Treasure Box Wednesday: Deco Delights, Hollywood Hearthrobs and More

Riiiing! Rinnnnggggg!
"Hello, who's calling, please?"
"It's Lady Luck. And do I have some secondhand goodies for you!"

That's how I felt on Saturday after spending the day journeying down Route 30 in the direction of Ligonier and Latrobe. I ended up going to a few places I don't go regularly-- like Rossi's Pop-up Flea Market in North Versailles. And I'm really glad I gave it the time, because it turned out to be one nifty thrifty day.

I'll start with my favorite item, simply because I'm so excited to share it with you all. It's an art deco styled push-button phone I found at the L&L Fleatique in Adamsburg...

Note, it's not trimmed in red-- no, that's just the reflection of my sofa through its crystal-look rim! How cute is that?

Now, I know obviously there were not push-button phones during the 30s and 40s. But I instantly loved the shape, the incredibly art deco feel to it. Why, it's deco right now to the font of the numbers...

Another Fleatique find seems to have leapt right out of the time machine from my childhood. Great for storing small, otherwise scattered office supplies, it also called to mind my lengthy crush on ol' Doctor Jones...
You don't see many metal character-printed lunchboxes these days, and if you do, they're either all rusted out or the vendor knows its collectible and is asking a small fortune. At $8, I really couldn't say no.

I also picked up a copy of the book Chocolat-- the original text the delightful off-beat movie was drawn from.
At Rossi's Pop-up Flea Market, then, I found a Cape Cod Avon plate for one of my friends who collects it...
...And a fourth moonstone Anchor Hocking dinner plate for me!...
Now I can do a full table setting for four. Given how challenging it can be to find certain pieces of this stuff, I'm pleased I was able to track down this one.

And that pretty much puts the receiver down on today's Treasure Box.

If you missed Sunday's little humor post on "The Crotchtastic World of Retro Knitting" (trust me, that title will make sense once you see it), click here.

And otherwise, perhaps I'll see you this coming Sunday for our next post!

Friday Fleeing for the Rogers Flea Market

Oh, you folks told me about it-- you did. You said it was big. You said it was amazing. You said I needed to go.

And you were right.

But the problem for me is, the Rogers Flea Market, located in Rogers, Ohio, about an hour and a half from Pittsburgh is on Fridays only. And unfortunately, this fan of secondhand stuff is usually working on Fridays. Y'know-- that day job that helps pay for my vintage dishware addiction.

But my buddy Josette, who I've been friends with since I was five, was visiting this last week. And as luck would have it, I had a rare Friday off. So Josette and I got into the car covered with about half-a-pound of SPF 30 sunscreen each, and we wended our way through green farms, pretty hamlets and rustic railroad rimmed domiciles...
...To Rogers, Ohio.

The Rogers Flea Market has free parking, which is good because if you're not adverse to walking a bit, you might just want to grab the first shady parking space you see. This place is packed!
Their web site boasts it's the largest flea market in the tri-state area, with over 1,600 vendors-- and I believe that, because you pass simply row after row of wares!...

(aerial photograph of the grounds from RogersOhio.com)

Old stuff, new stuff, big stuff, little stuff... Whatever you were looking for, collected or even reminisced about, you could almost guarantee somebody had it. And dotted here and there in between those booths, were booths of food, drink, whatever tickled your tastebuds. I can see why they did it that way, too--

With such a distance to cover, having refreshment stands in between the flea market booths reduced the possibility of... oh... passing out in the heat. Because wow, friends, last Friday was a scorcher!

Yes, scorch it did, but it wasn't so hot that Josette and I weren't able to procure a few secondhand pretties. Like Josette's Fitz and Floyd Christmas Cat plate...
She was really happy with the detail and colors, and the price was right, too!

For my buddy Scoobie, who was away on vacation and wasn't able to join us, I bought her a little souvenir for her Western decorating collection-- a Buffalo Bill Jim Beam bottle...
I liked the detail, and I think she'll get a kick out of it, too.

And for me, I got a piece of my Anchor Hocking moonstone glassware for... wait for it... $1.
You really can't beat that!

Anyway, for those thinking they might like to make a trip to Rogers Flea Market themselves, I advise--

• Wear good ol' solid walking shoes you know you're comfortable in...
• Make sure you get plenty of fluids
• Wear sunscreen-- that sun beats down and there isn't a ton of shade for reprieve
• Prepare to walk
• Consider bringing a small wheelie cart you can pull along with you to carry larger goodies
• And have a blast!

