Picasso in the house!

Still Life On Pedestal

I posted on Facebook I may not own a Birkin bag but I now own a Picasso! I helped unload a car full of over sized artwork  at the thrift store last week and when this one walked pass me I said wow. I'm not a fan of Picasso in general but I liked this one for some unknown reason. Even with it being a print, I know the framing alone had to have been $500-$600 back in the day when this was framed. Everything is over sized and done really well. The original painting is huge! It was a challenge hanging this all by myself and I was so proud when I was done. Then I remembered I have plans to raise my sofa up by 6 inches after Christmas. So now the big question is do I do it or just leave well enough alone. 

Crows (maybe) left me something.

I think that my local crows left something for me! I found it in my backyard that I cleared of all the bamboo that basically went unchecked for years. The ground has been left bare because I'm waiting to see if any bamboo pops up. 

My neighbors are never and I mean never out in their backyards so I can't imagine they would have throw it over the fence. 

At Buzz's house I've been feeding the crows grain fed mice and rats. With all the bird seed everywhere it goes without saying there are rodents. I do have some crows that hang around my house and feeders.  Maybe they found out where I actually live. :) 

Anyways it was a nice surprise no matter how it got there. 

Family Tomato Salad

One of my favorite things is making my family's version of caprese salad. Since I grew up on a farm, eating vine ripe tomatoes that are still warm from the sun is really all I knew for many, many years.  The tomato plants here at Buzz's house are on their last leg, so there's only a short window of time to make this. Tomatoes from the store just aren't the same so I was lucky that Buzz's family had all the makings on hand. Fresh basil, mozzarella cheese and Italian spices. Growing up in California and living on a farm, I never ate a lot of canned or processed foods. It wasn't something I realized until I became an adult on how healthy our meals really were. Mom of course was a great cook. Nothing was ever over the top but everything was made from scratch and fresh from the fields.  

Up cycled a new sign

I've been volunteering at the Happy Dragon and as the new volunteer I was given one of the worse departments to handle. Notions is a mishmash of small stuff. I didn't take these type of things in at the Thrifty Kitty because the amount of time it takes to process someone's junk drawer.  Most thrift stores don't handle this stuff either. 

Anyways I took the assignment to prove that with the right pricing, organizing and displays it would increase the sell thru rate. By increasing the sell thru rate there won't be a back log which also means we would have new inventory out all the time. 

We did a major clean up at the store and I finally got to move fixtures around. My little corner looks great and much easier to see everything. There's a lot of empty bins, so that means things are selling fast. By having empty bins means I can process everything as it comes in so there's no back log waiting for space to open up. Notions will never be a big money maker but I have to say there are a lot of sales everyday. If that's enough to bring in people more often, then it's a win for the whole store. 

Ok so the long rant is over and now to explain the photo. My little notions corner is the only space that still has slant wall. It goes all the way up to the ceiling. I've been wanting to put up some artwork but it would scare the other volunteers about having to get it down if someone wanted it. I pulled this canvas out of the go away bins. The store has two huge bins that Goodwill and Hope pick up every week. I decided to make a sign for my area about what you may find there. I think calling it 'notions" is a little old school and a little vague. 

It was also my first time using Mod Podge which I also got out of the bins. :)

Found an old fashion thrift store in Monterey!

While I was down in Carmel this week, I finally got to visit a thrift store I've never been to before. "Branches" is part of the local Monterey Catholic school, Saint Something.  It's taken close to 2 years for me to get there when they're open. Timing was never right.

It was a very nice surprise to find a thrift store that was clean, well organized and price like an old fashion thrift store. They didn't have anything over the top valuable so I'm guessing they don't get the good stuff like the better know thrift stores in the area do.  I picked up this picture that used mulberry paper to make the iris. Being a paper crafter I had to pick it up for only $5. I know if that was at the HD it would have been at least $20.  The metal frame was scratched up a little and it was very dusty but it cleaned up very well. I was impressed with this store and the only thing that would have made it better was more lighting. I plan to stop by every time I'm in town from now on!

