Thrift & Antique store round-up

I finally found a few new pieces at Goodwill the other day!

This delphite bowl set me back $6.99. I'd seen it before in antique stores with it's companion dip bowl twice before now - once with the bracket for 35 dollars and once without for 25, but it's been a few years back. And those were prices I didn't love for pieces I didn't thoroughly love, so I passed. The time I found this set with a bracket, I picked it up and walked around with it, and was sure I was going to buy it until I literally walked into the next antique booth on the other side and found the square turquoise hostess chip & dip set, complete with the hard-to-find square bracket - all for 10 dollars less than the other booth wanted for the delphite grapes set.

I really couldn't afford both sets, so I put the delphite back and happily paid 25 dollars for my square turquoise hostess set. Little by little, I'm starting to find pieces that I have never seen in real life, or saw once several years ago, and I'm hoping that's a continuing trend.

These guys were also waiting for me the same day - a butter yellow loaf pan, clear refrigerator dish that I bought for the lid, and another spare lid. None of these were terribly expensive, and I'm happy to have them.

These two sweet pink pieces were antique store purchases, but less than ten bucks for both. Thems thrift store prices - for around here, at least. I saw a Pink Gooseberry mixing bowl set for 95 dollars the other day. I can only shake my head. Too rich for my blood. But I'll happily snap up any Pink Gooseberry I see for a reasonable price, for sure.

These are Corelle/Pyrex go-along glasses, marked Bradley & Associates. There's something slightly off about the pattern that makes me think these weren't official go-alongs.

I don't have any Snowflake Blue Corelle. I just literally never see it. Over the years, I've bought my mom a huge set of Butterfly Gold, one piece at a time. And I've driven myself crazy daisy buying Spring Blossom Green. And did I mention I've got pieces and parts of the Wildflower and Meadow patterns too?  (It never ends, does it?)

I'd love to cobble a set of Snowflake Blue Corelle together with the Pyrex Coordinates and have that be my main pattern. Fingers crossed that these glasses are just the first of wave of inexpensive Snowflake Blue items to come my way. :-)

And since this is probably my last post before Christmas, I just want to wish a very Happy Holiday Season to everyone who reads this little blog of mine. I appreciate you so much!

Hope you and yours are Happy and Well!

Happy Thrifting!

Blue Christmas

Haven't been thrifting much lately, and when I have, the shelves are bare. I've read here and there that donations are down in general and kitchen stuff - my favorite- is getting snapped up quick for Holiday meals.

So, again, I'm turning to antique stores to get my vintage fix.

I haven't run across Colonial Mist all that often, and really didn't intend to collect it, but these two bowls were sold together for 12 dollars - thriftier priced than most other items I was seeing - so I bought. I like that the missing 402 and largest sized 404 bowls could come in either white with a blue pattern or be decorated the same as these. As I understand it, the difference is that the set alternated colors when it was sold together in the same box as a 3 or 4 bowl set, but only the solid blue with white pattern was sold as open stock.

The turquoise-on-white version of Butterprint is a duplicate for me, but it came from a booth having a 20% off sale, so it came home with me as well. My husband says I have a sickness for Butterprint. Personally I agree, I just think it also extends out to practically any Pyrex pattern, and pretty much every other type of decorated opal white/milk glass kitchenware - Pyrex, Fire King, Hazel Atlas, McKee etc. :-)

And finally, these are Christmas presents. My husband ordered them as a surprise for me. They arrived just moments before we were headed out the door together. And since they were glass, he was anxious to inspect the package and make sure everything was a-okay. So he just gave them to me early.

(Of course, me standing there like a little kid with Gimme-Gimme-Gimme eyes probably had something to do with getting them early, LOL)

I hope to find the solid blue 402 that nests between them, but for now, my two Horizon Blue bowls are nesting in between the two Snowflake Blue bowls I own, making a sort of blue set of their very own.

Hope you are finding grand and thrifty vintage treasures!

Happy Thrifting!

Long time no see

It seems like ages since my last post. I came down with a bad flu that lasted for two weeks. My husband started coming down with it just as I was getting better. So we just haven't gotten out and about much. Here's my odds and ends from yesterday.

