Monday, February 4

thrifty finds...

thrifting on friday proved quite successful...my list (the written list that i could not find at the last moment, so i was required to use my brain power) went along the lines of

1. a wooden floor lamp
2. an old kitchen table for miss ethel to sit on in my studio (allowing me to give back the ikea number to our #1)
3. tablecloths
4. bits and bobs
5. a piece of old junk to paint 'mossy shed' on, so all would know when passing by that our house is called mossy shed

it was my friend Beth's birthday so a little group of us ladies went up to the 'country village' to see what treasures we could unearth...i had no luck with a floor lamp but i did find a little lamp that quite frankly made my heart skip a beat...it caught my eye tucked away on a 'high up' shelf...


"surely not" i said to myself... you know that feeling when you see something and can't quite believe that no one else has claimed it before you...yes, dear readers i picked up a little japanese wooden lamp in beautiful 'used' condition, i have no idea of age, nor do i care... even the electrical cord is a wonderful soft greeny blue. i checked the price, daring not to breath ("oh please let it be a bargain") the first price said $9, this was crossed out and next to it was $5 which soon turned out to be $3.75 as the vendor was having a sale. (even as i type this, my little heart is racing faster at the thought of my 'treasure' find)

next was some fabric, two pieces of it to be precise...the minute i laid eyes on it i knew this was the fabric destined to be my studio curtains...
then a lovely cream crocheted table cloth (excuse blurry pic)...


last but by no means least a lovely metal white side table which originally was for keeping records in (that's what i think, i don't know for sure but it sounds good...) now it houses my 'crafty' books just perfectly...so i am very happy indeed with the outcome.
i had no luck with a piece of junk, even looking through all this lot i couldn't find the right piece of 'decaying' something, so i shall just keep on looking...

i thought it might be interesting to let you know prices, i am always amazed at the items people find for very little cost. quite often when i come across 'lace' and 'doilies' in this neck of the woods i am staggered at the prices...it seems to vary so greatly from state to state and country to country. my friend laura on the east coast can pick up a great bargain when it comes to linens and slips for a lot less than me on the west coast. my mum across the pond does a fantastic job at sourcing great lace, at great prices and that is in 'pounds' not 'dollars'...
so here we go,

1.the japanese wooden lamp (did i mention it has the most perfect 'made in japan' stamp on the bottom) was $3.75, quite frankly i would have paid a lot more.. i put this lamp amongst some of my favorite things, heck i think it rides right up there next to mabel
2. the retro vintage fabric, one piece was 2 yards long and one was just under 2 yards. i paid $18 a piece, (yes that is correct "a piece") the vendor would not bargain and as the fabric was in prestine condition and the pattern perfect i went for it
3. the metal side table was $24, it fits perfectly in the space and once i got it home i was so glad i didn't pass it up
4. i also bought a 'vogue pattern' for $4 (i thought this a little pricey) could be wrong though
5. a linen tablecloth, with beautiful cut work and embroidered flowers, this was $22 which i thought was high as it had bad staining on it. however i planned to use it for the curtains in the studio, it was the right size so i went for it
6. crocheted tablecloth, no great age but in good clean condition, $15

there you have it, thought it might be interesting for you to 'cost' and 'compare' a little bit of thrifting...just one last thing before we go our seperate ways for today, you must excuse all 'spelling' forever and ever, or at least until i tell you..my 'spellcheck' is not liking me and refusing to co-operate...

she's working on her curtains and is very very happy with the outcome ~ Tif

20 comments:

Francesca said...

you are a thrifting genius. i love your lamp and your side table. don't you just love it when everything goes so swimmingly.

Anonymous said...

The prices on fabric definitely do seem to be lower here on the East coast. I'm in New York City and I can always find pretty old fabric at thrift stores and flea markets for under $10, often more like $3 ot $4. Furniture and lamps however are always much more. What a strange world. :) Your lamp is divine!

dottie angel said...

Fran, 'swimmingly' just about sums up how i feel about my little finds and my curtain making today...

jennifer, thanks for the info...that is just what i thought, picking up linens here at a price where you can then make something and then sell it on is proving quite tricky...lamps are expensive here as well (accept my "where have you been all my life little lamp"...anything that looks remotely 'midcentury modern' immediately has a 'hefty' price tag slapped on it...

dottie angel said...

did i mean 'accept'...no i did not, i meant 'except'...silly me,
oooh and i think i missed one of these ) as well...

Gigibird said...

