The Week in Thrifting: April 20-26

My friend Rachael and I made a trip to The Goodwill Outlet last week, and here are some of my finds:

 

For those of you who aren't aware, The Goodwill Outlet (commonly known as The Bins) is where they send items deemed not good enough to be put in a Goodwill Store, or things that were in the store for several weeks and didn't sell.  Everything is jumbled together in shallow bins that people rummage through and almost everything is sold by the pound.  It's kind of a mess, and not for the squeamish.  You never know what you will find, but I usually find a bargain or two.

Like a Vera Bradley purse!!  It looks like it's never been used.  I cannot for the life of me figure out how it ended up at The Bins,  I'm just glad it did.  There are several pockets in it that should make it a great project bag for crochet.

 

A cashmere sweater.  Mom and I have already started unraveling it for the yarn, and I think I will try overdyeing it to get a darker variegated purple color.  It will eventually become a shawl for a friend.

 

I picked out the silk tie because I want to try using it to dye eggs.  The small skein of yarn feels like chenille, so I had to get it, but I'm not sure what I'll do with it.  The Santa needs some repair and will go into my Christmas supplies, and I couldn't pass up toy Corningware.  Rachael and I wanted something for a journal cover, and we really liked the pretty green pattern of the heavy library binding on this book.
 

Although the Vera bag is definitely the best deal, this is my favorite find.  It's a wool hat, I'm guessing from the 1930s or 1940s, and I would have rescued it from The Bins regardless, but the best part is, it fits my giant head.

Here's the label stamped inside.  I can't find anything about Henry Pollak hats on the internet, but there are an awful lot of them being offered for sale, so he must have been pretty successful. 

I was looking for something that could serve as a small tray and found this shadow box picture frame.  It will be repainted and decorated with scrapbook paper.  I was also able to find a few Shiny Brites and similar ornaments. 

 

These must be from the sixties.  They're wearing fishnet stockings.

 

Silverware - some to keep and some to turn into herb markers.

There was a whole bundle of wrapping paper pieces.  I searched through it all and finally chose these to bring home.

These three are my favorites.  Sweet little babies and a vintage-looking wedding shower pattern.  I'm hoping they will be strong enough to use for crafting.

In addition to the pictured items Rachael picked up a Tolkien boxed set in paperback.  We each got a few articles of clothing and I admit I bought some discontinued nail polishes.  I actually found a few colors I've been keeping an eye out for.

The two most fun things to find were a pristine women's motorcycle jacket from Wilson's Leathers for Rachael and a hilariously ridiculous knitting and crochet pattern book entitled "Sexy Little Knits" and filled with bikinis, crop tops and lots of mesh.

I found a picture of the book on Amazon.  According to the reviews there, this book is horrible; the patterns are full of errors and unworkable.  Good thing we only bought it for the laughs.

Our trip to the bins yielded several things we were both searching for and at a great price point.  I paid about $7.00 for everything I showed you.  What great deals have you been finding at the thrift store lately?

I'm linking up with these parties:
Show and Share
Vintage Bliss Tuesdays
Roses of Inspiration
Vintage Inspiration Party
Nifty Thrifty Sunday
Thrifter Share
Frugal Friday
 

Ravelry Swap Reveal: Part One

For my crochet projects, I use Ravelry, a networking site for fiber arts, where one can find patterns for free or purchase, pattern help and yarn or notions venders.  They have a wide network of social forums and groups.  I am a member of a group specifically for swapping, and I just completed a swap. 

The theme for this swap was "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle."  This fit so well with things I like to do, such as thrifting, repurposing, and crafting, that I was able to fill a large Priority Mail flat rate box and stay well within my budget.  

 One of the requirements for the swaps that I do is to include at least one skein of yarn for my swappee to use.  I also like to send one item that I crocheted.  Mom likes to unravel or dismantle sweaters, and I help, so between the two of us, we were able to compile a good amount of yarn for this swap.

 

This 25c wool/angora/nylon J. Crew sweater

became a pair of fingerless mittens

and a lot of bulky weight yarn for my swappee to craft with.

The color in my picture is a little off; the yarn itself is a bit more mustard yellow.

I'm always on the lookout for a good white wool sweater that can be unraveled and dyed. 

So I pulled this one from my stash.  This was a 2XL woman's sweater, wool/nylon blend, that I picked up at Value Village for about $3.50.

