The last February thrift trip!

Good morning friends! Whew, after a week or so of balmy temperatures...the mercury has dipped to -26 Celcius again. It's cold and blustery, but later on I will bundle up for a walk before I start work. I am working from home, and I am getting alarmed at the amount of time I spend glued to a monitor. So I am forcing myself back into my walking regimen. 3km in the morning, and a longer 5 km on the weekend.

Remember the plague of garbage that Vix experienced? I collect my share of garbage too. And sometimes litterbugs are kind enough to throw away something useable. Here are 3 reusable shopping totes. After quarantine, and a good soak in dishwashing detergent, they are good as new. Here they are draining in my bathtub. 

Throwing litter on the streets and on people's property is a terrible thing. I used to suffer a plague of litter at my flophouse. It wasn't uncommon to find McD wrappers (it's everywhere!), empty liquor containers, cigarette butts etc. Since I have erected a fence, the garbage hasn't stopped! The dirty blighters drop their garbage in the gap between my fence and an adjacent low wall. They sit on the wall to enjoy their snacks and smokes, and then leave their garbage behind. I guess I'll have to install spikes next.

I come from a long line of garbage pickers. I hate it when things are wasted. I remember visiting my mom's parents in Turkey. It was the seventies. And I remember leaning out of my grandmother's salon window to watch the pedestrians and the odd horse-drawn wagon along the cobblestone street below. The street was narrow and always immaculately swept by local labourers. I remember watching an elderly gentlemen going for a stroll when he stopped suddenly, stooped down, and picked up a 8" length of discarded cord. He thriftily coiled it up and tucked it into a pocket. He resumed his stroll. Waste not, want not. Sadly the last time I visited Turkey, there was McD and Starbucks everywhere..and a lot of garbage.

I hope that we don't get buried in McD wrappers. 

Onto my last February thrift.

 Our Covid cases have increased dramatically. And pent up from staying inside so much,  I went on a spree. I visited a Salvation Army, Value Village, and a sewist shop.

Here is my new white serving dish. I use it for flowers.

Thrifted white tray holding my new plants. Tablecloth, Pyrex fridgie, condiment set and tray are all thrifted. Dining table and chair purchased second hand or thrifted. 

I purchased this dish at Salvation Army. I think it was meant to hold an assortment of ors d'oeuvres. I already had one that I use to hold necessary clutter on my kitchen counter. I like it because it corrals the small bits and pieces.

A local sewist shop is going out of business.  It's a sad day when we loose another small business. I stopped in to purchase some ribbon and zippers (I bought lots!). I chatted with the proprietor, who is a hard-working independant woman. Sadly she is another victim of mass consumerism. When Covid appeared she sewed masks and seemed to prosper. But then mass produced masks became available and her business declined.  She decided to sell everything and move away. 

The ribbon will be used to mend a thrifted cardigan.

My shopping didn't end there. The Salvation Army store had more kitchen treasures. 

I already have the dinner plates in this dish set. I remember buying them when my youngest was a baby. I dithered over this set, which is complete with lunch plates and 4 mugs and saucers. I couldn't leave them behind.   On a nostalgia trip, I also bought the avacodo Pyrex dish. 

I absolutely love the designs!

This little white dish is nothing particularly special. But I have a small collection of blue plates, and I think this will be a nice addition. I plan to display them on a wall.

The Salvation Army was having a 50% off sale on jackets and winter outerwear. Because as soon as the temperature starts to spike, people want to buy spring clothing.

I snapped up this wool plaid jacket. It looks very pretty on! Lately I have been inspired by plaids and oversized althleisure. I've been watching YouTube vidoes for a South Korean brand called Ader Error. I absolutely luuuurve how the pieces are mixed together. I am absolutely a fan of comfortable well-made clothing that you can travel in...and also swaddle yourself in for a quick nap on the bus.

I plan to pair this jacket with a knit maxi skirt, plaid boots and a touque. And lavish amounts of rhinestone jewelery!

After the Salvation Army thrift store, I nipped into Value Village.

I found something.

Vintage 80's men's shirt.

        I found this fabulous oversized silk shirt. I was a little shocked at the price! I remember that these shirts were always on special for $30. Nonetheless it came home with me. After quarantine, I tossed it in the drier at high heat, as a prevention against bed bugs. Then I washed it carefully. It's hanging to dry and I can hardly wait to wear it!!

A few other things jumped into my cart as well! Some large pieces of fabric...

....and this!!

This pristine top is another vintage find. Circa late 1980's  I plan to wear it with my new plaid jacket!

I didn't stop there. 

Federal Circus Mixing bowls

I had been eyeing the circus set of mixing bowls. They were posted for sale on our local marketplace. The price was high, but reasonable considering it was a complete set.  I spent a week thinking about the purchase. Then I checked and it was still available. I decided it was meant to be mine. I haggled a bit with the vendor and she was gracious enough to add this fridgie set.

Pyrex fridge set

I ended my spree with one last purchase. I moved into my house 8 years ago and I am still furnishing it. I found a second hand curio cabinet for $80!!! It was from a moving sale! I immediately snapped it up. When the quarantine is over, I will set it up, and get rid of the makeshift shelves that currently occupy it's place. Bliss!

