With Relish

Jennie and Paul came to town to see Mitchell in Jesus Christ Superstar, but we managed to work in a boozy brunch, some estate sales and a little thrift shopping as well.  No surprise, but there were plenty of fabulous finds...

The book 'Cat People' is just about too much.  Published in 1977, you would recognize many of the people photographed with their cats--a young Jane Pauley, a kerchiefed Louise Nevelson, Robert Indiana, Liz Smith and more.  Accompanying each are few words from the sitter on why their cat is important to them.  Several of the women are actually given the occupation of 'homemaker.'  It is now officially on the top of one of the decorative stacks of books.*

This bottle/carafe was irresistible, with a little collar on it's neck for the hand and a double spout.  It is perfect on the table for water or perhaps this summer with a chilled rosé?

The relish tray has been gone too long from the table!  At one of the estate sales, there was a stack of relish trays high enough for me to send each of my dear readers a charming example to use while entertaining.  I limited my acquisition to two, wonderful examples.  The first has teardrop handles and a lovely swirling division; the second has geometric dividers and a beautiful fluted edge.  I'll put both to good use, I promise.

Crackers.  Crackers.  Crackers.  These plastic cracker troughs make arranging them simple; easy to serve along side your relish tray.

I do not need another set of salad servers--I have so many pair, I don't even know how many they number.  Rest assured, if you are a regular diner at my table, you probably will not see the same set twice.  This lovely set is stainless steel from Japan, diminutive and impossible to pass up.

Little jars?  With decorative lids?  And wooden spreaders?  Jennie spotted these, but was kind enough to let me claim them.  I'm not sure what I might serve in them, but I'll figure it out.  Spreads?  Condiments for sandwiches?  Or I can exchange the spreaders for little spoon and fill them with olives or something.  Do I have any little spoons?  I'll have to check.

I do not think you can have enough trivets.  Period.  I already have one similar to this design with a gold rim and a crackled glass.  Similar is not the same as matching, and whether I was making a claim for a set or diversity, I would still have gone home with it.  They're perfect for the French press, Chemex coffee pot or teapot on the table.

It's been a while since we have spotted one of these weird little banks, but we nabbed this sad puppy to add to Mitchell's collection.  The palette is so strange and happy in strong contrast to the big sad eyes of the little doggie.

 Merry Christmas.

I love Quan Yin and this petite addition to the pantheon is precious.

I had to have the small plastic statuette of the American Indian girl (top picture, far right) and she helps balance the phalanx of saints that fill the medicine cabinet in the guest bath.  I guess with the Pantry God and the small tee pee with children (bottom picture, wedged between the Virgins of Guadalupe), it's officially a collecting direction.  Plastic American Indian figurines.  Dotcom.

Finally, Jennie brought us this lovely white kitchen glass bowl with black swirlies on it as a housewarming gift.  It's perfect for the table and would good with anything in it, but especially with a few little cuties thrown in, n'est-ce pas?

* There is more than one.  "Books are awfully decorative, don't you think?"

Thrifting ABCs (Part Deux)

A second installment of the very famous and much-discussed post, Thrifting ABCs. Look for the final installment (only six letters to go!) in the near future and, of course, a reprise of the entire alphabet. Maybe a book deal? Don't you think children would love it?

E is for elegance, as in “Burnt-orange colored phones are a true mark of elegance and refinement.” I don’t have phone service, but still need a one to work the callbox in my building. This beauty does the trick.

I is for indispensable, as in “A killer collection of glass jars with amazing designs on them is really indispensable to day-to-day existence.”

K is for killer, as in “That wood bowl with spoon is going to look killer on the coffee table filled with M&Ms.” Can you have too many wood accessories? I don’t think so. I have platters, large and small, but this unique and funny dish is a wonderful addition to the collection. Killer.

M is for mine, as in, “Hands off that avocado Tamac casserole, bitch! It’s MIIIINE.” Honestly, that didn’t happen. I don’t think anyone else walking by even knew what this wonderful piece of pottery was, so I got it for a song. Some might consider Tamac’s odd, organic shape a little ugly and its colors a little gauche. Not me. It’s genius and it’s mine.

