Forgotten Treasures (aka, Crap I Forgot About in Storage.)

I haven't posted in a week.  Terrible.  I'm tragically lazy and I spent the end of last week planning for a yard sale and I've been spending the beginning of this week thinking about considering to start planning to eventually, somehow, someday, do something with the stuff that didn't sell.  One cool part about emptying my storage facility, though, was finding a few things I thought I had rid myself of years ago.  See, I'm terrified that I'm slowly becoming a hoarder, so to prove to myself that I am not, I impulsively chuck things I end up crying myself to sleep over at a later date.  These are some things that escaped my neurotic bullshit:

Pink polyester in 1960's dream form.  Chock full of pink and clear crystals.  I bought this from a thrift store when I was in high school and I thought I had given it away to a friend.  Thank gawd, I'm not that generous.

Not vintage, but it will be someday.  I LOVE this faux leopard coat.  I totally plan on getting into body building so I'll have the strength to wear it again.  This thing weighs a ton.

Oh, how I love this little seafoam green radio.  Totally early 60's and works like a dream.  It only gets AM radio but that is fine by me.  Why does music sound better coming out of a 50 year old radio?  Answer:  Magic.  

I love this circa 1930 cookbook if only for the illustrations alone.  I think it was sponsored by Crisco because every recipe contains it as an ingredient.  One of these days, I'm going to make something out of it while wearing t-straps and finger waves and singing "All That Jazz."

You know what I love about this cookbook.  It has instructions on dress for the "help."  Holy shit.  If there is one thing that a classy broad needs, it's help.

I picked this little beauty up from the flea market about 10 years ago.  People either love it or they hate it with the intensity of 1,000 white hot suns.  Guess which category I fall into.

A closeup.  It doesn't get any classier than Botticelli Primavera.  Who says a classy broad can't appreciate fine art.

Now what am I going to do with this bitch?  Other than love it?  When I finally get my swingin' retro kitchen, I think I'm going to make a vignette and put this on display.  It's too cute.  Why don't they package kitchen sponges like this anymore?  Because they're lame, that's why.

This guy isn't vintage.  Nor was he forgotten.  But I couldn't help posting a picture of my panther, Bob.  He's making me an offer I can't refuse on my old washing machine.  Claws and rabbit-kicks may possibly be involved.

So that was my weekend.  Ridding myself of junk and sneaking this stuff back into my house.  Now I have to get busy, clean up and call Goodwill for a pickup and paint my nails cotton candy pink while wearing my leopard fur coat.  

Priorities. I have them.

Pyrex and Me. Por Vida.

I started collecting pyrex several years ago because I loved the look of retro kitchens decorated with color coordinated bowls.  It was a fun thing to collect too since pyrex was so easy to find due to its durability and the fact that everyone and their Aunt Mimi had it.  It's getting a little harder to find and the thrift stores are catching on to its collectibility but I still manage to find some stellar pieces.   These are my faves:

My mother-in-law gave me the pink gooseberry cinderella bowls.  They were a gift to her from her Aunt Mimi.  She only gave them to me after I had a seizure-like fit when I saw them in her cabinet.  She said, "Well, I guess you can have them(? )" and the classy thing to do would be to say, "Oh no, I couldn't take them.  I was just admiring them."  However, the classy-broad thing to do would be to snatch them up before she could change her mind and stuff them into my suitcase.  Guess what I did.  Yup... I totally made her mail them to me. Even classier.

My old kitchen was decorated in turquoise and yellow.  Sunny and cheerful.  Just like my personality. Ha.  I think I got the bowls off of ebay which wasn't that awesome of a deal.  It's a mix matched set which wouldn't be bad but the yellow bowls do not match each other. C'est dommage.  The covered square bowl was picked up from the thrift store.  Probably for a mint.  I don't care.  I'm a sucker for original lids.

Spring Green pyrex.  I got the covered casserole from an antique store in Santa Paula during a car show and the cinderella bowl is from the thrift store.  It's a pretty common pattern and I would like to find the rest of the set.

I HEART refrigerator sets.  This is an incomplete set but I love the primary colors.  I actually got these for free from a neighbor who was being sent to live in a nursing home.  Her daughter said I could have whatever I wanted from the garage.  Thanks, Marge!

These are limited releases and don't belong to any sets.  I found both at the thrift store for fairly good deals.  The red one was $9 which I thought was kinda high but I rarely find the lid AND the stand for these bowls.  I often use these around the holidays and think they look retro swanky but I think it ends up looking like a tacky funeral potluck.  Still hasn't dissuaded me.

