thrift store spoils, ch. 17: Couroc hummingbirds, Porky Pig, and the SS Norway

I'm back after a month-long blogging hiatus. My reasons? Lots of work (I substitute teach)and several snow days (meaning that my kids have been home to trash the house and get in my way). 

And on a much less trivial note, my Kentucky Mamaw died last month. I spent about a week driving to North Carolina to meet up with my parents before driving on to Kentucky and back for the funeral. This Mamaw, my father's mother, was the one I've referenced who spent most of her lifetime on a farm. Among other talents, she maintained her own veggie garden, she quilted blankets (mostly with 60's or 70's fabric), and she churned her own butter. When she got much older, she moved into an easy-to-maintain duplex and, later, on to an assisted living home. Mamaw was 95 when she died. 

Mama asked me whether there was anything of Mamaw's that I'd like to bring back with me, an item to remember her by. My mind immediately went to her aluminum cake cover and carrier. I can't count how many times it was used by Mamaw to serve my brother, my sister, and me one of her three-layered cakes. My aunt and uncle were able to locate the vintage item in Mamaw's garage, and it's now in my kitchen.

I'll use it to store plates of brownies or cookies. Goodness knows I'll never match her in the art of cake making. She knew her stuff.

And on to my latest thrift store finds—I bought this beauty at my favorite GW last month. 

This jacquard tablecloth was made in Austria. My photos stink, I know. But the second photo shows a bit of the detail on the wide border. After I iron it a bit, I'll photograph it better and list it on Etsy.

At the same GW, I found these vintage-hip hummingbird lowball glasses. They're by Couroc—vintage 1950s, I believe. And they're in perfect condition. I'll list them on Etsy as soon as I figure out how to ship them without it costing a fortune. They're quite weighty.  

Yes. I now have yet another mid-century magazine rack to add to my collection. I just love these things. So handy-dandy.

On the way to Kentucky (and we went the backish way—via highways that took us through small Appalachian towns rather than by the more impersonal interstate), Mama and I took note of every Goodwill or Salvation Army store we passed. (I think I've mentioned before that Mama has recently contracted a Pyrex obsession, causing her to stop in at thrift stores as often as the rest of us do?) On the way home, we visited every store on our list.

Of note here is the fact that my brother is an architect who does work for Goodwill in Kentucky: he has both designed rehabs of old buildings for Goodwill offices and/or stores, as well as drawn complete from-the-ground-up plans for them. One of those GW stores Mama and I visited was his creation. Cool!

And at one of those Kentucky stores, I picked up this Glasbake milk glass "Mom" mug. I grabbed it, because I've already sold a pair of similar mugs ("Grandpa" and "Grandma") on Etsy. We'll see how well this one does.

Okay. So it's time to crowd my post with more photos of mugs. What can I say? I cannot pass them up.

This Enesco mug is dated 1978. Garfield was so big back then. (I remember!)It's listed on Etsy.

This mug by Inhesion features artwork by Maria Ryan, as well as her signature. On the bottom of the mug is the name "Cat n' Mouse," which I just don't get. What does "n'" mean?
And? Nope: one too few apostrophes. 
An? Nope: not only does that not make sense, but the apostrophe is in the wrong place.
I've listed this mug on Etsy (cat folks love their cat mugs), but it bothered me to include that incomprehensible name.

This milk glass mug featuring a sweet pastoral scene was manufactured by Anchor Hocking. I have yet to list it (needs a better photo!), and I've yet to research it. The design leads me to believe it's vintage 1980s, though, but I can't be sure.

And I just love this mug. (The blues! Oh, my.) My understanding is that this was sold (or given?) as a souvenir aboard the Norwegian Cruiseline's SS Norway in the early 1980's. I researched and found that the ship was dismantled in 2008. So there will be no more. I thought about keeping this for myself. But, for now, it's listed on Etsy.

I picked these items up here and there: a Longaberger candle crock, a brass owl (with an old Walmart sticker on the bottom?), and a Tupperware ice tea cup (Uncle Si-style). I've already given the cup to my college freshman daughter.

After my trip to Kentucky and on my way home from Mama and Daddy's place, I stopped in at a GW in Salem, Virginia, where I bought this set of Lenox Ware melamine children's cups. I grew up watching Warner Bros. cartoons on Saturday mornings, and I loved the stuttering Porky Pig. 


And to quote this iconic character: That's all, Folks!

Oops. Thanks to Sir Thrift-a-Lot and We Call It Junkin for the opportunity to link up!

thrift store spoils, ch. 14: Couroc, Marimekko Oy, and Harkerware

Just to start us off—what I didn't buy:

Yep. Gross.