Q is for quixotic, as in “Quixotic kids covet all cool china.” Whatever. We have a two-plate rule: if you find a cool china pattern, there has to be at least two plates in order to buy it. Because of that, we have a huge ‘set’ of matching plates for dinner and always have something different to eat off of. Thankfully, the ‘two-plate rule’ does not apply to salad, bread or dessert plates and I have no intention of amending it anytime soon.

R is for really, as in “Really? REALLY? You aren’t collecting decorative tin platters and canisters? I took all of my money out of the stock market and put it into tin platters and canisters. It’s much more stable.” It’s actually more in canisters, but this little dish matches one of those, so it makes a nice addition to the portfolio.

Z is for Zen, as in “Zen is not a design-style you idiot, it’s a philosophy. Everyone in-the-know says Asian-ish.” A killer faux-bamboo ceramic box is the quintessential definition of Asian-ish.

Holiday Thrift Round-up

This year, we did the tour of the 'ahs' for the holidays--Wichit-ah, Omah-ah and Tuls-ah. It was a long, LONG trip, but I did some shopping and peeking at what other people had bought.

Wichit-ah
I got to see Molly and Jamie's new place, which is very cute. It's a bungalow with nice details in the same part of town where I used to live. Molly gave me the grand tour and I got to see some of her thrifting finds along the way.
I need another pitcher like I need another platter, but if I had seen this beauty at a thrift store, I would have snapped it up. Perfect for iced tea, punch or the beverage of your choice. Sangria anyone?

Molly bought this corner shelf at IKEA last year when she was in Austin. It looks so nice in the kitchen displaying some of her thrifted finds. Note the Pyrex, just lovely.

In the basement, Molly and Jamie have carved out an amazing studio space for her glass, fabric work and other creative endeavors. I've never seen Molly look so organized and the beautiful workspace is surely inspirational. Pink flames on the wall? Excellent.

Tucked into the corner of her studio, you will find the Ironrite ironing machine. It's one of those monstrous, 1950s appliances with lovely details, including the logo. Molly says its impossible to move, even though the included information promises to allow you to 'take a holiday from ironing drudgery for the rest of your life!' I guess the makers of Ironrite didn't come up with a way to allow you take a holiday from moving giant ironing machines drudgery for the rest of your life. But oh well, it's still a beaut.

On the tour of the place, I also noted some of MY old thrifting finds that had been passed on to Molly when I left town, including this cute set of glasses and the little yellow pot. There was a chip and dip server that matched the glasses, but I'm not sure if Molly has that or it went to another good home.

Emily, another Wichita friend, has opened up a great little store on Douglas called Frank and Margaret's. She stocks vintage finds, refabbed furniture and lots of wonderful new things for an eclectic mix of limtless choices. I didn't get to visit the store while it was open, but did peak in the window and snap a couple of quick pics.

Omah-ah
Omaha has lots of great thrift store, but since it was a holiday weekend, I didn't get a chance to visit any of them. I did go to the rambling, junk-filled antique store in the Old Town area where I stumbled upon lots of great things and really cheap, Nebraska prices.

This golden calf immediately made me think of Moses and the Children of Israel. Where would you put a giant golden calf but on a giant altar at the base of Mount Sinai?

I really wanted this beautiful bird cage suspended on a stand, but it was not priced in a cheap, Nebraska kind of way. Would I put a real bird in it? Have you been to my house?

This little church lamp reminded me of the offering bank at my grandparent's church. It was in a sleepy, little lake town and during the service children would walk to the front and put their offering in to a bank that was shaped like a church. It was very exciting, even if it doesn't sound like it now. The bank was shaped like your quintessential, American church of the 1950s. I wonder if the mega churches of today have giant mega church shaped banks that kids get to put their offering in?

The sign on this mannequin says she isn't that kind of girl, but something tells me that she is!

This cute little elephant is a small lamp or night light. Perfect for a desk or children's room. Perfect for anywhere, actually!

