An Afternoon in Antique Alley

For the past few months, I've been on the hunt for a very specific item: namely, a set of iced tea spoons in my (seventy-year-old) silverware pattern. Whenever I pass a promising looking antique or vintage shop, I always pop in to check but so far, have had no luck finding what I need (though I have found dozens of other things I don't actually need).

Last week, I had a free afternoon and decided that since I'd be in the neighborhood anyway, I'd expand my search to Chesapeake's Antique Alley. "Antique Alley" refers to the spate of antique stores at the corner of Canal Street and Military Highway in Chesapeake, famous among Hampton Roads treasure hunters for the bargains and interesting finds that can be had there.



I started with Days Remembered, and spent about an hour poking around there. They had a little bit of everything, but most notable was their collection of antique tools and vintage kitchenware. They had a large selection of vintage china and stoneware and big bins of adorable retro cookie cutters, everything from dinosaurs to hearts to barnyard animals. I was sorely tempted by a 1950s lemonade set (love the snowflake motif) but managed to walk past it (it was hard, believe me, and I might go back for it yet).

Next, I moseyed over to Granma Had One Antiques and Collectibles, which is in the same building as Days Remembered (I believe the two stores used to be one, or are owned by the same family?) And I spent another hour there, combing through more treasures. Granma Had One is an especially good place to look if you're in the market for costume jewelry or vintage Pyrex (they had a whole wall of the more popular patterns and some harder-to-find pieces, too). They also had a large vintage book section, including a selection of those local/fundraiser cookbooks that I get so many of my favorite recipes from.





Though I left empty-handed (let's hear it for self-control?), I very much enjoyed browsing these stores and have already mentally moved both onto my rotation of places to check regularly.

Have you discovered any new antique hotspots -- or made any good finds -- lately? Tell us about them in the comments (and if you've happened to come across a set of Tudor Rose iced tea spoons, message me!)