Category Archives: Thrifting

Pigs and Owls! Oh my!

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Going with the train of thought from an earlier post about finding happiness in the silly and obscure things. Even though, I’m not sure that I touched on that aspect of the post, I may have focused more on dogs eating rawhides. But anyway, here’s another post on all things weird, fun, and pride inducing : pigs ,owls, and Ole Glory. Not meaning any disrespect by putting our beautiful flag in the mix with a pig. Just to keep things clear here, we’re not talking about an actual bacon producing pig, but more the white ceramic animal head variety, I call him Sir Hamster the III.

As you can see I couldn’t be bothered with removing the 3.99 price tag before taking a shot of  his royal pigness. In fact, I haven’t been bothered to even hang him on the wall yet. When that happens I’ll be sure to share.

One of my not so recent acquisitions, a set of beautiful ironwood owls from my sweet uncle.

That little guy I already had, but he matched so well with the two big guys I just had to put them together to make an owl family. Thanks Unc. D for sending these guys my way!!

And finally, something that makes my heart swell with pride…

Our beautiful flag, it not only looks nice proudly rippling in the wind, but it also represents all those brave men and women that fight for our freedom everyday.

And with that I leave you with an obliatory dog picture, what post would be complete without one?

Quirk

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I love quirk, it’s my friend and constant companion. Quirk is preferable to some of my other companions like guilt, anger, and that other not so pleasant tag-a-long, jealousy and his friend covetousness. But quirk, quirk I embrace, quirk is the type of friend you call up to see the latest chick flick with. The buddy who still wants to hang out with you, even if you snort-laugh in public. Quirk is the fun friend, but  guilt always brings ya down, anger is just too unpleasant, jealousy is too judgy and that other acquaintance covetousness always wants what it can’t have and makes everyone miserable because of it.

Since I’ve been hanging out with quirk more often, I’ve become more aware of her presence around my home. Like my budding interest in owls:

Or my new favorite old things, pineapple bookends. When I brought these home Bubba thought they were…interesting…and…pokey. I am hoping that one day we will share a love of pineapple bookends.

Right now these lovlies are living on the living room coffee table, hanging out with my small vintage camera collection.

I couldn’t bear to put my pineapples in the front room where we keep all of our books. (A place I usually avoid, since I haven’t allowed quirk in that space.)  I just had to have them front and center, where I spend most of my time, in the living room, sadly, in front of the TV.

Alongwith my owls and pineapples I’ve noticed that quirk is showing herself in my other newest interest, globes. I love the colors, and it’s really nice to have visual aids when it comes to learning that Africa is not a country, but a continent.

This isn’t quirk, but she’s one of my other favorite and nearly constant companions:

(Never mind the floating head, I’m still experimenting with bokeh. And yes, the dog does match the carpet, many a night has she been stepped on in a sleepy stumble to the kitchen for a drink. )

Goldie dog tags along with me throughout all of my adventures, at least in the adventures where dogs are allowed.

Quirk is showing her face in the fact that I can’t bring myself to letting my Valentine Tulips bite the dust. I change their water and trim their stems every day. Obsessive Complusive? Or quirky?

Have you found quirk in your home recently? Is quirk something you want to keep around, or the friend you choose to ignore?

P.S. I’m linking up to a linky party hosted by the Nester, we are all celebrating our imperfections. Whether those imperfections be in the home, personal, or found in our quirkiness.  Click the banner below to be directed over to Nester’s celebration of imperfections.

Early Christmas

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Thanks to my Bubba, Christmas came early for me this year,  when I came home yesterday and found this beauty under the tree:

A Brownie Target Six-16, not the most unusual or rare camera, but one that I am very proud to add to my vintage camera collection. Which seems to be growing larger and larger one camera at a time.

The Kodak on the far right I talked about in this post, but the Brownie in the middle is a fairly new acquistion that was added to my collection a couple months ago.

This one is a little worse for wear, with some rust damage, but I think it looks very nice with the other old shooters.

Don’t these photos look like mugshots? You’d think this poor camera had robbed a 7-11 or something!

Well, I’m off to clear a shelf for my new collection! It may be time to edit down some of the other “collections” I’ve got going on!

Merry Christmas Eve Eve!!!

Virtual Transformations

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On a recent trip to a nearby thrift store I spied with my little eye, some treasures that needed just a little polishing. Unfortunately, I have neither the time, room, or a way of moving such treasures. So, instead of bringing home these jewels in the rough, I took some photos to share with you.

