It Finally Feels Like Summer!

Hi Everyone!

Even though my kids have been out of school for two weeks, we have finally slowed down enough around here for it to feel like Summer vacation.  Just because school ends doesn't automatically mean that everything comes to a screeching halt.  But the last few days, I have found myself with no appointments, errands, or projects that need to be completed.  So you know what I have done?  I have spent the last two days on my back patio with my dogs, a stack of books and magazines, and when it got a little later in the day, a refreshing glass of Sweet Tea Vodka & Lemonade.  Heaven, I tell you.

Needless to say, I didn't go to one, single sale yesterday.  And you know what?  I'm okay with that.  I spend enough mornings throughout the year scrambling to get out the door early in the morning.  It was so nice to just get up and have a leisurely cup of coffee and browse the Internet.  Plus, there were no sales that screamed "YOU MUST GET THERE 4 HOURS EARLY AND BE 1st IN LINE!!" otherwise I would have.  But last Friday?  A completely different story.

I have mentioned in the past an estate sale company that always has amazing write-ups but no pictures.  I hate that.  It really is a crap shoot as to whether or not the description actually fits what is in the actual sale.  "Vintage" could actually mean 1980's which is not the kind of vintage I'm looking for.  But last Friday, the sale they were running promised a "Full Vintage Kitchen" and for some reason, I felt that I had to be there. 

The sale started at 10:00 and guess what time my little trooper and I got there?  6:45!  Obviously we were first in line (well, I was second.  Maddie put herself at #1). I have been so sick of the dealers at the sales lately.  They are grabbing absolutely anything and everything remotely old looking and if you aren't in front of them, you seriously lose out.  Well, Maddie and I weren't taking any chances.

There were two other sales being given by companies that started before this one so I wasn't surprised when nobody else started showing up until a little after nine.  These sales didn't really appeal to me so I was okay with missing out.  As we were standing in front of the house, one guy was looking in the front windows and said "There are ALOT of linens in there".  So I took a peek too.  He was right so my trusty little assistant and I had a little meeting that went something like this

Me: "When you go in, head to the bedroom directly on your left and grab all of the linens."

Maddie: "Okay, mom".

Me: "You know which ones, right?  Only printed linens.  No embroidery."

Maddie: "Okay, mom.

Me: "The first room on the left".

Maddie: "Mom, I've got this.  This isn't my first time at a sale, you know."

Sorry guys if this post is getting wordy.  I'm on my second cup of Foglifter coffee.  Good stuff.

So we took our spots at #1 and #2 in line.  The door opened and we immediately went to our designated areas.  Pyrex lovers, be prepared to gasp.

I was the first one in the kitchen followed by about 20 others.  I didn't even hesitate and grabbed this stack of bowls.  You can't wait otherwise they will be snatched up by the next person.  Besides, was I really going to leave them behind?  I didn't look at the price right away but I knew they were coming home with me regardless.  I mean, how often do you see pink Pyrex bowls at estate sales?  Ready for it?  At the bottom of the smallest bowl was a $10.00 sticker.  Those of us collectors know that ten bucks for the 401 is not a bad price at all.  You know where I'm going with this, right?  There were no stickers on any of the other bowls meaning it was $10.00 FOR THE WHOLE SET!!  Are you dying?  I am.  My dealer competition saw what I saw and literally said a string of 4 letter words.  Even though she was about 15 people behind me in line, she went through the garage thinking that she would get to the kitchen before me.  Obviously that didn't work out for her.

In case you have all been paying attention, I am now two 404 bowls away from completing two more sets. 

Okay, enough babbling.  Here's what else we found.

I tore the house apart looking for the other pink refrigerator dishes.  No luck.  I recently told someone that I hadn't found a vintage cocktail shaker in forever so I was stoked to find this mini set.

