Lacquerware

Photo by Ayuko

It's my guess that with most people thrifting leads to collecting. Collections come in all shapes and sizes. Two's a pair but three is a collection (we're not counting sets here). One item that I like to collect is lacquerware from Japan. I don't have a large or expensive collection, but several items I have culled from estate sales and thrift stores. 

Lacquerware comes in all kinds of shapes and forms: jewelry boxes, dipping bowls, trays, plates, chopsticks, containers, bento boxes, even furniture. Japan is not the only country that makes lacquerware, it's also made in China. Though I'm sure each country has their own process and of course their design.

Photos by Blue Lotus

I think these trays are very contemporary in their design.

Photo by jmvnoos in Paris

These lacquerware plates are from Vietnam

Photo by beggs

Nice design on this bowl

Photo by reefish

Aren't these goblets gorgeous? 

I'd take those bowls in the background too.

Photo by yaknor

Photo by AlliRose

These lacquerware dolls make me think of Kokeshi dolls, another thing I collect.To see a posting I did on Kokeshi dolls on my other blog, click here. You can see my obsessiveness here too.

Tall Lacquered Chest

photo by pontfire

photo by pontfire

These cabinets are nothing short of spectacular. But here I go again, getting all carried away.I started looking at jewelry boxes and ended up here.

Dragonfly Rice Bowls

photo by handbaghook

photo by jpellgen

So keep your eyes open for lacquerware. You never know where it's going to turn up. Believe it or not, sometimes it's mixed in with the plastic (but that's our secret,shh). What do you like to collect?

A Divine Experience

Decorating tastes and preferences can change over time. For the longest time my taste was country, antiques, some shabby chic too. But slowly I started liking modern, mid century modern, industrial and some japanese design. So what's a girl to do when she wants to make some big changes? Sell what you can and then donate the rest to Goodwill. 

It's not happening overnight. With four kids, college tuition, etc., funds are limited. It takes time to find things you like, want, need. This is where thrifting comes in and dammit, it works pretty well. 

For some time I've been looking for a pair of modern chairs for my living room to replace the old fashioned ones I have. My budget was $100 with the idea that they would be decent enough to use until I could afford to have them reupholstered. I found a pair I liked on craigslist and paid $80 for the pair. (The person who was selling them had gotten them from a friend who gave them to her and they weren't her taste.) The color is not my first choice, kind of a grayed purple, but I can definitely live with them. The chairs have good lines and are well constructed. Sorry if I'm going on here, but I'm trying to build momentum. I discovered after I got the chairs home that they are Baker Chairs. Pause. This is where the choir starts singing, because that is what I was hearing in my head. THIS IS WHY I THRIFT. Amen.

Thrift Happy

I should have been cleaning. But when the urge to seek out unknown treasures for bargain prices calls, cleaning loses every time. No hesitation. Not even close. Oh well, life's too short anyway, right?

Every year I go to a sale in Mazomaine, Wisconsin, about 25 miles from my house. Held by a church, the prices are cheap and selection is great. I somehow missed the first day this year, which is the best day to go. So I went on the second day of the sale, and still brought home a couple boxfuls for about $22.00. (yess!) Here are some of my finds. Pardon the mess, I was too excited to get them out of the box to clear the table much. Oh, and that cleaning thing.

How great is this table top lamp? I PAID $1.00 FOR IT. (THIS IS WHY I THRIFT) Need to get some type of shades for it and find a spot for it.

I was taken with this signed photograph picture, the colors are really nice, photo was was taken in Italy. I really like the triple mat on it too. It was $10.00, but they saw me hesitating and knocked it down to $7.00. I Need to get a different frame for it, something with a little contrast. 

This tea pot set was $2.00, so I couldn't pass it up. There aren't any markings and I don't know anything about it. Hopefully it all belongs together. I think the cups look like they could hold soft boiled eggs. If you have any info to part about this I would be appreciative.

Some obsessions as of late: egg shaped objects  and wood plates. I found the bigger wood plates at Savers. The person who made them put their name on the back and the type of wood they used. I got four, each a different type of wood. The small green wood plates are Japanese I think, anyone know what they're intended for?