Goodwill, Somerville, MA.

Silkscreened Cow Art, $1.49.

This is for my friend Arthur. He will soon have a new room, and I hope he will like this. It reminded me of Ferdinand, even this is a lady cow and Ferdinand is a bull.

There have been a lot of changes at my local Goodwill in the past few months. It's been tidied a bit and nearly all the staff has changed. Ediba, where did you go? And, for the Davis Square faithful, don't you miss Wayne's excellent shopping soundtracks? A Goodwill run without Screamin' Jay Hawkins just isn't the same.

Bloglines had a little blip and showed that the TSP had a new post. "Thank God", I said to myself, "It's about time I updated this damned thing."

I've always had good thrifting adventures in NYC. The thrifting is different than in other parts of the country (so much H&M clothing!), but there are still some great things to be found.

Salvation Army, Astoria, NY.
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Goodwill, Astoria, NY.


The Steinway St. thrifts are nice, because they are close together and there are excellent places to eat nearby. They're also close to the subway, which is convenient for lugging purchases home.






Three Quilted, Embroidered Butcher's Charts, $4.99/ea.
Mere words cannot express how awesomely excellent I think these are.
Orginally, these were still framed and glassed, but I had to have them. Had to. I wasn't looking forward to schlepping them around all day, and said so to Henry, the cashier. Henry, my new good friend, suggested I re-donate the frames (they weren't my taste at all) and take out the innards. Thank you, Henry!
These may be the thing that overthrows my 'nothing on the walls' rule.



Pantone 'Blue Nights' Shoulder Bag, $3.99.
I've drooled over the Pantone Universe bags for years. My current bag is in (desperate) need of replacement, and this should do the trick. It's in great shape.

I also hit some thrift stores in Manhattan, and was pleasantly surprised. More on that later.

Some things of note:

In the Julie and Julia vein, Carol is cooking the French Laundry cookbook. I'm a total Keller disciple, and think this is great.

There was a set of Town & Country bowls at the Goodwill last week, but I chose to lug home beer instead.

Two California thrifts, the Robin's Nest in San Clemente, and the Well in the Desert in Palm Springs, are closing. It will be interesting to see, as rents escalate, what stores will last and what won't. Will we be left with the thrift equivalent of Wal-Mart, Target, and Kmart?

Urban Renewals, June 15, 2007.



Ann Taylor Cashmere Sweater, $3.99.
Man, I used to be cool, and now I buy Ann Taylor things. Indie cred, where did you go? *weeps*
This sweater has seen little use, and I'm going to unravel it and use the yarn for something else.

Culinary Arts Institute Encyclopedic Cookbook, Ruth Berlozheimer, Ed., $1.99.
We all like the CAI booklets. This is in amazing condition! No splatters, smells, or warping. The 1950 edition. I can only hope the same for me when I'm sixty-seven.

Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook, $1.99.
Not one, not two, but three of these were at UR, all priced differently. Weird. Fron 1951.



Aprons, aprons, aprons. I recently did an inventory of my aprons and the number is a little...Collyer-esque. Work aprons, house aprons, this place is full of them.
Much to the consternation of friends and co-workers, I have decided to wear an apron as part of my daily ensemble. So far, I've been complimented by postal workers, a bus driver, a Central Square crazy, and three old ladies.

Nifty things seen:



Old Jantzen Bathing Suit, $5.99.
A cute hipster girl had this in her cart, and was kind enough to let me photograph it. Hi, Kara! I hope all your bathing beauty dreams come true.

It's been very turquoise around here lately.



Portable Royal Typewriter, $2.99, Goodwill, Somerville, MA.
I saw this one day, and said to myself, "No, no, young lady, you do not need another typewriter. Yes, it is lovely, and yes, in wonderful condition, but you do not need it, missy. Go upstairs and look for a pair of black linen pants instead."

How I love portable typewriters! They're so practical. A few years ago, I found this shiny Royal beauty at the Goodwill in Cambridge.

