Thrifting Thursday on a Monday

Posted on February 4, 2013 by April

Well, now that the weekend has come and gone, and I’ve gone a week without a post, I thought I owed it to you guys to do a Thrifting Thursday post. Yeah, I know it’s Monday, but maybe it’ll make that weekly transition from weekend warrior to office monkey a littler easier.

This past weekend, I found something I couldn’t leave behind.

I know, they’re kind of kitschy, but aren’t they cutest kind of kitsch? At first glance, I thought they were so ugly they would be perfect to make fun of on the blog. Then after taking this picture:

I noticed the lids, oh geez, those lids, they slay me. Don’t know what I’m talking about, here let me demonstrate:

How cute is that? It’s the whole egg to chick progression. Now do you see why I couldn’t leave this set behind? I HAD to rescue them! They were all priced separately so I knew the set would get split up. I just COULDN’T let that happen people!

On the bottom of each canister is a Sears and Roebuck trademark with the year 1976. They do look pretty ’70’s don’t they?

So, now I have a super cute set of chicken canisters, with no place to put them. Currently, they are cluttering up my kitchen table. Bubba (husband) and I have been opting to eat in the living room in front of the TV, or just giving in and eating on one end of the table while the chickens stare back at us. This makes it difficult to eat an omelet, or any other type of chicken product. Let’s just say, Bubba and I have been eating lots of beans and rice lately.

Aside from avoiding dishes that contain a certain fowl, I’ve also been admiring these beauties:

A set of six ,footed and beveled tumblers. After purchasing this duo a couple weeks ago I’ve had my eye out for more.

I just love how they catch the light.

And I can’t get enough of that beveled texture.

I wasn’t completely sold on the peach tone, but it’s grown on me.

I am guessing the maker of these sparkly glasses could be the Indiana Glass Company and they could be from the American Whitehall line from the mid ’70’s based on this information. If that’s the case then they are an imitation of the more expensive Fostoria American. Either way, I don’t really care if they’re valuable or not I’m just happy to have some pretty glasses to sip sweet tea from.

Oh yeah, and I’m participating in a little linky party/scavenger hunt over at Young House Love. There’s more of the low down on that here. Basically, the challenge is to hunt for things mentioned in the Macklemore song “Thrift Shop”. I won’t be linking to the original because there are lots of dirty words in it, so here’s the clean version. And I should also warn you, it’s rap, so if that’s offensive or just plain annoying you may want to avoid listening.

Macklemore Challenge:

Step 1: Go to the thrift store with a $20 in your pocket and take a picture.

Step 2: Spend $20 and photograph your spoils (hello, thrifting thursdays!)

Step 3: Find one item (or more) referenced in the song and snap a pic.

Alright, so I failed at taking a picture of the $20 that was in my pocket or rather in my purse. But I did photograph and gab about my spoils. (See above.)

Also, I did come across one item mentioned in the song.

A big ugly coat. I was much too fearful of what may be lurking in that fake fur to try it on, call me a weenie, but at least I don’t have head lice. Now, my head itches.

Pretty Pics from Pinterest: DIY Valentine Wreaths

Posted on January 25, 2013 by April

It’s finally Friday!!! Can I get a WOOT WOOT?!

I trust you have all made it safely and happily to the end of the week, or the beginning of your week depending on what your schedule entails. Even when Friday’s weren’t the actual start to my weekend, they were always somehow happier than the rest of the week. There’s a certain jovial air about this day that we call Friday isn’t there?

Anyways, with it being Friday, and I being lazy and not wanting to edit pictures for a post, I thought I’d share some pretty images I found while in the time warp that is Pinterest. Since Valentine’s Day is approaching, I thought it might be fun to look at some hearty crafts, particularly heart wreaths. I love to keep some type of seasonal wreath on my door, (ya know because I like everything to be dressed, I don’t want any indecent doors around my house), and I’ve been looking for that perfect Valentine wreath. So, here’s a few crafty wreaths I’ve found around the interwebs.

Ali Lily Blog

Etsy Shop: The September Tree similar wreath

Have a safe, happy and crafty weekend!!!

