Yard Saling Away

Hello Friends, it's good to have you here!

Finally, the weather has warmed up and yard sales are sprouting everywhere! I had some great luck this past week. I hit a couple of rummage sales Thursday first.

I found a couple of vintage Hawaiian shirts at the first rummage sale- I thought it was going to be a bust for the longest time because I started in the housewares section and there was literally nothing but crap. I scoped out the clothing as a last resort and came up with a couple good ones- they are already listed in my Etsy store here.

I got to another rummage sale later in the afternoon just before it closed. And that means it was bag day- everything I could fit in a paper bag was $2. It also means that stuff was kind of picked over, so I definitely didn't pack the bag full. But I picked up a couple books and puzzles:

Also grabbed these art pieces. The oil painting is another vintage landscape for my collection at our cabin. That is really coming along, and I should probably do a post on that sometime. The empty frame is a simple but elegant art deco picture frame, which I always pick up whenever I find them. So much nicer than the frames they have at Michael's!

The little Hazel Atlas Moderntone sherbet glass was part of the bag sale, as were the cute fork and spatula. The fork is the Corningware Country Festival pattern. The speckled bowls are actually confetti Melmac, and are the first I have ever seen in black and white. Maybe they are "RARE HTF"? LOL  They will be listed in my Etsy store eventually too. 

This was another item I put in my bag- I'm going to let you guess what this is and then show you what we did with it later!

My husband took the kids to our local bike rodeo Saturday morning and I got to go driveway shopping. My son won 2nd place for his age group; I think he hasn't taken off his medal since then. But my prize was these pieces of Guardian Ware. I got all three for $1 each. The roaster is really huge and will bring a nice bit of $$ online.

I got these PBN horses at the same sale- it was a dollar sale, so everything there was $1. So, 5 paintings, $5! I am hoping to sell these as a group, I think they make an amazing "instant collection"!

More from the dollar sale- the Shiny Brites, lampshade and Homer Laughlin bowl. That bowl is the most stunning piece of stoneware I have ever seen. It's got a raised pattern of trees all around it. I don't know much about Homer Laughlin other than Fiesta, but I want to know more about this style. The only bad part is it has a bit of a chip on the rim and a crack there, but will be beautiful holding fruit on the table.

The Ponderosa plates are the only pieces of Pyrex I found. I have never seen the plates before, only the mugs. I'm sure these will go quickly in my Etsy store when I get them listed. The little brass swans were only a quarter; I actually have a couple of these already, they used to be my mother-in-law's.

It is hard to find bakelite radios anymore. I used to see them all the time and now they are definitely few and far between. I bought one a couple of months ago and now found this one- the only ones I've seen in a long time. It's an Admiral- doesn't work, but for $5, will definitely look great on a shelf. The alarm clock was only a quarter and that one works!

So that's the wrap up of my first real good weekend of yard sales, now here's what we did with that mystery item:

It's a bike rack! My husband painted it white and put it on my bike as a Mother's Day present. ;)

Fire King Finds

As many of you know, I am really into collecting Pyrex these days. But you may not know that I love other types of milk glass as well, especially Fire King. I've actually been collecting Fire King longer than Pyrex, and while Pyrex has taken off in the collecting world of late, Fire King has been more of a steady presence. I don't know exactly why; perhaps it's because Fire King made more "sets" of dishes and items in the same pattern. It encourages those of us who like it to seek out all the pieces of a particular line, rather than to just acquire different patterns of the same item (Pyrex mixing bowls).

And while the mania for Pyrex has resulted in scarcity and high prices in the thrifts, lately I've been able to find some nice Fire King pieces. But, like my Pyrex hoard, I have to limit myself to only certain patterns and items, or I will never have room for it all. Mainly, I collect the hand painted "Peach Blossom" line (pink flowers), jadeite, the Kimberly line (diamond-textured and ombre-colored) and any and all mugs I can find.

The bowls on the left are plain red and the bowl and mug on the right are Kimberly. I happened on a yard sale the other week while I was out on a run and saw the Kimberly bowl. I never ran so fast back home to get my money! The yellow and green mug I have had for a while. I would love to have more, but I am not about to pay online prices for them, so will have to wait for the odd yard sale bargain.

