Our next PVADA Meeting will be held on Thursday, September 26th at 6:00 pm at the Bluebonnet Diner's Banquet Room located at
324 King Street in Northampton, MA.
I'm very excited to announce that our member Chris Kennedy will be our speaker for that evening! Chris Kennedy of
Acme Vintage Goods will be doing his talk on the history of two very distinct design styles from the Art Deco period to
the movement in design known as Mid Century Modern. Chris is such a knowledgeable authority on both these subjects
that I'm sure we'll all learn much from his program!
324 King Street in Northampton, MA.
I'm very excited to announce that our member Chris Kennedy will be our speaker for that evening! Chris Kennedy of
Acme Vintage Goods will be doing his talk on the history of two very distinct design styles from the Art Deco period to
the movement in design known as Mid Century Modern. Chris is such a knowledgeable authority on both these subjects
that I'm sure we'll all learn much from his program!
The June 13th, 2024 meeting at the Bluebonnet Diner, Northampton featured our
Annual PVADA Fun Auction and was conducted by auctioneers David and Lori Baillargeon
of Swinging Bridge Auction from Huntington, MA.
Annual PVADA Fun Auction and was conducted by auctioneers David and Lori Baillargeon
of Swinging Bridge Auction from Huntington, MA.
We all had a very delightful time last night as David and Lori Baillargeon of Swinging Bridge Auction from Huntington, MA graciously ran our PVADA Auction for us again! David always makes it fun for us to spend our money with his humorous antics and stories! Our members had brought some truly great and delicious items to bid on. There were some fabulous books (some signed 1st editions), artwork, jewelry, stoneware jugs, a metal sculpture, Steiff tiger, fabulous penuche fudge, Waterford crystal, Roseville bean pot, toleware, sports memorabilia, antique mirror, and so much more! When all was said and done we had raised $466.50 for our PVADA! Thank you so very much again to David and Lori Baillargeon and to all our members that donated those wonderful items to our auction!
The April 25th, 2024 meeting at the Bluebonnet Diner, Northampton featured
Betty Korostynski who give us a talk on tracing the Industrial Revolution in
America through the story of buttons.
Betty Korostynski who give us a talk on tracing the Industrial Revolution in
America through the story of buttons.
Betty Korostynski giving her talk on tracing the Industrial Revolution in through the story of buttons.
The December 7th, 2023 meeting at the Bluebonnet Diner, Northampton
featured our PVADA member John McGough who spoke on
antique and collectible military items.
featured our PVADA member John McGough who spoke on
antique and collectible military items.
Member John McGough speaking on antique and collectible military items at the December 7th meeting.
Longtime member and former President and Vice President, Jerry Fredette, announced he had retired as Treasurer. He received a huge applause from our members and gusts at the December meeting. A thank you cake was served for the occasion.
The September 28th, 2023 Meeting & Auction at the Bluebonnet Diner, Northampton
|
|
A truly extraordinary talk "More Than Just a Quilt" was given by our speaker Lorraine German. Lorraine puts so much of her heart and soul into her talks and this one was no exception! The extensive research that Lorraine put into her talk about how the women from the 18th and 19th century expressed themselves through their quilts and quilt making when they had very few other options available to them was absolutely amazing! Lorraine had carefully selected many wonderful examples of her early quilts and quilt pieces to have on display for us. We learned that women expressed themselves artistically with their choices of colors and patterns and that they also used quilt making to express themselves politically. Lorraine also spoke about the most touching and sentimental way they used quilt making by incorporating a deceased loved one's clothes into their quilts to remember and honor them by. Thank you so very much Lorraine for such an enlightening and informative talk!
The June 8th, 2023 Meeting & Auction at the Bluebonnet Diner, Northampton
Our PVADA Meeting and “Fun” Auction was held on June 8th. David and Lori Baillargeon from Swinging Bridge Auction on 10 E. Main Street in Huntington, MA graciously agreed again to run our auction. David and Lori had us all laughing and smiling while we bid on some really wonderful antiques, collectibles, art work, a beautiful wall quilt, jewelry, teddy bears, books, a really old fossil, Marge's delicious apple pie, and more! We ended up raising $451.50 to put in our PVADA Treasury! So thank you to all our generous members who donated to our auction and a very special thank you to David and Lori for helping us have so much fun raising money for our PVADA!
The April 13th, 2023 Meeting at the Bluebonnet Diner, Northampton
At the April 13th meeting our member Gregory Wilson gave us a most informative talk on the first phonograph that Thomas Alva Edison invented in 1878. Gregory brought in one of Edison's early phonographs, which plays music from cylinders. We heard a wonderful early recording of the song "Take Me Out To The Ball Game"! The phonograph's sound was amplified through a large horn. The antique phonograph was having some technical problems with playing more of the cylinders, but Gregory didn't miss a beat as he told us more about Thomas Edison's early life and how after saving the life of a stationmaster's child he was rewarded by being taught telegraphy. Gregory told us many interesting facts about Thomas Edison such as Edison patented more than 1,000 inventions. Gregory also talked about how hard it is to have work done on these early phonographs. He said there are only about three people that are good at repairing them and that he didn't advise anyone to buy one. Thanks to Gregory's efforts along with assistance from our guest Dennis Tash we were able to hear that fabulous sound of the early phonograph!