First up is a pair of chairs, I practically swooned.

I apologize for the quality of the photo, I had to use my point shoot as the big camera was a little conspicuous. Plus, florescent lights aren’t forgiving on anyone.

These chairs may not look so nice to the naked eye, but you’ve got have vision. They could be turned into this:

Via Pinterest Via Flickr (don’t you hate when you find the perfect picture, but can’t find the original link?)

Or they could be re-created into this $500 West Elm Chair:

Via West Elm

Or you could use a bold pattern to make them a statement piece, like this Target chair for $400:

Via Target

The chairs I am swooning were a cool $15.99  a pop:

Now that I’ve shopped around, these lovelies may have to come home with me.

During the same shopping excursion I found this curvy girl:

She needs some work, but nothing a little bit of stripping and paint couldn’t fix.

Especially with dove tailing like this.

And with such beautiful lines. At $129 she’s not a cheap date, not an expensive one, but considering the April hours it would take to make her pretty, I just couldn’t justify the purchase. But if I could have talked myself into this beauty, she could be turned into something like this:

Via Oh Dee Doh

No, there’s no bun, but these vintage dressers do make cute changing tables.

Via Dwellings by Devore

Or this beauty, the lines are a bit more simple, but you get the idea:

Via Little Green Notebook

Aww yes, nothing like virtually transforming a vintage treasure into something even more beautiful.

Blissful Brownies

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So this past weekend, Bubba showed his love towards me in the most affectionate and romantic way. A way in which I couldn’t refuse, I was putty in his hands, he was the little red headed girl to my Charlie Brown, the Wesley to my Princess Bride, the Prince Eric to my Ariel (but minus the crabs, their pinchers scare me.) I think you get the picture, the Bubs had done something so extraordinary I just couldn’t resist.

He made me these…

My heart goes pitter-patter just looking at the picture of this long consumed brownie. The batch went so fast I had to snatch this photo of the last corner piece quickly, and then secretly snarf it down before Bubs found out.

The recipe came from our favorite vintage cookbook:

The dust jacket is worn, but the wealth of yummy goodness is still new to us. If you don’t know about the genius that was Helen Corbitt, then follow this wikipedia link. But if you are too lazy to click on the link here’s the run down, Ms. Corbitt was a Yankee who moved to Texas and fell in love with the Lone Star State. The LA Times has stated that Helen Corbitt is “the Julia Child-esque cooking celebrity with a Texas twang”. Which pretty much sums up her writing style and her cooking style. If you find a copy of her cookbook, I’d suggest snapping it up before anyone else does.  I  can guarantee it will be a good read, even if you don’t cook.

If I’ve gotten you so excited you can’t wait to get a hold of this wonderful book filled with many edible delights, here’s the recipe for these foot thumping, ecstasy inducing brownies:

Fudge Brownie Fingers

2 eggs
1 c. sugar
1/2 c. melted butter
2 squares bitter chocolate, melted
3/4 c. AP flour, sifted
1/2 t. salt
1 c. finely chopped nuts (walnuts or pecans usual; black walnuts divine)
1 t. vanilla

Beat eggs slightly; add sugar and stir. Add melted butter and chocolate. Mix flour, salt and nutmeats and add to egg mixture. Add vanilla and stir until well blended, but do not beat.

Pour into a well-buttered 9″ pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes. Cool and cut into 2″ fingers and roll in powdered sugar. Or grab a fork, dig in, and don’t share!! IT’S ALL MINE!!!

Bloomin’ Mugsy

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I am participating in a ” 31 Days of…” series for the month of October. You see a whole bunch of sweet blogger buddies have been getting together the past few years to do 31 posts in 31 days. The topic is always something they have a passion for. This year they have invited all of their readers to post 31 days of their passions. If you are interested in participating in the 31 Days of…series, or you’re just curious about what everyone else is writing about, please visit The Nester, Jen, Melissa, Sandy, Darcy, Emily, and Emily. I hope you enjoy my series on finding treasures both vintage and of the heart. Let’s hope I can overcome my inconsistent blogging habit and share those 31 posts within the next 31 days!

I’ve mentioned my great affection for milk glass on many occasions here at TYC (The Yellow Casa). So, if you are bored of hearing about my obsession with all things sorta old milky and of the glass persusion, sorry.