Thrifting Thursday: Husbands and Wives

Posted on January 24, 2013 by April

Welcome to Thrifting Thursday, my personal celebration of what I like to call Friday Eve. Which normal people just call Thursday. How boring right? Shouldn’t the day before happy Friday be celebrated too? Unless of course you do some sort of shift work and your Friday is on a Tuesday in which case Monday would be your Friday eve and Friday would be your Monday so Thursday and Friday would be nothing to celebrate for you. Unless of course you absolutely love your job and can’t wait to jump into your work week. Then YAY for you!

But back to Thrifting Thursday….

Today is going to be one part talk-about-old-stuff and another part oh-yay-there’s-cookies! Confused yet? I think I’m still confused about the Friday on a Tuesday thing….

Anywho, here’s a picture to help illustrate this windy path I’ve set us down.

See that cute blue pedestal plate? Yeah, that’s the let’s-talk-about-old-stuff part of this post. The pedestal really isn’t all that old though, I just brought it home because it was cute and blue and cheap. Those a few of the criteria this girl can’t pass up when she’s sniffing around old junk shops. (I say sniffing, but in some of those places you really don’t wanna literally sniff too deeply. IfyaknowwhatImean)

You see that yummy magic deliciousness sitting upon my pretty blue pedestal plate? That’s the oh-yay-there’s-cookies part of the post.

These are cookie bars I made a while ago for a little office get together. I used Martha Stewarts Cookie Bar Recipe. Which can be found here.

The cookies turned out OK, and honestly, I had no complaints from my co-workers. But the cookies just seemed a bit dry to me, I like my cookies to be gooey and soft. Maybe next time I won’t cook them as long. Most food stuffs I prepare end up being a little on the “well done” side. For instance, when I was making grilled cheese sandwiches for me and Bubba the other night, my sweet, gentle, and honest husband politely requested his sandwich lightly brunt instead of charred. I then promptly dropped his on the floor and let the dog lick it while he wasn’t looking. Ya know, being the sweet, gentle and PATIENT wife that I am.

How’s that for a random post about everything from Friday Eve, cookies, plates, and husbands and wives?

Weekend Happenings: The Business of Un-busyness

Posted on January 22, 2013 by April

This past weekend was the complete opposite of busy, it was un-busy. Meaning that it wasn’t busy, but it wasn’t quiet or lazy either, just un-busy, pleasantly un-busy.

It was so un-busy, I took pictures of Bubba replacing the wipers on my car. While Goldie supervised of course.

We watched a couple of our favorite silly movies. I had to get my Mixed Nuts annual viewing in, the third weekend in January is close enough to Christmas to still be watching Christmas movies right?

I hope so, because if it’s OK to be watching Christmas movies, then it should be OK to still have ones Christmas tree still up.

Just so ya know though, I am working on taking down all the Christmas jolly’s. Although, if it’s still Christmas in my heart I should be able to keep the outward portrayal of all that cheer in my living room eh?

Aside from watching Bubba replace my wipers, avoiding any type of household chore (like putting away my Christmas cheer), I also did some magazine reading and started a new crochet project. You’ll have more updates on that soon, the crocheting not magazine reading. That would be a pretty boring post wouldn’t? It would just be a picture of me, sitting on the couch reading a magazine.

Anywho,after this short review of my weekend it looks like things were more lazy and procrastination filled than they were un-busy.

But I think I’ll stick with un-busy.

What did you do this weekend? Get shiny new windshield wipers perhaps? Any Christmas tree-putting-away-avoidance?

Thrifting Thursday: Smiling Mice

Posted on January 17, 2013 by April

Welcome to Thrifting Thursday, my own little personal celebration of Friday eve! It’s a day I’ve set aside to talk about all things thrifty, in other words, it’s a day I blab on about old stuff I’ve seen or purchased recently from a local thrift store. Fun times right? And honestly, what better way is there to celebrate the approaching weekend than to discuss all those wonderful vintage goods out there?

