Treasure Hunting In Central Mass

I’ve been meaning to share this post for some time. Back in January we went treasure hunting in Central Mass and thought I’d share it with you. Many of you said how much you like a glimpse into our lives and also love tips for home decor and antiquing. Well, here you go! Simply click on the title of the shop to visit their site.

Join us on a little mini antiquing afternoon in Central Massachusetts. We bundled up and drove out to Holden, MA. First stop was The Vintage Retriever!

The Vintage Retriever

I’ve wanted to visit the The Vintage Retriever for some time. The beautiful shop is owned by Julie & Dave McNamara. Julie is amazing at styling and she finds the most beautiful pieces, especially leather and scrub pine. I wish I had more space in our home because I’d fill a moving truck with furniture from their beautiful shop.

I’ve followed along with them on Instagram and always love their displays at Brimfield but this was our first time actually visiting the shop. We delivered some of our stationery which they stock and caught up with them and their sweet dog.

I wish I took more photos but we were so busy chatting and shopping. I stocked up on tons of French Marseille soap and some other goodies.

I constantly monitor this page on their site for vintage / found furniture. Thought it might be a good resource for all of you if you like old things like us!

One can never have too many natural brushes…

Old Sink filled with brushes at The Vintage Retriever

Birch Tree Bread Company

Well, we worked up quite a hunger while shopping at The Vintage Retriever. We planned on driving to Worcester after for more antiquing so we parked the car and had lunch before more time “on the hunt”.

We pictured a tiny bakery with some loaves of bread and soup but were impressed by the scale and size of Birch Tree Bakery. The menu was huge and so was the venue. Based in an old factory with really high ceilings this was a fun place for a delicious lunch. Service was pretty quick considering how busy it was!

It was a very cold January day so the onion soup grilled cheese was calling my name. I couldn’t eat it all…

The Crompton Collective

The Crompton Collective is housed right in the same building as the bakery. So we walked down the hall and downstairs. This store had many, many antique booths and numerous treasures.

I loved this booth so much –

Loved all the white, old pine pieces, and all the natural treasures mixed in. I also loved the oil painting at the center of the photo.

Lovely coral and salvage wood speaks to my heart.

I thought John would love these crows:

Giant Crow paintings at the Crompton Collective

How cute is this bamboo chair? I thought it would be gorgeous in a sunroom surrounded by loads of leafy plants:

Seed To Stem

Seed to Stem is upstairs from the Crompton Collective and in the same building. Seed to Stem specializes in nature, plants, and lifestyle gifts. It is a gorgeous and inspiring space. I could have happily spent hours in here.

I mean life goals….

Can you imagine having so many plants in your house? It would be heaven, but I’m not sure Luke would agree.

The displays in here were so stunning and I love following along with them on Instagram too.

I got some plant supports and we got John some air plants for clay pots he made for his dorm room.

Look at this orangery area. I thought it was perfect and could happily move my paint studio right here:

Beautiful setting with oriental rugs, plants, stuffed taxidermy and vintage chairs

The light coming in the large windows (just to the right) was heavenly and it felt so warm right there. Sigh.

Why I Love Treasure Hunting

Okay, I love treasure hunting because of the thrill. Finding something that is different and unique for one’s home is the main goal, but there are many other reasons I love treasure hunting. Here’s more of my whys:

Finding treasures (duh!)
Seeing how creative people style items
Learning about new plants
It’s a fun way to connect as a couple
Chatting to dealers and stylists is fun
One other top reason is I find it creatively inspiring. To get a new perspective while treasure hunting helps me renew and refresh my home but also helps me come back to my art in a creative way.