I decided a few weeks ago that I really wanted a hand mixer like my Grandma Gloria had.  Do you know how much those suckers sell for on eBay?  I just told myself to be patient and that I would find one at a sale.  I must be psychic.  Maddie is convinced that the knee hugger is one of the Rice Krispie guys.  The frog, cookbook, and mini fork set will be added to my collections.

So true to her word, my girl grabbed all of the printed linens.  They weren't tablecloths as I had hoped but super cute dishtowels.  There are a lot more but I set those aside for Sister.  I will let her share them with you. Maddie said to me "Mom, wait till you see what I got.  I did good".  Have I told you before that she is my secret weapon?

Not shown are the NOS white bathroom hand towels from Montgomery Wards (not very exciting but something I needed).  Also, a brand new unopened box of Q-Tips.  You should have seen the look Maddie gave me.  But they were a dollar!  Have you seen how much Q-Tips are at Target?

So in typical fashion of this company, the write-up promised a bigger quantity of items than was actually there.  But seriously?  What I got was definitely worth the 3 hours sitting in the car.  Plus, my trusty assistant was rewarded with Jamba Juice so she was happy too.

Linking up with:

The Thrifty Groove for Thrifty Things Friday
Jann Olson for Share Your Cup Thursday
How Sweet The Sound for Pink Saturday
Cottage Sweet Cottage for Rednesday
Apron Thrift Girl for Thrift Share Monday
Sir Thrift-A-Lot for Thriftasaurus
The Cottage Market for Junkin' Joe

Happy Saturday!

Erica

New Editions to My Menagerie

Happy Wednesday, Hanna here.  I have been officially off work since Saturday but have had no motivation due to the terrible, rainy weather.  I have managed to pick up a few new friends, but I am going to apologize now for the photos.  The weather is so gloomy that there is no hope to picture my new beautiful animal friends as they deserve.

First, I was eyeing this elephant at Goodwill for a while but it was over priced.  I was convinced it would be gone by the time half price came around, but oh no, I got lucky.  My made in Japan friend now has two other elephant friends to party with.

 Doesn't he look happy with his Goodwill friends?

The other planter I have been coveting was super overpriced too.  I'm just lucky the girl that works at my Goodwill likes me so much because when she saw the price of it she decided it was ridiculous and gave it to me for the same price as the elephant planter!

I have one other planter that I've pictured in the past that color coordinates with the roadrunner really well.  I swear my bird collection is getting insanely out of control.  I claim my excuse is that I was a fisheries and wildlife major in college, but I think it is pushing it at this point.  But you know what?  I'm a bird nerd and proud of it!

I also picked up these made in Japan bird shakers.  I love their little Mohawks.  They match my Pyrex quite well also.  You may have noticed the pretty tablecloth in the various pictures.  I would love to share my 3 new tablecloths from Sister thanks to her visit to Farm Chicks but I want to picture them a little better.  I should also mention that day one using one of them my husband burst a blueberry on one of them and it is now being soaked for its 8th time in my utility sink.  I think he feared for his life when he saw my face after the explosion.  He may be finally learning :)

I also have a whole lot of goodies from my last visit to Sister, but I will save those beauties for later.  Lots going on in my personal life as I had mentioned before and I can't wait to share.  Sister said it sounded like I was hinting at a baby, but I will tell you that's not the case (to Sister's dismay.)  But things are going to be changing soon.  Can't wait to share.

Until Next Time!
Hanna

My "New" Patio

Happy Saturday!

When our wonderful father passed away, Sister and I were faced with the task of not only cleaning out his condo and mechanic's shop, but also our family lake house in Wisconsin.  Unfortunately the Wisconsin clean-out happened to coincide with my family's trip to Disney World so I wasn't able to help.  Thank God for my amazing brother-in-law who thought he was going to get a nice vacation on the lake.  He was wrong.  So, so wrong.

Anyways, Hanna & I have been visiting the lake house every summer of our lives. Then when I had kids, we started taking them too.  This place holds some of the best memories of our lives.  Fortunately, we haven't sold it yet so we can always go back.  It was just in the need of a major de-clutter. 

