Green Mood Monster

The other day I posted about the stories the military canteen from 1918 could tell. I had found the canteen as surprise in a box I won at auction. On a lighter note, how about this guy?  He is a Green Mood Monster Bank.  He was another one of my finds in a box at auction.  He is a wooden bank, and on each side a different emotion is shown.

I wonder about who owned this. Did he or she turn it every day?  Did they ignore it except when they put a coin in it?  Which emotion was the one they had facing them the most often?

One thing I know is that this person was named Thorp.  I wonder why he felt the need to write his name on the bottom of this little monster?

Today this little guy is showing this emotion….

Sad.  My husband’s uncle died this past week, and today we are headed to his funeral.  Yes, we celebrated this weekend with my niece and new nephew because life does go on.  However, today I am sad. Not only do we have to say goodbye to wonderful man, but my husband’s Dad died 11 years ago today as well.  So today is a sad day for us.

What emotion would you face forward today?

The Stories This Could Tell

One of my favorite things about auctions is when I win the bid for an item, and I get a box or two with it.  My husband thinks I am crazy…why do I want to lug home extra boxes?  I love the element of surprise.  One never knows what will be in those boxes.  Most of the time, it is junk or at best, items that I donate to our local thrift stores.  However once in a while there is a wonderful surprise.  This canteen was one of those surprises.  As I was digging through a box recently I found this heavy metal item.  Upon inspection and cleaning I discovered a gem of an item.  It is an aluminum military canteen. 

It is dated 1918.  That means this canteen is almost 100 years old.  It probably was used by a soldier during World War I.  Oh the stories this canteen could probably tell…how this soldier had to eat in 30 seconds his rations for the day, or how a bullet just whizzed by, or how the last drops of water from this canteen refreshed a thirsty soldier.  Ok, maybe this canteen was used only in training camp, but it still could tell stories of the achy, tired soldier’s determination.  It really doesn’t matter how this canteen was used.  I just know that it must have been used by someone who was willing to sacrifice his life for his country. 

Thank you to all our military personnel, around the world, men and women, for enlisting and doing their duty no matter what.

 

Linking up to:

Would You Buy It Wednesday?

Do you watch Picker Sisters on Lifetime TV?  It is a new show, I think only 5 episodes so far.  The show features Tracy and Tanya.  They were originally on Extreme Makeover Home Edition on ABC.  I am not sure if they are on that show now or not.  I have to admit, I still like American Pickers better, but this show is good to watch because these ladies are interior designers.  They go throughout the country finding junk their sidekick can turn into creative furniture for their store in California.  If you haven’t seen it, you should.

This weekend when I was at an auction sale, this lovely  filthy, dusty, tin piece, a roof vent it was called, came up for bid.  It is about 1.5 feet tall and 2 feet in diameter. I immediately thought of the Picker Sisters; they would love this piece for some modern side table.  When no one bid on it, and the auctioneer was asking if anyone would pay one dollar, I raised my card.  Yep, I bought it for a buck.  Now what do I do with it?  It will probably sit in my husband’s garage for a while waiting for inspiration.  If inspiration never comes or my sweet husband gets tired of looking at it, it will go for consignment or recycling.

So would you have bought this roof vent?  Have you ever been at auction and finding yourself raising your bid card even though you probably shouldn’t be raising it? 

I am linking up to:

Weekend Finds

The weekend just sped by as always.  Have a few finds to share with you.  Hit just a few garage sales, and they were busts. Wait I did buy one vintage scrabble game for $.25. Hit one thrift store and found this Sesame Street ABC toy.  I love that the pictures are all in excellent shape.

Spent a beautiful day with my Mom at an auction sale on Saturday. Sitting in the shade, bidding on fun items and getting them for $1, $2.50 or $5 for an item or a box.  My kind of entertainment.  This was especially relaxing since I spent Friday painting the outside of my MIL house.

