Happy Halloween

What do you give a vampire with a bad cold?

'Coffin-drops'

Thrift Share

My story begins on Thursday afternoon. My sweet sister and I met our cousin Lorraine to celebrate her birthday. After hugs, kisses, how-de-dos, food, and a lot of reminiscing my cousin handed both of us  cards. Mine was for my retirement, which was in June, and my sisters card was for her June birthday. Inside, both our cards, were three lottery scratch off tickets.

I scratched off the first ticket and won $2.00 the second scratch off give me nothing, zip, zero, nada. The last scratch off was a larger sized ticket and the cost for this ticket written in the upper left corner was $5.00. I scratched off the four numbers that I had to match and started to scratch off the fifteen ovals in the bottom half of the ticket. The first oval I scratched off matched one of the four numbers, so did the second, third, fourth, all fifteen ovals matched one of the four numbers. Winner, winner, winner. I won 100 dollars and let's not forget I also won $2.00 on my first ticket for a total of $102.00.

Friday morning we went to an estate sale in a affluent area in Illinois numbers were passed out at 9:30 a.m. and we are number 12 and 13. When the sale opened at 10:00 a.m. numbers 1 -15 were the first people let inside the house.

I found a box of Christmas ornaments and as I was looking at them one of the sales ladies told me if I like old Christmas ornaments I should go downstairs and look on the center of the table. I walked down the basement steps and sitting on the center of a table was this...

A 27 inch tall wire tree with all of the ornaments for the cost $30.00. I don't usually spend that much money on holiday items, but I did like the tree and all the ornaments. I realized that I could buy the tree with my winnings from the scratch off lottery tickets. I gently snatched the tree up and walked slowly up the stairs to the cash wrap. The sales clerk put a sold sign on my tree and held it for me while I continued to shop.

My favorite ornament.

 Marked West Germany.

I like the tail on this proud bird.

Cute flowers on this ornament.

The Santa reminded me of one that was on our

families Christmas tree when I was a child.

As I was leaving the sale, a lady approached me and told me the tree and the ornaments belonged to her sister and that they were from 40's and 50's and her sister always displayed the tree during the holidays. I love having a small piece of history about things I buy.

I was quite frustrated with this sale because 50% of the items for sale were not priced. I found a beautiful etched cloche that had a tiny crack on the bottom of the bell that I really liked, but it had no price. I asked one of the clerks for a price, and she came back with a price of $45.00. I passed because of the crack.

While my sister and I were waiting outside for the start of the sale, we peeked in the window and saw sitting on the window sill a figurine of a little girl reading a book. We both remarked how sweet it was. My sister was holding the little girl when I met her in the kitchen and asked if I wanted to buy it. It was not priced so I needed to seek out a sales clerk. This time the news was better it was only $4.00.

When I got home, I noticed that this pewter piece had a signature 

Drury '73. Stamped on the outside rim is F. Robert Drury.

I just love her bare feet.

My last purchase was two children books that have wonderful illustrations by Tasha Tudor these were priced at $1.00 each.

I enjoy her artwork.

Looking forward to see what everyone else found this week.

I am linking up with, Her Library Adventures on Sunday, for:

and  Hey What's For Dinner Mom? for:

and with Apron Thrift Girl for:

and Cap Creations for :

What I Love About the Thrift Store

and Me and My Shadow for:

Magpie Monday

and Costal Charm for:

Nifty Thrifty Tuesday

The isles WERE empty...

I saw my first Christmas commercial this morning on televisions so I decided to do a google search on how many more days until Christmas and found we had 57 days to prepare for the celebration.

My favorite thrift stores have had a Christmas isle since September, and over the last few weeks, I have seen the inventory increase. For several months, while everyone else was shopping the Halloween isle I have searched the Christmas shelves. In September, I found a vintage Christmas card holder and over several weeks I was able to find these ornaments.

The Christmas isle was void of thrift shoppers so I was able to sift through the shelves finding my lovely treasures at very reasonable prices. The past few visits to the thrift store I have found more shoppers in this isle.  

Yesterday I made a quick stop at St. Vincent DePaul's and found this...

I will be placing this on my front door after the first snow fall. I love the two red birds standing on the snow filled evergreen boughs with the two pine cones peeking out from the branches.  I only paid $3.99 for it. My father loved watching the birds in our yard and was especially fond of cardinals so whenever I see a cardinal item it brings back good memories of my father. 

St Vincent DePaul's front window display has changed from Halloween items to a winter/Christmas display. I'm sure the Christmas isle will become more popular, and I will have to share the isle with my thrifter friends. Oh well, it was fun having the isle to myself for that little while.  I have seen some Christmas items popping up in thrift share blogs, and I look forward to see what kinds of Christmas/holiday items everyone will be thrifting to decorate the tree and their homes.

I count my blessings! Life IS good.

