Estate Sale Repeat

Late Friday afternoon I got a lead on a great estate sale in La Jolla. It had vintage Heywood Wakefield furniture which you don't see come up very often. Our bedroom set is Heywood Wakefield and we've been fans for nearly twenty years now.

 In the photos I saw a picture of a dining room table. Not only was it HW but it is also the last piece we needed to finish up the living room/dining room area. Now I have wanted a HW dining room set since before we were married. I have always had my heart set on what is known as the "triple wishbone." In our area a triple wishbone with chairs go for about $3000, which is precisely why I don't own one. 

So when I saw this table pop up in La Jolla I knew I had to give it a shot. There was no mention of a list and the sale opened at 8:00. Problem is that La Jolla is about two hours away from us. So we did what we always do when there is a geographically undesirable estate sale. We use Brian's Marriott points to stay right down the street. So we picked Davis up from school, packed our bags and headed south with my dream of a HW dining room table in my heart. 

We had a wonderful evening at the Marriott in La Jolla. We actually ate outside. We couldn't believe how cool it was as we have been suffering from one hundred plus degree temperatures for over a week now. It was surreal to be outside and not melt. It was impossible to sleep though because we were so excited about the sale. So at 5:00 we headed over to get in line. Once we got there there was already a list out- and wouldn't you know it, there were two names ahead of us- ugh, not again! So we patiently waited, sipping our coffee and watching the sunrise come up over La Jolla.

When it was time to line up, lucky for us the first two people never came back- so we were first and second! The dining room table was in my grasp! I knew from the picture that the top would need refinishing, so it had to be going for a good price. Then we were in through the door, up to the dining room, and I saw the price...(insert sad music here)...$800. Now, for a HW dining room table, that is a good price, but it was more then I was willing to pay since it needs refinishing. I was sad. We did grab a chair which also needs some love and a cabinet for my afghan collection. But I was still sad. 

All the prep and waiting and no dining room table for me. The people running the estate sale were super nice and told me that Sundays are 50% off. I was welcome to call at the end of the day and see if the table would still be available Sunday. So I crossed my fingers and we headed back home to the heathole that is Corona.

The rest of our day was spent relaxing, trying to make the time go by faster. We organized our records in this great holder I got on Friday at the SA 50% off sale for $1.

We listened to records and read the newest issue of 'Atomic Ranch" Magazine.

Even the cats seemed relaxed. They weren't sharing my anxiety about the table. Yes, that's two cats in one chair.

So finally it was time to call. Brian spoke to the seller, came in with a sad face and told me the table had been sold. Of course, in his next breathe he said "just kidding" and it would still be there Sunday- AT 50% OFF. Now, $400 is an insanely great deal. The chairs alone usually sell for $125 or more. So here we were back in the same position as the day before. We needed to be first on the list. So we got up at 4:30 Sunday morning and made the two hour drive back down to La Jolla. We were first on the list, grabbed the table, paid our cash and we were back on the road.

Once we got home we had all of the fun of moving out the old table and the new one in in the 100 degree heat. I think it looks perfect.

It's not the triple wishbone but I like this one even better. All of the chairs are stamped "1955" and the table was sold between 1955-1965. It is the "Harmonic" style and much rare then the "triple wishbone." Yay, for me. 

So after that fun weekend, it's back to the daily grind. Lots of work to get done and school for Davis. I hope everyone had a fabulous weekend!

-Tricia