$5

I have always adored the Made in Germany Waechtersbach Christmas pattern. Always!  I grew up with one single piece of it that my mom brought out at Christmastime - a mug.  It was my favorite mug because it said 1979 on it, my birth year, and because it long kept my cocoa hot.  When I see the pattern now, and I know you can still buy it new in department stores, I get happily nostalgic.

Now, I've been scouring the thrifts and for the first time in months, this purchase is one I'd actually consider a score.   I found both bowls at a Goodwill, bottom shelf (I'm adding bottom shelf since I now have a belly; bending down is like an Olympic sport and mine was a gold medal performance).  There were two other pieces: a cupcake stand and a tray, but both were chipped beyond my liking.  Since it was "Christmas," both pieces were half price.  So the total came to a whopping five bucks and change.  Woohoo!

all things george

A baby is on the way, a baby is on the way!  I'm due to have a little boy in June and we're naming him George.  Things may turn a little childish here...!

I am searching the thrifts for this 1970s children's lit series...it was a favorite of mine as a little girl.  I'm hoping to find some to -gasp- tear apart and maybe frame for his nursery (which, by the way, I haven't even started!).  These are the sweetest hippos; their silly stories could make you smile even on your worst day!

all in the family

At least someone in the family is having luck at the thrift shops!  Check out what the older sis has recently scored...!

give me liberty

I remember the first time I learned of Liberty; I was thirteen and somewhere on the East Coast with my mom.  We were touring material shops in the Northeast and one of our stops was like a Liberty warehouse.  The prints on their own were plenty charming, but the feel of the cotton mesmerized me!  I didn't have enough spending money to buy any yardage, but I'm glad I didn't - the memory alone is worth enough.  And now as you probably know, Liberty is at Target!  Glee!  I only wish it were a permanent fix.

$1

Taking a page from my mom's own book and perfecting the birthday gift that is a bunch of little, thoughtful presents in one big package and using it on her!  Her birthday is approaching in early April and I found this sweet little creamer to put in her package.

It reads, on the bottom, "Made in America."  I like that!  The brand is Lamberton Scammell and through painless detective work I discovered it is an old brand of restaurant ware (also, not very common).

maine reason

I know, I know: what the heck is this doing here?  Oh, I'm dreaming of tote bags and a summer in Maine, that's all!

happy red & pink & white

Loving this Valentine's Day banner, homemade by mom.

to last longer

In a fit of decluttering and consolidation a couple weeks ago, my beloved House & Gardens just had to go. 

If I were more on top of things, I would have scoured every last issue and kept pages for inspiration.  But I find that I don't consult inspiration pages very often, shame!

At least I had the presence of mind to take a picture of them once.  Those colorful spines = swoon.

a gift from mom

This is an example of two perfect worlds colliding: grey + creamer.  What's more sophisticated?  I could stare at this little beauty all day.

...blog more?

You can find out your resolution here (source).  How much would I love to go camping?  Oh, insanely much! Airstream dreams my friends, Airstream dreams.

Here's an update:  I did get a new camera, and I have been thrifting, and each time someone comments here I am so terribly ashamed I don't blog here more!  I do love this blog and I do love what this blog could be if I were more on top of things.  Thank you all for visiting, even when I'm sloppy and neglect it for weeks, even months.  May you all have a safe New Year's Eve and welcome 2010 with some bubbly and the blue moon.  Here's to a year of thrifting your best finds and me around here lots more.

in lieu of thrifting, some inspiration

If you're like me and you hear the word folksy, you think of Sarah Palin's vocabulary and grammar and cringe.

I like some folksy in small amounts (I do not like any Sarah); I hereby give you some good folksy:

keeping tabs

My mom sent me these Nu-Vise signals, your original Post-Its.  So fabulous!

.50 x 2

You know me, I find it very hard to resist a bread and butter plate, especially of the restaurant ware variety!  I found two of these darling plates at a thrift shop in Portland recently.  They were just calling out to me!

For inquiring minds (SOURCE):

This is a piece of TEPCO (Technical Porcelain and China Ware Co., El Cerrito, California, 1918-1968); from a Tepco catalog:  "One of our employees, who spent a considerable amount of time in the Hawaiian Islands, returned to the Tepco factory and told us about this beautiful flower that grows everywhere on the islands. After seeing the hibiscus 'Tepco China' decided to use this flower in an over-all pattern, thus calling it 'Hawaiian.'"  The pattern was made during 1930-1960.

MARGARET!