Halloween Blow Molds

I picked these up several months ago at an estate sale. I paid up for them but it's test to see if they really sell for over $200. I've been told that every year  when Cottage Crafts put theirs out in the front window, people are always asking to buy them and they're will to pay up to $300 for them. One of those people walked in and when they were told there was a set for sale, they back tracked on the price. All the big resellers say blow mold figures are really hot, so we will see if their right!

Tent Table Done!

Well I got the table tent done and it's now all packed up waiting for the boys. I will either use magnets to hold the panels up or just tape them to the table when we want a change in scenery. 

I'm really happy that I thought about using bed risers to make the table 6" higher. I can comfortably sit up under the table. The plan is I will read to the boys in our tent, so being older it's much easier for me if I can sit up. 

I originally was looking into getting risers for an up coming craft show in October to make my display table higher. I've been shopping around for them and I'm shocked at how expensive they are, $25.00!  Even on the secondary market they're pretty high. While I was here in Carmel, I checked out Target online. Guess it's cheaper if you do the store pick up. They do charge $1 for a bag which I think is a little high but I chalk it up as a hidden service fee. Total cost $10.21. I'll use the raisers in October for my craft show and then use them while the boys are here in November. After that I'm thinking I may use them to lift my sofa up as it sits very low. Really getting my money's worth out of them!

Today is my last day here in Carmel, it was a very short trip but just enough time to get the tent done. I'm debating when I should head home. I use to leave after I got everything cleaned up because of Annie - she shedded a lot. But now that it's only me I'm thinking why the rush? 

Tent Table Project 2023

I'm down at the Carmel house for only a few days just so I could sew the boys table tent. I saw the design online but being me, I didn't want to spend $150 for something the boys would only use for a month. I got lucky and found a light weight canvas fabric at FabMo for only $2.00 a yard. The size of this tent take close to 10 yards!  I made the shell so now I have to decide what type of door opening I should use.  I haven't ever sewn anything this large before so I got some pretty sore arms flip that much fabric through my little sewing machine. I will get finished today fingers crosses because there is no way I could ever make this at my place. 

Pumpkin Ravioli - bad as it sounds

Trader Joe's is my go to store and has been since the first one opened up here years ago. Now that I live in walking distance to a store, that's even better. I like being able to buy the basics and get checked out fast. I think TJ is the only store that uses all its checkout registers when there's a rush. 

They've started to get some super weird prepared food combo in. It's like someone in the RND department threw darts on a board of ingredients and made a frozen meal out of it.  The ice cream section is just plain odd even for a foodie like me. 

This pumpkin ravioli just came in and I wasn't overly excited about it but it was gluten free. Still I thought I'd give it a try, I mean how bad could it be? I just added a little butter and grated cheese, to see how good it was on its own. After two bites, I knew it was going to be a challenge to finish it. Gummy, rubbery and tasteless - think stale gummy bear texture. This is definitely a big miss!!! Seriously just because it's getting close to October, not everything has to be made with pumpkin!

New crochet halloween!

This crafter just cracked me up with these zombie, mummy and pumpkin crochet donuts. The spider was a crack up too! Cottage Craft is now full on Halloween which makes the store so festival!

Campbell Farmer's Market 2023

Today I went to Campbell to pick up this dish I got on MaxSold. I forgot I had bid on it as it's not anything special. The pick up day is always Sunday and that's also when the farmer's market is happening around the corner. I normally don't go to the market but I did get a good parking spot so I decided the walk would do me good. While in the sea of people, I remembered that the Apricot King would be there. They make my favorite chocolate dipped apricots. What makes their apricots good is they don't use a lot of sulfur which really makes a difference.

I've also been thinking of getting a pie for the past month, don't ask me why. I stopped by the Beckman's booth which was pretty much empty of all their bread. Even with the market being totally packed with people (and strollers) sales were down. I got two pies for the price of one. Benefits of going late to market.:)  I was told it freezes well, so we'll see. I do have a sensitive to gluten and yes eating the pie isn't the  smartest thing for me to do. My tummy is telling me I've being a very bad girl.  :)

Puppy?