What I want to know is how you get away with bringing home what is quite simply girly fripperies?

My husband would probably barricade himself in (as long as the fridge was well stocked) and not let me enter the house if I had a geisha lamp under one arm and an old record stand under the other.

Anonymous said...

gosh, i love every single thing you found!!

the lamp is a great find and that table with your craft books tucked underneath is definitely on my list now!!

i found a tiny lamp,falling apart at thrift store this weekend..$40....then a found a pink wool blanket with holes everywhere for $20 ...i ended leaving with just a used cookbook...but i'll never stop searching..it's so fun!

thanks for sharing your treats with us..

x laura

Anonymous said...

A record stand AND that lamp...
*faints*

Lucky you!

~ Junkyard Jennifer said...

Wow, Tif, great finds! I love that little table, or record stand, as some have noted. Who'd have guessed?! :) And, that lamp, fabric, and crocheted table cloth! Awesome. I always love it, too, when fellow junkers note prices on their thrifted finds. It's fun to see the bargains they make, and the prices they pay. I'm so amazed at how differently things can be priced throughout the country!

And, I love the tea cozy from the previous post. It has your mark all over it! :)

KELLY said...

i love everything you got! but especially the fabric + stand. the charity shops around here have little to offer these days so a lot of rummaging + a bit of luck is needed to find special things. what a buzz you do get though when you find that gem. i have a great button source from a shop that doesn't put prices on things...the old ladies there pick a number at random! i tend to go on a wednesday when the grumpy woman isn't about...she always goes higher (don't think she likes me!)

Tracy x said...

lovely loot!
like you i will pay what i consider overpriced if i simply love it x

my spelling helper is out of action as well - not good for me at all!
t x

debbie said...

super duper record stand. I LOVE it. can you feel my envy?

Inka said...

Oh my what lovely finds you got! The table is just beautiful, not to mention the lamp :) Lucky you!
Here in Finland the prices in fleamarkets etc. have really gone through the roof. It seems that people think that any old junk that they themselves don't like anymore, is considered 'vintage' or even 'antique' and they can ask ridicilously high prices of them. Arabia china or Marimekko fabrics (which both after all are really common here) hardly ever go under 5-10€. More likely the price tag reads something 15-25€ or even more. So those few times one makes good finds, it really feels amazing! :)

Sarah and Jack said...

What a great use for the old record table, love it.

P.S. Blogger spellcheck is broken, and has been for awhile now. They claim to be fixing it. LOL

Asti said...

What a great haul! Bizarrely I've just finished writing my post for tomorrow regarding my latest 'finds' (promise I didn't see yours first !). I've gone more basic - wool and cups etc. I find that some shops seem to charge more than others. I prefer the more grimy, jumble sale atmosphere ones, they tend to be cheaper and you can have a good rummage. We've got some 'posh' ones too but they seem not to put out the 'tat' (vintage beauties to you and me !) and charge an arm and a leg.
Still it's the thrill of the hunt isn't it ?....

Lisa said...

Please email me your address.

If at some time in the future you come home to find your fabric, table and lamp missing, rest assured it wasn't me (armed with your address!) :0

Love, love, love your finds!

Anonymous said...

In my bit of the UK doileys, tablecloths and 'old fashioned' bits of stuff are seen as a nuisance and are just charged by the bag as a rule. I had a poke through the slips and underskirt box this morning and found several soft, ribbon-threaded 'old lady' vests as well as spotting a couple of 60's panel girdles (in their original boxes) - all going for 50p each. Fabric doesn't turn up very often (home dressmaking is pretty much dead here) - however - unbelievably, I picked up a 1890s Singer hand-crank sewing machine in it's original wooden box cover about a fortnight since for £10.
I think I used up thrift-karma for a good while on that one! The only thing you need to be is quick - the charity shops depend on fast turn over so they are constantly rotating stock.

Well done on your swag!

Anita said...

Amazing!! I LOVE the lamp, and the table is gorgeous! I'm so jealous! :)

dottie angel said...

ladies, thank you for sharing your 'thrifty thoughts'...i think we all agree on one thing here, if you love it, you can't live without it then you grab it and just pay the price...

The Stuffed Squirrel said...

The lamp is made from a Kokeshi doll. I bought bunches of them when I went to Japan recently. I saw tons of vintage ones like your lamp. They can be very valuable.

Diane said...

That Japanese lamp is so YOU! I haven't visited you for quite a while. Glad to hear that the house transactions are complete. Hope Mossy Shed is all you dreamed it would be.