The sister of the Priscilla Presley bride doll that Mitchell found in Omaha last year (Picture this doll with black hair and in a wedding dress.) and that we sent to Jessie. I was tempted....to send this one to her too, but didn't.

Tuls-ah (or Owasso, rather)
The Goodwill in Owasso, Ok, where my parents live, is a gold mine. My guess is that it's because of its proximity to the Oklahoma Baptist Retirement home. Plus, I don't think any of those bougie people in Owasso shop at the thrift store. Here's what you might find:

Serving pieces in an obscure Franciscan pattern--there are so many and, as I've said, I've never met one I didn't like.

Weird African-style statues.

Frankoma! Egg plate! Two of my favorite things, but I already have one glass egg plate and one that matches my 'good' china. Plus, this isn't my favorite color of Frankoma glaze.

A very cute teapot or coffee pot from Hall.

Amazing, eclectic set of napkin rings.

A Dutch girl that I assume used to dangle a salt and pepper shaker from either side.

More dishes. I want to buy all the dishes that I see, and these were especially attractive. What kind of dishes are you looking for? Let me know and I'm sure I'll find something to suit your taste.

Introducing...

....my fabulous, thrifty friend Jennie! She is as obsessed (if not more) with thrift shopping as I am, but we never really shop together. Today, we both happened to have a short day at work, so we met for lunch and then headed into Next-to-New to see what we could find. This mirror looks fancy (and Jennie looks lovely in it) but the frame is actually very thin plastic.

This double boiler is made from Pyrex glass, but not that strange stuff they tried to get everyone to cook on in the 80s. It was kind of amber colored? I can't remember what they called it, but my Mam-ma would always talk about how 'during the war' you couldn't buy metal cookware, so they had a lot of glass. Possibly like this? I didn't buy it, but considered it strongly.

Jennie almost bought this blue ceramic bowl, but it was obviously missing the lid. Cute, kind of Pennsylvannia Dutch modern?

She did pick up this lovely porcelain butterfly, with designs to use it to hold jewelry. Delicate and whimsical, it has a happy feeling. Plus, she can hang it on the wall if she wanted.

Jennie and I oohed and ahed over this set of thirteen Asian teacups decorated with delicate images of birds and bright pink peonies. Thirteen seemed like a lot, even though my usual goal is service for twenty-four. Jennie suggested we split then and I was so happy that I hugged her. The other shoppers looked at us like we were crazy, which we are. They have a thick wall and are perfect in the hand. I served tea in then that very evening, during a Project Runway screening.

Next-to-New had a huge collection of Hall's Jewel Tea pattern. This was one of my Mam-ma's favorites and at one point she had a large collection she eventually sold off. It was one of those things she was obsessed with, almost as much as that Anchor Hocking Star of David crystal. I have a single pitcher from her Jewel Tea collection that reminds of her and seeing this large selection made me gush. Her birthday is January 19 and she would have been 89.

This Dallas Junior League cookbook is haunting me. I almost bought another copy with a similar design actually imprinted onto the cover of the book last week when I was in Houston. I didn't buy either, because I really don't imagine getting anything interesting from the Dallas Junior League recipes. I'm sure there is a section of how to achieve big hair. Maybe another on dressing for lunch? I'm sure each recipe begins, "Ask your maid to prepare this recipe the next time you are having friends over for bridge."

There were eight of these RED Sango bowls, so I snatched them up. They're low and very modern, with color on the exterior and white inside. I imagine using them with the Georges Briard Asian plate and Metlox Shore Line. I love to mix different styles and colors up on the table. But, you, dear reader, already knew that. I emphasize that the bowls are red, because they were labeled orange by the store and there was much discussion on the color between Jennie and other guests at the house the evening after they were purchased. Red, red....RED!

They look lovely, combined as mentioned above and topped with an olive green lotus bowl.

Like moi, Jennie was born to (THRIFT) shop.

My Dream Tureen

Several years ago, I had the opportunity to visit an exhibition of ceramics since at the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art in KC, MO called Color and Fire: Defining Moments in Ceramics, 1950-2000, which was drawn from the LACMA collection of ceramics. I actually saw it twice and bought the catalog, which is high marks from a jaded, museum-employed art person. I felt the work presented truly sparked the imagination and addressed the ever-present question artists working in traditional craft media must address: form or function?