First, Mom took out the seams, then she unraveled the sweater, resulting in about 2000 yards of sport weight yarn.

I used felted joins to make two skeins, 455 yards each, and then dyed them using Wilton Gel Color and vinegar to get a nice variegated orange colorway.  My swappee's favorite color is orange.  You can see I still have a little more than half the yarn left for another project. 

We learned how to unravel sweaters and reclaim the yarn from THIS website.

I've been cannibalizing jewelry for years, so I was able to put together a row counter bracelet and some stitch markers.  And there are the Tupperware measuring spoons I found back in February. 

These are just some of the things I was able to get into my swap box.  I'll show more soon.

I'm linking up with these parties:

Nifty Thrifty Sunday
Show and Share
Roses of Inspiration
Think Tank Thursday
Frugal Friday
Tips & Tricks
Bouquet of Talent

What the Frickety-Frack? Friday #2

Welcome to "What the Frickety-Frack Friday," where I share the weird, unusual, creepy, puzzling, or even downright terrifying things I've seen offered for sale or just around town.  The things that make me say, "What the Frickety-Frack?"

Because of Mom's situation with her back, we can't get out to the estate sales, and wouldn't you know it, there are a lot of great sales right now.  But we do have a local website full of pictures from the sales to look at, so I present this:

You tell me.  

What the Frickety-Frack is this?  

It appears to be a lamp, because I can see a cord and a switch behind it.  But it also appears to be melted... or broken...  Is it supposed to look like this?  Or did somebody go crazy with the E-6000 adhesive and some bits and pieces?  It's probably a valuable antique, but I just don't get it.

 Here we have the remains of a Pyrex primary colors refrigerator set.  This is what years of dishwasher use will do to Pyrex.  Let us observe a moment of silence in remembrance of what this set once was.  Hope they're not asking much.

Metlox Peach Blossom

 Pretty,  pretty,  pretty

Nothing Frickety-Frack about this.

I love this pattern of dishes and wish I could go to the local sale just to see them. 

I hope everyone else is blessed with great sales this weekend and finds wonderful things.

I'm linking up with these parties:

Thrifter Share
Show and Share
Roses of Inspiration
 Vintage Bliss Tuesdays
Vintage Inspiration Party 

What the Frickety-Frack? Friday

Welcome to what I hope will be a regular feature on my blog, "What the Frickety-Frack Friday," where I share the weird, unusual, creepy, puzzling, or even downright terrifying things I've seen offered for sale or just around town.  The things that make me say, "What the Frickety-Frack?"

Today was the grand opening of a new Salvation Army Thrift Store.  They closed down the old store a few months ago and moved to a new location very near my house, and I have high hopes for this new location.  The store was very crowded.  I guess the opening of a thrift store is the height of the social season in my neighborhood.  I didn't buy anything, but I did get into an altercation with a woman who thought she owned the aisles and was incensed that I didn't jump when she barked.  And I do mean barked.  She even growled a little.  When I refused to let her run me over with her cart, she told me that I needed to go home and take some prozac so I wouldn't be so "rude."  I guess someone's on medication, but it ain't me.

So she qualifies as weird, and a little terrifying.  I don't have a picture of her.

 

But she looked kind of like this.

Except with a really bad page boy haircut.

Like I had in kindergarten.  Thanks, Mom.

I did sign up for the drawing for a free flat screen TV, an autographed Mariners' baseball and an autographed Trailblazers' basketball.    It appeared the Trailblazer organization may have donated a bunch of Blazers gear, including shorts, jerseys and shoes.  My boyfriend saw the first rack of shoes and exclaimed "Look, they have real shoe sizes!"  He is six foot seven and wears a size 14 :)

And then we saw this.

What the Frickety-Frack?
It appears to be two dragons made from shells.  And they are about to KISS!
Dragons making out in aisle five.  Yours for only $14.79.

But wait!  There are more!

And they are even weirder.
In this version, one dragon appears to be kissing the other dragon's tail.

Perfect beach cottage decor, right?

If you like the second one, there is a third that is a mirror image of it.
Bookends!
No wait, a three piece set for your mantle.
"Romantic" Shell Dragon Statues.

Would you have bought them?

If after seeing these pictures, you absolutely feel that you cannot live without them, they can be yours for the grand sum of $44.37 plus tax, shipping, and a fee of $50.00 to cover my pain and suffering should I be recognized purchasing such atrocities.  Before you ask, NO, I will not split up the set.


