Vintage Chicks

Fabulous Fifties

This weeks junking has brought me a lot of fifties style items, all of which come with a truck load of child hood memories.  I always buy these metal ice trays because they are really good sellers.  I do have a slight aversion to them because when I was seven I decided to stick my tongue on one and found myself stuck,just like the kid in "Christmas Story."  I refuse to use them at home but I do feel proud when I can connect them to someone who has good memories of this particular product.  I love the color of the turquoise reamer.  It would really add some POW to a dull kitchen.I also found these burlap tiki glasses.  My best friend in grade school was Lori Dolittle and her Mom served us plenty of after school snacks in this style of glass. My favorite color was the dark pink salmon color and that was the glass that I always chose for myself. This cannister duo is a much darker yellow than the picture shows.  They are actually quite charming and would have fit right in with my Mothers kitchen at that time. I also found this unique pitcher.  My research tells me it was premium gift given to customers by an oil company in Arizona.  It is frosted glass with great graphics of cactus on the sides.  I have developed a love for pitchers this Summer.  I keep buying them and now I have more than I could ever possibly need.  I think it is because they are nostalgic.  People don't seem to use them for serving much anymore.  You are more likely to see an array of cold beverages served in a tub of ice.  Those aluminum cans just don't compare to a frosty pitcher of  punch served ice cold with just the right amount of condensation running down the sides.  I hope I haven't shown my age too much but at a certain point you just have to give in and embrace it.  Have a groovy weekend. 

Junk Vs. Antiques

Last week while we were out junking, Linda and I found this sign and had to buy it.  We got such a kick out of it because we are constantly annoying some of our fellow dealers because we call our wares "Junk."  I am a huge believer in total disclosure.  I try to never misrepresent what we sell and I am always truthful about where we got something or how old it is.  I don't sell antiques.  I sell junk.  I may call them vintage collectibles, but the bottom line is.......they are not a hundred years old and in no way are they true antiques.  I admire those well established experts who do actually sell fine antiques but it is a pretty safe bet that most people who sell collectibles are really selling old, used merchandise.  It shouldn't make us love it any less but why be such a snob about what it really is. I love anything old and rusty and often times it is the nostalgia of a piece that I enjoy the most, not it's pedigree.  My customers usually connect with an item because it reminds them of a person or place that made them happy.  Really, shouldn't that be the real value of a wonderful piece of junk?

Gorgeous Green Beans

This time of year I think there is a certain sense of urgency in the air.  We all know that Summer won't last forever and we try to cram in all the August goodness we can find.  Last minute vacations and lots of great fresh foods are a must.  These green beans are out of my garden and I am planning on cooking them with some bacon and diving in. I am going to eat as much fresh produce as I can stand because I know it will be a long Winter of canned tomatoes and frozen limp veggies.  Another of my favorite things about the last part of Summer is the sound of the crop duster in the early morning.  A local man has a wonderful bright yellow bi-plane that he uses to spray the farmer's fields.  While I am not a big advocate for all the chemicals I certainly would miss the roar and the whoosh of the plane as it flies overhead if the practice were discontinued.  I am headed outside to dead head my flowers and enjoy the rest of my day before it suddenly disappears to make way for the cooler days of Autumn.

Baby Teeth

I love the graphics on this sweet little box.  I found it the other day while I was out thrifting.  It was a rather lean day until I stumbled across this.  It is in really great condition and what I found inside was definitely one of the weirder things I have run across lately.....Have I peaked your interest?  A tiny little set of fake baby teeth.  This must have been the equivalent of a gag gift for a baby shower.  Someone liked this so much that they kept it in pristine condition for sixty years. I have several other little boxes like this but when I got them they were empty.  I am intrigued to know what other little oddities might have been in them.  A fake toupee for the hairless baby or maybe it's better not to speculate!