HGTV Magazine

While the roofers were on my roof hammering/stapling/pounding in the shingles, my wooden cover for the doorbell that is in my house fell to the floor, and the wooden box broke. I decided to pop over to a hardware store to see if I could buy a new one, just so you know, you have to buy the complete doorbell kit to get a cover. I will be using some wood glue and some string to repair the wooden cover.

While I was in Lowe's I decided to look at the Christmas section, yes sir, the trees were all decked out, with lights and ornaments ranging from beautiful to why would anyone put that on a Christmas tree.  As I was leaving the holiday section to find the door bell cover my eyes spotted a magazine rack with....

Oct/Nov 2011 premiere issue of HGTV magazine.

I love watching the shows on HGTV, so I decided to purchase the magazine. Who doesn't love sitting down to relax with a cup of coffee and a decorating magazine?   So I grabbed the HGTV magazine and headed home to escape, just for a few minutes, into a world where everything is perfect.

Sarah Richardson, host of Sarah 101, gives 

readers a look inside her transformed farmhouse.

Cari Cucksey, host of Cash & Cari, wrote a short article 

about what items are a good purchase from an estate sale.

David Bromstad, host of Color Splash, 

thinks using see-through furniture is genius.

This Mystic chair, can be found at target.com

I enjoyed looking and reading through HGTV magazine. 

With a price point of $3.99, I thought it was a good deal. 

This is not a sponsored blog, just my thoughts on this magazine. 

I enjoyed reading this magazine and 

believe I will become a subscriber.

Seasonal Coffee Creamers

This is NOT a paid endorsement but my own opinion about Coffee-mate seasonal flavors. I had to run to the grocery store Saturday night to pick up some eggs, and while, in the dairy isle, I noticed a small flock of people around the isle end cap. Of course, I had to investigate what was going on. To my surprise the refrigerated end cap was a display for seasonal Coffee-mate creamers. The man in front of me reached and took a Peppermint Mocha creamer, my favorite. As he moved away, I grabbed the last Peppermint Mocha creamer. Yeah for me. Seeing these seasonal creamers reminded me that soon it will be; tis the season. 

Coffee-mate makes six seasonal flavors that are only available September through December, but last year in my area you couldn't find any flavors after December 1st. So my dear friends in blog land if you use creamer in your coffee, liquid or powdered, treat yourself to these seasonal flavored creamers, a few are even sugar free. They are so yummy.❤ I will be stocking up on Eggnog Latte, and Peppermint Mocha they have expiration dates of February 2012. 

Coffee-mate flavors available September through December are:

Gingerbread Latte

Peppermint Mocha 

Warm Cinnamon Sugar Cookie

Eggnog Latte

Pumpkin Spice

A book is like a garden carried in the pocket. ~ Chinese Proverb

Yesterday I received an email from Tammy at Tammy Loves Dishes (take a peek at her blog Tammy does gorgeous tablescapes) telling me that she enjoyed a book that I recommended from my post titled Books Are Portable Magic. Thanks for taking the time and letting me know you enjoyed the book.

While reading her email I remembered another book that I just loved but for the life of me could not retrieve the title from my memory bank. This book was recommended by my friend Linda who is the secretary at the school that I retired from, and I just loved this book. So after several hours of trying to remember the title, I emailed Linda, and this morning I had an email waiting for me with the title and the author's name. Linda is much younger and still has a memory, thank you Linda for giving me the title of this book.

I highly recommend the book The Forgotten Garden 

by Kate Morton written in 2008.

I enjoyed this book very much from the beautiful cover through the end of this compelling story. If you decide to read this book, I do hope you will enjoy it as much as I did.

I am always looking for a good read I would appreciate any recommendations that you have.

Happy Reading,

Paulette

Thrift Share

I started my thrift shopping on Thursday with an Estate sale. This one was run by a professional estate seller, and the prices reflected that. I did manage to find a unique item that was priced at one dollar.                                                                                          

I found the pink plastic birthday cake numbers and greetings in a small box

down in the basement. I guess you find the greeting that is appropriate 

and choose the correct number that corresponds with the event add candles and 

instant cake decoration.That would be as much decoration as I could handle. 

I can't wait to use these on a birthday cake.

On Friday I had lunch with some friends in a neighboring town. After lunch I decided to see what this towns GW Boutique (that is what I call the Goodwill stores)  had to offer.

These beauties were sitting in the $1.99 costume jewelry tray of the

GW Boutique. I looked for a makers mark and saw Bluette made in

France and decided to get these clip on earrings. When I got home, I

sat down to admire my purchases and noticed the raised sharp metal 

points sticking out on the back of the earrings. "I wonder what they are

for," I said to myself as I attached the earring to my left ear. It was a very

tight fit and not very comfortable on my ear lobe. I decided I better do

 a little research on Ebay and to my surprise these little beauties are, 

in fact, shoe clips!

As I looked at the earrings, that later I learned are shoe clips, a clerk walked over with a huge bowl filled with costume jewelry. My eyes got big as I stared at the bowl of costume jewelry, and the sweet clerk asked me if I wanted to look through the bowl. Yes please, this is what I found.

