A Big, Fat, Vintage Haul!

For the second week in a row, we came upon signage that indicated it was for a yard sale, but was - in fact - and estate sale.  That never, ever happens.  Now, it has happened for two straight weekends in a row.  It might be one of the four horsemen of the apocalypse, but - as long as I get to wear these clothes into the sweet by and by, it might have been worth it.  Also, you can consider the pictures of these clothes to be "teasers," as I plan on having a little vintagey photo shoot this weekend.  Some things are just worth showing off under good lighting and with proper, industrial-grade underpinnings.  Let's begin.  Get a gander at this sweet piece of delicious:

Look at the detail on the bodice and the pointy little pleated thingies.  I don't know if this is 1940s or 1950s, because it kind of has attributes of both, and it doesn't have a brand label, so I am inclined to say that this may have been handmade.  It's got a tiny little hole in the back, and the side zipper (all metal, that is) is pinned closed, so it clearly may need replacing.  I can slide the dress over my head and get it on that way, but it would be helpful if the zipper worked.  Considering that this dress cost me all of ONE DOLLAR, I may just go ahead and pay my awesome seamstress pal, Mariah, to replace it.  I'm still getting a screaming good deal on this ridiculously fabulous dress.  ONE DOLLAR.  Did I mention that it only cost me ONE DOLLAR?  I think this may be my Great Gatsby date-night dress.  Also, which you will later learn in the barter blog which I have yet to write, I am in receipt of this lustworthy vintage (probably Bakelite) dress clip:

 I was wondering what I would clip it to.  Now, I know.  Thanks, Charli!

As if that dress weren't enough to send someone over the edge of multiple vintagegasms, I came upon another sale (this second sale is actually the one that was really an estate sale), where I found racks upon racks of vintage clothes, but since that stuff is a bitch to sell if you don't have a proper dress form, I passed on the stuff that wasn't my size.  Here is what was:

 I love this top!  I think it has a very 1940s vibe to it, although I would probably guess it to actually be from the 1960s, just based on the feel of it and the style of the label.  I could be wrong.  It could be older than that, but I am really not a super-expert in being able to assign a date to a garment with one passing glance (now, ask me what year any song from the 1980s was released, and I will gobsmack you with my prowess of the 1980s musical timeline).  In any case, I just thought this was so cute, and it is very July 4th-y.  Oh, right...FIFTY CENTS.

Also from that yard sale came this:

 What is this?  Oh, it's only a sassy little wiggle dress from the 1960s.  Yes, I am ready to go work for a New York ad agency, thank you.  Fits perfectly, and I absolutely have the wiggle to pour into this dress.  Someone needs to have a cocktail party.  I'm just sayin'.  Because, again, FIFTY CENTS.

This next little juicy offering was almost missed in a random pile of detritus:

It's just cute and sweet and awesomely olive green.  I haven't decided if it's going on eBay or going in my closet.  Thoughts?

Since the hubby is my go-to awesome pinup photographer (no, seriously, he really is), sometimes you just can't help but snap up some props for the purpose of being cute and sassy and vintage in a picture.  I couldn't believe this little guy was only two bucks:

Again, pretty sure he's Bakelite.  Doesn't matter, though, since he's a super cute prop!

Okay, by the time we'd gathered all this merch, I was beginning to feel that perhaps we'd his that perfect balance when you know it's time to quit while you're ahead.  We decided to head home with the caveat, "unless we pass any estate sales."  We almost made it home before we saw another one!  We went in and things were pretty picked over, which makes me sad that I missed getting there earlier.  However, I did walk into the master bedroom and spy this next bit of wonder.  I immediately grabbed it as though I was caressing an Academy Award.  I even thanked the academy as I picked it up off the dresser.  We plugged it in and it worked (I'm a little gunshy about plugging old plugs in after the infamous giant Santa head debacle of 2010 - you'll have to download my soon-to-be-released thrift eBook for that one).  This sweet little bit of heaven was all of five bucks:

Yep, it's pretty much my leg lamp.  I love it.  It's awesome.

So, there's my haul!!  I'd love to hear about yours.

~Katie

Vintagey Goodness!!!!

