Thrifting

From Left to Right: Steve (bro in law), My Mom, Audra (my daughter, age 15), Laurie (my sister and Steve's wife)

Me and Audra enjoying a mother/daughter photo opportunity!  She indulges me when I take her on these wild goose chases.  She laughed a lot today because her Uncle Steve wouldn't stop talking.  I told him that he was ruining my thrifting experience.

     We decided to go to a local antique shop in Essex, Connecticut that gets new inventory every week from estate sales.  I dub my mother the winner of the day with some really interesting pieces that I am excited to share with you.  She found a Wedgewood set of china that includes service for 12 with dinner plates, cups, saucers, dessert plates, salad plates, and a large beautiful oval serving platter to boot.  It was priced reasonably at $150 and we later found out on the internet that it is a discontinued pattern and the name of it is Kutani Crane.  The following picture is one I found on the internet, but I am also including the photos of the actual pieces she scored. We laughed because to us it looked like a peacock, not a crane. 

     I was so excited for mom because she really does not buy much for herself or the home, but I could tell she was lusting after this delicately colorful set with the most beautiful bird at the center of the design.  It looks gorgeous in her home that is a mixture of neutral tones with grey tones and white cupboards, built ins and trim.  There is a perfect bank of cabinets in the kitchen that serve as china storage and I am planning to decorate  them with these lovely dishes so they are on display and will make mom happy every day when she looks at them.  Now that she is living in Connecticut full time, after spending a couple of winters in Dallas with us, she will happily set the holiday table and enjoy the china for years to come.

    It appears there are some replacement pieces out there and they are going for a pretty penny on ebay.  Here is just a couple of examples of what the pieces are selling for currently.

     Here are the pieces after a good washing.  They even came with the dust covers which can be expensive to buy them at the store.

The bird is my favorite.

Already looks great in her house.

The oval platter is my favorite!

     Mom showed me her next find and I wasn't sure what to make of it until we looked it up on the internet.  She scored a Mikimoto frame for $5.  Here is the beauty in it's original box with tag and satin lining.  

Found several of these on ebay and they are asking $50-$90.

     I hesitate to quote these ebay prices because they are asking prices, not the actual amount that the item will be sold for, but I was encouraged to see that we got a great deal at $5!!

Happy thrifting!!