Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Wanted Wednesday - Feed Sacks

A cool new fabric shop called Fabric Bliss has opened in Old Colorado City not far from my house, and she is offering some really fun classes.  The Mom and I are going to sign up for a class so we can learn how to make this cute zippered pouch.  We seem to find zippers intimidating as hell so we are finally going to conquer that somewhat irrational fear!  
I have fabric I could use of course, but wouldn't it be fun with feed sacks?  I looked on Etsy (click the pic to go to the listing if you want) and found a bunch I like.  This project uses four fabrics.  
This one is my favorite.  Look at those adorable fish!  To bad it is pretty pricey.  
Why are these so stinking expensive?  I know some of you feed sack collectors have the answer.  They are cute, but wow, some of them are up there.
The colors of this one are just beautiful.  
And this one is so stinking sweet I could die!
And then to tie it all together I would use this for the back.
Now if I could afford to buy all these, wouldn't that be the coolest zippered pouch?!  I really love the colors and different patterns of the feed sacks.  What I don't get is why they were like this.  What was the point in having food/grain in these super cute patterned sacks?  One day I'll have some extra time and I'll research that question, until then, do you have any insight into this?

Linking up for Rednesday.  

Monday, July 29, 2013

Thrift Haul - Pyrex and Brass Critters

It feels like the thrift drought has finally lifted a bit!  This haul is the product of two out of town trips, one to Pueblo and the other to Denver, which was a total fiasco I'll tell you about in a long winded silly story below.  My local thrifts are giving up nothing but golf balls - The Husband now has so many he won't need to buy more for years!  Ha!  
Now on to the goods.  The Little Dude and I took a quick morning trip to Pueblo this week.  The thrifts were stingy, but the little antique shop we stopped was not.  The bottom three pieces came in a mismatched set.  I totally over spent but who cares because I now have a turquoise fridgie for my collection!!!  
Ooooh..Ahhhh...  : )
Other than a butt load of golf balls, these cutie patooties were the only other thing to come home with us from Pueblo.  They are made in Japan and will soon be listed on Etsy.  If I wasn't totally terrified of my hoarding tendencies I'd have the coolest salt and pepper shaker collection!
Excuse the terrible phone pic!
******Warning - Long Story About My Stupidity Ahead******
Ok, on to the Denver debacle.  This is long and I won't be offended if you skip ahead.  So The Husband had to go up there for work, and I thought The Little Dude and I would tag along, drop him off and then go thrifting.  His building is in a cute neighborhood I don't get to frequent much so I was pretty excited.  Things were going fine as we hit the first shop, a GW.  That place was huge and packed full of CRAP.  Then it started to rain and I didn't want The Little Dude to get soaked so we got in the car and headed across town to another GW.  I'm no stranger to Denver, but I have areas where I go and know, and then the rest is just vague memories.  Well we get to the store and find the two Daisy bowls.  I was super excited about it, and therefore cocky.  I thought I would just head over to Aurora and check out my usual shops since it was still raining and walking around wasn't an option.  We sat in traffic till our brains were numb, but we did finally get there about an hour before I had to start driving back across town to get The Husband to meet a friend for dinner. We do our thrifty thing and then... ugh...what idiot didn't pay attention to how to get back to The Husband?  This one!  I should have gone back to the interstate and driven what I know.  But nooooooo, I gotta be all sneaky and avoid the traffic.  Right....An hour after I was supposed to get him, I showed up, frazzled and cussing.  I got myself so turned around it was ridiculous.  My GPS in my phone went bananas and couldn't find a signal and because of the clouds I couldn't find the mountains to know which direction I was going.  (Mountains are always to the West here).  And because I have this vague recollection of the city, I would see something familiar and turn towards it to see if that was right.  Not my best plan.  And this whole time The Little Dude is wailing in the backseat because he is just done with the car.  Me too dude, me too, but we still have the hour long drive home left!  So was my haul worth all that?  No,but I've learned a few valuable lessons.  Paper maps are good for things other than crafting.  The real maps I took out of the car a few weeks ago for a craft project will be going back in the car.  And don't be adventurous with your route when you have some place to be because you risk loosing your damn mind! 
******End Long Story About My Stupidity******
The daisy really got me excited because it's just not one I find a lot and especially not in such good condition.  The two little red guys were priced well so I got them even though they are dishwashered to death. Two scrubs with BKF and they look a bit better. The Square Flowers bowl needed some love, but it was priced well so I jumped at it.

