what I do with all my time.... (brace yourself!)

 For those that know me, know I LOVE to thrift shop.  I always have.  Until now I have shopped for me... now I shop for eBay..  Yep, I have been doing the eBay business this year.  So far, so good.

BUT sometimes I get myself in a pickle - like a few weekends ago.  I did a thing, I got involved (on a whim) in an auction... YAY, I won... oh, yeah... I won (bumbumbum)... here is the result of that win:

This is the haul still boxed.  I was honestly scared to tell Butch what I did... but then I HAD to unload it from the car, so had to fess up... I just said.  Uh, I did a "thing"... and then sort of chuckled about it, then I told him I won an auction... it was less than $40 total... BUT it was 5 (yes FIVE) tables laid out with glassware at the store... yeah... FIVE.  Barbara was a sport and helped me box it all and pack it into my car for the ride home.  The gal I was bidding against only wanted ONE set of dishes from the pile and offered me $15.  Uh, OK, fine, that would be fine.  Do I even know what they were worth?  NOPE.  Did I pay for just under 1/2 of the cost of the winning bid, heck yes!!  I was still in shock when I immediately said "yes" to that sale to tell you the truth.  What isn't pictured here is a set of brass lamp bases ... You'll see those at the end of this post.

This is the bulk of the haul on the table... 

plus these two chickens...

plus these two lamps - that in hind sight were marked on the bottom MADE IN ITALY.  Really?  They may have been worth more than the $10 I charged.  OK, let's be realistic they WERE worth more than that, but I'm pricing to sell as this stuff is something I bought on a whim and didn't really do a bunch of research on.  

The ONLY things I knew had some worth were the FiestaWare and the Dorothy Thorpe.  What is Dorothy Thorpe?

This is Dorothy Thorpe (you would have to live under a rock to NOT know what Fiesta Ware is)

These are 1960 silver rimmed glassware... there was quite a bit of this in the group - these drink glassed some bowls and a salad bowl.  All will be, or are on eBay for a decent price for the name.  I may be sitting on them for a while because apparently I'm the only one that seems to want to buy Dorothy Thorpe glassware.  ha!  

The Fiesta Ware on the contemporary pieces (I had to look up how to identify those) were sold off for the most part (paying for most of the rest of this bill).  I have a few left over of the percimmon dinner dishes.  The rest are all going up on eBay.  

If you wonder what my handle is on eBay to check things out it is: https://www.ebay.com/usr/doash_78

If you see anything let me know ... I can probably work a deal with you :)

why am I so happy to tell you all this?  Today my table looks like THIS!!

1.5 weeks later and it's clear!!  OK, so not all the way clear, but it's 99% of the way cleared off!!!!

Whoot, whoot.

We won't mention the bin of stuff in the kitchen currently awaiting attention!

The painting...

 Yes, there is a tale of the painting.. I fell in love with it while looking at the website for this store... it's a junk store with lots of fun stuff in there... most of it is at retail prices, so it's hard to judge if you really should buy it or not, so you better LOVE it before you buy it.  Ya know?  So... I fell in love with this painting when I first saw it here:

It was not the featured item in the shot, but I spied it in the back... along with the one of the far right... but after looking at the far right I have something similar to that already in prints in my office now... that are along that same theme.  So, I sort of already had it in my mind that I wanted that painting AND a wash stand.

And so, it came home with me... 

BUT as I was taking it out I noted a bad repair on the back where the actual repair was peeling off.  In fact there were TWO repairs to this canvas

I didn't take pictures because I was ILL about it... really - to have bought it and not looked closely enough at it... then I had to sit myself down and tell myself that it was really a painting you LIKED... which is rare... and one that you really didn't pay all that much for... and you KNEW it had issues with the frame... so let's just see what we have to do to repair the actual painting too... because you KNOW this happens, you have watched a few documentaries on painting repairs... so, let's just try this!

First repair didn't go so well, we tried it IN the frame... yeah... no... the white repair at the bottom of that black one is one of the original repairs... it was still holding and looked good

I probably put too large a piece of canvas on there as well and discovered I should have used untreated canvas, not one cut off a literal canvas from the craft store.  Ooops.  but I did use Gesso to do the repair and glue it all together...

The result was a bit of a hot mess and a notable white "ring" inside of the repair where the gesso had soaked into the fibers.  Well, crap... and it was a bit bowed around the repair, which you can't see....

So, take #2.  remove the painting from the frame... and put it on a flat surface - the carpet is a sturdy carpet and there is something between the painting surface and the carpet to keep everything in order.

AND we weighted it and wet the canvas first to get it to dry more taunt in the frame...   It worked like a CHARM!  Flat surface to work with... now to get that color adjusted in the patching.