This is the very first vintage tablecloth I've ever found at a thrift store. I think it's actually long enough to fit my table! It was $2.99. It would have been perfect for Thanksgiving, but I didn't cook this year (thankfully), so it's alright. Maybe next year :-)

I already have these Richard Simmons cookbooks, but they were a dollar, so I picked them up as spares. The Farewell to Fat book is not a diet/weight-loss cookbook, but more of a how-to make a variety of foods, from appetizers to main course, that are healthier lifestyle choices. I've made two recipes from this book - the first is called "Puff the Magic Meal" (I'm not kidding about the title), and "Campfire Soup" - both of which were quite tasty and I'd make again. Next recipe I'm eyeing is "Angel Eggs", and lower-everything alternative to Deviled Eggs.

Next up, can you guess which one of these is *NOT* vintage? Why, the lovely red dot tumblers that I just bought at the DOLLAR TREE of all places! They are marked with a Made in Mexico sticker, but washed off, reveals the Libbey mark (a stylized cursive "L").

Run, don't walk, to your nearest Dollar Tree and check these out. They also had snowflake glasses that would look darling with snowflake Pyrex, and Holly Berry glasses. I think these are all fantastic alternatives for folks who are hunting authentic-look and feel glasses in vintage styles, but don't want to pay the vintage prices for them - especially if you are wanting a whole set.  Let me know if you go hunting these glasses down and see other patterns or colors!

The turquoise boomerang glass was a single I picked up for 49 cents at the same thrift. I have a pink one just like it. Maybe a decade from now I'll have stumbled into the whole set, lol!

And finally, it was Corningware day, even though I didn't actually score a single piece of it. These are all accessories, but I think they are neat. This is an electromatic skillet. I haven't even washed it yet, much less tried it out, but I think it's pretty cool. I'll probably try to make eggs or something simple in it - assuming it still works, of course. The cradle above it is for the same size piece.

And my prize for the day was a totally mint in box petite pan handle. I love petite pans. They are my favorite Corning Ware piece. I can't see using these small pieces on the stove, but I think it's just ridiculously adorable that they even made a handle for it at all. The most practical use I can think of for it would be as a butter warmer.

Glad to be back on my feet again. Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!

Happy Thrifting!

Long time no thrift

I just realized that every picture I've posted here relates to beverages. Unintentional themed thrifting!

First up, I love these polka dot glasses. There were just the 3 of them, but you never know when you'll find the odd matching piece. I love colorful dotted drinking glasses. I have a thing for them and anything striped. Good ways to bring in color that can also can be paired with different sets of dishes for maximum versatility.

I tend to like that more than patterned drinking glasses. That is, until I find a pattern like this one:

These little sweethearts are part of the Strawberry Sunday pattern in Corning Ware and Corelle. I have a single Strawberry Sunday casserole that I previously thrifted. This is one of those patterns I'd love to find more of.

These were all thrifted, except the turquoise vintage Fiesta mug on the left. I picked it up for 5 dollars at an antique store. Check out the lenticular winky eyes on the puppy mug!  That's 49 cents worth of fun if I've ever seen it :-)

Help my soul, I can't hardly force myself to call this pattern Spring Blossom Green. In my heart, it will always be "Crazy Daisy", cause it makes me a little nuts that I keep collecting it!

And I've somehow gone from absolutely loathing the open-handle cups to really liking them. No idea why. I have two of them already, and they've become one of my favorite go-to afternoon teacups. After ignoring them for years, I think I want them in all or most the patterns they came in.

Finally, these Corning Ware coffee percs were fairly cheap. The Blue Cornflower is a 6 cup. It was rode hard and put up wet, meaning I need to find a good guide for cleaning up the inside of this pot.

The black trefoil pattern is a new one to me. It's a simple, rather delicate design that I think I've seen only once before, and I'm probably going to keep it just for the novelty of it.

Both of these percs were involved in recalls in the 1970's due to hazard that the body could become separated from the metal top & handle. I've never tried one of these out because of this issue. I'd really like to find one of the models were the body and spout are all one piece with the band and handle fastened around the neck of it.