I'm off schedule with my posts, so allow me to quickly wrap up the latest events of note:

• I've sold nine items in my new (and still modest) Etsy shop, including that naughty kitty-cat mug by Taylor & Ng. Someone commented on my last post about how easy those are to sell, and I guess she was right.(I feel better now that it's not associated with my name. Weird, I know.)
• I have to research the Ebay auction process some more, because I'm obviously clueless. I did sell three Starbucks mugs a couple of weeks ago, though: I made a decent profit on an Istanbul City Series mug; I made a little profit on a classic mermaid mug; and after losing money on shipping costs, I barely broke even on a Christmas mug. Oh, well.
• My Craigslist listing for the Stendig chairs garnered nothing but a couple of scam inquiries. I may try to list them again in the spring, or I may just keep them for myself.
• As noted in my last post, my mom has developed a taste for vintage glass ball ornaments—particularly Shiny Brites. So I now keep a lookout for those wherever I go.

And that's where I'll start today—with the loot I found for Mama this week.

The three single ornaments are Shiny Brites (they have some blemishes, but I got all three for a buck), and the boxed ornaments are by Coby. Mama is now into the pinks, so when I texted her with info and a photo from the store, she told me to grab them. And, what the heck, grab the red ones, too.

And this is my Christmas loot from the same trip. The Marimekko Oy mug by Pfaltzgraff is vintage 1980's, I think. The winking Santa mug is by Holt Howard, and the five tacky garland packs in the back still have their Kmart price tags. (I'm thinking the garland isn't all that old, and I've never ever used this stuff. I'm ready, though. Love the rich color.) 

The rotund Santa in front is kitschy cool, but I don't know what it is. Note the holes in him, please. There's also a big hole on the bottom of him. Mama suggested that he was once used for some kind of scent or incense? But we don't know. Any ideas out there?

At my favorite GW a couple of weeks ago, I found these six Russel Wright Harkerware plates (bread and butter, maybe?) in charcoal. They're substantial in weight. Really nice. I'm not yet sure whether I'll keep these or list them on Etsy.

I also bought this mid-century modern styled compote thingie. It's made of somewhat cheap materials, but I love its lines and the look. I'm keeping this baby for myself.

I've found a Couroc bowl and a Couroc plate at my GW, but this is the first tray I've found there. Oddly, my GW throws the Courac items in with the plastic stuff. So while I'm hunting through the useless dollar-store throw-aways in hopes of happening upon either Tupperware or melmac, I occasionally find one of these beauties. The inlaid wood on the cardinal's perch is lovely up close, by the way.

I have no idea what this flower is. I do know that it's metal and that there's a magnet on the back of it. It was so cool, though, that I couldn't leave it sitting on the thrift store shelf. I'll think of a purpose for it later.

And now to the mugs that I felt obligated to buy:

Another Marimekko Oy mug by Pfaltzgraff. Again, I think it's vintage 1980's, and it'll soon be listed in my Etsy shop. (Too late for this Christmas, unfortunately!)

 

This mug celebrating Clarksville, Indiana, was produced by Louisville Stoneware. (I'm originally from Kentucky, so I have to love Louisville Stoneware.)  I'll list it on Etsy. The second item that I sold on Etsy was a Louisville Stoneware nativity plate, by the way. 

 

This Sandra Boynton mug with the smarta** comment will be listed on my Etsy shop.

 

And I love this groovy mug. Hey—it's orange! On the bottom is printed one word: Daisy. Duh.

(Apologies for the crooked image. Hope it's not making anyone sick.) I found this copper stand—originally intended for a fondue pot, I suppose? And I loved its style, its nifty legs. So I bought it.

 

It's now a hip mid-century modern plant stand. (And it's only crooked in the photo.)

I'm linking up with Sir Thrift-a-Lot, Thrifter/Maker/Fixer/Farm, We Call It Junkin, and a living space. (Sending out many thanks to them for the opportunity!)

Happy thrifting and a peaceful Christmas to y'all! 

And that is all for now.

thrift store spoils, ch. 13: beetles from Japan, Taylor & Ng, and E.T.

By my standards, I'm late in posting my latest chapter/update. But I have good reasons: I took a trip to see my parents (the trip provides me with most of the content below, by the way); I finally opened that Etsy shop, as I’ve been threatening to do for forever (gosh, I have lots to learn); and—like everyone else out there, I suppose—I hosted and cooked for Thanksgiving (and we know what all that entails).

But I’ll jump right in.

As always (and as I’ve written about before), whenever I visit Mama and Daddy, Mama and I make a point of stopping in at the Shops of SafePlace thrift store there in their North Carolina mountain town. A whole large back room in the place is dedicated to housewares and the like. Yippee.

Funny, though. I make it down to North Carolina now and again, but in that store I see some of the same merchandise over and over. I guess they don't have much of an inventory turnover.