There is a HUGE screened in porch that we spent many, many hours laying around in trying to avoid the monstrous mosquitoes that seem to love Sister so much.  Hanna & I went in on a moving truck to bring stuff back to Oregon and when she asked what I wanted, I told her some of the wrought iron patio furniture.  Our grandparents had this house built in the 1950's so all of the furniture is original to when they moved in.

Well, that was two Summers ago and I finally got the motivation to go into my shop and bring out all of the wonderful treasures Hanna brought back for me.  Then it was out with the old and in with the "new"

We had many, many meals prepared for us by our mom at this table.

Look at that amazing patina.

I remember this bar cart always just sitting off in the corner, never being used.  Now it holds some of my rustier, more worn treasures. I need to get a new top for it, but I still love it just the way it is.

So one of the main reasons I waited so long to bring out the furniture was that I was really wanting to have the cushions recovered.  Well, that was two years ago.  Now when I look at them, I wonder what in the world I was thinking!  I am in love with the faded shabbiness of them.

 

The chairs are rockers and possibly the most comfortable patio chairs I've ever sat in.  Sister kept two of the non-rockers for herself and my brother-in-law was not happy about it after sitting in these!

This little settee needs a cushion.  I just need to come upon the right fabric and I will have one made.

So not only did Hanna send these back for me, she also sent back two absolutely amazing wrought iron chaise lounges.  We spent hours upon house lounging on these on the dock.  However, I am having MAJOR issues finding new cushions for them.  Does anybody have any resources they can share?  I want to be able to use them this summer! 

Brian bought this old 7-up cooler off of Craigslist about 4 years ago for a hundred bucks.  He is always promising to get it running but for now, it holds some of our less attractive but necessary patio stuff.

Another view of the amazing old junk that decorates my patio.

That birdbath holds my growing collection of old faucet handles and sprinklers.  See that Igloo drink cooler?  It has held countless batches of Vodka Lemonades for out by the fire pit.

Remember when I blogged about all of the wonderful things Sister bought me for my birthday?  Well, I didn't get a chance to share what Brian and the kids got me.  I figured it was more fitting to put them in this post.

 

 

How perfect do these fit in with the rest of the furniture?  Brian said it best when he told me that he wanted to buy me something that I would never buy myself from an antique mall (I'm convinced that I am going to find a whole slew of these at a garage sale someday).  I actually squealed and jumped up and down when I saw these sitting on my patio.

Well, needless to say, I plan on spending a lot of time on my "new" patio this Summer.  I told Brian that for Christmas, I want a couple of patio heaters so I can enjoy it year-round.  Good idea, right?

Linking up over at:

The Thrifty Groove for Thrifty Things Friday
Share Your Cup Thursday with Jann Olson
Pink Saturday at How Sweet The Sound

Have a great weekend!

Erica

Auction Madness!

We are finally in the midst of Summer Vacation here although you would never know it with the torrential downpour going on right now.  Oh well, we're in Oregon.  I shouldn't be surprised, right?
 
Hanna did a great job describing our first auction experience in her last post (thanks, Sister!).  I will have to agree and say that we are hooked!  I cannot wait to go to another one.  My dream is to go to one of those farm auctions that I hear about on the blogs all the time.  I should hopefully be able to find one of those this Summer.  Hey, I'm not against having to road trip for vintage goods so I should be checking all over the state and not just my little corner.

We woke up bright and early and were raring to go! 

Come on Sister!  Get a move on!!!  I was trying to sneak out before Miss Maddie woke up.  I love my girl but I knew she wouldn't have the patience for an auction.
 
Now, onto the goods!
 

 

 

 
I wasn't planning on bidding on this box lot of hankies and buttons.  The lady who brought it up at the end of the day ended up leaving so I bought it for 2 bucks.  Then she came back.  She asked to buy one of the hankies from me for her mother's 90th birthday. It was white with little Forget-Me-Nots embroidered on it along with "Happy Birthday Mother".  Of course I just gave it to her.  Gotta spread the vintage love.