The address is here:

45625 State Route 154
Rogers, Ohio 44456
Phone: (330) 227-3233

Thanks to Josette for investigating it with me and withstanding some killer blisters on her feet! And thanks to you all for visiting today. Now that I no longer have houseguests, The Thrift Shop Romantic should be back on its normal posting schedule.

Take care, folks! And happy hunting!

Treasure Box Wednesday: Posies and Placesettings

As we take a step or two into May, this week has been one filled with pleasant little surprises. Two of them, of the floral variety.

Folks who checked out Sunday's post on "Good Cheer"-- the early 1900s booklet of Edwardian positive thinking-- already know about one of these finds. But my haul of highly-decorative books of advice actually came in bulk. There were six all together-- and here are four of the most heavily illustrated...
I know I'd told a few folks on Twitter how I was going with one of my friends to the Fiesta outlet. She was looking for a few things in particular. But before we even made it into their parking lot, we were pleasantly sidetracked by a small local flea market.

When you see unexpected flea market aisles, and you have the time, it seems almost foolish not to at least get out and peruse! How could we resist?

And that's where I found a number of early 1900s postcards-- same style as the books, really!...
It was a nice mix of Christmas (which I strangely don't have very many cards celebrating), and general correspondence from the period. The "To My Dear Old Pal" cracked me up a bit. I think today's card would be worded a little differently.

Then at home, I have been playing around with some of my Anchor Hocking Moonstone hobnail pieces in the form of tablescapes...
I'm happy with how well the opalescent white shows up on colored tablecloths. When the light hits it just right, you can see a tinge of blue-green or red, depending on the angle. Jadite candlesticks, green hydrangeas and a Smith Glass iridescent vase complete the look...
I only have two plates so far, but as you folks already know, no good collection is ever built quickly. (Or rather I should say, 'no budget-oriented collection'.)

To carry the green and white theme over to the mantle in that room, I used some thrifted white cherub planters I had, another green hydrangea and candlesticks in a palette that's the reverse of the ones on the table...
So, that's what I've been up to this week, folks. And with that, the Treasure Box closes again until next Wednesday.

Take care!

Hull and Hobnail Happiness

Forrest Gump had that line about life and chocolates. But I think life's more like a thrift store. You have a wider range of serendipity. A little humor. A little "what the heck is that?" And junk or treasure, it's all in how you look at it.

Anyway, this week's Treasure Hunting took me and my shopping bud, Scoobie, around Pittsburgh's South Hills. I had had my eye on a type of Depression glass from the 40s by Anchor Hocking called "Moonstone" and this was the weekend I managed to snag a few pieces at a good price...
I'd like it noted that this was from the very same antique mall where I showed you the, um, unique example of Big-Eyed Portraiture on Sunday. Proving, I think, the truth of that adapted Forrest Gump adage I was just talking about. :)

And underlining the bit about serendipity, at the Salvation Army Superstore in West Mifflin, I came across my very first thrifted Hull vase...
Scoobie and I both spotted it at the same time and gasped, knowing full-well how expensive Hull is in any of the antique malls.

Now, I'm not going to kid you-- it does have two chips. You can see one of them on the right hand side. But honestly, sitting up on top of my china cabinet, its soft matte-finish pastels look just right in my dining room. I looked it up and the pattern's called Wildflower. I figure no one visiting will be inclined to pluck the vase from its spot and "tsk-tsk" over the chips...

And if they do-- heh-- I probably should invite them over less.

Lastly, I snagged two bright green Depression glass candlesticks at the St. Vincent de Paul thrift store in Castle Shannon. They don't look quite as intensely green in this pic as they are in real life...
They came out to be $5 for the pair.

Now, before I forget-- one of the Thrift Shop Romantic's regular readers, Debbie of Debbie-Dabble, had asked to see a closeup of a table in my spare room, based on a previous post. So Debbie, my friend, here is more of that sewing stand...
It's from the 70s, a Singer cabinet, which I two-toned with some of the same cottage white paint I've used elsewhere in that room. Its top wasn't great, so after I painted it, I put a Rachel Ashwell Shabby Chic placemat over the top and glass over that to keep it tidy...
Here you can see the Colonial knobs were exchanged for glass knobs, and I'd added some wooden appliques to fancy it up.
Thrift stores often have old sewing tables without the sewing machines in them, and the tables still make great sidetables, with a little bit of work.

Anyway, that's it for this Treasure Box Wednesday. I hope to see you again on Sunday for our next post-- and have yourselves a chocolate-box-worthy remainder of this week!

