the thrill of a good estate sale

old metal tonka pickup truck... they just don't make them like they used to

got a whole book of these!  lots of styles... so adorable!

got a whole set of these plates... about 14 large plates, a bunch of bowls, smaller plates, and 2 serving plates

this may have been a mistake... but ET is so cute

shari lewis puppets from 1960

these old school graphics are classic... now the question is... should rowan be allowed to use this?

i ♥ vintage jewelery

isn't the plate pretty too?

a warty nose... just what every girl needs

punch time!

i like the design on the frame

for my next ball

such a great fit!

you don't want to know what marty said when he saw this

apparently this thing is worth a lot of money... no i'm not kidding

i just sanded this... bummer... should have taken a "before" pic, still need to finish the job but isn't it so cute?

LOVE this gold frame!  too bad ami knocked it over 2 seconds after i brought it in... a lot broke off sadly!

i must say that i do love a good estate sale.  my first experience was when we lived in seattle.  i wasn't working and we had just  moved into our first apartment together.  we needed stuff.  i saw that there was an estate sale up in lynnwood, wa... an elderly woman...a collector... lots of stuff to clear out of her house.  so... i went.

it was interesting... a company had been brought in to help run the sale... people who were there to make money off of someone else's life possessions... seemed a little spooky.  i guess there is no other great way to clear out a house other that to donate it all.  anyway... this older woman was a collector and had lots of nic naks.  i remember buying a buddha shaped candle, a wooden lamp with a squirrel carved into it, a butter yellow chenille coverlet, a turtle plantar, and a family of 4 resin fish that i personally pried off the bathroom wall... not easy considering they were probably there for longer than i was alive.  i was quite happy with the fun experience of scavenging for treasure and of course... getting a good deal.

anyway, fast forward 10 years and 2 kids later... i still love the thrill of the hunt.  saw signs for a local estate sale starting at 8am yesterday morning... decided to check it out.  i got there right at 8am... there was a line forming at the door.... seriously.... don't people have better things to do on a beautiful saturday morning?  i started looking at the yard sale-like set up on the lawn... immediately saw ET figurines from the 80's... ah... how i love ET!  scooped them up.  kept looking... saw some cool wood frames... some good plates, went inside the house.  that dingy smell of old stuff... you know... the smell of any antique shop immediately greeted me as i walked inside.  walked to the left and entered the dining room... some antique china...not my style... the old wood table and sideboard... not interested.  then made my way over to the "sitting room" where there were random pbjects placed on tables along the perimeter of the room.  i saw old metal toy cars with paint peeling off, saw lots of old silver trays and dishes, and more random nic naks.  saw some 1960 tarcher puppets (shari lewis) that looked very special... put them in my box.  also saw a cool old plastic boys mug with old school superhero graphics...YES!  total find!  saw an orange retro blendo bowl...very nice... so that went in the box too.  found some old black leather gloves like women wore in the times of gone with the wind... some kitchy old paper valentines for kids to give one another in school... and some random giraffe troll.  i also found a vintage zippy (from howdy doody)... scary buy cute.  my favorite find was a vintage school desk... which i have always wanted.

what do you think?  let me know what you like.

this is what the giraffe troll went for on ebay