For the past year & a few months, I've been working from home on our church's website (which is just a portion of what I did when I worked in the office there). Originally I reduced my hours in the office so that I could help Mr. Kitschy Vintage with his business, but then he didn't really need me. I've loved being home and setting my own schedule and I haven't been bored for even one day! There are always so many projects and so little time.
However, all that ends on Monday. The church has offered me my old job back and I start working 4 days a week again. It's going to really be a transition! For the next two weeks, I'm finishing out my cashier job at the antique mall, as well, so next week it's 6 days straight for me (I'm tired just thinking about it).
I hope I'll be able to continue to make the booth work with a day job -- that's something I haven't had to juggle before now. Lots of other people do it, though (including my friend Bargain Hunter), so I know it can be done. It will just mean more late nights cleaning, repairing, painting and pricing things to go into the booth -- and more late nights blogging, too! It's a good thing I'm a night owl and not a morning person!
Friday, August 26, 2011
Thursday, August 25, 2011
A Beat-up Turquoise Challenge
Well, it's 'Would You Buy It Wednesday...oops -- make that Thursday'! Here's a little treasure I not only picked up at a sale, but actually paid them $1 for! It's a wind-up clock that doesn't work, with a music box that's missing its on-off knob, in a case that cracked and filthy. My dad used to always say "A fool and his money are soon parted" and I suppose that's true, but...
The sad little clock has SO MUCH going for it!
It's turquoise (which I can never resist)
It's broken (I love to take things apart and try to fix them)
It's cute and little -- only 6" long -- and will look great in my craft room
Would you have bought it? Probably not! Even if I get it fixed, it will still be missing the door over the clock and the case will still be cracked.
I'll let you know when I get it to run!
I'm linking to Junker Newbie's 'Would You Buy It Wednesday' -- go on over and see what other 'treasures' people have found. While you're there, add your own link.
The sad little clock has SO MUCH going for it!
It's turquoise (which I can never resist)
It's broken (I love to take things apart and try to fix them)
It's cute and little -- only 6" long -- and will look great in my craft room
Would you have bought it? Probably not! Even if I get it fixed, it will still be missing the door over the clock and the case will still be cracked.
I'll let you know when I get it to run!
I'm linking to Junker Newbie's 'Would You Buy It Wednesday' -- go on over and see what other 'treasures' people have found. While you're there, add your own link.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Thrift Shopping in the Land of 10,000 Lakes
Mr. Kitschy Vintage & I went on a road trip last week to visit two dear friends who've recently moved to Minnesota (more on that trip later). When my friend Kally was back here in Michigan, she went to a family-run estate sale with me and she caught the thrifting bug! So we checked out estatesales.net for Minnesota and off we went.
The next sale was much more reasonably priced but oh, so stinky! The basement had so much mold or mildew that we literally held our noses shut and held our breath while we looked as fast as we could. There was no way to breathe down there. The rest of the house smelled 'sour' but bearable. We went to several garage sales after that and had lots of fun wheeling and dealing. At the end of the day, here's what I found:
Kally got the entire thrifting and junking experience, complete with high prices, grimy merchandise and stinky houses. She was most excited to go to the first one on our list because they had a Danish Modern rocker she really liked in the picture. We got there early and were #14 & 15. When we got inside, the rocker was already sold -- but it had been priced at $695! A DM china cabinet with horizontally rolling doors was priced at $1900 (not yet sold). We didn't buy much there, though I did get a cute little feedsack quilt block stuffed dog (which I also paid too much for) and a homemade white terry cloth cat.
I have no idea why I bought the fake-fur bear along with them. What was I thinking?
I have no idea why I bought the fake-fur bear along with them. What was I thinking?
The next sale was much more reasonably priced but oh, so stinky! The basement had so much mold or mildew that we literally held our noses shut and held our breath while we looked as fast as we could. There was no way to breathe down there. The rest of the house smelled 'sour' but bearable. We went to several garage sales after that and had lots of fun wheeling and dealing. At the end of the day, here's what I found:
A set of 1970s Rubbermaid bowls with see-through lids -- so retro!
3 lime green Pyrex casseroles
A Franciscan Sycamore divided dish and a plastic faux-cut glass tray (these are REALLY handy in the sewing room)
Lots of little odds and ends -- see the pink rhinestone crown pin in the front?
A beat-up cutter quilt with very pretty squares. 
There's a funny story about this quilt -- I took it to the checkout, opened it up and began searching for the price sticker. I told the lady there was a $10 tag on it somewhere. She said, "I believe you, but they couldn't have looked at when they priced it! How about $5 for it?" So I got it for $5 -- great deal!
I hope you had some fun shopping last week! I have to catch up on all of my favorite blogs to see what finds there were...
A Franciscan Sycamore divided dish and a plastic faux-cut glass tray (these are REALLY handy in the sewing room)
Lots of little odds and ends -- see the pink rhinestone crown pin in the front?
A beat-up cutter quilt with very pretty squares. 
There's a funny story about this quilt -- I took it to the checkout, opened it up and began searching for the price sticker. I told the lady there was a $10 tag on it somewhere. She said, "I believe you, but they couldn't have looked at when they priced it! How about $5 for it?" So I got it for $5 -- great deal!
I hope you had some fun shopping last week! I have to catch up on all of my favorite blogs to see what finds there were...
Monday, August 8, 2011
A Cute Kitty Key Holder!
I think I've told you before, but once a month our antique mall owners host 'Dealer Day' for two hours before the mall opens. They always provide brunch (very nice!) and allow the dealers a chance to work on their booths without the customers there (so they can make as much mess as they need to). It's a really nice bonus to give us this and is one of the many reasons I like our mall so much.