All in all, good thrifting day. Only saw one sad piece of dishwashed Pyrex (that I didn't buy). And of course they wanted a fortune for it. Boooo. Hissssssss. Other Negative Noises...................... Haha.

Hope you are finding awesome goodies!

Happy Thrifting!

Surprise antiquing

The goodies

Yesterday hubs & I treated ourselves to a shopping trip that we usually only go on once or twice a year. Last time we'd been in the area was on my birthday. This time there wasn't any particular reason to go, except we had some Christmas shopping in mind. I was just tired of all my usual places & high prices, and thought that if I was going to fork out some cash, I might as well spend it in an area with several large antique stores. Increase the odds. Usually, it's some occasion like birthday or anniversary, and we know in advance we're going, so we try to save up some extra money. But this time was completely spontaneous, no extra money to spend really, just our regular pocket change.

The irony was, I got a lot more for my money than I have been closer to home. I was happy to find some neat pieces for reasonable prices, I'm just sad that my immediate area is so high priced. And there's no real reason for it either, except for the fact that the stuff mostly is selling at these prices. I'm just not the one buying it, most of the time.

One last rant before I go on to the loot shoot: Yesterday I saw some Depression Glass Hoosier cabinet style jars that were actually in my price range. I didn't buy any of them because I would have blown through my budget in two pieces. But still, boy were they were tempting. There was a large green Hocking jar, sans lid, that I would have bought anyway, but it had a crack along the bottom I didn't see at first. About broke my heart.

I don't have a lot of Depression Era stuff for one simple reason: I can't afford it. What pieces I do have came to me via thrifts and auctions at well below retail or ebay prices. I love my Pyrex, but I am hitting a collector conundrum: Do I spend 15 dollars on my four hundredth piece of Pyrex or do I put five or ten more dollars with it and buy a single nice Depression Glass canister? If Pyrex prices continue to skyrocket and Depression Era pieces become more available, I think my choice will be clear.

Rant over, on to the loot!

A Moon Deco and a Zodiac in the same day! What are the odds? Neither one of these pieces came with lids or cradles, sadly. And unfortunately, I think with these specific pieces it's the bells & whistles they came with that kind of make them cool. But on the plus side, they were cheap, so I couldn't pass them by. The Zodiac was 5 bucks, and the Moon Deco was 8. I passed up a lidless Moon Deco for around the same price when I first started collecting. I thought it would bother me that I didn't have the lid for it, so I let it go. I thought it was funny that the same piece cycled back around at the exact same price as before. So I bought it. I think this time I can use it without being bothered that it doesn't have it's snazzy deco lid. Maybe I'll find one some day.

These were also antique store purchases, but it felt like I was at the thrift. This is pretty much the closest to opal Pyrex that I ever find these days. I spent 7 dollars between the two pieces, which is also on par with thrifts in my area.

Everything in this picture I bought because it was cheap, except the Snowflake Blue casserole. It completes my 480 casserole set. I rarely see Snowflake Blue in person. It ranks right up there with Friendship in terms of scarcity/desirability. I'll pay a premium for a piece I don't have. And like Friendship, I might just break down and finish my sets by buying online.

And finally, all I can say is, I'm not worthy.

Oh my stars

These are so special to me. It had never even crossed my mind that I'd ever own a single one of these Kromex canisters. I've only ever seen them online, in the collections of people who own all sorts of other-worldly-levels of beautiful things. It never crossed my mind that I'd even see them, much less own them, much less have paid 8 dollars for the set of 3.

8 dollars.

This set is missing the smallest Tea canister. And the Sugar canister is cracked, right in between the u and the g. And they have some fading & yellowing compared to the flawless pink color on the inside of the lid.

But all that is like, who in the world cares about that! It's pink Kromex! They are beeyooteeful. I've been considering replacing the Sears Chicken canisters that have been my photo backdrop since I began this blog.

I dunno. As much as I love these pink beauties, I'm sentimentally attached to my chickens. So they stay. I have no idea where I'm putting my pink beauties, but it needs to be somewhere where they can be seen but aren't subjected to direct sunlight. No more fading on the lids if I can help it.

