Fast forward ➡️

It’s been too long.

Looking back at my previous posts, I realise how simple my life was that I had enough time for thrifting.  Around the time I stopped blogging, we bought a block of land and set on the long, tedious journey of selling then building. Just last year we moved into our new place and nearly a year later since then, I have finally gone on my first thrifting adventure.

It’s exciting, discovering new stores, mapping out the most efficient routes in order to tackle the most stores in one trip and bookmarking favourites. The trigger for my reignited love for vintage is that after 28 years, my parents are selling the family home. So treasures that I never knew my mom had have resurfaced. Bohemian crystal wine glasses, cake stands and bowls, Pyrex and bakeware have finally seen the sunlight again and are enjoying a new lease on life in my new kitchen.

Time waits for no one and though this is an emotional time for me, onward we go. At least we always have our memories. So I hope that my thrifting means that life is stabilising again, that I can take a step back and enjoy life. Stable is good.

Friday Finds #5

This week I had a couple of study days. It’s great to get back into the classroom and learn new things outside the usual work routine. It can be easy to slip into a state of complacency, but further education is a must, especially in the medical field.

I dropped by my local Red Cross thrift store this week. It’s one of those old school stores, staffed with lady volunteers who sit behind the counter drinking cups of tea while knitting baby booties. I had a quick browse, spotted a tea light holder that said, “DREAM” and then left the shop. I walked half way down the road then turned around and went back into the shop to buy the candle holder. Has this ever happened to you?

Made in India, $2.

If you really feel you want it, get it or you’ll regret it! I have a thing for typography, and I just might start collecting words and numbers. I already have a wooden “laugh” (from Spotlight) and a giant red ampersand (only $5 from my favourite non-thrift store, Typo).

Anyway, back to thrifting, I bought 2 Holly Hobbie “Country Living” pieces to go with the cup and saucer I mentioned in Friday Finds #2 . I think they are the milk jug and sugar bowl, but correct me if I’m wrong. I’ve only recently discovered Hollie Hobbie, so I need to do more research. The girls love them and hope to put together a set for them to play with. “Thankful hearts make every meal a feast”.

I bought this AM radio from Vinnies, it needs a bit of a clean. I love the flip clock and the gentle yellow back light but it’s the sound that so nostalgic. The crackly sound of classical music on an AM radio, is there anything better?

To add to my growing collection of platters, here’s a small platter by Myott Ironstone, Staffordshire, England.

I also found a 3 piece children’s breakfast set. So sweet and fun.

Dream & achieve!

Sarah

Linking to Her Library Adventures this week!

Friday Finds #4

I’ve noticed contestants on The Block are renovating and decorating with thrifted and vintage items. Does this mean a further thrift store hike in prices? Boohoo. The clothing and kitchen ware prices are creeping up the last thing I want are the furniture to do the same!

Here are my finds for the week:

Hand-painted plate made in Japan $1. I have a thing for Japanese ceramics, architecture, design…and food actually. Japanese culture fascinates me 🙂 Anyway I love the quirkiness of this plate, they do European streetscapes often which is funny.

I also picked up the red enamel tea-pot for $2.50. It’s lovely and heavy, can’t wait to use it on our next camping trip. At the moment, we have one of those thin stainless steel whistling kettles.

On the left is my collection of Japanese stacking mugs with a couple new additions. I’ve only ever spent 20c – $1 on them. Each have their own unique design, but they all stack into one another. I’ve come across some which were made in China so it’s always important to check the bottom. The China ones tend to be heavier and clumsy, lacking the detail of their Japanese counterparts.

JAJ platter bought for $3. I can’t get enough of platters, this one is cheery I love the design don’t know what it’s called though.

I also have a couple of lidless casseroles which will be for daily use. The bottom one is JAJ “Chelsea” I believe, bought for $2. I like the swirly bursts of blue and grey.

The top one is a Crown piece bought for $3. It’s the opposite of my Japanese plate I mentioned earlier. This English piece has a picture of what looks like an Asian countryside scene.

Now for treasures I spotted but left at the thrift store:

Sweet girl with ducks statue, Japan. Two reasons I didn’t buy it, firstly, it was broken then repaired. Secondly, if I start buying cute vintage Japanese statues or dust collectors (as my Mom calls them) then I won’t stop.

Duck egg blue Pyrex bowl. Too pricey.

Vintage playing cards. I’m not a cat person.