About a month ago, Bubba presented me with these sweet mugs. They are both Anchor Hocking/ Fireking brand, I’m not sure of the age of these, but they seem pretty old as there are no microwave instructions on the bottom. Most of my milk glass cookware pre-dates the use of microwaves. When I am looking at a piece the first thing I do is look at the bottom to see the brand and see if it is microwave or dishwasher safe. It is, then back to the shelf it goes. If not, and it’s in fairly good condition and an affordable rate for this cheapskate, then it goes home with me.

These mugs were pretty cheap too, I don’t think the Bub’s paid more than a dollar for both of them at the local thirft store. If you haven’t noticed, my Bubba is very adept at finding cute little mugs. As evidenced by the jadeite mug and others that I have yet to mention. To put it simply, our mug collection is catching up to my vase collection. So, it may be time to cut back on the mug and vase buying lest we have our own 15 minutes of fame on “Hoarders”!

Sitting Pretty

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I am participating in a ” 31 Days of…” series for the month of October. You see a whole bunch of sweet blogger buddies have been getting together the past few years to do 31 posts in 31 days. The topic is always something they have a passion for. This year they have invited all of their readers to post 31 days of their passions. If you are interested in participating in the 31 Days of…series, or you’re just curious about what everyone else is writing about, please visit The Nester, Jen, Melissa, Sandy, Darcy, Emily, and Emily. I hope you enjoy my series on finding treasures both vintage and of the heart. Let’s hope I can overcome my inconsistent blogging habit and share those 31 posts within the next 31 days!

Since this whole blogging about treasures for 31 days straight has been a massive FAIL, my 31 days series will come to an end at the end of October. And instead of 31 days, it will be a 16 day series. That is, if I can make myself post everyday until Halloween. Again,a massive FAIL on my part when it has come to blogging everyday, including weekends, vacation time, and those all too frequent  uninspired days. So I do apologize to those of you who were looking forward to a full 31 days of treasures. But rest assured, I will share my vintage finds with you here and there. I own and am still finding a lot of great vintage-y treasures, it would almost be a crime not to share!

As I had mentioned in a previous post, I’ve got quite the addiction to milk glass items. Especially when it comes to milk glass vases of various shapes and sizes. My favorite at the moment is a hob nail vase…

She’s sort of short and squatty but I think she’s cute. If I had been smart, I would have bought some flowers or placed a few pens in her to show you the different ways you can use such a vase. However, much like the disorganized bum I am, I wasn’t thinking ahead. But thanks to my addiction to Pinterest I’ve got a few visual examples.

via Pinterest via In This Instance

Here’s my milk glass vase being used as a straw holder. And those paper straws? Super cute, I have my own stash left over from the wedding/house warming party.

via Pinterest via Etsy

I love the green apples in this milk glass piece. I’ve always got a milk glass bowl filled with some sort of fruit on my kitchen table.

via Pinterest via In This Instance

Don’t think that milk glass is only for sitting up on a shelf to look pretty. It can be used for so many other purposes too. Like organizing stationary, quite a clever idea actually.

I may have to take down some of my pieces  from their little shelves and put them to work. No more just sitting pretty for them!

Why so green?

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I am participating in a ” 31 Days of…” series for the month of October. You see a whole bunch of sweet blogger buddies have been getting together the past few years to do 31 posts in 31 days. The topic is always something they have a passion for. This year they have invited all of their readers to post 31 days of their passions. If you are interested in participating in the 31 Days of…series, or you’re just curious about what everyone else is writing about, please visit The Nester, Jen, Melissa, Sandy, Darcy, Emily, and Emily. I hope you enjoy my series on finding treasures both vintage and of the heart. Let’s hope I can overcome my inconsistent blogging habit and share those 31 posts within the next 31 days!

Apparently, things made from jadeite are in high demand. I’ve been on the look out for items with that pretty green milky hue, but they are just too hard to come by. That’s why when my Bubba came across this mug he happily paid the 50 cent price tag and gleefully presented me with my very first jadeite piece.

I have yet to use it for fear of breaking it. Over the years I have become quite proficient at breaking favorite glasswares. Recently, I broke one of our vintage Pyrex mixing bowls, its beautiful leaf green shards were all over the floor. I nearly cried, not from the mess, but because I realized I’d broken something that could very possibly be older than me. Yup, it lasted over 30 years until it moved into my house and only made it a few weeks.

Let’s hope this jadeite mug lasts longer, and let’s also hope that I can introduce him to more of his milky green buddies!

