Travel: Regional Archive

05:47 PM CST on Friday, November 12, 2004

By MARY ELLEN BOTTER / The Dallas Morning News

First Monday Trade Days are a friendly frenzy of selling, shopping and snacking.

It's a needle-in-a-haystack adventure for shoppers with a specific item in mind and a hive of temptations for would-be buyers open to anything and everything. Some find excitement in the hunt; others just dive happily into the ocean of merchandise.

East Texas hospitality keeps the miles of aisles swept virtually clear of impatience. Pushiness or discourtesy is unnecessary. There are goodies enough for every taste and budget – and then some.

To cover First Monday in a single outing requires strategy and stamina

Are you joining the shopping circus of First Monday for a single day? One experienced shopper's one-day plan is: Arrive at 8 a.m., spend three hours in the three-building Arbors complex, then scope out booths outdoors. If time is left, visit more pavilions. Here are additional strategies:

• Study the map. Plot a route, knowing that antiques and collectibles are most plentiful in the Canton Civic Center, vintage and garage-sale-type items are abundant in the unreserved area, crafts abound in the reserved area, and art, crafts and home furnishings are numerous in the pavilions.

• Have a plan. Know what you're hunting (antiques, knickknacks, quilts, furniture, etc.).

Darnell Renee / Special to DMN

Shoppers check for bargains at Fabulous Pewterware in the Paul Michaels buildings in Canton.

• Be selective. Limit your shopping list, or you won't be able to scan a booth, quickly determine your quarry isn't there and move briskly to the next. Go to www.cantontradedays.com and use its shopping-by-categories feature to help you spot stops to make.

• Shoppers interested in tools and hardware should start at the log cabin by the west gate and first shop the unreserved and reserved areas. Buyers looking for home furnishings and the like should proceed directly to the pavilions.

• If you want to see it all, keep moving.

If one shopping day isn't enough, book overnight lodging months in advance

Most Dallas-area shoppers make First Monday Trade Days a day trip.

Those who plan to stay overnight at Canton should book lodging two to six months in advance. Friday nights during Trade Days sell out first. Check the city's Web site (www.firstmondaycanton.com) for an extensive list of lodging options. (Some have Web links.) The chamber of commerce's www.cantontx.com also lists contacts.

Find a cluster of hotels (Best Western, Days Inn, Hallmark Inn & Suites, Luxury Suites and Super 8) at the intersection of Interstate 20 and Highway 19. Cafes and fast-food eateries are nearby. Each hotel charges a flat rate for a room. At Days Inn, the price is $55 Wednesday night, $110 Thursday, and $135 Friday and Saturday. Calling a hotel directly rather than phoning a national reservations number or booking online may yield a better rate.

The Mountain complex across from First Monday Park has about 30 cabins and bed-and-rests (simple breakfast). Check the city's site. Or, contact: 903-567-5445; www.cantonmountain.com.

Canton offers an array of bed-and-breakfasts.

If the town is completely booked, shoppers may find lodging in Terrell, 25 miles west of Canton on Interstate 20; Athens, 25 miles south on Highway 19; Sulphur Springs, about 40 miles north on Highway 19; and Tyler, about 40 miles east on I-20.

Four women: what they bought

WHO:
Dorothy Deville, Ville Platte, La., retired behavior modification supervisor for the state
Michelle Saucier, Eunice, La., civil engineer (Dorothy's niece)
Tina Frye, Eunice, La., auto paint and body specialist
Yvonne Guillory, Eunice, La., retired manufacturing supervisor (Dorothy's sister)

STAYED: Bunny Hollow Inn & Retreat in Canton (903-567-1823; www.bunnyhollow.com)

MOTIVES:
Dorothy – Christmas shopping.
Michelle – decorating new home and pool.
Tina – Christmas shopping and finding a hobby horse saddle.
Yvonne – home and pool decor, and landscaping items.

TOTAL SPENT: about $2,000, not counting food and lodging.

AMONG THE GOODIES:
3 large wagon wheels, $20 each
2 small wagon wheels, $8 each
Iron bookends, $15
4 towel baskets, $20 each
Wall-hanging water fountain, $169
2 cement wall planters, $60 each
2 wooden patio benches, $140 each
1 iron plant holder, $15
2 pool benches, $150 each
1 small saddle, $80
1 baker's rack, $50
1 trash bin, $30
3 iron crosses, $10 each
1 grape-design tapestry wall hanging, $169
2 tapestry handbags, $20 each
2 wooden wall decorations, $20 each
Miscellaneous hooks and iron hangers, $20
1 beverage cooler and rack, $22
Assorted silk flowers, $30
Feathers, $5
1 pot rack, $45
2 teacher boxes and wall hangers, $19
6 iron horse heads, 50 cents each
Fireplace columns, $40 pair
2 floral arrangements, $120 each
Bale of hay for Halloween decor, $7

BEST BUYS: heavy carved wooden benches and wall-hanging water fountain.

HAULING THE HAUL: Group came with an 8-by-12 cargo trailer.

GOT A BEEF: Traffic is a problem at the parking lot exits. "You have to wait and wait," says Dorothy. Wants: traffic lights at the north and east gates.

VERDICT: Most prices were less than at home. "We had a ball and will go back next year, God wills," says Dorothy.

Quotes from Canton

"We don't stop. We shop, honey. We shop till we drop."
Dorothy Deville, Ville Platte, La.

"If you're looking for it, it's here."
Rusty Jones, Rusty's Antiques in the civic center

"I drive my van so we can fill it up."
Susan Lynch, Tulsa, Okla.

"If a person can identify what they want, more than likely, we can come up with where they can locate it."
Al Campbell, First Monday staff

"You got one more twenty in here."
man to woman shopper

"You can buy anything at Canton, from a diamond ring to a donkey."
Sylvia Ogden, innkeeper

"Come on in, ladies."
vendor to passing shoppers

"Where'd the girls go? They already slipped off?"
overheard

"Don't get separated. There's a very small chance you'll run back into each other."
Rick Malone, city building inspector and Trade Days staff member

"Have fun. Just walk into the trade area and get lost. Don't worry about finding yourself till time to go home."
Harry Goss, White Oak