Category Archives: thrifting

Old Things Make Me Happy

Posted by KyAuthorProfessorJBowling2733 in a spiritual life, appalachian life, Kentucky memories, ky author, memories, my special days, thrifting and tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Each of us are unique and each have our own dreams, desires, and things that brings joy to our lives. I dreamed of becoming a teacher when I was a little girl. I dreamed of becoming an author. I dreamed of working on a newspaper and gathering the facts about a breaking story. I also dreamed of owning a farm and having a family who loved farming as much as I did. Then there were the simple things that I loved. I loved, and still love old things. Old things make made me happy as a child and old things still make me happy.

Mission store find a treasure from days gone by.

I have been a thrifter since I can remember. I loved going to the dime store with my grandmother when I was a little girl. I would hold tight to my hard earned fifty sense because I knew I could buy five treasures with it. It was a custom to rise early, do the Saturday morning chores, dress, and load up with my cousin, mamaw, aunt Doshia, and uncle Roy and head out to the mission store. It was the simple things in life such as the dime store trips that made some of my favorite memories.

I recall searching until I found what I thought was the perfect princess dress. In reality the sparkly satin dress was probably someone’s prom dress in another era of time. We would dig enthusiastically through the bin of baby clothes until we found at least one new sleeper or dress for our dolls. Even though they were resurrected from a babies wardrobe who had long since outgrown them, they were still new to us. I always loved going through the jewelry to find a sparkling pin filled with rhinestones that we thought were diamonds. Yes, we were rich with our dime store treasures.

I love those Simple days that have passed far to swiftly. Some days it feels as though it was only a few years ago, and other times it feels like a beautiful dream. In reality, it actually was another era… another time, a simple time, a cherished time.

Today, our daughter, myself and sometimes our granddaughters or grandsons still love to thrift at the mission store. The prices have increased, but the excitement of bringing life to an object that was cast aside by someone before us, still resonates within me and still brings an element of happiness and joy to each of us. It’s exciting to find tins of old hand-written recipes dated 1963, with noted about the recipe. It’s still exciting to browse the pins and find one full of beautiful stones and rhinestones. Thrifting brings out the kid in all of us. It’s a family tradition that I’m happy to have passed down to our daughter and grandchildren.

A treasured find uncovered in Arkansas by our son in-law. He knows my interests well.

I still love simple things. Simple things make me happy as does old things. I cherish quiet mornings relaxing on the porch, drinking a cup of coffee and watching the fog lift. I love the smell of breakfast early in the morning in the kitchen, wearing my grandmother’s apron while I bake bread, canning tomato juice with our antique food mill, and cooking supper for my family using some of the old recipes to guide me. I love old quilts of all kinds! I look at them and try to imagine the many stories they could tell. I love strange and unusual objects, I love old clocks, old books, old dolls, dishes, old glass door knobs, and old silhouettes! These are only a few things that I love. I’m a person of many interests, but a person who loves old things… they make me happy.

Two treasures finds. One dates 1946 and unsure of the other. I can’t help but wonder who these beautiful ladies are. What words of wisdom would they share?

Teatime Treasures

Posted by KyAuthorProfessorJBowling2733 in a spiritual life, appalachian life, clean eating, farm living, Kentucky memories, ky author, memories, my special days, shop local, tea time, thrifting and tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Good Morning, from the mountains of Kentucky. I hope your week has been filled with happiness, good food, family, and lots of sunshine. We’ve gone from 70 plus degree temperatures to forties within a few days and now, we’re expecting up to six inches of snow for the weekend! March weather in Kentucky is always full of surprises.

I love a good surprise! One my favorite kind of surprises comes from thrifting! When you thrift, you never know what you’ll find. I have found thrifting to be a therapeutic hobby, and a lasting tradition in our family for generations. When I grew up in the mountains of Kentucky, spending time with family was a priority. We found joy in things that we loved to do whether it was congregating for a big family dinner, attending a special church service, gathering on my Mamaw’s store porch to catch up on the events of the week, working the gardens, or thrifting at the dime store.

A Hidden Gem

I am a bit of a creature of habit. I love many of the old traditional dishes from my youth, but I also love trying new dishes. However, I find it a bit of a struggle to change a timeworn tradition. As a child it was a tradition to go to the dime store on Saturday mornings. The dime store was what we called the second hand mission store where everything cost a dime. My cousin, and I, would load up with our grandmother, great aunt, and uncle who was the designated driver. Neither my grandmother or grandfather ever learned to drive, but they never planned a trip that didn’t include a family member who enjoyed driving them. It was an exciting time as kid to hold those well earned dimes in our hands and dream of the treasures that awaited us.

As time passed thrifting wasn’t as much of an interest for us as teens. But, what most of us discovered is that the love of thrifting never completely left us, but lay dormant waiting for just the right time to surface. Since the days of our youth in the late sixties and early seventies, dime stores have grew in popularity. They’ve become the stores to find retro clothing, farmhouse decor, and much more. The prices have increased from everything being a dime to various different prices, depending on the store. But the love of searching for treasures remains the same and for many a way of carrying on a mountain tradition.

Redbird Community Store in Beverly Kentucky

Our daughter, daughter in law, and two of our granddaughters share a love for this time worn tradition. We enjoy a couple of days a month browsing vendors malls, GoodWills, estate sales, mission stores, and flea markets. There’s something about searching the shelves that are filled with dishes, glassware, odds and ends, baskets, and bins of household goodies, shelves of books, and racks of clothes, that brings an element of excitement and unity. We’ve learned that the joy lies not only within the findings, but also in the search and spending time with family.

I’m excited to begin sharing weekly treasures with you! I’ll share just a few of the treasures we found, but it would be impossible to share them all. The picture below is one of my new favorites! This absolutely gorgeous hand embroidered and crocheted table runner was definitely a score for only 1.25. Once it is washed and pressed, it will adorn the fireplace mantle in my bedroom. Based on the material and research, it appears to be an early 1950’s piece. Whoever made this treasure, really put a lot of tender loving care and obvious heart into the intricate details. It’s also in excellent condition.

A gorgeous hand crocheted and embroidered table runner.
Seven Star Vintage colander

I also found an aluminum seven star vintage colander. It didn’t look like much when I pulled it out of the bin, but after cleaning it up… it was in excellent condition. It has been housing bananas in our kitchen, and I’ll be honest, I’ve enjoyed using it as well. There’s something about the simplicity of its lightweight design that makes straining foods easy. Truly another great find that has stood the test of time. I’m not sure about the date, but I’m still researching and will update you later.

I’m truly a nerd at heart. I love to strap on my vintage apron, and cook barefoot in our kitchen while using some of my thrifting treasures. I like to imagine who’s kitchen the sifter or crock came from. I like to imagine their homes, their faces, the dishes they’ve prepared, and wonder what their lives were like and what their names may have been. I also enjoy decorating with vintage utensils, crocks, linens, and other tried and true treasures.

Thrifting is a year-round hobby, that brings joy to my heart, keeps a tradition alive, and family time well spent. We found an abundance of treasures on our last thrifting spree. I’ll share more teatime treasures next week. For now I’m going to relax with a cup of sweet and spicy hot tea and enjoy re-browsing our treasures. God bless from the mountains of Kentucky!