 Happy thrifting everyone. I'm off for a quick walk before work.

Stay safe :)

Summer trip to Ottawa Part 1. A sinkhole, sight-seeing and shopping.

Whew!  Where has the summer gone!  It started with cold, gusty, gloomy weather, then I blinked and now it's September!! I must get outside to bask in the warm weather before it's gone.  It's been 20-30 degrees Celcius lately, and we know that in twenty short weeks it will be minus 20-30 degrees. 

Ya gotta love living in Canada, eh?

Speaking of Canada, the stylist (and most discerning critic) and I went to the nation's capital to visit mum, and do some back-to-school shopping.

The stylist was determined to shop-till-we-drop.  I was equally determined to show her the sights.  If you ever go to Ottawa, here are some places you may want to visit.

Here is the Byward Market.  Located downtown close to the Parliament Hill, the Chateau Laurier, and the Rideau Centre.  

Are those beaver tails in the distance???

The beautiful thing about Ottawa is that there are so many things to see downtown!  You can walk everywhere!!  You can walk around Parliament Hill.  You can walk along the Rideau Canal.  If you are thirsty, you can walk along Sparks Street Mall and nip into a pub.  There are many delightful places to eat and drink.

If you fancy a late-night walk, and you wish to learn about Ottawa's nefarious past - then plan to attend the ghost walk. 

When I was a child, my parents and I would walk to the Byward Market to buy groceries.  It wasn't gentrified back then.  You could expect stalls of fresh vegetables, and clucking, hopping livestock.  When you bought direct from the farmer, you got the best price possible.  Haggling was commonplace.  The low prices and variety of fresh produce attracted lower-income shoppers with many mouths to feed. 

My little ears grew accustomed to a polyglot of accents.  There was the sibilant 's' of the Gatineaux, the flat elongated vowels of the Ottawa Valley, and accents of newly arrived immigrants, all buying and selling fresh food.

I loved looking at cages of fluffy chicks, chickens, rabbits and the occasional goat, sheep or pig.  I secretly hoped that one of the chicks would hop into my pocket and come home with me!  I longed to have one as a pet - I would have built that little clucker the best shoebox house ever!!

Well the livestock is gone.  The grisly sides of beef that used to hang in the butcher shop windows, have been replaced with trendy, touristy goods.  Today's Byward Market specializes in clothing, trinkets and maple syrup. There are bars and restaurants galore.  Some of the old-style establishments remain though. Plus you can still find fresh vegetables and baked goods.  

View from the Rideau Bakery

Of course, no trip to the Byward Market is complete without an Obama cookie from the Rideau Bakery!

This is me, wearing one of my thrifted maxis, waiting in breathless anticipation for my cookie.

Eyes are closed, but still breathlessly anticipating a cookie!

Stylist plumped for the cheesecake.

Yum!

The Byward Market is next to the Rideau Centre.  We did a lot of shopping there.

Let me repeat that, a LOT of shopping.  

That part of the trip wasn't frugal at all!!!

During the stylist's innumerable forays to the change rooms, I was able to observe The Sinkhole  from various vantage points offered by the Rideau Centre.

This was the sinkhole in June.

The construction zone around the sinkhole.  Rideau Street was re-opened to traffic during our July visit.  

The Rideau Centre is conveniently located in downtown Ottawa.  If you're visiting the Parliament Hill, it's a handy place to nip in for food, do a bit of shopping, or to hop on a bus.  The Rideau Centre is a hub for OC Transpo buses.  Stylist and I purchased OC Transpo tickets.  Ask about their family day passes - they are very reasonably priced.


Stylist loves playing with makeup - in our downtime, she doodled a magnificent eye using my makeup palette.

Mum has a car, so we were able to drive to the MacKenzie King estate in the Gatineaux.  

William Lyon Mackenzie King was Canada’s 10th and longest-serving prime minister.  He bequeathed the vast, estate, which is perched on the top of the Gatineau Hills, to the people of Canada.  Today is a beautiful tourist area that is maintained by the National Capital Commission. There are heritage buildings surrounded by acres of lush greenery, with interesting doodads scattered about.  This is the guest cottage in Kingswood (the estate is divided into Kingswood, Moorside and The Farm).

Kingswood Guest Cottage of Kingsmere Lake.

Bedtime!!

Dindins anyone?

Next we moseyed through Moorside.  Mackenzie King was fascinated by otherworldy items. In particular ghosts.

Here is a cool bench flanked by stone angels.  Bits and pieces are from Westminister Abbey.

Secretary's office by day, seances at night.

Mackenzie King and his medium Etta Wriedt.

The view from the second storey.  Magnificent being at the top of a hill in the Gatineaus!!

Another item brought back from England?  I was quite taken with this lion.

While waiting for a table in the tea room, we read some old, government texts.  I wonder what kind of data overages Cablegram charged?

To Hitler, From Mackenzie King.