I'm linking up with these parties:

Show and Share
Thrifter Share
Vintage Bliss Tuesdays
Roses of Inspiration

The Week in Thrifting: Feb 22-28

 Last week I did a small amount of thrifting and spent very little but was very happy to find some things I had been specifically looking for.

I have a friend from church with two lovely little boys and my boyfriend and I had wanted to thank the family for help with something recently so we've been on the lookout for a toy and a book for their 2 year old that the infant can enjoy when he is the right age.

There is a small independent thrift store in town that I hadn't been to in about a year so we stopped in last week and discovered that two days a week everything is 60% off and we were there on the exact right day!

 

 

 Everything in this picture was $0.98!  The Brown Bear book and the Fisher Price Corn Popper were bought for our friend's son and he loves his "pop pop" toy. They cost a total of $0.25 because you get a free toy with each purchase.  We will definitely be going to this thrift store more often.

 

This Bear Scouts book was only $0.25 and begs to become a spiral notebook.  There are some really great illustrations inside including Father running from alligators.  (I love alligators).

This little made in Japan Christmas Pixie had a friend who was broken beyond repair, which was disappointing, but this one was only $0.40 and I brought him home for Mom. 

 Later in the week my mother spotted a Strawberry Shortcake lunchbox in the photos of an estate sale and called my boyfriend to see if he would want to go look for it as a surprise for me.  (You can read about my Strawberry Shortcake Dollhouse here)  He blew the surprise with good intentions and we went together to find it.  The lunchbox was gone but I did get some treasures. 

 

Each item in this photo was only $0.50 totalling a big $2.50.

The pastry blender and cupcake papers are just because they're useful while the measuring spoons and strange brown and orange thing are for a swap I'm involved in on Ravelry.

 

These little beauties are wine charms that will eventually become stitch markers or adorn a charm bracelet, whichever I need wine-themed charms for first.

This "strange orange and brown thing" is a handle-less Terra Pyrex mug.  Terra is an uncommon pattern of Pyrex, produced in a matte finish.  It is a chocolate brown with concentric circles of burnt orange throughout.  These handle-less mugs are 13 oz and Terra is the only pattern they were produced in.  Several years ago I found one of these at a Goodwill in the next city over.   I was overjoyed to find it at this sale as my swap partner's favorite color is orange!  The large size makes for a great pen holder if she doesn't want to use it as a mug.

The next sale was a blessing to find!  My mother found an estate sale listed online with photos of HORIZON BLUE PYREX BOWLS.  I have been looking for Horizon Blue Pyrex for several months as a wedding present for a friend.  The shade of blue it comes in is very close to her wedding colors and she only learned this year that Pyrex ever came in colors!  

The last time I found Horizon Blue in the wilds was November 2011 and I passed up a small casserole thinking I would easily find one at a lower price.  Boy was I wrong!

My church has an annual regional convention (4 churches in the area meet at my church for sermons and to discuss upcoming camps and other events in the greater church organization) and this year's convention fell on Saturday.   I went an hour ahead of the sale and was the first person in line.  I was late to church by about 20 minutes but it was worth it since I only missed the greetings!

 My usual price for a 4 bowl set is $20 so when I found only the two smallest bowls for $10 I grabbed them.  Even without the larger bowls I think they make a lovely gift.  The heart shaped jello molds came along for the ride at $2.00 for 8 of them.

Isn't Horizon Blue just such a lovely pattern?  It's a shame that Horizon Blue and it's sister pattern Friendship are so hard to find.

Here's a picture of a set of Friendship cinderella bowls courtesy of the internet.  If I could find it more easily and inexpensively I think Friendship would be MY pattern. 

My father came to the same sale, was in line a few people behind me, and went home with a few small things, all for $2.00.  The two paper fans are from Taiwan.  I lost the cord to Mom's 70's slow cooker a couple of weeks ago, so Dad found a replacement.  (Ssshh... don't tell him I found the cord a few days ago.  He's a hero.)  Not pictured is a large vintage Farberware skillet for my mother.  She is so tired of teflon!

The week was very productive with a grand total spent of $17.48 and having found a few things I've been on the look out for.  What have you been looking for lately?  Perhaps you will find it at the next sale.

