What I Like to Find When I Go Thrifting

I've been out lookin' for stuff lately. I always have something in mind when I go thrifting, but I also find other things at a good price that have a certain appeal for me, and you will find a few of them here. I'm also going to list all the prices, which I don't always do, so that you can know what just a few bucks will buy if you look hard enough these days. I tend to go for useful, basic, and simple things. Items I might sell, give as a gift, or keep for myself. And I have BIG enthusiasm for all my little finds!

The lace runners were 2.99 each. Soft, clean, and in perfect shape. But the vintage hangers were a good buy too at 49 cents each. They're perfect for hanging and displaying all kinds of things.

This vintage/antique jug was also 2.99. It's eight inches high, hasn't a chip on it, and is pretty as can be. It's not quite my style so will probably be a gift. The other side is quite different which I will show you further along.

It's full of fantastic details!

In the foreground with fabric roses is a small vintage Shenango ironstone bowl. It has a woman's face for handles which I found profoundly difficult to photograph.  Three dollars, and a keeper!

   

The reverse. And after photographing, I saw that there's a bit of the price label still clinging to the front. OOPS!

Ninety-nine cents for a vintage frosted tumbler that is oh so shabby chic, and with all the gold still intact. (Is it maybe new?)

There's nothing more practical than ironstone! Mug, twenty-nine cents. Curvy bowl, a splurge at 5.00. The small platters, 1.99 each.

The silverplate flatware was an indulgence. I love this vintage Rogers Bros. pattern called Daffodil, but have never found any before. I found several mixed pieces, and will keep looking for more. Ninety-nine cents each piece.

The ironstone platter they are displayed in, 3.99.

I gave them their first going over with the silver polish because I couldn't wait to see them gleam, but I'll need to work on them some more. It makes my hands a mess, so I would never do it before the Cinderella ball! I'm my own servant for my servanted life!  ;o)

Perfect vintage cotton handworked pillowcases. Already washed and ironed. Four dollars each.  

I have a bunch of these already. I wonder how many I would need in order to stop buying them? But I love their nostalgia, and I keep finding different varieties. See that extra long one? And the ones with the wire band? Seven dollars and ninety-five cents for the bunch. Not a steal.

That's what I've been up to. How about you?

Hope you're having fun somewhere!

Jacqueline

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Common Ground~Vintage Inspiration

About Those Paper Flowers. . .

 

 

 

 

I had a few requests to show how I made the paper flowers I featured in a recent post. I used the same method for a different post I did in the spring.

 

 

 

 

 

I've seen tutorials for the larger tissue flowers all over the place, so I guess I thought everybody has seen them too. The process for my smaller ones is the same.

 

 

 

 

 

Using tissue, and a larger pattern is very easy. Even a child can do it. We used about fourteen sheets for each large tissue flower.

 

 

 

 

 

The smaller version is a bit trickier because of the size, and the paper I used. 

 

  

My almost tissue-thin paper came from a vintage encyclopedia. It's most often used in Bibles. I got mine at a flea market for a dollar and a half. The thin paper is important. It is less pliable than tissue, and has a bit more crinkle. I like having the print, but I have also seen tissue paper stamped with script before it is made into a flower.

 

 

 

 

 

I simply rip out the pages and trim the edge. I found five sheets per flower to be most manageable. If you use tissue you can use more pages for a fuller look.

 

 Make a one inch accordian fold. Any narrower and you don't get good distinct petals.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Don't worry about being exact each time. I ended up with an overlap here, and it doesn't matter.

 

Find the center, and secure it. Thin wire is nice, but I used crochet thread.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trim the corners for rounded petals.

Peel each page singly away from the others. (I got ahead of myself and started peeling before shaping the edges, and had to go back for the photo.) This part isn't easy. It's slow going and takes more care as opposed to using tissue paper. Even so you will likely have small tears. They don't show. Just keep going. Your skill will improve with practice. The point is to pull the paper as far as you can away from the others at the base. The paper gets curled and wrinkled naturally in the process.

 

 

This is what you have after the first page.

 

Half way done.

 

 Voila!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Each flower looks a little different as in nature. And you can scrunch a little at the end to shape the flower to your liking. I think they have good impact in bunches, but I only have patience to make a few at a time! The hardest part is finding the onionskin paper. But crafters are always collecting this sort of stuff. And of course you can always use tissue paper. There are fabulous patterns of all kinds out there. Have fun!

 

Hope it's a nice week for you. . . .

 

Jacqueline

 Join me at

Between Naps on the Porch~Metamorphosis Monday

Old Septembers

 

 

 It's still hot here, but not sizzling. The light has changed, and the nights have cooled off.  I would love a year filled with Septembers if it was offered up to me.

 

 

 

 

 I like woodsy things this time of the year, and we spent most of September in a cabin north of  Santa Fe in the Pecos two years ago.

 

 

 

 

We brought some of our woodsy collections with us to make things homey, and had a fine time in the cool mountain air. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 It's so easy to turn your focus to the fall things of life. September is the payoff month of country fairs, garden harvests, and fresh apple pies. And it's the reward that rises up after a too hot summer, or after the mild disappointment sets in that the months of freedom and sunny pleasures are at an end. 

 

 

 

 

 

The windows get flung open to cool evening breezes and wonderful sleeping weather. This was our guest room welcoming visitors of another September. . . .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With a few cabin vignettes mixed in. . . . 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My first September tablescape held a little suggestion of the bounty of the season.

 

It reminded me of how I love the gradual turning inward toward so many things to be glad of. The sort of feeling you get after a long sojourn when you're headed home. . . .

Welcome back September!

 

Are you beginning to settle into fall things too?

I hope you're enjoying a perfect weekend.

 

Jacqueline 

 

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Between Naps on the Porch~Metamorphosis Monday

Faded Charm~White Wednesday

Savvy Southern Style~WOW US Wednesday