David Regan, b. 1964
Deer Tureen, 1996
Porcelain

The most amazing thing I saw was a tureen shaped like a deer giving birth. It was enormous (could have easily served forty people) and decorated with intricate woodland details including a snake winding its way around the under plate. The application of the design implied a context beyond the elegant form, setting the work apart from the merely functional. I imagined serving tomato soup from the tureen. I imagined serving pea soup in the tureen. I imagined having the tureen on my dining table and getting to look at it everyday.

Since then, I have been on the search for a tureen. I knew I would never find a giant one shaped like a deer giving birth at the thrift store, but I thought I would eventually find one that really said something. A tureen that made a statement. And this weekend, I found exactly what I had been looking for: a vintage, 1975 Fitz and Floyd tureen shaped like giant fish. With green eyes.

Just in time for fall. Come to dinner, I'm serving soup!

Thrifting ABCs

Okay, I'm WAY behind on everything and wanted to get a few updates done, so I've mashed together recent finds and sitings like a greatest hits list for your pleasure.

A is for art, as in "Don't just think about prints and paintings, string art can be just as satisfying." This Mandala is signed by the artist on the back with wishes for a happy and joyful life. It's in mint condition and currently acting as the body halo for one of my Virgin Mary statues. No joke.

B is for Boss, as in "This set of bookends is truly boss." Too boss for me, I didn't buy it.

C is for Chinese children, as in "Aren't fat little Chinese children a great decorating motif?" Mitchell brought these back from his trip to Omaha/Wichita and they are a wonderful white porcelain set with two boys and two girls.

D is for don't buy this pattern of Pyrex, it's really ugly, as in "Don't buy this pattern of Pyrex, it's really ugly." Or go ahead and buy all of it because no one else is, this has been sitting on the shelf of Next-to-New for months. Maybe if you stock up on it now, it will eventually reach 'ironic collectible' status and you can sell at a profit? Personally, I believe this "Federal" pattern is one of the worst, perhaps third only to the "wheat" and "Dutch farmers" patterns. I admit to owning some of the latter, but only in acceptable shapes and sizes. What makes them acceptable and desirable while most of it is awful? Reader, if you don't know, there are some things which simple cannot be taught.

F is for food warmer, as in "Today's modern, electric food warmers make entertaining simple and carefree for every hostess." This one is a super-sized model with a design by the one and only Georges Briard. The gold is slightly worn in places, but I purchased it for a song.

G is for gold, plaster Last Supper statue, as in "My, that gold, plaster Last Supper statue sure does look great on your mantle." But not on mine. Super-kitschy and certainly desirable to some, I had to pass on this little treasure.

H is for 'huh?', as in "Huh? What are those anyway?" I have no idea. When I picked them up, I thought they were S&P, but the small whole on top only goes about 1/4 of an inch down. They're very heavy and produced by Dansk. The bottom have a little wedge cut out of them which allows for them to sit straight or at an angle, as displayed above. If you have some idea or would like to proffer a guess, please feel free.

J is for jealous, as in "I'm sure you must be jealous of the major collection of Georges Briard accessories that I'm accumulating." This one, called Persian Garden, is a great addition to the den. The gold design in in perfect condition and it's just the right size for the end table.

N is for next, as in "The next hot decorating trend is going to be bowls of wooden fruit." This was my second purchase and there was a third set I passed up a while back which had all painted pieces of fruit--I am still kicking myself. My advice to you: never, ever pass up the opportunity to purchase a set of wooden fruit. Never. The two sets I currently have look great next to one another on the coffee table. Promise.

P is for photography books, as in "You can never have too many photography books in your collection." This crazy book contains wonderful photographs of the grand old houses of Louisiana. It's from the 1950s and the text is so flowery and sweet that it will leave a saccharine taste in your mouth. Skip the text and just enjoy the photographs.