The December 1st, 2022 Meeting at the Bluebonnet Diner, Northampton
Following our dinner our speaker Roger Clapp gave a most informative talk on carnival glass! Roger had a wonderful selection of his carnival glass on display for us! He chose a fabulous variety of colors, shapes, and patterns by the well known carnival glass makers such as Fenton, Northwood, Dugan, and Imperial. Roger talked about the history and the process for making carnival glass. He also talked about how the brightness and depth of color of the glass affected price. Roger's vast knowledge on carnival glass is truly amazing and I know our group really learned a lot from his program!
Also, Roger and Peggy Clapp had been very instrumental in helping us put on our antique show this year and we thank them both for all their time and hard work they'd put into our show!
Also, Roger and Peggy Clapp had been very instrumental in helping us put on our antique show this year and we thank them both for all their time and hard work they'd put into our show!
The October 6th, 2022 Meeting at the Bluebonnet Diner, Northampton
We had a phenomenal program put on by our speaker Lorraine German of Mad River Antiques. Lorraine German gave us her talk on the "History of Maple Sugaring in New England.” We were all so very impressed by Lorraine's knowledge and by all the research she had done for her program. Lorraine also had many wonderful items that she'd displayed for us. One of which was an early wooden Shaker sap bucket that she had borrowed from a friend. Her talk gave us so much information about the origins of maple sugaring here in New England and about the history of the early "sugar camps"! Lorraine German has now done five talks for our PVADA, which I think is a record for talks given by any one person! We are so grateful to Lorraine for making the trip from North Granby, CT and doing her amazing talks for us! I told her we'd love to have her come back again anytime she'd like to give another talk and she said she's already working on one!
The June 16th, 2022 Meeting at the Bluebonnet Diner, Northampton
This meeting featured our Annual PVADA Fun Auction. Club members look forward to this traditional event occurring every year. Experienced auctioneers David and Lori Baillargeon conducted the auction with wit and humor.
The April 7th, 2022 Meeting at the Bluebonnet Diner, Northampton
After dinner and our special dessert to celebrate our PVADA's 75th Anniversary our members and guests had an even more delightful treat as our member Duane Stevens of Wiggins Fine Books gave his talk on first edition books and how to know if a book is a real first edition. Duane had brought quite a few wonderful and interesting books to have us examine and he passed some out to put us to the test to see if we could find the real first editions amongst the books. He had some wonderful examples including one from Samuel Langhome Clemens better known by his pen name Mark Twain. Duane went into much detail about what to look for to help determine if a book is a true first edition. He also mentioned some of the books that he used to help guide him such as the Bibliography of American Literature by Jacob Blanck. Duane also told us some fascinating stories about his most surprising finds that were tucked into the pages of the books he'd purchased! Duane's talk was not only highly informative, but truly inspirational as many of us now have been inspired to go out and find some of these fabulous first editions! Duane also mentioned he is managing a wonderful book show this year at U-Mass in Amherst, MA on September 23 & 24. Please check our website for more information coming soon about this show. Thank you Duane for sharing your extensive knowledge with us and for giving us a program that we'll truly not forget!
The December 2nd Meeting at the Bluebonnet Diner, Northampton
Our very own member Joseph Prior gave an extraordinary talk on vintage vinyl on the evening of December 2nd. Joe had a phenomenal display for us to enjoy that brought back so many memories for so many of us! He also brought his record player to play some of those wonderful golden oldies on! Joe had 45's, 33's, and even some 78's. He had some wonderful record album covers spread out over three 8 ft. tables along with 45's in their sleeves, boxed sets, records that were like a piece of artwork, and he even brought some early music board games too! He explained how to tell if a record was a first pressing and about grading a record. Joe gave us information on how to store records and what to watch out for when storing them such as: heat, sunlight, and dampness. He also talked about some of the more sought after records and their values. Joe's talk and all his displays were such a treat for our members and guests! Thank you Joe for such an informative and fun program to end our year on!
The September 16th, Meeting at the Bluebonnet Diner, Northampton
Lorraine German of Mad River Antiques, LLC gave our group a phenomenal talk on Native American Indian Baskets! Lorraine brought so many examples of her wonderful baskets, basket making forms, basket making tools, and so much more for our group to see. Marge Farrick also brought in a wonderful ash-splint basket with delicate curlicue decoration that Lorraine put on display. She talked about the early ways the Native American Indians made their baskets and the different ways in which they decorated their baskets too. Lorraine had many handouts that went with her talk that were passed around. She also had copies of much of her material that she graciously shared with our group. Lorraine's incredible knowledge of the Northeast Native American Indian baskets made for one program that I'm sure our group will never forget!
The Wednesday December 4th, 2019 Meeting at the BrewMaster's Tavern
Our members were so very fortunate to hear the tremendously informative talk on stoneware last night given by Lorraine German. Lorraine's husband Steve German also assisted her with her presentation. They had many wonderful examples of stoneware and other related objects on display for our group. Lorraine had many photos of stoneware and books, which Steve passed out during her talk. Lorraine talked about the many potteries and the many potters who would move from one pottery to another. She talked about the different clay that they used to make their stoneware and the glazes that they used. She also went into much detail about the marks, forms, and the decoration of the stoneware. She talked about collecting stoneware and what to look for such as rarer decorations and rarer forms. Lorraine's wealth of knowledge and all the time and effort she put into her program on stoneware was truly impressive!