 

 Along with the buttons, I got Maddie these little furry figurines for her collection.

I also won a box of books.  These were the ones that Maddie picked for her collection.  See, even when she isn't with me, I am still always looking for things for her! 

 
I'm really looking forward to having the time to sit down and go through this box of letters, cards, and photos.

So, no Pyrex at this auction but I was just as happy to find some vintage planters, especially the donkey!

There was a single small box of vintage Christmas that I was wanting to bid on.  But everything around it was being brought up to the block but never this box!  Finally, when the auctioneer told us to bring up things we were interested in bidding on, I grabbed the box and put it front and center.

These cute stockings are marked Made in Japan.

Lots of little pixies.  Check out the scary guy on the left!

A pixie planter!

Love this little bird bulb.  It's my first!

And what box lot of vintage Christmas would be complete without some beautiful Shiny Brites?

Want to hear a sad story that the auctioneer told us?  He and his partner had been invited to pick a house before the family had an estate sale.  They wanted to try and put some of the older collectibles on consignment with the auction house.  So Mike (the auctioneer) told them not to throw anything away until they got there.  But when they arrived at the house, there was a giant blue dumpster out front and this tiny box of Christmas was all they were able to salvage.  He told us that there were boxes upon boxes of vintage ornaments that the people had thrown away then thrown furniture and other heavy items on top of.  He said they spent a good hour digging for these.  So sad!  The worst part (for them) is that I bought the whole lot for two bucks.

I got up to grab a snack and this card catalog came up on the block.  Hanna knew I wanted it so she was ready to bid for me.  I was walking back to my seat and started bidding and almost ended up bidding against my sister!  Luckily the auctioneer caught on and told us what we were doing.  We really need to stop bidding against each other. Still not sure what I plan on doing with it but I'm sure I'll come up with something.

 

 

You'll see a couple of these old boxes in my 4th of July decorations.

 



 

 I won this box of Valentines

And was super excited to find this honeycomb in it!

This little planter is unmarked but I know I've seen it before.  Any ideas of its maker?

I am really liking the galvanized swirls on this washboard.  I haven't hung it in my laundry room yet because I am debating on whether or not I want to paint the wood trim.  What do you all think I should do?

My lone furniture purchase wasn't as extravagant or expensive as Sister's but I love it just the same!  I really loved this Formica counter top but wasn't sure exactly what I would do with it.  Then the auctioneer's assistant said that it would be great for an old camper fixer-upper project.  Well, that was all the motivation I needed! 

It was bound to happen that I would leave something behind as we were loading up my car.  I won this blue pitcher for my mother in law (she collects blue glass) and luckily Hanna was able to grab it for me when she went back for her bookshelf.  I ran into the auction guys at the flea market on Sunday and the first thing they said to me was "did you get your blue pitcher?".  Oh yes, the Thrifter Sisters leave quite an impression.  You will never forget us :-)

So this two tiered cake carrier is my reward for good karma.  At Farm Chicks, Rachel and I found the exact same one.  I really wanted it but knew that Rachel was wanting to start collecting them so I told her she needed to buy it.  I was rewarded with winning this one for $5 bucks!  Yippeee for me!!

So if there was anything I learned from my first auction experience, it's patience.  6 hours sitting on church pews was totally worth it.  I know that I would have paid at least 5 times as much for a lot of what I got had it been put on the block earlier in the day when the place was full of people.  As our dad used to say, Patience Darlin'.  He was right!

Linking up over at:

Rednesday
Junkin' Joe
Thrift Share Monday
Sunny Simple Monday
The Nifty Thrifty
Thriftasaurus
Nifty Thrifty Tuesday

Have a great day!

Erica

Auction Virgins

Happy Sunday!  I can't remember if Erica mentioned, but during my visit we went to our first auction.  We headed over to the preview at 9 am and I quickly realized it was going to be a LONG day for us.  There were quite a few mixed lots of small items we were interested in and also a lawyers bookcase that I've been dreaming of owning for a very long time.  We got our numbers and then headed over to the few thrift shops in the area until the start time arrived.