S is for Schonwald, as in "Schonwald china from Germany is some of most boss dishes you can buy." I heart this pattern. I mean, really really heart it. It's simply amazing, but they have an astronomical price on it and, as you know, I don't really need another set of dishes. But I will freely admit that if it were cheap, I would buy it immediately. I have several pieces of Schonwald in my collection already and I jettisoned several other things with the move to Texas, including the most delectable biscuit barrel you have ever seen. Keep your eyes out for Schonwald because almost all of it is delicious.

T is for tray, as in "The pattern of this Georges Briard tray is too boss for words." And it looks great next to the Lucite-mounted coral that Jennie gave me a while back.

W is for waffle maker, as in "What kind of rich-ass lady owned such a fancy waffle maker?" The lid is painted porcelain and I'm sure matched some other kitchen accessories, but I had to pass it by. I already have a waffle maker and this one, though amazing, just wasn't my style.

Now you know your ABCs, oh won't you come and shop with me?

It's been a while...

...so a whirlwind update. Computer & camera problems (plus life in general) have kept me away from Blogger, but here is a short and sweet update:



In November, we painted the 'front room' (Since I'm living in the South, I enjoy using the phrase to describe the living room/dining room combo which is located at the front of the house.), and in the process had to remove things from the china cabinet. The color we chose is at the edge of the table, and I promise a nice video of the finished product soon. Can you spot Heidi-Anna at the back? And the blue bird of happiness?



As noted before, I love faux and nothing is fauxer than a faux shell. Right? I was delighted to find this smaller ceramic shell which sits nicely next to the giant conch planter I showed you a while back.



Deers, dear! These two lovely deers have a deco feel and a glaze I couldn't resist. It's kind of egg shell and they are part of my latest obsession: white accessories for the front room. I'm not denying it and I don't care what everyone says. I ignored white for a long time, and now I'm making up for it.



Chairs. A simple thing right? Wrong. They are hard to find. Next to impossible. The table is my grandmother's, but she sold the chairs when she moved to Texas. Why? No one knows why. I wanted to use the multicolored plastic Eames chairs in the kitchen, but had to find something to replace them. Something a little more matchy and formal. These are difficult to describe, kind of Asian-ish, but modern too. The upholstery (it's vinyl!) will have to be replaced, but I am loving the black.



Chairs. Sigh.



I tried to resist this Ben Seibel bowl from his Impromptu pattern, but just couldn't. I waited until first markdown at Next-to-New, but then had to snatch it up. Of course, I really needed another bowl. I was running low. You know how that is, right/



Victory! The Nike of Samothrace, to be exact. From the Louvre? Funny Face? It was a treat and looks great on the coffee table. It's made from some sort of resin, but looks pretty close to marble. The little blue object in the foreground is a glass caster in a lovely peacock blue. I found a set of three and they look interesting just piled up one on top of the other.



Cookbooks. More cookbooks. How many do I have? About 230-something. Counting little paperbacks, etc. Old and new. About 230. It could be slightly higher. That's not too many is it? How many do you have? Probably about that many, right?

Keep shopping!

Oh, I been shoppin'...

...even though I ain't been postin'.


I already had one of these lovely little boat dishes in my cupboard and was elated to find two more several weeks ago. They are from a set of dishes that features a simpering blue cornflower on the plates and bowls and whose name escapes me. Needless to say, undesirable. The serving piece, however, are much more modern than the rest and fit well with many of my other things. I always hate to break up a set, but in this case I made an exception.


David was in town a couple of weeks ago when I found this lovely owl at Next-to-New (They're moving up the street a couple of blocks, to a larger space they have purchased. Thrift store doing pretty well, I would say). She now sits atop our china cabinet and guards over the entire room. They still have the amazing set of Noritake fine china (It's simply white with a grey stripe on the edge and silver rim), but where would I put them? I guess it will just languish there on the shelf.

To assuage the grief of not buying the Noritake, I went ahead and bought this set of fourteen glasses at Savers. (bottom shelf, middle) They're very tall, with heavy glass bottoms and appropriate for an array of icy coctails: Mojitos, Pimm's cup and the like.