My repair... I should be ashamed of myself for getting so much gesso onto the front of the painting... but hey, you live and learn, don't you?  yep!  you can see the other repair in the lower right of this shot as well...

close up of that repair - obviously someone knew what they were doing on that one!!

another small hole in the canvas that I am NOT messing with!

AND THE REVEAL!!!  

It's a tad noticeable up close... like REALLY close... there is a bit more bright green in there where it should be more muted...but honestly if I wasn't pointing it out, I'm not sure anyone would notice...

further back....

I even dabbed on a bit of darker paint where you could see some canvas on the other repair..

AND from a distance I don't think anyone will be the wiser, do you????

And she’s back in the frame!

The COVID update and a short Saturday adventure!

Well, technically it's been 131 days since the "lock down" began, but we're not "really, really" in lock down anymore.  What do I mean by that?  Well, we have more freedom to come and go and stores are less strict about visitiontsion and keeping a strict limit on the number of persons who can enter at a time.  they still count you to some extent but you are allowed to enter shops fairly freely as the limit on numbers is pretty high.  I would honestly have to go and look it up as to how many are allowed in at a time anymore but it's not the tiny number of 10-20 for a small store so it's easier to get in without a wait.  Case in point.  Antikissimo.  A place I had wanted to go for quite a while but had been putting it off was OPEN without appointments.  VERY nice to have that option of just going in and browsing without thoughts of "oh, crap, I need an appointment".  

So you guessed it, I went there this weekend.

Their facebook site will give you an example of what they have:https://www.facebook.com/antikissimo/

And it's just as fun in person... it's dirty and dark and a mystery around every turn.  When you come out you HAVE to wash your hands...yeah, my kind of junk store - ha!  They had lots and lots of STUFF and what did I come out with?  Nothing but pictures

This is the "open" side where there are no covers over the glass roof - yes this is a converted green house that they use.  Its just chuck full of goodness!

The lights were hanging LOW on this side of the place... and you can see into the back where it's dark and there is a mesh over the ceiling... yes, it's like that throughout with dirt floors and concrete strips for the tables for growing I would imagine... or maybe the dirt was where they used to grow things and the concrete strips were for walking?  yeah, that would make way more sense... but with this conversion they have moved all of the items off of the dirt and onto the concrete so there is a strip of "stuff" in the middle of the dirt walkway and barely a walkway straddling the dirt/concrete ...it's definitely cramped.

FUN keys!

What I really love are the glass dry good drawers from old hosier cabinets... these all had some cracks/breaks on the corners so they didn't come home with me at $45 for the set... but I think if I can find some without breaks I will grab some... they had the smaller version in singles in there but again, all with breaks on them, so nope.  Not going to pay top dollar for ones with issues.  I can pick up large ones for 10 Euro and small for 6 euro if I search around... so we'll see if I ever come up with any.

BLUE demijohns... they did have a few but they were 50 euro for the larger and honestly I don't want to pay that for one.. so I passed.

I truly thing it's coming down to want vs. need anymore.  I have zero NEED for this stuff and unless it really makes me smile and I think "oh, I have the PERFECT spot for this - it's not coming home with me.  I have enough junk :)  it is soooo much fun to look though, isn't it?

I WAS going to the flea market in downtown this week too but there were protests scheduled so we're advised to stay away from those areas... and of course it was all day on Saturday - Sunday the sidewalks are pulled up around here - nothing is open... so I did my running in the morning even went to the grocery store - then went home and took a nap... ah Saturdays!  Love them!!

I did go last weekend - did a LONG walk as I was learning the whole "where to park" thing.  I went and tried to park under the train station - that was a bust due to construction... BUT I found the parking under the shopping areas there... managed to park at the WRONG end of the parking area, but that was OK too - I ended up walking about 2 or 3 miles by the time it was all said and done, but no harm, no foul.  I could use it!  I wandered the market hall and the flea market and even the flower market before making my way back to the car and heading to the base to their thrift store.  All was fun during that weekend too - flea markets here in Germany had remained closed until three weeks ago - so opened for the first time on the 4th - I didn't go that weekend... BUT I will be going again - it's fun to wander the market... I need to learn to slow down and get a coffee while I'm there too - but I'm solo so I'm less likely to stop and just watch people.  Next time, next time...

SO on to COVID.  The US is really NOT doing well with controlling this crap at all  I am super happy I'm in Germany at this point - the numbers here are looking SO much better over all in europe.  I complain that we are not allowed to fly anywhere yet, but I also have a paranoid husband who is digging his heels in... so I guess I'm stuck in Europe with just little jaunts out and about.  I need to plan my birthday trip too (*yeah, you can read the snark in that one... wtf, plan my own birthday trips?).... Anyway, I have something in mind.