I'm linking up with these parties:

Show and Share
Thrifter Share
Vintage Bliss Tuesdays
Roses of Inspiration

The Estate Sale Doppelganger and Pyrex From Heaven

Several weeks ago my mother and I went to a few estate sales that were practically next door to our house, not expecting to necessarily come back with much, and we were pleasantly surprised. 

Here are some of the things we found.

 

The first sale really was nearly within spitting distance of our house and yielded the most things we just couldn't leave behind and the most things interesting enough to photograph.  This sale was run by family, and they were so happy to get the house cleared out, they priced everything really low.

We bought an assortment of small things from around the house.  A few zippers, a pair of pinking shears, assorted pins and a pair of collapsible embroidery scissors came from the sewing room, while some games, glue sticks and the silver bird plate were in the living room.  

Also in the living room was this beautiful Hi-Fi set-up. 

It was marked only $15 and looked practically brand new, even though it probably dates it to the late 60's or early 70's.  I didn't buy it, but I almost wished I needed another turntable just so I could have an excuse to own something so nice. 

Recently I explained to my boyfriend what macrame is and it has become a running joke that he LOOOVES macrame so when my mother and I saw this - a HUGE macrame hanging table set - we couldn't stop snickering and I needed to share.  That thing was gigantic! It went from the ceiling almost to the floor. 

 

Next was the kitchen.  When Mom in ahead of me, she couldn't believe her eyes.  There, on the shelf above her head, with the heavenly light shining on it and the choir of angels singing its' praises, sat a pristine 471 Pyrex Bake-Serve-Store in aqua Butterprint FOR 25 CENTS.  Of course we took it home, what do you think we are, fools?

 

A friend's little boy turned 2 recently and was given a toy kitchen so we picked up the tiny Tupperware cream pitcher and canape cutter for him but the citrus peelers are for us.  The tea tin has a flat back for a semi-circular shape.  I just love the butterflies and flowers.

On our way out of the sale, Mom noticed a pile of resin planters, and decided to call my father to come look at them. This is how the conversation went: 

Mom:  Hey! You know those planter boxes you're going to build to put along the side of the house? 

You know, where you keep your collection of crapola?

Dad:  I was going to build something?

Mom:  Yeah, remember last month, when I said... um, I mean YOU said you would? 

Dad:  Ummm sure, I'll get right on that. 

Mom:  Well, maybe you don't have to.  They have a ton of resin planters at the estate sale that you didn't want to go to and you can probably get them for pennies, but they have to ride home in your car because some of them still have dirt in them.  

Dad:  I'm kind of doing something.

Mom:  Did you get the part about if you buy them I'll stop asking when you're going to build those planters?

Dad:  I'll be right there.

 No sooner had we put our purchases in the car, than I saw my father walking up to the house.  Or so I thought.  Five-foot-nine, 160 lbs, hiking boots, blue jeans, brown T-shirt covered by an unbuttoned flannel shirt with the sleeves rolled up, ball cap, glasses, beard, about 60 years old... wrong face.  It was eerie, and he was heading for the gardening supplies.  Mom called Dad again and said, "You better get over here, your doppelganger just showed up and he's buying all your stuff!"

When Dad arrived, he and Mom went into the garage, and Dad zeroed in on a pile of metal plant stakes.  As he picked one up, Mr. Doppelganger said, "Those are mine, but there are more over there."  Mom and Dad burst out laughing and then had to explain, and everybody laughed at the whole situation. Then Dad bought a whole stack of planters.

At the next sale, Mom was thrilled to find an 8-cup Pyrex measuring cup/mixing bowl for $3.00.  It's huge, and SO useful.

This lovely Pyrex citrus pattern juice carafe was $1.00. I already own one of these. Mom bought this one for holding her Crystal Light in a much classier container than vintage Tupperware.  Because Crystal Light should be in crystal, right?  Well, crystal is too expensive, so glass has to be good enough.  

 

This was not found as a record bowl but as a RED record - A tribute to Artie Shaw to be exact.  I snapped it up and made the bowl for my boyfriend for Valentine's Day and he loves it. 

I think it's the prettiest record bowl I've ever seen.  It's too bad colored vinyl is so hard to come by. 

I really wanted to take this home with me, as alligators are just about my favorite animal, but I couldn't justify the $5.00.

The third sale was run by a woman who buys storage unit contents at auction and sells the crud she can't get much for very inexpensively.  We bought a whole bag of stuff for $4.00 - many small things, including a wool/angora sweater for unraveling, a bunch of jewelry bits that will probably show up in another post, some more toy kitchen stuff and the most interesting thing we found. . .

an Aladdin Pump-A-Drink.  It's hardly been used.  Mom remembers when these were all the rage in the 70's.  Everybody had to have one.

