Gleaming Glassware & More

I am drawn to glassware whenever I shop, whether it is in a shop or at an estate sale. This weekend, I hit a few sales even though the weather was gloomy and rainy. There weren’t too many people out because of all the rain, so I figured most sellers would be willing to deal a little more than usual. I think I was right. I got all of my barware for a total of $8.00.

I found three different sets of barware at the same estate sale.

This is one of nine margarita glasses. There were ten, but klutzy me broke a stem when I hit it on the sink while I was washing it.

This wine glass is one of eight and has a square base. Unlike the margarita glass, it’s quite heavy because it is lead crystal.

This is one of eight cordials

Even though the picture is blurry, you can see the stem details.

These two cruets will make a nice accompaniment to my salad bowl. They were also a part of the $8.00 sale.

Mr. Sullivan recently brought this chest home from the store and it became the perfect place to house my new barware.

This is the painted detail on the front of the doors.

This is the front of the drawer with its sweet leaf design.

I found this heart table at a garage sale down the block from the estate sale. It is probably a piece from the 1980’s when hearts were all the rage. But at only $2.00 and the investment of a $3.00 wooden piece to cover the heart, plus some spray paint that I already have, it will make an excellent accent table for one of the back patios.

I found this $1.00 blue wicker trash basket in perfect condition at another garage sale, but it doesn’t fit any of the colors in my house, so it will be spray-painted white. For some reason unbeknownst to me, the basket looks a little wonky on the bottom … might be my picture taking skills?

I came upon this rustic twig camp table at a barn sale. It will find a home in the laundry room as a plant stand. It’s sturdy and just needs a dust-off.

I’ve linked this post to Rhoda’s new blogsite. Click on the picture to see what she and others are showing as their thrifty treasures!

Spencer's Give-away

Spencer is having a wonderful give-away for her 100th post. Please click on the photo above to be whisked over to her site. She is a real sweetie, and you're in for a treat when you see all the pink goodies she likes to post!

Tagged to Share…

I’ve been tagged to play a little game of sharing by Jo @Jo’s 2nd Act. I’m also supposed to tag 5 others to play. I’ve chosen:

Susie Q @ Rabbit Run Cottage

Jane @Blondie’s Journal

Des @Peeking Through The Sunflowers

Kathy @ Life in the Slow Lane

Gloria @ Happy to Be.

In June I posted six things about myself to help you get to know the real me. If you read this little expose about myself, you either wondered how I’m functioning out in the real world or you just plain decided to like me and take me for who I am! LOL Either way, Jo says I have to tell you five more things about myself. So here it goes. I’m going to start with the pet peeves. I have two big ones. They are in no particular order, just let it be said that if you do them in my presence, I just might frown. :- (

1. I hate gum chewing! Not only for myself, but I hate to see and hear other people chomp, make noises, and look like a cow chewing its cud. Most of us do not realize what we look like when we masticate. Have you ever really watched someone?

Although many of us think we have good manners, the tendency for some is to keep their mouths open while moving around that little piece of elasticized tree sap in their mouths. Sometimes, there are really horrible sounds that emanate from people’s mouths when they chew. Snap, crackle, and pop noises just bother me to death! I never learned how to maneuver gum into a position that causes it to make such horrendous noises, and I don’t ever want to learn! *grin*

Watch this guy chomp down in this video. It’s the least offensive of what I saw on You Tube. And believe me, it was quite offensive to watch some of those gross gum chewers!