I was very pleased with it and put it on my lap to admire it on the subway home. A late fifties-ish businessman looking gentleman sitting next to me also admired it and joked about my new laptop. We had a spirited talk about cool old stuff and second hand shopping. He loved yard sales and flea markets, but his wife thought they were terrible. As I got off the train in Davis Square, he offered me thirty dollars for the Royal. I laughed, said no, and suggested that a typewriter hunt would be a fine thing for him to do. I hope he found one.

Pyrex 'Butterprint' 1 Pt. Casserole, a quarter at the Methodist Church's rummage sale.
Sometimes I'm just horrified at the behavior I see at sales. At this sale, there was a terrible kerfuffle over the price of a television set. *sigh*

Craigville Inn Linen Dish Towel, $0.25/ea at the Goodwill in Somerville.
I'm not sure if the Craigville Inn even exists anymore. My mother would know.
I found three of these towels. Two had never been used and still had the price stickers on them. Forty-nine cents, in case you're interested.
It's always nice to find Cape Cod kitsch.

Another Linen Dish Towel, a quarter.
For a project. The images are wonderful.

Thrifting never lets me down. In the past year, my shampoo, pasta sauce, conditioner, face lotion, jelly and moisturizer have all been discontinued. The perils of modern life, I tell you.

The above gentleman is an insane beloved part of my life. He:
1. Cannot pronounce the -ch sound.
2. Sends hysterical text messages.
3. Rushes to pour you a glass of Port if you are under the weather.
4. Teases Hassan mercilessly.
5. Calls the Goodwill the 'poor store'.
6. Can see small things!

Happy fiftieth birthday, Amandio! You drive me up the fucking wall, but my life is a far better place for having you in it.

From the Cape Cod Times, Thursday, 24 May:



Offered without comment. I got some terrific things. 'Nuff said.

The usual notes before the thrifted goods:

A good thread about thrifted cooking things. As a restaurant and food person, I usually read chowhound before I even check my email in the morning. It's a great reference.

The TSP was mentioned on both the Cambridge and Somerville Townonline blogs.

Scott is curious to know if anyone knows of any good Vera sites. Does anyone? I haven't been able to find much, besides his (always) great info. I really wish I'd come up with the phrase thrift store archaeology first.

Vice Is Bad for a Reason
Woman Drinks 12 Diet Cokes a Day
Sent to me by lovely pal Emily. My Diet Coke addiction is well documented in these pages.

Square is taking a week long thrifting road trip. It will be interesting to see what they come up with along the way. Thank to Kevin for the link.

Two thrift shop myspace pages, Out of the Closet in Los Angeles, and Circle Thrift in Philadelphia.

Everything came from the Goodwill here in Somerville.

Flowery 45 Case, $1.00.
I've wanted a 45 case forever, but, when I've seen them, they've been in a condition I call 'extra-loved'.
The only other case I've seen in good shape was, oh, five or six years ago? We were still living in the downstairs apartment, that much I do remember. I'd seen a swish turquoise and white case at the Goodwill, but talked myself out of it. What did I need with such a thing, anyway? I don't have any 45s. When I arrived home from the
Goodwill, I changed my mind and dashed back out. While walking down Elm St., I passed two little punk rock girls, one of whom was carrying a swish new turquoise and white 45 case.
Eddie Bauer Brown and Pink Flowery Linen Skirt, $4.49.
This skirt is swell. I wore it twice this weekend, and Gram complimented me on it. She did, however, have plenty to say about my orange Crocs.
No Drinking Before Five Coaster, $0.25.
We here at Casa Beaucoup-TSP are often accused of being boozehounds. We prefer to think of ourselves as bon vivants.
iSi chargers, $1.00.
These were great to find, because seltzer season is starting and chargers are $15 a box at Kitchen Arts.


Radiohead Shirt, $1.99.
It's for a friend. Radiohead makes my head hurt.


