Treasure Hunt in Palm Springs, California
Now that the kids are out of the house, we are reclaiming our space. This means changing out the art and furniture, purging, and streamlining. It’s time for a grown-up house.
We’ve been searching for a new coffee table and what better place to search than in the Coachella Valley where mid-century modern is extremely popular and houses are frequently updated creating a plethora of consignment stores full of potential treasures and finds for those patient enough to search.
On Valentine’s Day, we sent George, our empty nest puppy, off to doggy-daycare, we fueled up at Townie Bagels for caffeine, carbs, and protein, before starting our all-day adventure which included visiting 14 consignment stores and galleries in Palm Springs, Cathedral City, Rancho Mirage, and Palm Desert. It was a very long day and by the end of it, we were completely saturated, overwhelmed, and confused. We will be taking all of these ideas back home to measure and reassess.
We generated a list of the places and sorted by city to be most efficient. This meant we started in Palm Springs, travelled down Highway 111, and ended in Palm Desert with a mid-day lunch stop.
Our favorite spot was Perez Art District In Cathedral City. There was a nice mix of consignment / vintage stores and high end galleries that while totally outside our price range, had some beautiful furniture, art, and decor.
We were looking for mid-century modern items and quickly realized that while some places may advertise themselves as mid-century modern consignment stores, they tend to carry much more. We also learned that our definition of mid-century modern is narrower than the folks down here. And that there is a Palm Springs vibe / spin to mid-century modern that is more colorful, flamboyant, and tropical (can you say tiki?) than what we are used to in the San Francisco Bay Area.
We also learned that the inventory is constantly changing at these stores which means if you don’t find it one day, go back the next day or week and you might find what you are looking for. This also means that it helps to be in the area for more than a week.
Here’s a list of the places we visited including their addresses, and where available, the links to their websites. Definitely check the websites for store hours before you go because many are not open on random days and the hours vary greatly from store to store.
And don’t miss our YouTube video where we share photos and video of our search.
Palm Springs:
—Blackburn Studio (consignment/vintage): 693 East Sunny Dunes
—Sunny Dunes Antique Mall (antique/vintage): 507 Sunny Dunes Road
—Swag (vintage/antique): 407 S. Industrial Place
—Revivals (upscale thrift): 6111 S. Palm Canyon Drive
—Estate Sale (consignment): 4185 E. Palm Canyon Drive
Cathedral City
—At-Hom (consignment/vintage): 68929 Perez Road, Suites G, H, I
—Gilded Owl (gallery): 68929 Perez Road, Suite J
—Spaces (consignment/vintage): 68929 Perez Road, Suite K
—Object Culture (vintage/contemporary): 68929 Perez Road, Suite M
—JC Studio (gallery): 68929 Perez Road, Suite B
—Hedge (consignment): 68929 Perez Road, Suite F (closed on Wednesdays so we didn’t go in)
—Celebrity Consignments (consignment): 67777 E. Palm Canyon Drive
—Stage to Sell (consignment): 67777 E. Palm Canyon Drive
Rancho Mirage
—Misty’s Consignment (consignment-local favorite): 70007 California 111