Finding these amazing, unexpected surprises are why I usually don't buy online. I try to save my pennies for adventures like these. Last week I'd very nearly spent my fun money on a Pyrex set online, but ended up letting it go. 18 dollars for shipping was just too big of a killjoy to me. I would have enjoyed the set, I'm sure. But like I said to my husband, if I'd bought it, I wouldn't have had the money to spend yesterday. Things work out for a reason, I believe.

I hope you're finding fantastic treasures!

Happy Thrifting!

Are these a set?

Yesterday my husband stopped at the thrift store after work and found me the smallest and largest of these bowls. It was missing the middle size bowl (the 323), but I realized that the two-toned blue bowl I had nested in my totally made-up set seemed like the right bowl for this one.

The smallest bowl makes me squee. A delphite-ish shade on the inside, a turquoise shade on the outside. Not the same shade as the 50's turquoise, but still very pretty. This set reminds me a bit of the Blue Americana Pyrex set that I've only ever seen in pictures, drool.

Not a great picture here, but you can see the difference between the inside and outside colors.

I wish I knew more about these bowls in general. They seem to be sold primarily as Pyrex Designs bowls. Patterns and colors seem to be 1980's through 1990's.

Something to watch out for is that there is sometimes a major difference between the 3-bowl set and the 4-bowl set. The order of the colors can change. Meaning, you can have a two bowls from the same set, both the same size, but two different colors. And I'm not sure if there is a book or a site that actually talks about these later designs. Anyone know of anything?

I guess this means I'm officially collecting these clear bottom bowls too. It never ends. Thanks Pyrex.

Happy Thrifting!

Auction loot

Went to an auction this weekend. There were a fair amount of things that my husband & I were interested in, but of course that was the stuff that went sky high. Everything I came home with was part of box lots at the end of the night.

These little Swanky Swigs were part of a box of probably 30 various drinking glasses I paid a whole dollar for. Since I didn't have any intention of buying a bazillion drinking glasses, I had nothing to cushion them with on the ride home. It was a musical ride, let me tell you. From the box I rescued these guys, a set of 8 juice glasses, and some pretty blue drinking glasses I'm giving to my mom. The rest of the lot is getting donated.

This was the only Pyrex of the night. It was also a box lot with half the kitchen sink thrown in just for good measure. The Corelle is better shape than it necessarily looks in the pictures. It's got the characteristic rust marks of Corelle & Corningware that hasn't been used in a decade or two. I can probably get them out pretty easily with Corning Ware cleaner or Bar Keeper's Friend. This lot was my priciest item of the night, 15 dollars. I need that Corelle like I need a hole in the head, but such is life.

I did find a couple of things at the thrift last week that I hadn't blogged about yet, but my camera batteries decided to die after the last photo. Perhaps they don't like Corelle. Or maybe they looooove Corelle and they didn't want anything to upstage it. Or perhaps personifying camera batteries is just silly.

Hope you are finding super snazzy stuff!

Happy Thrifting!

Weekend finds

I've been to a couple of thrift stores and 1 antique store this week but left with nothing but some Corning Ware lids. But this weekend the hubs and I headed down to our favorite weekend spot where there's lots and lots of pretty Pyrex, it just doesn't come cheap.

The Pyrex sandalwood striped bowl is the 402 size that came with the mixed color set. Surprisingly, I found it for 7 dollars at a flea market where I almost never find Pyrex. This one is a duplicate, but it's going to be part of an all Sandalwood bowl set, just one more left to go.

The two blue casseroles are the 473 size that goes with two different casserole sets. Neither came with lids, but luckily I have a bit of 470 lid hoard. The Snowflake Blue is one I didn't have, but the Butterprint I just bought because I have a sickness for Butterprint. All in all, it's probably my favorite pattern.

And finally, I'm in love! This is my first McKee bowl! It's just shy of 7 inches across. It was 15 dollars!!! I was so surprised to find it. McKee bowls and canisters rate very high on my list of super-neato kitchen wares, but I really never think about them because they are so rare in my area. Once in a blue moon a red Ships patterned piece will turn up but it's always pricey.

