What a difference a couple of inches make....

The kitchen is half the size of the one I had when we lived in the burbs....

so when we moved we just plunked the microwave in the corner that made sense at the moment.

Of course I forgot to take a before picture....

This is where the microwave was before and the utensil pot was on top of it.

 This is the microwave new home.

It gets along great with the jadeite bowl, the vintage timer,

the vintage match holder and the report jadeite S&P

It will look ever better once everything will be painted....

We should start next month by sections.....

Also I wanted to share this picture full of precious cacti.

It is from a little cafe near my job.

I pass by every morning and last week they had all these adorable cacti in the window!

I want them All!

Next day they were gone...

Crazy enough there's no more snow here in Montreal...

Usually we should be suffocating in snow...

we woke up to freezing rain...later it turned to rain

Winter coats are too warm to wear!

I hope spring is around the corner!  

Out thrifting....

I haven't been thrifting in a long time...I would like to say forever, but that is just not true

Saturday we decided to go on a road trip...first Lake Placid...changed our minds because of weather and politics....

then we opted for Cornwall, Ontario and then i saw the weather update...not good a foot of snow or more...

so that is when we opted for Valleyfield, Qc.....My Dad lived there as a child, we had a VR there for some years and it is still an area we enjoy...

First off here some things I left....

 I was tempted by the fondue plates...

I have been craving cheese fondue and chinese fondue...

 Nice Corelle teapots plus a Pyrex coffee pot

 I had never seen plastic Cinderella bowls...Unknown maker.

 Those kitties were a hoot but too expensive at $10 each....

 The 4 bowls were $20. A good price but I already have them..

 These are the goodies that came home with me....

A large Fireking Jadeite bowl, a stainless steel tissue box cover,

a vintage S&P set (corn) , a vintage tin and a big beer glass.

The shakers were .50 the pair, the tissue box cover was $5 (great because retail they

sell for $30-$35), the tin and the glass were free....

My biggest find was the bowl!

That dealer had no idea what that was and he let me have it for

$5. Yes $5!!!! WOOT!

I'm keeping the bowl for the time being....

Here's a close up from the tin....

It felt really good to go for a car ride, to thrift, to hang out....

NICE!

Till next time! 

Seen Around

I love posting about interesting things I see while on the road.

Our latest road trip took us to Kingston, Ontario.

Once the capital of the Province of Canada....for just a short time . It remains an important military installation.

The old town (downtown ) is just lovely, quaint and great for unique shopping.

Here are things I saw  there, on the way there and on my way back.

 From the Brockville Goodwill, sad, so sad

 From a Kingston DVD club.

I want one (a blowmold just like this...)

 This machine really cracked us up.

Who knew the Dan meister wood worker extraordinaire had another job on the side?

In Montreal no less....

 Happy lovely mishmash from Gannanoque, Ontario

 Nice sunburst!

 The funny thing is my mother in law had the exact same clock

over the sink in the summer kitchen attached to her RV!

Whatever happened to it?

I don't know!

I bought a tiny gift for Dan, but it is still a secret!

$3.50

We were supposed to go grocery shopping in Massena, NY....But halfway there we kinda figured out that this being a loooonnnngg weekend; there would be half of Quebec and half Ontario at the border crossing....

So we just drove on to Ontario and pretty much stopped at all the yard sales on the way!

                                          It was a really good thrifting day, I'm not buying for the Etsy store anymore....

                                           I am a closet Snoopy maniac! So i was really happy to snap up
                                           this hockey themed pillowcase for a big ol'dollar.

                                           Next up 2 sets of 2 ice trays still in their wrappers for .25 cents

                                            These will come in handy because I have a big cooler to fill
                                            soon and I'm too stubborn and cheap to pay for ice!

                                In this picture: One Tupperware shaker for .25 cents (barely used) and
                                a cereal  keeper, Tupperware also for .50 cents.

                                Now as much as I dispise greasy, scratched Tupperware; I am a total sucker
                                for very cheap, barely used Tupperware!!! I never pass it up!
                                 These will come in handy!

                                Also in this picture; a Pyrex beverage server with gold kitchen utensils
                                The design is in poor shape, but I could not pass this up for $1.

                                  I will use it for cold water with my fancy ice cubes!

                              
                                         Now last but not least this little Blue Mountain Pottery bowl

                                         It will make a perfect catch all in my bedroom.
                                         It was .50 cents

                                         So all in all a surprise thrifting trip that was highly satisfying!

                                          I hope to post soon the pictures of the things I left behind....

B-Day Loot

Yes it is my B-Day today. My official age doesn't match how I feel AT ALL!

