i hit the jackpot

Having "outgrown" my clothes (another story for another day),

and NEEDING something to wear during our upcoming vacation,

I made the trip in to my favorite thrift store this morning.

It had been a l-o-n-g time since I've been there.

I found the red, "white" and blue skirts above.  They'll get me through!

 There was a lot of "new" merchandise!  The store was packed!

I couldn't resist the pair of curtains with handmade border (above)...

 nor the crewel kitty above...

nor the white one with pink ears and yellow eyes below!

And I'm not even that fond of cats.

 Deciding I was on a "ROLL", I stopped in at another store 

where I found this child's kitchen unit.

For $10 plus a few repairs, I will find a place for it.  

It should easily hold most all of the toys our grandchildren

like to play with when they visit.

I definitely had too much fun today.

<I'm supposed to be in a decluttering mode>

the brown conTINgency

 This is the "brown conTINgency" of my tin collection.

If you go to labels in my sidebar, you can find other "tin" posts 

featuring the black and turquoise collections.

There are two others - blue & red - that I don't think I've featured.

 I found most of these thrift stores...a few at garage sales.  

I don't believe I've ever paid more than 50 cents for one.

 Some hold jewelry; one holds marbles; another keys; 

others small assorted stuff;

and some are empty.

The "browns" reside in our living room.

 

the atmosphere here

Mrs. Rabe at Creekside Cottage posted yesterday about "atmosphere". I was intrigued and warmed by her creative use of lighting to bring an atmosphere of coziness and hospitality to her cottage.

It set me on a quest to photograph the lamps that were "on" in our house as daylight lazily entered OUR four walls this morning.  I have many, many lamps.  Because our house doesn't have a lot of windows, table lamps are our primary source of lighting.

They create different effects at different times of day.

 In addition to lamps, I enjoy the atmosphere that WORDS create.  

Whether on vintage plaques such as these or stenciled on walls, 

they "warm the cockles of my heart"!

 (I see I need to do SOMEthing with the cord on this lamp...)

Except for the rooster lamp which my grandmother made,

all of the items seen here were either

purchased at thrift stores or garage sales.
That includes the canisters and wooden bowl holding tea bags
on the kitchen counter and the lantern above.

woodn't you?

File box - now holding recipes

A post at the Polohouse about old wooden hat molds reminded me 

of how much I like wooden ANYTHINGS!

Here are a few quick "for instances"....

Wooden kitchen gadgets

Wooden ?????s on a wooden child's chair

One of my stacks of wooden bowls

Wooden shoe forms on my grandfather's wooden rocking chair

Except for Grandpa's rocker and maybe a wooden spoon or two,

all items were found at thrift stores or garage sales.

“Wouldn’t you, Wouldn’t you, 

Like to wear a wooden shoe. 

Just like all the children do

Who live in Amsterdam?”

in between

Yesterday, in between leading a hymn-sing
at a nearby retirement home and lunch with a friend,

I enjoyed checking out a few garage sales.

All the large pitcher (above) needs is a big wash bowl to sit in!  

I thought the $1 price was reasonable.

I was especially pleased to find the blue glass plant-waterer for $.50.  

It looks beautiful in the middle of my philodendron
which thrives in a blue and white pot
under the light of a blue and white based lamp.
If it works as good as it looks,
I'm in business!

one is good, a hundred is better

Found these yardsticks at a garage sale last week for $.25 each. 

Couldn't resist 'em!

Brrrrrrr! It's Cold (Almost)

 I took advantage of the 59 degree temperature this morning
to do some much-needed weeding.

I noticed a few new flowers. 

They seemed to be hiding behind the foliage

as if uncertain of their timing.

 It's been awhile since I showed our mattress spring gallery.

The "SIMPLIFY" sign is begging for a new paint job.

The spirea appeared undaunted by the cold temperature.

It seems unusually brilliant this year.

OK.  I just realized I got this post on the wrong blog.
Sorry.  I'm too lazy to move it to where it belongs.

irresistible

Irresistible blue willow pattern on large metal tray

 Yard Sales!  One on Friday
and a trip to Hamilton for its annual town-wide sales on Saturday...

 

Irresistible kitty planter. 

For a quarter, I figure I can experiment

a bit and try to add a second eye to match the existing one.

 

 These two bottles for my yet-to-be-constructed bottle tree...

 This huge planter was irresistible to me--for its color and $.75 price!

 Neither can I pass up rust and wood.

I have no idea what this tool is, but it "called my name"!

 This metal cabinet will be sanded, painted, 

and possibly set alongside two other similar ones.

Yet another "thing" irresistible to me!

This time 'cause of its storage potential...

and $2 price.

 Also irresistible, this TeeShirt found at WalMart
this morning before church.
Marked down to $3, the purchase was a "no-brainer" for me.

thrift and gift

Last night we moved the little table out to the back sitting area of our yard.  

The table was purchased several years ago at auction.

My husband recently replaced the top with some old barn siding.

The four chairs were garage sale purchases.  

See the "deer" in the background? 

It is rebar, cut, bent and welded. 

This morning, we're enjoying a refreshing shower.

It washes a metal chair (yard sale)

and the huge, black bell (a gift from my brother and sister-in-law).
The blue bowling ball was purchased
at my favorite thrift store...

for barbara*

I tried, Barbara!  I really did. 

In frustration, I cut myself out of this picture 

and tried again in another room. 

But this picture DOES show a mirror
we once found

curbside (if my memory serves me right)
and the back of a wooden rocking chiar
that belonged to my grandparents...

I tried another photo in a corner of our kitchen/dining area.

This is the result.  My friend gave me the brown capri pants that I'm wearing.  

I really wanted them to fit, but they are too tight.

I didn't wear them out of the house.

If I HAD worn this outfit,

this long strand of amber-like beads

would have seen the light of day.  

But they didn't.

*Barb emailed me to ask where I've been.

This is my subtle way of saying why I've not been posting

so much here.  I've not been to the thrift store for awhile either.

I'm trying to divest rather than collect.
Don't worry though.  I have plenty left for show and tell!