When I first started collecting, I got a collector's book for Christmas from my in-laws, called Kitchen Glassware of the Depression Years by Cathy and Gene Florence. It's still my favorite book to just randomly thumb through and pipe dream about. (Yes, even more so than my Pyrex books!~)

What I picked out from the book and decided even then was that my holy grail of vintage kitchen was McKee Dots stuff - mixing bowls, canisters, measuring cups, etc. Every time I go antiquing in a new area it crosses my mind at least once, wondering if I'll ever finally see a piece of McKee dots -any color- in person!

But this bow bowl was completely off the map for me. I don't even know how many bowls came in sets like these. Some McKee is pictured in my book, but there's really not a book that details McKee/Glasbake items like there is for Pyrex and Fire King. I've also thought that these bowls and patterns were older, closer to 30's - 40's Depression Era, but I somewhere I have a magazine with an original ad that shows this pattern and it's from the 1950's - more recent than I thought.

Hope you're finding thrifty treats and treasures!

Happy Thrifting!

Mini-vacation goodies

Hubby is off for a few days, so we've actually been able to hit up some yard sales, for once.

I had the best conversation with the lady I bought these from. Turns out we collect some of the same things. She gave me a great deal on these pieces. I'm completely in love with the green depression glass mixing bowl. The blue Pyrex bowl finished a primary set that needed that exact piece. And the turquoise open baker was a piece I didn't have, so I was thrilled with all of it!  

After buying these guys and chatting with the lady for a while, the very next place we stopped had this gorgeousness sitting right there on the table just waiting for me. This is the large 475 piece - a 2 1/2 quart casserole. It even had its lid. It was ten dollars. I didn't even try to negotiate. After seeing all the 30 dollar pieces of pink gooseberry last week, I was happy to give the lady a 10 dollar bill and walk away with this prize.

And while we were driving around, we stopped at a once-in-a-while antique store. The Snowflake Blue butter dish top was sitting by its lonesome, marked a dollar. I knew just what I was going to do with it. I paid too much for the red casserole, sold with a plain lid, but I had plans for it, too. 

Voila! Sets complete and pieces reunited!

I knew the butter dish bottom I bought at a thrift store would one day pay off. It's been sitting in my lid stash for quite some time, just waiting for a top to call its own.

And speaking of lid stash, my husband found some Pyrex Friendship lids at a yard sale over a year and a half ago. They've also been sitting in my lid stash awaiting a good use. When I bought the orange dish it didn't have a lid either, so its come in very handy that he picked those up for me. I'm so happy to have completed the 470 set. Now if only I could ever find the regular mixing bowls and oval casseroles!

I was thrilled with my finds and especially happy to get to goof-off and go yard sale-ing with my husband!

Hope you are having a great weekend!

Happy Thrifting!

Antique store finds & a Pyrex rant

Yesterday was frustrating. I came home with some good pieces of Pyrex but I paid top dollar for them, and spent the car ride home feeling frustrated and sad instead of happy. I'm just not adjusting to how popular Pyrex has become and how eager the dealers are to skin every last penny out of each piece they turn up with.

At this particular store, not even a year ago I was buying small pieces for between $ 4-8 dollars. Then they started marking the same small pieces $ 12-15. I was still hanging in there at those prices. But yesterday, this same store had almost every piece marked $ 25-30.

Bottom line is - I can't afford that. And if walking through antique stores is going to make me cry, I'm going to stop going.

(Yes, I'm going to go full-blown-tantrum here. It's my blog and I can cry if I want to. lol)

And I blew my entire fun-money budget in one place on 3 pieces. That budget, meager as it is, is what I'm supposed to have to spend over the course of two weeks for every thrift store and antique store I walk in to. Not blow it on 3 pieces the first time I leave the house.

Oh, and speaking of tantrum, did I mention that I saw more pink Pyrex yesterday alone that I've seen spread out of the entire time I've been collecting? One store had several high priced and not the greatest condition pieces of Pink Gooseberry, all of it between twenty and thirty dollars a piece.

Pass. But I sure did sulk about it.

Another store had solid pink & Pink Daisy. I bought the one solid pink mixing bowl they had and left the rest. 