These little brass puppies are super cute and will be listed on Etsy soon.  
 Same with this happy little whale.  
Rounding out my haul is a small porcelain Made in Japan wall duck.  These sell really well in the booth so I always look for them.  This is the first little one I've ever had.  
I did finally get a chance to organize and clean out my sun room last week, so hopefully this week I can get some actual work type stuff done in there.  Pictures, pricing and listing will be my mantra!  
 I'm joining the parties at Apron Thrift GirlSir Thrift A Lot, RemnantMod Vintage LifeThe Thrifty Groove, A Living Space and Joyful Treasure Hunting. Have a great week everyone!



Thursday, July 25, 2013

Booth Update - Fresh Paint

Thank you vendor night!!!  A few extra hours, pizza and no customers can really do a booth good.  Don't get me wrong, I love our customers, but I hate spreading my stuff out when a lot of people are out and about.  It's a pain for them and dangerous for my merchandise.  Three pieces of pizza and 2.5 hours later...
Taaadaa!  It looks so much better!  No, I didn't paint the wall, though it did cross my mind.  I just painted the wood shelf  that I took home a month or so ago.  It looks awesome now and totally pops against the chalkboard wall.  Speaking of chalkboard wall, what do you think?!  It might be a bit busy for some and that's understandable, but I freakin love it!  So bright and cheery!
 
Both of the extensions of the table are folded in so I could make room up front for The Best Buds adorable high chair.  It looks cleaner this way too.  I've been working on clearing out the junk that for some reason (couldn't possibly be my fault!) made it's way into my booth.  It's going to stay neat and tidy dangit!  Just because I can put a price tag on it, doesn't mean I should.  Geez self, get it together!
I'm super proud of my hard work, so I'm going to share it  at Vintage Thingy Thursday and The Thrifty Groove.  Have a great weekend everyone!  

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Wanted Wednesday - A Fabulous Bloody Mary

I know it sounds weird, but I have totally been craving a really awesome Bloody Mary for months now.  Well, I guess since April when we got home from the gloriousness  that was Junk Bonanza.  This is what day drinking dreams are made of.
I've tried to recreate it but haven't gotten there yet. I think that I have to be with The Mom in Minnesota surrounded by the most fabulous junk ever before I'll get the full effect that I'm after.  We are hoping definitely going to go again next year!
Day drinking at junk fairs in Colorado is pretty much frowned upon.  I know some other places aren't as stuffy.  Do you have a favorite drink to go along with your junking?

Monday, July 22, 2013

Thrift Haul - Globes and Goo

Blah!  The Little Dude and I had a touch seriously disgusting case of the goo last week.  Man, cleaning it out of your own nose is bad enough, but cleaning out boogies that are probably touching your kids brain...GROSS!!!  Thankfully we are over the worst of that nonsense.  I didn't get a lot of thrifting in, but the booth is pretty slow this month, so it's not a big deal.
I found a few good pieces of Pyrex that will be going to the booth soon.  How are you guys doing on the Pyrex front?  Better than me I hope!
The Mom scored this awesome globe last week.  The little compartment is where an atlas is supposed to live.  I'm having a really hard time with the keep/sell decision here.  It's just so cool!  
I found this one.  It's hard to tell from the photo but this thing is freaking huge!  It came from a school and most likely was used as a teachers reference tool.  As soon as the other globes sell, I'll take this to the booth.  I'm more than happy though to hang on to it for a while!
Soooo I found this leather jacket for a crazy good price but I wasn't able to see how it looked before I bought it.  I like everything but the shoulders.  They are 80's boxy and I'm not sure I can live with that.  Do you think it's worth it to have it altered?  Is that even possible with a leather jacket?  
Hopefully we can get more thrifting in this week, plus I'd really like to get to work organizing my sun room/workroom better.  I know, it seems like I do that all the time. And I do...Ugh!  It's a ridiculous never ending battle...
 I'm joining the parties at Apron Thrift GirlSir Thrift A Lot, RemnantMod Vintage LifeThe Thrifty Groove, A Living Space and Joyful Treasure Hunting. Have a great week everyone!


Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Wanted Wednesday - Little Bugs

I made this leather cuff with a vintage patch the other day.  It's cool, but it's a bit manly and in desperate need of something sparkly.  I'm thinking bugs!
I've been eyeing these pretty little insects in Vintage Junk In My Trunk's Etsy shop for a little while now.  I've resisted because I didn't know what I would do with them but now they would have the perfect home!
They are a bit spendy, but so stinking cute!  I'm also kind of afraid they would be too big at 1.25 inches long.
What do you guys think, get these soon or keep looking?

