Lost treasures....

I'm trying hard to shake off my shadows so decided to do a double posting today.I bought a real lost treasure on ebay recently and it arrived in the mail this week. It is an old Christmas card album. Sadly at some time it has been water damaged and shows signs of age also. However, inside there are real treasures to behold. I don't care that the album cover has damage or that some pages show age markings or even that some of the cards are a little grubby in places. You can see the damage to the cover in this photograph. (It must have been so beautiful when it was new)

But oh just one peep inside and I was lost....

The album was a gift and look at that amazing handwriting! (and the date)

I know you can see why I just had to have this treasure trove of what must have been at one time cherished memories and keepsakes.

These are only a small selection of the cards in the album. There was also a number of loose cards, scraps and postcards as well as newspaper clippings.

The card below is truly special. It is heavily embossed vintage plastic, the name of which escapes me at present.

I wondered if the lady who kept this clipping had her honeymoon at this hotel? The newspaper clipping was from the 1950s.There was also an old postcard album filled with postcards from around the 1950s and later included with the Christmas card album. Presumably it belonged to the same lady.

I got really excited when I saw this bundle of old letters tied up with string. That handwriting is just so gorgeous. Sadly only two of the envelopes contained letters. (the others were just empty envelopes) The letters that were there had been written by a soldier in WW11 home to his mother. His handwriting amazed me and although it felt a little odd to be reading someone else's mail it was a fascinating peek into a bygone era. I did feel a little sad that the treasures belonging to the original owner had been somehow cast aside. I can only think she had no family for them to be handed down. I am glad they were rescued long enough for me to be able to buy them on ebay. They will surely be cherished in my lifetime.

wishing you sunshine in your shadows
Helen

Just like the pied piper....

After 'mortgaging my house' to the scrapbooking shop yesterday I found the nearby op shop a calling to me! I was helpless to resist of course. This particular op shop is a little further afield than my usual but whenever close by I like to call in as they usually have some good books if nothing else.
Yesterday was no exception.

The first book to catch my eye was this lovely old Reader's Digest gardening book. Although tatty around the edges I was thrilled by the slipcover. When I saw the price of $1 that sealed the deal.

The book is filled with lovely old illustrations like this page pictured above.

Next to catch my eye was this old version of Arabian Nights. One peek at the flyleaf pages and I just had to bring it home with me!

A bargain for $2 and the whole book has pictures like this right throughout.

Next to catch my eye was a couple of Enid Blyton books, one of which has a lovely dustjacket. They were $2 each.

Then I found two wonderful vintage children's storybooks that just had to come home with me!

This one is filled with funny little ryhmes and the other ...well one look at the cover and I was in love with it.

I ended up paying $1 each for these treasures! The one with the little girl in red on it was perfect and had a $5 sticker on it (I would have paid the $5). When the man at the counter was sorting through my little pile of things he looked at it and said "That's not right, that's not one of ours, we don't use stickers" and to my horror he pulled the sticker off (tearing a piece of the cover in the process...he tore a strip right off). I could have cried! However for $1 I wasn't going to complain.  He was a little rough and actually damaged another of my purchases as well but I decided to buy it anyway. (explanation to follow)
The last bookish bargains I got were a small bundle of Little Golden Books for 50 cents each. I found some classics like Eloise Wilkin's Mother Goose, Tootle, Bambi, Handsel & gretel and a couple of others to add to my small collection.

I don't often buy things that hang on walls as we have very little free wall space in our home (too many bookshelves LOL) but this little plaque was calling my name and at $1 I wasn't going to leave it behind. It is made of tin and covered with some kind of plastic?

I love the little poem and that is the sunshine glaring on the photo not a camera flash! I took this pic outside this morning. The man behind the counter was a bit rough I mentioned earlier, well he was sliding my purchases around on the counter and he must have slid this little tin plaque over the top of my final purchase because it was perfect when I picked it up and when I sat it on the counter. When he was packing I noticed some damage to the foil. *sad face I think the corners of the tin plaque on the back must have rubbed against the face of the foil picture.

I'm not sure when these foil pictures were popular. 1950s? Later? I fell in love with the fairies in this one anyhow. I think I've done all the op shopping my purse can bear this week.......but you never know, that 'calling' is very strong!

wishing you sunshine in your shadows
Helen

I'm a little bit naughty...

