We all know the saying "Comes in like a lion, goes out like a lamb". Well that is exactly what is going on with estate sales around here. Since the beginning of March, it seems like there have been no shortage of sales to hit, most starting on Thursday! That gives me a good 3 days each week to hunt. Lots of awesome new treasures have been making their way into my house, some to keep, some to sell. I love this time of year!
Rand McNally Elf Books have become my favorite vintage books to find. I just love how small they are.
I think it's about time to go through my collection of vintage souvenir glasses. I know I have duplicates and I'm running out of space!
I rarely pass up the Anchor Hocking tulip jars or vintage drinking glasses when they are at a good price.
Lots of cute finds off of a 25 cent table at a church rummage sale. The Libby's lemonade can is the second one I have found.
These are a recent IG purchase. I love using these little Pyrex pixie dishes for individual mac & cheese and fruit cobblers.
I am in love with the print on this tablecloth. Perfect for Summer!
A springy dishtowel!
I couldn't pass up the amazing colors in this apron.
Pretty yellow Fire King mugs are the perfect addition to my mug collection. And how sweet are these spun head Valentine picks?
I recently sold off my collection of these Japan marked lotus bowls, but I still couldn't pass up two more in my favorite color.
If the season continues this way, I am going to have to have Brian build me another storage shed! Luckily I have been having some really good luck selling on IG and Etsy so I haven't had to store things for too long.
Have a great week!
~Erica
So after my last post, I was super surprised to hear from a lot of you that sign up sheets for estate sales are not the norm. You just line up? What if it's raining? Or two hours prior to the sale opening? I guess we all do what we have to do to get the good junk but I think I will just stick to the sign up sheets. That way, I can get caught up on my reading in my nice, warm car!
Now, on to the rest of my finds from that early sale I hit a couple of weeks ago...
Finally! I can't even begin to tell you how many times I have gone to look at the tag on these old laundry baskets only to find the frustrating NFS marking. I've also lost out on them quite a few times at estate sales. This one was waiting for me way out in the back of the property in an old shed. All of the linens were scattered throughout the house. We are going to be seeing 70+ degree weather later this week and through the weekend so I will be getting these beauties soaked and hung. I actually really love this chore!
Lots of bed linens! I have such an addiction to vintage sheets, pillowcases and blankets.
Another peanut butter jar, this one full of buttons. Love the turquoise scraper and luckily the Sharpie came right off. And I never pass up cheap Swanky Swigs!
The sweet bird planter will be up for sale in my IG shop soon since it's a duplicate. And I can't ever leave an estate sale without at least a couple old greeting cards.
I have started picking up cute hankies here and there for a project. I'm thinking of making a curtain for my kitchen window with them. Or I'll make Hanna do it!
Lots of cheap Pyrex at this sale. More duplicate pieces will be headed to IG and Etsy!
These shakers are the first thing I spotted in the online photos and what prompted me to get to the sale so early!
I cannot get enough of vintage enamelware. The first piece I ever found was actually at my grandparents house. My grandpa was using it as a water dish for the dogs! I freaked out and traded out a real dog dish for it. That was several years ago and guess what my dogs drink out of now? I guess grandpa had the right idea!
I absolutely love finding little personalized notes on things I find at estate sales.
Old picnic baskets make the best storage!
Loving the jadeite color art deco trim on this old mirror. I wish that I could capture the color better for you.
Old advertising is just something that I am drawn to. If I don't sell these, I'll put them with my 4th of July decorations.
So that's it for this particular haul. Early morning made for a long day but so worth it!
Oh, and no baby Norah yet. Once she is here, and Hanna gives me the thumbs up, I will share her arrival with all of you!
Have a wonderful week...
~Erica
Last Thursday I woke up to an amazing looking ad on Craigslist. 60+ years accumulation in an old farmhouse about 40 minutes from where I live. Well, I only had to look at a few of the photos to know that I needed to get to that sale. Fast. So with barely one cup of coffee in my system, minimal makeup, and a baseball cap, I was out the door, leaving Brian to deal with Maddie and the dogs.
I got to the sale at 6:00 and was #1 on the list. The sale was to start at 9:00 am. You guys must think I'm crazy to get there that early! But in this area, it is absolutely cutthroat at the estate sales. You have to get there early if you have any hope of getting anything good. These sales can get completely picked over in about the first 30 minutes. And just in case you still aren't convinced that I haven't completely lost my marbles, #2 on the list showed up about 5 minutes later and by 7:00, the whole street was lined with cars.
Want to hear a crazy story that has nothing to do with the junk at the sale but everything to do with estate sale etiquette? When #2 got to the sale, she got out of her van and I assumed she was going to put her name on the list. WRONG. When the sale started and I had to line everybody up (the task of #1), she wasn't on the list. She said she didn't know that she had to put her name on a sign up sheet and why the heck wasn't that posted in the ad?! Someone told her that it was a common practice to have a sign up sheets at estate sales, even family run ones. And that if the people giving the sale didn't have one up, then the #1 person on the list needed to start one (hence the reason I always have a notebook in my car). So after waiting 3 hours in her car for the sale to start, she lost her #2 spot and had to go to the back of the line (#63). She said she had been going to sales for years and had never seen a sale where the sign up list wasn't posted about in the ad. Wonder where she has been going to sales?
Anyway....on to the junk! It was a jam packed sale and I spent about 2 hours going around and around it, always seeing something I hadn't seen before. I even wondered if they were adding things as the sale went on!
Just in time for Summer! This Raffiaware Thermo-Temp set colors had my name written all over them!
What I first thought was Lustro Ware actually turned out to be made by Burroughs. So similar!
Two old freezer baskets waiting to be painted and repurposed.
A stack of Pyrex, including two authentic unmarked Opal's!
Like I have asked so many times before...who gets rid of amazing family heirlooms like recipe tins full of handwritten recipes?!
The top two binders are also filled with newspaper cut outs of recipes along with more handwritten index cards. I picked up the orange book with the black polka dots to put with my Halloween decorations this year.
These people had so many cookbooks! Before I checked out, I planted my behind on the floor and sifted through all of the boxes. If the sale wasn't so far away, I would have gone back for more!
I spotted the big metal scoop in the pictures online. I has happy to grab it. It will be perfect for our giant commercial ice machine that we have in the garage. What can I say...we like ice! I bought the jar because I always can find uses for old jars but the lid is what really drew me in.
Isn't this lid great? I promptly filled the jar up with drink packets and put it in my pantry. See, I actually do use the junk I drag home!
I am going to foster these cute children's shoeboxes, complete with shoes, for a while. Then they will head off to Magpie Ethel! Surprise, Laurie!
I've had some pretty good luck selling these old souvenir trays and the match safe was one I didn't already have!
I picked up the sweetest children's dish that spins in the original packaging along with a super cute plastic bib for Miss Norah. The bib is reminiscent of Hanna's "Spaghetti Coat" that she had to wear when she at spaghetti when she was little. She was quite the little hog.
Look at the bunnies!!
And there is more! Lots more! I'll post Part 2 next time. I've got tons to do today and I'm in a mad rush to get caught up around here before I get the phone call that Miss Norah is on her way.
Until next time...
~Erica
