When You Feel The Intervention Coming

I know I've only posted about "The Bins" (Goodwill Clearance Center) one time so far.  But in reality I've been there like five times.  And each time I get more obsessed.  It's so cheap!  You never know what you'll find! Nothing is pre-bagged!  Every tiny little item is up for individual grabs!

And this last time, I noticed the clock.  They have a countdown clock to let you know when the next set of bins is going to be refreshed! It's so very addictive.  You feel done, you feel satisfied, you are fully ready to check out.  And then, you look at the clock.  Only six minutes until the next bins come out.  You've got six minutes.  And on and on and on and then you've all of a sudden spent three hours there! It only takes me about 45 minutes to go through all the bins.  The other time is just playing with the countdown clock!

I was telling a friend about the wonderful, magical place know as "The Bins" when my husband abruptly got up and walked away saying, "I do not need to hear about The Bins again."  Is that a sign that I talk about The Bins too much??  My mother recently told me flat out that I have an addiction to The Bins.  Is that a sign??  Nah, probably they just don't fully appreciate or comprehend the full wonder and joy and adventure of The Bins!

SO LET ME SHOW YOU WHAT I GOT AT THE BINS!!

This is the pricing for the bins.  Most items are priced by weight.  I never look at this board because I like to be surprised at how little I've spent each time.  My top amount spent is $4.36.

One huge bag and two regular size bags cost me somewhere around $3.20.

One of my top finds! A set of vintage Asian themed barkcloth curtains in excellent shape.  I can't wait to put these up!

As you may know, I love little things.  And one of the best thing about the bins is that nothing is pre-bagged, so you can buy two little "sugared" strawberries and one tiny tin teacup and don't have to bring home a bag of nonsense to get them! I'm just dying over the confetti pattern on the cup!

I also found a bunch of mint green buttons.  Could...not...resist....

(Pyrex was already mine for years - not found at The Bins.)

Now, I don't want to jinx it, but I've found honeycomb every trip to the bins so far.  Maybe not vintage, but I'm no purist, so I don't mind!  And a good pine garland (Seen here in a pile - though it is about 8ft long) is not to be passed up!

The Eleventh Hour is a book I adored as a child.  Lucious illustrations and such a fun concept. The "secret file" part of this one has never been opened!  Also, I needed a few plate hangers and was very happy to find one. Flamingo plates - ho!

So many tiny treasures! The little things are my favorite part!

Check out the Kool-Aid spoon!  I've never seen one of those before.  Andy teensy Ernie! So cute!  This Bedtime bear is one of the giant sized plushes from the 80s! I've only found a few of them in my twenty years selling vintage toys.

On Black Friday @magicsummervintage and I, along with a few other friends, hit The Bins.  (We were not trying to get a photo of the guy in the back.  He was just a guy shopping at the bins.)  Let me assure you, our shopping experience was way more chill than most other Black Friday shopping experiences.  No pushing, no shoving, just people sorting through other people's junk like grown ass adults.

Ann didn't think she'd find much, because she'd been to the bins before (on opening day) and was unimpressed.  The good news is, that she found a cart full of vintage clothing.  Though, I did not see fit to take a photo of that, for some reason.  Probably because I was too intent on the countdown clock.

My friend Sarah loves a creepy baby.  And let me tell you, this one takes the cake.  And maybe it also takes the cake for weirdest baby, as well.  It's like an Anne Geddes nightmare up in here.

See? What did I tell you? Honeycomb.  Cranky bat honeycomb this time.  And I'm very much looking forward to displaying the plastic Halloween rings on the black card next year. I find jelly bracelets most of the time too.  And, as a true child of the 80s, I cannot leave them there.

All kinds of goodies for my Etsy shop!

Yes, an ice cube tray.  The husband loves the size of these cubes, especially for use in water bottles. Look at all the Florida and shell goodness! 

Closeup of one of my favorite all-time bin finds: Plastic Florida flamingo! (And I also love the Alice in Wonderland flamingo, as well.) They are both currently  living it up in the midst of my pastel Christmas forests.

