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Tuesday, December 31, 2013

MY WEEKEND FINDS

Thanks for tuning in to another episode of My Weekend Finds, the continuing saga of one girl's quest for more junk!~~~~~~I think I'll start with what I found under the Christmas tree, just because I can't contain myself about the first thing I'm about to show you!
An Aqua Dish Drainer!!!!! I've been looking for awhile, and finally found one at my price. Don't the lunch dishes look pretty in there? Honestly I was never so excited to wash the dishes! Well, if we're really being honest, this was the first time I was excited about washing dishes, but you know what I mean. I can't stop looking at it, and I think the family will come to love it too, because I put away the clean dishes alot faster than I ever did before!   
I got a vintage clip-on parakeet for the green bird cage. Wait, you can't really see her in there, can you? Let me take her out for a minute...
Isn't she pretty? Ok, that clip hurts like the dickens, so I'm putting her back in now!
I also got a green one for the cage with the pink design on the front. As I think I've said before, if I'm gonna collect bird cages, I might as well have some birds in there too!
Santa shopped on Ebay and found another watering can for my collection!
My friend gave me this children's wheelbarrow. We saw it several weeks ago at an estate sale. I almost bought it, but then I turned to Nancy and said "It's so cute, but where am I gonna put it? I shouldn't get it, should I?". She said "No, you've got enough stuff in your gardens".  Well, she obviously went back for it. What a sneak! I think I'll make her figure out where I'm gonna put it!
I saw this Perfect Polly Pet Parakeet at an estate sale. Now I normally share only the vintage junk that I find, but I knew this guy would be perfect for one of my bird cages. Those vintage ones I shared earlier are very pricey and I would never put one outside.
So this guy is perfect for the cage on the porch. I only took a quick pic of it and then brought it inside because parakeets don't belong outside in the winter!
I also found a bunch of vintage sheets and pillow cases at the same estate sale, all still in their original packages. Reminds me of my Grandma. She always had tons of unopened packages of sheets in her closet. I don't know what she was saving them for. Guess it was that generation that kept using things until they fell apart before they would open something new!
The pillow cases were only 69 cents when they were new.
Don't forget to use FAB detergent when you finally bust open that package!
This nice lady will tell you all about the fitted sheets. I hate "projecting tapes", don't you? What the heck are projecting tapes?!?
Couldn't leave without this Rosbro Easter Bunny and his little wheelbarrow. 
This July angel boy was found at a thrift store, and he will get a slight makeover for the 4th. Don't you think he needs an Uncle Sam hat?!?~~~~~~~~Tune in again and I'll share my favorite finds of 2013. It really wasn't that hard to pick my faves, because it wasn't a very good year for junking. I sincerely hope 2014 brings an abundance of junk for everyone! HAPPY NEW YEAR AND HAPPY JUNKING!!!

Monday, December 23, 2013

FANTASTIC PLASTIC and other Christmas decorations

Merry Christmas! I thought I would glide in real quick and share all of those blow molds I promised to show you, and a few indoor decorations as well.  
This Santa on a chimney sits on the kitchen table.
Back in the day, they must have made a ton of these Santas and snowmen, because I see them all the time. I have three sets now, so I won't feel bad putting a pair outside next year!
I've since found out that this Santa in his sleigh is missing a pair of deer to pull it. I'm sure at some point in my junking travels I'll find those deer!
This snowman is so stinking cute! His sits by the back door and I'm happy to see him when I come home at night!
LOVE this pair of candles....
A polar bear, spreading joy while sitting in a vintage lawn spreader.
A sweet angel in the garage windowbox.
I know these bells aren't blow molds, but they are plastic, hence the title of this post! I have a love/obsession for these red bells. I've got the set from my childhood, and I can't seem to pass up the opportunity to have even more! Pretty sure that everything on those shelves to the right are dusty as the dickens, so don't look to hard, OK?
Another little something in the plastic category, a vintage Santa candy container/holder. 
I didn't put all of the girls out this year. They just wouldn't fit on top of this bookcase..... 
Which means that next year, I'm just going to have to suck it up and pack away my beloved watering can collection! I'll only do it for Christmas, Valentine's Day, Easter and Halloween, but I desperately need that big space on top there for my holiday decorations. Such is one of the many problems of living in a teeny tiny house! 
I'm the last person in blogland to see these pillows from Target, aren't I? I try to stay away from Target at Christmas and Halloween time, because their stuff is just too darn cute to resist. But I needed to go in there, and decided to mosey on past the dollar section. I walked around the whole store with them in my cart, trying to talk myself out of them. I sent pictures of them and waited for some intervention, but the consensus was.......   
They needed to come home with me! I'm so weak. But obviously I made the right decision. They match the pottery on the fireplace, for crying out loud!!!
Before I go, I want to share a few of my favorite Christmas illustrations. Crazy about this lovey-dovey one!
If you hope to find a shiny red Schwinn bike like this one under your tree on Christmas morning, well.... I'll admit it, I'll be jealous if you get it!
And if you hope to find a shiny red Hoover vacuum under your tree, well......You enjoy, because this girl HATES to clean!~~~~~~I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas, and I also hope that you find exactly what you were wishing for under your tree! I'll be back the Monday after Christmas with a new segment of My Weekend Finds. You heard me right. I actually found some junk!!!