2. I’m a stickler for being on time and I don’t like to wait for anyone! I always try to make sure that I give myself enough time to get ready. I don’t like to be late because it often inconveniences others. If I say I’m leaving or arriving at a specific time, I do it. If someone is accompanying me, they’d better be ready to go when I am, or they could be left behind. If I tell a guest that dinner will be served at 7:00, it will be served at 7:00 and we’ll start without them. Now lest you think I’m nuttier than a fruitcake, let me tell you that I’m really not overly rigid. Sometimes there are circumstances that cannot be avoided. In those instances, all I ask is that someone call and let me know what’s going on. :-)

3. I wish I had nicer toes. Mr. Sullivan says they are weird looking. Starting at the big toe and moving on down to the baby, they diminish in size, so I have really small toenails that are impossible to paint with nail polish! My feet will never see pretty pinks, rosy reds, or as is the latest craze, bright yellow. ;- (

4. Sometimes I can be a procrastinator. I work really well under pressure and sometimes let projects slide until the last minute. I think it all goes back to being in journalism school and waiting to file a story at the last minute before deadline.

5. I have a tendency to hold a grudge if I am wronged or if I see anyone else being hurt. I know it’s not right. But it’s really hard for me to stop thinking about how somebody could have been so mean, hurtful, and thoughtless. Forgive and forget... It’s something I really have to work on.

So there you have it- me in a nutshell.

And some people might say that the nut is pretty cracked.

Thrifty Treasures and Some Pretty Things

While this was not an overly lucrative week finding inexpensive items, I did find what I thought were some very pretty things.

I never seem to have very good luck at the local Goodwill Store, but I spotted this soup tureen   first thing when I went back into the home area. Its not pure white, but it’s not a not a true cream, either. It will blend well with the white dishes you see  in the background on  the bottom shelf of my china cabinet. I paid $5.95 for it and have the option of using it alone or leaving it on the small tray it is currently sitting on.

 

I think I’ll end up putting it in on the middle of the bottom shelf of the cabinet, where theplatter is now located.

 

These are rolled up cabbage leaves that I will be using as placemats. I found them at a small shop when I was in Iowa last weekend. They were $2.00 each.

 

I just placed some dinnerware on it to show you what it could look like when I DO set a table!

 

This little wooden box is known as a trug. I have no idea what this was used for. I found it for $8.00 in my favorite shop in Tipp City. It’s in my laundry room right now, with all of my gardening decor. I guess it could be used as an organizational box of some sort. Dump in some desk supplies, maybe?

My favorite find of the week was this crystal liquor carafe and four glasses. I placed them on a silver tray that I already had and set it all on the dining room server.

 

It’s obviously not the quality of the Waterford crystal you see above it on the middle shelf, but I like it, just the same. I paid a mere $18.00 for all five pieces.

 

Stop by Rhoda’s blog to see what she and others have posted for Monday’s party.

We’re back from Iowa

… where we celebrated my sister-in-law’s 50th Jubilee as a Sinsinawa Dominican nun. Pat is Mr. Sullivan’s oldest sister who left home to join the convent when he was still a toddler. We attended her 25th Jubilee and wanted to help celebrate this milestone with her at the motherhouse in Sinsinawa, Wisconsin, just across the river from Dubuque, Iowa, where most of the family grew up.

Sister Pat, one of 18 Dominican nuns celebrating their Golden Jubilee.

Mr. Sullivan congratulating his sister.

Mr Sullivan often reminisces that as a young boy he was frightened by Pat’s appearance when she would come home for visits dressed in her full nun habit, complete with long robe and a veil. The picture to the left would be similar to what Pat may have worn. The sisters in her order are no longer required to wear this habit, and Pat dresses just like anyone else.

These pictures were taken of us at the dinner celebration at the motherhouse.

This is what most people think of when they hear Mr. Sullivan is from Iowa- CORN!! These fields are near the family farm, where many of the Sullivan siblings spent time during the summer months.

We spent part of one afternoon boating out on the Mississippi River.

It was a warm day, but cruising on the water certainly cooled us off! The bridge in the background connects Dubuque to Illinois.

Our boating host, Harv, is a childhood friend of one of the Sullivan brothers. Mr. Sullivan and his sister, Theresa, are in the background.

Pogo is Harv’s dog, who loves to go out on the boat with him.

This house sits up on the bluffs on the Wisconsin side of the river. The person who lives there is the owner of the manufacturing company that makes all of those orange barrels we see on the highways in the summer!

