Merry Christmas

I wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! I will have some great pictures to share with you of the treasures my sister found for my husband and me once I get our camera back from Nikon's repair shop.

Things for Free

Okay, so the first year my sister and I went to the Antique & Collectibles Show, she (my sister) got handed a Bauer bowl for free from a dealer because it had a hairline crack and was not priced. She jokingly asked if it was "Free today" because there was no price and the dealer said "Sure". I was absolutely floored! I could not believe that she was just handed a Bauer bowl for free. Ever since then, that is our standard line when something is not price in a booth, estate sale, garage sale, etc. You just never know.

The list of things that my sister has gotten over the years for free is large. The only ones I can think of right now are her three vehicles. Yes, I wrote THREE! The first one was her first car, a 1969 Chevy Malibu from our Grandfather when he past away too early. I know that she would have given that one back to have Grandpa back. The second one was her current everyday car, a 2000 Toyota Camry from our Grandmother (other side of the family) who decided to stop driving at the age of 93 and my sister was in need of a new car on a teacher's salary. It just made sense for her to get it. The last one was her current "hauling" vehicle. A 1980 Toyota 4x4 from our father. He had been using the vehicle as his everyday driver around his small town. He bought his friend's 1994 Toyota 4x4 (it has A/C) and decided to give the old one to my sister so that she would have something to pick up treasures in and do yard work at her house with. Now I know that for ten years I got to drive new Toyota vehicles for free, but I get the next family hand me down. And it best not be the 1966 Chevy Cab and Chassy Camper from my Grandparents cross country adventures.

Below is her lastest free thing. The day before Thanksgiving, she and I went shopping at some second hand stores and Goodwill. I found a great dresser for my project room and we went around to the pick-up/donations doors of the Goodwill to get it. As we were waitng for help a couple drove up to make a donation and pulled this chandelier from their car. My sister went skipping up to them and offered to buy it rather than have them donate it. The wife said "20 bucks" and the husband said he "had a better idea, they were there to get rid of it, how about free." The wife handed it to my sister and said Merry Christmas. For those of you who may not know (I certainly didn't), this could easily sell in an antique store for $200+!

I swear, the things she gets for free!

Splendid Finds

So I have not been the best at posting things in a timely manner to this site. I am sorry. I don't know that anyone even has noticed since I don't have but two followers (and one it me).

Anyway, here is what I got at an estate sale in Washougal at the beginning of November.


This is a Weller pot that has two hairline cracks in it, but otherwise is very nice and I can't wait to put it to good use. I plan to place a pot with saucer inside it rather than plant directly in it. Oh yeah, I paid $4.00 for this treasure!

As you can see, this is a Hull ceramic pot that I got for $8.00! I love the color and it fits well in my dining room on an end table.

This is a McCoy vase that I got for $12.00! I am kicking myself because there were many more there for $12.00 to $18.00 and I helped a dealer collect three rather than grab them for myself. I didn't realize the going price for them in the collecting world and what a great deal they were at the sale. I am really missing a white matted one I handed to the dealer (Dean) that was just gorgeous. I need to learn to put things in my basket and then add up the prices and determine what I really want once the frenzy has pasted. Once again, I am learning!

I did get one more vase, but forgot to take a picture before I wrapped it up for my sister for Christmas. It was a blue matted Bauer vase about six inches tall that I got for $8.00.

I am also kicking myself over a Redwing vase that was there for $4.00. It was priced so low because it had two large cracks in it. But it would have still looked great in my living room. I really have to stop hesitating! My sister is going to kill me one of these days over the things I pass up.

Christmas Village Find

A few weeks ago I went to an Estate Sale down the road from my house. I wasn't sure that I would find anything since there was already a sale at this same house a few months earlier. But what the heck, why not look.

What I found was rather surprising. I found the pictured Christmas Village pieces for $3.00 each. What was surprising is that after doing some research, they appear to be Department 56 pieces. The village name is Mickey's Village. I have the complete Disney Village from Department 56 and was under the assumption that there were no other Disney/Mickey pieces since Disney and Department 56 had a falling out in 1998. To my amazement, they are back to making a village related to Mickey/Disney. This could turn out bad for me since I have a problem with needing to have the complete set of things and I only just found out about this village. Whether I find out when it started and how many pieces there are or not, I got a good buy and I can use them with my older Disney Village. Christmas at my house will be quite festive this year.

I also found these three plates for my sister for $5.00. They are ironstone plates in a really cool shape. I have seen this pattern only one other time at a friend's booth at the Expo show. http://kindredroses.blogspot.com/ They will make a great stocking stuffer.

