Treasure Box Tuesday: Roses, Glasses and Goodies

It's been a crazy few weeks for me. I've had to put in many extra hours at work for projects, as well as taking care of cat with a respiratory infection (Harry's doing better, happily) and so many other things, would you believe I didn't realize how many weeks it had been since I posted? (?!)

I hear the brain is the first thing to go.

So the thrifted and fleamarket finds I'll show you today are a collection of a bunch of weeks put together. All the items have found their right spot in my house. This was a Victorian transferware bowl I found at the Goodwill in Irwin a while back. 

 I loved the colors-- perfect for the curio cabinet in my diningroom!

At the L&L Fleatique on Route 30, I got this marvelous Hull vase with a waterlily on it. I love the soft pastels and matte finish.

 This sits on top of the aforementioned curio, next to THIS transferware vase from Austria...

I got that at Junk for Joy in Jeannette, PA. Love it! It's quite tall, too, so it makes a nice statement.

At the Fleatique Too in Ligonier, my shopping buddy Scoobie spied these two Wizard of Oz drinking glasses...

I had gotten one from Junk for Joy a while back, of Dorothy, and these belong to one of three different sets put out by Swift Peanut Butter in the 50s and 60s. They look really cute in my kitchen and match the colors of my Fiestaware.

My favorite piece of the past few weeks has been this Roseville console bowl. It was a price I could actually afford because someone had glued a styrofoam flower frog in the center of it to hold their centerpieces...

I had an inkling that antique glue might not be too hard to get off there without damaging the bowl. And with some careful tugging, some very hot soaking water and a little Palmolive, the whole thing came out bit by bit. Suddenly a good buy had turned great!

Lastly, but probably less excitingly, I picked up a whole bunch of file folders and hanging folders in pinks, purples and aquas. This was from the Goodwill Outlet, where tons of them were just tossed in the bins.

So, that's it for today's Treasure Box. We have our neighborhood yard sale this weekend, so I hope to have some fun finds to share with you next week, too!

Happy hunting!

Treasure Box Wednesday: Half Off, Fully Fun

Oh, it was a great day to be a cheapskate antique-lover this weekend, my friends! I don't know if it's the economy... the close of the summer season... or just a big ol' coincidence... but it seems everywhere I looked along my favorite Route 30 haunts, there was a sale!

Sure, antique-fiends know that a nice 10-20% off is likely to happen, sometimes just for the asking. But this weekend marked 25%, 30% and even 50% off whole booths at antique malls.

I need a vintage hankie just to be dainty about all the drool! :)

It was a weekend of big finds, too. So I think this Treasure Box Wednesday might expand into next week, just to accommodate it all.

We'll start with these delicate Victorian chocolate cups I found at the Goodwill Thrift Store in Greensburg...


They were undoubtedly part of a chocolate set with a pot at one time, but two pretty cups remain. The nice thing about this kind of transferware is that is looks good with other non-matching pieces of the type. So I already have a few pieces they should work with.

At the L&L Fleatique in Adamsburg/Jeannette, I got this pair of McCoy bird vases, and at 30% off!...


Perfect along a table or on either side of a mantle!

And yep, I don't want to forget this next item. This was from the Greensburg Goodwill, too. A very kitschy 1940s Asian figural lamp in terrific condition...


I'd seen these in high-end antique stores which have a lot of mid-century modern furnishings... But I'd never expected to see one at the Goodwill. Anyway, it's made of plaster, and handpainted. And it came with the original shade you see there.

My regular readers know that I am powerless against the grip of a good vintage thrifted lamp.

And do you want to know how much it cost? Do ya? G'wan, ask me!...


Okay, since you asked so nicely, I'll tell you. But hold on to your Kimonos... It was $6!

I know it's a really strange piece, and not everyone's taste. But a great example of 40s kitsch. As you can see, right now it's on my bedside table, cheering me immensely with the warm glow that reflects through its angled lampshade...

Also that $6 price tag. :)

In one of the other best deals of the day was this ornate basket-weave Carnival glass bowl, at 50% off...


It's not marked, but judging from the pattern, my collector's book seems to lean toward it being either made by Northwood or Fenton. They both did basketweave patterns, though I couldn't find a bowl precisely like this.

