Friday, January 31, 2020

The Queen of Fifty…Crepes!


The “huge moving sale, everything goes!” on the west side of town this morning…wasn’t. Oh, I'm not disputing that the guy is moving. And what I saw might actually have been his idea of “everything.”

Huge, it was not.

Oh well.

But the estate sale not far from my house was much better. (Whew.) The lady the sale was for is 93 and moving in with her daughter. She was a wood carver and also did that Norwegian style of painting called rosemåling, which I admire but have never wanted to collect. There was a large free standing wooden cabinet with painted doors that I could have fallen in love with though, if 1) I had room for it and b) it had not been $150. 


Fortunately there were some things more in my price range.

It seemed that she had a special love for carving wooden Santas, and they were flying out the door. One lady showed me the adorable one she was getting of Santa carrying a little Noah’s ark and holding up a red umbrella. We stood there and chuckled at it. I didn’t get a Santa, but I did select this fun snowman.



I love his twig arms, though they may need replacing from time to time. But twigs should not be that hard to come by.

I picked up some tomato cages (which look exactly like every other metal tomato cage you’ve ever seen). This time of year I need something to remind me that winter will not last forever. I also got this piece of yard art,



and a little metal chickadee like the ones I always admire at garden shows.


This kitty plate is tiny, but I think it will be just right to hold a tea bag. On the bottom it says it was made in Thailand, so even though it's a black kitty, it must be a Siamese cat, right?


So, a fun morning though a short outing. But last Saturday Judy and KK and I went to a couple of sales, and I had one really great score.

The backstory starts about 4 years ago, when KK found a large round electric griddle at an estate sale. She gambled four bucks on it, hoping it still worked, and when she got it home and researched found it's actually a crepe griddle. For making the big crepes like you get in a crepe restaurant. I was suitably jealous (especially when she would tell me of some fabulous crepes they had for dinner) and told her the next one we saw had to be mine.

So imagine the thrill when she emerged from the basement of the house we were in clutching an identical crepe griddle! She handed it over with a grin as I wept in delight. (Well, almost.) I did have the presence of mind to plug the thing in to make sure it would heat up. My heart would have been broken if it hadn’t worked, but hooray, it did.



Ironically, both griddles came from estate sales run by the same company.

I have been in crepe making heaven! Lunches, dinners, desserts. Okay, yes, breakfast too. I keep a container of crepe batter in the fridge and have been playing French chef with practically every ingredient in my house. So far they’ve all been good. I don't usually pause to take a picture, but this dessert crepe that included chocolate ganache, lemon curd, brandied cherry sauce and some whipped cream was the bomb.


My posse is joining me tomorrow night for a crepe party.

Yum!

Monday, January 6, 2020

It’s Spreadsheet Time!


Yessiree, let’s head for that annual thrifty roundup! Maintaining my garaging spreadsheet has been a really satisfying habit. Would you believe it goes back 15 years now? I can’t tell you how many times I've had occasion to look up when I bought something or how much I paid, and it's always a trip down memory lane. So many of the entries plunge me into the day of the sale where I found the item, who I was with, the conversations I had. All that personal history, neatly lined up in rows and columns.

Okay, so I love my spreadsheet. We already knew what a strange person I am!

I was a darned frugal thrifter this year, in fact the only year I've spent less was 2005, and that total was within a dollar of this year. The total outlay for 2019 was $342.40, with an estimated retail value of $5,568. The category with the best return on investment was clothing, where I spent $28 on 22 items worth nearly $1400. Of course it's hard to go wrong in a category that includes $1 shoes, brands like Dansko and Keen. And I had the fun of upcycling the one pair that was a bit beat up.


 The next most lucrative category was garden items. Only bought 6 for $36, but the average worth was around $40. If you’ve purchased any large pots or plants for retail prices you’ll know I got bargains! 


I may be fondest of the $1 pitchfork I found at an estate sale. It's old and a bit beat up, but it's the perfect tool for loading wood chips into the wheelbarrow. And since I got the power company’s tree trimmers to give me a free load of chips (about 7 cubic yards worth!) that is going to be a dollar well spent.



Another top category was accessories – 9 purchased for $10, and worth nearly $300. I especially love these polished wood earrings inlaid with silver.


In spite of my telling myself “No décor! No projects!” I brought home plenty in both areas. Spent a little over $80 on 27 décor items, mostly art for my walls. It's all stuff that I love, like the vintage Danish swan poster, 


and the framed three-dimensional rainbow of linen and beads. 



I think it's interesting to note that when I look at the oldest spreadsheet from 2005, the things I still own and love fall into the décor category. Well, except perhaps the Curious George flashlight – what could be more practical than a Curious George flashlight?



In the area of projects, I brought home supplies for makery – fabric, sewing notions, bits and bobs. One of the pieces of fabric came in handy recently when I made reversible button-on covers for my dining chairs – a project actually completed!


Looking at the column of prices spent, I found 13 items that were free, worth over $200. I would actually have bought the dancing fairy switch plate cover, but I love it even more for being free.


Most expensive purchase of the year? The set of vintage dishes from Germany that I use and love every day. 


Well worth the $50 I spent, even if the set only included three of the cool bowls.


All these treasures, and a new knee as well – it was a very good year!


Monday, December 16, 2019

Unexpected Treasures


Wasn’t going out on Friday, only two estate sales in town that looked meh and Judy and I both decided housework could take precedence. Then KK ended up with Friday off, so she and I checked out the estate sales. Which turned out to be…meh. And both involved climbing stairs, and both houses were, um, somewhat smelly. The first had been inhabited by smokers (lovely collection of ashtrays for sale in the garage), the second by mildew and infrequently changed cat boxes.

And I admit that stairs are not my favorite thing. The new knee is doing just fine, but we're still slow on stairs. I really appreciated the lady going up in front of me who commented, "You know, I have always hated climbing stairs!" Someone who understands me!

I managed to spend four bucks at the first sale. The family was probably Swedish; among other things there were numerous Christmas ornaments made of the traditional straw. I was a bit tempted, but my rambunctious cat Millie would have made short work of them. But I loved this hand embroidered (all in chain stitch) bell pull, 



and Millie highly approves of the bunny tea cloth I brought home.


I love the bunnies, don't they look like they are conversing?



On Saturday, KK and I headed off to Portland. We were lunching with Linda, then getting KK’s car serviced at the dealer. When we reached Linda’s house we found she had ducked out to run a quick errand that of course took longer than expected, but we had seen an ‘estate sale’ sign around the corner so of course we had to check it out. Turned out to be further away than expected, but on the way to our lunch spot.

Everyone else in Portland must have been at a mall, because this very nice estate sale was practically deserted. And luckily Linda soon texted, and joined us. KK found several things (sorry, can't remember what!) and Linda went back the next day to buy the mirror she fell in love with – at
half price.


I hit the jackpot before I even went in the house – found a large Japanese aralia (fatsia japonica) for only ten bucks. (If you buy plants you know that’s a steal!) It was one possibility I've been considering for a part of my yard I'm developing because of its imposing appearance and shade tolerance.



 Inside I picked up a pair of fifty cent earrings,


two lovely blue ramekins (fifty cents each),



and a handmade tote bag that I just love.


Needs a bit of mending, but hey, I like to mend!


Out in the garage I found another holiday bell pull, this one of Swedish hardanger embroidery on linen.



I guess it was Swedish weekend, since we had to go by IKEA while we were in Portland as well. But the little glow we felt from finding this completely unexpected estate sale carried us through the retail encounter. Which on a Saturday afternoon, ten days before Christmas, we certainly needed!

Monday, December 9, 2019

Revisiting


Last summer, when my friend Marcia was here and we were waiting for my knee replacement surgery to happen, we naturally did a bit of garaging. We stopped at an estate sale in my old neighborhood, and it was a treasure trove. We had a great time on their driveway, chatting and roasting in the August heat and digging through the many boxes. The sale was lady’s parents’ belongings, and her mother was an extremely creative (and collecting!) person. Marcia came away with an armload of CDs, and I bought music and movies and craft supplies and whimsical doodads. I remember walking away with my arms full for a total of five bucks.

One of my favorite whimsies that day was this tiny vintage piece.


So you may only imagine how excited I was to see that they were having another sale this weekend. I don't usually go back to one I've already seen, but I knew they had only scratched the surface of the parents’ belongings.

Marcia is back in California now, so I took my friend Lonna along to see what we could see. Alas, her luck was not running well – she found a book she wanted that turned out wasn’t for sale. Then she saw something else she liked and had a somewhat unpleasant encounter with one of the pushy guys I think is a local dealer. (There are a handful of these folks who are consistently rude, and I generally try to arrive at sales when I think they will have left.) So sorry, Lonna, it’s not usually like that!

I fared better. On our way into the house we walked by a large Christmas wreath. I noticed it had a price tag. One dollar. Now mine. It's just faux greenery but you can't beat that price. I think I'll refurbish it for next year, but for now it's the total of my seasonal decorating.


The first thing I found inside was this trio of one-inch tall angels. Some of their wings have gotten broken, but I still love them.


My next find was a large framed embroidery for my studio.


You may remember that my focus word for this year is “Mend” – this seemed a perfect reminder. When I got home, I noticed a tag on the back from the framing shop. Imagine my surprise when I saw it was framed in Oklahoma City where I grew up!


Turns out the framers are still in business, and one of their shops is only a few blocks from where I lived. I'm sure I'll never know who the embroiderer was, but I wonder if our paths ever crossed? Whoever she was, the frame was carefully selected to color blend with the embroidery.


I found some cute cupcake papers. At three for a penny, home they came.


In one of the back bedrooms, I found this big (about 2’ tall) papier-mâché bunny who now resides at my house. He was one of the things the creative mother made.


In the other back bedroom, I noticed a really nice switch plate cover, and asked if it might be for sale. The answer was yes, in fact I could just have it, if a screw driver could be located to remove it from the wall. Alas, no screwdriver appeared. I first tried a dime (too big) and then the tip of a table knife (also too big) then they did locate some odd multi-purpose tool but it was too awkward to turn the screws. But I really loved it. So later in the day I went back – with my own screwdriver! Had it off the wall in no time, and made sure that the folks having the sale knew how much I love it.


Of course since I was there again I had to shop again. It was amazing how much had left the house in two or three hours, but much remained. I picked up some movies


including one that might be in Chinese.


I found a very small Yixing tea pot, too small to be practical for use. But a) it was only fifty cents, and b) it looks good with my other Yixing pots. ‘Nuff said.



My last find was another papier-mâché bunny, much smaller than the first. 


I absolutely fell for his hand painted face.


So sometimes you can go home again – even if it's to someone else’s home! Even better, they told me another sale is planned in January, because they hadn’t even started on clearing the garage.

I can hardly wait.



 
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