queen St., Lancaster | 717-299-0827 | www.mommalicious.com
Vintage Wearables: Stash has figured out how to make mid-century to late-model vintage work in today’s wardrobes. Take a leopard-print dress, add a jean jacket, stretchy belt, beaded necklace and huarache sandals, and you’re ready to meet friends for lunch. Guys can find Hawaiian shirts, t-shirts, hats, Western belt buckles and jean jackets of their own. There are even vintage slips to give that vintage dress the perfect fit and feel.
Stash | 234 North St., Harrisburg | 717-232-2207 | www.stashHBG.com
Flea market treasure hunt: As you bring home that intriguing vase or signed painting, you imagine explaining to the awed Antiques Roadshow appaiser, “I just decided to take a flea market excursion that Sunday.” With up to 300 vendors outdoors and 375 indoors, Renninger’s Vintage, Antiques, Collectibles & Flea Market in Denver is rich with hidden treasures.
Renninger’s Antique Market | 2500 N. Reading Road, Denver | 570-385-0104 | www.renningers.net
Antiquing under the trees: It’s a beautiful day, and you’re torn between getting outside or indulging the urge to scrounge. Enjoy the best of both worlds at verdant Shupp’s Grove, Reinholds. Pick your way among vendors selling their goods at down-to-earth prices. Theme weekends bring out those must-have items for your collections, from linens and tools to art glass and Coke collectibles. After you’ve worked up an appetite from all that exertion, enjoy delectable homemade soups, sandwiches, cakes and pies at Friar Tuck’s Deli, in the heart of the woods.
Shupp’s Grove| 607 Willow St., Reinholds 717-484-4115 | www.shuppsgrove.com