A few of my favourite things from the Thrift Store

Looking back on my year of thrifting, a few favourites stand out (but let's face it, everything vintage from the thrifts was splendid and stood out in its own way). On with my super favourites then!

A vintage German log chalet thermometer. The two figures swivel depending on the air pressure I believe. Not sure if that function still works, though. The trees and the box window flowers are adorable. It was $1.46 (!) at St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store.

Found my first piece of Pink Gooseberry Pyrex, it's so pretty.

Round Casserole, for only 99 cents at Value Village!

 

My year of firsts....I also got my première Snowflake Aqua Space Saver ? Casserole at VV.

It was in very good condition and the lid was included as well. It was $5.99 (swell!) but

I ended up paying less because I had my 30 percent stamp card! Yay!

I love the pink and aqua together. They have a certain je ne sais quoi about them with the pastel background and the white design.

An Arabia of Finland Strawberry Creamer. I love anything with strawberries on them, so it was
a bonus to find them on a Arabia piece. It is in excellent condition. And the price was "sweet" as well... $1.99 at VV. That store has been very good to me!

Paired up with an Arabia Plum jam pot with lid that I found a few years ago

at a church rummage sale.

A vintage goldtone family tree with round ornate picture holders. The backing material is

 red velvet. $1.99 at VV.

 

Looking forward to another great year!

 

Happy New Year!



 





Merry Christmas

Whew! Finally put the finishing touches on my vintage mini Christmas tree.

The angel in red to the right of the photo is a vintage wooden ornament with wool hair made in Sweden. She has foil wings and a halo.

The ornaments are so cute, I had just enough to circle the base of the tree. They are not glued on, so that I can rearrange them next year.

My Little Vintage Tree

I decided to make my own tabletop mini Christmas tree this year as a fun crafting project...using thrifted items of course. Here it is Christmas Eve, and I have finally undertaken this project. Yup, if it wasn't for the last minute, I wouldn't get anything done (wink).

I used as the foundation two styrofoam bases purchased for pennies at two different church rummage sales I attended in the fall, and several mini wooden ornaments for a couple of dollars from the thrift. The only thing I purchased new was the silver tinsel trim and Martha craft glue.

I think this is called a disc arranger

Vintage vials of glitter (ooh!) and a bottle of craft glue from Winners.

I spread the craft glue  (akin to Podge It) on the top surface of the styrofoam disc arranger. I like how the glitter reminds me of old vintage Mica glitter on Christmas ornaments.

The photos below are taken before the base was finished.

Lotsa wooden ornaments this year...

Schmid Snoopy Music Box for Christmas

First of all, let me confess that I am an avid Snoopy collector. I collect vintage and newer items, and a lot of my finds come of course from the thrifts.

I recently found something at Value Village that made my heart stop.

 

Blandly marked "Housewares Seasonal"

Once I got my ticker going again, this guy came off the Christmas display shelf in the store and into my sweating hands:

It's a vintage numbered Schmid Snoopy music box. Look at all the stockings on Snoopy''s doghouse!
He's got it covered! I can't believe this was still there at the end of the day. It works beautifully and is in spotless condition.

 

 

 

When you wind it up, it plays "Silent Night". It's one of my favourite Christmas songs. Twas meant to be!

Christmas Craft Supplies on the Cheap

I am a huge crafter and am able to find most of what I need in thrift stores. Value Village often sells excellent craft items in their bagged goods, some of which are unused or a fraction of their original price. I've been able to find huge bags of glue gun sticks (a glue gun is a crafter's dream tool), stencils, wooden stamps, and ink pads.

 

I recently found a bag of brand new Stampin' Up ink pad in red and

DIY Christmas stamps with blocks for $2.99.

The stamp pad was still sealed. It looks like only a few stamps were used.

The stamps were unmounted and came with various wooden blocks. You simply cut the stamp out of the rubber sheet, and stick it onto one of the blocks. These were some of my favourite stamps - a snowflake mitten, a pine cone, and a peppermint candy. Sweet!

 

That's a strange looking baby you got there, ma'am

Yeahhh! I've been on vacation this week from work, taking it easy.

I stopped by my nearest Value Village store today as I hadn't been over the weekend. I totally forgot today was their half price sale on clothes, and the bloated aisles were filled with shoppers and heaving carts. I just did some casual picking, got a couple of clothes items, as the racks had already pretty much been picked over. As I passed by the children's toy section, however, I found this doll shoved to the very back of its shelf.

It was a somewhat tacky plastic doll dressed as Mrs. Claus, complete with a blown-out grey wig, red velvet dress up to here, and a dressing cap. Meh.

A close up of her face.

I still picked her up and felt there was something about her big blue eyes and sweet expression that made me overlook the Christmas rah rah look. I determined she was a celluloid / composition doll, nicely made. For 99 cents, she went into my nearly empty cart.

