COLUMBIANA, Ohio — Henry David Thoreau might have had his own reasons for going to the woods. For lovers of all things vintage, collectible and antique — stepping into the forest at Antiques in the Woods had nothing to do with finding oneself, and everything to do with shopping for fantastic finds.

Antiques in the Woods this year was held Sept. 7-8 at the Shaker Woods Grounds located on the outskirts of Columbiana; a charming, antique-shop-filled village that also boasts a craft brewery, winery, restaurants, a theater, and more.

Thoughtfully distributed throughout the woods’ numerous gravel paths are quaint wooden structures; almost like tiny houses that dealers use for their space. Some have front porches. Some have multiple rooms. Some have “side yard” spaces. All make for great display areas, and the dealers utilize their space wonderfully.

RM Finds of Monroeville, Pa., actually filled up three of these dealer spaces with everything from a small booth over-flowing with vintage Christmas to a multi-room area that housed furniture and vintage clothing. “We’ve been doing this show for seven years now, I think,” Michele White said. “And we have found when we bring an interesting mix of items; that’s when we have our best show. We want to be sure to have something for everyone.”

Looking at the Christmas offerings, RM Finds had a great vintage “Comet”sled priced $80, and several of the popular and still in demand ceramic, light-up Christmas trees priced from $125 for a larger version to $90 for a white example.

Diane Garner of Miss Lily’s Antiques of Wakeman, Ohio, had a space filled with early furniture and decorative smalls. A standout was the heavily carved fireplace mantel she had rescued from an old cabin. “I am sure it was a mantel brought to the cabin at one point as it is just a bit too fancy to have been made for a cabin,” Garner pointed out. Either way, it was a looker and was priced to sell at $425.

The side-room to Garner’s dealer “house” held another unique find; one that had been her grandmother’s. On display was an egg incubator labeled, “Champion Belle” having been produced by the City Incubator Company of Racine, Wis. “I know it was discontinued by 1927,” Garner said, “because my grandmother wrote to the company asking for a replacement part in 1927 and was told they were no longer making the incubator.” Garner’s incubator was in great condition selling with all its original paperwork including that 1927 letter for $175.

Early primitives and smalls wearing old finishes were the norm in the dealer space of Sisters Three and Me of Freeport, Pa. A charming wooden bucket of stave construction with metal bands in old blue paint was priced $95, and a unique set of drawers made out of crates was available for $190. But the best piece (my opinion) in this booth was the small child’s swing made of wooden slats which was on display hanging in the center of the booth over a table. The swing was a reasonable $60.

Wheelbarrows were in abundance. The Cluttered Hutch from East Palestine, Ohio, had a beauty priced $85. It was heavy, chunky, and looked like the wooden wheel might have actually been hand-carved.

On the completely opposite side of the spectrum was the display shelf filled with feminine objects located at the entrance of the space of Kristin Pinelli of New Philadelphia, Ohio. An Italian Ceramic Company plate in the “Wild Cats” pattern, marked “Made in Italy” was $21. An Art Deco lady with her “cat” water pitcher was $48, and a Princess phone featuring a woman in the dial was priced $38.

The collection of vintage tins offered by This Is The Day Antiques of Pittsburgh, Pa., was impressive. A large size Tiger Chewing Tobacco tin in red with a central tiger graphic was $200, while a blue and white Capital Peanut Butter tin again with a central image; this being of the Capital building was tagged $395.

Other attention-grabbing items seen at Antiques in the Woods would include the tin, swing-handle, lidded water pitcher in old green paint with a deer decal offered by Poland Antiques of Poland, Ohio, for $85. Canfield, Ohio, dealer Cindy Olson had a wonderful cast iron, painted turkey doorstop with an aqua body, brown tail feathers and red gobbler for $48. Then there were the neat items in the Schoolhouse Shops (Volant, Pa.)/Kensington Court (Pittsburgh, Pa.) booth that included a vintage wooden paint easel ($35); a metal grocery cart ($148) and a 42 inch wood double seat rocker wearing old black paint priced $285. Marsha’s Antiques of Ellwood City, Pa., can always be counted on for bringing some of the best pieces found at this show. A very cool corner bench from an eastern Pennsylvania Moravian meeting house was tagged $395.

Contact: (330) 550-4190

www.antiquesinthewoods.com