Speaking of mugs, I found these awesome gas station promo mugs. I think it was Amoco that advertised a "tiger in your tank"? Anyway, they are my new favorite coffee mugs, and were only 50 cents each.

I have found a lot of Fire King at rummage sales- something about it must have appealed to church ladies. I found this Wheat pattern tea set recently- 8 saucers, 7 cups (whoops- will have to find a replacement sometime!) two condiment bowls and a cream and sugar set for $4. I have a soft spot for this pattern, because I inherited a matching casserole from my grandmother, but I don't think I have space to keep it. It may go over to my booth... or it may not... ;)

This bowl was hard to photograph, but it is molded in a basketweave pattern. I understand that these were included with a certain brand of cottage cheese as a grocery store giveaway. It was only 25 cents!

This is probably one of my better recent rummage sale finds. This is another one of Fire King's hand painted lines (called "Gay Fad", after the name of the art studio that did the painting) which feature painted fruit. I have found that there are different combinations of fruit out there and these happen to be peach and grapes. Some others have pears and cherries, and oranges and lemons. 

Those of you who collect Pyrex will be interested to know that Fire King also produced refrigerator dishes and made some really neat ones. The peach blossom set that I currently covet is actually two small round dishes on top of a larger oval. These are more traditionally shaped. 

I found the large dish with lid ($2!) on one table and then spied the two smaller dishes way across the room (50 cents each). I turned the place upside down but could not find the lids. Oh well, the hunt goes on!

Rummage Sale Awesomeness Pt. 2!

Gosh, where has the time gone! Things have been really busy around ChezQT, and I have some catching up to do around here. I want to finish up some of the things I bought at the rummage sales and get on with more recent stuff, so stay tuned- hopefully I'll have a bit of free time soon!

I bought these darling Valentine heart candy boxes at a yard sale on the way to the rummage sale- I have been wanting some of these for a while and almost broke down and bought one at an antique store in February. I'm glad I waited because instead of $16, I paid 35 cents for both! 

I couldn't resist this Fire King swirl casserole for $4, even if there is a chip in the lid. Most of the time the lid is nowhere to be found, so that was a bonus in my book.

This was the only vintage tablecloth at the 2nd sale I went to. I didn't give it much consideration until I unfolded it and saw the signature. $2, and it was mine!

I bought this oil painting for $4; I have been buying landscape paintings for the cabin. This one is such a magnetic shade of blue; I can't stop looking at it.

And a lucite lamp for $5- I mainly bought it for the vintage silk shade, which I promptly ripped on the way home in the car. It's not too bad though, I'll just turn it toward the wall. ;) I will use the base in my daughter's room; I have another similar one that it will go with.

And because it wouldn't count as a post unless there is Pyrex, I finally found some decent Pyrex in a thrift store. These two mixing bowls were $6.99 for the pair. I already have the 402, so that will be finding a new home, but I needed the 403. It's in great condition too! I find that I really prefer the straight mixing bowls over the Cinderella style bowls, so hopefully I can find the 401 and 404 to complete this set before too long. 

Rummage Sales Everywhere!

This is my favorite time of year! Yard sale season is heating up, people are doing spring cleaning and donating to thirfts, but best of all, church rummage sales begin!

I have been doing a ton of shopping (probably too much- when does one cross the line to becoming a hoarder?) and have loads of goodies to show you all, so I'll probably have to do a couple posts to catch up.

Thursday was my town's big semi-annual church rummage sale, where I always have good luck. I usually get there before the doors open at 9, and as I was standing in line, I noticed a few familiar faces- some friends and some local dealers. I guess I can include myself in that group as well, since I have the antique booth and some of these things will end up there.

These are ceramic wall hangings; I LOVE these so much. They are staying right here with me. The background is a really pale green that will be so pretty in our bedroom, right next to my Turner airbrush painting.

I've been collecting these biscuit tin "baskets" for a while, but they're not usually cheap anymore. This one was, though- only $1!

This sweet family of ducks (and one chick, or is it the 'ugly duckling'? LOL) are candles- all for $1. Going to the Etsy store!

Since I was one of the first in the door, I scoped out the Pyrex first (I'll get to that) and the vintage tablecloths 2nd. I took all they had- three Christmas ones. Now, I need another Xmas tablecloth like a hole in the head, but am definitely keeping this first one. (The others may go to the booth.)