When I got her home, I realized that the dress was not original to the doll, the sleeves were much too long, and the hair was strangely...askew, like a real wig. I saw the wig and cap had been loosely glued to the doll's head. I pulled off the dress, and the cap came off next.

Look at the surprise waiting for me when I stripped the doll of her "Christmas-ness"...

I couldn't believe the transformation! I had an adorable composition Kewpie doll with the sweetest linen undershirt with embroidered flowers and lace.

She had hair at some point, but some nasty child took a pair of scissors to her brown locks. She does need a clean up, but what a find! She has a maker's stamp on her back, it is marked "Reliable" Made in Canada. Reliable Toy Company made fantastic and adorable dolls for girls in the 40s until the late 80s I believe.

It just goes to show you it pays to listen to you gut, and to scratch beneath the surface of some of those thrift store items! You could have a real "doll" of a deal!

Yee Haw!

I am feeling so jazzed after going to a couple of Christmas bazaars today! I found

drool-worth collectibles at the first sale...

Vintage milkglass jar of disappearing cream, likely dating from the 20s, a small size Butterfly
Gold Pyrex, and a vintage Swedish Dala Horse with original sticker! I must be dreaminggg!!

Children's books were 25 cents each! See that book in the top right corner?... It's a very

old Ant and Bee hardcover mini book! I know, right??? Love!

A closer look at the jar of cream. It is for "disappearing cream" and the label has a gorgeous
peacock on it. The top left corner has peeled off, and I can't figure out what the beginning of
the word is. Can anyone let me know? Or is it "Anylotis?"

Today I went to one of my favourite yearly church rummage sale. This particular church has several rooms full of vintage Christmas, jewellery, furniture, housewares and linens - each section has their own room!! So you can imagine I did find lots of lovely things.

Vintage Burlap Santa ornaments - Love those bottlebrush Christmas trees ...

for sale in my etsy shop !

 

Deck of Linen Dutch Windmill and Tulips Playing Cards - only 25 cents!

Six mini wooden sewing thread spools - also just 25 cents

I am going to upcycle them with wire to make picture holders

 

 

 

A gorgeous faux leather 60s Travel Diary. The colour was what drew me to it.
The front insert page reads "A Record of Wonderful Days Spent In Travel"
"A Reminder of the sheer pleasure of going places and meeting interesting people". Love it!!

 

 

A Flurry of Activity - My Thrifting Finds for the last month

It is officially autumn (much better name than "Fall")  and the open season for church rummage sales. And today was a great start to the season!

Vintage 50s Vogart Goldilocks and the three bears iron on transfer

 

 

Finally! finally found a pack of vintage Snoopy cards

 

Here are a few of the other treasures I was lucky enough to find this past summer:

 

A complete set of Cinderella Pyrex in Spring Blossom Pattern

 

These Pyrex beauties were picked up at a neighbourhood sale. The area is well off and there were lots of quality items. There was a price written on a slip of paper inside the small bowl. At first glance, I thought it said $15, which was an exceptionally good price.

 

When I peered closer, I couldn't believe it. The price actually said $5! So I got a complete set of Spring Blossom Pyrex bowls for a measly fiver!

Sweet vintage embroidered piece that was sewn into a draw string pouch. 25 cents~

 

Milk glass strawberry bowl, in perfect condition, $1.99 at Salvation Army



 

Cheshire Cat Smile

I have this week off from work, and of course I must start the week off by going to the thrift. Glad I did! Indeed, you could say it put a smile on my face.

This is a large Cheshire cat toaster or teapot cosy, in brand new condition. I couldn't quite capture the vivid greeness of his eyes. He is so lovely and is perfect.

The cosy is from "Alice's Shop", Oxford. I had never heard of this store. It is actually a store in Oxford, England, selling authentic Alice in Wonderland items. Can't you practically hear this cat purr?

Close up of the famous Cheshire cat smile. Priceless!

Books from the Thrift Store

My Salvation Army has racks and racks of magazines, and once in a while you can find some vintage-y gems. For example, I found a Circle Magazine, circa 1979 with this adorable craft idea photo spread:

It pictures adorable handmade angels made from recycled drinking cups. I'm not sure what materials were used for the other objects in the picture, but I believe everything is made from recycled materials. Did I mention this was from 1979???

On the other end of the spectrum, this is a copy of Dickens' Great Expectations in the children's section. Why does Mrs. Haversham look like a man in drag?

Today, on my trip to Value Village, there were some interesting office items

in a stunning shade of aqua.



Stacking Trays....aren't they pretty?



Sigh, the colour is so beautiful, it reminds me of summer. I decided I didn't have room in my office for these (sniff sniff).



Things that make me happy

I always go crazy over vintage rick rack and sewing trims at the thrift store. They're very cheap and they have so many uses. They look so pretty displayed in a vintage Pyrex mixing bowl (Woodland Mushroom).

I got all these packages of rick rack, lace trim and seam binding for about $2.00.

So many colour options...



I'll never be able to use them all.