How to Enjoy Playing Cribbage, $1.00.
New Englanders are nutty for cribbage. I learned it when I was a small girl, and love to play whenever I can. Linda Greenlaw writes in The Lobster Chronicles:
The ever-present cribbage board and playing cards rested on the table where Mom and I had left them after counting our final hands last night.Cribbage boards are as common as wooden spoons in the kitchens of this island. Children raised in this part of Maine often learn to play cribbage before they can tie their own shoes. Some people might find that backward, but it's actually quite advanced. Long before I knew that one plus one equals two, I understood that seven and eight are equal to fifteen, and that fifteen is good for two holes on the cribbage board.
The inside of the box:

The back:

Now this, this is what always amazes me about thrifting. Did someone keep this in their house for forty years before taking it to the Goodwill? Can you imagine the hope someone may have had, thinking, 'someday I'll have time to sit and learn to play cribbage', only to have those hopes dashed? Why was this kept, and never opened?

Some things I've seen recently, worth noting.

Urban Renewals, yesterday:

Imagine keeping all your sewing notions on such a geographically correct likeness!
I was so amused by this I had to call my mom and tell her all about it. It wasn't until after I realized it wasn't for sewing thimbles, but decorative porcelain thimbles.
No offense to any Canadians in the audience.

Also at UR:

Oh, the Skotch Kooler. We'll still be seeing these fifty years from now, along with the Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, Old Navy Holiday tee shirts, Holly Hobbie (did you know Holly Hobbie was a real person?*)bed sheets, and Mardi Gras beads.

Cambridge Goodwill, today:

I nearly died from the utter cuteness of this knitting bag. It still contained some acrylic yarn and a half finished project.

Somerville Goodwill, last week:

Forty kinds of scat! If only I knew someone interested in elimination identification.
The background fabric is from a pair of curtains, now hanging in my (very small) living room.


If my sister gave this to me, I wouldn't know what to say.




A Last Supper paint by number accented with glitter? Mere words can't express the emotions I had for this.


*Thanks to Rebecca for the link!

May 10, 2007

I'd met Rebecca for lunch, and, since I didn't have to work that evening, decided to stop at the Goodwill and Salvation Army in Central Square on my way home. I hopped on the #1 bus bound for Cambridge.



From top to bottom:
Three Pyrex Refrigeratorware Pieces, 'Spring Blossom Green', $2.00. I already have the larger bottom piece of the set. I think I'll lot and sell it, as I have a pile of SBG pieces.
1.5 Qt. Pyrex Cinderella Casserole , 'Woodland', $1.99.
This is for a friend. There's a small chip in the lid, but lids are easy to find.
2.5 Qt. Pyrex Cinderella Casserole, 'Spring Blossom Green', $2.49.
What's with all the SBG? Someone is either:
1. Rethinking their kitchen decor.
2. Moving.
3. Dead.
This is missing the original top. The top to this is a opaque frizzled lid, not a clear glass lid, and will probably be difficult to find. I'll keep my eyes peeled. If you happen to have or see one, drop me a line.
2.5 Qt. Pyrex Casserole, $2.99.
Pyrex Love calls this the 'Tree of Life' pattern, but Pyrex Pattern Finder considers it un-named. Hmmm.
I haven't yet been able to find a 2.5 qt. casserole in 'Butterprint', so I'll use this until I do.

After stopping at the co-op for a few things, I went down into the subway to head home. My subway pass isn't where it should be! I put down my bags and search further. House keys, yes, wallet, yes, tissues, phone, iPod, all there. Where's my f****** Charlie Card? I used to keep it my iPod sleeve, but, when charging it the day before, noticed it was scratching the back of it. I put it in the front pocket of my bag instead. I'd used it to get on the bus, so it couldn't have gone far. Darn it! I paid $59 for this stupid thing! I need it!
My steps retraced, no subway pass found.
I buy a fare and go home, mad as mad can be.
When I get home, I realize, not only is my pass gone, so is my umbrella. I must have left it somewhere in my furor.
Fare thee well, Charlie Card and nice red umbrella! I can only hope whoever found you needs you more than I.