A Whole Lot of Bambi

I found a bag of tiny fawns for a quarter. I've been playing with them ever since I took them out of the sealed bag and removed their attached wires. I must find homes for them amongst my Christmas stuff.

I know they are nothing special, but they sure are cute!

Oh, and the gray wool they are sitting on? It's about the size of a small scarf and cost 25 cents also.

I've got a doll that needs new shoes, and gray wool should look lovely with her cashmere dress...

Vintage Toy Find

I've yet to go to a mall this holiday season. I DO have to pick up a couple of gifts sometime before Christmas, but Saturday was not the day for that.

Two stores were all I could handle. One was Mynard's which had Christmas decor for 50% off.

The other was my favorite Thrift Store, where I found this Fisher Price Little Snoopy from 1965.

It cost one dollar.

I've pulled him through the house a few times already, but I think THGGM is questioning my sanity more and more each time I return from thrift shopping.

Anyway, I think he's cute. He has a charming 'squeaker' which still works (little snoopy, that is).

Fantastic Find for Famke

Saturday I made it to my favorite thrift stores, hoping to find something, anything, vintage.

I found two sets of dishes, but not quite in my $5.00 budget.

I did find this sweet little gingerbread girl outfit in Famke's size.

I didn't notice until today when I showed it to Daughter that it was new! The tag was still attached with the $20.00 price tag! That made me even happier, as I paid less than $2.00 for it.

Now, if only Famke had liked it!

She spilled a tiny cup of water all down the front of the cute little clothes she was wearing. Since it is insufferably cold here today, I quickly changed her into this.

I'm think she thought I was putting pajamas on her. She kept pulling at the sleeve saying "NO! NO! NO!"

Actually, she was probably thinking that she does not plan to spend the rest of her childhood wearing weird things her grandma finds at thrift stores. Should I tell her I saved the gingerbread cookie earrings that her mommy used to wear? Probably not. I'll save that for another year.

Over My Pink Toilet

Today I went to my favorite thrift store AND my favorite antique store. My favorite finds were these three tiny bottle brush trees.

I'd recently been looking through a Christmas book that showed the small trees in tiny tea cups and I thought..,HEY!

So, for just a few bucks I was able to spruce up the chippy white shelf over my pink toilet. (hmmm. 'over my pink toilet'. i believe i could use that phrase from time to time in a delightfully humorous way...)

I set the Sugar Plum Fairy in there too, just because she is the correct shade of pink, and her tree hanger broke off from the top of her head (and i think i have problems...).

JOY

Let's see. There is a lot of thrifted stuff in this picture.

First, the piano. Free. It was even delivered for free. And, as THGGM tells it, it will NEVER leave this spot. It's terribly out of tune, but then, so am I. Me and my piano get along fabulously.

I found a great copy of Handel's Messiah for 25 cents. The Little Golden books were the same price, even though one of them is a first edition.

The candelabras were antique store finds and great bargains. I have several others. I would not dare light candles in them (thggm would, but not me) so I have placed Christmas balls in them. They reflect the light nicely.

The colored swags flung haphazardly on top of the piano were clearance finds at a great little store in Sutton's Bay. Yes, even on our May trip I was thinking 'Christmas'.

The three pictures are from an old hymn book. I stippled them with brown ink to get an even more aged look (no. i don't stipple myself. my aged look is natural.) The frames were a set of four that THGGM found and painted black. The mats were 90% off after Christmas one year.

I did pay full price for the letters. 99 cents each and painted black. They are just stuck to the glass with double-sided tape.

Just this week THGGM finally nailed the pictures to the wall. I guess this means they are staying there, too.

Weird. Just Weird.

THGGM likes this. He is the one who arranged it here, on a bookcase in our hallway.

The door is a french door from our last home.

The rest of the stuff is all thrifted. All of it.

Well, except for the branches.

Those were picked up on the front lawn, blown off the magnolia tree. I love the shape of magnolia branches.

The leaves are twisted bits of crape paper.

I'm not exactly sure just what it is he likes about it. To me, it does not say 'Christmas'. And, he doesn't usually like the things I make.

Hmmm. Weird.

Simply Decorating

Another simple decoupage project.

One thrifted box, one page from a thrifted Mary Englebreit book.

All I added was the glue.

I set this on the floor in the kitchen yesterday, and Jonge found it right away.

I'm attempting to decorate 'kid friendly' this year.

A Vignette, by Judy

I noticed while at my sister and brother-in-law's home on Thanksgiving Day that she had lights on top of her kitchen cupboards.

That gave me an idea.

My kitchen cupboards have no tops (yet) but this hutch in our dining room was calling out for.., well.., something.

And, I like the final (final, as in so far) results!

I bought the little cardboard houses at Michael's Craft Store. Every time I went I bought one. This made the cost SEEM minimal. They were $1.99 a piece. At first I was going to make my own houses, but learned after several failed attempts that $1.99 IS a fair price. Trust me. And, as a side note, it is harder than one would think to get the milky smell out of those cardboard creamer containers. Anyway...I was going to paint these houses white and sprinkle them with glass glitter, but, I think they look just fine plain, so unless I suddenly get a large amount of complaints about why I have plain old cardboard houses on the top of my hutch, I shall leave well enough alone. That, my friends, is something that I rarely do, so go ahead and savor the moment.

Everything else visible in the above picture came from either a clearance sale, a thrift store or was a great deal at an antique mall.

The cake plates are all thrift. The end two are made from candle sticks and small plates. I have glass cake plates all over my house. Once I get an idea in my head.., okay, now where was I? Oh, yes.

The hutch was a great find at one of our favorite antique malls. I am amazed at how much this thing holds.

The tinsel came from the thrift store.

The lights were after Christmas clearance bought for Daughter's wedding nearly five years ago.

The three glass covers I picked up for .99 cents at the thrift store. They are very heavy and were intended to cover a cheese plate.

And, see that Precious Moments nativity? It's the very large one. It was a gift. Won at a Christmas party many many years ago.

The tree top finials I found after Christmas last year. They were also on clearance. I snapped up all four of them and leave them out all year round. Full price, the four of them would have cost $80, I paid $8 for all of them.

I'm rather pleased with how this looks. But, as always, I am open to suggestions.

Tonight is our family's St. Nicholas Day party. We shall be feasting in front of this arrangement. Although, I quite possible will have to draw attention to it myself or else it may well go unnoticed.

Thrifted Christmas Decorations

These guys were found in thrift stores years apart.

The bottle brush tree (one of three) I found for 49 cents.

I'm not sure why, but this makes me happy. Although I do not ski.

Presently I am trying to work them into a vignette on my mantle.