We don't blog often enough, I will admit that.  Sometimes, you just don't feel like blogging about a new laundry basket that you scored at a yard sale.  This past weekend, however, is worthy of a little bloggy-blog.  Before I begin, you know how annoying it is when you follow signs that say "estate sale" and they lead you to  a pile of infant clothes in someone's driveway?  Yes, of course you do.  Well, last weekend something new and interesting happened - we followed signs that said "yard sale" to what was an estate sale.  Since there was an estate sale nearby, I think this sale may have been getting eclipsed by that one, as well.  It was awesome!

First, let's start with some vintage Beistle lovelies:

I can't figure out how to rotate the picture, but tilt your head...it's so worth it.  I paid 50 cents for a stack of vintage Halloween decorations, and these beauties were in there.  My beautiful year-round vintage Halloween living room was very excited at the new kitty friends.

But, also, there's this:

Ignore my cluttery kitchen and behold the loveliness of this little (I'm guessing) 1950s-ish touristy tote.  It actually matches perfectly a couple of vintage bathing suits I found earlier in the year at an estate sale, and when I find myself near water, the bag will be with me.  I just hope I get to find myself near water soon.

The last thing I got was something that I didn't actually get the first time around, and - as the day went on - I became consumed with not-buyer's remorse.  So, hours after the fact and after much texting with Charli, I decided to go back and run the risk of it not being there.  

It was 50 cents?  Why didn't I just get this sweater?  Ugh.  I'm glad it was still there.  I didn't get it initially because it was too small for all of my fellas, but then I thought, "Why can't I wear it?"  So, I snapped it up on the second go 'round.  The more I thought about it, I realized that it would look perfect over a blouse I thrifted that still had its original Steinfeld's tag in the collar.  For those that do not live around here, Steinfeld's was a huge department store in downtown Tucson, certainly during the 30s, 40s, and 50s, and the Steinfeld family was, of course, a very well-known and well-liked family.  Sadly, the Steinfeld's perished in the Pioneer Hotel fire in the early 70s, so - wrapped up in one plain, cream-colored blouse - are two things I love:  thrifting and creepy ghost stories (the Pioneer building is said to be just filled with fire-related ghosties).  I can't wait for it to cool off in seven months so that I can put on that blouse, this sweater, and a little bit of Bakelite and do a little vintage about-towning.

I'm sure the Steinfelds would want it that way.

~Katie

Some Days Are Diamonds...

But not today.  In fact, I've had kind of a "meh" couple of thrifting weeks.  I don't know what it is.  It's not that I have found nothing, but I've not found anything particularly rapturous.  Let's have a look at some of the goodies, anyway.

This is a close-up of a spectacular Aurora Borealis rose gold-tone necklace I got at a yard sale, yesterday.  If this had a flavor, it would taste like "I'm fabulous."

this choker is missing stones and may or may not be true vintage, but I still really like it.

Do you love this litte 1950s Coty compact?  It still has some remnants of the make-up in it.

This plays - surprise - We Three Kings.  He's/they're chalkware and in their original box.  Obviously, they weren't when I took the picture, but they are now safely back in their original box.  They seem really unhappy and the music plays like a funeral dirge.  I guess that's true of most chalkware nativity participants.

Aren't these fabulous?  They are shimmery gold with little rhinestone bands.  They are made for a woman with enormous feet, or an average-sized man.  These are great drag shoes, I think.  This picture doesn't do them justice.

Those are some of the things I found this weekend (or refound in a box of old junk).  Did you find anything cool?

~Katie

Praying To The Thrift Gods.

I don't know if this is a product of the laws of attraction, but Thrift Gods are real.  They rarely fail me.  I simply place my wish into the universe, and it is granted.  I've mentioned this to my son - the young thrift Padawan - but it's always nice to see a little instant thrift karma work its magic.  This past Saturday, he accompanied me on my yard saling adventure and told me that he "just wanted to find one piece of his prom outfit."  He had one picked out to rent, but I told him to just try thrifting it - it would be cheaper and better.  He told me this as we wandered through a local neighborhood having a community sale.  I told him to just put it into the universe and he would find it.  We wandered for about another block and came to another sale in the community at which we found some useful housewares that also had a lot of clothes.  Clothes that had been packed in those hanging boxes.  Rather randomly, the nice lady running the sale turned to my son and asked - I shit you not - "Do you need a suit for anything?  Maybe for prom?"  My son just looked at me and I said, "Well, as a matter of fact he does." The nice lady and her husband pulled out an immaculate high-end black suit.  My son tried on the jacket while the nice lady's husband buttoned up the jacket with a big smile on his face, like he was sending his own son to prom.  It fit perfectly.  It fit as thought it had been tailored for him.  Even if it was just the jacket, it would have been awesome, but the pants were his size, too - just needing a little hemming.

