Yes, I'm guilty

Yes. I love to shop at thift shops. Yes, I resell some of the items that I buy. The mantra, "reduce, reuse, recycle," means more to me than just jumping up and down on the kitty litter boxes in order to take them to the 'convenience center' with a clear conscious. My philosophy is this: for every item that I resell, that's an item that's being reused and replaces an item that would be bought new off the shelf. I scour the racks looking for American-made goods and feel that for every American-made item that finds a new life, that's one less cheap Chinese item to clog the national closet. For those who know me, they know that I have my own personal boycott against Chinese-made goods. I've passed up some wonderful items because of its place of origin. My conscience is clear and I give myself a mental pat on the back when I do so. Do most people feel this way? I don't know; I can only speak for myself, but my love of country contributes to this feeling and this action.


Ours is also a label-obsessed nation....and brand names sell. I know...I have my own favorites and I can't pass up a pair of Enzo Angiolini 'Liberty' flats...even those that don't fit me! Guess what? I resell them :). Would you like to know how many pairs I personally have? That I've found at Goodwill, Salvation Army, etc.? Let's see: there's the lime green pair; two pink pairs; the navy pair with red plaid vamp; the brown pair with brass studs; the black patent pair; the two ivory pairs; the other blue pair, and that's just off the top of my head. Liberty flats, for those who know fashion, are kind of stuffy and nontrendy. I've been buying the same style of shoe for ohhhhhhhhh, at least 15 years. I like them. They're kind of dorky, and scream "Matron!", but I love'm and you just wouldn't believe how many pairs I find! But I digress.


What I want to address is the troubling observation I recently made. Labels that have been cut out of clothes. Why would one do this? If one makes a donation to a charity shop or thrift shop, why would one care to cut labels from garments? Is it a hateful little idea that to do that means that it can't be resold? Or do they think that the peasantry who will shop for these items won't care that the label is removed? Even more annoying than the brand label being cut out, is the size, material content, and care label being removed too. All I want to know is why? I want that woman who did that to tell me why she did it. The only reason I can think of is contempt. Contempt for those who will ultimately buy those garments.

For Little Girls Who Never Grew Up or Why I Like Thrift Shops

When I was a little girl, Easter meant crinolines and polished cotton dresses with puffy sleeves and sashes. It meant a new pair of white socks. It meant a cute little straw purse with plastic flowers on it and maybe a hat. It also meant that the Easter Bunny brought my brother and me Easter baskets wrapped in crinkly cellophane; said baskets were not to be opened until after church. To define that as mild abuse would be fair through the eyes of a child who...yes...believed in the Bunny Who Brings Eggs! I still can't figure that one out....and am not going to try.


After church, the dress and slip are thankfully shucked, the cellophane has been trashed, the candy coatings have been sucked off the jelly beans...said jelly part spit undecorously in the trash. Then it's time to go to Grandmama's for the Easter egg hunt....the most fabulous part of day. Grandmama, Mama, and the aunties would hide the eggs in the wooded pasture in front of Grandmama's house, then we'd be let loose with our baskets to hunt eggs. It was such a thrill to scoop up a handful of pine straw and find a brightly colored egg! I never did find the most eggs, but I may have had the most fun! When all the eggs had been accounted for, the salt and pepper shaker would be brought out and we'd all gather under the wash house to eat eggs! Ugh, two was my limit!


All that is to say that I've never outgrown my love of Easter egg hunts. However, somehow it isn't quite right for an adult to show up at the annual kiddie egg hunt with her bright, shiny eyes and her worn and frayed Easter basket expecting to outrace all the kiddies to find all the eggs. 1. She's an adult. 2. She moves a lot slower than the kids. 3. Come on, it really isn't seemly, is it!


Now I have to channel all that bright-eyed wonder of the Easter egg hunt into a more acceptable endeavor. We do what we can to get our fixes of what we need. Eh hem. Thus was born the love of thrifting; a way to turn up treasures in a more adult way, but just as thrilling as the childhood hunt! It's fun to see what one can find.


