Cheep, Cheep, Cheap, Cheap

Finally! Thrifting life is returning to normal.

Each year, that period between mid-December and mid-January becomes so hectic that time is at a premium. In our community, estate sales are nearly non-existent during that time. And, this year, between holiday house guests and a bout with the uber nasty respiratory flu, I was out of commission for a good part of December and early January--even if the estate sales wouldn't have been.

Now, estate sales are back. They started slowly, with one last weekend. More are advertised for this weekend. Hooray!

Take a look at some of the items I found last weekend.

The sweet little ceramic chick sports a darling blue jacket for spring. How dapper. The underside of his beak has a small boo-boo that's not visible unless you turn him over. But, that might explain the 50-cent price tag.

A stamp on the bottom says "Joan Lea Creations." Not a signature I'm familiar with.

A couple of burlap tablecloths--one forest green, one a rusty shade of red--and a pile of buttons in shades of brown are another useful find. One can never have too many buttons. The tablecloths may reappear someday as something other than tablecloths. I have a couple of project ideas, but need to mentally prepare for working with burlap. It gives my hands an itchy rash.

These charming 1950s rayon placemats and napkins are so cute they make me giggle. Still in the original box with the tag attached, they're in mint condition. The tag describes it as a barbecue set.

Each placemat has a different saying on it.

Little excites me more than to stumble across vintage cameras to add to my extensive collection. What a delight to come across a small vintage suitcase containing two mint-condition vintage Kodaks, a significantly-less-than-mint Agfa folding camera and a couple of vintage flash attachments that fit the Kodaks.

Overall, the darling little wooden case is in very good condition. Looking into the repurposing crystal ball, I see a makeover with embellishments in its future.

Happy thrifting. Let the weekend begin  . . .


Make it a great day!

Linking to:

Time Travel Thursday
Thursday Favorite Things
Feature Friday

Vintage Finds Stack Up

The local estate sale scene has finally picked up since the lull right after the holidays. There were so few sales in January, I nearly went through withdrawal. But, these past couple of weekends, I've scored a number of new treasures.

I'm sharing a few here today. I'll share more in a future post.

Got both of these nice vintage suitcases for a 10 spot. They're in excellent condition, inside and out. The insides are nearly impeccable and the big one has all the original hangers attached. Best of all? They don't even have a hint of that dusty, musty and moldy smell that so often accompanies old luggage.

I'm going to put these fine, old girls to work storing and hauling some of my craft projects.

But, right now, for purposes of sharing with all of you, I've temporarily loaded up the suitcases with some of my other recent finds. Lots of wonderful linens, some handkerchiefs, a vintage frame and a sweet vintage two-piece rabbit mold.

My favorite hanky is the yellow one with the crocheted trim. It reminds me of my grandma, who crocheted borders on all of her Sunday-best hankies. How a farm woman who, with my grandpa, raised several kinds of livestock, grew several commodity crops, tended a large garden, cooked, baked and maintained a house had time to also be a prolific crocheter, is a marvel. But, I digress. Someday, I'll tell you more about the remarkable woman who was my grandmother.

A nice red checkered tablecloth with tiny green rick-rack and fringe and two terrific flour-sack tea towels will be super additions to the summer kitchen. Also found the sweetest little hand-crocheted vintage baby bonnet in perfect condition and a pretty embroidered dresser scarf.

Admittedly, I've never used a mold in the kitchen for anything, so I don't know exactly what type of mold this nice little bunny is. All I know is that when I see something this darling for a buck, I'm not going to pass it up. It's not small--about 10" by 9"--and it's in excellent condition.

The old wood frame features some nice scroll work and will be nice to have around for a future project.

Still to come:  my husband expands his small, but growing, collection of vintage cake carriers.

Stay tuned . . .

Make it a great day!

Linking to:

Flea Market Finds at Her Library Adventures
Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm
Tuesday's Treasures at My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
Share the Love Wednesday at Very Merry Vintage Style
Rednesday at It's a Very Cherry World