I also have been to a few Estate Sales here and there.  They've mostly been lackluster.  When that happens, guess where I go?  You go it.  THE BINS.

I love Richard Simmons so much that it's hard for me to pass up stuff like this.  But I don't own a VCR.  And also, I don't cook.  So.

Funny vintage bottle opener that didn't come home with me.

These are the pretties that I bought. Check out those amazing 80s sunglasses. They look unbelievably stupid on a human face. But someone out in Etsy land will love them.

I'm obsessed with shell jewelry.  It's probably because I love to channel my inner 80 year old living in Florida, whenever possible.  Now all I have to do is wait six months for weather warm enough to wear it. Sigh.

I was so excited that the huge, fuzzy diecut kitty was still there on day two of an estate sale -right before Halloween! The green lazy Susan was transformed into a display spot for some small Christmas trees and the like. Don't judge me about the drain guards.  I love drain guards.  They keep us from having to spend big bucks on plumbers to snake out our drains, ok? The small film canister is from the Eastman Kodak Co. right here in Rochester, and was only a buck.  The husband loves film, so it's a cute prop for our house.  This is something you should know about me: I don't leave vintage Avon cuteness behind.  The ornaments came in their original boxes and are flocked and adorbs.

@magicsummervintage and I hit up an Estate sale on Veteran's Day weekend.  (It was a huge disappointment.)

This is what you call a terrifying amount of coupons.

Loads of framed front page news.  Sigh.  If only.

I loved how these guys looked all lined up in their cupboard.

And the coup de grace, this enormous hat!

Neither of us bought anything. Sad times.

Guess where I'm going tomorrow??

Fall Decorations 2017

Not a very imaginative title, but it is direct to the point at least. And sometimes you don't have time for witty.  Sometimes just getting a thing done will do.

So here we are, at the precipice of Halloween.  As we stand here, pondering tricks and treats, costumes vs "screw it, I'm staying home and hogging down all the candy myself", and the proper way to come out of a sugar coma, I bring to you: my Halloween decorations.

Sit back, relax, feast on some tiny candy bars and also your eyes.  Ew.  That makes it sound like you should eat your eyes.  Which you should not.  For the record, you shouldn't eat anyone else's eyes either.  Probably you should just take eyes off the menu altogether.  I was trying to say you should feast your eyes on...oh, never mind.  Just look.

Welcome to my spooky abode...won't you come in?  (OK, so this is obviously not my front door.  It's my bathroom door.  But this skeleton guy is pretty rad, right? He's new to me this year.  He's got a brad in his pelvis (Bradly, you naughty boy!) and one in his neck so he dances around when you use the door.)  And as you can see, Sprocket was worried about why I was taking so many pictures, and none were of him.  So he worriedly and grumpily photo bombed.

This little cutie hangs out above my toilet.  His web is new to us this year, courtesy of @magicsummervintage.

This room is our old bedroom.  We recently renovated the upstairs and move the master bedroom up there.  Now we refer to this room as "Sprocket's Room" (Sprocket is the gumpy/worried pup above).  It generally houses lots of dog related collectibles and vintage doodads. This is the first time I have fully decorated it for a holiday.  I'm so happy to have a place to put my small (but exciting) collection of vintage kids' masks.

I thought it would be cute to put some cats in the dog room. Black cats are some of my favorite Halloween decorations. The large cat in the middle is about three feet tall.

I made this wreath from a tutorial I found on Pinterest.  He reminds me of a Muppet, so of course I love him.

I love tiny things most.

This is the only bit of Halloween that made it up to the new bedroom.

Boy, do I love me some honeycomb!

I also love 80s toys. I mix them in with all of my decor.

The Spooky Kooky jewelry is a Ben Cooper set!

A fun Haunted Mansion display in my living room. 999 Happy Haunts and there's always room for one more!

My Halloween mantel. Lots of black, feathers, glitter, and glass.

Some close ups.

The drink station/bar cart in my kitchen. Someday I'll have enough swizzle sticks to swap them out for every season!

This shelf is in my dining room. I told you that I love black cats!

I also really like glitter.  And masks.

And also candy corn.  Love that, too.

