My Vintage Soul

Exception to the Rule

Among my New Year’'s resolutions was a vow to focus on selling more and buying less, particularly in the slower sale months of January, February and March.

The only exception to my rule would be a good estate sale. Which, thank God, turned up this week via Craiglist. The post was for a moving sale that promised "57 years of accumulation" and "lots of stuff priced to sell."

That seemed to be enough to bend the rules, didn't it? So, off I went, with hopes of getting a good fix for what was becoming a serious case of junking withdrawal.

But the first few items that I saw, which were outside on the driveway, didn't do that. $15 for a chipped and cracked concrete birdbath? $5 each for those ubiquitous white resin garden chairs? The same kind that I often see thrown to the side of the road during spring cleanup?¶

Fortunately, it was a lot better inside, where there was a stash of incredibly cheap vintage holiday items. So, I loaded up.¶

In fact, I found a Gurley-palooza: Easter, Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas.

And more Halloween: Dime store trick-or-treat buckets, a metal noisemaker and what I think is an old paper mache lantern.

This one isn't marked so if someone knows how to tell a real one from a reproduction, let me know.

And more Christmas: Bottle brush tree, plug-in Santa (with a crown on his head?), candy box, small plastic tree and a tinsel-like decoration.

I thought I was good to go. Until I stopped in the garage, where there were canning cars. But were there blue canning cars?

Well, yes, there were. So I scooped up all six.

Now, I had sworn to cut back on wallpaper, seeing how I already have too much of it, but this red roll was just too cute and too cheap to pass up. Plus, it's perfect for Valentine's Day. If you like it, too, it's in the etsy shop.

And speaking of red and cute and cheap, let me present this little baby. It's a retro laundry basket.

I fell in love with it because of the snappy red stitching.

And the cute little pocket for clothespins.

And it folds up. Plus, the canvas basket snaps right off and can be washed, which I already did. It just might be a keeper, seeing how I'm planning a little laundry room makeover. But more about that in a later post. For now, I'm happy to report that sometimes it's OK to bend the rules.

Red Alert

With the holidays behind us, life is getting back to normal around here.

The Christmas decorations are finally down and packed away.

The children are back at college, starting their second semester. Which is why the Christmas decorations are finally down and packed away.

And, in other news, our luck with a rather mild winter finally ran out on Friday the 13th, and we had our first significant snowfall of the season.

And I think I am finally done updating the Etsy shop for Valentine's Day.

I pulled out the many things I have that are red and/or heart-shaped and listed those, including my stash of vintage red fabric.

Go check it out. I hope you find something that you love.

 

 

 

 

Less is More. Really.

I am so over this obviously fake Christmas garland, which is why when I took my decorations down, I hauled a big plastic garbage bag of it to the thrift store.

And I nearly added this garland to the pile because I've never liked those obviously fake holly leaves.

But I thought that maybe, if I take those holly leaves and cheap red plastic ornaments off, that there could be something worth saving underneath.

And there was. Now I have two reasonably realistic-looking and simple pine garlands, plus a new attitude about making do with less in 2012.

The Year in Junk

Before 2011 is too far behind us, it's time for one last look at the year in junk. So here, in no particular order, are my top 10 finds of 2011.

1. The year started off on high note with these aqua canisters that I found at an estate sale in January.

2. The annual town cleanup in April brought several good scores, including the scalloped window screen that I used to make the ornament tree in the previous post.

3. A silver tea service, that despite my efforts to clean it, doesn't look much better now than it did when I found it by the side of the road, in front of an old barn.

4. Another cleanup find was this box from a German department store.

Inside were several pressed metal Christmas decorations, including a MERRY CHRISTMAS banner and several Santas.

4. In July, at a garage sale, I found all of these miniature ornaments inside a brown paper lunch bag that was marked $1.

5. From the Route 34B Sale in September: A pefect pair of paint-by-number hunting dogs.

6. Oversized honeycomb tissue balls from the Bendixen estate, which were found at an estate sale in October.

7. Also found that same day at a church rummage sale, a vintage metal dollhouse.

And finally, a couple of Christmas finds:

8. A classic candy cane tablecloth. It's the same design as the one that Amy gave away recently. If you weren't lucky enough to win hers, you might be able to buy one at Bluebird Goods. I say "might" because they appear to be sold out for now.

9. and 10. And last, but certainly not least, a Holt Howard Santa riding on a train. Behind him are some of the branches from an aluminum Christmas tree which I sold on Etsy.

So here's to 2012. I'm hoping for joy, good health and lots of good junk. And of course I wish the same for you.