Hunted:: Gathered: 06/10/12

Yikes! Since I missed posting last week I have a backlog of items to share with you. Trust me, I'm not complaining because the thrifting has finally picked up in my neck of the woods. I was beginning to think that 2011 was an anomaly and that my thrift luck had just about run out. Boy was I wrong.

For some reason or another, there haven't been many estate sales in my area. Whether it was because of a holiday weekend or because some of the local companies just don't have clients. I don't know. However, this item is from an estate sale as are the next two. This is a beautiful Finnish glass vase designed by Tamara Aladin.

I love these mod wire/ mesh racks. I don't know if it's the simplicity of the design that I like but what I do know is that if I see one, I more oft than not have to pick it up.

I found this great little paper clip letter holder at the same estate. It's kitschy, mod and fantastic.

On my way back from the estate sale I passed by a thrift that I hadn't been to in several months. I usually don't have much luck at this particular one but this time I did. I found this stunning woodblock print by Shodo Kawarazaki. It has several marks in the margins and Bryan from Alamodern was kind enough to help decipher some of them. There are marks from the publisher, the date, as well as the artist's name.

In keeping with the Japanese theme, I found this cute Japanese Cedar bear figurine. He is also signed on one side. I know I referred to this figurine as a bear but I am wondering if this creature has a special meaning because I've seen several similar iterations. Anyone know?

This was one of last week's finds but it has a story that goes along with it. I was doing a usual thrift loop of mine (one I hadn't done in a while because of a transitional car situation) and I stopped by a thrift that is typically hit or miss. I've been at this thrift when they bring out carts of new stuff and the 'regulars' that usually sit by the back waiting for said carts are surely a sight. I stay away from the carts while they push, pull, and trip over each other. This day was no exception. I was in one of the aisles and the commotion had died down so I started making my way to them and then I saw the bowl. My heart sank. It was still sitting there unclaimed and just as I was about to reach for it a little girl put her hand on it to show to her mom. "Dangit", I thought, I just missed out on this bowl by a few seconds! But then, like music to my ears, the mom told her not to touch it and leave it behind. So goes the story of my first Finel bowl find in the wild. I hesitated to put it in the shop and I thought it would sit a bit longer but I listed it and it sold within a couple of days. Goodbye beautiful bowl.

Another first for me is this Ultima Thule sugar bowl. I've always coveted the Ultima Thule finds from other thrifters and for once I found my own! Can you believe this is the first time I've found one of these in the wild?

Lastly, I am finally sharing a piece that I collect. I purchased it from another reseller because sometimes that's what you have to do.

It's a set of salad utensils designed by Michael Lax for Raymor Capri. They are a combination of porcelain and walnut. They are 14" long! It's hard to determine the scale without any objects paired with it so...

I decided to show you how big the ceramic portions are by setting one of my Toikka birds in it. They're huge and I find the scale to be a bit garish but it is what it is. Scale is always a bit tricky when you just have online pictures for reference.

I have plenty more goodies to share with you, but they'll have to wait till next week. What did you find this week? Please do share at Sophie's.

Hunted:: Gathered 06/05/11

THE ADVENTURES OF SHARK SCARF WEEK!

Hey lovelies, I hope you've had a great week. I know I did even though I spent a lot of my time preparing for an interview. I managed to do some thrifting earlier in the week and so I have some goodies to share. I hope you enjoy them!

I found these two beautiful cotton Vera Scarves. The red one has a silk? detailing/threading along the edges which is a nice subtle detail but I have to say that I just LOVE the black and white one. I don't know what it is about black and white and geometric patterns but they get me all the time! The dots gradate in sizes from one corner to the other.

I found another Vera Scarf that is a rayon/silk blend. This one still had the vintage Nordstrom price tag on it! The scarf was priced at $6.00 originally but was marked down to $2.90. Oh to buy scarves at those prices nowadays!

If you're curious, there is a fabulous blog post by the Vera Company that helps to date vintage Vera Neumann scarves. I believe mine are from the late '60s to early '70s.

Continuing with scarf week, I found a vintage Diane Von Furstenberg scarf that also has a gradated pattern. This one has green squares that expand to almost a solid fill pattern towards the middle. Look at that leopard that would be crawling up your back or side, how wild!

Last but not least (for scarves), I found a Richard Allan scarf with a beautiful flower pattern. The pattern reminds me a lot of Oh Joy!'s wallpaper design for Hygge & West. The colors are splendid and it feels oh so luxurious!

