Wedgwood, or not Wedgwood? The Tale of Ranunculus Brown

On each of my recent travels, I've been able to pop into a thrift shop or two and have some fun hunting for cool items. In Colorado Springs, I visited the Goodwill Retail store at South Circle , and I must say it rivals only my beloved Boomerangs in Jamaica Plain in terms of stock, and surpasses it in terms of organization and having a non-thrift store feel. Newly built, it resembles a Marshalls or even a mall department store, and even has a B&N-style cafe!

While my boyfriend was at a conference, I browsed the aisles, looking for items that could be stashed in my carry-on luggage. In the collectibles section, this footed cake plate caught my eye, and when I turned it over I had a lovely surprise:

Indeed, when I saw that faint Wedgwood mark on the bottom of the dish, I immediately pulled out my smartphone and got to work. I Googled 'Ranunculus Wedgwood' and saw many patterns, including a multi-colored set which little resembles this item, and several sets of blue and black patterned sets which resemble this, but not in brown. Was this Wedgwood, or not? If so, why couldn't I readily identify it, and if not, did I like this enough to keep it? I decided that it was worth the risk, and bundled it through security at the airport and took it home.

Back at home, I took a few photographs and sent it along to Replacements.com for identification. I soon afterward got a newsletter notification for a Wedgwood pattern called Ranunculus Brown, but I haven't seen any pieces listed on the site, or anywhere else on the web.

I'm turning to you, gentle reader, for any information that you may have about this piece, and in doing so, starting a new weekly series entitled, "Whatsit Wednesdays". On Whatsit Wednesdays, I'll feature an item that I've found while out and about that seems interesting, but about which I haven't a clue. You're also more than welcome to send me an item that you're having some difficulty identifying, and we'll see if we can crowdsource and find some answers together!

This post has also been included in the fabulous Apron Thrift Girl's Thrift Share Monday series, another great place to post your finds and learn more about what's out there in the vintage/antique/collectible world.

Happy Thrifting!

E

Thrift Share: I'm Baaaack.. with books!

Hello world! After a too-long hiatus from vintage blogging and doing lots of shopping, I'm back in the swing of things. I'm still digging out (and through) following my move in late February, and of course am still out hunting for treasure!

This past weekend yielded some rather interesting reading material, ranging from Berlitz travel guides

 
to 1950's bodice-ripping classics

a book-of-the month club choice turned movie

childrens classics, in hardcover and song

and finally, a genuine classic:

In preparation for new additions to my etsy shop and ebay auctions, I've been reorganizing my stock, trying to put all books in a small bookcase, all clothing items in a closet, and so forth, but it's been slow going. Of course, with the hunting season upon us - warm weather does spell Estate and all manner of open-air sales here in New England - I need to have space for countless other treasures. 

I'm most excited by the travel I have planned for this summer - first, to Iceland with my boyfriend to visit with his family, and then in September, the Hello Etsy conference in Berlin! It's a leap of faith for me to have signed up for this, but it definitely does motivate me to take both my Vintage Wares and Project Management businesses to the next level of success. I do plan to find lots of new, interesting things in my travels and am planning how to carry them all back as we speak..

This post has been submitted to the inspiring Apron Thrift Girl's Thrift Share Monday. Please stop by and share your vintage and thrift treasures! 

 

Tata Harper: Earth-Friendly Charm

Has anyone ever used Tata Harper's products? I've never heard of them, but find her dedication to vintage fashion and a live-work house and farm in VT ideal.

Tata Harper: Earth-Friendly Charm.

Bobbins and Spools Aplenty

Tempus fugit, and life changes. I'm in the midst of moving, starting down a new path,  and making new plans to put into play shortly.

In my last post, I mentioned a lovely find at a rummage shop in Vermont, and intended to have a detailed post on everylastitem up for Thrift Share Monday. Instead, I'm focusing on these lovely items, happy to share one special group with you.

Browsing the densely-packed aisles and shelves, racks and boxes, I spied one spool, and thought it might be an interesting objet on my desk. Seeing several more, I thought that I could cherry-pick some that were of harmonious size or thread color - but a voice inside of me said, "Buy each one of them".  I've learned to pay heed to the voice, and asked the woman who curates the shop (really, it is more an act of curation than shop-keeping) to help me find them all. She did, and offered me a very fair price for the lot, which I duly accepted.

The spools and bobbins vary in height, amount of thread, color, and core composition (wood, cardboard or hard plastic), and I am wondering what to do with them all. Some will be destined for etsy, some for a local community flea market this spring and summer, but I hope that a few will find their way onto my new mantel.