The bracelet has no markings, but for $1.99, I decided to take it home.

As I was admiring this purchase, I noticed that one of the clover on the 

four leaf clover was broken off, and it took me several minutes to realize 

what the white charm between the wishbone and the key was.

 I have come to the conclusion this must be a rabbits foot.

If I'm wrong, please let me know.
 I think I should stay away from the costume jewelry.

Since I was just down the road from a Value Village, I decided to take a quick peek. As I walked in the store, I was greeted with the announcement that all vintage clothing was 75% off. Of course, I headed to the three round racks that the vintage clothes were on. I found this outfit that I believe will fit my youngest daughter.  I can see her wearing this to work with some brown or black boots.

This 100% wool sleeveless dress by County Set made by Margit 

is lined and has deep red top stitching with brass buttons.

The cost of this timeless dress was only $2.50. I can't wait for

my daughter to try it on. Hope it fits her. 

Looking forward to see what everyone else found this week.

I am linking up with, Her Library Adventures on Sunday, for:

and  Hey What's For Dinner Mom? for:

and with Apron Thrift Girl for:

and Cap Creations for :

Thrifty Goodness

and Me and My Shadow for:

Magpie Monday

and Knick of Time for:

Winner

The winner of my giveaway...

Laura from Hey Mom What's for Dinner?

When I started my blog in May Laura, was one of my first followers. Remember how exciting it was when someone started to follow your blog? What am I talking about I still get excited to see a new follower!  

Visit Laura at her blog  Hey Mom What's for Dinner? and find out about healthy recipes her craft projects, and link up on Sunday mornings to her
  Penny Worthy Project.

Thank you to every reader that helped me to hit the 10,000 visitor mark 

and to all the people who entered my giveaway. 

Cheerfully,

Paulette

Vintage Clothing Websites

I found an article from Saturday, April 8, 2006, no idea what publication it came from, that listed vintage stores in the Chicago area, while I was cleaning up my office area. My knowledge of vintage is slim to none. I sometime recognize a vintage piece of clothing when I see it, but cannot identify what era or style it is. That is why I like these websites I am able to see photos, and it tells me what the era or style it is. As the stock is sold new merchandise is listed with a photo, so I can view and learn something new. I use these websites as a reference and to educate myself. I have never visited the brick and mortar stores or purchased anything from them, I just like looking at all the vintage stuff.

LuLu's Vintage Jewelry & Clothing 

Silver Moon Chicago - Vintage

If you're into vintage jewelry or clothing, 

you might like to check out these websites.

Pictures don't lie

While the roofers continue to pound, hammer, bang, and blast the radio, I decided to clean up my workspace. Little did I know that the process would take me all day long. I guess time flies when you take a break and start reading your favorite blogs and finding new blogs to add to your favorite list.

The container that holds my pens, pencils, scissors, and rulers was so full I decided to clean it out. Over half of the pens did not work and I found enough paper clips in the bottom to refill the nearly empty paper clip container. We won't even mention the rubber bands, three staplers, and two tape dispensers. I found the digital camera that I thought I lost, that was a happy moment for me.

One large garbage bag later my work area and the drawers were cleaned up. I found many wonderful articles with great information that I had saved some dating from 2006.  I took a photo of the area and was shocked at how awful everything is.

The paint on the wall needs to GO my oldest daughter painted this room way before she was married, and that was over nine years ago! The cheap table from IKEA has served its purpose but now I think I deserve a better and perhaps larger desk/table. Maybe I could find a file cabinet instead of the plastic storage containers. I would like some shelves, a new lamp, and perhaps a cork board.

I have blogged about my love for gadgets if you look on the right side of the desk you will see three items; a mouse that is wired, a wireless mouse, and a wireless trackpad.  Why!?! {shaking my head, and not in a good way}

I will be looking at office makeovers and start seeking some inspiration for this room. I have a project..... Stay tune for updates. [-:

P.S. The purpose of this blog was to share some vintage clothes websites with you that I used several years ago and found during my clean up process. I will share them with you on the next blog. 

Wordless Entry

Should superheroes only wear capes?

Bat girl, super girl, Lady Gaga, and Clara Barton have all worn capes. 

 Clara Barton inspired cape.

 Lady Gaga has worn several different kind of capes.

 Super girl

Bat girl

 Stopped in the GW boutique this morning for a quick look, and I found this cape...

This floor length Lorendale, 100% wool cape, had a red ticket 

price of $6.99, but today all red tagged items were 50% off. 

 The shiny rust color satin lining is in perfect condition.

 Love all seven of the buttons.

The long slit is where you stick your arm 

out, and the small slit it the pocket.

This is a beautiful cape and now is the season that I would be able to wear it, 

but should I? Can I wear this cape to the grocery store, WalMart or to Goodwill?

Perhaps this is just a Sunday go to meeting kind of look. I could just wear it to the

grand children's soccer games where everyone is wrapped up in blankets.

What do you think?