Treasures from the past month or so!

I have found some good treasures in the past two months. Some for myself, some for others, some for the yard and some in the way of people! Here there are:


Last month I traveled to California for my 20th High School Reunion. While I was there, my sister, father and I went to an estate sale that turned out to be that of my first grade teacher who had pasted away in 2008. I found this cute little beaded purse that I took with me for the reunion dinner. More sentimental than anything being my first grade teacher's.

This threesome was my very first purchase at an auction at the beginning of this month. It is a gift for my sister who collects ironstone pieces. The two creamers are USA and the sugar is England. I am hoping she hasn't found the time to read my blog and give away the Christmas surprise. There were many other wonderful treasures at the auction, I was simply overwhelmed with the items and really don't know yet what a good deal is. I am learning quickly though which will help for the next auction on November 14th!

I also met a wonderful collector/dealer (http://kindredroses.blogspot.com/) who helped me a lot with both items and telling me who in the crowd was a dealer or collector.

This pretty little maple was our next purchase at a nursery auction the following Saturday. (Kindredroses was there too and got some great wired tree baskets). We also got one Burning Bush for the back yard. We (Mark & I) should have visited a nursery beforehand to check prices because there were a lot of good deals being had that we were not aware of. Again, learning as I go!

The following week I hit several estate/garage sales. I found a butter crock (has some cracks and breakage that was repaired) and a shoe box of silverplate at one sale. Some old Hop Along Cassidy books and a jewelry box at another. And Conor (my soon to be three year old) found a Radio Flyer wagon at the last one.

This past weekend was the Antique/Collector's Show at the Portland Expo. I did get to go, but I only went to sell the box of silverplate I got the week before. I didn't sell the whole box, but did get my investment back plus a little for future treasure hunts.

Friday of Fun

Yesterday was my birthday and my hubby took the day off of work, so I got to go Estate/Garage Saling all by myself. It was a blast! I found many treasures and great deals. I had mapped out about seven sales in the paper and found more along the way.

My first stop was at a moving sale where I found a plant stand for the patio and two hard cover books for five dollars total. The second stop was not open even though the ad stated they would be. Very frustrating and inconsiderate! The third stop had nice things, but nothing that interested me. The fourth stop was the payday! I found a great vintage purse that was made in Italy for six dollars, a set of candlestick holders for fifty cents, a depression glass dish (Fire King) for two dollars, a DVD movie for two dollars, Mr. Potato Head with two zip lock bags full of accessories for two dollars, and the greatest find was the Thomas the Train pieces for fifty cents each. I found Cranky the Crane, the Sodor Airport tower, a bridge, two engines, two coaches, Bertie the Bus, Sir Topman Hat and a stop signal. When I paid for everything, the lady did not charge me for the smaller pieces of the Thomas items so I ended up paying $13.50 for the whole lot. What fun.

I plan on using the Thomas the Train items as rewards for potty training which I have started with my two year old son. You have to love bribery.

I stopped at a few more sales before my last find of a walking golf bag cart for, are you ready for this, one dollar!! The cheapest I have ever seen these for in the past as been ten dollars. I was quite proud and giddy with myself walking away with cart in tow.

All in all, I spent $19.50 and brought home many fun, useful treasures. Not a bad birthday!

How it All Started

I have to give credit to my sister who has been going to Estate/Garage sales for many, many years! She has found so many treasures over the years (even her house is an estate sale find) that she just makes it contagious. I could go on and on telling you of all her finds. She has a gift.

Each year since 2002 she has come to my house for the summer Antique & Collectibles Show. We have missed only three years in the past eight. She comes up a day or two early so that we can go to estate/garage sales throughout the area first.

It is the highlight of my summer. I always look forward to that weekend in July when I know my sister will be coming up to treasure hunt with me.

The Beginning

I have been to garage sales before. I have even held two, but it wasn't until recently that I really caught the bug. It was right after I made $113.00 going to one. I bought a box of silver plated silverware that matched my grandmother's set that I now own. My intent was to keep it because my sister and I thought it was the dinner set and that my grandmother's was the luncheon set. Well, as luck would have it, it was the set I already had twelve place settings for so what would I do with eight more? We were headed to the Antique & Collectibles Show two days later, so my sister suggested that I take it with and try to sell it to a silver dealer. Well, that is exactly what I did. I paid $10.00 for a shoebox with 55 pieces in it. I kept nine ice tea spoons and one master butter knife. Traded the two serving spoons and two teaspoons out of my set and sold 41 pieces at $3.00 each to a dealer. I was bitten!