Last nights thrift finds

We almost didn't go out last night (I've been saying that a lot lately). We're still broke from our Valentine's Day splurges. But the only thrifts that were open were Goodwill, and I had some loyalty points burning a hole in my pocket, so we went anyway.

I couldn't resist these seahorses. So sweet and so utterly tacky. My husband kept accidentally calling them sawhorses. I told him that these sawhorses might just be hanging up on the bathroom wall when he gets home from work ;-)

Funny thing about the chicken mug stand - it's actually a matching Sears Chicken Little item to the very canisters behind it! Believe it or not, I didn't even put that together in my head until this morning. A little poking around the net led me to this page from the 1976 Sears Big Book. This page has tons of cute stuff, including a whole range of Merry Mushrooms items.

It was Corelle night. I bought the stack of hook handled mugs all taped together with the matching creamer. No sugar bowl. I always wonder when I find odds & ends like this if there was more donated and someone else just beat me to it, or if these were it. Worse still is when the cashier says something like "Oh, someone else just bought a whole bunch of this earlier."

Isn't that just the pits? I just try to smile it off, knowing that there are times I'm sure I was the other side of that equation.

Like when I bought these bowls, the cashier said "Oh, I know someone who comes in here looking for this very thing." I'm not sure if she meant the Spring Blossom pattern specifically, or if she meant Corelle in general. I didn't ask. I felt somewhat guilty, like I was buying the phantom other persons Corelle bowls.

I have never even seen the larger of the two bowls before. It's the same diameter as a dinner plate. HUGE bowl.  Even if Crazy Daisy Spring Blossom Green isn't my favorite pattern, it sure is useful. In fact, I'm certain my husband prefers to mix/heat things up in Corelle serving bowls when possible, just so there's no chance he breaks one of my Pyrex mixing bowls.

And finally, Oh my very Goodness. I could.not.love.these.more.

These so-sweet little Glasbake custard cups were all taped together for 99 cents. If bowls were as cute as baby kittens, they'd be these bowls.

Huh?

One is in better shape than the rest and one is more worn. These will probably never be used again. They are just too precious. And it's unfortunate, because I'd use them in a heartbeat, but some of these vintage treasures just do not have the ability to withstand everyday use and wear.

This pattern dates back to the late 1930's as seen in this amazing advertisement. And this site itself is a fantastic resource for vacuum coffee maker fans like myself :-)

Anyways, I'm really glad we got out. Now I'm cash-poor and with no more loyalty credit until payday!

Hope you are finding the snazziest stuff!

Happy Thrifting!

A sunny day antiquing

Today was such a nice day out we were tempted to put the kibosh on our plans of hitting the flea market & antique stores and spend the day doing yardwork instead.

But I'm glad we got out. I picked up this 4 piece Hazel Atlas Ivy bowl set for $22.50. They look unused. I've had a small 7'' bowl from this set for a long time & an identical sized red strawberry pattern bowl that we use as popcorn bowls.

But my super deal of this day this bowl right here:

Recognize it? I nearly didn't!

In fact, I walked right by it and didn't see it until I was up some stairs and rounding a corner. It was hidden on the bottom of a shelf.

I thought I knew what it was but thought I had to be wrong. So I kept going, walking around the rest of the antique store. Twice I told my husband to remind me to go check out that bowl I saw downstairs before we leave.

So when I get around to it I realize A) Yes, this is enameled metal B) It has no makers mark C) the sticker says "enamel metal bowl $5.00" and then my head explodes, because I am about to become the proud owner of my very first Cathrineholm bowl.

It's a bit rusty and a bit chippy, but it's absolutely the coolest thing ever. :-) And here's a great fansite with lots more info.

I've only seen two other pieces of Cathrineholm in the wild, and they were both the lovely Lotus pattern - and very pricey!

Mid Century Modern anything is a dream around here. Scarce! I live in the heartland of primitives and reproductions. Finding this piece - and for a song, too-  was something I couldn't even dream up.

Hope everyone is enjoying a nice break in the weather or at least finding wonderful junk!

Happy Thrifting!

Heart Day

Hope everyone had a happy Valentine's Day!

My husband and I delayed our trip due to questionable weather conditions. It was warmer, and possibly safer, to have waited a day, but we still ended up driving through a small, sudden snowstorm that, frankly, my nerves could have done without.

And guess what? I did not buy nary a single piece of Pyrex.

There was some, but not a lot. There were reasonably priced pieces in patterns I'm not dying to collect, and wildly, wildly, massively, heart-stoppingly overpriced pieces in patterns that I do.

How about $175 for a Horizon Blue Cinderella mixing bowl set? Or $75 for a single Friendship oval casserole? Any takers?

Here's my few glass finds: 

I had the pink Hazel Atlas Ripple saucer already, just needed the cup. Wasn't wild to pay the 5 dollar price tag, but at least I have a little set now.

The McKee Ships refrigerator dish is chippy, but it had a perfect lid. Go figure. It was cheap enough I thought it would make a nice display piece.

Had such a hard time photographing this small Fiesta heart bowl. I pick one up every time we are in the area. I'm on my 4th one now! I wanted one in the most recent color, Lapis, but they didn't have one. So I bought this Peacock one instead.

And now for my biggest finds of the day - more Kromex!

These guys were *not* the super cheap bargain price I got my pink set for. But they weren't horribly priced, either. I'd never seen yellow or turquoise in real life before, at any price, and I bought as much as I could afford.

Sadly, I had to leave behind half of canister set and a set S&P shakers. Was just too much $$$$

Kromex family portrait

And right before we left town, we stopped at a bookstore - which is usually where my husband does the money damage. This time, we both bought stuff. I did more damage buying records than I did Kromex. But they're some of my favorites, and it was our Valentine's Day, so we're both excused.

Hope you had a happy Heart Day!

Happy Thrifting!

Winter Blahs

Well, this is it, what I have to show for a couple of weeks of thrift & antique store shopping. Granted, it's a pretty cool marked Fire King mug in a style I've never seen before, and it was priced reasonably at 3 dollars, this mug and some lids are the only things I've purchased lately.

The Pyrex lids I bought were good ones, just pricey. I picked up two 503 large refrigerator dish lids for 2 dollars each, and a bundle of the graduated size round casserole lids from the 480 set  (the 473, 474, 475), all taped together with a tiny 022 lid for 4 bucks.

Not heartening at all.

The weather is cold and threatening snow and the forecast can't seem to make up its mind whether Valentine's Day is going to be pretty or not. My husband and I have plans to spend the day gallivanting in a major antique district a couple of hours drive from us as a heart day treat.

I'm not the most optimistic about the Pyrex supply, but I will be going out of my way to pick up a small Fiesta heart bowl at a dish outlet store. I've got 3 so far, one for each time we've been up that way. I got smart the last time and started writing the date & occasion on a sticker on the back of the piece, so I know exactly when we bought it. The other two I'm sure I've written about on the blog, I just never have gotten around to labeling them.

Hope you're having better luck than I have. ~Can't wait until Spring!~

Happy Thrifting!