I stopped at a local op shop this morning. I really shouldn't have. I have no excuse.....
These are the treasures that jumped into my arms and said buy me!

Two pretty Royal Vale trios. At ten dollars each I had to bring them home!

Three orphaned plates at $2 each. The gilt trim is a little worn in places but I don't mind if they are a little shabby. They must have been well loved in a former life. I am getting a bit of a collection of orphans together now.

A boxed set of 6 lovely wildflower place mats. These were $6.99 but too pretty to leave behind especially as our current placemats are nearing the end of their lives.

It is always a fatal mistake for me to go anywhere near the book section but I go there anyway LOL. I found this how to crochet book for $2.99. I want to learn how to crochet so I guess I have no excuse now! The book is full of fabulous clear illustrations along with instructions.

Finally for $3.99 I picked up this book about life on the goldfields of Australia for Mr. B. One of his lifelong interests has been gold prospecting/ metal detecting and I thought he might find this interesting.


I did have to leave behind a fabulous not quite complete set of china. I just didn't have enough money to bring it home with me. **sighhhhh  There was a large cake plate, 8 small cake/sandwich plates, 6 saucers and 5 cups. They were embellished with a dainty rose pattern and gilt trim. All for just $10. I'm betting someone will buy the set and sell it for twice that on ebay. I Soooooooo longed to bring it home but I really didn't have the money(no not even $10 ) and am fast running out of room here to store or display things. Despite being a little naughty and comfort spending money I really shouldn't ought to have my found treasures bought joy and sunshine to my day!

wishing you sunshine in your shadows
Helen

Vintage roses ...

When I bought my pretend Ugg boots at the op shop earlier this week I spied several other vintage pretties that I wanted to bring home with me. Alas no 'mad' money is to be had this week so I had to sigh deeply and leave them there.

Yesterday I took my ex mother in law in to the op shop to look at a lampshade we thought might be suitable for her standard lamp. The lampshade wasn't to her taste so we browsed for a few minutes and she found some books to buy. I showed her one of the lovelies I had seen the day before and she said she would buy it for me! Yayyyyy for my lovely ex mother in law.
The item in question was a gorgeous vintage sheet.

Although I have a love of most things vintage I have never even looked at vintage sheets before. The lovely rose pattern on this one jumped out at me. I wanted it immediately. Now I just have to decide exactly what to do with it. So far three options come to mind.

1. Keep it as is and use it on a bed in the spare room matched with a plain white sheet. Alas it is only a single bed size.
2. Keep it whole and use as backing for a quilt
3. Cut it up and make cushions out of it. If i choose this option do I just use this fabric and get fancy with piping or ruffles or do I seek out matching/complementary fabrics and make some patchwork?

What would you do?

Since my ex mother in law paid for the lovely sheet I scrounged enough change from my purse to buy two other items that had caught my eye.

I found a pair of lovely white pillow cases for just $2.99. They are machine embroidered but wonderful quality and oh so white!

The other item was this adorable doiley/tray cloth.

At first glance I thought this was hand embroidered, in fact some of it does look hand embroidered and yet some of it is definately machine embroidered. For $1.99 I don't care and besides it is pretty.

Look at this sweet little bird. I love the vintage colours.

wishing you sunshine in your shadows
Helen

Baby it's cold outside...

Winter has really found us here this week. I'm not sure if it's due to my recent weight loss efforts but I have been freezing my butt off! I'm usually the crazy woman in short sleeves when everybody else is wrapped up in a beanie, coat and gloves.
Mr B and I wandered outside in the freezing cold pre dawn hours hoping to see the lunar eclipse this morning. Alas we couldn't see it. I crawled back into bed and my electric blanket whilst he bravely went off to work for the day.

We have an old fashioned wood stove here that is used for cooking and warming the house. A job it does admirably but it takes a little time to rebuild the fire each morning and get the temperature back up again. Thank goodness for the back up heating system.

The only thing that could be better about my lovely stove is having a glass door so I could sit and watch the flames!

Here is a shot with the door open. Don't you feel warmer already?
I'm a bit like a bear on really cold days. All I want to do is curl up inside where it's warm and relax with a good book.

(My current read, a jolly good read btw)
Indoors I usually have bare feet or slippers when it's really cold. I actually bought myself a new pair of slippers at the op shop today. They look brand new and unworn! I'm not usually big on second hand shoes but these were a bargain at $8.00 and did I mention they looked WARM!
So unusual for me to buy something I actually NEED at the op shop too.
They aren't real ugg boots of course, just acrylic fleece lined boots but they will do me for now.

