Finger on the Pulse

Always love it when I can think of myself ahead of a trend.  Last month's issue of Country Home magazine featured vintage Paint By Number paintings as highly collectible (not that Country Home is at the forefront of trendsetting, but still...)  My daughter has a wall in her bedroom devoted to vintage paintings and other artwork (like cross stitch and needlepoint) featuring animals.  She has quite a few Paint-by-Numbers up there already.  Last week I spotted this pair shown above at the Goodwill store.  At $8.49 a piece, I thought they were a bit pricey, but anything for my daughter...  When I got to the checkout, I realized one was missing the glass from the frame.  Not really a deal breaker, but I pointed it out to the cashier.  She said the $8.49 price tag must be wrong, managed to find a $2.99 on the edge of one frame (clearly peeled off from another item) and charged me $2.99 a piece.  Thank you Goodwill!  And Country Home editors, start reading my blog!

Love My Smartphone Apps!

One of my favorite things about thrifting is trying to find out just what some strange object is.  And I've found my Droid can be paritcularly helpful.  My most used app is called Pocket Auctions. I use it to search eBay for items I'm wondering about as I stroll the aisles of Savers.  Another super cool app I just discovered (quite by accident as my 7-year old aparently downloaded it) is called Goggles.  Take a photo of what you're interested in , connect it to Goggles and it will search the Web for a matching image.  I used it for this treasure I've shown above, but came up empty-handed.  Guess I shouldn't have been surprised as this shirt is clearly a unique item! I'm certain it's worth a mint.  Why, it even has the Twin Towers featured in the background!  That coupled with it's fabulous neon green color is sure to make it a collector's dream come true.  Just what type of collector I'm not too sure. The shirt is a child's size medium.  I'm thinking some retro hipster shacking up in Brooklyn might want it, but it's probably too small. 

But I digress.  Back to my search to track down info. on this gem.  The shirt is by K.A.D. Clothing Co. and I found some items by this maker on eBay, but nothing as fabulous as this.  I was sure the Gotham goons featured on the shirt are some classic characters, so, while lying in bed at 9:30 p.m. I texted my nephew in L.A. (a comic book afficianado) with the photo.  Two minutes later I got a response--basically the equivalent of "get with the program Auntie, these thugs are so not anyone special." I chalked up his reply to his inability to spot something truly cool--he's been away from N.Y.C. for too long.

Bottom line, I still haven't found out much about the shirt.  But it was fun trying!  Now it's up on eBay waiting for the right, pint-sized trendsetter to find it.

Look High, Look Low

Well, the kids have been busy this weekend thanks to mom's forray into the Hospice Shop of Northhampton, Mass.  Stopped in there on Friday during a trip to pick up my nephew at Amherst.  I immediately followed one of the standard thrifting rules--look high, look low.  Just love it when the rules really work!  There on the floor below a clothing rack was a plastic bag filled with Lego.  Actually, it was filled with the base plates which are exactly what we've been looking for and my girls have been fighting over for months.  "I can't build a house because SHE won't give me a base!"  You get the picture.

No price on the bag, but I picked it up anyway.  Then noticed the plastic briefcases next to the bag were also Lego.  All five of them.  And not just any Lego, but mid-eighties (qualifying as vintage by eBay standards) Lego.  I showed the bag to the manager and asked for a price.  Turns out it hadn't been priced yet as one of the workers just brought it in.  I paid $36 for the whole kit and caboodle. 

Two days later my daughters are still having fun sorting through it all.  And I've discovered Lego cases are like the child's version of a sewing box--you never know what you'll find inside.  So far, we've uncovered a 1980s soccer-playing Smurf, a vintage Fisher Price Little People chair, assorted miniature Dungeons and Dragons figures, and miscellaneous Monopoly pieces. 

By the way, the odd and damaged Vilebrequin swim trunks sold for $11.50. 

I'm Official!

Finally took the plunge and got business cards.  Not that I need them for anything, but a business card makes me feel like I do something other than laundry.  And surpisingly, it convinced my kids of the same.  They got so excited, they wanted to hand them out to all their friends at camp. 

I agonized for days over what to put on the cards.  Should I use my eBay store name?  My username? Something else alltogether?  And what should my title be?  The benefit to my procrastination was Vistaprint finally offered me the cards free (they have many free choices on their website, but naturally I selected an upgraded design).  For a $6 shipping charge I decided it really didn't matter what I put on the card, because I could always order a new batch if I changed my mind.

But I like these.  I haven't done anything with them, other than show them to my husband and kids.  But seeing them scattered on my desk makes me feel OK about the rest of the clutter.  After all, with a business like mine, who has the time to clean?