If you have read any of my blog, you know by now that I have a weakness for wooden tool caddies of all kinds.  This one is a hand craft tool caddy.  A little bigger than I like, but I couldn’t resist it.  The red carpet has to go, but it will be fun to keep my tools in.

Thought this cobble form is great.  Also got a wood box of 5 shoe forms, but didn’t get a good photo of it.

This is a beautiful porcelain sugar bowl and a soup tureen.  They are Homer Laughlin Gregorian Eggshell.  I can’t find the pattern name yet.  Really neat pieces.

This is a vintage Toddler Bouncing Chair.  I am thinking from the 1960’s.  Look at the leather seat backing stitched with green yarn.  Very simple compared to the baby bouncers of today with their 20 toys attached to it.  This one has beads on it, and that is it.  No wonder kids need constant entertainment now-a-days; it starts at an early age with their baby bouncers.  Ha.

This is probably my best and most surprising purchase; a McCoy Banana Cookie Jar.  I knew it was a good piece, but found that in August, one sold for $76 and one sold for $122 on ebay.com.  I think that this one is going on ebay. 

Did you have any luck on your junking outing this weekend?

Linking up to Her Library Adventures

and Coastal Charm

Vintage and Other Finds

It was another great weekend of garage and auction sales.  My Mom came on Thursday evening so we could spend a couple of days finding some bargains.  We had a great time.  Do you remember Raggedy Ann and Andy?  I found a great vintage wall hanging that is in great condition.  So cute for a kids room.

I was able to get a box plus a bucket of these heavy porcelain insulators.  I probably will do something with a couple of them and sell the rest.

Loved the color of this Wheaton glass bottle, and it has the stopper yet.

There is something about this bread tin that drew me in.  I am thinking the front would look amazing painted white.

My kitsch find of the weekend was this wall hanging on old barn wood.  It just made me laugh.

This was probably the deal of the day.  These toys were being sold so cheap, I couldn’t resist.  Also in the back is the first 28 books of Magic Tree House series.  My oldest has read this series at least 10 times each.  But keep in mind he is a speed reader.

Look at these amazing milk glass lamps.  They both work.  I think they would be fun with some funky shades.

I haven’t had time to clean these up, but I enjoy the look of amber glass.

My friend, Kristi, from the Traveling Trunk made it possible for me to be the new owner of this wire basket.  It has been spray painted copper, but I can see it being so useful as well as a cute display item.  (Thanks, Kristi, it was fun chatting with you on Sunday.)

And my final picture of my finds are these rulers. I have wanted a foldable ruler for a while now, but they are always priced really high or go for a high amount.  I probably spent more than I should have, but now I have not one, but two of them.

Yes, I found several other items, but that is it for now.  Did you have a good thrifting weekend?  Any favorites?

Linking up to:

Hey, Mom What’s for Dinner Penny Worth Project

Her Library Adventures

Yard Sale Mommy

Vintage Door Knobs and Plates

Yesterday I showed you a photo of the vintage keys I found.  I love them.

Then I found this photo of vintage door knobs.  I would love to get my hands on some of these.  I love the knobs/plates, but the photo is amazing too.  I found it on Flickr. It is done by Please, Sir.  You can click on the photo to go to her Flickr account.

Ok, I am now on the hunt for some vintage doorknobs and plates.  Do you have any of these vintage beauties?

Vintage Goodies

My son had his long course state swim meet this weekend.  It is a 3 day event.  He did well, even qualifying for Zones, a regional swim meet.  We are so proud of him.

However, I didn’t get a lot of time to go out to find any treasures.  I had a couple of hours before the meet this weekend, and I did find a couple of things.  I haven’t had time to clean them up or take photos so here are some items I found the past couple of weeks that I cleaned up during this week. Many of them I have consigned at Traveling Trunk in Mandan.

This vintage stool is wonderful.  Love the color, and it has just the right amount of rust. 

This wire crate with 12 milk bottles got my heart racing when I saw it at a garage sale.  The patina is amazing.

This small bingo cage with all the balls was adorable.  I love the touch of red on the handle and legs.