Annie  at 8 weeks old

Almost got a puppy this week!  The only reason I even went through the process before meeting the puppy is she looked just like Annie when she was a puppy. She is a mixed breed, German Shepherd, Burmese Mountain, Collie and something else I can't remember. She will be a very big dog, 100 pounds for sure. I gave it a lot of thought and I think the dog should go to a family with children. Also Burmese is a breed known to be very stubborn and food focused. Having a dog not do what I want it to do especially when it's super big, is something I think I wouldn't be able to handle as I got older. And of course with the boys coming out to visit in a few months, having a puppy in training would be just a little too hectic. :) 

Beef Jerky Time Again

Big smile waiting for the beef jerky

I like to make special treats for my favorite fur babies when I'm at the big house.  There's only one local grocery store in my area that has the end roast I like to use. It's not a common cut of meat, so the butcher knows there someone who's always looking for it.  Since I make this jerky all the time, I've gotten the marinade recipe for dogs down.  It's not as flavorful as I would make for people but the dogs love it!

Do labels matter?

Having been in the thrifting business for a while and watched how the rules have changed over the years. Labels make a difference on the resell value because it makes things easier to find but does it mean it's worth more? I find the topic of "quiet luxury" very interesting and I think of it every time I see someone carrying a bag with logs all over it. Look it up if you don't know what it means. 

I've learned a lot about clothes from my high end fashion consigner Madison, but if you know me I'm not into clothes at all. A denim shirt and shorts are my go to wardrobe. I can't even remember when I brought something new to wear other than underwear.

When I was taking in donations at the Thrifty Kitty, this dress was in the trunk of a car along with a whole lot of cameras. The donor (who was elderly) was dropping off the vintage cameras which belonged to her parents. This dress was her mom's who was really into fashion. It was one of those crinkled up type of dresses way before it became popular a few years ago. The label was hanging by one thread and by a Japanese designer I've never heard of. It also had no materials tags so I knew it was a vintage boutique dress. I think Madison said it was worth $1,500 - $3,000 mainly for the label. Without that label it was worth nothing. 

I been having this discussion at the local thrift store I'm volunteering at about just because you can find it online for $$$$ doesn't mean it will sell in the store for that amount. Posting it online also doesn't mean it will sell for top dollar with millions selling online now. 

When I went to the goodwill bins and watched the resellers basically just touching the clothes for a nano second to decided if it was worth a closer look. They could weed out the cheap fast fashion clothes in seconds and there were many well known labels that didn't pass the touch test either. 

Gnome at home - done!

It was a lot of fun making these gnome cabins even thou I know the boys won't really care. I really tried not to have to buy too much to make the houses as they will only be used once.

The first roof design was to use pine cones but I found out if any of those  Monterey pine trees survived the drought, it's not the season for pinecones. Then I went on a hunt for moss at the thrifty stores but still no luck. I ended up using orchid tan bark which worked out really well. Being that it's Labor Day weekend I had a 40% coupon to Micheal's so I broke done a picked up a bag of moss. It was way too much fun! I rarely use a gun glue and I almost run out of glue stick, which I've had for years! It was a total win win!

Mini Spam Musubi

With the boys coming for the holidays, I've been looking for recipes I think they would like but are also gluten free. One thing I don't like about spam musubi is when the nori gets soggy and chewy. 

I saw a video of an Asian grandmother making small musubi for her granddaughter's lunch. Gave me the idea of using the nori snacks and cut the spam into very thin strips. Just the right size for the boys to hold and very fast to make. I did one practice round and it turned out great!  Best part was the nori stayed crispy!

Major crystal score

This chandelier was heading to the dumpster at the Happy Dragon yesterday. I had seen it in the store and wondered why they took it in since it was very dirty and quite large. I did notice all the crystals so when it was being walked out to the dumpster, I asked if I could have it. I took the whole thing apart last night and washed everything so now I have a nice box of extra large crystals which I will resell. I'll use the brackets along my fence to hang my bird feeders or plants. A great repurpose of something that was heading for the landfill.