Taking photos of things that catch my eye but I don’t really want is great because I can still admire the design of the items without having spent $ or feeling regret that I bought it without needing or wanting it!

Have a happy day 🙂

Sarah.

Thanks to Late Night Coffee for featuring 2ndSarah in Thrifting Blog Digest #27, drop by and check them out to link up with other thrifters on the net!

Linking to Her Library Adventures this week.

Friday Finds #3 & A Thrifting Lesson

A couple of weeks ago, we drove up to Brookvale to take care of some business. We visited both Vinnies and Salvos.

Brookvale Vinnies is a large and spacious store where you can find almost anything.

Particularly impressing is the range of books, DVDs and music media. The clothing section is one of the most picked over that I have visited in Sydney. I think you’d be hard pressed to find a vintage treasure there. They also have a large bric-à-brac section, but the lack of prices is off-putting for me. We walked away with a bunch of kids books at $1 each.

Feeling disheartened, I figured, “Hey, we drove all this way, might as well check out Salvos.

While hubby and the kids browsed the games and DVD section, I gravitated to the bric-à-brac and kitchenalia.

With a large eclectic range of neatly displayed items I didn’t know where to look first. The high prices stopped me though, so I was content on looking. Hubby found the boxes of games/craft that I mentioned in Friday Finds #1. The last section I visited was stocked with Tupperware (I can’t believe what stores are charging for bits of plastic!) and some Pyrex pieces.

For the first time I spotted 2 large Butterfly Gold mixing bowls (I didn’t take a picture of them). They were in not too bad condition and I was excited to add one or both to my collection. They were originally priced at $18 each but then were repriced with a $9 sticker on top of the original tag. My thoughts went back and forth, was I willing to fork out $9 for a so so Pyrex? Was I ever going to find one like this again? With doubt and against my instincts, I picked the most decent looking one of the two and made my way to the cashier. A young man put through my purchases and when he came to the Pyrex bowl, he peeled off the sticker and said, “This is $18 not $9”. In disbelief, I told him that I would not take it. I felt he was implying that I somehow put the $9 sticker on the bowl so I told him that there was another bowl on the shelf with the same sticker so he better peel it off too. Needless to say I left the store shaking my head and feeling very bitter but also somewhat relieved.

If it’s meant to be, then it’s meant to be.

Fast forward to today, my mom and I swung by one of my favourite thrift stores and I found these waiting for me.

Hello 401 & 403 Butterfly Gold mixing bowls in excellent almost never used condition! The small one was $5 and the large $7! I was seriously so stoked 🙂

Lesson learnt, when you feel hesitant or even an ounce of a maybe – just walk away. It’s better to continue to hunt than feeling ripped off and the worst – thrifter’s remorse!

This week I also picked up an embroidered table-cloth for 50c,

And a cozy Sweater Loft sweater for $3.

I love the design, the chunky wood buttons and it’s perfect for this gloomy weather we’re experiencing in Sydney. It reminds me of those holiday sweaters I see in American movies 🙂 The colours are very now – mustard yellow, dark red, teal. Did I mention that it’s 100% cotton? Bliss! I looked up Sweater Loft NYC but it seems that they’ve closed down.

Linking to Apron Thrift Girl and Her Library Adventures this week.

Stay warm!

Sarah

Friday Finds #2

I didn’t have much time for thrifting this week but I did squeeze in a visit to Vinnies while waiting to see the Hunger Games with my cousin, Rhee.

I picked up a sweet Holly Hobbie cup and saucer, Enjoy life, it’s delicious! We all need some positivity in our lives 🙂 It’s pictured with a Glasbake mug I found a couple of weeks ago, Holly Hobbiesque, with another sweet message.

I also found a JAJ platter, I havent come across this rose pattern before, only the red ones. You can’t have enough serving platters.

Onto this funny looking dish:

I didn’t know what this platter was for when I bought it. I thought it might be for serving fish 🙂 I bought another along my travels, still unaware of its purpose. It was only yesterday when I can across a tree and well platter that I found out it’s purpose. Both mine are Anchor Hocking, in excellent condition and bought for only a couple of dollars. So I wonder if people just didn’t use them or didn’t know what they were for.

These last two are also Anchor Hocking pieces, the top one is one of the first pieces I bought and I used it daily. I stopped using it a few years ago when I noticed the design began to fade.

Linking to Apron Thrift Girl this week 🙂

Have a thrifty day!

Sarah

Party: “Colour My World” themed baby shower.