This black Tulip promotional piece is a duplicate for me, but I'm sentimental about the one I have. My husband bought it for me when I first started collecting. So now I have one to keep in my users cabinet.

Finally, this is the one thing I thought I got a deal on. And I guess you could say it's my first Pyrex that is in its original box. It was 8 dollars. Everything is intact including the heat spreader grid in the original sleeve with usage instructions. This is a six cup model.

I have never used a percolator. I'm scared to use it. But I also really want to try it out. I've wanted to try a Pyrex perc since I found the body (but no guts) to the 9 cup model. I also have a Flamewear teapot and tea kettle that have never seen use in my house.

I love everything I bought, and I'm glad to have it. I've just hit a point where I'm having to really evaluate each purchase in a way I've never had to before and I don't like it. Simple as that. It's going to be a while before I develop thick enough skin that I can hold my enthusiasm back when I see a piece until I see the price tag.

I definitely feel like I'm staring down the same collector's dilemma that many others have faced over the years. At what point of the bubble do you just basically stop buying because the prices have clocked up over what you think the item is worth to you to have it?

Hope you are finding better deals than I am!

Happy Thrifting!

Pretty pink on a blue day

My finds yesterday, on a rainy day.

The Pink Gooseberry Pyrex Cinderella bowl is a duplicate for me, and an antique store purchase at 12 dollars. It came from the booth of one of my all-time favorite dealers, so I didn't mind paying the antique store price for it. :-)

And I have a story to tell about the pink gooseberry casserole!

I saw a thrift store employee walking by with the dish in his hands. I really don't recall exactly what I said or did to get his attention. (I think I went a little instinctual at that moment, lol!)

He asked me if I wanted to buy the dish (um....let me think about that. For like....GIMME GIMME GIMME GIMME).

Then he was like, you want the lid that goes with that? And I'm like.....compose yourself girl. Stop drooling, tell the nice man in coherent words and phrases that yes, indeed, you would like the lid that goes with it.

He goes back to the back to price it. I stand around pretending not to pee myself with happiness.

And just before he hands me the dish and lets me see how he's priced it, he says something like "That'll be $150,000."

And on some level, my brain is going...uh, that's what I'm afraid of!

But no. The sticker says $1.50

Oh Happy Day! Cheap Pyrex at the thrift? And it's Pink Gooseberry?! So much love!

And I had to include a picture of this ornament I picked up yesterday at Hobby Lobby. Of the 4 they had, this one was only one of two that had the bowl part still intact. I almost bought the other one too, but the beater part was bent and I wasn't confident I could unbend them without breaking them.

Hope you're finding thrifty treats and treasures!

Happy Thrifting!

Today's pretties

 

A few cool thrift finds today. Persimmon Fiesta mug to add to my brand new mug tree I just bought Wednesday. Vintage crinkle cut potato slicer for 59 cents. Cool pink aluminum Frigidaire ice cube tray, missing a section, but I still couldn't pass it up. I'd never seen pink before. It was 99 cents.

And ah-mazingly, I found pink Pyrex. I had this divided dish about two years ago, but I gave it to my mom, who loves pink Pyrex. It was 3.99. I really couldn't believe how cheap it was. It's in great shape, but I had to soak the nonsense out of it to remove a ridiculously impossible sticker from it. Like a Dymo label from 40 years ago. I soaked, Goo-Gone'd it, the works. Only repeated soaking and my pitiful fingernails did a thing to budge it. Sometimes you really have to work for good Pyrex!

The Butterprint casserole was an antique store purchase, but I had to have it because it completes my Butterprint turquoise on white version 470 set!

 The only Butterprint I'm missing now is the turquoise on white Cinderella mixing bowl set.

And finally, seasonal Pyrex. The Autumn Harvest Cinderella bowl was almost not bought. The shine has been dishwashed straight off the finish and there are utensil marks inside that BKF just won't phase. And did I mention it was expensive? Oh well. Addictions are brutal things. They make you hang out in Goodwill Boutique stores with insane pricers, just waiting for them to throw you an overpriced, dishwashed Pyrex bowl in a pattern you don't even like much, and by Josh, you'll buy it.