This hairbrush was in a box I got at an auction sale.  It is a wonderful old brush.  I doubt that it was used for practical purposes.  Probably was a display piece.

I really enjoy signs with wording in any type of font.  This would be so fun in a hallway where you don’t want shoes thrown about.

I have seen so many Pyrex bowls on blogs lately, so I was so thrilled to find this fun, white bowl with red birds on it.

This is my first Fire King piece.  The jadeite color is one of my favorite colors for dishes.  Thought it was so fun with the handle and spout.

Picked up a couple of grape wood crates that were in awesome condition.  I like the wording on the first and the “100” on the second one.

I have a thing for vintage keys.  Love the shape, the color, the rust, everything about them.  Not sure where I will put these in my home yet, but they definitely are staying with me.

So did you find any treasures this weekend?

I am linking up to the following websites.  If you want to see other vintage finds to inspire you, go check them out and the links on their posts.

Her Library Adventures 

Yard Sale Mommy

Cherished Treasures

Hey Mom, What’s For Dinner

Weekend Vintage Finds

Another great weekend of vintage finds. I was thrilled with this find, a french fry maker. My Mom had one when we were growing up. I don’t remember having french fries a lot (although we did have several other deep-fried items), but I thought this was a cool device. I was almost scared of it.

From the back you can see the little squares the potato gets pushed through when you pull down that red, chippy handle. I can’t wait to try it on my sweet potatoes. We love eating baked sweet potato fries.

I have no idea how old this bread tin is, but I loved the faded colors.  Each side is a little bit different.  Must have been out in the sun.

I laughed when I saw this item.  It is an old Twist exerciser.

Can you see the bottom has a moveable, twisty bottom? So you stand on it and twist your body back and forth.  It is supposed to work your abs.  Probably would work if you used it. I think it would be a cute display piece in a kid’s room.

This old basket was too hard to pass up.  Love the wire handle. Just one handle, so I think it would be hard to carry a heavy load. It too, would make a great display piece.

I came across this sea green hard hat.  At first I thought it was a toy, but as I was looking at it, the lady said it was her brothers from about 30-40 years ago.

Johnson Bros Corporation is no longer in business, I believe.  The inside has a leather protection.  I do believe that it is a real hard hat.

Look at this dish.  I thought the shape was very unique. Not sure if it is a particular brand, I will have to try to find out.

The inside is just as adorable.

My final piece is this silver tray. It is relatively heavy, and I just adore the blue flowers.

So what have you found this weekend?

Linking up to:

Hey, What’s for Dinner, Mom?  The Penny Project and

Her Library Adventures Flea Market Finds

Metal Hairdressing Clips

I have been going through my boxes from my “Choice” bid at last week’s auction sale. I bought some polyfill fiber and several boxes came with it. Well these metal hairdressing clips were a fun find at the bottom of one of the boxes. I am guessing they are from the 1960’s. I assume the woman of the house must have been a hairdresser since she had the hairdressing trolley that I showed earlier this week.

Now what to do with them? I actually like the smaller, rusty ones the best, although the ones that have the chippy red paint on them would be fun to use as well. I am trying to figure out how to use them. They might be fun on a bulletin board or at the top of a corkboard to use for holding papers. What would you do with them?

Would You Buy It Wednesday

There is a relatively new blog, Junker Newbie.  Every Wednesday she posts an item she bought and asks if you would buy it.  Others can link up items that they wonder if others would have bought the item.  I have enjoyed following every Wednesday.  Most of the items I probably would have bought, but not all.  So this week I have an item that I found this past weekend.

It is a 1960’s pink speckled hairdresser trolley cart. The bottom tray can be raised or lowered. The trays are that heavy plastic of that time.  Normally I am not into pink but this piece just got to me.  I am not sure how I am going to use it…in my scrapbook room for scrapping tools or near my DIY table for repurposing tools.  I just thought it was a funky item.  So I bought it.  Would you have bought it? 

Linking up to Junker Newbie Would You Have Bought It?