Thursday, December 12, 2013

CHRISTMAS AROUND THE COTTAGE

HI THERE! Sorry I've been away so long. I don't know why, but it seems I've lost my passion for blogging. Hopefully it's just a phase! Do you ever feel like that? Well I decided to snap out of it and share a few pics of our outdoor decorations!  
I had been hunting for a cheap pair of skis for awhile, and finally found some last winter at Goodwill, for $5! They were a funky color though, so over the summer I spraypainted them red and varnished them. 
So come on over and join me for some skiing or ice skating!
And when you're done, grab a hot beverage from one of the many thermoses in the refreshment center!
I saw this hanging poinsettia basket in Martha Stewart Living, and fell in love with it. But I wasn't going to pay $38.50 for one.
I already had all of the "ingredients" to make my own: silk poinsettias, greenery, lights, and a metal hanging basket.  
So easy to make! 
It's hanging on the back porch....
And it's pretty at night too!
A pot of poinsettias by day.....
And a light-up decoration by night! I added red lights to these, and it's a nice red glow, not OMG The Poinsettias Are On Fire, like this shot is making them look!
My Tonka truck.
I love that sign from Home Goods, and it makes me wish that more stores sold vintage-inspired decorations. 
Last but not least, my candy cane flag pole! I love that thing, and would you believe it was only $5 at The Covered Bridge Festival?!~~~~~Well that felt good to finally do a post! Next week I'll share some indoor decorations and some of my finds, which have been few and far between. How has the junking been for you? Vintage Christmas has been pretty nonexistent over in this neck of the woods, although last Sunday I think I bought almost every single blow mold I saw at one antique mall, because they were at garage sale prices. I'll show you next week!

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

MY WEEKEND FINDS

Thanks for tuning in to another episode of My Weekend Finds, the continuing saga of one girl's quest for more junk!
Aqua Pyrex mini fridgies have been on my wish list for awhile, so when I spotted these across the aisle at the flea market, I raced over there and grabbed them. I like how they look supporting this old Mr. & Mrs. Claus s&p set. What I don't like is that every time I look at those fridgies, I think about the big aqua fridgie that I left behind. The only way I can justify such stupidity is that the seller wanted alot for it, and my kitchen is very tiny and I had no room for it. I think I know what you Pyrex collectors are thinking, and I totally agree. I'm an idiot!!!   
The very last thing I need is another bird cage, but when I saw this PINK and black one at a thrift store, I didn't hesitate. I wasn't about to let it turn into something like the "Aqua Pyrex Fridgie That I Left Behind Incident"! And at least now that I've admitted that I collect bird cages, I'm learning more about them. This cage is from the 50s and was made by the Bernard Edward Co., or BECO.  
I need to do a bit more rearranging, but for now it's up on the armoire in the bedroom, along with my childhood globe and a Hendryx bird cage. 
This barn is another flea market find. 
It was made by Marx Toys in the 50s.
And it came with a bunch of plastic animals....
And a toy soldier!
Someday, when I'm feeling ambitious, I'll bring the ladder in the house and put the barn up there where our daughter's old Fisher Price barn is. And then it will be a real farm, and I will have to give it a name. Any ideas?  
Christmas Blow Mold Extravaganza!
It felt so good when I had packed up all of the Halloween decorations so neat and tidy in the shed. So when I saw all of this at an estate sale, I actually groaned. But I bought it anyway, and it looks like I'll need to buy another bin! 
Vintage Christmas kitchen towels, and an old Hallmark tray, which will go on the porch. I started decorating inside a week ago, because it seems that lately by the time I'm done with the outside, I don't feel like doing the inside. And it's taking every ounce of self-control to not do the outside NOW! But I will behave, and I'll wait until the day after Thanksgiving. So, are you itchin' to decorate for Christmas, or have you been naughty and already started?!