This week I acquired my first piece of Weller Pottery. It isn't nearly as 'valuable' as their typical pieces. It seems that a lot of the utilitarian pieces created by well-known potteries don't command the same prices as the 'art pottery' pieces do. It is something to keep in mind if you plan on reselling them. I must say though that I really enjoy the cradle on this casserole. I love the Art Nouveau Styling of the handles.

I'm excited to share this next piece because I love enamelware! Even though this piece has some damage on the lid I could not pass it up. Due to finding my first Finel piece, I knew what the bottom of their pans looked like so I had an idea of what it was even though it was not stamped. I also knew I had seen the same style of handle on the lid before. I had to do some research when I got home but it is always nice to have some idea of where to start. It turns out that this piece is designed by Seppo Mallat for Arabia/ Finel. I just love the teak handle on this baby!

In keeping with the enamelware, I found a couple of fun colored enamel bowls. One is in a bright yellow and the other in a great teal. Did you know that these bowls come with a detachable handle? Neither did I! Unfortunately mine did not have the handle and for the life of me I can't remember where I read about it so I can't even link to it. Don't you just hate it when that happens!

I also found some more LP's, I'm temporarily hooked! I just had to pick up The Cure's Quadpus there on the top left. The LP on the top right is another album with the cover design by S Neil Fujita. *(update) I believe the bottom two are designed by Sam Suliman.*

This last LP has a cover designed by Barbara Brown/Peters. Like Josef Albers and Gerry Olin, she designed album covers for Command Records under the direction of Charles E. Murphy. There was an Exhibition in New York at the end of 2009 which included several notable album covers by the aforementioned designers. You can take a look at them here.

Also, if you enjoy album cover designs then just take a look at this Flickr profile, they have so much eye candy... its incredible! I love Phillip Glass and I'd never seen his album covers. They are amazing as well!

*I know that I throw a lot of random names out there. I promise I will get around to making posts about particular designers with larger samples of their work. *

I'll be linking up with two lovely ladies again and I'll be popping around to see what you've found!

Hunted:: Gathered: 05/22/11

I started off my thrifting week by going to the Long Beach Flea Market. I had not been in months and the weekend worked out perfectly for me to be able to go. I arrived at 8am and the rain was just started to let up. Many vendors had not unpacked yet for fear that it would continue to rain but luckily the rain did stop.

I bought this cute little Rorstrand pitcher because the pattern caught my eye. The pattern is called Koka. I couldn't stop rubbing it because the texture is so satiny.

As I was walking around, I passed by a vendor who had countless drafting/ drawing/ painting supplies in boxes. I started looking through them because I can't help myself with those things. An older gent inquired about a set of drawing pens and the vendor rudely replied that he was only selling the boxes with all of their contents, not individual items. The older gent proceeded to tell the vendor that he wanted the pens because he loved to draw and they were just what he was looking for. He then offered him $10 for the pens. The vendor said no, took the pens from the gent and put them back in the box. I looked at the gent and he had such sadness in his eyes. It broke my heart. I wanted to tell him I'd split the price for the box so he could take his pens at a lower price but I did not have the cash to do so. I ended up walking away with such distaste for that vendor. I know that as a vendor you ultimately want to reach your bottom line, but the man offered him $10 for a small set. He wanted $60 for the box and it would have still been pretty full and well worth it without the pens. How difficult would it have been to ask $50 for the box after he sold the pens? Not difficult at all.

A friend caught up with me a bit later and we walked around and looked at many beautiful pieces. We didn't really buy much, we just walked and talked and learned.  I did manage to buy my first Finel piece. I was so excited. It is in great condition. Since I've never seen them before in person I thought it had the wrong lid because it was slightly bigger and wiggled. When I got home I looked up some more Finel pieces and it seems that they are all like that. Phew!

My book find for the week is another kid's book with vibrant colors and illustrations. There are several pages that are compositionally wonderful.

Later in the week I went to a thrift store that I'd never been to before. I was in another town and of course had to look for some thrifts. There I found this cute David Stewart for Lion's Valley Stoneware camel planter. It has either a manufacturing defect or crack on the handle but it didn't matter to me. I'd never seen one of these before.

I also picked up this cute Fiestaware mug for my morning coffee. This is sure to bring a bit of sunshine to the start of my day!

Last but not least I bought some furniture. I hadn't gotten any furniture for a while and happened to come home with four of these mid-century style chairs. Yes, they need some work but I think I can make them shine again. Maybe I am crazy, we'll see. For now it is my next DIY project.

 

 How was your week? What did you find?

Linking up again with two lovely ladies: