Treasure Box Wednesday: Pocketful of Roseville


Happy New Year to you, my virtual thrifting and antiquing buddies! Here's to an exciting year ahead for fun finds and creative collecting.

While I haven't been doing a whole lot of secondhand shopping lately due to holiday visiting and drafting the follow-up novel to my humorous sci-fi book, There Goes the Galaxy, I did have a little adventure this past weekend.

My bud Scoobie and I went an hour or so westward to the Fiesta outlet in West Virginia, to Pottery City in East Liverpool, Ohio and then north, to Columbiana, Ohio. It was at an antique mall at our last stop where I found my newest curiosity, this art nouveau-ish wall pocket marked Roseville...
Now, I'm not entirely convinced this can be real Roseville pottery. Maybe some of you out there might have a better idea about it-- and I'd appreciate anything you could share. I don't own any Roseville collecting books (yet) because it's always been so pricey, I never really had a hope of finding a piece in a price range I'd feel comfortable with. 

But the style certainly looks right. And there's a marking on the back, though I know with fakes that doesn't always mean anything...



Even if it is a fake, I only paid... wait for it... $12.50. So if it is a replica piece, it will look just as pretty on the wall in my diningroom, and I won't feel like it was a gigantic loss.

Anyway, I'll be interested to hear what you folks think!

Have you come across any fascinating finds this year? And if so, what's tickled your fancy?

Onward, to more thrifty 2012 treasures!
--Jenn

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, A Super Solstice, and All Good Things


I wanted to wish you all a happy holiday season, no matter what you may be celebrating right now. And I thought there would be no better way to talk about the joys of this time of year-- like thoughtfulness and friendship-- than to share with you the delightful little illustrated card my friend Tahira "TJ" Lubrano made and sent me from all the way in the Netherlands.

TJ's a whiz with the watercolors. And her illustrations, which appear on everything from cards to buttons to children's clothing (and soon, a childrens' book!) are always happy, whimsical fantasy creations, like these smiling cupcakes that appear on the inside of my card...
You can check out her illustration blog here-- http://tjonillustrations.blogspot.com/

And her Zazzle shop here--- http://www.zazzle.com/tjlubrano

(My favorite of her items is a little baby outfit coated in happy cupcakes-- http://www.zazzle.com/cupcake_baby_long_sleeve_shirt-235541714840302090 )

Anyway, just wanted to take a moment to wish you all a happy, safe and joyous Christmas, and a shiny New Year!

--Jenn

A Little Bit of Humor for Your Thursday


Hiya, folks! I'm sorry, I haven't been out hitting the thrift stores this week; rather, I've been working on my novel's sequel during my lunch break and then doing Christmas wrapping in the evenings. (I cannot believe I'm just about done. This is super-early for me and the lack of panic I get to enjoy is almost unsettling!)

Anyway, I don't like to leave you good folks empty-handed. And I thought you all would get a kick out of the post today on my humor blog, Of Cabbages and Kings, detailing a rather unexpectedly funny series of phone messages I've been receiving on my answering machine these past weeks from some persistent strangers.

The post is called, "Orange-Ray Junior, Where You At?" Just click here to check it out.

As an aside, how is everyone's December going so far?

Wishing you much health and joy,
Jenn