Thrifted Thursday: Luck O' The Irish

OK, well, I'm not even the slightest bit Irish, but they say everyone is a little Irish on St. Patty's day! I certainly had some good luck yesterday.

I found the most amazing jackets and you all will die when I tell you how much they were.

I'm getting my Annie Oakley on in this one- this three-tone fringed buckskin jacket is definitely old, but not that old! I'm leaning toward 40s, but it may be 50s. It is still really soft and supple, though and just an amazing piece. The best part is that it fits me like a glove- like it was made for me back in 1947. I absolutely love it and plan to wear it quite a bit- it's just got a great vintage look that will still pair well with modern. 

This Hudson Bay Point Blanket Coat is something I recently read about on the Tea with the Vintage Baroness blog. I really liked the different styles of them and was shocked that I found one today in the pound store! It's made in Canada from real blankets. It's super heavy and warm and fits me as well. It's tempting to keep it but I think it will go to the shop.

Now for the best part- both coats were 99 cents! Even the manager of the pound store said he had no idea why they were there and that they were really nice coats regardless of price.

This didn't come from the pound store, but it was only $2. I have always loved American Indian beadwork (used to do some as a hobby) and thought this belt was pretty neat. It's much bigger than it appears in the photo- it ties around my waist.

I love this football themed planter- when was the last time you ever saw a masculine planter? It was $1.25.

I bought these milk glass pieces at the pound store as well. I've been buying a lot of custard cups recently, for no real reason other than that they are cute (the back one is a really old FireKing and the front one is "Pyr-O-Rey"). The large milk glass crock is gigantic! I have no idea what it is from, since it is unmarked. It is like the size of a big crock pot crock- perhaps it was from some early version of that. It was only 99 cents though and since I would like to try my hand at making sauerkraut someday, this will be perfect. Or it might end up as a planter- how cool would that be?

Now, you didn't think I would get all that without finding some Pyrex, did you? I almost didn't get any- there was a young couple in there buying up everything Pyrex. I mean they bought everything- 8 beige mugs, 3 autumn harvest red mugs, a bunch of Old Orchard casseroles, things I wasn't really interested in, and thought was overpriced (like $3 a mug). I don't know what it was about me, but I made eye contact with them one time and then heard the guy say to the girl- "We better go back and get the rest of that Pyrex" (off the shelf). How did they know I was looking for Pyrex??? :)  But since I found some green Pyrex on Tuesday, I figured my luck would hold and I found this green (Verde) 404 off on another shelf. 

Here's hoping you have some good luck as well thrifting this week!

You had me at 'Giant Lamp'

It's funny how things happen sometimes. Late Saturday afternoon I was playing a band concert. I had been to a couple yard sales earlier in the day; hit some of my usual haunts and came home with only one item- a gorgeous 1940s rayon embroidered bedspread and set of shams:

They are in great condition except for one thing- unfortunately, the lady I bought them from had wrapped the set in masking tape (WTF?!) to keep them together, and now there are sticky tape spots on it. I don't know if I can hand wash it- I'll try one of the shams first- or dry clean it.  I was going to put it in the store, but once my daughter saw it, she fell in love with it (it's pink, mom!). If I can get the sticky parts clean, it can be on her bed- I think it will go nicely with her art deco bedroom suite. (I'll try to get a better photo once they're washed and ironed and on her bed ;)

So that was all I found in the morning- definitely a 'quality' over 'quantity' yard sale day.

....Until I got to talking to one of my band mates at intermission that afternoon, and she was mentioning about the yard sale she had going at her parent's house. She started to laugh when she was describing the 'giant orange lamp' her parents had from the 60s or 70s, and how no one in their right mind would probably want it.

And she went on to describe it, and then mentioned that her dad had been a pack rat and had boxes of shoes and clothing that had never been worn...Excuse me, I think I hear someone calling my name... :)

As soon as the concert was over, I was there.

