Weekend Finds (2)

What a weekend for estate sale and Goodwill finds! After a drought of many weeks, this past Saturday and Sunday was a veritable bonanza of items snapped up practically for the asking. Hallelu!

I went to an estate sale in Green Hills on Saturday, where I picked up the Brownie 8 projector seen above, nestled amongst my other vintage cameras in its new home ($15...first day price). I'll stop collecting vintage cameras and related equipment...oh, fifth of never. It's getting a little out of hand, but this one was too pretty to take a pass on.

The house was unusually full of vintage clothes-- one men's dressing gown, brightly colored and beautifully kept, had a hand-pinned (and penned) note attached to it by the antecedent who claimed the garment had been worn by a Judge in colonial America sometime around 1746...! I touched the robe, then the note, and recoiled as if bitten. 1746! Boggles the mind. An all white cotton women's dressing gown, baroquely embellished in all manner of lace frippery and pin tucks, probably from the turn of the century, was hanging in another alcove with a ghostly trio of similar, linen shirtwaist dresses. I honestly haven't seen any clothes items this old at an estate sale in all my ten plus years of going. The prices were fair, but astronomically out of my range, so I kept snooping, lugging the above projector (in its box, with the instructions and price tag!) along for the ride.



Above, Betty Crocker's Picture Cook Book from the late 50's (same sale, $4), and a pair of bowling shoes that will save me from looking a mess at the bowling alley next time I'm inclined to go (Goodwill, $4). They look nice together, don't they?

The biggest score from that sale was a gorgeous 1940's, bejeweled, Veronica Lake-ish number on the second day, but it really warrants its own post. That, and I haven't taken pictures of it yet. Next time!!




Some pictures from a dog show in 1976, as well as an AKC Best-in-Show ribbon from a living estate sale in West Meade. I'm a sucker for one-of-a-kind personal ephemera, so this one had me at hello. "Do you show dogs?" the cashier asked me as I was trundling my quarry up to the sale table. "Uhhhh, no," I answered, feeling a little foolish, while nevertheless adamantly reminding myself of how good these framed pictures and ribbon would look at the end of my hallway... I need another framed picture like I need a hole in the head, and yet here we are. Look at the pup! Whole lotta hair going on there.




Goodwill in Hendersonville, why are so good to me? I found the grouping of "Forum International Stoneware", designed by Ben Siebel, on the right at an estate sale on the second day, several weeks ago, at the same sale that yielded my colonial curtains...the pair of pots were $4 for both, and the casserole was $3. I was kind of bummed I didn't have a fourth piece in white to balance out the two browns, UNTIL I found this. Which is a simply enormous version of the smaller dish. The set came with the main dish, a matching ceramic stand, and a wooden base for you to put a can of sterno or similar heat to keep items warm. This is essentially a giant, gorgeous chaffing dish set, in good condition, which MATCHES the original set to a tee. Thank you, thank you, Goodwill gods. $11.99.



Some Goodwill finds--Shoshtakovich, Bobby Vinton, and what looks like a Jaws-knockoff CHILDREN'S album. Because, really, why not. A "Home Alone" game for the Sega Genesis sang its siren's call to me, and I ended up taking it home. Note the "Holy Cow" photoshopped into the right hand side of the frame. Like "AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" was not enough of a statement to make.

This is really the crowning glory of my finds this weekend, other than the Lake dress.




Um, promotional silk jacket from the 1984 release Rhinestone, featuring the immortal pairing of Sylvester Stallone and Dolly Parton? I just about let out a shriek when I realized what I was holding in the jackets section of the Goodwill up in Gallatin ($6.99). I thought it might be a baseball league jacket, owing to the glimpse of a shiny sleeve I saw from afar, or maybe, if I was lucky, even a poorly silk screened country band's promotional jacket. But I was so very wrong. Babu gamely donned the world's ultimate jacket (the western styling, down to the pearl snaps and green piping?) for the photo, but we might have to put it in a glass case and just display it. It's really too crazy/nice to wear.

I hated to spend more than $20 this weekend (usually my cut-off budget for sale snags), but I couldn't let some of the things I found go.

As if I hadn't been a bad enough pack rat, my friend Jules suprised me at her boyfriend's birthday party with a gift for me! And me alone! I was like, "Wait! It's James's birthday, not mine!" Jules then related to me the backstory of this PERFECT FONDUE POT, being that her grandfather passed away in 1982, whereupon her grandmother downsized to a smaller house and packed up everything extra in storage. Once a year, at Christmas, her grandmother pulls some non-heirloom, but definitely vintage item, out of storage to give to her grandchild. Who turned around and, out of the goodness of her heart, gave it to me!! The pot, though dusty, looks to be in excellent shape, and even came with a recipe book and a set of color-coordinated long forks! You better believe we'll be "fondue-ing" some "fondue-ables" with a quickness. Thanks, Jules! You're the first on my fondue party invite list. Also, you are way too nice to me. :) In the same vein, Matthew's mom gave me this late 70's, JC Penney brand wok, which is a delicious, kitchen-matching red, as she was decluttering her kitchen weekend before last. I always want to try Asian wok recipes at home, and have never had one. Thanks, Deb! A-cooking we will go, go, go, people.

Anyway, if you've gotten this far, thanks for looking! How was your luck this weekend? Is it something in the lunar cycle...did everybody make killer hauls? I'd love to know!