This week, I broke my non-buying pact with myself and bought a pair of amber beveled glasses…

I couldn’t help myself, I’ve been looking for a set similar to these. I figure I’ll start out with two and build upon that with different colored but same in shape glasses. Maybe I like these so much because they remind me of the blue ones my grandmother used to have, somehow sweet tea tastes so much better when enjoyed from one of these guys.

I also picked up this little bubble plate, it’s clear but is the same texture as my favorite blue platter…

According to Bubba, who does all the research on these things, this design is from the 30’s and reproduced during the 70’s. The 70’s designs are usually in yellow or brown tones, but the older versions typically are lighter in color. I don’t know for sure if my plates are that old, but all I know is that I love them.

And what better place to put all that pretty glassware but a mid-century china cabinet. I saw this at the Humane Society thrift store and it took my breath away. Or at least had be stop my conversation in mid-sentence. At $100 I really considered this piece, but there was no glass on the shelves and I pictured myself having to dust dinnerware and other glass pretties off before use. That’s what swayed me away from this lovely, hopefully she found a good home elsewhere.

At another store I found this little mouse staring back at me. He has nothing to do with glassware or hutches, I just thought he was cute.

And at the same mouse-y thrift store, I saw this bike. You can’t really tell from this photo, but it was caked in mud. I wondered if someone just decided to buy a new bike instead of washing the old one off.

Well that wraps up a nice week of thrifting. Have you found some hidden treasures recently? Possibly a muddy bike? Maybe a cute ceramic mouse smiling back at you? Hopefully no real mice, unless your into that sort of thing.

Thrifting Thursday: Dr. Rice McSteamy

Posted on January 10, 2013 by April

When I was an infant my family spent about a year living in the back woods of Louisiana. Apparently, we lived near a rice field and were pretty close to the owner of said field, because we’d end up with huge bags of rice. Hence, the many rice centered dishes my mom cooked for us, hence my first solid food being rice and probably beans, hence my great love of this grainy carb. As a child, I remember craving things with rice, particularly rice, gravy, and chicken with a handle (ya know because I couldn’t call it a leg, things from the meat tree don’t have legs!), and for dessert red jello topped with a little poof of cream. Well, the point of this story is not tell you about my favorite childhood meal, but to share with you an appliance I remember my beloved carb being prepared in.

A Hitachi Chime-O-Matic Rice Cooker. Yeah, I realize it’s a weird thing to share on Thrifting Thursday, because it’s kind of an appliance and it’s not really something I’ve thrifted. But it’s old, and I think it’s kinda cool. I mean who wouldn’t love the giant orange bell, and where can you find something with a chime-o-matic feature nowadays?

Anywho, while we lived in Louisiana, my mom received this magical cooker of rice as a gift from my dad’s brother’s in-laws who were visiting for dinner. My mom was cooking rice on the stove top, ya know the old fashioned way waiting for the water to boil or however you cook rice the old fashioned way. Anyways, the point is that they thought it was taking waaay too long for that rice to get done, and that it was just a sin that my mother didn’t have a rice cooker to provide her family with rice almost instantly. So, they gave to her my most favorite of small appliances. That was 30 years ago, I was 1.5 years old.

So, I’ve grown up with rice cooked in a rice cooker, particularly the Chime-O-Matic Rice Cooker.

And ya know what?

It still chimes when the rice is done.

Weekend Happenings: Wide Angles

Posted on January 9, 2013 by April

YAY! We’ve made it to Wednesday or as I like to call it, Friday Eve Eve!

Even though I’m on the tail end of Wednesday, and well into the work week, I’ve still got the past weekend on my mind. In particular, a new toy that I received this weekend. It’s got me doing a little happy dance every time I think about it.

Amazon

A Sigma 10-20mm F/4-5.6 Wide angle lens for Canon. It’s something that my Bubba and I have been wanting ever since we purchased our first SLR on e-Bay two years ago. Coincidentally, this lens was also purchased on everyone’s favorite auction site as well, and a pretty good deal if I do say so myself. When it finally arrived in the mail on Saturday I felt like Ralphie when he finally got his official Red Ryder Carbine-Action 200-Shot Range Model Air Rifle with a compass in the stock and this thing that tells time. And I would have slept with the lens too, if I hadn’t been afraid of rolling over on it and breaking my precious. Sorry honey, but I take my toys very seriously.