I found the silver-plated lotus dish on the left a while back and it cleaned up pretty nicely. After Eric and Becca's wedding in Ardmore,OK I drover to Norman, OK and spent the night with Stephanie. On Monday she had class, so I hit the Salvation Army (an old haunt) before we headed back to Austin. I found the second lotus set and candlesticks, which are pretty tarnished, but will be very nice if they clean up. Unfortunately, SA had priced each element individually: the bowl, the plate, and each candlestick. Who prices candlesticks individually? I complained to the poor, innocent checker and she offered to give me the warehouse number so that I could tell them myself. I told her she could just pass on my comment, as the white stickers were all fifty percent off and I ended up paying what I had originally planned.


I also found this cute little owl napkin holder at the Norman SA and gave it to April who has a passion for all things owl-ish. It still has the originall J.C. Penny's price sticker on it.


While Stephanie was in town we hit all the Austin high points: Central Market, Amy's Ice Cream, Sunflower Vietnamese Food, bats at the Congress Ave bridge, Swad Veggiefood and Frank Black (lead singer of the Pixie's) in an amazing concert opened by Kentucky Prophet. We also worked in a little shopping included St. David's Next-to-New and Bethesda Thrift which is next door. Stephanie found this lovely compote in mint condition (not even a chip on the delicate flowers) for a steal of price. After much consideration, we decided it shouldn't go back on the plane and will be have to be delivered by hand at some point in the future.


I found this set of six smoke-colored stems. My preference is always service for eight (or twenty-four if we are really going to be honest and I think I know you pretty well so I'm going to go ahead and say what I really prefer is service for twenty-four.), but I bought them anyway. Hopefully I'll be able to use them a couple of times before they become service for five. Or service for four. My eyes moisten at the thought! Let us speak of it no more and live in the present which contains a set of lovely smoke-colored stems for eight.


I thought the glasses would go well with both of my sets of dishes, so of course I had to get them out of the cabinet to see for myself. The service above combines Canonsburg's Temporama (with blue, grey and tan colored atomic-like motif on the plates) with the new stems and a contrasting blue water glass. The blue shell bowl to the left of the place setting is from West Elm and was a gift from David Earl. The dragonfly chopstick rests (service for eight) are from Sur la Table and the silver Chinese soup spoons and black melamine chopsticks from the Asian market in Wichita. (Not THE Asian market, but the Asian market. Friends in Wichita will get this it, but it wouldn't be funny to the rest of you even if I tried to explain it.) The end result? An interesting combination of vintage and modern pieces that is startling and unique, if I say so myself. And I did.


After combining it with the Temporama, I thought "If it looks that good with the blue and white, I wonder what it will look like with the Metlox Shore Line." For those of you who have been reading MTSS for a while, you will remember that the original set of Metlox Shore Line (color, Wet Sand) was a gift from the actress Helena Hale who was visiting Wichita, KS to perform her one-woman play about Georgia O'Keeffe. Of course, I added to the original purchase and have a large collection with plenty of serving pieces. The color may be strange, but I believe just about any type of food looks great on it. Whites, reds, greens. You name it. Likewise, it combines well with some blue salad plates I bought, white bowls, you name it. Anyway, in the setting above I combined the smoke stem with a darker smoke tumbler from IKEA and accented the Metlox with a orange Gingko leaf-shaped dish from West Elm (another gift from David. Service for six, but I won't go down that road again.). The flatware is just some modern stainless from Target, but again the combination of reddish-tan, smoke and orange looks pretty darn good. The chair is an Eames design and was part of the bargain of the last century.


Another trip to Next-to-New this past weekend yielded a couple of other treasures including this large ceramic shell-shaped planter which has a lovely pink interior. It goes well with the growing faux-shell collection that is in the front room. Actually, it is the new queen of the collection with its large size and exquisite detail.


I also found volumes one and two of Meta Given's The Modern Encyclopedia of Cooking, both with the dust jackets in relatively good shape. A month or so ago, I had found volume one and was very excited to find a complete set. My mother received these as a wedding present and has always sworn by them, so I was happy to find a couple for myself. Especially since hers are so used they are....used.

Happy shopping!