This is the largest display in my house.  An antique display case in my dining room.  It gets more over the top each year.  I love the way the jadeite looks with the black and orange.  That stuff is good no matter the season.

Some close ups of the top.

Of course, lots of black cats.

And plenty of glitter.

These two are obviously a couple.

The light in my house is notoriously bad. Please excuse it.  Or maybe just chalk it up to creepy ambiance?

What's behind the three doors of the display case?

Lots of Halloween treasures!

Happy Halloween, everyone!

The Bins

This is what people refer to the Goodwill Clearance Center as.  The Bins. I can't fault them.  It truly is just a bunch of bins. The clothes are in bins of their own, and generally shoes has one, and purses has one.  And linens, for the most part.  And electronics and lamps and stuff are set up in the back on actual shelves.  Then, everything else under the sun is unceremoniously tossed into a jumble, and put in bins.  Think: digger estate sale on steroids. 

I think our clearance center might be small.  It only takes me about 45 minutes to an hour to dig through the non-clothing bins.  I don't do clothing.  It also opens at 8:00am, which is my jam.  I'm an early to rise early to bed type human. It seems other humans may not be, and I can tell that the other re-sellers don't generally show up until after 9. Seems like there might be a few clothing re-sellers, and maybe a few Ebayers.  But, these people are not going for vintage - other than maybe some clothes. That is abundantly clear. I'm the only one there digging for vintage toys and decor and holiday.  And it's SO MUCH DAMN FUN!

The first time I went, I got a large bag of items for $3.14.  This time, I got another huge bag and spent $2.46.  People.  These prices are below church sale prices.  They are less than garage sale prices.  Most items are weighed and the price is taken from the bulk weight.  I honestly have no idea how it's calculated, and I don't want to know.  I like being surprised. It's insanity!

The most experienced binners wear gloves.  I noticed this the first time I visited.  And after putting my hand into mystery goo twice, I resolved to wear gloves the next time.  But of course, on my next trip, I forgot them. Third time's the charm! (I hope)

This time I found a legitimate antique! A miser's purse in ridiculously good condition.  Fully beaded.  With fringe!  To anyone else it might just look like some weirdly spangled sock, but I knew what it was and snatched it up while trying like heck to maintain poker face. I'll be listing it for sale in my Etsy shop sometime in the next month. Seriously.  You just NEVER KNOW what you might find!

If I were a seller that didn't mind shipping breakables (I do) I'd have a boatload of stuff every time.  Tons of Syracuse China, and figurines, and cool ceramic birds and dogs, and just everything, really.

It's different every time, and such a rush!  I've resolved to go whenever the estate sale situation looks sad.  It should be something I can muster up the energy to do, even in the midst of horrible winter.  Because I don't have to wait in line outside, and it takes a very small amount of time to do before I can be back home, under a million blankets with a hot cup of coffee.

Every time I come home from a sale or a thrift store, my pup Sprocket has to thoroughly inspect everything like a TSA agent.

Here is what I ended up with - for keeps.  Some vintage die cuts -  the cat is flocked! Jelly bracelets, because I grew up in the 80s and there is no way I can leave them.  Plus, I'm working on having a whole arm of them - only have about 4" so far. And a tiny The Brain figure from the 90s that I remember being on little heart candy boxes for Valentine's Day.  He's going to go in my non-holiday shadow box.

Yay bins!

That Isn't What She Said

Team Magic Summer was reunited briefly on Thursday night for a church sale that was open late.  This sale happens every six months, and is is usually worth the trip. This photo was taken from the second floor balcony at the sale.

Just because we get to go to a sale together during the school year, does not mean we get to do dueling blog posts. Our girl is a busy teacher.  Ain't nobody got time for that, as it were.  So you have to settle for just me.  I apologize in advance.

On our way in we generally take a quick peek at purses, since it's right next to the jewelry counter, which is where we head first. They always have a ton.  Not all of it is vintage, but it's a lot of fun to paw through it all.  I didn't find anything this time, but Ann did. She got some Sarah Coventry stuff, as I recall.

