Treasures from the Little Prince

Yesterday, I reported on the frog-sale and promised pictures of the things I got from the fun yard sale that followed.  Here they are!

A collection of Civil War bullets and a button or two -- now I have something new to research!.

A pair of Holt Howard mouse salt and peppers and some other fun plastic shakers.  Penguins seem to be very hot right now.

Some cool flash cards -- some with illustrations

Asian pictures -- in need of a good cleaning!  The pictures are okay, but I really liked the red mats and white box frames (so mid-century)

A 1960s chinese checkers game.  A regular checker board is on the back

This enamelware double boiler is in GREAT shape!

An old desk lamp -- also in need of cleaning.  It doesn't work (though they told me it did) and I don't know if I'll have to rewire it or just replace the fluorescent bulb

Some cool old snack/lunch trays

An OLD Pepsi bottle and some paperweights. The pink bowl has a chip, so the seller threw it in for free. I really like the mid-century look of it, though

This is a short post and the pictures aren't great, but I've been really rushed!  We're going to a week-long conference where there will be lots of meetings and dinners (which means lots of wardrobe changes) and I've been letting my junking get in the way of my laundry and packing!  It's time to get to work.

 I went to Greenmead Flea Market today and brought home LOTS of vintage goodies.  I spent most of the afternoon sorting and finding basement space for all of it. That's a story for another day...

I hope you all had a great thrifting weekend!

I FINALLY Met a Sale I Didn't Like

I went to the mall yesterday to fluff the booth (we've had a sale this week and I had LOTS of holes to fill -- what a wonderful problem to have).  I saw an estate sale in the same town as the mall and planned my morning to stop there first.  There were 3 possible sales to go to and, true to Murphy's Law, they were in 3 different directions so there was no way to get to them all without spending most of the day in the car.

I chose poorly...

I was number 20 and the first 15 people went in first.  I should have known it was going to be bad when they all began trickling out either empty-handed or with only one or two purchases.

The prices were the highest I've ever seen at any sale!  I've never been to a sale before where every item (large and small) was priced at or above mall prices.  Some things were 2 or 3 times higher!  As I looked over the stuff in the kitchen ($250 for an oil lamp - without a shade - that would retail for $40...) an acquaintance who was there told me about a yard sale three blocks over -- "It's just your kind of stuff and I know you'll love it."

I couldn't wait to shake the dust from that frog-sale off my feet!  I don't think I've ever left a sale without buying something or at least seeing something I wished I could have had.  Beware of Dumar Estate Sales... What a waste!

I got a few fun things at the yard sale, but haven't had a chance to get pictures yet -- hopefully I'll post those tomorrow.

Mid-century Sweetness!

Last week I drove to many sales and found all frogs, until the very end.  I had worked through the entire list of ones from the paper and craigslist and found almost nothing, but was making my way to the mall to fluff my booth.  At the end, I passed one pretty close to the mall and it turned out to be a prince!

The family was selling many items from their mom, who had passed away about 3 years ago.  She must have been a lover of mid-century or just a lady who couldn't throw anything away, because they had some very nice stuff.

Odds & ends -- Melmac, chartreuse china, bakelite handled pickle forks

Some cool 1960s ivy painted glasses and a tiny pitcher

A covered casserole with great decoration

A very unusual tall triangle lucite pitcher -- with a handle at the bottom and turquoise & yellow plaid side.  

A kitty cookie jar -- no maker's mark or identifier

I showed this to you yesterday, but it deserves a second mention in the mid-century sweetness post because it's so totally sweet:  a dark turquoise beverage set with hand-blown stir stick & 4 little glasses.  There's no maker's mark, but the shape of the pitcher and handle placement is so much like Blendo that I think it must be West Virginia Glass.

Here are the day's best mid-century finds -- a Metlox Poppytrail Swordfish vase (art pottery designed and signed by Romanelli) and 2 Poppytrail spiral candleholders.  They're so fine!  The only flaw is a VERY tiny flea bite on the end of the swordfish's nose (bill? sword? -- whatever it's called).  I just love these!

Another great find was this glass ceiling light cover with cowboys on bucking broncos.  It's also in near-mint condition with no color loss.  It had hung in the seller's brother's bedroom the whole time they were growing up, was taken down and immediately packed away.  Lucky for me!

Lots of Little Sales

I haven't been to a great sale in a very long time.  On Thursdays after work (usually around 2:00) I go to some local garage sales, but they've always been really picked over so all the good finds and great deals are gone.  I usually try to find some good ones on Fridays before I go to the mall, but even those have been more frogs than princes.

That said, I did go to an interesting sale last Saturday.  It was advertised as 'Cleaning out grandma & grandpa's place, lots of household and linens and barn stuff.  Much of it will be free'.  Seriously -- who can pass up a sale that advertises FREE?

It was about 45 minutes from my house, down lots of country back roads.  It was really a pretty drive on a sunny day and I got there about 20 minutes before it was open.  I saw a lady in the garage and she said she was open and I should come on in.  No kidding -- most of it was free!  Nothing was spectacular and some bordered on junk, but I did get a couple of metal utility carts and a chest of drawers that need to be painted, a mid-century coffee table, small side table, some linens and many games.  There were two great finds:  a mid-century wall shelf unit (one of the geometric ones) and a Hasko Mystic Board.  My van was completely packed (one of the men there had to help me arrange it all to get everything in) and I only spent $12!  That's fun!

Unfortunately, Mr. KV helped me unload it before I remembered to take pictures.  Here's the Mystic Board, though.

It's like a Ouija board and is from the 1940s.
I'd never heard of them, but it's an interesting piece

Here are some other treasures I've picked up in the past few weeks.