I can't believe there was this much good stuff left late at the end of the 2nd say of the sale. Makes me really wish I had been there first thing Friday morning!

A men's Pendleton blazer.

A ladies' knit pant suit in orange.

A vintage pea coat, made by Fox & Knapp (maker of USN issue coats) something I've wanted for myself for a long time. Going to the cleaner's tomorrow!

This awesome 1970s boy's hot rod bedspread- never used. The other side has pictures of VW beetles!

A pair of vintage rockabilly style crepe-soled oxfords which fit me perfectly!

The first thing that caught my eye (other than the giant lamp, of course) was this Japanese robe. I have no idea what the characters mean, but it's very old and I have a sense that it is a 40s or 50s souvenir. It's printed cotton with origami birds that look like they're flying through the clouds. I'd like to find out more about it if anyone knows anything about them.

And of course the lamp. It's almost 4 feet high, orange fat lava pottery with a teak top, and that huge original shade. I love it- it's awesome. I just don't have a place for it in my house. I already called my brother and told him that he is the proud owner of a gigantic mod lamp ;)

Dressing vintage in winter!

I read a lot of blogs and I know there are many people out there that dress vintage way better (and more often) than I do.  Mostly because I'm often too busy or too lazy to get all dressed up just to go grocery shopping or to the gym, I often do not wear much vintage every day.

So in the winter, I have found a trick to dressing vintage, even when I don't really feel like going through all the effort. Some of my favorite vintage items in my wardrobe are coats!

A great vintage coat can cover up a multitude of sins; even jeans and sweatshirts (but not Ugg boots!) And best of all, vintage coats are easy to find. From James Dean-esque windbreakers, to Pendleton jackets, to furs, every single time I go to a thrift store I see a rack of great coats. Do yourself a favor and pick one up- it'll probably be warmer than most new coats and no doubt it will last longer. And with the right accessories, you'll pull off that vintage look even if you didn't put on a girdle and stockings and rolled your hair.

Over the years I have probably acquired at least a dozen vintage coats. I'm a sucker for them, probably because they're easy to wear, and they don't have to fit perfectly to be comfortable, like a great dress or shoes.

This is my hands-down favorite. It's a 1950s winter-white wool swing coat with a white mink collar. I always choose this one when I'm going somewhere dressy. Even with jeans and sneakers underneath, there is no doubt that you are a vintage-lovin' person when you wear a coat like this! Throw on a great vintage rhinestone pin and maybe a mink-trimmed hat and it would even make Ugg boots look good.

This is my everyday jacket, a Woolrich plaid wool toggle jacket. I have had this coat for about 12 years and worn the heck out of it- it still looks brand new and is warm and cozy.  Woolrich was the maker of the iconic red plaid hunting suits men used to wear in the 1930s and 40s, and still makes great vintage-looking coats for men and women: http://www.woolrich.com/woolrich/browse/productDetail.jsp?icProduct=23375&icCategory=cat10064&icSort=&icColor=OLP

Everyone needs a raincoat; why not wear a vintage one? This is my favorite, a Misty Harbor, probably from the 60s. It's a great color- not that boring black or tan- and a very practical longer length. Plus, I love the tag line: "Wear in Good Health". Pair it with a vintage umbrella for extra style points, but leave the plastic bonnet at home! ;)

I often wear this 1950s cropped faux-Persian lamb jacket over jeans and a turtleneck. It's surprisingly warm and is a great olive-green color.

I'm sure at one point it had a collar - and was probably supposed to be worn with something like this:

But that's not really my style, and I would probably never wear a mink stole like this in public these days. I just don't need to invite that kind of controversy, even though these little guys have been dead for 70 years.

But accessories do make the outfit, and with the right hat, scarf, gloves and (my favorite!) a muff (real Persian lamb this time) any vintage coat becomes a showstopper. It helps if you're wearing vintage underneath, but with this kind of outerwear, folks might not even notice!

And don't forget the handbag! ;)