Albany Antique Mall

Every girl enjoys a little bling. With the price of diamonds sky rocketing consider rhinestones for your lady this Valentine’s day. Rhinestones are bright & sparkly and you can find wonderful brooches, rings, necklaces and bracelets in almost every price range.

You can find a rhinestone perfect for anyone. There are rhinestones for the business women, for the young and the young at heart, for the bride , for the  prom girl, for the sophisticated, for the mature women, and who could forget the famous Liberace? Rhinestones adorned his clothing, including shoes, his piano and even the vehicles he rode in!

Rhinestones got their name from the Rhine River in Europe. In the 1800’s the river was filled with quartz pebbles in bright colors that were mined and used for jewelry making. Eventually, as the river became depleted imitation glass pebbles became their replacement.

Rhinestones are made by taking highly refined glass and pressing it into a mold. The stone is then ground and polished until it shines. Foil backing is then added to increase the brilliance of the stone. Before the late 1800’s this was all done by hand.

In the 1890’s, Austrian, Daniel Swarovski (a name you might recognize) created a new machine that could cut faceted glass in a timely manner. He also patented his process of permanently applying foil backing to high led content crystals to create high end rhinestones. Today, 80% of all jewelry companies use Swarovski rhinestones.

You can never go wrong giving rhinestones as a gift because they never go out of style. Rhinestones have been a centerpiece of costume jewelry since they were created in the 18^th century. Whether you are looking for vintage or new rhinestone jewelry you can find it at the Albany Antique Mall. Prices range from about five dollars to hundreds of dollars. Can’t decide which gorgeous piece to get her? Gift certificates are also available.

Ladies, remember that this Thursday, Feb. 2^nd is “Ladies Night Out,” from 6:30pm to 9:00pm. Gather up the girls and come on over for lots of fun. As always, we will have lots of chocolate, prizes, great music and this year, BOOTH SALES! We hope to see you Thursday night!

Albany Antique Mall, open daily at the corner of 2^nd and Ellsworth in historic downtown Albany.

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Ten Reasons to Shop at the Albany Antique Mall this year.

1.       Quality Items

Ever try to buy a hand forged tool in a regular store these days? How about a piece of furniture built by a true craftsman?  Are you looking for something made in the U.S.A.? Find all these and more at The Albany Antique Mall.

2.       Great Memories

Albany Antique Mall brings back your favorite childhood memories. Remember that Tonka truck you received on your fifth birthday, or that poodle skirt you wore to your first dance. You never know what vintage item might bring back a special memory for you. One of our favorite things about owning the mall is watching grandparents tell their grandchild about something they once played with.

3.       Friendly, helpful service.

At Albany Antique Mall, we are here to help you. We love to help you look for things, chat with you, negotiate for you, carry your items and load your car. We love our guests!

4.       Burn Calories

Albany Antique Mall features a complete loop so you can do your mall walking here. Add the stairs for extra calorie burn. There is lots of interesting scenery, great music, nice weather and a bathroom. Get your exercise done here!

5.       Variety

There is something for everyone. Tools, toys, beautiful glass, rusty metal stuff, jewelry, pottery, silver, furniture, linens, art, Pyrex, books, comics, clothes, lamps, repurposed furniture and home décor, and more. Where else can you find a chamber pot, an egg coddler or a vintage chicken coop?

6.       Recycling

Why buy cheap, “Made in China,” household goods when you can purchase beautiful, quality items made to last a lifetime. After all, they already have!

7.       Best Boutique

Shop at the largest vintage clothing boutique around. We carry men’s and women’s styles, military, purses, shoes, furs, kid’s clothes and newer prom dresses. We also have a collection of over 100 hats and bonnets.

8.       Clean, Organized, Beautiful Displays

Do you have a lot of neat stuff but don’t know how to put it together? Do you want to create a certain look? Browse through our beautiful displays, put together by our talented Dealers, for wonderful ideas for your own home.  Discover new ways to use and display your old furniture and vintage collections.

9.       Best Music

Sing, hum, and/or dance your way around the isles as you enjoy your favorite oldies. It’s not unusual to find our guests or our staff doing the same. We love to have fun!

10.   Local support

Help support downtown Albany by shopping at local businesses like, Albany Antique Mall. Open daily on the corner of 2^nd and Ellsworth.

The process of collecting vintage glass ornaments can be challenging, but the result will be a tree decorated with beautiful ornaments, each with its own rich history.

Glass ornaments were first made in the early 1800’s in Lauscha, Gemany. Ornament making was an industry that involved the entire family. In most cases the men did the glass blowing, women did the silvering and the children would help paint and finish them.  It didn’t take long for the business minded to begin manufacturing these wonderful ornaments on a mass scale. The rest, as they say, is history.