Another thing Dealer Day allows is time for the dealers to shop each others' booths -- and that can be deadly! This past Sunday, I didn't even have to leave my row to find something I wanted. I went across the walkway to my friend Sandy's booth and there was this sweet homemade kitty key holder and shelf! Isn't it darling?
Sandy had just hung it up and as soon as I saw it I took it down and told her she'd better have something else to take its place, because that kitty was coming home with me.
I put it on top of my bins and as other dealers walked by and thought it was mine to sell, I could have sold it 2 or 3 times over. There's no way I'd part with him, though.
I love to buy homemade shelves and wall decor, including potholder holders and key holders. They were often made from a common pattern that was supplied by mail order companies (I even have some of the patterns at home). I thought the kitty looked familiar, so I checked out this little guy in my studio at home. Look familiar? I think the pattern-maker must have suggested a way to detail it, because the pockets and faces are so similar -- but the expressions on their faces are so different and individual to the 'artist'!
I also have these 2 teapot potholder holders, which were obviously made from a similar pattern, too, though the 'artist' may have improvised a little.
Anyway, I'm pretty happy with my little kitty key holder treasure!
Another thing Dealer Day allows is time for the dealers to shop each others' booths -- and that can be deadly! This past Sunday, I didn't even have to leave my row to find something I wanted. I went across the walkway to my friend Sandy's booth and there was this sweet homemade kitty key holder and shelf! Isn't it darling?
Sandy had just hung it up and as soon as I saw it I took it down and told her she'd better have something else to take its place, because that kitty was coming home with me.
I put it on top of my bins and as other dealers walked by and thought it was mine to sell, I could have sold it 2 or 3 times over. There's no way I'd part with him, though.
I love to buy homemade shelves and wall decor, including potholder holders and key holders. They were often made from a common pattern that was supplied by mail order companies (I even have some of the patterns at home). I thought the kitty looked familiar, so I checked out this little guy in my studio at home. Look familiar? I think the pattern-maker must have suggested a way to detail it, because the pockets and faces are so similar -- but the expressions on their faces are so different and individual to the 'artist'!
I also have these 2 teapot potholder holders, which were obviously made from a similar pattern, too, though the 'artist' may have improvised a little.
Anyway, I'm pretty happy with my little kitty key holder treasure!
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Would You Buy It?
I saw Bargain Hunter Treasure Seeker's post today where she linked to Junker Newbie for "Would You Buy It Wednesday".
I know I'm a few days late, but thought I'd share this unusual treasure that I found yesterday. It's 3 feet square and is metal with a wood slat back. It's a metal floor pad for a wood or coal burning stove, made back when those stoves were commonplace.
Look at the beautiful design on it!
How different things were a hundred (or even 50) years ago -- that they took such care to create something beautiful for a stove to sit on and cover up!
I think it's one of the most unusual and interesting things I've found. I can see it hung on a big wall or over a stairway as industrial art -- maybe in a house with a cathedral ceiling (probably not my 1960s ranch).
What about you? Would you have bought it or would you have passed it by? What would you do with it?
I know I'm a few days late, but thought I'd share this unusual treasure that I found yesterday. It's 3 feet square and is metal with a wood slat back. It's a metal floor pad for a wood or coal burning stove, made back when those stoves were commonplace.
Look at the beautiful design on it!
How different things were a hundred (or even 50) years ago -- that they took such care to create something beautiful for a stove to sit on and cover up!I think it's one of the most unusual and interesting things I've found. I can see it hung on a big wall or over a stairway as industrial art -- maybe in a house with a cathedral ceiling (probably not my 1960s ranch).
What about you? Would you have bought it or would you have passed it by? What would you do with it?
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Remember the old hoosier cabinet?
Do you remember the old hoosier cabinet that I picked up at a sale back in May? This is what it looked like then:
The body was original (but had been repainted), the doors and drawers had been replaced with homemade ones by someone years before and then the whole thing had been partially stripped by the people I bought it from. I hate to change original paint -- any chips or stains are part of the character of the piece -- but with the doors partially stripped, I had to repaint the whole thing.
I had to restore one of the glass doors and one of the drawers, which were falling apart, but it didn't need any other repair than that. I also added some legs because the old-man-made doors on the bottom were dragging on the ground. I painted it all a creamy vintage white, though I left the inside untouched -- I think it's still the original paint (though maybe not, as someone had painted over the manufacturer's plate).
It came with cream colored plastic knobs and handles. I was going to get glass knobs for the drawers, but couldn't find anything that I liked for the door pulls to go with them. So in the end, I spray painted the handles and knobs cherry red (after double- and triple-checking that they weren't bakelite!).
Here's how it looks now!
It feels so good to have another project completed! One down, about 10 more to go...
The body was original (but had been repainted), the doors and drawers had been replaced with homemade ones by someone years before and then the whole thing had been partially stripped by the people I bought it from. I hate to change original paint -- any chips or stains are part of the character of the piece -- but with the doors partially stripped, I had to repaint the whole thing.I had to restore one of the glass doors and one of the drawers, which were falling apart, but it didn't need any other repair than that. I also added some legs because the old-man-made doors on the bottom were dragging on the ground. I painted it all a creamy vintage white, though I left the inside untouched -- I think it's still the original paint (though maybe not, as someone had painted over the manufacturer's plate).
It came with cream colored plastic knobs and handles. I was going to get glass knobs for the drawers, but couldn't find anything that I liked for the door pulls to go with them. So in the end, I spray painted the handles and knobs cherry red (after double- and triple-checking that they weren't bakelite!).Here's how it looks now!
It feels so good to have another project completed! One down, about 10 more to go...
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