Treasure Box Wednesday: Adventure! Excitement! Thrills!

"Well, Mistah Allnut, what shall we thrift today?"

Okay, so, maybe Kate and Bogie weren't loading up the African Queen, about to go on their most exciting thrifting adventure, but of the three of us, at least one of us did this week. A three-day weekend was a prime time for antiquey-thrifty fun, so one of my shopping buds and I hit Route 250 to New Philadelphia, Ohio and uncovered some treasure.

One of my very favorite pieces was from the Route 250 Antique Mall-- this excellent McCoy teapot.
As you can see (or may remember) I found the matching creamer at the Salvation Army just a few weeks ago, and hadn't had a lot of hope to find one of the other pieces so soon. Usually these items are found as a part of a set. So finding the teapot solo was amazing.

It was filthy and tucked on a bench partially under a table, but it still called to me. A little soap and water and it's good as new.

At the same place, I also found this unmarked McCoy pink butterfly planter...

It never hurts to look through collectible books and note items you wouldn't mind finding someday. They stick in your brain so when you come across and unmarked version-- voila!-- a great piece at a good price!

At the Riverfront Antique Mall in New Philadelphia, I got these terrific framed African Queen movie promo cards...
I'm not sure how old they are, but I chose two of about seven that were there depicting stills of the movie...Longtime readers may recall, I've gotten a chance to see the actual African Queen boat down in the Florida Keys, and have decorated my office at work with photos and some artwork related to this theme, so these cards will add to that grouping.

The only other item I picked up at the Riverfront Antique Mall was this Homer Laughlin tree-printed mixing bowl...

I'd thrifted a much smaller one of these about six months ago, and loved the Arts & Crafts style to it. I may fill it with fruit and display it in my livingroom along with my more green and leafy McCoy pottery.

And last, this came from the Salvation Army a week or two back, but I forgot to take photos...
My friend Scoobie spotted these moonstone Anchor Hocking sherbet dishes. I'm lucky to have a shopping bud who actually remembers some of the stuff I'm interested in-- because these totally would have escaped my sight.

So that about docks this voyage of Treasure Box Wednesday. And happy sailing to you through this week! May your metaphorical waters be calm and clear. (And without leeches.)

Treasure Box Wednesday: Silent Butlers, Crisp Waffles and Vintage Dominoes

Tired of all those noisy butlers, yak, yak, yakking away all the time, telling you their ailments in detail and missing all the crumbs on the breakfast table? Well, this charming Silent Butler might be just what you need!

Also called a "crumber," I believe, these decorative items were used by Victorians and Edwardian folks to tidy up their dining tables. Occasionally I'll see them in antique malls, but it's a rare find indeed at the thrift store, particularly to find both pieces-- the tray and the crumb sweeper. This one came from the Salvation Army.

Judging from its art nouveau styling, and the fact that it seems to be made of spelter, that would date this piece to somewhere in the early 1900s...


Most enjoyable is that it seems to have been a souvenir item, from Atlantic City, to "Mother." Ah, those wacky Victorians-- they sure did like their travel memorabilia.

It cost me a whopping $0.99.

Other finds these week included a surprising amount of Anchor Hocking Waffle/Waterford depression glass. I was missing both coffee cups and tumblers in my set, but this week the Waffle just seemed to be waiting.


At a Goodwill on Route 30 in North Versailles, I got four coffee cups, for $0.25 a piece...


And then at the Salvation Army on the South Side I uncovered six tumblers for $0.79 a piece.


Just look at those babies sparkle!

My last rather unusual find of the week was this bag of vintage wooden dominoes for $0.99...


I was thinking they might be nice as a part of some shadowbox projects. Just look at the interesting detail on them. They remind me of the dominoes I played with my Grandpa a millennium or so ago.


And because this was such a short Treasure Box Wednesday, I thought you might enjoy seeing what's become of a previously-thrifted lamp. I think I shared this crazy crystal green lamp from the 60s with you before...

But it was shadeless. The shade, I found on Ebay. It just seemed to me that any lamp as over-the-top as this one, needed an over-the-top Victorian shade.

It's essentially my version of the Leg Lamp from "A Christmas Story" and its tacky madness makes me smile when I go in that room.

And isn't that what treasure hunting is all about?

• If you missed Sunday's post featuring some nifty ideas for thrifting gift baskets, click here.

If not- perhaps I shall see you on Sunday, for our next post? I certainly hope I will.

Take care of yourselves, my friends!