My cousin, Anne and her husband are expecting their first baby next month.  A couple of weeks ago we celebrated the impending birth with a baby shower.  As the gender of the baby will be a surprise, the parents-to-be decided on a rainbow, “Colour My World” theme.  It took a good month to plan as we all work full-time, but all the work paid off. Having chosen to hold the shower at a park, we had fingers crossed for no rain and we were blessed with perfect bbq weather.

Antipasto and homemade beetroot dip. To make the food labels, my husband cut up pieces of scrap ply and I painted them with chalkboard paint.  Viola! Reusable mini chalkboards. This was a good idea as some people were vegetarian or were unfamiliar with some of the dishes.

 

Just a small selection of the food, guests brought along a dish to share.  Here we have some egg salad, dim sims, greek salad and baked macaroni. Photo by Auntie R.

I made rainbow jelly cups which sadly softened in the hot weather. Photo by Uncle T.

For something different, cookies and milk for dessert.

Ready to pop: Hand-stamped paper bags filled with caramel pecan popcorn.

Giveaways were tiny baby bottles filled with Jelly Belly jelly beans.

Colourful tins filled with jellybeans and giant swirly lollipops dotted around the picnic tables.

There was a “Graffiti My Baby” station where guests wrote advice and messages on handmade paper onesies, and then displayed on a “clothesline”. Photo by Auntie R.

Finally, I made rainbow tie-dyed cupcakes with fluffy cloud icing and a gummy rainbow topper.

There’s no denying the cheerful effect rainbows have on the soul, you can’t look at one and not smile.  The perfect theme for a joyful baby shower 🙂

Hope you spot a rainbow today!

Sarah.

Whatever Wednesday: Happy Harry’s

On the weekend we visited Harry’s Cafe de Wheels @ Woolloomooloo for their famous Harry’s ‘Tiger’ meat pie and Hotdog de Wheels. My little one chose the plain hotdog with ketchup and cheese sauce. I think it’s one of the best places to grab a good cheap feed in Sydney, and there’s the fantastic water views to match.

Harry’s Tiger & Plain hotdog with cheese and tomato sauce.

Hotdog de Wheels

Then the kids dragged us to Happy Lab @ Westfield Sydney where the staff dress up in lab coats and geeky glasses. A candy wonderland, Happy Lab sorts all their candies into colours and packs them in test tubes, beakers and all kinds of cute packaging. They also sell chocolate pops and blocks.  I smuggled my phone out and took only a few photos.

Mesmerised by the colour and variety, the girls were overwhelmed with choice. We ended up buying them one small treat each,  A chose a tiny jar of juicy apple gummies while C went for the orange happy strap.  I was impressed with the fit out of the store, utterly awesome yet such a simple concept which left me thinking, “Why didn’t I think of that?”.

Have a sweet day 🙂

Sarah.

I collect: Pyrex & Crown Ovenware

I started collecting ovenware 8 years ago, after blog surfing and coming across some blog posts about thrifted Pyrex.  I fell in love with the colours, designs and functionality of  the pieces.  Moreover, I didn’t have any baking, oven or serving ware in our newly acquired apartment so I was eager to start collecting.

 My first find was the large rectangular turquoise casserole in the photo below.  I found it at Burwood Vinnies, and anyone who visits that store knows how busy and over picked it is.  Passing by one day, I made my way to the kitchen ware section and high on the top shelf I spotted it. I had that rush, a rush that only a thrifter would know, it’s like striking gold.  Vintage Pyrex and other ovenware brands (in good condition) are pretty rare in Sydney, that’s why it’s so exciting to collect it.

Here’s part of my collection:

Clockwise from top right:

1. Pyrex Ovenware, medium-sized bowl
2. Agee Pyrex Australia, pie plate, PR-712
3. Agee Pyrex Australia, medium-sized casserole, CR-212-CU
4. Pyrex USA, 1 1/2 Quart divided casserole dish
5. Agee Pyrex Australia, large-sized casserole, COB-600-CU
6. Large unmarked milk glass bowl

  Close up of the patterns.

Clockwise from far right:

1. Phoenix Glass England, small casserole, Reg’d design no 972873
2. Small unmarked milk glass bowl, yellow diamond pattern
3. Pyrex USA, 442 – 1 1/2 qt mixing bowl
4. Anchor Hocking, Fire-king mug
5. Agee Pyrex Australia, casserole, CR 314-CU
6. Crown Ovenware England, casserole
7. Pyrex USA, 471 1 pt

Close up of the colours and patterns.

