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 

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 

An Estate Sale Adventure and The Naked Boob Hour

Mom and I went to our first estate sale of the year a few weeks ago.  We are fortunate to have a very cool local website where we can see what estate sales are coming up and what things will be for sale.  They usually have lots of pictures.  Even if the sale is too far away or we're too busy to go, it's fun to look through the pictures. I guess it's like thrifter p*rn.

We hadn't been to a sale since summer and we could tell from the pictures this was a great one. Going through the pictures is sort of like our version of playing I Spy.

  

I spy something Pyrex! Ooh... three partial sets of mixing bowls.  Maybe they will have the elusive red bowl.

I spy rooms and rooms of craft supplies... yarn... crochet thread... ribbon... I bet there are zippers,,,

And look,  that sign says everything is 25c!

Yarn...

 More craft supplies...

I spy toys and board games... I wonder what's in that box for $10...

 I spy enamelware in the basement... Ok, you find the craft room, I'll take the basement.

I spy... what the heck IS that cherub feather thing?  A lamp?

 We also spied shiny brites and a Disney Snow White toy ironing board, and horrendously loud 70's clothing, and so much more.  We weren't planning on buying everything, but hoped to see lots of it before everybody else bought it.   We figured this would be a popular sale, so we'd have to get there early.  We might even have a sighting of the elusive Magpie Ethel.  This was just her kind of sale.

 Early Saturday morning  we gathered our coats and umbrellas and set off across the river.  We arrived more than an hour ahead of time, but there were already dozens of people in line and they kept coming.

And you can see from the picture that this was an old house; the kind with narrow hallways and steep stairs leading to tiny rooms, so they couldn't let everybody in at once. 

The first customer was in and out before we even got in the door.  As he came out all of us waiting were anxious to know what he had bought.  He stated proudly that he had gotten the aluminum Christmas tree for $100.  Wait... what? There was an aluminum Christmas tree?!  That wasn't in the pictures. And I didn't even get to see it.  Drat!  But I did see that he was carrying the cherub feather lamp thingy.  What the heck?  I figured he was a dealer, so did that mean that weird thing was valuable?? 

After we got in, I headed for the basement, but the enamelware was all snatched up already and there was no toy ironing board in sight.  Then I went to the dining room to see about the Pyrex and there was a crazy lady sitting on the floor surrounded by mixing bowls growling nastily at anyone who came near and mumbling something about "My Precious."  Ok, not really, but almost.  She was actually on the floor, totally blocking traffic and trying to lay claim to everything Pyrex within her sight.  I dared to pick up a bowl that was out of her reach and she yelled at me that it was hers until she said otherwise.  One of the red mixing bowls was actually sort of an orange color so she held it out to me and said, "Here, this is good enough for you."  I thought to myself, "They're ALL good enough for me," but didn't really want to fight a crazy woman, so I just said, "No thank you," and went in search of the craft room.  

When I got to the craft room, there was only one other person in there: Magpie Ethel.  You can read her post about the sale here.  All was quiet as we each shopped.  I got some beads and a large knitting needle and a Tunisian crochet hook.  Everything really was 25c :)  

Then I moved into the corner where the piles of yarn were.  I didn't want to block traffic, so I set my large bag down a few feet away.  I grabbed a few skeins of yarn and turned to put them in my bag, when two women with toddlers in tow barged into the room and pushed past me.  They proceeded to pull out large garbage bags and loudly announce how wonderful it was that they were going to get ALL this yarn.  A few other women had come into the room at the same time and tried to get to the boxes of yarn , but they were not about to share.  I moved on to the crochet thread, but couldn't help hearing them yelling at their poor kids not to touch anything and crowing about how much yarn they were getting as they scooped it all up.  "I can't believe I got 95 skeins of yarn."  "Well, I got over 100." They were so obnoxiously greedy that I wanted to grab one of their bags and hit them with it, then give them a piece of my mind, but I didn't want their children to have to witness that.  They looked miserable enough as it was.

Meanwhile, Mom was looking through books and games and other craft stuff.  There were a lot of craft supplies all over the house.

Here's some of what we got - pinking shears, vintage hair shears, craft punches, a 1930 edition of Nancy Drew (these were my favorite books growing up and I'm quite pleased to have found a clothbound edition), a nice vintage ledger, some cowboys and army men...

 

bags of beads and a couple of cute jars with plaid lids...

 

 crochet thread, yarn, the needle and crochet hook...

 

 a spaghetti kitty and a little dog...

  

 a colorful 70's domino set...

 

and a 1966 version of Milton Bradley's memory card matching game.  