For instance, check out these cups. They’re that Mexican Pyrex knockoff stuff—but I really like them. Well, I’ve been walking by them for over two years. No lie. They’re like old friends. But that price is way too high for those mugs in that town. Mama thinks I should go mention to an employee that they need to move inventory. She thinks I need to make those folks a low-ball offer. 

But, no. I'm having more fun reuniting with them every time I head back down to North Carolina. Hello again, precious brown and yellow flowery mugs! I'm back.

I did not buy this Pyrex Deluxe Cinderella Casserole in the Golden Hearts pattern (a promotional piece from the late 1950's). It was in good condition. It included an undamaged lid. And it was marked at only five bucks. 

I know. I’m crazy for leaving it there. But I just couldn’t bring home one more casserole dish unless I wanted to go to the trouble of trying to sell it (which means I'd also have to pack and ship it).  I just  didn’t want to. So Mama and I stood there in the store and admired it. Then we left it by its lonesome.

Just yesterday Mama texted me that it’s no longer in the store. So good: some other thrift store shopper had a happy Pyrex day.

I did not buy the above lovely item. Duh.

This store always has the coolest uncool vintage clothing. (Half of it is polyester!) Once I did find a great vintage coat by Boden, but, alas, it was a couple of sizes too big. I almost bought it anyway, though. 

But on to what I did buy: a short plant stand, which is unimpressive to anyone but me, so I didn't take a photo of it. But near the exit door was a table of Christmas junk.

And here is where I found the other item I bought there that day.

It’s an E.T. ornament from 1982. (By the way, I watched the original movie when it first came out—pre-deleted scenes like those you find today in the DVD—in a Louisville, Kentucky, theater.) 

A couple of days ago, I listed the ornament on Ebay, which I’ve never done until this past week. So far, I’m bombing with Ebay, by the way. It confuses me. I’ll keep you updated.

That day of shopping, Mama and I visited only two thrift stores. And she bought two vintage things.

She found this magazine rack that pretty much matches the one she got this summer when I was with her. And she paid only two dollars for this box of mix-and-match Shiny Brites. Score! (She now has the Shiny Brite fever, by the way. She texts me with updates me on her hunts, including photos of what she finds and everything. She's a nut.)

So then on my drive home from North Carolina (because I was by myself and answering to no one), I stopped at several thrift stores in the Boone area. Hey, why not?

I bought a couple of things that I didn’t take photos of (like a mustardy-color Mikasa Cera Stone salt shaker). And I saw these ultra-cool chairs. There were six of them, and they wanted only $100 for the lot. Seriously. 

I texted a photo to Mama, and I think she thought I was crazy. (Sometimes our tastes diverge.) But, I swear, had I not had 300 miles in front of me (and had I enough room in my SUV), I’d have gotten them. You just don’t know how much they remind me of my Florida Mamaw—who was color blind, by the way, and her home décor attested to this fact. (Of course, had these been in Mamaw's house, they'd still have the furniture store's original protective plastic covering on them.)

I think I’ll stop in at the store the next time I head down to see Mama and Daddy, in case those chairs are still there. But they won’t be. I missed out.

Now a quick review of things I've found since my trip—

 

Explanation? I like sour cream glasses, and I collect Bicentennial items.

I’m not a big The Far Side fan, but others are. This mug is on my Etsy site now.

These Christmas mugs by Corning are adorable. They’re for me.

Gotta love a beetle mug, particularly one made in Japan. It's on my Etsy site.

These bowls are Marimekko by Pfaltzgraff, and I have them on my Etsy site. I bought two salad plates that match a couple of weeks ago, and they’ve already sold. Success!

The inlaid image on this Couroc plate reminds me of the Philippines, where the hubby and I served in the Peace Corps a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. Some folks there lived in Nipa Huts. They looked something like the above abode (without the surface scratches!).

 

Okay. So I hesitate to write about this mug. But I've seen these Taylor & Ng mugs on other bloggers' sites, and folks seem to have no qualms about the more-than-naughty behavior displayed on them. I've never, ever come across another Taylor & Ng around here, so I grabbed it.

It's dated 1979, and I bought it to sell on Etsy. (Goodness knows I can't have it in my house permanently!) But folks apparently collect these mugs. What the heck is so appealing about domesticated animals and debauchery and morning coffee, anyway?

Okay. Enough about this mug and my issues with it. It'll soon be on my Etsy site. I'm a sellout.

And how's the Etsy shop doing? Well, it's pretty heavy on mugs right now. (I've listed those mostly, because they're easier for this newbie to ship.) And I also have lots more vintage goodies to list. But I've sold six items in about two weeks, so I'm pleased.

Ebay? I have no clue what I'm doing there. 

As usual, much appreciation is sent to Sir Thrift-a-Lot, Thrifter/Maker/Fixer/Farm, and a living space for the opportunity to link up.