TURKEYS, TRINKETS, AND BANNERS

It's that time of year again . . .

A couple of fun finds at the thrift store this past week:

I'm planning on making a Christmas banner using my vintage hankies. I scanned them, and a few floral ones, too. I'm sharing them with you in case you would like to make your own banners! There are 7 Christmas designs and 5 floral. These are PNG files and are 1000 px wide. Enjoy, and feel free to share them, too!

WHERE HAVE I BEEN?

I'm sure some of you have been wondering, "What's up with Sue?", as I haven't blogged since June 1st. No, I haven't died and fallen off the planet!

To be honest, I just haven't felt like it. No particular reason, but here I am! No vacations this summer, just staying home with my regular routine. My next-door neighbors put in a swimming pool . . . and a nice tall fence. They did all kinds of fancy stone work and, boy, am I glad that's done - the stone saw was killing us!

The weather here in mid-to-eastern Massachusetts was extremely dry all summer and cooler than normal, which was fine by me. Western MA, in particular, got all kinds of intense thunderstorms but not us. We're supposed to get some rain in a few days and I'll certainly be glad for it.

I'm just glad it's Fall and it's football season again!

I've been doing some thrifting. Here are a few selections. I'm not sure if this is a chocolate pot or not, it's about 8-1/2" tall, and it only cost $7.00! I love it.

I was so thrilled to find this footstool with a bowl of cherries on it!

This bowl is really cool, in my opinion. Love the flowers on the handles. Unfortunately, no lid came with it but that's okay. And, yes, it is Hall's!

The tall brownish vase in the center is my most recent acquisition. Another no-namer.

My father-in-law brought this dirty, cobwebby, ugly dresser up from Florida last month. I was about to tell him to chuck it in the dump when he showed me the drawer that turns into a desk!

He said it was store-bought, I thought hand-made. He was right, there's a plate inside the top drawer:

I looked it up online and found only a few pieces of furniture by them. Must have been a small company. I absolutely hate the drawer pulls and might replace them at some point, but saving the originals. Here's a full view of it, housing some of my craft supplies:

And there you have it. See you next time around!

YARD SALE + THRIFT STORE FINDS

Here are some recent finds while I was out poking around!

A nice sturdy vintage apron with an embroidered cook who looks like she's deranged or on happy pills or something, lol!

I love this gothic-arched display case from a yard sale.

Another red bunny cookie cutter to add to my Easter collection! The purple Wood and Sons, England plate now resides in my purple half-bath.

I don't know who made this blue vase, but I also have a yellow one just like it. The tin will get a makeover at some point.

A big basket to put annual primroses in on my shady porch, a Dickens Christmas Stories book, a wood cover for a scrapbook or craft, and a Mary Engelbreit address book!

This is the cake I made for my Becky's 18th birthday on the 22nd of May. The sticks are to keep the layers from sliding off. Becky had her last day of school on the 22nd also. She's now officially out of school; she will get a certificate of completion instead of a diploma. No idea what the future holds for her, but that's okay - I like having her at home!

Becky made the vase a few years ago in school, and the irises are 'Honorabile', an 1840 heirloom variety.

19 SIGNS YOU'RE ADDICTED TO THRIFT SHOPPING

Do you think you're addicted to thrift shopping? Who, us? No way! Better check here . . . just to make sure:

http://www.buzzfeed.com/summeranne/19-signs-youre-addicted-to-thrift-shopping#.nbzYkKMRM

Now, on that note, here's what I picked up recently:

I snapped these pictures on two different days, not realizing I had the bunch of ribbons in both! Looks like I better get crafting!

THRIFT SHOPPING

I've been out and about recently and here's a few things I brought home with me.

I was so happy to find another little English Cottage item. This is a small canister that's only 3-1/2"/9cm tall. It's about the size of a coffee cup so I don't know if it's from a child's set or not.

I was surprised to find these hadn't been sold before Christmas. And I was very happy to find them at 25% off!

I've been (inactively) looking for a toy iron for years and stumbled on one last week. My toy ironing board finally has a mate!

This is how we measure snowfall in Boston:

TIME FOR A LITTLE SOMETHING

I didn't join in any Valentine swaps this year - I have so many from previous years! I love pulling out seasonal swap items, it's so much fun! Here's a pretty illustration from an early Vogue magazine that I colored in. Please feel free to use it.

Went thrifting with Mister yesterday (Saturday). I picked up this charming coffee mug for my Becky.

I was delighted to find these English teacups with cottage design. A nice addition to my collection!

We're ready (or not!) for another foot or two of snow over the next 36 hours, to add to the three feet we already have. I'm not complaining, though. It's annoying, but I'm so grateful that my area doesn't get plagued with tornadoes, earthquakes, hurricanes, and the like. The earth will start shifting its' position next month and Spring will be on its way!

HAPPY NEW YEAR + THRIFT STORE FINDS

I hope you all have the best year ever in 2015 - stay healthy, happy, and blessed! My mo-in-law gave me these two vintage noisemakers for Christmas - love 'em!

Went to the thrift shops yesterday and the day before. Here's my loot:

A vintage stocking of felt ($.25), and a vintage box of some ornaments ($.60). I just wanted the box!

Craft snow, a few cards, pale pink beads, green wired tinsel, recipe card dividers, a small Santa, small glass bulbs, and an empty Victorian Trading Company soap box (which may end up in a swap this coming year!).

A pretty Happy Birthday vase and an assortment of cookie cutters.

I may sell some of these on Etsy this year. I haven't sold a thing in about a year, so I need to hop back on the bandwagon!

Once again, everyone, Happy New Year!