And finally, finally: the new decorated Pyrex Halloween bowls from this year. This year and last, Target had these bowls. I picked these up to use, but if there are any left I'll probably buy one more of each pattern. Because I'm a junky.

That's all folks!

Hope you are finding great things this weekend!

Happy Thrifting!

Anniversary goodness

Yesterday was mine & my husband's 8th wedding anniversary. (Happy Anniversary, honey!) We celebrated by going to a new-to-us area that had a reputation for being ripe with antique stores - which it was. But as a happy surprise, there were a lot of thrift stores we stopped at, too. Best of both worlds!

First up, Pyrex. Sadly there are no real bargains here. They're all splurges. Pyrex prices around me have gone nutsy-kookoo-cocoa-puffs. I bought the least koo-koo priced pieces of what I wanted and sadly left the rest behind. The heartbreakers of the day for me was a chipped, dishwashed-to-death turquoise baker priced at 15 bucks, and a small turquoise mixing bowl (a 402) for the hold-on-to-your-hats price of 48 dollars.

Four-tee-eight dollars. Pyrex, meet Jade-ite. Jade-ite, meet Pyrex. You two have now traded places.

Sometimes I do more of a happy dance for a spare lid than complete piece!

But I did find spare lids at various thrifts for bargain prices. These guys all ranged from 50 cents to a dollar so I was a happy camper.

Favorites of the day are the two blue-patterned Corning petite pans

And speaking of lids, I ended up picking up a few brand new plastic Petite Pan lids at the Corningware store. Now all my vintage petite pans have snazzy new lids! Just wish they'd had a few of the glass ones in stock. The Corningware teapot, cradle and two glass lids were all thrift store finds.

Fiesta rice bowls (a Dillard's exclusive) & vintage Carnival teacups

Fiesta & other HLC finds, old and new. The jadite-colored Seamist Fiesta cup rack was a 1990's accessory item. The teapot on the top of the rack is chipped, but it was a 1 dollar find at a junkers shop we found along the route. I found a few more 1 dollar items there including 2 Pyrex 503 refrigerator dish lids.

That's also where I got these two melmac guys here. Neither are marked. The harvest gold refrigerator dish is in the style of Lustro ware, but probably isn't. The confetti bowl is shaped just like a Texas Ware bowl I have, but it is unmarked as well. I was really happy to find a confetti piece for a dollar!

This Anchor Hocking Vitrock is the Oyster & Pearl pattern. Thought it would make a lovely go-along to my leaf & blossom Lotus snack sets in some of the same fired-on colors. It was only 8 dollars for the trio.

And finally, a hodge-podge of plates - all of which add to pattern I collect (yes, I'm dish-crazy! :-)

Starting at high noon is a Pyrex dinnerware salad plate. At 3 o'clock is a Petal platter in a lovely blue shade. Bottom plate is Hazel Atlas Ripple salad plate. My husband spotted that one. He's always so pleased when he spots something I think is cool. And I think it's cool that I have a husband who cares!

And finally, the large pink charger is MacBeth-Evans Depression Glass in the American Sweetheart pattern. I have one of these already, but it has a bad spot on it, so it's nice to have another one. It was at another side-of-the-road sell-a-bit-of-everything stores. I considered it a bargain at 5 dollars.

Fun day, very nice trip. The weather was nice and cool and it made for an enjoyable trip overall.

Hope you're finding great things this weekend!

Happy Thrifting!

Retro Workout with Richard Simmons

As you can see, I've amassed quite the little Richard Simmons workout video selection. I've even got an LP, Reach, that I couldn't manage to find for this photo, that has gotten itself buried in my husband's no-discernible-order record collection. I've picked them up for .49 cents or less at various thrift stores, mostly Goodwill.

And before you ask, no, I've not done them or listened to them all. Not even close.

The toning videos require toning bands that I don't have yet, so I haven't given them a spin at all.

I've also discovered that Richard plus Latin music a/o Broadway tunes are a No for me. lol!

Blast off! is my go-to retro Richard Simmons workout video.

