Today's Thrift Store Finds

Last night when I was putting my daughter to bed, she confided that she wanted me to take her to a treasure store. I was worried that she would change her mind overnight--she usually protests when I try to take her along with me--but she didn't. So right after church, we changed clothes, grabbed a snack and hit the road.

I wasn't sure how fruitful our outing would be, but I was pleasantly surprised! I ended up with an array of wonderful finds, including things that I had on my list.

Right off the bat, I found this cup and saucer in one of the patterns I collect. Although I have a pretty extensive china collection that includes a number of different patterns, as far as active collecting goes, I focus on two patterns. This one is called Ever Yours Boutonniere by Taylor, Smith, & Taylor. Turquoise is my favorite color, and I adore the simplicity and sweetness of this pattern.

The other pattern I collect is the one I shared with you last week, Dixie Dogwood by Joni.

Unfortunately, no Dixie Dogwood on the shelves today. But not to worry, I found other treasures.

While I certainly love my china, I also have a bit of a thing for vintage cookie cutters. I have an enormous collection! Most of the cutters in my collection are vintage tin, probably dating to the 1960s, that I inherited from my mother, who loved to bake just as much as I do. However, in the past couple of years, I have begun to amass a rival collection of vintage red plastic ones. I have not spent a great deal of time researching this collection yet, but I do know that most if not all of mine were manufactured by one of two companies: HRM and Tupperware.

Above are just a few of the vintage Tupperware cookie cutters that I have found over the years. Below are the HRM ones I found today. I am so excited because they appear to be from a Nativity set. I am definitely going to have to do that research now because I simply must have this whole set!

Next, I found a small bag of mostly vintage craft supplies. I especially love the gummed foil snowflake stickers and glitter. I was happy to see the two boxes of map pins tucked in the bag, as they were on my list. More on what I'll be using them for later.

I then picked up these small vintage candles to replenish my supply, which was depleted for my daughter's Pioneer Party candlestick making craft.

I have been looking for vintage jewelry boxes to house my growing collection of vintage costume jewelry, but most that I've seen are either grimy or smelly. This one was actually in pretty good shape, clean, and I love the pink satin lining. I picked up the pearls today, too.

Of course I had to look at the book section, and I found these two keepers. The Big Golden Book is in excellent condition inside and very cute, with both stories and songs, and the other one looks to be a good children's cookbook. (Notice the red cookie cutters on the cover!) I love the Usborne books, and usually pick them up whenever I see them.

I also picked up a bag full of these cute vintage postcards featuring nature themed pen and ink drawings to encourage my daughter to write more notes to her friends back in Philadelphia. These are just the right size for a few sentences and she can practice writing addresses, too. Of course, this means I'll have to trek to the post office to buy some postcard stamps, but that's okay.

The last find I'll show you just may be my favorite find of the day: a very pretty and unique agate and mother of pearl necklace. Sadly, my pathetic photography does not do it any kind of justice, so you'll have to take my word for it.

I did find a few other things but as I'm going to be doctoring them up, I will deal with those things in separate posts. Hopefully, I'll have some successful "Before & Afters" to share soon!