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True love has been known to blossom
spontaneously in the aisles of Le Spot.
It must be that unbeatable blend of romance, mystery,
and mood lighting that gets 'em every time....no matter
what the age. |
Some call the
Mystery Spot the Sundance Hospitality
Suite of the mid-Catskills. Spot regulars
include director/actor Larry Fessenden
( Wendigo, Habit) and editor Jim Lyons
( Far from Heaven). On this fine day
we were blessed by a visit from editor David
Leonard, artist Carmen Einfinger,
and filmmaker Scott Saunders. We met
Scott a few months ago at the
Florida
Film Festival when we were a juror in
the short film category, and his film The Technical
Writer (starring Tatum O'Neal)
was in feature competition. Here they show off their
recent purchases, including a mounted trout
($10). |
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Musician Chris Maxwell
of The Gleaners is a Spot
regular. You can usually find him on weekends rummaging
through our stacks of hand-selected vintage LPs, and he
never manages to leave without a sweet pile o' vinyl.
This time he not only picked up a near-mint copy of Astral
Travelling by Lonnie Liston Smith ($12),
but a set of vintage hand-hooked rooster seat
covers ($8. each) for his cabin. (Note the
crochet/flying/bird theme in this photo). |
This lovely couple
-- Bea and Paul from Brooklyn -- recently
wandered into the Mystery Spot. We
kept stealing glances at Paul, thinking he looked so
familiar. We were right! Turns out he's an actor who's
been in tons of Woody Allen movies! |
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We love
Steve
Dubner's
writing, and we're not just saying that
simply because he once wrote a wonderful article about
us for The New Yorker (wherein he noted
our striking resemblance to Debra Winger).
Check out his great books, Confessions of a Hero-Worshiper
and Turbulent Souls. Here he reminds us what one
does when one shops at The Mystery Spot. |
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One of our favorite writers, Luc
Sante (Lowlife) stopped by our booth
at the Margaretville Antiques Show to
say hi and add to his world-renowned collection of Used
Car Lot Bumper Stickers ($1. each). |
Who knew? Right
in our midst lives one of Andy Warhol's
original teenage Superstars! Penny Arcade
appeared in Andy's film Women in Revolt, and
is a well-known performance artist and monologist. She
recently treated The Mystery Spot to
a sampling of her act, and it was hilarious and profound.
While perusing the offerings of the Spot,
Penny developed a strong attraction to this squirrel
and nut Nut Bowl ($12.) |
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Spot regular Kate
Pierson of the B-52's proudly
displays her finds for the day. They'll all go towards
furnishing her fabulous modernist/rustic getaway, Kate's
Lazy Meadow Motel, in nearby Mt. Tremper.
Included are a mod 60's canister set ($20.),
a chartreuse ceramic 50's lamp with bubble shade
($40), and a pastel drawing of a Joan Kennedy
lookalike (free). |
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Let's be honest - everyone
knows the #1 reason why the sidewalks of Phoenicia are
packed every weekend. Sweet Sue's continues
to be the culinary hotspot of the Catskills, and for good
reason. Stacks of mouth-watering pancakes, homemade soups,
mile-high salads, bottomless cups of coffee, and most
of all, Sue and the wonderful wait staff
who make everyone feel at home. After a long day on their
feet, the waitresses often drop by the Mystery
Spot to spend their hard-earned tips on the latest
Phoenician fashions. Two of our favorite gals - Christy
and Lea - check out a couple of vintage
frocks that caught their eye.
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Three generations
of Houskas stop in to say hi - Julie,
Ruth and Helen. Ruth
Houska runs the United Methodist Church "Formerly
Yours" Thrift Store in town, and we're
probably giving away a few secrets here by confessing
that it's been the source of some of our favorite finds.
The thrift store ladies run a tight ship - and the place
buzzes like a busy beehive! The ladies put out fresh
merch every minute! You must be quick on your
feet and remember to get out of their way as they scurry
back and forth stocking the shelves, or you'll get run
over! We kid you not!