I love the old timey Holiday vignettes, and Santa dancing around the tree!

These two are more typical of mid century linens, not much to note about them except the price- $2 for the top one (a couple stains) and $5 for the bottom one. Of course the one with the stains is the only one that actually fits on my table....

And the Pyrex. The Verde (or is it Spring Blossom/Square Flowers?) Cinderella bowl was $3, which is astonishingly high for this sale.  It's not even in great condition- quite a bit of wear to the handles and utensil scratches which came out with a little BKF. It just goes to show that people everywhere (even little old church ladies) are onto those of us that collect it!

Friday I went to another church rummage sale. Thankfully the lime square baker was only $1 at that one. Apparently those little old church ladies are still in the dark! 

This is my second piece of lime (found the round cake pan about a month ago) and my 4th utility dish-  I have a flamingo lasagna pan and lidded casserole. But do you think I could find a pink or lime pie pan? No... still looking after all these years!

Rummage Sale Haul of Awesomeness, Pt. 2

Well, now that you've had enough time to digest part 1, let's move on to the miscellany and clothes I picked up from the semi-annual rummage sale. 

Last year, I put a moratorium on my own buying of vintage Christmas items- I have probably 15-18 dozen vintage Shiny Brites I bought back when no one wanted them. But now that I have an antique store booth, I need the holiday inventory ;). These sweet handmade cloth ornaments are just the thing- and only set me back 25 cents for all.

These plastic flocked window wreaths are still in their wrappers- 50 cents for all. I have done well with these on Etsy- should get them listed soon.

I paid 25 cents for the tin and it happened to be filled with tiny craft supplies- a win-win! The sharp-looking object is actually a vintage plastic icicle ornament. I have a little collection of those as well, this was like a bonus find.

This is one of my favorites- a bunch of 7 1980s vintage T shirts- $2.25 for all. These have great vintage drinking-theme graphics. They'll be making their way into my Etsy shop for all those ironic hipsters at Xmas...

Let's take a closer look at the one on the lower left- it's my favorite! 

I think I mentioned before on this blog how much I love vintage flight bags. I have a couple that I use for actual trips- they are still the perfect size for carry-on luggage, and fit a laptop as well! I grabbed these while I was still waiting in line to get in (all the suitcases and lawn items were outside) for $1 each. The TWA one is from the 80s, but the red white and blue one is so 60s. The logo is from the ILGWU and it is mint! It's going to be hard to let this one go, but I can't keep everything.

If you see anything you like, watch my Etsy shop or leave a comment with your email and we can work something out. As always, blog friends get a 20% discount when you enter the coupon code PIT20OFF at checkout.

Rummage Sale Haul of Awesomeness! (Pt. 1)

Oh my, it's Christmas here at ChezQT! (At least for me, anyway.) Today was our town's semi-annual rummage sale. I've blogged about these before and the posts are so photo-heavy, so I decided to break them up over two days.

First up will be kitchen ware and linens!

I've been lucky to find a bit of pink Pyrex lately- this pink gooseberry casserole (no lid) was $2. The strawberry sugar bowl is painted milk glass (maybe Hazel Atlas, I forget?) and has a repaired lid, but for 50 cents I couldn't pass it up. I saw a similar apple one the other day at a thrift store; now maybe I will have to go back and get that. The adorable crocheted pot rests were 25 cents each!  

These holiday mugs are Corningware, not Pyrex, but almost the same. I'm hoping to use them as trade bait for some Pyrex I collect. Primary or Butterprint fridgies, anyone?

I loved these straw insulated tumblers at a yard sale in town- but passed them up for $3 there. Guess they got donated to the rummage sale and cost me $1.50 this time.

This is the second vintage BBQ apron I found at this sale. I love this one even more than the first one I found in the spring. Maybe they were his-n-hers, because this one is quite a bit smaller and the ties are so dainty. Love love love the graphics on this!!

And this is the final one for today, an autumn printed tablecloth. I didn't have a fall-themed tablecloth, either and just the other day was wishing I did. Problem solved for $2.50!

Stay tuned in a couple for the clothing and miscellany!

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 ;)