Apparently the clothes belong to a fellow who was dying of cancer.  He was a very sharp dresser, and the folks running the sale seemed pleased as punch to know that this suit was going to be worn to my son's prom.  For a minute, it was like they were his own grandparents - something upon which my children seriously got the short end of the stick.  The nice lady even threw a crisp, white dress shirt at no extra charge.

Twenty-five bucks.  Out the door.  And, he's going to be the best looking kid there.

Duckie Dale would be proud.

~Katie

Thrifters Remorse

Today we gather to grieve the loss of the thrift's gone by. Yes, I'm talking about those items that, once spotted, we ponder purchasing at length & in hind sight realize we unwisely choose to leave behind. Currently I'm grieving the loss of a stack of vintage board & card games. Milton Bradley... Parker Brothers... among other well known childhood friends. Each appeared to have been kept in glorious condition. Unlike most items offered at this impromptu estate sale, which I stumbled upon on my drive home, these were priced accordingly for a typical lawn sale. $1... $2... that's as high as the tags stretched. Yet I, in my hesitancy of their resale value, chose to sleep on the decision. Today when I happened to remember said items & searched google for any signs of profit margin I realized I'd made a terrible mistake & swiftly raced back to the home just blocks away. But alas, I was too late. Some other scoundrel wiser than myself had purchased them all. I can imagine in my head them joyfully skipping back to their car, Cheshire cat grin from ear to ear, well aware of the treasure in hand. So in my remorse, as I beat my proverbial brain senseless, my heart like a sunken stone on the bottom of a dingy yard sale aquarium,I bid the dream of a $75+ profit adieu. I shall commence the butt kicking session with the end of this entry & leave you with this: If the gut feels glory- BUY IT! ~Amen

~Charli

Below, 2 of the games I regrettably let slip through my fingers.

Impromptu Yard Saling!

I didn't expect to be able to go yard saling, today, but I went!  Well, to a few, anyway.  One yard sale in particular was a bunch of un-dug-through boxes belonging to an 87-year-old man.  One woman kept saying everything was a dollar, but she was the next door neighbor.  The lady running the sale kept disappearing and then getting pissed off when the neighbor lady undercut her.  Here's my advice:  RUN YOUR OWN SALE!  How 'bout that?

I managed to get a few delightful bits of vintage baublery that I would love to show you all!

These earrings are signed "Renoir" on the back.  I didn't know Renoir was a jeweler, but there you have it.  I dig these.

Add caption

Just a little disco ball on a chain with big, fat rhinestones.

Trifari brooch.  Sadly, missing a stone, but still worthy of love and affection.

A choker with this cute flower pattern.  This necklace even has the bonus of the original owner's lipstick smudged on the front of it.  Yum.

That's all for today!

~Katie

Are You Mad, Man?

The two-hour premiere of Mad Men is just around the corner, so it seems appropriate that this past weekend's yard sale adventure should have a decidedly mid-century theme.  One of the first yard sales was of a half-gutted time capsule house.  There wasn't much left except for a table of dishes and this amazing mid-century bedroom set that is listed here on Craigslist.  The lady was really super nice and gave me a parting gift since I was sad that I couldn't take the bedroom set:

A gift of an atomic turquoise ashtray.  It brings a tear to my eye.

The next gift I received from the mid-century thrift Gods was this awesome dresser.  My friend was planning on donating it and I said, "So, can I have it?" and she was all, "Yeah, sure."  So, here it is - you will see the atomic ashtray atop this dresser.  Screw continuity.