One of the many casinos alongside the waterfront. And NO, I didn’t waste any of my money!

This old building once housed a the Dubuque Star Brewing Company. It has been renovated into a restaurant and a mini beer-museum of sorts. We dined there the first night we were in town. The building in the foreground is called a shot tower, which was used for the production of shot balls, which were used for projectiles in firearms. It is one of only a few shot towers that are left in the United States.

This is the pier where we started our boat ride.

We passed the convention center where an afternoon wedding was taking place.

The locks and dam coming downriver from Wisconsin.

On one of our driving tours around town, we spotted this newly built home, complete with a new roof made to look like the an old thatched roof in Ireland. Isn’t it just gorgeous? I’m anxious to see how the owners will landscape their lot.

It was a short, whirlwind trip of four days, and while we had a good time and a nice visit with our hostess and niece, Sara, I’m glad to be home. There is still a lot to be done around the house. Blinds to hang, carpet to shampoo, woodwork to be polished…

Later this week you’ll learn five more things about me that you may not have known. I’ve been tagged again, so stay tuned!

Thrifty Treasures

The hot, humid days of summer have made me lethargic. I only want to stay inside, drink my glass of Coke ice water and watch missed/ DVR’d shows on the tube. I did venture out twice last week to go thrifting, though.

I seem to be concentrating more on things for the yard right now, since my closets are already filled with items I’ve bought for the house.

When we had the house painted a few years back, the nutty painting crew cut back some lower branches on my 25 -foot pine tree to make room for their ladder. hmmm… Guess they didn’t know that pine trees don’t regenerate their pruned branches. So I have this “hole” between the tree and the taxus bushes in front of the window. I placed a small birdbath in there but felt that it needed something else. I found this chippy old piece of wrought iron fence for $26.00 in an antique mall and thought it would make a nice filler for the space.

A neighbor came over to ask Mr. Sullivan if I was going to leave it there. At first I didn’t know how to take her inquiry. Our home is located in a neighborhood where no one does this sort of thing. She later confided that she thought it was nice to mix a little bit of the old with the new. Whew, neighborhood crisis averted…

I didn’t plant a pot of ivy to grow up the trellis this year; instead it’s serving as a backdrop for another piece of fencing and some aged concrete thing-ama-fobs that I spotted at a store that was going out of business. All of these items are hidden from street view, as they are behind a row of barberry bushes that line the walkway to the front door.

The garage wall on the inside of the garden area serves as a backdrop for a large wreath I bought several years ago. It was too plain and needed some color, so I intertwined some faux leaves and berries through it. They were 75% off at a shop that is phasing out its country decor and greenery. I bought three branches for under $7.00.

Here you can see the violet colored berries in the sprigs.

To see what other thrifty treasures are out there, stop by Rhoda’s blog, Southern Hospitality.

A Fabulous Little Award

 

Thank you, Kathy!

I recently received an unexpected surprise from Kathy @ Sylvias Vintage Daughter.   Kathy is a fellow Ohioan who lives about a two-hour drive away from me.  I want to get up to visit her soon to see all of the goodies she has found while out junking and thrifting.  She’ll be showing her wares at  several flea markets and festivals throughout Ohio, including the Springfield Antique Show and the Waynesville Sauerkraut Festival down in my part of the state. So if you like this sort of thing, check out her blog or plan a trip of your own.

In accordance with the rules of the award, I  am supposed to pass this award on to five others, who in turn, pass it on to five more. And on . And on. And on……  It is always hard to make a choice such as this.  So many blogs inspire me in so many ways.  I don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings by choosing someone over anyone else.

So, I’ve decided not play five favorites, but, instead,  am making this award available for anyone to take and give it to whomever they feel deserves it.  Although this may not be “playing in accordance to the rules of the game,”  I think it is a fair option.  So if you know someone who deserves it, please feel free to take it and pass it along. 

  Sue