Smoked Salmon, salad and tomatoe soup - eatten on the veranda at the estate. Magnificent!

Of course, no trip is complete without checking out a thrift store.  Here are some finds from Value Village.

Pyrex in the wild!

A rather splendid maxi, I wish I had bought it.

Well, that's all for now. Stay tuned for Part 2.

A bientot!

Pyrex In The Wild

Hello friends!!  I have been acquiring Vintage Pyrex at an alarming rate.  I thought I'd stop and breathe to show you my ever increasing hoard collection.  

Da da da DUM!!  ThriftyParka presents..

VINTAGE PYREX ITW!!!

(ITW stands for In The Wild - ha, ha, ha look a me using a new blogger acronym!!!)

This was my collection a month ago.  All of these items were acquired at thrift stores.  There are no complete sets, yet, just a nice mix of newer, older and vintage pieces.

I started with 4 or 5 pieces, purchased years ago from thrift stores.  I only buy pieces that have nice glossy sides.  I can't abide vintage Pyrex that has dull color from beening run through the dishwasher...ugh, just the feeling of my fingers on that dry, powdery surface makes my fillings rattle, ugh!!!

The top left shows 2 casserole dishes stacked on top of each other.  

I found them at Value Village last month, where they were priced at an exorbitant price of $30 each.  I had a 30% off coupon, and they were in excellent shape, so they came home with me.

Ummmm, bright daisy goodness!!!

The white lid with the green print is Spring Blossoms.  See!!  I'm learning the pattern names and everything!!!

Then there was the haul from a small thrift store - it yielded this $22 Horizon Blue set!!!

I find these smaller, casserole dishes very useful.  Sometimes I'll cook a smaller entree, or a hot vegetable dish and these casseroles are the perfect size to transport it to my bf's house.  He lives a short-distance away, and he has hungry mouths to feed!!  So it's important that hot food stays hot and delicious!!

Isn't it great how these dishes stack so nicely??

Back at Value Village, I spotted the small yellow bowl, and a Butterfly Gold casserole dish.

Yeow!  $9.99 for the small bowl was pricey, but aside from a few nicks to the paint, it was in great shape (plus I had another coupon), so it came home with me.  So did the lidless, casserole for $6.

The best part of finding vintage Pyrex is carefully transporting it home and letting it warm up on the counter (winters here get really cold - you don't want to plunge a cold, glass dish into a sink of hot soapy water).  Then I have a little ritual where I wash it a couple of times. The first time is to take off the yuck and dust (you should see some of the secondhand places I shop, bleah!). Then I rinse it carefully and pat it dry.  Then I examine the pieces for cooked on crud.  Then it's back to a fresh sink of hot soapy water to get rid of the crud.  I'll use a steel, wool pad with a very light touch to get rid of that.

Hmmmm, I just re-read what I wrote.  It sounds like I have a Pyrex obsession, eh?

Continuing with my obsessive compulsion desire for clean, pretty Pyrex, then I'll plan how to display the Pyrex.  But fear not, these pretty dishes are not just for show.   They're wonderful as fruit bowls, stove-to-fridge food containers. 

 Plus if you have toasty buns (hee), a lidded container keeps them nice and warm.

In an effort to distract you from my new obsession, I'm going to show you a random picture. 

Scenic, highway picture of my drive out to the cottage - isn't it stunning?

A fuzzy shot of Lake Superior....so beautiful and calming.

...and now back to our regular programming.

I was particularly glad to find this Snowflake Garland.  I already had the 2 smaller bowls. Now I just need the smallest bowl and I have the complete set!!!  Price was $8.99 at Salv Army.

Check out the glossy colour!!

Some random cups that I didn't buy. But I was very tempted by the Corelle and the Spring Blossom.

These almost came home with me, but I resisted!!

During my thrift haul, I re-visited a "everything under the sun" second hand store.  I won't lie, the housewares section was shoved off into a dark, dirty corner, but I found some reasonable priced Pyrex waiting for me to bring them home.

The upside down white casserole with the wheat pattern is a FireKing dish. It also came from this store.

Not shown are the 2 Pyrex, glass carafes I bought.  One came with the original plastic lid.  But I was too skeeved out by the old dirt on the lid, so I washed it, measured it, and threw it out.  I'll find a new cork replacement.

Some pretty Glassbake that stayed on the shelf at the Salv Army.

A nice FireKing that unfortunately was badly chipped and stayed on the shelf.  Nice design though!

I had to do some re-organizing.  My collection has expanded from....

...the original 2 shelves...

Close-up of divided casserole with knit stars.

...to the top of one cupboard...

The primary yellow bowl was $1 at a yard sale!!

...the top of another cupboard...

...and the top of my fridge...

Doesn't the Pyrex look nice with my cut glass?

To my bowl cupboard. This stack makes me smile everytime I see it.

Lustreware collection and some bits and pieces.

Another random picture to distract you from my collection obsession of vintage kitchenware.

Those clouds are laden with rain!!

Well folks, there you have it.  Sometimes one innocent trip into a thrift store results in a desire to start collecting.

happy thrifting ;)