UPDATE: It really was fine. Sadly, Thunderbird Ranch is no longer open but we’re happy to have this post to remember it by!
I watched a pair of longhorns chase each other around a stock pond yesterday. Right in downtown Round Top. Because this is the southwest after all. Thunderbird Ranch Fine Art gallery celebrates all things cowboy, cowgirl and just plain cow in a charming space right on Bybee Square. I’ve spent a bit of time in the west-er parts of the southwest and this spot brings all that right to us. Denise Jacobs is the expert curator behind all of it, so go on in and ask her anything while you check out that snakeskin barbed wire piece you know you want.
If you know this folk song you can hum it while you look at the rest of the photos. If you don’t know it, you might want to spend a moment here and then carry on with the photos.
As you may know, I’m forever delighted and grateful for the semi-annual Round Top Antiques Show/Texas Antiques Week extravaganza. What a spectacle! I can’t believe so many people work so hard to put on a magnificent multi-week mega-event just for me. Oh, and you.
Wanting to know more about what goes into Show preparation, I recently asked a few dealers to take us behind the scenes. And one of my all time favorite people, Marc Elson of Loblolly General Goods, responded! So without further ado, here is Marc’s diary of his days just getting from his home base in Michigan down to his gorgeous Show booth at Blue Hills. With pictures!
…Reserve 26′ Penske Diesel. (With wind chill of -15° it can just stay running with the heat on for 8 days, or until the Texas border).
…Pack clothes for all 4 seasons and book 7 hotel nights.
…Hire three laborers for loading. That one cool industrial piece I had to have weighs 500 lbs.
…Gather bungies and rope and 300 packing blankets.
…Load furniture, lights, art, china, glass, garden, walls, flooring, wiring, tags, office, tie it all down!
…Locate every antique mall and shop along the route…..Don’t forget the windshield ice-scraper and de-icing fluid.
…Drive 1300 miles. Allow 200 miles for seeking out items to fill remaining space in Penske.
…Purchase items along the way and repack Penske. Always look for exit before pulling into any antique mall parking lot.
…Meet a ton of great people in the business.
…Dodge every ice, sleet, hail and snow storm. Plan on getting stuck in Guthrie, OK for a day..it’s an impossible place to avoid the weather in February.
The good news? You've discovered The Crush List. The not so good? I haven't been actively posting here for a few years now, which means the never terribly reliable details about my crushes are even more unreliable. Antique vendors have switched venues, shops in town have moved or passed on, donkeys may or may not be in the same front yards... In spite of the risks of massive misdirection I've left the site up in hopes that it still achieves its goal - to inspire you to visit Round Top for the Antiques Show or any time you have the time.
With that said, I leave you to explore this random list of my very favorite things about my very favorite place. I’ve tried to capture the area’s special pieces and parts. Some are big deal, some are small gestures, some are legendary and some are just tiny pip and squeak.
Love The Crush List? Please Subscribe! You’ll get a weekly email with an extra image and a link to the new posts. Nice!