Joining Rednesday today. 

Monday, July 15, 2013

Thrift Haul - Pool Balls and Silly Faces

Last week was a little more low key thankfully, so I was able to hit the thrifts a bit harder than the previous weeks had afforded.   So much cool stuff was found, so without further yammering from me, check it out!
Four of these super sweet Kidee Krome children's sized folding chairs came home with me.  The Little Dude loves them and so do I! 
Last week I had mentioned here that I wanted to do something creative and crafty.  Well I didn't have a lot of crafty time, but this is what I came up with.  The little bag is made with vintage zippers and the shelf  was made with some of these finds from a few weeks ago.  
As you will be able to tell throughout the rest of this post, I like the shelf and have scrapped plans to use it in the booth, for now at least.  This set of old pool balls is missing the 10, but that's ok because I think they're neat!  I thought the Husband would like them too. He said, "They're cool, but what are you going to do with them?"  Bah!  That's not the fricking point!  Don't you worry about what I'm gonna do with them...mumble...growl...mumble...
This cool little pup might be destined for Etsy, but I haven't decided yet.  I know a few people who wouldn't mind receiving this for Christmas.  
A local record/vintage shop closed on Saturday, not because business was bad but because the college he rented from choose not to renew his lease.  It was kind of a shady deal but he will open again as soon as he finds a new location.  I got a few little things from his going on hiatus sale.  The little brass snail and tin saucer (don't think it's an old one) he gave to me because I bought the owl and the SWEET thermometer.  The art on it is dated 1977 and I have no idea what Nesbitts is, but isn't that little dude the cutest!  Have you guys hear of this soda?  Is the little fuzzy guy familiar?
Saturday The Mom and I did some shopping in a booth at my antique mall that is closing up shop.  They had everything at 70% off!  Yes please!  The whale salt and pepper shakers won me over with their silly faces. I finally found some swizzle sticks that didn't cost an arm and a leg!  These are mostly from the Tropicana but one is from the Brown Palace in Denver!  That place is awesome.  The fishy wall hanging is Made in Japan and will probably be listed on Etsy soon.  The only Pyrex they had was this and a bunch of Town and Country which is one I try not to buy a lot of due to it's lack of popularity.  My favorite score from this booth has to be the tin cup and saucer.  They are a bit rough, but you can't beat 70% off!  I will be on the lookout for a cute little shelf for my sun room so I have a place to display some of my recent keepers. 

Hahaha!  Look at that face!  I love it!  I'm joining the parties at Apron Thrift GirlSir Thrift A Lot, RemnantMod Vintage LifeThe Thrifty Groove, A Living Space and Joyful Treasure Hunting. Have a great week everyone!  





Thursday, July 11, 2013

Quick Booth Update

One of the things I like about blogging is that is keeps me honest.  I could tell you (while trying to convince myself) that my booth sales have been awesome this month and yadayadayada, but that would be totally erroneous and you would know.  Here is the evidence.
This week:                                                                                       Last week:
So, as you can see not much has changed.  I didn't bring anything new because I only sold one item, a little deer figure that has been with me from the beginning.  Farewell little dude!  Stuff moved around a bit, but for the most part it is the same.  
So there you have it. My booth has stalled but I think it is just a temporary situation.  This time of year people want to be outside enjoying the sunshine, not inside and I don't blame them.  It's lovely outside!  Now  I know to budget for a slow summer.  Live and learn!  
Do you have seasonal lulls in sales too?

Heading over to the Colorado Lady for Vintage Thingie Thursday.  

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Wanted Wednesday - Cathrineholm

Lately I've been itching for Cathrineholm enamelware in the iconic Lotus pattern.  I have one piece that I found last month, but I'm greedy and want more!  : )  Right?! I know, I know - WAKE UP Melissa!  As most of you know, this stuff is wicked pricey and kind of hard to find, so for now I will probably just be fantasizing.
This blue plate would look lovely with all my Pyrex.  The little giraffes are pretty cute too!
Oh my goodnessgracious!  I would use these everyday with rubber coated baby spoons.
This one is from MidModMom's shop.  Seriously, I have a birthday coming up!  : ) 
While those are fabulous, the prices on all of them are WAY out of  my budget, so maybe a few posters would do.   This one sums it up perfectly!   I wonder if they would print it in turquoise instead of red...
This one is cute too.  I love those colors.
Not Cathrineholm inspired, but this poster is awesome too so I'll include it.  It's probably the closest I'll ever get to that chair!  