In Victorian times, Queen Victoria’s husband, Prince Albert, who was German, brought the tradition of decorating the tree with glass ornaments to England and it didn’t take long for all of England to follow suit.

In the 1840’s, immigrants from Europe brought their Christmas traditions with them to North America. In typical American fashion the custom caught on in a huge way. Before this time, Christmas was not widely celebrated in North America.

Almost all hand blown ornaments were made in Lauscha, Germany prior to 1925. By 1935, over 250 million ornaments were being imported to the United States. About this time, Japan and Czechoslovakia also began creating ornaments for importing to the States, and in the United States itself, the Corning Company of New York along with Max Eckard established the “Shiny-Brite” ornament company.  

Now that you have learned a little bit of glass ornament history, here are some things to look for when shopping for vintage glass ornaments.

Early ornaments were generally smaller than today’s ornaments. The colors used were softer with hand painted details. In most cases the paint should show some wear. It may be faded or scratched in some areas. The base of the ornament (where the metal piece attaches) should be uneven. Machine made ornaments will have a smooth even break. Look for countries of origins on the stem. New, cheaper ornaments are not marked. However, stems are often switched between ornaments, so look for the other characteristics as well. When starting any collection do your research and ask a lot of questions.

If you are a vintage ornament collector or you are thinking about beginning a collection, The Albany Antique Mall is a wonderful place to start. Open daily, 10:00-6:00, Mon. thru Sat. and 12:00-5:00 on Sunday. Holiday hours beginning Nov. 25^th, open until 8pm Thurs. thru Sat.

With the holidays fast approaching you’ve probably begun thinking about what you’ll be serving and how you will decorate the table for your Thanksgiving and Christmas feasts. No matter what your decorating style, an easy way to dress up your table is by adding a cake plate.

Cake plates became popular in the late Victorian times when afternoon tea became an important tradition. There was a need for a way to display cakes so they could easily be seen by the guests. Existing serving platters, originally called salvers were altered by adding a foot, thus creating what we now call cake plates.

Pressed glass and clear and colored glass cake plates are highly collectible today. Ironstone stands in plain white or transfer patterns are also very sought after. Prices range from $50 to $350 depending on age, shape and condition. Cake plates can also be made from ceramics, lead crystal, silver plate, pressed aluminum or steel. Most common are round cake plates but you can also find square, hexagonal and octagonal plates inspired by the art deco period.

Cake plates can be used many different ways. They are like a stage for your showcase piece whether it’s dessert or some other special item. For Thanksgiving consider displaying small pumpkins on a tall cake plate. One idea for Christmas is to fill a three tiered cake stand with votive candles to make a beautiful centerpiece for your table. The possibilities are endless.

As you consider your holiday plans don’t forget Albany Antique Mall’s, 3^rd annual Holiday Open House on November 3^rd. We will be closed during the day to prepare for this evening event. Doors open at 5pm. You won’t want to miss this wonderful event when the mall transforms into an Old Fashioned Christmas Wonderland. Bring your friends for door prizes, refreshments and fun. Find unique, one of a kind treasures and discover the joy of giving a gift from the past. See you there!

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If you’re looking for a fun time and you have a sweet tooth you’ll want to visit Albany Antique Mall on Saturday Oct. 29^th from 10am to 12pm. If you can follow the footprints to the end of the mall your reward will be a sweet treat. Don’t worry if you get lost there will be plenty of costumed characters to help you stay on the right path. And kids, you can bring your parents too!

As you follow the path throughout the mall you might see some unusual Halloween items. Vintage Halloween items have become quite collectable and hard to find. Did you know that some of the oldest Halloween collectables date back to the Victorian era? Almost all Halloween items older than 1970 are collectable today. Postcards, plastic toys, cake picks, noise makers, plastic blow mold figures, die cut decorations and even drink stirrers are all popular to collect. Prices for these items can range from a few dollars to thousands of dollars for older, in perfect condition pieces. The most popular Halloween decorations are either American or German made.  German made Halloween decorations were made by homemakers so each piece you find will be unique. A popular theme in Germany was vegetable people. You can look for pieces featuring these fun and cute little characters. All of the early German Halloween pieces were made and exported to America after WWI. At this time Halloween was becoming more popular in the U.S.

As with any collection you may be starting choose items that appeal to you. Postcards are great because they don’t take up much space but they can be expensive and are getting harder to find. Some collectors like the old papier-mâché candy holders while others concentrate on the hard plastic blow forms of pumpkins, cats and ghosts.  Some people just choose items that remind them of their childhood.

However you celebrate this fall season remember to stay safe and support your local non-profit organizations by shopping at Points for Profit businesses.