For The Birds. . . .

This past weekend, Howard and I tootled around New Jersey, picking up a few items I found on Craigslist.

In Bergen County, we got the Wedgwood vase I featured in Monday's post ($4!).
At the same house we got a little table that is destined to be transformed
from just plain shabby, to chic. Glamorous, even.
We also got a half-dozen little dishes. Bowls. Plates. Whatever.

They have birds on them. I love birds.

I think these fellas look rather 50s, maybe 60s. No backstamp.

We paid $6 for all six plates/dishes/whatevers.
They are a little shallow to be bowls, but a little deep to be plates.

What will they hold?
I see a baked apple sitting in a nice little pool of caramel drizzle.
Or Strawberry Shortcake, with real biscuit as the base.
Ice cream is always appropriate, with a nice Girl Scout Thin Mint cookie on the side.
(We just got our Girl Scout cookies yesterday.)

All the little birds are identified.
By their real names, not like "Moe" or "Frances."

There are a few repeats of individual birds, but no repeats of combinations;
every plate/dish/bowl thingy is different.

Yeah, I know. Hard not to make a wisecrack, isn't it?

There are an awful lot of birds that share this odd moniker.
Which ornithologist had the wacky sense of humor?

The bowl/dish/plate edges are thickly painted with gold.

And that's my Show & Tell for Friday.
Go visit Cindy at My Romantic Home for more domestic exhibitionism!
Click on highlighted words, or on logo, below.

(And come back Monday for that little table transformation. Va-va-va-VOOM!) -- Cass

Peach Pie and Vintage Craigslist!

Ummm... peach pie and vintage furniture bargains -- I'm having a grand Friday here at That Old House. Join me on a whirlwind tour of crazy Craigslist bargains, and then settle down for a slice of my daughter Anne's delicious peach pie!

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When we moved to That Old House last year, we had an extra 1200 or so square feet to fill, compared to our last house. Thus began my love affair with Craig -- whoever he is -- or more accurately, with his amazing creation -- Craigslist -- a giant free online garage sale.

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So today I am Hooked On Craigslist, and sharing a Peach Pie my daughter Anne baked. (Kids who can cook and clean are the pay-off for those years of diapers and spit-up.)

Toddle over to Julia's Hooked On Houses to read of other obsessions (click here!) . . .

and for some summer recipes that will get you into the kitchen visit
Designs by Gollum for Foodie Friday (click here!).

If you like old stuff, and you don't mind looking past dust, scratches, bad photography and other funk to see the diamond in the rough, then Craigslist hunting is for you. I am lucky enough to live in an area where there are hundreds of new Craigslist postings each day, so I thought I'd share some with you.

I find the richest picking in Northern New Jersey. I have no idea why; I try surrounding areas, including New York City, but rarely find the same sort of bargains.

So, before we dig into the Peach Pie, I want to share some current Craigslist listings.

I've put some pictures here, taken from Craigslist (please don't turn me in!). Some are just links, and for any real junk junkies among us, I've got links (and links and links) at the end of the post.

All the links were active when I put them up -- but as things sell, the links are removed. Just so's you know!

The first one is a little surprising; I didn't realize how cute it is, till I really looked, and saw it in a different setting. . . Small wooden table -- clearly handmade, love the "spikes" between the legs.

Great for an Adirondack-style cottage, a camp in the woods or mountains -
and I'll bet, with all those nails, it is as strong as can be.

Great old desk, and with new paint would be a looker ...

Can you see it as a vanity? Look at the details -- ogee feet, and columns along the sides of the drawers.
Great looking brasses, rather French in feel.

Another desk, may be the same seller. A very different feel --
this one looks as if it would be at home pinch-hitting for a sideboard.


This is a big, big mirror -- and painted white or the color of your choice,
would be a knockout. And the seller says those magic words... "best offer."

Listed as "Patriotic Table." I had to look -- and so do you. You never know what you will find.