I had a great day overall and was surprised by my co-workers with a musical card playing Celebration by Kool & The Gang. This is kinda of my theme song at work making me remember that I should celebrate each day and even each crappy case.

Dan surprised me with a great SWATCH watch this morning

                                                    Sorry the pic is a bit fuzzy
                                         I LOVE watches, I have a lot and went through an ebay phase not long ago
                              and I bought a lot of cheap watches to match my outfits!

                                                   I also got a car phone charger with 2 ports and this
                                                   

 

A Pyrex Xmas bowl full of goodies I love!

 

Last week I was going through the kitchen cabinets and Dan asked what I was doing...

and I said: I'm looking for some gummy bears, do we have gummy bears, gummy bears would be so good right now!!!

 I didn't find any as we don't have a lot of sugar in the house as a rule... but now I have gummies....

 

And I got a cupcake, a glorious cupcake with lemon icing.

 

I think it sang in my mouth!

 

Well I still need to get up and go to work tomorrow!

 

There will be thrifting!  

Left at the thriftshop

It was slim pickings last night at the thrift shop but I saw a couple of beauties!

Music box with boy figurine broken and glued back up

and not very well I might add!

 

 

                                            I'm guessing red carrots S & P, they were a good deal at .60 cents each but up close they were all scratched up so PASS!

                                              Super cool percolator but no cord....PASS!

                                         But saddest of all the sweet primary blue Pyrex 401 bowl
                                         all dull and scratched from the dishwasher! PASS!

                                             I got a small carpet (new) and some vintage napkins and placemats, but I didn't cleaned them so no picture.

                                          TGIF! I can't wait to cook a turkey and veg out, amongst other things....

                                           Be well!

New Pyrex & some thrifting

Last week when I went to visit my Dad he surprised me with this....

                                A 401 Homestead bowl in Navy ( it exists in Brown)
                                a gift from a Pyrex soldier.
                               And what about that brick wrapped in waxed paper?

A brick of maple sugar! YUM ! Such a cool gift!

 

We took Friday off for our annual creamer capper to Massena NY.

 

Why creamer capper? Well, I suffer from ( among other things) a liquid Coffee Mate addiction and December is a great time to go across the border and look for it!

 

I didn't find the Coffee Mate I was yearning for but decided to try some International Delight creamer instead...Still unopened in the fridge....

 

I did find 2 new thrift shops, one with mostly clothes and the other was kind of an antique mall with booths, but not really.

Very clean, bright and warm.

 

I got the measuring cup

 

  

                               I also got a kitty kat beatnik Xmas tree ornement (no pic yet) for $1.

                                  The Butterfly Gold casserole came from Value Village in Cornwal, and I also got other cool stuff from there, but I didn't think of capturing those finds for posterity
                                  It was a beautiful  day full of finds and laughter and we both and a ball.
                                  We were asleep in the living room by 9:30 pm...

                                   Good times!

I just noticed I have a couple of new followers! WELCOME!  I hope you will enjoy your visits

Must go beddy bye because the morning comes really fast!

Grateful

As the days grow shorter and the temp cooler, even colder; I find myself really grateful for my house, for heat , light , for a great partner, for being resourceful, handy, crafty, quirky pets, for a full freezer,
for money to pay the bills, for a good job, for flannel sheets, hot water, for soup

and for being able to go in the backyard and harvest a big bowl of greens....

 Fresh greens from the veggie garden.

Right arugula, left baby collards and in the Pyrex bowl a mix of arugula, baby collards and winter greens.

I'm thinking of sauteing some in butter for a side dish tonight.

 

Here's what the view looks like this afternoon. 

 

 The week was stressful....

We watched the news about Sandy approaching.

They predicted really bad things here and I was worried about the old tree in the backyard that should be cut....and the roof

But nothing really happened.

Instead we watched and gasped at the devastation in New England and New York city.

 We are praying and sending you all good vibes.

 

People are suprinsingly resilient and strong in emergency situation like that.

I would've freaked out at first to loose my house or have damage to it.

 

I know because I freaked out Thursday night when we came home....

 

The workers came and removed all the ciment, that was rotting the house, good, but

they didn't install anything so we could get in the house....

Now the front door is boobage level!

It was dark and rainy and muddy...but we draged adirondak chairs and a plank and were finally able to reach the door... but we couldn't  unlock it because the house had shifted.

 

There was a lot of fiddling involved and finally I was able to get in and feed the cats while Dan (crafty devil) fiddled some more so we could lock the door.

BECAUSE I AIN'T SLEEPING WITH THE DOOR UNLOCKED!

Yes that was part of the freak out, I also ranted that we should call the foreman because you don't let people stranded like THAT! Imagine if we were seniors or not as crafty!

