Rainy day = time for some thrifting

As storms moved through the area yesterday it seemed like a perfect excuse to get up to Indy to do some thrifting.

Among my finds were some vintage handiwork, including embroidered objects and doilies, a vintage santa from the late 60s/early 70s that apparently sings and dances, a set of retro tea cups in pastel, a few Shiny Brite ornaments, various pieces of ephemera, a cool looking old doll and doll-head, some fun vintage tins, a chandelier which I’m planning to put in my shed and an Edgar Allan Poe book from 1904 – not a first edition but well over 100 years old!

On my “always on the lookout” list are toy horses for crafts and display (I usually try to steer clear of ones with hair and stick to ones in good condition that are all plastic), vintage sewing stuff (wooden spools of thread, notions, tape measures, etc.), vintage holiday decor (esp. vintage Christmas), paperdolls, Redmon baskets, dollhouse goodies, tea cups, globes, puzzles (old and new), vintage toys and games, old racquets, wooden rulers and cool old frames. I’m sure that’s not an exhaustive list, it is always evolving. I probably need to make bingo cards…but even without the cards, I feel like I’ve “won” a day of thrifting when I find a few things from this “favorite things” list.

Various vases and other treasures

After last week’s thrifting adventure, I was eager to get back to the outlets to look for more treasures. While it didn’t feel like quite as big of a win as the last time around, I did score some fun finds.

Here are a few notes on the items shown below.

  • Various Vases: I found a few jars and a kettle that made lovely flower vases. The one on the far left was actually a find from a little while ago and came from a distillery where the infamous Pappy Van Winkle had worked. Chris and I had fun trying to date it based on various features using information available on the web.
  • Two vintage plaid Thermos canisters. The glass inside is intact so I think these will make beautiful vases com tailgate season (which is almost here).
  • An Eskimo Fan from the 40s or 50s that still works. Two related tips: Tip 1: use the wall plugs to test out a product to see if it works. I think I’d have bought this one anyway and maybe stuck pictures in it if it hadn’t worked…and I still might do it anyway. Tip 2: ask for a flat price. When you are paying by the pound, something heavy is not a good deal…but I pulled it out of my cart and asked if they could give me a flat price and the cashier offered to sell it to me for $3…a fraction of the cost it would have been if I’d put it on the scale with the rest of my finds.
  • Rusty metal treasures! I’ve been collecting various old-looking tins for an indoor gardening project.
  • Disney Trading Pin: This treasure jumped out at me because it was HUGE but also because my husband and I enjoy trading pins at Disney. This one turned out to be going for about $50 on ebay, but I’m going to hang onto it and try using it for an epic trade the next time I’m there.
  • Awesome accessories: A few vintage hats and an old umbrella with beautiful embellishments
  • Old racquets that were pretty beat up, but still good for decor
  • Pig Out on Popcorn: A vintage-looking popcorn tin that I plan to repurpose as a trashcan
  • Corelle cups: they are so delicate and I was simply amazed that the had survived the bins…so I had to rescue them.
  • A Mr. Peanut Tin from the 40s…not worth much but kind of fun (esp. since Mr. Peanut has now been retired by Planters)
  • Bulova Watch Case...that looks kind of like a car. The watch wasn’t in it, but the case itself was a cool find.
  • Various advertisements – they were carefully preserved by someone and I look forward to incorporating them into future projects (displayed with a retro camera that I also found). The vintage coca cola and seed advertisements were from old placemats that I cut up when I got home.
  • A set of little blue books from the 30s on topics such as the “War Speeches of Woodrow Wilson,” “Curiosities of the Law,” and my favorite: “An Exposure of Mediums’ Tricks and Rackets.”
  • Vintage family photo from Bedford: I had a blast looking at this treasure…seriously, check out some of the people! There are definitely some great stories that could arise from this photograph. Bonus points for finding the guy with the teddy bear. I’d love to know more about this family.

Hot deals

With temps in the upper 90s today and what felt like 100% humidity, it was a perfect day to duck in for a little shopping at some Goodwill Outlets in Indy. …In addition to cooler temps, I found a few cool items as well. I found Barbie’s Country Home (from 1973) in one rotation, and a similar style home called Barbie’s Family House, from 1968, in the second rotation. They are both a pretty rad reminder of two very vibrant historical periods.

A veritable treasure trove

I hit two Goodwill Outlet…including one with the entire thrifty sisters crew! The vintage Santa doll looks a little shifty, but the best find of the night was a stamp collection. We’ve been having fun looking up info and values for some of the different stamps…the collection includes stamps from the 1890s through the 1980s. They grabbed my eye initially because I thought I could use them for crafts…but it seems like there might be some that are far too valuable to add to a collage.

Dorm room design on a dime

Anna is heading to college and that means it is time for acquiring some dorm-room decor! She’s going with a plant and floral motif with lots of pinks and greens…and elements of bohemian chic. Here’s what I’ve found so far…

Admittedly, the white flower pots weren’t thrifted, they were on clearance at IKEA, but with help from my husband, we found a way to turn them into a hanging light fixture with LED color changing lights.

Christmas lasts all year

My Christmas display stays up year-round in a small spare-bedroom. It is ever-changing as new finds are acquired, but it always brings me great joy to step into that room and feel like it’s Christmas, even if it is the middle of July.

Thrifty dollars bring vintage treasures

Okay, that was my lame attempt at a play on the “April showers bring May flowers” saying…since this post shows a combination of thrifted finds from April and May. Highlights in this batch include: a retro tiki tin, a cool vintage game board for a game called “World Flyers”, vintage children’s books, early Elvis records, some vintage linens and some fun decor for Halloween and some awesome vintage Christmas finds.

Fun story on the standing Santa: I found his plastic white boot and thought it was something that I might be able to do something crafty with…but then, after a few laps around the outlet, I saw a Santa missing one white boot. Apparently, I scored the Santa because he was missing that one white boot that I’d happened to grab.

Thrifted collage

A collage to celebrate Monroe County History as a gift for the departing director of the Monroe County History Center – featuring a copy of the sheet music for “Star Dust” the most famous by Bloomington-born composer, Hoagy Carmichael, some buttons with stars, a vintage buckle and some ribbons, and some stickers…all thrifted…right down to the frame!