Sometimes the treasures are fantastic, as one of my recent finds was. Too good not to share eventhough it isn't vintage! Voila! This is a beautiful St. John Evening dress I found recently. Exquisitely made in America (you don't see that much anymore) and in excellent condition. Need I say that the little girl in me was thrilled? And no licorice jelly beans!

Vera With the Ladybug

It started with that tv show about hoarders. You know the one. It makes you take a long look at yourself and you snort and feel all superior and you declare......"No! I couldn't possibly be tha-a-a-a-t. I'm a collector. Big diff." Ummmm yeah. Sure.

One thing led to another; another led me to the garage. Cliff Notes version of the story: 6 boxes of books went to a favorite thrift store. Six shopping bags of clothing went to Salvation Army. I'm reeeeeally feeling superior now! It always helps to make room for the stuff that will inevitably be dragged home.

When I dropped the books off, I felt guilty about dropping and running, so I felt I should be polite and browse. Which I did. In the bottom basket at the end of the men's pants row are the scarves. And there was my latest Vera scarf. It's polyester, but the condition is terrific and the pattern's groovy. I love the color combination of pink and olive. The paisley pattern is classic and can never go out of style. It feels so rich and has a beautifil drape. I haven't taken the time to date it, but I wanted to share!

Wexford by Anchor Hocking

Gene Florence says in Anchor Hocking's Fire King & More Third Edition by Gene & Cathy Florence on page 120, "Wexford might be the next Early American Prescut in the collecting world." This isn't an old pattern; perhaps from the 1960s forward and is not worth a great deal. I wouldn't be surprised if you don't have a piece of this glassware that you're actively using. Don't list it on ebay yet as it's only worth a coupla bucks, so use it and enjoy it.

These four pieces were found in Covina, California and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. I bought them separately and didn't realize it was the same pattern. I also have several pieces from my ex mother-in-law and a couple of pieces from an aunt.

On my last thrift store rummage-a-thon at a new church-run thrift store at 601 North Kings Hwy. in Myrtle Beach, I started out the door and saw these in the case. I bought them without a thought. I paid exactly what they're worth by the book, but I love the color. It's a teal-y, aqua-y, blue-y color which I think is properly called azure or azurine. The shaker set is funky and interesting in that the color isn't consistent throughout.

National by Jeanette Glass Company

The National pattern by Jeanette Glass Company was produced from the late 1940s through the mid 1950s. It was produced in the colors of blue, crystal, pink, and Shell Pink. It has distinctive log-like handles on the cup, creamer, and sugar.


My latest find is this group of 6 berry bowls which measure 4.5 inches in diameter. They're gorgeous and look brand new. The faceting causes them to sparkle almost like jewels. Pictures don't really do this pattern justice. It's heavy and chunky and has the most wonderful knobby bottoms.

These bowls match other pieces that I've found in various thrift stores and consignment shops. Yay me.


This relish tray is huge at about 15 inches in diameter, heavy, and beautiful. I found it on a bottom shelf in the half price room at Twice As Nice in Socastee. Isn't it gorgeous?

Why Glass?

I think my "glass collecting" started with that one tall skinny florist's milk glass bud vase that always sits in a rarely used upper cabinet. That led me to pick up another one in a thrift store... I felt sorry for it. And in doing so, I discovered that my bud vase has a name. Thousand Line; Stars & Bars; Rainbow Stars; all variations of an Anchor Hocking Glass Company pattern You know the rest of the story.

I don't think people respect glassware. If they did, it wouldn't be so plentiful in thrift stores, consignment shops, garage sales, and trash bins. So much of our older everyday glassware has a rich history; it has a name; it has a family. And it's American-made.

Once upon a time our country was filled with companies that made beautiful glassware; some utilitarian, some art pieces. Hocking Glass Company. Paden City Glass Company. Federal Glass Company. Sooo many others. I guess that's why I've come to love these pieces of cast-off glassware because of those very reasons. I want to rescue and share as many pieces as I can. I want to do it justice.