Do you collect Cathrineholm?  
I was thinking about it earlier, and I think my Mother-in-Law uses a large blue bowl pretty much every day.  I'll have to check it out when we go visit in October!  


Monday, July 8, 2013

Thrift Haul - Pint Sized Suite Case and Dishes

Last week felt super busy for some reason, so I was only able to squeeze in one good thrifting trip.  The Little Dude and I drove down to Pueblo and hit a few shops before heading home for lunch.  Was it worth the hour long round trip?  The Little Dude slept peacefully both ways and Mommy got a bit of quiet time, so yeah, it was worth it!  Plus I found some neat stuff.
My one piece of Pyrex last week, but it is a beauty.  It looks like it was never even used.  And those mid century salt and pepper shakers are beat up something fierce, but I think I can rehab them a bit.  I love the little China Tea set.  Something about miniature stuff  always makes me smile.  This suitcase is mini too.  I love the old school stripes on it, plus it's interior is in great shape!  
I don't know anything about this bottle, just that I liked the colors and the design.  Does anyone have any info on this?  Is it Pyrex?
I bought the metal basket and yard sticks with the intention of making a cool shelf for the booth, but I think I'm going to like it so much that I will keep it!  I'm allowed to do that every once in a while dangit!  : )  The rolled up thing in there is an old USGS contour map of a mountain in New Mexico.  It appeals to the nerd in me, so I'm going to keep it for a future project.  
Hopefully this week includes lots of thrifting and lots of projects because I got a thrifty/crafty itch that I need to scratch!  Do you have a cool craft project you're working on this week? 
I'm joining the parties at Apron Thrift GirlSir Thrift A Lot, RemnantMod Vintage LifeThe Thrifty Groove, A Living Space and Joyful Treasure Hunting. Have a great week everyone!  

Thursday, July 4, 2013

Booth Update - Happy 4th of July!

Yesterday was a strange day.  First we witnessed two nasty injuries at the zoo, then I went to the booth and stared at it blankly for 20 minutes.  Last but not least, The Mom was moving a headboard (which she bought off Craigslist and repainted a fabulous turquoise color) and it fell and cut the crap out of the back of her ankle!  She's lucky it didn't cut her Achilles tendon.  Crazy women had to go get stitches and she's ok, but dang!  Not good with The Mom getting hurt.  See, I told you it was a weird day. 
 Even with wasting time staring at it like a fool with no ideas, the booth got floofed a bit.  The tiered shelf is gone for now and replaced with a plant stand I got for free from a neighbor.  I like that it blends in with the chalkboard and makes it look like stuff is floating.  It's a little less cluttered too.  
 Sorry for the bad phone pics, I forgot my camera.  Anyway, for now I have to keep the book case because honestly, it works really well for my purposes and it didn't cost me anything.  I was thinking about putting a brightly colored contact paper on the shelves to change it up without having to take it home.  What do you guys think?  Contact paper or leave it be?
Thanks for all your input yesterday with my shelving issue.  I'm not sure what got my britches all in a bunch but like I said, for now I'll keep this one and I'm totally ok with that.  
Happy 4th of July!!!  
We're heading to a friends BBQ later this afternoon.  I'm bringing FunFetti cookies and am having a hard time deciding what to put them in.  Is it ridiculous that I want to bring my Yellow Pyrex Hostess but am terrified I'll chip the lid?!
Have a great holiday everyone!
Heading over to the Colorado Lady for Vintage Thingie Thursday.

Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Wanted Wednesday - New Booth Shelving

Lately I've felt like the booth needs an overhaul, like a big one.  Granted, my booth isn't really large enough for a massive remodel, but it could totally use some interesting new shelving, but on the cheap.  I have been exploring my options and poking around on Pinterest (or Evil Time Sucker that I LOVE) and come up with three cool options.
This one is from Books&Bits&Pieces which looks to be a private blog, I can't get a link.  While I don't understand that, I love this shelf.  I found some fruit crates on Craigslist for $15 each, but I would need 12 of them and I'm not sure I want to spend that much.  Did I say it needs to be CHEAP?
Ikea made this one and featured it on their blog Life At Home.  I love the idea of a flexible display like this.  It's a bummer that Ikea no longer makes these wooden boxes.  I'm going to hit a few craft shops today to see what they have wooden box wise that doesn't cost a fortune.  Yeah, I know, I'm dreaming...
This idea from Lowell in Portland is probably my favorite.  It can be built to my specifications and changed around easily.  I'm just concerned that maybe it's a bit too grungy for the style of items I carry.  Bah!  I don't know!  It's hard as hell to come up with something cool, changeable and cheap!  If I used new cinder blocks it wouldn't be so bad, but then it starts getting pricey...blah blah blah!  
So there you have it.  I got nothing!  Ha!  One of these days I'll find the perfect option and there will be rays of light and rainbows and angels singing "hallelujah!"  
Which one do you like?  Also, if you have a better idea, for the love of everything good and holy, send it my way!

