A Bit of 2009 Treasure...

....and a picture-perfect holiday morning mess.

And you thought I was kidding about the Christmas Morning Paper Flying Frenzy, but I know you can relate. It's been at your house at least once or twice on Christmas morning. Maybe even on Christmas Eve. Right?


Well, this is what my family room looked like at about 11 a.m. last Friday. Man, I feel deeply sorry for the landfill and the poor trees that gave their lives for all this paper! At least Ty (maybe due to lack of funds or maybe because he was playing "green") wrapped all his gifts this year in newspaper. Way to go, Ty! Plus, I guess, technically, all this paper makes for great fire starter. O.K. I don't feel guilty any more.

Moving on.

2009 proved to be a fun time treasure hunting. Over-night trips to Eugene, Springfield and all the little towns along the way. Day trips to Medford and the surrounding areas. On-the-way-back trips from La Pine with shops in Shady Cove and Eagle Point. Portland, Las Vegas, California. Local yard sales, garage sales, rummage sales, second-hand stores. Lots of hunting. Lots of finding. Lots of fun on my own, with friends and fellow treasure hunters.

So here are a couple of those finds....trust me, there are too many to post, but these are a few of them I have

on display right now....

A very cute, vintage Mother Goose Songs For Little Ones book. I have plans for the "guts" of this little gem. Rest assured, I won't be ruining it in any way. The little silver fork is just one of many I have been collecting this year. Forks. Spoons. Ladles. Platters. Dishes.

Speaking of...

This VERY HEAVY serving tray was garish to say the least when I found it. It was heavily tarnished and the detail was all but hidden. It was at a pre-holiday bazaar at our local fairgrounds. There were a few on the table for sale. All the others were cheap-o stamped silver-ish metal. None of them were priced. The vendor-woman said she'd take $10 for the cheap-o ones (that I wasn't interested in) and I was secretly cringing to hear the asking price for this really nice, heavy, silver-plated, potentially beautiful tray.

Then, she dropped the bomb on me! "Oh, that one is $5.00." SOLD!!!. Got it home. Polished it up and created the gem you see here. I didn't take a "before" photo, but you've seen these. All dull, dark gray, and ugly.

 

Next up, is my heavy, cast, black mailbox. I'm sure it's a reproduction, but given the condition it was in, it must have been reproduced a long time ago....? I can't imagine it is a 1930's original, but I'm no expert on these things.

The Coronet Dominoes box lid is, well, I just liked it. Of course the dominoes housed in the original box were long gone when I found the tattered old box, but I really liked the graphics.

 

Lastly, I just found this little Mikasa, Made In Japan, off-white dish. Again, it's probably just a little piece from 1990 or something, but the fact that it's not marked Made In China and looks good with the other pieces I collected this year, and it was .99 cents! I was all but happy to bring it home!!!

Plus, I don't know about you, but I'm really very concerned, deep down, that dishes manufactured in China these days may contain lead. Am I just paranoid, or is this a real issue? And what happens when you add heat? Say in the Microwave or the Oven? Does the United States or CAN the United States regulate all that inexpensive imported product? I guess, I'll have to either do more research or stop worrying already.....

Finally, here is today's Scrabble tiles.......

Snow....none here yet.

Play....you bet ya!

Cold....is 30 degrees (today's high) considered cold? (I promised, when it was 8 degrees outside a couple of weeks ago, I wouldn't complain about 30 degrees EVER again!!!)

Happy Monday......The NEW YEAR is just around the bend.......Let the Party Begin!!!!!