So for historic reasons as I print these out yearly for my journal - here are the numbers as of today.

So you think the numbers being so different and the US is super high - you really have to look at the true statistics per million population.  The fact is that USA has 4X the death rate per 1M population.  And astronomically more on the total cases per 1M population. now is that there is more testing in the US?  Who knows... but the percentages are much higher there than here.

There is also the daily new cases - again, this isn't really a 1 for one without taking into account teh massive population difference but the trend is what I look at - look at Germany - spiked then went down to a nice LOW number of daily cases....

THEN look at the US... they never really did get that downward trend from the initial spikes... they just kept on climbing... this is one case where freedoms that americans demand make our country look like the "florida" of the world as someone put it so aptly.  Hopefully with mandated masks in stores things will calm down over there... but I'm not so sure... we shall see, we shall see...

AGAIN - actually GLAD I'm in Germany at this point... I feel safe here... I don't feel like I'm exposed unduly to infections.  We did have a scare in our building this last week... we're all masking up in public areas now... for the most part.  So we're aware and I'm working in an area with military who are ordered to wear masks and comply because, well, it's an order!

Thrifting

I left the house in an effort to go to a used furniture store in Böblingen and possibly the Flohmarkt in Stuttgart if I got that motivated... Butch stayed home because he didn't feel good and claimed it was going to rain.  Well, duh, it IS Germany...it's going to rain a lot here!  Me?  I Was going OUT.

I got in the car and was headed to Boblingen when I saw the signs for a Flohmarkt right off the freeway... so I stopped!  Of course.  VERY small one as it was yucky weather.. but I found these:

 They were both marked with artist and name of the piece as well as the number of the item.  I don't think they are worth anything... the guy who had them at his booth asked for Euro 20 - meh, not for that!!  So he asked what I would give him... I said "10" and he said yes, then tried to counter for 15... nope, you had already said you would take 10, we're going with 10.  I had thought they would be worth 5 each... at most... so I was happy with the purchase and went on my way :)

 I cleaned the frames (they were filthy) and touched up a few of the spots where they had been knocked around and lost their color and hung them on the wall.  I think they look good there... what do you think?  They go well with the curtains up there as well :)

Looking at them in this pictures I may have to flip them top and bottom and put the one with the tree lower... just seems a bit more fitting... we'll see if I care that much.

So after my trip out to the Flohmarkt I did try to find that store... it's downtown in a hard to get to area where there was little to no parking... so I circled once, couldn't find it, circled again, found about where it was... then went to park only to discover I had NO coins to pay for parking... so I simply backed out and went on my way.  I went to the base...only to realize that the commissary on Panzer is closed on the weekend.  grrrr... so I drove BACK out and headed to Patch (it's only 15-20 minutes down the road... ) and decided I was hungry and I wanted nacho's from Taco Bell... sometimes you just have to have a bit of home.  I DID try to go to the thrift store there as well, but it's only open the 1st and 3rd Saturday... and it's the 2nd.  Sigh.  NO more thrifting from me.... so I got Taco Bell, went to the commissary and headed back to the house.

I got home, cleaned up the pictures, put away groceries and promptly took a LONG nap  What a lazy Saturday.

Goodwill finds this evening

On a whim I stopped at Goodwill tonight and found some folding chairs like these:

very nice for $8.99 each for a seat of 2
I also found a cute poppies painting... I have at thing for RED and a thing for poppies from our time in Italy.  That and sunflowers, but my red fetish has me always going to the poppy pictures in stores.  This one is a Kirtland one that was originally $80 for $20.  Can't beat that... and I love the theme :)

Craig's list find!

And they really were $20 for the two. Score. :)
They are a bit scratched, need a good sanding and resealed. They are VERY sturdy. They will probably go to college with a girl the end of next year :)

Dresser makeover

It started with a


Sanded...


These drawers were a challenge. They had TWO layers of wood. Really sturdy drawers here!!


See?


Ready for paint!


Painted and ready for some knobs


What a difference a paint job makes!!


I wanted to do ombré with dark to light in the colors of her walls however I was out voted :( oh well it's her room ;)

Weekend projects

Sanding needed to be accomplished on My projects in the garage!


And the grape vine NEEDED to go. It was a mess, not pretty and unneeded.


And sanding of the night stands for Liz's room:


Well FIRST thing I want to do with these two is this!


Love them with legs. I think I can do this. I think I will try!!

Second is this Only in reverse of the colors. I picked up a subtle silver gray paint in the "reject" pile for 1/2 off ($1.50 - small jar if semigloss). So it's already coming together! Yay!!

So first legs then paint.


Thinking something like this for the dresser? Same thing gray on white so it's subtle.


May be a bit much for one room. Still thinking this one through.