I did however find something interesting and cute (And as it would turn out, poorly constructed and heavy as crap.) on the purse table though.  Plastic wicker Lilly Pulitzer.

This thing is falling apart in ten different ways (Ways I can fix, thankfully.) and when it's completely empty it feels like you are lugging around a purse full of bricks.  But look how cute! I snagged it because I assumed it was vintage.  I bought it anyway because it was Lilly.

The boxed Hallmark ornaments obviously came from the Christmas section.  It was loaded with someone's hoard of vintage Hallmark ornaments this time.  Score!  Don't get too excited.  I already have both Muppets ornaments, in the box.  These will head to my Etsy shop for other lucky Christmas / Muppet lovers.

There is another sad little non-Christmas holiday area where stuff is mostly in boxes under the table.  I dug in good this year and was justly rewarded.

I managed to stifle a scream of delight, but didn't manage to avoid breaking out in the vintage joy sweats.  All of this was lumped into one bag, so I didn't even know what I had until I got home.  All of the yellow and orange pieces go together.  At first I thought the orange bowl was a Halloween number.  A cauldron, maybe?  Then research taught me that it is in fact a hat for the chick.  A HAT, people!  It's huge and ridiculous and adorable.  I can't wait to set them all up at Easter time.  The chick/duck guy is missing eyes and a beak, but that will be easy to whip up. The only thing the bunny is missing is a tuft of yarn hair, which I can also easily replace.

Ronald McDonald House Fundraiser Sale Fall 2017

Every six months, like clockwork.  We hoard up treasures we no longer consider treasures.  Then pack them in the car, drive them to the sale location and donate them, hoping someone else will consider them treasures.  We obtain the donor ticket - which lets us into the sale a day early.

The intrepid crew, our inner clocks tuned to each other, we home in and join the line.  By now everything is rote. We've been trained. No thought is needed.  We are running on instinct now.

Armed with lists, bags, and this time sunblock and parasols.  It's the hottest line we've ever waited in.  90 degrees and full sun.  I love it.  "BRING IT", I silently scream into the sky.  Other teammates are melting into snide puddles, whispering taunts about the winter coming. Six months ago it was the coldest line we'd waited in. 42 degrees. Thoughts about global warming and polar bears are never far off.

We make it through to the other side.  Some of us a bit more pink. Some of us need more water, but they are selling it on the inside.  They know what we need.

We break apart.  The inside isn't a place for teams.  (It's not a place for strollers, either, but nobody seems to learn that lesson.)

Holiday is to the immediate left, like always. It's comforting, when you are there, on the front lines, fighting the crowds, to know where your targets are. It's like your skin is lit up.  All sensors on high.  Clenched gut.  Pawing through, knowing there is something.  Something good waiting, if you can only find it first.  Sweating and nervous.  

The biggest shock of all: No treasures found in Christmas.  Oh, there are plenty to be had by others, but nothing meant specifically for you.  No corsages, no trees, no ornaments.  Nothing printed on your heart.

Easter makes up for that. I spy three Jadeite eggs and look around in wonder.  Nobody else has seen them.  They are only a few dollars.  How can it be?  But history has taught me nothing, if not to swoop now, ask questions later.  Or maybe don't ever ask questions.  Gift horses and all that.

Fuzzy chick was found in the bath department, which I've learned is where Avon bottles are kept.  Hopes soar each year, but are almost always dashed.

Halloween gives up a gift.  Vintage plastic mask.  Ben Cooper, probably.  Why aren't there more?  Tubs.  I need tubs of them.

Tiny dogs for a tiny dog's bedroom. 

I must check for Muppets.  Toys are piled high.  I only check the plush.  Bagged littles are too time consuming.  I can't afford to stop.  No Muppets to rescue.  Only ones that already abide.  Other things are collected to be sold again.

Next I heed the siren call of jewelry.  So many egg crates filled with sparklings. We dig.  A collection comes together.  Thematic in color.

My favorite find of the day: Plastic pineapple.

I saw famous babies.

Some things were ugly but funny.

The space is vast. 

The items, many.

We search. We reap. We get back into line.

The soldiers reconvene. And imbibe nutritional refreshment.

And also booze.