Now this is the kind of listing I love. Clearly it's in need of TLC --

but look at it! It's a classic. There is a missing wheel -- no problem; take off the other three. Who needs wheels on an end table? Paint this puppy off-black -- and you've got a piece that would look at home in a sophisticated setting. It's got great lines.
And it's ten dollars, folks! Ten dollars!

You may need to sit down now... all this bargain hunting is exhausting.
How about these wicker armchairs? $40 each. . . .

Some people write rather rambling explanations... but this bed -- provided the rails
and headboard really do exist -- would be stunning with a fresh coat of paint:

Look at the carving -- gorgeous!

Now I know I promised a free china cabinet listing -- but it has disappeared from Craigslist,
which means it has been taken. Boo! But here's what it looked like:

Not bad, eh?

Sometimes you find an ugly duckling and then realize it's got the Right Stuff:

This end table has strong French Empire lines -- and could paint up very nicely indeed.
And, best of all -- it's $15.

And here's a chest of drawers that would make a terrific sideboard:

Yes, really -- it would. It's got all its drawers, and while it needs some tender loving care, it's not hopeless. And look those lines! Construction workers would whistle at it if -- well, if they were other pieces of furniture.

This baby has a serpentine front, and what looks like barley twist roping along the sides. It's a quality piece. Needs handles, needs its finish restored, or a good coat of paint.
My dining room sideboard was in far rougher shape than this. And ... this one's only $25.

This little table makes me smile, and it just might have to come and join us here at
That Old House. We get so darned many magazines!

Love the sideways photography!
Can't you see this, freshly painted, in our study?

Now, a desk for $15.

This fella's been around the block a few times, but he's got great classic lines. Well worth rescuing.

Despite the unusual photography, I think this corner cabinet is an amazing buy for $35.

Plus, it says it's great to display dishes. Dishes!

Another dresser, for $25. Would clean up or paint up nicely.

I know, I know, it says $50 on the headline, but it's $25 in the body of the text.

And because I am running out of time ... at the end of this post are just some quick links to more Craigslist bargains.

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Well, all this stealing photos has made me hungry ... Time for Annie's Peach Pie.

Crumb Topped Peach Pie

Partially-baked pie crust
Enough cut-up fresh peaches to fill the crust (Anne used 5)
1/2 cup sugar (Anne used 1/3 cup Brown Sugar Splenda blend)
1/4 cup flour
Tsp. cinnamon

Crumb Topping:
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup brown sugar (or 1/3 cup Splenda & Brown Sugar blend)
2 Tbs. butter
1/2 chopped nuts (which Anne didn't use 'cause Howard doesn't eat them)

Toss peaches, sugar, flour and cinnamon in a bowl, mound into crust, dot with little bits of butter. Cut flour, sugar and butter together with a pastry cutter or forks to make little crumb-y bits, add nuts if you want them, and put the topping on the peaches.

Bake at 450 for 10 minutes, then lower oven to 375 and bake another 20 minutes.

It may need an extra 5 -- you don't want underdone pies, ick. Take it out, let it cool a bit, enjoy with ice cream or whipped cream. Yum.

And just in case you haven't had enough of Craigslist.... here are more links -- follow them if you are curious, but don't forget to go to Foodie Friday and Hooked On for other great stories! -- Cass

Check this one out ... it's a $50 china cabinet by a good manufacturer...

vintage twin bed, rope

Antique Doors -- have you seen recent magazine pieces around turning them into headboards?

Pottery Barn Iron Benches, 2 -- OK these are adorable! On a sunporch or deck?

2 kind of funky chairs

1 rather adorable chair

gorgeous antique iron outdoor set -- OK not cheap -- but wow, I would love this set!

antique child's rocker -- may actually be a nursery rocker, like the one I got from my grandmother. It's got nice age on it -- looks like the real thing, and may be a converted straight chair -- the rockers seem an afterthought.


Old twin sleigh bed

Old dresser .. ten bucks!

Old side table -- classic and $20

Old chest -- hope chest and $20 -- would look great painted, as a coffee table in a family room.