When we came back we chose a seat in the second row of church pews.  I was feeling really nervous.  Would I have stage fright during bidding?  Would the bookcase be in my budget?  Erica seemed a little nervous but had a look of determination on her face.  These people had no idea who they were dealing with.

Erica jumped right in and bought a lot of some vintage goodness within the first 10 minutes or so.  To tell you the truth we both bought so much stuff I can't remember what exactly her first purchase was.  There were a bunch of books I was interested in and I ended up with this gem.  A sweet Victorian book from 1889.  The cover is gorgeous.

Within minutes, we were totally into it.  The auctioneer named Mike got to know us and our numbers pretty quickly.  He cracked a few jokes about being distracted by the pretty girls in the 2nd row.  Thank goodness they didn't allow cocktails into this place, we were already wild enough!  I continued to do what I do best.  Buy the most random, strange stuff.  I had to have these bookends of course, they are owls.  My first little big book, a filthy little made in Japan dog stuffed animal (he was part of a lot of toys,) and a made in Japan metal elk.

Off topic, but I have to share our Dad's stuffed owl that resides in my home during the summer months and terrifies kids during the school year.  I think he is where the owl obsession started.

 The little doggy came with this lot of goodies.  I will confess, I've never bought dolls before.  I was really just going for the 2 little deer.

 But, then I fell in love with these little faces.  So mischievous.

About an hour and a half into the auction it was time for the bookcase.  It started at $1200.  No bids.  He kept going down and down and then basically said he couldn't go any lower.  It was $100 above my agreed budget.  I was shaking.  I looked at Erica.  She gave me the look.  Ooops!  I am now the proud owner of a beautiful 6 piece lawyers bookcase.  I'm in love.  I immediately called my husband and said sorry and that I had bought my birthday present.  Once I got it home and in place he wasn't so mad.  Here it is.

 Once again, it's super hard to picture.  I put all my most special prizes inside.  The bottom shelf in the picture below has a bunch of trinkets of our Dad's.  I like having a shelf dedicated to him.

So, about 4.5 hours in there was still a bunch of stuff that Erica and I had been waiting for that hadn't been brought up yet.  Mike told the few of us that were left to bring up anything that was left that we wanted to bid on.  Seriously they were giving stuff away.  There were probably 10 people left in the place and Erica cleaned house.  I showed that I was an auction virgin because I wanted this piece of artwork so bad I didn't wait for him to drop the price like he had been all day.  I think I may have been starved and delirious.  Or maybe in love with my new creepy piece of art to haunt my husband with.

 I looked at this picture all day.  I went from creeped out to I have to have it.  Even the runner didn't want to touch the picture.  I told him I was going to put it in my bedroom.  He wouldn't make eye contact with me after that.  The vase is made in Japan and is a strange metal.  My Mom has had the same one for as long as I can remember.

I love these clocks.  They have a Scandinavian feel which goes great in my kitchen.  Neither one works, but I know someone who I think can get one of them functioning.  Plus, who turns down a clock with deer, birds, and mushrooms?

I have failed to mention that Mike and Jason, the owners of the auction and estate company were the nicest guys I've met in a long time.  Jason would come up with really creative ways to use items while they were being auctioned off and share with the audience.  Mike the auctioneer was a real goofy guy.  When I came back for my bookcase they loaded it up for me and were so excited to chat.  Erica ran into them at the flea market this morning and they were asking how my bookcase worked out.  I love buying stuff from people that are so friendly and love what they do.  

It was a long day, 5 hours total, but was one of the most fun things I think Erica and I have done in a long time.  I would say we are hooked.  I can't wait to come back down for a visit and do it all again.  Erica bought at least twice as much stuff as me.  You guys are gonna love it.

I'm visiting my favorite party, Thriftasaurus.  See you there!

Hanna