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Pyrex Jackpot

So the Best Bud has been on a seriously awesome roll lately.  She found this highchair and Pyrex a few weeks ago. She has done it again but this time on a much grander scale!  Check it!
She called me in quit the tizzy to tell me she had to go get more money because she hit the Pyrex mother load.  I'm impressed she held it together as well as she did because I wouldn't have been able to do it!  This all came from one ladies garage sale.  Apparently she had a booth at one point a very very long time ago because some of the pieces still had her crumbling tags on them.  All of these came with lids that were in good shape!  I couldn't believe it.  That pretty much never happens around here.  Typically all the lids are gone or super chipped.  The Best Bud kept the Flamingo Pink baking dish and is deciding on the Desert Dawn Loaf pan and one of the Butterfly Gold fridgies went to another friend.  Most of the rest went to the booth where I doubt it will last long.  Can you believe I sold all my Shenandoah pieces the other day?!  I was amazed!  
Do you guys have friends and family that thrift with you in mind?  Do they sometimes do waaay better than you too?  : )

Monday, July 1, 2013

Thrift Haul- Mid Century Estate Sale

This thrift haul is a bit weak again... actually the thrifts gave me squat!  But I did hit an estate sale at a super awesome and super huge mid century house this weekend.   This place was to die for!  Seriously,  the kitchen was turquoise!  I had to hide the foam in the corners of my mouth.
It was 6,000+ square feet of mid century goodness.  I would have taken more pics, but an employee was stink eyeing me and I didn't want to have to get sassy.  
This was the front of the house.   That iron gate was much cooler in person.  
Oh my lord, look at that door!  It's huge and fabulous!  This house has a really interesting layout since it is basically with a ranch but with a two floored basement.  Sounds strange, but it worked.
The ridiculously cool turquoise kitchen I mentioned earlier.  The only thing that wasn't original was the fridge.  It was all just so pretty!  I was drooling!




This set of Franciscan atomic starburst dishes almost made me wet myself!  I saw them and about ran down an old lady to get to them.  This was before I realized the price situation at this particular sale.  They were a bit out of my budget.
Wait, they already have a range and oven in the kitchen, what is this?!  It's their second full range and oven in basement area!  I'm thinking these people liked to entertain.  This was in their huge bar area.
Check out the gorgeousness of this Heywood Wakefield bedroom furniture.  There is also a vanity that isn't pictured.  It was in great shape and priced super well, though still way out of my league.  Aqua walls!
Ahhhh!  It's so creepy!  I'm kicking myself in the rear for not buying that thing!
It was like the lady collected everything us vintage bloggers drool over.  I bet if I had gotten there earlier I would have found Pyrex, but only a lone dishwashered blue dots was left.   She had paper ephemera out the wazoo and party decorations for every occasion.   She also had a lot of great Christmas stuff.  I  wish I would have been able to meet her, we could have been buds!
On to my meager little cache of treasures. 
These ornaments are the only reasonably priced ones I could find.   Everything was priced dang near at retail.   Kinda a bummer,  but I still found a few goodies I think.  The paper coasters totally crack me up.  They are on Etsy.  The cocktail napkins have partial song lyrics on the front with the entire song printed on the back.   So cute!  A bunch of post cards,  TWA playing cards and some little notes rounded out my purchases. Oh, and a fabulous Georges Briard cheese tray.  More paper than usual for me.  I also bought The Little Dude a push sweeper thing.   He has a cleaning supply thing.  I know it's weird and please don't ask me to explain because I don't understand.   The kids loves brooms and vacuums... he's a year and a half.
Anyways, it was a great sale that I wish had better prices,  but I was really just pleased to be able to see such a cool house.  It will be on the market soon and I'm dying to know what price they put on it.  Have you ever desperately wanted to live in a house you visit for a sale?
The Best Bud hit the Pyrex jackpot on Friday.   It was so good that it deserves it's own mini less wordy post tomorrow.
I'm joining the parties at Apron Thrift GirlSir Thrift A Lot, RemnantMod Vintage LifeThe Thrifty Groove, A Living Space and Joyful Treasure Hunting. Have a great week everyone!