 

 

These are my feet and you can see the chairs and the plank and a saucer because the black stray

came for a light lunch.

 I'm praying all this gets fixed soon...

 

To all my readers that were affected by Sandy be safe, be well.

 to the rest....well keep out of trouble! lol

 

 

WEEKEND! HEEEEEEEHAAAWWWWW!

Ok so I wanted to have a lenghty post on times changing and the end of another era.....well that is for another time!

I want to shout from the top of my lungs that HALLELUYAH THE WEEKEND IS HERE!

I know, I know, I've already posted about the unrest at my workplace but I can't resist an update! Well , it's not really an update....

This is the company that told me I would get a permanent job by September for sure....NOT HAPPENING!

I'm still happy to get up in the morning and still thrilled to handle cheques and assorted payments, however I'm not feeling the love from my boss and I don't think they will renew my contract.

In a twisted way I think my boss is blaming me because the training was crappy; like I didn't learn fast enough. But really what is there to learn when they don't teach you anything or when they do it's so fast you don't even know what hits you so you can't ask questions your brain can't process it fast enough!

So now for a change of pace! No nudie bar or chip wagon or asian joint....

Really this is Roadtrip time....time to relax, thrift,nibble, thrift, relax, drink coffee, thrift some more, have a cocktail, supper and thrift some more!

This is what I chose for my B-Day gift to go on a road trip to Kingston, Ont! The road is so lovely, we take the old hihway most of the way.
The views of the St-Lawrence nd the Seaway are breathtaking and littered with little thrifts. And Chip Wagons....you can always get a snack in western Ontario.

It's the second place (besides New England) that I've fallen in love with. I just need to visit Cornwall, Iroquois, Brockville, Gananoque and all the litle places in between!

That sign is so cool, vintage and not politically correct at the same time!

That is probably the smallest bar in Ontario!

This Chip Wagon is in Brockville, Ont. Just so you know, it's pre-molded patties with crap in it not real meat!

STAY AWAY!

But these beauties are docked in Kingston! I can't wait to see them!

I might just get some of these.....If I'm lucky!

I wish! I can't wait to see what we dig up!

Have a nice weekend and a fantastic Thanksgiving!

Be sure to give thanks for all your riches vintage or new. Life is a gift to be fully enjoyed and be grateful for.

Still Rockin' the Pyrex!

I have to admit I have the after Xmas blues....I'm a bit congested, it's snowing nearly everyday, it's cold and let's face it it's time to put away Xmas...sad face.
Even if i lit the tree every night I still feel I didn't enjoy it enough...Most of the goodies are long gone. My jeans are sighing in relief!

Here's how I use my Pyrex in January...

I take out all the ornements out of the tree and they await triage in the bowls. Then I can put them in their boxes.

Last year I got a Pyrex Terra mug and I've been looking for a suitable plant for it ever since (not too big,not too expensive,not too spikey...I have to keep the house Feng Shui after all and spikey is no good!)

I found it last week and I got some succulent potting medium and tada! Plant in Pyrex. I think it looks cool.

Terra was one of Pyrex misses, the matte finish scratched too easily and the mugs without the handles? Not a good idea, especially since the mugs are too big to hold comfortably in your hand!

   

Here's a little girl who's too cute to be yelled at! I don't know how she does it, but she manages to change the side of the screens on my laptop. She needs a hug!

I should be back tomorrow for some Retro Tuesday goodness! Sleep tight and don't let the bedbugs bite!

Stuff I didn't buy!

A I was perusing my picture library, I noticed a lot of pics from fleas in Maine. Here are some of the stuuf I didn't buy....

This lamp was a riot! If my decor was red and black and had the price been a LOT cheaper, this gorgeous piece of man would've lighted my boudoir!

At the front 2 Pyrex cups. Now I had to explain to Dad that I didn't NEED every piece of Pyrex under the sun. He proceeded to explain his vision of a collection...LOL

I love that chippy blueish turquoisy scale but I already have one, sigh!

This teapot is a showstopper!

22.50$ for a green bowl??? Are they out of their minds???

This is another of those TBNT Pyrex pieces (to me at least). So if you MUST have it, it still might be in Scarborough, Maine....One never knows! 

Is this a cool dish set or what??? 19$ for the lot and the booth had a 50% off sale too, so that is 9.50$ for the lot! I didn't get it because I have a Martha Stewart Everyday white dish set and I'm scared that if I gave it away, she would find out and send her minions. Yes she has minions! That comedian is their leader. So don't mess with Martha she sees, hears and knows everything!

I still haven't asked Dan for the sofa receipt so I can see the store's name and blog about it...but the sofa full of vinyl deliciousness is arriving later tonight! I can't wait! giggles!