But this video here, Blast Off!, is my favorite video. I try to do this one early in my day right after I'm done with coffee. Making it a part of my morning routine helps me make sure I've done at least some exercise that day.

The hook is totally right when it says "Your 20-minute energizing workout video". I really do feel energized after doing it. And clocking in at 20 minutes, it's definitely the shortest of the videos I've done.

It's not a part of the Sweatin' to the Oldies series, so the music isn't what I would think of as hit/popular/known. The songs may be original to the video, I don't know for sure. But I still actually rather enjoy the music. It's the kind of positive-message 'you can do it' stuff that I would typically classify myself as far too (cynical? judgmental? jerky?) to enjoy. But I do. I really do.

What can I say? When Richard Simmons looks me in the eye and tells me "You shined today" I believe him. I believe him with all my ever-cynical little heart :-)

I think it's unfortunate that this video is only available on VHS on the secondary market. A lot of folks I know just don't have VCR's anymore. I'd whole-heartedly recommend it for anyone who wants a good go-to workout video that practically anyone, young or old, fit or not, can just jump right into. I love it so much, I bought a second copy for in case my first one breaks. And if I find more copies, I'd buy them too, to give to people.

I've been thinking about doing a general review of the different videos as I do them, basically just giving information on how long they are, general difficulty, whether they require special equipment, etc. I just hope that if I do that, I won't run off my vintage kitchen friends!

And for those of you thinking Richard Simmons, why I haven't thought of that guy since the 1980's he's still around - Facebook, Youtube, you name it. This cracks me up.

Blessed and Lucky

All thrifted. Amazing.

Get out! Shut the front door! This much Pyrex at the thrift store? You dreamin' girl!

Actually, this is two days worth & from 6 different thrift stores. The large Town & Country oval casserole & the Verde green round casserole were things my husband spotted for me. He'd gone in to drop off several boxes of donations after work, and course he had to take a look around while he was there. He also found a couple of Corningware pieces that I intend to sell. I could not believe the Pyrex was just $3.99 a piece. I can count the number of times I've found Pyrex at this thrift store on my fingers and toes & it's was more expensive than that. I found my large oval charcoal snowflake casserole there when I very first started collecting, and it was $5.99 even then.

This was all found yesterday. Everything in the picture was thrifted except the Butterprint casserole in the dish drainer. It was an antique store purchase for 9 dollars.

The blue tray on the front left is unmarked Anchor Hocking Vitrock. These were decorated in the same colors as my Lotus sets, and I thought it'd make a nice go-along. It, the 503 fridgie lid, and the Butterfly Gold butter dish were 2 dollars each.

The Butterprint mixing bowls were basically antique store priced, but I was thrilled, thrilled, thrilled to find them. I actually have this set already, but I almost never use them, because I think I'm subconsciously squeamish of using the more expensive/higher demand pieces in my collection. Now that I have these as spares, I'm going to feel free to use them all the time. I can keep a set on display as still have some handy to use - best of both worlds.

The kitchy artwork....oh boy. One of these days I will reveal where all this stuff actually goes. I can't do it without showing the full extent of my Pyrex hoard collection.

And of course I can't post it without making it look the best it can, lest it end up on Pinterest. lol!

Look at these little cry babies! So cute.

And finally, I couldn't take a good picture of this mirror without including myself in it, so here's yet another unflattering shot.

The utensils shelf looks like a project someone made & then decided they didn't like how it turned out. It's got some looseness to it that needs to be fixed before I'd trust putting any weight on the spoon & folk hooks.

I love everything I bought, just wish it was a little easier on the pocketbook sometimes. I don't mean to complain, really I don't. It's just that a lot of the 1 & 2 dollar items came from the same thrift store that used to charge 25 and 50 cents a piece for identical items only a year or so ago. I've only been finding a couple of things at a time, if I'm lucky, so the rise in prices isn't as noticeable or bad. But like yesterday when I was fortunate to find many things I really liked all at the same time, the price increases really do sting. It's the same feeling I get every time I go to the grocery store these days. You get less and less for more and more money.

Still, I feel very fortunate & blessed, and happy with my new lovelies.

Hope you're having great luck & fortunate finds!

Happy Thrifting!