I have an odd thing for office supplies, especially of the vintage sort.  These stickers were found by me in my girlhood bedroom, where I was this past Thanksgiving.  I can't remember where I originally scored them.  I have a few theories:  they came from my grandpa (my grandma used to work for an office supply company); they came from my mom (she knows about the odd thing I have); or I sniped them at a garage sale way back in the day.  I can't remember!  But when I stumbled upon them last week, I was just as charmed as I'm sure I originally was!

.99

Here's the scoop:  I love Christmas!  I'm still growing my very small collection of decorations, therefore I do scan the holiday aisle(s) in the thrifts for small treasures.  My heart swells for homemade ceramics (see Mr. Jack-O-Lantern here), and I have this vision lately to find dozens of ceramic trees to put all over my "mantle" -- a.k.a. the top of one of my cabinets -- thereby creating a forest of fancies.  My grandma made a tree like this way back in the day, and it still fascinates me.  Anyway, this little guy, perhaps a napkin holder at one time, might hold my holiday cards.  Like I get that many!  But who knows...maybe he'll bring me tons this year!

$10

I saw this little painting propped up in a thrift store and thought I might want to hang it up in my future "reading room."  Even though I doubt it was painted with Oregon in mind, those colors exactly are an Oregon beach.  It was painted at least a few decades ago -- the back of the canvas indicates as such, but unfortunately it's not signed so I can't offer a little thank-you to the artist. 

Happy Thanksgiving to all!  ♥

$1.99

A nice Pyrex surprise found at the Goodwill.  Love this pattern!

$3.98

Finally!  I have the whole set: yellow, green, red, and now the blue nesting mixing bowls...and I found two blues at once!  They're definitely prettier in person than this picture...I'll have to photograph the bowls altogether.  Make them feel special, you know?  Teehee.

sub-collection

Hope your Autumn season has been crisp and that you make a fire in your fireplace in my name!  We've had a very warm fall here, but that changed this morning (thankfully!).  I put these Pyrex pieces out for my Halloween display and they're hanging on through what remains of Autumn.  I love them altogether like this.

A few (but very few) recent trips to the thrifts turned up some goodies which I'll share here soon.

from a friend

When people know what you collect and seek it out for you, you should know that you are dealing in rare, exceptionally great friends.

one for the portrait collection

As you know, I'm against online auctions.  However, when Steve showed me this portrait of Maria Callas on Goodwill's auction site, I told him I had to have it, no matter what.  I loved it at first sight (Amy Butler says nothing comes home with her unless she loves loves loves it, and I've adopted that too - this portrait? = loves times three italicized).  Originally commissioned for a small opera house on the West Coast, its starting bid of $5 quickly turned into a pretty penny, however...I was happy to increase, increase, increase the bid.

Now, let's delight in the lip detail:

$1.29 x 3

It's Labor Day and the library is closed! And so are my favorite thrifting spots! Oh snap!

I picked up three of these darling little apple dishes at Goodwill last weekend - putting my low-budget librarian skills to work, I googled the maker and found that they're lazy Susan dishes by Hoenig of California. They are stunners. I think these'll end up filled with peppermints, or apple crisp and vanilla ice cream, whaddya say.

a quick word on desks

I like when desks aren't in offices - when they're near pianos, uncluttered and decorated with fresh flowers.  The whole scene makes me want to stop what I'm doing right now and hand write a letter or two.

[image scanned from Metropolitan Home]

$16

I have a soft spot for paint-by-numbers. And these ones were done nicely and they're old. Which is a plus.

book to check out someday...

While I do work in the business of recommending books, this happens to be one I've been meaning to check out...I do love handwriting.

chalk it up to the chalk candle

Wow.

How could we make these?

We could certainly buy one here if we wanted.

by the firelight

Want to make your backyard deck cooler than your front porch?  I think all you have to do is make sure it has a fireplace and some homemade jam jar lanterns [also my photo source] and you're good to go party out back.  I'd try to make some jam jar lanterns, but the instructions scared me away.  It's probably a lot simpler than it reads...

it seemed like a good idea at the time

We decided to try out the Lake Worth Flea Market today.  I'm not going to lie: we had some expectations.

The granny panties were not part of them.  Or anything else.  Thumbs down!

everything below i love

I'm pro-chalkboard.

If you have a chalkboard, please make sure there are messages or doodles on it at all times.

Scanned from a ReadyMade - I'm not sure which issue?

blast!

I was thrifting this morning and happened upon a woman with a cart full of Pyrex.  It was the worst morning of my life!  I met my match, except she had a lot of crap in her cart, too.  Things yours truly would never buy.  But clearly her intent was to buy the Pyrex-look.  And sell it on eBay or something.