This is another 50's era limited release casserole.  It is my favorite and I don't know why.  I think I like the cartoony images and plus, it makes the best scalloped potatoes.  Love you, Little 2 qt Casserole.

Pyrex Wishes, and Pyrex Dreams.

XxXx,

Rawnie

Weekend Recap: Gifts from Baby Jesus. To me.

A couple weeks ago, I got wrangled into my Aunt Roda's Lia Sophia party. For any of you who don't know what Lia Sophia is, it's overpriced jewelry that you buy at parties while you drink wine and eat your weight in hors d'œuvres. It's like Tupperware but with rhinestones and gold plating.  Even if you don't love the stuff, you end up buying something if only to pay for the 3 glasses of wine and half pound of prosciutto you just ate.  Anyway, fast forward, the jewelry we ordered came in Saturday. Woot(?) As I'm trying on my goods, my grandma mentions that she has a bracelet that will match my new stuff and hands me an awesome, hammered brass cuff. I love it, and not just because it's free.

Oh, and she says that she also has ANOTHER set of jewelry that I can have, if I want it...

*ears perk up* 

...They're 20 years old...

 *tell me more*

...They're Elizabeth Taylor....

*Grandma, You had me at 'Elizabeth Taylor'*

...Oh yeah, and they're from Avon...

*Fucking. Sold.*

Holy crap!  It's like Mr. T's mom created these herself.  I pity the fool that doesn't check these monstrosities out!

NOT Lia Sophia.  This is Elizabeth Taylor for Avon.  Treasured Vine Collection. Totally 80's via the 90's and in the original boxes.

The necklace looks like King Midas shit a funnel cake.

The cuff is actually the most wearable piece.  A keeper.

The earrings.  I suspect they are clip-ons because no ear holes would have the strength to hold these bad boys up.

I literally can't wait for a special occasion to wear these.  I'm thinking I may need to bust these out for my weekly cat food/booze run at Albertsons.  Cats, booze, and enormous costume jewelry were made for each other.  Plus, I'm an impatient person and I loathe putting off the inevitable.

The inevitable.

Sunday, I attended the Ventura Flea Market at Seaside Park.  It's a 3-4 times a year event where hoarders come out and sell their goods to other hoarders.  I love it.  Even though I'm broke, I managed to haggle my filthy mitts onto some basic necessities.

This, my friends, is a vanity set from the 1930's.  I made a sad clown face and Cathy felt bad and bought it for me for $25.  Good deal.  Thanks, Cathy.

Art Deco.  I like it.

Another view. Because it is important.

See how nice it looks on my homesteaded vanity.  The only way this vanity could become "more mine" is if I peed on it. Hopefully it won't come to that.

I also bought this with my own little money:

Vintage Ormolu Jewelry Casket.  $20.  Duh, totally necessary, and it matches my mirrored vanity tray.

I'm the first (and last) to admit this past weekend was pretty magical.  Unfortunately, most of my weekends don't include so many freebies or this much gold plating. C'est dommage.

XOXO,

Rawnie

Vanity Part Deux

Can you tell I'm un petit peu obsessesed with vanities and the boudoir?  I mean, I have three kids,  I'm jobless with bills to pay, my laundry is piled sky high, and I have school to think about so it's pretty obvious I'm good at prioritizing.  Take note, potential future employers!

Anyway, remember that vanity I told you about?  I failed to mention it's in my upstairs hallway.  It's still, what some would call, "not mine."  But I'm laying claim to it because 1.) A hallway is a STUPID place for a vanity and 2.)  I don't see anybody's name on it.  I'm homesteading this bitch and taking the pictures to prove it.

There.  I put some shit on it.  Mine.

Pink depression glass and a jewelry holder from Target.

The butterfly bracelet with the quarter sized garnet is vintage 1920's.   Probably my fave piece.

Grandma's pearls.

Ormolu vanity tray with vintage and new perfume bottles.  The black atomizer is from the 1920's.

Totally clutterfucked.

This is new to me.  Nippon hair reciever and powder jar with tray.

Finally got myself a new bottle of Black Rose.  I changed bottles.  It's easier to use with a crystal dauber and looks prettier too.  It would probably last longer in the original brown bottle which just means I need to use it faster.

Alright, and now I have to get back to the reality of poopie diapers and sticky juice boxes.  I hope you all have plans this weekend.  I created this set on Polyvore to show you what I'll be wearing*:

*in my dreams.

XOXO,

Rawnie