Once we both hurriedly opened the box to reveal our newest prize, I quickly hooked it up to my camera and took some random shots.

Never mind my abnormally large leg and the wonky vents on the ugly wall heater, apparently this lens distorts certain items that happen to be at the edge of the shot. Or things have gotten distorted through editing and sizing down the original photo. Or there’s a worm hole hidden in my living room that could cause a rip through time and space. Or maybe it’s time to cut back on the Doctor Who re-runs. Also, don’t judge me for still having my Christmas decorations out, it’s still Christmas in my heart. And another thing, this is real life folks, no fluffing of the nest going on in this shot. Hence, the pile of coats on the rocker and various other piles of clutter here and there. We pile in this house, it’s how we organize.

I love this lens, it makes my backyard look HUGE! It also makes Annie-dog look so small and alone. On a side note, I think pea gravel will need to be put under the tree this spring, my poor grass is barely making it thanks to all the dog traffic and shade.

I’ve discovered the wide angle lens captures so much more when shooting landscape shots.

I have also discovered that New Mexico is pretty brown and crunchy during the winter months. Actually, it’s pretty brown and crunchy during the summer months too, but at least the weeds and cacti have a little more color to them.

Oh, and the wide angle is perfect for portraits, especially when you want to capture the setting. Ya know, because our couch is picturesque.

Have you gotten any new toys you’er especially proud of recently? Or are you still battling with the remaining Christmas cheer around the house?

Thrifting Thursday: Kooky Corner

Posted on January 3, 2013 by April

Wow, I can’t believe Christmas is passed and we are already in a new year! You won’t believe the amount of photos I took over the holidays, which really shouldn’t be all that surprising considering the holidays are so jam packed full of fun and celebration. It’s no wonder I couldn’t carve out the time to put a quick post together during the Christmas break! But never fear, I’ll share those once I can get myself settled down enough to edit the 978,368 photos I snapped over the past couple of weeks.

But the holidays are over, and things are returning back to normal again, and according to my calendar, it’s Thursday, and everyone knows what Thursday means around these parts right? Well, OK guess I’m the only one playing that game, so I’ll explain. Every Thursday and sometimes on Friday if I’m not feeling the bloggy vibe, I do a post centered around thrifting, I’ve titled these thrift centered posts that tend to occur on Thursdays, Thrifting Thursdays. Clever right? This week, I thought it might be fun to talk about how I store all of my thrifted goodness. Actually, it’s not much storing as it is displaying. Alright, it’s really not displaying it’s more a piling of vintage goods.

This little nook in my kitchen is where I’ve placed some of my favorite breakables. Actually, it’s not a nook so much as it is a strange random cabinet that is set off by itself in the corner of the kitchen. I call it the “buffet” makes things sound so much more posh. Anyway, it’s getting a little crowded, so it might be time to thin the herd so to speak. But for now, I’ll leave it as is, since I’m currently doing a small remodel in my bedroom, more to dish at a later post. But on to the oldies but the goodies. Most of these items have been blogged about in the past, so I won’t bore you too much with the details. I think it’s pretty obvious Bubba (the Hubba) and I enjoy vintage cookware and I’ve got a bit of an addiction to ceramic woodland creatures as well as an obsession with milk glass vases.

I tried to make things a little more Christmas-y here by adding some peppermints. They will probably be there till Valentine’s Day. But don’t my little girl and boy squirrel salt and pepper shakers look cute nestled in the minty goodness?

And what collection is complete without a bazillion owls? I’ve collected these from various thrift stores, yard sales, and estate sales. My favorite is the Sandia Crest spoon rest, I think I blogged about him at some point in the past, but I can’t locate the post. And I’m too lazy to sift through all of my many owl posts.

