Treasure Box Wednesday: Hot Cup o' Good Fortune

After a few errands on Saturday, I set out on that gray, blustery day a-thrifting down Route 30.

Why does it seem when winds do howl and rain does pelt against the windows, there's comfort wandering around a brightly-lit thrift store or quiet antique mall? It's one of those times where, even if I found nothing, it's just fun to look.

But find things, I did! And I managed to hit a couple of really good sales, too. Like the 50% off of these already well-priced Carnival glass pieces at the Ligonier Fleatique...

I'm not sure how old they are, but you can't beat the rainbow of colors on them!

Speaking of colors, how about these excellent lusterware teacups from the Salvation Army? ..

Seeing them there together, I just knew they had to have come from the same lady's collection. Do you ever ponder things like that when you shop? What place the item held in someone's life before it arrived at the store?

At the Good Samaritan thrift store in North Versailles, I uncovered this pink 70s French glass serving bowl to match my set...

I like it because it looks so much like Depression Glass. And this time I was doubly thrilled because I'd missed out on this very style piece once at a different antique mall; they wouldn't sell it to me because it wasn't priced, which I totally understand. But the guy running the desk also didn't want to call and bother the dealer to find out how much it would be. Needless to say, it was a disappointing "No Sale" that day...

But it's all balanced out now!

I also got a great big bag of Shiny Brite ornaments from the Good Samaritan. It's really never too early to pick these bright li'l fellows up!...

At the L&L Fleatique in Adamsburg, I bought a nifty gift for one of my friends (I'll show you all that post-gift-giving, so as not to ruin the surprise for her.) And I got myself a small McCoy planter-- which was also on sale!

And lastly, following the grand tradition of my father's, which involves buying things he doesn't know what they are... I bought...

Um...

Something I don't know what it is.

It's definitely styled like my downstairs light fixtures, so it's probably from the Depression era. And it's done in the same airbrushed colors. But as for its function?...

Here is the back...
So what do you folks think? Did it come from some other light fixture? Or perhaps part of curtain tiebacks or rods?

Any and all suggestions appreciated and ready to be taken for consideration! As the thing was just seventy-cents at the UFO in Greensburg, I figured it was worth that just for us to mull it over.

Anyway, it's pretty, and you all know me-- I probably can make use of it somehow.

So that's it for today's Treasure Box Wednesday!

• If you missed Sunday's part two of the fireplace installation, that wraps up here.

Well, it's not precisely wrapped up, but I'll give you something non-fireplacey to read about on Sunday to mix it up more. I imagine that will be a relief to all of us. :)

Have a great week, friends, and I hope to see you Sunday.

Taking a Shine to Lusterware

I’m a total magpie. Anything that sparkles, twinkles, has an iridescent glow or rainbow sheen is fair game for feathering my nest; in fact, it’s just a wonder I haven’t accidentally bashed my beak on an over-clean window.

At home, mirrors glint on walls and tabletops, colored glass sits on window sills, and one of my favorite types of porcelain is lusterware.

See that opalescent sheen, like a child’s soap bubbles? This is lusterware. That rainbow gleam is caused by metallic oxides which are added to pottery glaze after the porcelain is baked and enameled.

Like so many of today’s collectable vintage items, lusterware was considered commonplace back in the day. It was inexpensive, functional and sold in stores like five-and-dimes. Much of the lusterware you see today was made in Japan after World War II. But some turn-of-the-20th-century lusterware was made in Czechoslovakia and Germany. And because many of the pieces are marked, that makes collecting from a particular region or time period a lot easier.

Yet lusterware of different styles, time periods and brands works well together. Here you’ll see my German lusterware canisters.

These are representatives of three different sets made by two different companies: White & Block and Mepoco. Yet because they’re in the same basic colors, they give the feel of a matched set.

Best of all, vintage lusterware turns up at thrift stores. I came by this tureen and ladle, as well as assorted luster bowls and tea cups at different thrift stores over the years.

Sometimes, I’ll find an orphaned saucer while I’m thrifting and I’ll just set it aside. Since lusterware looks good with any number of other lusterware pieces, it usually isn’t long before I find a saucerless cup looking for an appropriate match…

Yes, basically, it’s my own dating service for lonely porcelain.

Collectively, lusterware can make the kind of cheerful table setting that I’ve used for dinners and even a tea.

So if you’re looking to put a little shine in your dining and retro in your room, lusterware can easily give polish to your own occasion.