And just for a bit of variety, my thrifting bud Scoobie let me take photos of a few of her items. She's got quite a lot of blue enamel kitchenware already, and based on this weekend's adventuring, I'd say her set's about complete...


There's a roasting pan, a couple of bowls, and even a pasta strainer! These were all thrifted at different places.

And last, we have another half-off beauty-- her etched-mirror cowboy shelf. Scoobie's favorite dude at her imaginary Home on the Range will be able to hang his hat, lassooo and, er, other cowboy accoutrements there. (You can tell I'm not the Western officiando... better ask Scoobie for that sort of thing!)


Anyway, she's got the pots for the vittles and some purty decor, too! Yeeeeee-haw!

But, friends, this wasn't all we found-- can you believe it? So next week, I'll include those items in a very special Part Two Treasure Box Wednesday.

It's good to pace ourselves. Being this excited about cool, old weird stuff can get kinda exhausting; it's important to take breaks. Breathe deep. Stretch.

• Oh, and if you need a laugh and missed Sunday's humor post on some totally far-out 60s knitwear, click here.

And if not? Maybe I'll see you Sunday!

Digging into 'Bag of Old Paper'

Many of us have spoken about thrifting and antiquing being a lot like archaeology... Sifting through the remains of the past for golden treasures. Of course, those golden treasures might be something as simple as a missing saucer for a beloved old teacup... Or finding beauty in an antique print. Or uncovering knowledge and adventure, in the guise of hundred-year-old National Geographics.

Me, I'm fond of batches of ephemera. As regular readers know, give me an old cookbook, a 30s magazine or a quaint product brochure, and I am one happy gal.

Fortunately, the indoor flea markets and antique malls know the way to my heart, too.

Both the L&L Fleatique in Adamsburg, and the Ligonier Fleatique in... well, Ligonier, PA... have vendors who bundle vintage goodies into bags and sell them as a lot.

This week, I treated myself to...


... "Bag of Old Paper." And today, I thought you all might enjoy exploring it with me!

What was the clincher in the purchase of "Bag of Old Paper," for me, were these beautifully-designed certificates of graduation from Sunday School in the 1920s...



Just look at the detail on this!...


Sherman Dietrick is the name, and the date is 1924. Little Sherman went on to earn this next one in 1926, when he was promoted to the Junior Department of his Colorado Sunday School...


I loved the soft pinks and greens, the tangle of roses, and the central portrait...


By 1927, the Certificate of Promotion was smaller-- about the size of a postcard, versus a full 8 1/2 by 11 sheet of paper. But it was full-color and equally ornate...


Here's a closeup of the figure here...


So who was Sherman Dietrick? Hard to say, exactly... But, if grouped properly-- I wonder if he isn't the fellow in this photo from "Bag of Old Paper"...


If so, this would be Sherman 20-some years on, in 1945. The same couple are found here...


Sherman's trying a bit of a Gable moustache here, I believe.

And again, if we can assume the Bag of Old Paper was owned by just one person, it would seem Sherman and his wife did quite a bit of traveling! We can assume two people went (Sherman and his wife above?) from the two copies of the same brochure included in the bag. And it appears like the Dietricks went to... Washington D.C.!...


Plymouth Massachusetts!...

(Love that 50s Massachusetts brochure-- we may come back to that some day for a Virtual Vacation!)...

And it appears that even Miami, Puerto Rico, Upstate New York, and Thomas Edison's home in Ohio was on their travels.


Like I said, we may take a more detailed look at individual items in future posts, but I thought it would be fun for you all to have a chance to dig into "Bag of Old Paper" with me today.

Before you go, I would really like to thank everyone this last week who took the time to respond to Sunday's post and share your own interests with me. I've found it very helpful, and it's given me some terrific insights into what tickles your fancies, and what fun things I can share with you in the future.

I'm serious when I say, I feel extremely lucky to have you all along for the journey with me each week.

Don't forget to pop back for this Treasure Box Wednesday, if you get a chance, because I think there will be some goodies that you'll enjoy seeing.

Cheers, folks!