THIS TIME OF YEAR in Minnesota, we not only usher in autumn but also the season of fall craft, collectible, vintage and antique sales. This past weekend, two women in the unincorporated hamlet of Cannon City just east of Faribault hosted two occasional seasonal sales.
Both were marketed as barn sales—Nicole Maloney’s Mini Flea at the Red Barn and Debbie Glende’s The Barn Sale.
I shopped at both, located across the road from one another along Rice County Road 20/Cannon City Boulevard. I’ve been to Glende’s several times, but never Maloney’s although she’s sold goods in her yard and a small shed for some 10 years. Somehow I missed her market.
But you can’t miss the massive weathered red barn which rises above her rural property. It was the first building I noticed upon pulling into the yard. And it is the reason, says Maloney, she opens her place once a year to sell her finds. Monies raised from the sale are going toward reshingling the barn. I expressed my gratitude to her for saving her barn when so many others are falling into heaps of rotting wood.
I also complimented Maloney on her artful displays of merchandise. I could see she has an eye for design. I was not surprised that she holds an interior design degree, although she doesn’t work in the field. The annual sale allows her to use her design skills to create inviting displays.
As I wandered about the yard, I saw separate groupings of items themed to rustic cabin/farmhouse, Halloween, Christmas, nautical and more. And sometimes I observed simply a hodge podge of goods, including furniture. All of it, though, seemed deliberately staged to appeal to shoppers.
Across the road at Glende’s sale in her small (compared to Maloney’s) red barn, shoppers circled inside the building to view an eclectic array of merchandise cramming shelves and tables, hanging from walls, sitting on the floor. From my non-merchandising perspective, it looks like a lot of work to artfully arrange and showcase all those goods.
Like her neighbor, Glende’s merchandise was heavy on Halloween and autumn themes. As it should be for a sale held the last weekend in September. She also holds sales in December and again in the spring. But my eye was drawn to a large vintage sign promoting beef sirloin steak for $1.50. I don’t know if that was per steak or per pound, but a bargain either way.
Outside the small red barn, shoppers found plenty of piles of stuff. Junk to some. Treasures to others.
Sales like these appeal to me also because the sellers are attempting to extend the lives of whatever rather than tossing something into the garbage to end up in a landfill. It’s a win-win for everyone.
I seldom buy anything at these sales because, at this age in my life, I don’t need more stuff. Even if I see a lot of items that I would really really like to have. Such as a vintage lamp in Glende’s yard. And a small round side table in Maloney’s.
Instead, I settled for photographing these two barn sales, which attract many, bring back memories and prove a delightful way to spend a bit of time on a stunning autumn day in southern Minnesota.
© Copyright 2025 Audrey Kletscher Helbling
Minnesota Prairie Roots 
Barns filled with nostalgia… It’s fun to look but I don’t usually buy, like you, Audrey, I don’t need more stuff and it’s rare to find anything my loved ones would like.
Definitely barns filled with nostalgia. Many people were buying. Just not me.
I’d love to go to a barn sale and could probably not get away with out buying something. ) from the looks of it, you are spot on, that having a good eye for set up and merchandising is key to really draw the shoppers in and probably goes a long way to increasing sales. my friends recently finished building a house where they’re going to move soon in their retirement that they’ll be moving to full time. they went to a local barn sale and came back with a full-sized piece of construction equipment, some sort of digger/bulldozer thing. they’re going to use to plow their long driveway in the winter, to help dig out a space for their planned pole barn, to move trees they had to take down, and who know’s what else? her husband is having the time of his life? she bought some decorations for their new house that were handmade and painted and a used dresser and bed set that she loves, all for a very reasonable price. I want to go with them the next time they go!
Your friends really made some great finds at that barn sale. Good for them. It sounds like they are happy and looking forward to the next chapter in their lives. Thanks for sharing their story.
yes, they are thrilled
p.s. love your title
Thank you. Sometimes titles pop into my head and I know it’s just right for the post.
Missed another event…didn’t see any advertising…maybe only the faribault area? I drove down that road on the way to the farm on Friday…hmmmm Looks like a great event…same weekend every year?
Debbie Glende puts signs up around Faribault and often advertises in the local paper. I only knew about Nicole’s sale because I saw her sign when we arrived in Cannon City. And, yes, these two sales are around the same time every year. Debbie also has a sale in December and another in spring. You can find her on Facebook under The Crabby Wren.
these are both absolutely great finds! What fun you must have had walking through it all.
It was fun. These sales were well-presented with lots of unique goods.
It looks like you both were having a good time!
We did have a good time. There’s plenty for guys to poke through, too, not just women.