Sunday, October 30, 2011

Estate Sales

I love going to estate sales, and last weekend I went to one at the above mansion.  It belonged to the granddaughter of James J. Hill (built a railroad empire in the 1800's).  It was not a house you would expect to find in Minnesota - it reminded me of something straight out of The Great Gatsby. 

These pictures are from a cell phone, so they don't really represent how amazing this house was.  Complete with servants quarters, multiple porches, and sitting on a lake, it was really cool to see.  Unfortunately, by the time I got there, the merchandise was picked over (not to mention expensive), so I did not buy anything.    They had tables and tables of monogrammed linens, maids outfits from the 1930's, lots of sterling silver - the kind of things you would expect to find in a mansion.
 
 At another estate sale, I found this cat and mouse weathervane.

 It sits in the garden along with the witch weathervane - I already had this one.

 A few antique books with great covers.

 And an old Halloween box.

 A set of pretty coin silver spoons, they have a sunflower pattern.

And a monogrammed butter knife.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Halloween Finds

 Halloween is approaching fast!  I found a few Halloween related items at some estate sales.  Above is a 1960's blow mold of a witch.  It has a light inside, and she glows when lit up.

 A few more Halloween items....

 An old Gurley candle with it's original label still on.

 A witch mug.

 This one is not from an estate sale, but it is pretty cool.  A witch made out of salvaged metal parts.

 And her little cat rides on the back of the bike.

 And for the non-Halloween items, a couple of salt spoons.

A set of monogrammed tea forks - with the 3 letter monogram MMD

A Victorian hedgehog pin cushion.  It's tiny!  But so cute.

 And a great old box.

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Some Finds From Last Weekend

 These are a few of the things that came home with me last weekend.

 An unusual toast rack.

 A very old brass bell with interesting engravings.

It is a little hard to see, but there is a figural women/angel above the bell, and a dog figure on the left side.
Lots of great details on this one.

 Tiny pierced bowl, with faces on each of the points.

 This is my favorite find - a Reed & Barton toothpick holder with a satyr face.

 Some great silver spoons.

One is engraved with a J, and the other with '13.