Enamel table, 4 chairs... I think these may be coming home to That Old House -- we had chairs identical to these in our summer house when I was a kid. My mom painted them watermelon pink to match the refrigerator (which she had also painted watermelon pink).

I could go on and on and on ...
But instead, a quick disclaimer -- I don't get any profit from touting these Craigslist listings. And -- more importanly -- be very cautious dealing with Craigslist listers. There are finks out there, although thankfully they are not the norm.

Look at the item before paying, and never ever ever ever go alone! Be as anonymous as possible. I hope you enjoyed this silly Friday post -- have a wonderful weekend!

A Table 'Scaped With Thrift -- It's Lunchtime!

You know those nightmares where you just can't seem to get going?

That has been my Thursday -- trying to get some time at the computer to get my Tablescape and Thrifties post up with Howard working from home, at my computer. (Da nerve.) Talk about late. . . .


Finally -- done. I'm hopping on three blog party bandwagons -- Tablescape Thursday at Between Naps On The Porch, Vintage Thingies Thursday over at Coloradolady and Thrifty Thursday at Bloggeritaville. Click on the blog names to visit, and read more. Thanks to our charming hostesses; they must be very organized to be able to do this!

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Ebay, Dollar Tree, T.J.Maxx and some old free stuff have all conspired for this Tablescape, Vintage Thingies, and Thrifty Thursday post.

There will be three of us for lunch, and it's a simple summer menu:
cold tomato soup, crusty bread, and iced tea.

A simple menu calls for a simple table.

Three Dollar Tree dishclothes -- woven cotton in different black & white designs -- are our placemats.

Atop them, the basketweave-bordered plates, also from Dollar Tree.

I love these plates, and since I'll never cough up the cash to buy the similar patterns
in Wedgwood or Aynsley or whoever else has it, I'm very happy with these.

Then, the bowls. T.J. Maxx -- $2.99 each.

I love how the black design climbs over the rim into the interior.

The bread plates are Wedgwood. I found them in the beach house kitchen a few weeks ago;
I have no idea where my Mom got them -- probably a church rummage sale.

I actually bought the Lenox wineglasses retail, years ago from the now defunct and much missed Fortunoff's.

They will be just right for cold iced tea, and I've put coasters underneath to catch condensation; a single layer of cotton toweling won't protect the table well enough from that.

The coasters were a thrift shop find a few months ago -- 8 of them for a couple of bucks.

Napkins. . . I was going to use these old linen lovelies:

But for soup they are just too small. So instead of luncheon sized dainties,
we have great big old linens that can do the job.

For Howard, a huge German damask napkin -- smooth linen, and nearly 30-inches square.

For me, an old huck towel, not so huge, with wide hand faggoting along the border, and a big "C" monogram.

Not officially a napkin, but it will work. (Table linens don't belong to unions;
you can force them to work out of their job descriptions.)

Anne gets another piece of old huck, also monogrammed, and soft from many years of laundering. I think this monogram is a "C" also, but you never can be sure; some of those old monograms are pretty funky.

All the "napkins" are from Ebay; none cost more than a couple of dollars.

The flatware is my trusty old Georgian plate, and amazingly enough most of it even has the right monogram -- "L" -- considering I've collected this flatware piecemeal on Ebay with a wacky variety of monograms.

This pattern was introduced in 1912.

Great big soup spoons and little butter knives -- that's all we need today!

A few daisies and some blossoming hedge branches from the yard (thank you, Howard!) --

. . . and it is time for lunch!



Cold tomato soup -- that's goat cheese plopped in the middle --
slices from a baguette, and iced green tea. Yes, it was good.

On Friday I am blogging about how I hunt on Craigslist, and I'll show you some amazing bargains currently available here in North Jersey; I've got some beauties for you!

Join me on a Craigslist Caravan on Friday, and you will see why I am addicted, and why half my house is decorated in Craigslist bargains.
-- Cass

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PS... a special note to Keetha of Keepie's Eclectic Stuff -- you wanted me to find you someplace to keep dining room china? How does free and gorgeous sound? You just have to come to New Jersey and get it. :-) Check in tomorrow!