Collie bookends.  They've been mended, but are still cool

A hodge-podge of glasses and cups

Linens and Cookbooks

A tidbit tray made from china (I've often wondered if the manufacturers made these or if kits were sold for do-it-your-selfers, as they're obviously made from plates & bowls)

Irmi child's step chair

Pyrex!

Child's tinware

Vintage birthday candle holders in their original boxes

A MARVELOUS mid-century drink set.
It even has a blown-glass stirrer!

Some of these treasures went to the mall and others to Etsy -- some are already sold!   It's a good thing, too, because there are gallons and gallons of gas represented in those few pictures.  I'm really looking forward to the end of garage sale season, so I can go back to estate sales without feeling like I'm missing something by not hitting the road and going from yard sale to yard sale.

I now Pronounce You 'Man & Wife'!

Well, it's Thursday and the wedding is over and the newlyweds are safely (except for a sprained wrist) on their honeymoon. There was a point last week when I wondered if we would all survive the big event, but we did!

As much as I'd love to jump right back into to thrift-treasure posts, the good-mom in me just has to share a little about THE WEDDING.

From Wednesday afternoon on, this yard was just a beehive of activity!  The tent (complete with side-walls, tables, chairs, dance floor, and linens) was supposed to be here on Wednesday at noon.  Without  going into too much detail, I'll just tell you that it all arrived in 3 stages over 3 days, with the LINENS arriving on Friday afternoon.  Needless to say, the bride was not happy (and was really just a step or two above frantic)!

The tent on Thursday morning

The tent on Friday morning

The new dock (complete with the groom and best man fishing on Thursday afternoon) 

There were so many people in our house on Friday and Saturday, getting things ready, running errands, getting showers, getting 'beautified' and changing clothes (I estimate 15-18), that you could barely move. At one point about an hour before the wedding, I walked past a young man who'd obviously just showered in our basement bathroom and I had absolutely NO idea who he was! I just smiled and said hi!

Here's the funny part -- I grew up in a household where my mom would freak out if she even had 4 people over for dinner, unless they were very close friends.  Every entertainment was a major event, causing so much tension and upset that it just wasn't worth doing it.  My husband (and his family) couldn't be more opposite -- they love nothing more than opening up their home to people.  Thankfully, I've learned a lot from him in 35 years and have gotten much more relaxed about it all.  Still, my sister said no less than 6 times on Saturday night, "I can't believe you did this!  Our mother would be amazed!"  Well, I'm amazed, too!

The weather was absolutely picture-perfect... 75 and sunny, with a light breeze, a brilliant blue sky and big fluffy movie-clouds.

At about 11:00, the 'venue' was ready and that's when I shot these pictures:

Even the scarecrow dressed up for the wedding

The gate & flowerbed leading to the garden

This picture and the one above are the bed where we had 3 dead pines removed.  The flowers were hanging baskets I bought on Wednesday!  As a thrifter/hoarder, I had plenty of containers for them...

This bed was completely dug up, 'repaired' and the plants replanted.  They didn't come back very well, so they were helped along with some annuals.

The inside of the tent on Saturday

No venue is complete without the 'necessaries'

50 to100 guests sat (and stood) by a 275+ year-old oak tree as my son & his bride were married.  It was his special request to be married there because of the age and strength of the oak (pretty neat imagery, I think).

The wedding site & the old oak tree

I got as far back as I could
and you still don't get a feel for how big the tree is

The reception was in the tent between our barn and garden and about 125 people were there for that.  We celebrated the bride & groom, at cookout food, wedding cake and danced the night away.

I had cleaned out the chicken coop on Tuesday and it's a good thing I did -- lots of people wanted to see the girls and get their picture taken with them.  It was sort of a poor man's photo booth!  Between the loud music, extra light, 'tourists' in the hen house and people walking back and forth, the girls were NOT amused!

I can still hardly believe that we actually hosted a wedding here!  I was busy Saturday night being 'mother of the groom' and didn't take a single picture -- fortunately, we have the wonder of Facebook!  Within an hour there were pictures online that I could grab for this post.

The happy newlyweds

First dance as man & wife

As a parting shot, I'll share THIS parting shot -- it's one of my favorites and the one I thought they should use for an engagement picture.  That's Sylvia, the world's sweetest dog, in the foreground!

Slow down, you move too fast...

If you're 'of a certain age' (like I am) you'll remember those lyrics from Simon and Garfunkle and can probably sing the rest of the song.  Those words have taken on new meaning for me this summer because of THE WEDDING (cue ominous music).

Having your son get married is a big deal.  Having the wedding AND reception at your house is a BIGGER deal!  We have been SO busy getting the yard ready and making sure that nothing's been overlooked that we've barely had time to breathe.  There have been wedding showers and dress shopping trips and what seems like a thousand details to see to.  The big day is a week from this Saturday and *I think* everything is coming together.

I feel bad that I haven't posted much this summer.  Sadly, I haven't shopped much either.  My day job keeps me busy until mid-afternoon on Thursdays and by then the garage sales in our area are picked over and I'm too tired to drive very far.  Fridays are spent at the mall 'fluffing' the booth and occasionally stopping at a sale along the way.  I never really thought about what a luxury it was to be able to hit estate sales on Fridays and Saturdays until I didn't have time for them any more.

Here's the good news, though...our yard is looking great!  The aging pine trees are gone and new landscape beds with white birches and a redbud are in their places.  The dock on the pond has been rebuilt.  Lighting's being added outside the barn (how else will people find the port-a-potties in the dark?).  The perennial beds are rejuvenated and the weeds are gone from the garden.   I'll take pictures when everything is ready and will post them so that you can all see that, though I don't have many thrift finds to show, I've at least been doing something!  Who knows -- a thrift find or two might sneak in to the pictures, too!