Oh, the "Lounge" sign - that was at a yard sale across the street from the lady with the dresser set.  I asked the young hipster fellow with the e-cig and gauged ears how much it was.  He smiled and said, "I don't know...fifteen?" I replied with, "Ouch, that's a little steep." Then he admitted that it wasn't his stuff and he could be wrong, but he would find out for me.  I thanked him and kept looking.  I heard him ask the lady who's house it actually was and she said, "I don't know...two bucks?"  

I'LL TAKE IT!!!

By now, we had to fetch the elder boy child from a thing across town, so we gathered him up - he was wearing a suit, which was awesome for yard saling - and decided to yard sale our way home.  We stopped at one house that was so awesome from the street, I can't even describe it.  We walked along the driveway, which seemed to go on and on and on.  We finally reached the garage - which easily held 4 or 5 cars - and dug around a bit.  I found this sweet, sweet swag for the already ultra-swag boy child:

Timex automatic watch - working - 5 bucks.  I told the guy before we left how fantastic I thought his house was.  He told me it was built in 1964 and then he said, "Come here, check this out." I followed him as every episode of Criminal Minds played out in my head because I was following a strange man through a door to a house where no one would ever see me, again, but when he opened the door, it was exactly like that moment in The Wizard of Oz when everything turns technicolor and the birds chirp and the clouds break.  It was the courtyard of his 5000+ square foot home.  It had an aqua pool, astroturf, and it was the single most amazing entertaining spot I'd every seen.  I stood for a moment gazing upon the wonder, until his wife screeched at me not to let the dogs out.  Fair enough.

Anyway, the hubby looked at the house on Google Earth to see if the backyard could be seen, but the picture was taken during what was obviously a complete redo of the yard.  Nothing but concrete.  You'll have to take my word for it.

So, that about sums up the weekend.  I found a ton of cool jewelry, like this sweet, sweet mint green enamel daisy pin.  

It was a fine day, indeed!

~Katie

Have Stress Will Thrift

Sometimes I like to "stress thrift". That dull, ho-hum or generally speaking aggravating day that just can't seem to take a turn for the better is the perfect time to bask in all that is dusted & impure. So off to Goodwill I go, trusty Android in hand for any last minute researching needs. I start out in the purses, since often there's little treasure there to be found & bagless head for the glassware. Now, let me take a moment to say something about glassware. It can be one of the most nonsensical addictions among thrifters. But 'tis the drug I can yet to sufficiently replace. Rarely have I found the vintage drinking glasses many of us (cough) 40-somethings recall from our 70's childhood in any other shade than the typical amber. However, today daintily placed amongst the left over Christmas bar ware & garage sale rejects were the loveliest pair of vintage PINK goblets! And gobble them up I did! Next were 2 vintage salmon pink Pyrex bowels. (Don't let the old grease & cooking stains fool you... this can be remedied with a good cleaning.) Gingerly placed in my cart & on to the next. This is where this venture really paid off. I spyed a blueish strap peaking from beneath the mountains of holey back packs that revealed itself to be a vintage carry on bag! Rounding the corner, the clouds part & angels sang as there shined the matching suitcase! SCORE!!! These items are among those I most struggle with parting. Matching sets are not a dime a dozen in thrifting & chances are these beauties will become part of my private collection. Last but certainly not least I gasped to see an original Simon & Garfunkel "Bookends" album. I also swooped up vinyls from Judy Garland, The Carpenters & Walt Disney's  Mary Poppin's, among others. So what did this lift of spirits cost me to shake the day's funk? Barely $30. Could I have opted for a pedicure just the same? Sure... but those that thrift know; the joys of today's finds will continue long past any chipped polish could have mustered. 

Hi-Ho Thifters- AWAY!!!!!

~Charli

What? Another New Blog About Vintage And Thrift??

You betcha!  As far as we're concerned, you can never have enough people talking about lusciously delicious thrifted and vintage STUFF.  It's our drug of choice, especially since meth labs are dirty, gross, and dangerous.  We're also brimming with sarcasm as evidenced by that cavalier reference to a meth lab in this inaugural post.  While we're building content to serve to you on this lovely platter we got for .99 cents at Goodwill, feast your eyes on my ghastly baby heads that are up for sale on eBay!!!

~Katie