Other essentials for a cold day inside include coffee ...or the beverage of your choice.
I pinched this pic from google images. I like a little cinnamon in my coffee.

Something yummy to snack on. Chocolate would usually be my first choice but today I actually had an apple strudel scone.

**photo courtesy of Bakers Delight.
What do you do when it's cold outside? Do you delight in all things Winter or are you like me and just want to curl up inside until Spring?
wishing you sunshine in your shadows
Helen

Sometimes it's just mean't to be yours ....

I posted last week about my op shop finds and mentioned that I had something very special that I would share in a later post. I visited my local op shop a few weeks ago and as always I went up to their locked glass cabinet where they tend to keep the more 'expensive' treasures like fine china, jewellery etc. They had a gorgeous cut glass, lidded candy dish but wanted $25 for it. (I'm not sure if it's glass or crystal...how do you tell the difference?) I briefly thought it was a little bit expensive but was very lovely. I looked at it longingly and walked away.

The next time I popped in the candy dish was still there but I still balked at paying $25 and I didn't have $25 to spare really so in the locked cabinet it stayed!

Last week when I went again the candy dish was still there and I mentioned to the saleslady that they still had 'my' candy dish. I said that I couldn't afford it and she said "Oh I'll just check, I think it has a purple tag on it today". Purple tags were half price for that day and lo and behold it was half price (imagine me squealing with delight inside my head at this stage) For a mere $12.50 I couldn't leave it there could I ? I decided it was mean't to be mine.  My photo doesn't do it justice. It stands about 11 inches tall to the top of the pointy thing on the lid and about 10 inches around. It has three feet. I'm making the assumption it's a candy dish, I can't imagine what else this type of container would have been used for.

wishing you sunshine in your shadows
Helen

Comfort shopping...

I'm not sure if it's the onset of Winter or just my current life challenges but I have been feeling the blues a little recently. I am sure it has been obvious from my recent blog posts. Given that I am trying not to succumb to the temptations of chocolate to chase the blues away I seem to have found a replacement by way of comfort shopping! I'm not sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing? Certainly better for my weight loss efforts but not so great for the budget!

I have been to the op shops three times this week and come home with plenty of treasures. I also had to leave some behind due to a lack of that awful stuff we call money. I comfort myself with the knowledge that there will always be new treasures to find. Anyway here are a few of my 'comfort' items.

I actually bought this teacup and sandwich plate a few weeks ago but had forgotten to photograph it. I adore the blue. Sadly it didn't have the saucer with it so I am hoping I might find an orphan that matches sometime. If anyone has one I'd love to buy it from you! It is a Royal Albert pattern.

I found this fabulous old glass jelly mould for $3.99. It's about 6 inches deep and 5 inches in diameter.

This is a pretty Paragon trio I found recently. Paragon make the most gorgeous designs. I wish I could afford some of their more ornate ones.

This is a little jam dish that I kept coming back to. The gilding is worn so it has been well loved. It was made in Australia and only $1.99 so home it came. I don't often see things that are made in Australia.

A Royal Vale trio. It's funny that I love teacup sets so much. I don't drink tea at all but I suppose there is no rule that says I can't drink coffee from a cup? Then again maybe there is!

This one was an ebay purchase. A lovely nylon? netting food cover/table throw with a crocheted crinoline lady in each corner. My photo doesn't do it justice. It's actually a lovely bright lemon colour.

A very practical purchase and such a bargain! I found this like new Burberry brand raincoat for just $10 at a local op shop. The sleeves are too long for me but otherwise it fits beautifully. It has two deep pockets, chunky buttons and sleeve detail as well as being fully lined with a nice check print. It's not my choice of colour but I really don't care for that price! My girlfriend and I went back to the same op shop a few days later and they had another one, exactly the same but a different size AND it was priced at $80 which we thought was outrageously expensive for an op shop EVEN if it was a Burberry! I assume mine must have been priced incorrectly or perhaps just by a different staff member.
I also bought some lovely children's books and another item which I'll share in another post as this one must be a mile long by now. Do you comfort shop or do you head for the fridge when feeling a little down?

wishing you sunshine in your shadows
Helen