Mom liked the graphics on these two games, but was surprised to find that the Memory game is quite popular on ebay, selling recently for $35, even with some of the cards missing (we're missing a card, too)

We had a good time going through the house in spite of the behavior of some people.  Most people were very patient and polite.   We also found some recipe pamphlets and books. 

By far, our favorite book is this one, because there is a family story to go along with it.  

About twenty years ago, we lived in an apartment.  Free cable was provided to all the tenants, but it was only 13 channels.  During Christmas vacation, they gave us free premium channels to try to entice us to sign up for the pay service.  So one evening, after the eleven o'clock news, Mom and my then teenaged sister decided to see if they could find anything good on HBO, Cinemax, etc.  Hoping for a movie, they tried HBO... half-naked people making out... Cinemax... more half-naked people making out... Showtime... even more half-naked people.  And by half-naked, I mean mostly naked boobs.  "This is ridiculous," said Mom.  "Apparently, eleven o'clock is the beginning of The Naked Boob Hour.  I give up.  We'll go to Disney Channel.  At least they won't have naked boobs."  So she turned it to the Disney Channel, and there was baby Perri, the squirrel, being nursed by her mother.  Even on the Disney Channel, there were naked boobs!  Granted, they were squirrel boobs, and you couldn't really see much, but come on!  Needless to say, we did not get premium channels that year.

We did not buy this pink poodle with real bright pink rabbit fur, but she was awfully cute.
I'm not sure where bright pink rabbits can be found.  Maybe the same place that pink and blue poodles can?

We spent almost two hours going through the house, and just as we were leaving I remembered that I wanted to take a picture of something else we didn't buy...

this hilarious robe made out of bath towels.  Apparently such robes were a fashion statement in the '70s.  I believe the exact statement was, "What the frickety-frack?"

You can tell this one was extra special because they used fringe on the collar and sleeves.  I'm really glad I went back because that was when I saw the chenille bedspread.

I love chenille and have always wanted to find a bedspread.  This one is peach in color and is worn in places, but I plan to cut it and make pillows or something.

We stopped at one other estate sale, but only bought a sweater and some boxes of Little Debbie brownies.

 We did, however, see this terrifying ashtray...

and this adorable felt on cork giraffe.  

Mom remembers assembling several of these art kits back in 1968. 

On our way back home we stopped at Wendy's for chicken sandwiches and discovered a very nice deal.  This year Wendy's is selling plastic key tags for $1 ($0.90 of which goes directly to the Dave Thomas Foundation) that entitle the cardholder to a free junior frosty with every purchase for the duration of the 2015 calendar year.  We each bought one and I'm very satisfied with the deal and highly recommend it to anyone who likes frosties.

Our first estate sale of the season was a success. How has your thrifting been lately?

I'm linking to the following parties:

Show and Share at Coastal Charm
Vintage Bliss Tuesdays
Thrifter Share
Tweak It Tuesday
Roses of Inspiration

Pink and Yellow (and Green and Blue)

It's Mary Engelbreit Monday at Cherry Chick's blog, so it's time to show you my recent ME finds. I just love the $1.00 ME items at Michaels.

Yellow cherry socks.

Pink flowered socks.

Some for me and some for my niece.

And if $1 isn't thrifty enough, I can use my 40% off one item coupon that comes in my weekly email from Michaels.com.

Speaking of $1,

I found this well-loved blue Pyrex primary 401 bowl at an estate sale. Now I just need the 402 red bowl to complete my set.

I also found this pretty blue divided server,
with a not-quite-matching clear 2 Qt casserole lid for $2.00. I think the pattern is Blue Horizon, but since it didn't have the patterned lid, I'm not sure. The actual color is more of a cadet blue than the blue in the picture.

Some day I hope to have a pink and yellow kitchen of my own, so I am always on the lookout for pink or yellow kitchenware.

14 inch Boonton melamine platter - $1.50.
Isn't that a cool shape?

Pearlized white and yellow Tupperware cold cuts keeper with 2 deviled egg trays inside - $2.25.
I already had one of these, but not in this dreamy color. I can't wait for picnic weather.

And my Mom found these cute little juice glasses for $4.00.

I couldn't get a picture that didn't distort the lines; they really are straight.

This green cake plate was $3.00. It's not vintage, but I really like the color.

These last three are for my mother.

She didn't need any more depression glassware, but she has a soft spot for grill plates, and these were only $5.00 for all three. The pattern is called Florentine No. 2, made by Hazel Atlas between 1932 and 1935.

The weather has been really cold here lately,
so I'd like to leave you with this sentiment.

I'm linking up to the following parties:
Mary Engelbreit Monday
Thrift Share Monday

Click on the links and join the fun.