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won't tell if you don't! Every now and then an
astute dealer from NYC swoops in and cleans us out of
our vintage gear to re-sell down in the city.
Jill from Jillery in Greenwich
Village recently paid us a visit and picked the shelves
dry of practically every fabulous vintage purse
on the premises. (Not to worry, we had plenty more where
those came from, and the shelves have been freshly re-stocked).
Come back again soon, Jill!
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You're never
too young to shop for the latest vintage couture here
at Le Spot. Young Anna Greenleaf
checks out the rack for a frock in her size. Remember
Anna, you can always grow into it! |
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Cluck! cluck! Why did performer/DJ
extraordinaire Ken Bullock and gardener-to-the
stars Dean Riddle cross the road? Why,
to get to The Mystery Spot, of course!
Dean is the garden columnist for Elle Decor
and the author of a wonderful book called Out
in the Garden. They are holding up an adorable Made
in Japan ceramic chicken sugar and creamer set
($32.). |
Sherlock
Sylvia searches for clues in the 1920's book
More Toasts ($15.) whilst wearing a
vintage red wool cape ($20.), men's
tweed hat ($10) and puffing on a corncob
pipe ($5). (She bought the cape and
hat with her babysitting money). |
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Matthew, Alexis
and Rachel stop by to say hi and pick
up a few extra used car bumper stickers for their growing
collection. |
Ceramic artists
Phillip Maberry and Scott Walker
stopped off at The Mystery Spot en
route to the Love Shack to purchase
this great ceramic poodle objet d'art
($20). and try on this groovy Hawaiian shirt
($35.). |
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Yankee fan Nick
can't decide between these vintage baseball mitts
($20. each) or a NOS vintage pair of 70's mirrored
sunglasses ($10.) |
Earlier this
summer the Goddess Festival up at the
Full Moon Resort brought all sorts
of wonderful folks into town. Among the performers shopping
the Spot was Tanya,
a professional aerialist who has a trapeze act with
her sister called the WauWau Sisters.
She was thrilled no end when she found this near-mint
copy of Circus Punk for only $6. Can't
say we blame her! |
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We hadn't seen Janet Wygal
- one of our colleagues at the NY Rocker,
and member of bands The Wygals and
The Individuals - in years. Imagine how thrilled
we were when she came walking in the front door of Le
Spot, looking as chic and gorgeous as ever, with
honey Tedd on her arm. A faux
wood grain ceramic ashtray ($12), immediately
caught Tedd's eye, and can't say we blame him! |
Comedienne Lisa
DeLarios and her dog Stargil
find inspiration in a vintage multicolored honeycomb
crepe paper decoration ($8.). The comic (not
to mention decorative) possibilities are endless! |
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You might think that Phoenicia
is the perfect village - and it very nearly is - but it's
been missing one thing: the perfect smoothie. Thank goodness
for Paradise! The gals at Paradise Picnic Supply
opened their doors this summer and have been providing
us with delicious organic smoothies as well as other scrumptious
treats. What's more, for those of us too busy to leave
their shops amidst the rush of customers, Sylvia
and Aglaia will deliver a freshly made
smoothie to your door, free of charge, on their grand
three-wheeler. |
Famed tattoo
artist Bruce Bart, Delainie
Bart, and Curse Mackey proudly
display their day's finds - three exceptional religious
portraits on tin. |
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Actress Savannah Haske
(Third Watch, Piggie) searches for hidden meaning
in this 1960's signed still life painting
($42.). Tripod artist Ralph "Chip" Gallagher
wraps his fingers around a naked lady
mug ($15.) |
Animator Pes
and his delightful producer Sarah Phelps
celebrate the worldwide success of
Roof Sex, their
ode to furniture and rooftop lovin.' Pes holds up an
incredible needlepoint of a crying boy
($22.) while Sarah proudly models the vintage
navy gloves ($10.) and 60's white patent
leather purse ($20.) that she bought to accessorize
her red-carpet-worthy film festival ensemble. |
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Our Motto: "Clutter My World"
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