Friday, January 04, 2019

friday obsessions | finders, keepers pt 1


Since last week's post was devoted to things that slipped through my hands when I was still selling vintage, I thought it might be good to see some of what  I managed to hoard for myself over the years. Some came via thrifting, some through ebay purchasing, but there are certain things I have a weakness for.  The benefit of not selling vintage anymore is that I don't go treasure hunting with an eye toward selling it as soon as I have it.  Over time, I've gotten more selective in what I actually bring home, but these are a handful of some of my favorite things collected over time..stay tuned for more..

old books & paper

working in a library, I am queen of hoarding all the old books for collage and bookwrecking expolits. Every once in a while, I find some really awesome bundles of ephemera--maps, photos, postcards, letters, and these are some of my favorite things to work with.  The vintage kid's books above were a rare find,and even now, over the next couple days, I am itching to get cutting my way through some old Life magazines someone at work bequeathed me and I kept them for myself.

floral basket purses

I did not know these beauties even existed until I spotted one on ebay for a steal with (cheap and under 10 bucks, with a slightly unravelling handle, top right).  The colors on the florals were beautiful, and though I feel it's a little to fragile to carry, I love looking at it.  I loved the photo of it hanging in the studio, I used it as shop promo and sold it as a postcard.  Other's have come my way since, and I sold a few in the shop. The other one above was a $2 Salvation Army find.

 japanese fishing floats 

These are popular design elements and hard to find on the cheap lately, but they are beautiful.  I stumbled on this one resting inside a bowl in Goodwill a few years back.  I also have some blue glass electrical line toppers I use as paperweights that are the same dreamy sea glass colors.


midcentury dishware 

Since both I and the cats are hard on dishware, I've always had a mismatched set, even when I had more modern ones.  At some point I began amassing certain floral designs whenever I could find them.  As time goes on and more contemporary designs start flooding the thrifts, it's been harder, but every once in a while I'll spot some on ebay with cheap enough shipping to make it worthwhile. My favorite are the blue bachelor's button design, which my mother claimed she had a set of in her hope chest that she lost to a shitty landlord when she moved in with my dad. Sold in grocery stores, they are actually pretty plentiful out there and I find some more every so often.

frilly unmentionables

While ladies of the 1950's on the whole were tiny little things, I occasionally find full and half slips that fit my large 21st century body.  When I had the shop, I spent time dying them all sorts of candy colors, but some of my favorites are the beiges and ivories.


framed embroidery pieces

I have number of these picked up in stores--mostly flowers and birds, but also a portrait of a 70's lady hanging above my bed. 



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