On a nice sunny Saturday morning in May 2016, a few of my photographer friends and I set out to visit Rideau Antiques nestled in a rural setting about a 10 minute drive Southwest of Smiths Falls and a short distance from Lombardy, Ontario. As we ventured onto the grounds it was clear, this was not your average antique store. It was truly a cornucopia of eclectic collections and treasures scattered throughout the outdoor and indoor property in a seemingly sense of order. Many items susceptible to rust in the outdoor areas had succumbed, a bit strange, leading me to believe the owners (the Miller’s) had more than a pecuniary interest with this enterprise. I’m sure they take pride in offering the visitors with a walk down memory lane, and for that, a big thank you! There were piles and rows of items; bottles, windows, sinks, wringer washer machines in tatters, hub caps, ladders, bicycles, shovels, and on, and on, and on.
There are a few buildings crammed inside with other interesting antiques and bric-a-brac. The narrow inside passageways have to be navigated cautiously, not such a bad idea as it slows you down to explore all the stuff displayed at various levels from floor to ceiling. It was a veritable hoarders paradise, not well lit insight, and definitely no room for a camera tripod… unless they’re stashed away in a pile somewhere among the other stuff. Across the road a few steps away is a large barn chock-full, again, with more chachkas.
All in all, it was an enjoyable outing for a few hours of photography among friends on a pleasant Spring day in May. I figure I’ll be back someday.
You can click on the photos for the larger size.
View my Flickr Rideau Antiques album
WOnderfully done Robbie with great pics to illustrate your thoughts.
Thanks Mario, geat see see how our respective visualizations played out for the day.
Wow, what a lot of stuff! Interesting to know what some people find fascinating — the collectors I mean.