Treasure of Being

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I am participating in a ” 31 Days of…” series for the month of October. You see a whole bunch of sweet blogger buddies have been getting together the past few years to do 31 posts in 31 days. The topic is always something they have a passion for. This year they have invited all of their readers to post 31 days of their passions. If you are interested in participating in the 31 Days of…series, or you’re just curious about what everyone else is writing about, please visit The Nester, Jen, Melissa, Sandy, Darcy, Emily, and Emily. I hope you enjoy my series on finding treasures both vintage and of the heart. Let’s hope I can overcome my inconsistent blogging habit and share those 31 posts within the next 31 days!

Here we are on day 10 of what should be day 21 of 31 days. Obviously, 31 Days of blogging is certainly not in this little blogger, in fact, I sort of feel like I’m counting down the days in confinment. So, this maybe the last 31 Days series you’ll see on this blog. But if I ever conquer my poor time management skills and suddenly become Miss Organizing McOrganizer you might see a come back!

However, this week, my poor time management skills and disorganization have reared their ugly heads. They have left me feeling uninspired, uninspired to take needed photos of my old junk and uninspired to write interesting and heart stopping content (HAR-HAR). Or maybe it’s the fall air and the changing of leaves going on outside that’s got me distracted. Either way,  I promise, next week you’ll find plenty of inspired posts with lots of pictures taken by moi. But in the mean time, I’ve found some really sweet vintage fall themes to share with you. Hope you enjoy these visual treasures as much as I have!

*via Pinterest

*via Pinterest

via Pinterest

Sometimes, a treasure isn’t something you posses, it’s something to be experienced. This weekend, I plan on experiencing treasures, that doesn’t mean I won’t be popping into Goodwill or my favorite thrift stores. But it does mean, that I’ll be stopping and enjoying the treasure of living the life that the sweet Lord has blessed me with.

What treasures will you be enjoying this weekend? The treasure of spending time with family? Of enjoying the wondrous works of God? Or the treasure of just being?

*I could not locate an original source, if you know where these photos originated please let me know so that I can give credit where credit is due!

Milky Way Glass

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I am participating in a ” 31 Days of…” series for the month of October. You see a whole bunch of sweet blogger buddies have been getting together the past few years to do 31 posts in 31 days. The topic is always something they have a passion for. This year they have invited all of their readers to post 31 days of their passions. If you are interested in participating in the 31 Days of…series, or you’re just curious about what everyone else is writing about, please visit The Nester, Jen, Melissa, Sandy, Darcy, Emily, and Emily. I hope you enjoy my series on finding treasures both vintage and of the heart. Let’s hope I can overcome my inconsistent blogging habit and share those 31 posts within the next 31 days!

Yesterday I talked about all the creative ways others have displayed their vintage camera collections. Apparently I’ve got a theme going this week, because today I’d like to talk about how to display milk glass collections. As you know (and if you don’t you’re about to find out) I have a very extensive collection of milk glass items. It varies from baking pans and mixing bowls to vases and candy dishes. But if it’s milk glass and it’s not in a form of milk glass that I already own, you know I’ll be cradling that item in my arm all the way to the register  like Peyton Manning does with a football running to make a touch down. (Is that football reference correct? It sounded right to me, besides that who doesn’t enjoy a good Manning reference?)

Here is a very small glimpse into my collection of milk glass…

The red bookcase Bubba bought at a yard sale for $5  several years ago. Apparently, the older gentleman he bought it from had made it in an afternoon and didn’t really care for the way it turned out. I liked it enough to use it in my last college apartment, my first career apartment, and finally to display it in my first non-rental home. It wasn’t until a co-worker of mine mentioned using a shelf to display all of my beloved milk glass that I thought to use this little book case on top of my “buffet”. (We call it a buffet, but it’s actually just a spare base cabinet that a previous owner had awkwardly placed in a corner of the kitchen. There are so many things I’d love to change about my little house. But that’s another post for another time.)

The bookcase is really very cute, but it doesn’t hold all of my collection, I’ve got milk glass in all corners of our home. On top of the TV, on all the end tables, the dining table, actually, any flat surface that is clear from the wrath that is Goldie’s tail. Many a vase and other glass collectible has fallen victim to this happy tail.

So, off I went to the interwebs for some further inspiration, here’s what I found…

via Apartment Therapy

via Country Home

via Design Sponge

via Better Homes and Gardens

via 320 Sycamore Blog

I especially love the curtains in that last picture. Oh what I’d give to have a window above my sink! But I do like the idea of displaying milk glass higher to draw the eyes up.

Such grand ideas, but for now my vases will be waiting patiently atop the T.V. or end table or dining table until I can decide where and in which way to display my milky treasures.