Do any of you collect bobbins and spools?

 

This post was shared as part of Apron Thrift Girl's Thrift Share Monday Collection and Her Library Adventures' Flea Market Find extravaganza. Feel free to link back to me if you share this post!

 

 

Thrift Share: Paper, Crafting Finds, Good Reads, and a VT Stash

I had a busy weekend, with lots of walking and some cross-country skiing (and falling) in Warren, VT, so I knew that I'd have to hit the local thrift stores early. I headed to Central Square in Cambridge for some delicious, quick lunch at Mary Chung's and on to the Goodwill. I made a quick-for-me stop, lasting only about 45 minutes, but found some great deals.

The first item that found its way into my basket was a box of tissue sheer notepaper, made by Eaton. Buttery yellow and tissue thin, would this be better used in altered art, collages, or as an actual writing medium?

I also found a more contemporary bundle of notecards - and the ever useful 'Thank You' notecard:

These delightful vintage photo albums (one for "Memories" and one for "Wedding Memories" ) were designed to hold the square photos of yesteryear.. Does anyone know when photo print sizes became larger? The mid 70s, perhaps?

A set of wooden rods and balls, designed for handbag-creating use, was also found..

.. and round out by a varied selection of Little Golden, American Girl, and Home Décor books!

Click on each image to enlarge..

On Friday night, my boyfriend and I headed up to Waitsfield, VT, where we stayed at a friend's guest house. The next day, as he tacked the hills of Mad River Glen, I walked over to the Bridge Street Marketplace and visited Lost-N-Found, a rummage emporium that was brimming with goodness. I'll be writing a separate post on my finds, but I will share one - a glue gun with sticks! I have never owned a glue gun, but am sure that I will now be adorning every available edge with hot glue and braided trim!

Read about more fun shares on Apron Thrift Girl, where this post will be in the usual Thrift Share Monday collection!

My new Etsy Treasury: I'm The Operator...

.. with my pocket Calculator..

I pulled this little Treasury together, inspired by the calculator that Apron Thrift Girl featured in this week's Thrift Share Monday post. Enjoy!

'I'm the Operator..' by misshowescuriosities

Inspired by Kraftwerk's "Pocket Calculator", here are a selection of slide rules, vintage calculators, and other adding machines to "add" to your delight..

Shop N Add Vintage Shop... TheSecondTimeA... $9.99	70s Unused Olive Rockwe... apricotvintage $10.00	Vintage calculator, ret... NotGrandmasVin... $25.00	Texas Instruments SR51 ... BYBots $10.00
Texas Instruments Busin... butterflyemoon $36.00	Kraftwerk Vintage Tee C... retroEra $200.00	Small vintage wooden ab... sovietvintage $15.00	Vintage Early 1980s Cas... tipsynumber9 $9.99
Vintage Calculator OurGeneralStor... $15.00	Vintage Radio Shack By ... yeoldegenerals... $12.00	Hewlett Packard 16C Sc... DJandPvintage $	Antique Wooden Abacus sinderellasatt... $49.00
1956 remmington rand ad PatinaVintage $9.95	Vintage Keuffel and Ess... kelleystreetvi... $23.95	Pair of Vintage Calcula... retroradar $18.00	Vintage Calculator campvintage $9.99

Generated using Treasury HTML code generator by Whale Shark Websites.

 

Thrift Share Monday: Candles, Clocks, and Jokers Wild

** I'm being featured in the Vintage showcase on etsy on January 11th! Please stop by!**

I think that I'm finally hitting my stride when it comes to ferreting out the best local thrift and consignment shop locations. While there are a few places I'd love to hit - like the Savers on the VFW Parkway - I'm pretty happy with my current sources and am on the lookout for the next secret stash!

This week's share comes from the Central Square Goodwill in Cambridge, MA.

My first find this past week was a lovely GE Electric alarm clock. In need of a shine, she still works, and the alarm is just as shrill as the day it was first placed by a bed head:

Next, I found a *huge* stash of cake-topper numeral candles, "suitable for birthdays or anniversaries", per the package below. I'm only showing a small sample here; I found at least 20. Due to the miracle of fuzzy math, two Ziploc bags full were had for a song..

Finally, while not an homage to the 80's game show (anyone remember it, and who the host was? Please let me know!), the first thing that came to mind when I saw this pair of drinking glasses was "Jokers Wild":

Fabulous in double-walled plastic, and stamped "Made in Hong Kong" on the bottom, I'm thinking these will find their way into a game night at some derserving home.

Later this week I simply must make my way back to the Church Thrift Store - I love to see who's volunteering and get the latest news from the Retired and Fierce set!