Category Archives: Thrift Store Finds

Monday Reminder – Life Is Short

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Hello and good morning, friends. I always marvel when Monday morning rolls around so quickly as it has done this week.

Weekends are never long enough to pack in the things that need done and what we want to do. This weekend seemed especially short. It was spent close to home and was a nice balance of fun, relaxation and work around the house.

Mondays always remind me that life is short. We have a finite number of hours in this world and it’s important to use them wisely.

Do your job and do it well. If you aren’t happy, go find something you like better. Take pride in your work and in the things you do for yourself and your home.

Just remember not to get so caught up in what has to be done that you have no time to accomplish what you want to do and what makes your heart happy.

Scout didn’t wait for permission to commandeer this shelf. He seized the day and moved in the minute an opportunity presented itself. He knew what would make him happy and he took it!

Obligations are just that. You may be obliged to do them but don’t allow yourself to live such a life of servitude to other people and to the things you own that you have no time for yourself.

Go forth. Work hard. Play harder. Be the master of your own life and never stop searching for what will make your journey fun.

Little Wing Curiosity Shoppe

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The thrill of the hunt for treasure keeps me heading out to vendor malls, antique stores and thrift shops nearly everywhere I go. On Friday, I stopped by Little Wing Curiosity Shoppe and Thrift Store in Athens. They have been around since April. 

It’s neat, clean and organized with excellent prices on most things. There were a few things that seemed outlandishly priced but that happens. They had a 75 percent off Christmas sale that applied to a pretty little handmade art piece – an angel made of some kind of tin with a fabulous patina. Of course I brought her home and she ended up costing me just $1.25. I also got three wrought iron candlesticks and a pewter pitcher that will someday hold flowers. My total was about ten bucks and I was quite pleased with the haul.

Then I came home and looked them up online and I feel bad. Their website says they are working with Ukranians stateside and overseas to send much needed supplies for civilians and soldiers in Ukraine. Had I known this while I was there I would have either bought more or made a donation. 

Goodwill and Ohio Thrift are the prominent thrift stores in my area and they have almost priced themselves out of the game. I choose to shop thrift stores because you never know what treasures you’ll find and because I like the sustainable side of thrifting. I can afford to go to TJ Maxx and buy dishes or a new skillet but many people thrift because they are low income and don’t have the luxury of buying new when their kid needs a winter coat. Greed and people who thrift to flip for a profit seemed to have caused these organizations to lose their way. 

So I am thrilled to have a new option for my donations and am actually excited to take them some things while I’m cleaning out this winter. Not to mention, the people who run the place seem kind hearted and helpful. 

Little Wing is located on the back side of the Market on State Mall in Athens, Ohio. Just go around the corner on IHOP side and you’ll find them! They will be closed the week between Christmas and New Years but you can follow them on Facebook to find their hours, sales and updated information.

Where Did This Month Go?

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It’s November 30th and this is what our landscape looks like here in southern Ohio. It’s stark but pretty, especially in places with pine trees to offer some softness and color.

It’s hard to believe that tomorrow is December. How is that even possible? Where did this month go?

The weather app claims that snow will find us tomorrow and I am glad. When snow blankets the landscape, it’s not just pretty. It signals to me changes in nature and changes in the rhythm of my own life. In winter I tend to slow down, to rest better and to breathe deeper.

It’s a visual cue to begin a season of quiet.

I wouldn’t enjoy it so much if I didn’t have a warm home or were called out at night to clear roads. However, from the comfort of a warm place, there’s nothing better than waking up to the first fresh fallen snow of the year.

Forlorn

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It’s been gloomy a lot here lately but this scene is simply forlorn.

It was early Friday and rain had settled in for the day. The fog was trying to lift but these bare trees against that fog were just too much to resist. What I wouldn’t have given to have my camera in the seat next to me but had to settle for capturing this with my phone.

One of these days, snow will blanket the landscape and it won’t look so sad. For now, all we can do is seek beauty in unexpected places.

There Was A Time

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There was a time you could pick up a cool old coffee can for under $10. I have a few in my collection of random stuff – two hold flowers on the back porch and there are two or three in my kitchen too. All are missing the lids so they came for the bargain basement price of about five bucks.

I’ve seen many coffee cans lately but they’re going for upwards $20 and sometimes $30-$40 regardless of condition. These were over $50.

The market drives the prices but it’s shocking how quickly the tide turns and the prices rise.

Another item that has become almost too expensive to collect is records. In one of these bins, I found a Nat King Cole album that I purchase a couple of years ago for $2. Here it was $18.

The average album price in this antique mall was about $13 but many reissues of albums go for about $16. Since all the cool kids are going vintage I’m guessing prices will only continue to increase.

What do you collect that has seen a rise in prices?

A Signed Rolling Pin?

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Occasionally you stumble upon something in an antique store or thrift shop that makes you ponder its origins. I love a good mystery and recently found something that has my imagination hard at work.

Check out this vintage rolling pin that is signed by a whole lot of people!

The ink pen signatures are still easily discernible but there are several in pencil that are darn near impossible to read.

I wonder who these people were and why they were signing a rolling pin. Perhaps a bridal shower gift or a going away present? It’s hard to tell but I love it.

It’s interesting, the difference in the way we value things. The seller had several vintage rolling pins valued at between about fifteen and thirty dollars.

This one was just eight- presumably because of the signatures. However, it was worth more to me than the others because of the signatures and the mystery that they provoke in my mind.

With a vendor sale that day I got this treasure for about six bucks. I don’t need it and have no idea what will become of it in my house but it needed to be rescued and added to my collection of randomness.

Do you have thoughts on who would sign a rolling pin and why? Was it a tradition? Does it have significance? I would love to hear your ideas!