Moist Ski Toes

There has been rain here.  A lot of rain.  And warm temperatures.  So, it feels like a lovely swamp.  With all the mosquitos you could ever want.  You've got to run to the house from the car at lightening speed (and hope there is someone inside ready to open the door and shut it again after you zoom in) for fear that you may pass out from blood loss on the way.  It's straight up gross outside.  I'm shocked there aren't crocodiles and boa constrictors roaming about out there.  And the most terrible part is that while we are experiencing days like Noah, the opposite coast is having the worst drought in many, many years.  Something is dreadfully out of whack.

I took yesterday off to attend the annual sale to benefit The Advent House.  It's an adorable hospice house run by a devoted group of volunteers.  It's an amazing place and the benefit sale they have each year is not to be missed.

I hit up jewelry first as I usually do.  I wasn't disappointed.  A gorgeous pair of nice, heavy turquoise earrings for $5, a cute pair of Asian inspired black and red earrings from the 80's for $2, and a huge, ridiculous, multi-stoned, lion (gargoyle, beast?) headed cuff for $5.  Sometimes you just need a ridiculous statement piece.

The Florida shot glass is from a sale a few weeks ago.  Love me some Florida.  The wooden bangle was $1 and fits my child wrists really well.  Which almost never happens.  I've been interested in getting a wooden bangle for a while now.  It could have something to do with my recent obsession with all things tiki.  (Thanks, Pinterest.)  The hombre Christmas tree with iridescent sparkles was $1 as well.

I also scored some great gifts and a bunch of things for the ol' Etsy store, so it was a pretty good day.

Today is Saturday and I was finally able to get to some more estate sales.  It feels odd that my sale-ing days will not end this year, but will continue out into the fall and through the winter.  Cold weather is generally the death of yard sale season, but estate sales go right on through the winter.  What a novel idea!  Will I get sick of it?  Is there any such thing as TOO many sales??

Most of the estate sales we hit today were half off.  God, I love that phrase.  These tiki dudes are shot glasses I think.  Some vintage stoppers and a tea ball complete the set of kitchen kitch.  Each of these items were a quarter.

Tiny vintage mice ornaments!  One of my favorite things ever.  This set was $1.50  The hankies were a quarter.  I know, I need more hankies like a need a kick to the shin.  They just jump right in my bag, I don't even know how to stop them!

Alicia came sale-ing with me this morning.  She scored big:

She covets old crates, but in these parts they are generally too rich for her blood.  Today she found one for $3!  A dream realized.  The mid century cream pleather ottoman was also $3.  Ridiculous.

She got a pair of gorgeous glass lamps for $4, and a pie wedge server, a spatula and some assorted kitch for a quarter each.

Please don't miss the most wee bird.

So, In Summary:

Edward Cullen has nothing on these blood suckers.

Delicious Addiction

A few more estate sales this weekend.  After a weird 15 minutes where Google navigation lead us in an actual circle and through road work, (Which has never happened before, I've always been able to count on Google.) we found our destinations and set about making short work of the goods.

I found a gorgeous little white enamel colander with strawberries on it for $4 and a lovely Christmas corsage for $1.  I love vintage Christmas corsages.  The usually look like some coked-up four year old put them together.  They've got a bow, they've got a plastic piece, they've got a pine cone and an ornament and some fake snow flocking.  They have it ALL.

 And then I found...another trove of vintage paper lanterns?  Don't you judge me!  I clearly don't have enough yet.  Clearly.  I just need enough and then I'll stop.  Don't ask me how many is enough.  I'll know it when I get there.  And then I'll stop.  Because I can stop.  Any time I like.  Just as long as it's not right this minute.

Besides, this box had some BIG ones in it!!  Bigger than any I've got right now.  Which leads me to wonder, how many sizes, shapes and designs do they come in??  Probably I need to research it by buying a billion of them and cataloging them.  For posterity.

So, In summary:

Sometimes a summertime addiction is utterly delicious. 

Saint Pius X

I cannot help saying that name in an utterly triumphant manner and also picturing Kurt Wagner when I do.  It's a pretty ridiculous name, as church names go.

This year Saint Pius, that wall crawling mutant, was pretty good to me, a mere human.  Check out these Christmas cuties.  Now, I'm not going to mince words here.  These look like ladies in drag.  Women in beards, Christmas carnival ladies.  But still cute, don't get me wrong.  I'm not here to judge. 50 cents for the lot.

Next is what I'm calling, Dave.  I know it's not The David's head.  But it looks similar.  And I'm calling him Dave.  Also, he is a perfume dispenser. 50 cents. 

I've never gotten there in time to get any jewelry worth having.  This time was different. Vintage cold cream container from a dresser set (25 cents), penny earrings ($2), 3D palm tree earrings($1), and some funky earrings with a Polynesian flair ($1).  I want nearly everything in my life to be Tiki these days.

I've saved the best for last.  You guys aren't even going to BELIEVE this story.  Or maybe you will.  Because, I admit, it's sort of boring for anyone else but me.  Probably.  For better or worse, here we go.

When I was a kid I had an ice cream cup.  A plastic cup shaped like an ice cream cone that had a part that fit over like a lid, shaped like mint ice cream.  Then a part that stacked on top of that, which looked like chocolate sauce.  The top bits had a hole in them wherein you could place a straw. 

Recently I started thinking about this cup.  Yearning after this cup.  I thought it had probably been made by Avon, as most of the items in my childhood were.  I looked everywhere for this cup, to no avail.  (And by "everywhere" we all know I mean, "the internet".)

But, people, people, get THIS.  On my way OUT of the Saint Pius sale, I swung by the plastic table.  The plastic table is strewn, piled even, with all manner of plastic kitchenware.  Plates and wine glasses mix with thermoses and silverware.  All plastic, all a colorful jumble.  And sitting on top of this glorious mess, what did I spy?

Yeah.

It's not the gorgeous mint ice cream cup from my childhood, but the strawberry version of the self-same cup instead.  I'll take it.  I'll take it and drink milk from it like I did just about every day of my young life.  And then I'll know happiness.

So, In Summary:

When Nightcrawler hands you a strawberry ice cream instead of a mint one,

you take that sucker.