Oh and speaking of fowl, the egg chickens got a little dose of peppermint as well. And see that lime green casserole dish? That’s something Bubba brought home a long time ago, it’s an Anchor Hocking/Fire King piece that gets used pretty often. Surprising considering it’s at the bottom of the pile.

All in all, I’d say this is my favorite little nook in the kitchen. Someday all of the breakables will be nestled in a nice china cabinet, but until that day comes a book shelf atop a weirdly placed piece of cabinetry will have to do.

Thrifting Thursday: A turtle and a gingerbread man walk into a bakery…

Posted on December 20, 2012 by April

What says Christmas more than a gingerbread man on a pretty plate, a glass turtle, one random Glade candle, and a dough bowl full of pumpkins and onions??

Not much I’d say. So far, this is my Christmas table. A little sad and so not very jolly, but at least there’s the lone gingerbread man. I named him Sam right before he met his fate with a glass of milk and my mouth. No, I didn’t bake him, I don’t have the kind of patience for gingerbread. I am still on the look out for a super easy and edible recipe. If you know of one, please share!

But back to the cookie and the plate, mainly the plate. I love this plate, when I’m grabbing a snack I always grab for my pink ruffled plate. It kind of dresses up a not so fancy meal. Plus, it makes me happy. Bubba picked the plate up at a nearby thrift store for less than a dollar, apparently it’s from Hazel Atlas and the pattern is called Pink Crinoline. This is the only piece I have from the collection, but if I ever come across more of the set, it’s certainly coming home with me.

And this turtle? My Bubba found him at the local Humane Society thrift store. He’s Anchor Hocking, and either from the late ’50’s or the late 70’s I couldn’t really tell from the patent I found online.

I think he’s meant to be a candy dish or similar, but I think he’d look cute as a trinket holder.

If I don’t get busy jolly-fying the house, I’ll be up chocolate creek without a popsicle stick! (Name that famous gingerbread man!)

Tablesetting Tuesday:Christmas Edition

Posted on December 19, 2012 by April

With Christmas less than a week away, I am FINALLY in the mood to think about all things holiday. Which is odd for me, usually the tree is trimmed and most of my Christmas shopping is done the week after Thanksgiving. Not this year, I don’t have one present picked out and the tree has only been trimmed a couple of days. In fact, I’ve been tripping over a ridiculous number of those ugly red and green bins the past week in the hopes that having to walk around and over those things would force me to open them up and pull out all the sparkly goodness. The plan didn’t work, just a few minutes ago I pulled out the “special” items and finally put the bins away. I guess the rest will have to wait for another year.

All that to say, I shot a Christmas themed table setting for you. It was a warm day outside, and I wasn’t up to moving the ugly red and green bins in the kitchen to make things a bit more presentable. So, how about a holiday meal in my backyard? Also, I realize it’s Wednesday, but Tablesetting Wednesday doesn’t quite have the same ring to it.

The evergreen sprigs came from my Pinon tree out front, everything else I already had on hand. The vases I found at various thrift stores around town, the mercury glass candle holders came from a Joann’s that was shutting down, they were a quarter each. Now that’s something this sparkle loving cheapskate couldn’t resist.

The red and green plaid table cloth came from swanky Wal-Mart a few years ago after Christmas.

Again, all dinnerware is pretty old, and came from several sources. I can’t really remember where it all came from. But I do remember the flatware and plates were Christmas gifts from my sweet Momma. Thanks Mom!

And another shot of my sparkle, also do you see someone photo bombing in the reflection? (How YOU doin’?)

So, how you fairing this holiday season? Is the tree up, have the stockings been hung with care?

Semi-Seasonal

Tag Archives: Humor

Thrifting Thursday on a Monday

Pretty Pics from Pinterest: DIY Valentine Wreaths

Weekend Happenings: The Business of Un-busyness

Thrifting Thursday: Smiling Mice

Thrifting Thursday: Dr. Rice McSteamy

Weekend Happenings: Wide Angles

Thrifting Thursday: Kooky Corner

Thrifting Thursday: A turtle and a gingerbread man walk into a bakery…

Tablesetting Tuesday:Christmas Edition

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