They came in a number of styles.  No need to pour the coffee; just push the button on the top.

So, with a trunk full of purchases, Mom and I headed for home.  Later, as I'm unloading my stuff from the car, I hear:

Mom:  Let's go to the store to look at paint for those planters.

Dad:  I'm going to paint something?

I'm linking up with the following parties:
Thrifter Share
Show and Share
Vintage Bliss Tuesdays
Roses of Inspiration 

What IS a chenille?

I took a little trip to the Goodwill Outlet with my Mother and our entourage recently.  (My boyfriend carries my stuff and my friend Rachel's baby is really cute.  That's an entourage, right?)  Going to the Outlet is bound to be an adventure, as you never know what will be there.  You have to sort through a lot of junk, but there's always something to be found.  And whatever it is, it probably won't cost you much.

 

 I got everything in this picture for less than $2.40.

I picked through several boxes of ornaments and salvaged these unbroken ones.  I am especially happy to have found some indents.



 I gave the stamp set to a friend who LOVES The Little Prince.

The little gold-toned item in the center of the picture is a wax seal stamp.  I've wanted one since I was a little girl, but they cost at least $12.00 new.  This one cost 3c.  It stamps the initial "T", so maybe I'll change my name to Tabitha.  My six-year-old self has loved that name ever since she first saw a re-run of  Bewitched.  Or maybe Tilapia.  She thought that was very exotic too.

Most of the rest of the things are craft supplies for making ornaments next Christmas.  I want to try and make some putz houses, so I'm hoping the wooden trees, wreaths and drums can be used for that.  I plan to glitter the angels. 



I salvaged some metal tops off of broken shiny brites because we had these at home.
Mom found them at an estate sale for $1.00.  She almost fainted.  Aren't they gorgeous?


The box is pretty cool looking too.

I found this set of playing cards in a haunted house-themed board game.  There are four of each card.  The object of the game is to collect all the cards in the deck.  You deal out all the cards, make stacks, and then the players turn over their top cards at the same time.  If two cards match, the first player to yell "SCREECH!" wins those two cards.  Play continues until one player has all the cards or the nearest adult's head explodes.  It sounds hideous.  But they should be good for playing Old Maid or Go Fish.

This little basket has a sticker on it that reads "Match Mates by International Laminations." It appears to have been made by fusing fabric between layers of plastic.  We think it's from the 70's.  It's now corralling my craft supplies.

 

I also found this chenille bedspread.  My second one! Within two weeks, even.  When it rains, it pours.

Me: (pointing into the bin next to me) Look, Mom! A chenille bedspread!

Mom: (apparently blind from 10 feet away) No, that's a towel.

Me: (holding out the bedspread with my boyfriend's assistance) Look, Mom.  A chenille bedspread.

Mom: Ooh look! A chenille bedspread! 

After that fuss, my friend Rachel asked me "What's a chenille?" and I couldn't believe that she didn't already know.  I then explained to her that it is a wondrous and lovely bedspread of a style that is not commonly produced today.  

When I got home my Mother and I started to wonder to each other "What IS a chenille?" and I figured it out! A Chenille is an exotic animal, some kind of wild cat I suppose, prized for it's beautiful and soft pelts.  Chenilles come in many colors and with lovely patterns on their pelts.  Most of these creatures have dotted or striped, simple geometrically patterned fur in only one or two colors but sometimes hunters could be lucky enough to find a Chenille with a flower basket or other intricate design emblazoned on it's backside.  Chenilles were hunted to near extinction in the 1940s and 1950s due to fashion forward housewives prizing their pelts as bedspreads and blankets for their homes.  Sadly, due to this over-hunting it is very difficult to find a Chenille in the wilds today and so few people are willing to part with their beautiful heirloom pelts that I am reduced to looking for them at thrift stores and estate sales wherever I can.  

I think they come from the same place as pink and blue poodles, because my six-year-old self knows they're real; they just live in some far away place... like Australia.  Australia has exotic animals, right?

I hope you find lovely things in your travels, too.

I linking up with these parties:

Show and Share
Vintage Bliss Tuesdays
Thrifter Share
Vintage Inspiration Party
Roses of Inspiration