Clockwise from right:

1. Pyrex England, casserole
2. Pyrex, small snowflake dish
3. Crown Ovenware, casserole

Top to bottom:

1. Pyrex USA, 043 1 1/2 qt casserole
2. Agee Pyrex Australia, casserole, 0-CR300-CUThe black and blue casserole above is my most recent find this week.  I almost passed it up because it was so shiny that I thought it was a more modern piece from Target or Kmart!  Lucky I turned it over 🙂  My collection is small and mismatched but I treasure all of my pieces.  Most of them get their fair share of use but since breaking 4 pieces in the past (butterfingers!) I tend not to use these daily.  They store craft materials like buttons, papers, stickers etc. I have my lidless casseroles and serving platters that I use to serve food and they’ve held up well for the past 8 years and hopefully more to come 🙂

Sarah.

I’m linking to Her Library Adventures Flea Market Finds, check out what other’s have found this week!

To Market: Rozelle, NSW

Saturday was beautiful and sunny, perfect for flea market perusing.  Rozelle is one of our favourites, there’s something for everyone. With a red cross store across the road and Salvos and Vinnies within easy walking distance, the odds of finding a treasure are in your favour.

 So.  Much. Stuff.

The smallest cutest model kiosk with the tiniest of outdoor settings.  Sweet tin musical ice cream boy and Commonwealth Bank money tins. Can’t believe these are vintage, I was given one 20 years ago when I opened my kiddie account.

Vintage Oroton, back when the leather was good quality.  Battered and in poor condition.

Suitcases, pillows and rusty tins.

Old fan and a tin full of bangles.  Jingle jangle.

Bargain bin of toys and a 1930’s doll’s wardrobe. I not entirely convinced that this is 1930’s, but I’m not an expert.

Vintage china and a beautiful lamp.

 Tables and tables of oldwares and collectables.

Jewellery, coins and shells.

Teapots: Retro and Arts & Crafts

Chandelier parts and a vintage globe, “I come from the land down under..”

I didn’t end up buying anything, but we had a great time browsing.  Lunch was pad thai and satay chicken with rice, washed down with a coconut and pineapple sugarcane juice.  As much I enjoy visiting thrift stores, the mix of vintage and the great outdoors can’t be beat.

Rozelle Markets is at Rozelle School, 663 Darling St. Rozelle, NSW. It runs every Sat-Sun from 0900-1600.

Friday Finds #1

Oroton Italian leather handbag. Salvos $6.

 This is my favourite thrifted bag, it’s heavy and such good quality. It was originally priced at $12 but the store was having a 50% bags sale.

Faux snake-skin bag with chain strap. Also has a lock & key. Bankstown hospital white elephant stall 50 cents.

I enjoy white elephant stalls for many reasons. The volunteers, the ever-changing inventory, the low prices and the fact that all proceeds go to the hospital.

Oroton glomesh bag. U-turn Marrickville $3.

There are heaps of overpriced glomesh bags out there. I’ve seen some no name ones in so-so condition for $30. I picked up a small Oroton glomesh coin purse about 5 years ago, and this matches it perfectly.

Zara Silk tunic. Vinnies $3.

 Beautiful texture and the print is spring fresh. I bought this from a thrift store that I thought didn’t have much promise.  It just goes to show that even small thrift stores are worth checking out.  You never know what you’ll find.

La Donna wool jacket. Salvos $15.

 I generally don’t pay more than $5 for clothing but I’ve searched for years for a cute jacket like this and it’s in perfect condition. I love the waffle texture, the colour and the shiny gold and blue buttons.

Brand new kids puzzle, craft, and science kit. Salvos $3-$4 each box.

Retail, these are $20-25 each. My hubby found these while I was looking through the kitchen ware section.  We don’t go thrifting together very often, but when we do it seems that he always finds the good stuff while I leave empty-handed! My girls couldn’t wait to make glitter fairies 🙂

For the first time I’m joining Apron Thrift Girl’s Thriftshare Monday. Check out her site for all sorts of thrift goodness. I’ve followed her blog for years and it was her who inspired me to live more organically, more lightly on the earth. Thriftshare Monday is such a great idea and it’s nice to share my finds and admire fellow thrifter’s finds! Since I don’t generally thrift on weekends (shift work) I hope my weekday finds are acceptable 🙂

Happy thrifting!