The Motherload?

Thought I hit the motherload today, or as the guys on American Pickers say "the honey hole", during my thrifting expedition.  First off, I spent almost $65 between Saver's and Goodwill.  That's a lot of coin for me.  But I had my 30% off coupon for Saver's and got carried away.  Did find a few good items--a really nice long faux shearling coat by Utex for $14 and a Hanna Andersson fleece baby hoodie for $1.50 (these sell like hotcakes on eBay). 

Then I hit Goodwill and came across a Vilebrequin boy's swimsuit.  Here's where the music would play if I knew how to add it in HTML. 

I've been hoping to stumble across one of these for several years now.  Why, you ask?  What's all the tizzy over a swimsuit?  That's what I thought when I sold my first one on eBay.  I was fundraising for our local JCC and someone gave me a new Vilebrequin men's swimsuit to sell.  Can't remember what it looked like, but it was on the ugly side.  These suits are bright, bold and tend toward the obnoxious side (note the slightly scary looking chimp on this one).  But they are from France.  And they've been written about in the New York Times as the suit to have in the Hamptons.  Need I say more?  Ok, I will.  These suits retail for over $100.  I sold that new one for something like $140.  Within weeks I stumbled across one at the Salvation Army for $2.  This one was not new, but in great shape.  Bubblegum pink.  But not new.  In other words it was a used swimsuit, which, quite frankly I find a bit skanky, but to each his own.  Needless to say I washed the suit, then sold it for $75. 

I've been hunting the elusive Vilebrequin ever since, and today I hit pay dirt.  There, peeking out from the overcrowded racks at Goodwill was a fairly ordinary swimsuit print of red and white hawaiian flowers.  Then I spotted the odd Big Foot creature on the pattern and I knew I'd found something special. I forked over the $1.99 for the suit feeling and left Goodwill with a s&*t-eating grin on my face.

But here's where the question mark at the end of my headline (The Motherload?) comes into play.  As I examined the suit at home, I realized it was missing that inner lining--the mesh swimsuit lining.  Looks like someone cut it out.  Why would anyone do that?  The suit is small enough that it looks like it would hold a diapered tushie, so I suppose the lining isn't needed.  But still.  The beauty of my find was damaged.  Perhaps it will still sell for $20.  I'll even take $10.

When You're Hot You're Hot

Well, I am hot.  It's like 90 degrees here.  Luckily the Salvation Army in Pawtucket and the Goodwill in Attleboro had the AC cranked and I was able to do some great thrifting today.  Found this sweetie shown above--a vinyl electic mixer cover with a scottie dog on it.  Still in the original packaging.  You can't really see it in the photo, but he has a cute copper-color eye and studs on his collar.  I may have overpaid at $3.99, but I couldn't help myself.  I'm a sucker for vintage kitchenwares.

As Wednesday is Family Day at the S.A. and that means 50% off all clothes, I got a few good buys on some swimsuits and leotards I will resell.  Felt like I was on a roll, so I moved on to the Goodwill where I picked up a portfolio with American Girl Doll dress patterns for Samantha (now retired, in case you're interested) made by the original makers of AG, Pleasant Company.  Thanks to my eBay app on my trusty Droid, I paid the exhorbitant $4.99 (similar items are selling for $18 and up on eBay).  Another fun purchase--a bag of vintage Christmas ornaments--white flocked deer, drums and stockings, for .99 cents. 

I'm off.  To cool off.

Score!

Well, the Sominex bottle didn't sell. But, my looms (pictured above) did~for $104!  I paid .50 cents.  I just recently discovered these hand looms.  Found one at a church sale and had no idea what it was, but it was only .25 cents, so I bought it.  Now I know they are highly collectible Donar Weave-It looms.  The one pictured in the box above is aparently the rarest, made of all wood in the 40s.  It's a rug loom.  The other one pictured here has metal pins which is more common.  The piece running across the loom is actually the needle.  They come in different sizes.  I also sold two mini (2") looms made by Hero for $51.  All found the same weekend at various sales.  Now if only I can have such luck again.

Am not happy that my thrifting efforts will be curtailed the next few weekends by hubby's work schedule and lack of childcare.  But I am going to try a new bribe this weekend (in the past, I've offered the kids $10 to spend as they want if they come yardsaling with me--didn't work so well).  I promised them a new DVD to watch in the car along with donuts.  I'm hoping to maybe get an hour or so of cruising time while they hunker down with their movie and sugar fix.  We'll see....