Brass Razoo Boutique

I am amazed at all the creativity that comes out of thrifting and recycling. Not only in the people who buy, but also the people who sell. Such is the case with Elise Vaughn, owner and designer of Brass Razoo Boutique in Nampa, Idaho. With the concept of redesigning and recreating recycled items, items are fashioned into high quality pieces. The jewelry designed by Elise, is made using bits and pieces of vintage, antique and contemporary pendants, chains, links, stones and beads. Each piece is one of a kind. Elise also redesigns some of the clothing she sells. Home decor pieces are carefully selected and redesigned by Elise and Kirsten Grove.

Redesigned furniture pieces by Elise Vaughn of Brass Razoo 

and Kirsten Grove of Simply Grove line the walls 

Their offerings are unique and eclectic, ranging from vintage to retro to modern. Pride is taken in providing high quality pieces at affordable prices. You can see their great sense of style not only in the items they fashion but also in the decor of the store.

Redesigned Furniture

Redesigned Vintage Dress by Elise Vaughn

Jewelry designed by Elise

Hand turned walnut necklace forms by Vur choo Oh soh 

If you live near Nampa or are driving through, make sure you stop at this resale gem, the Brass Razoo Boutique. It is located at 115 13th Avenue South, Nampa, Idaho, 83651. Their hours are:  M-F 1:30 - 6:30, Saturday 10:30 - 5, closed on Sunday.


If you would like your store featured on Gone Thrifting contact me at jcblogger4@gmail.com

Thrift Find, Heller Plates

My new stash of Heller. I need to get more plates and balance out the colors. The coasters are not heller. I thought the planter went nicely with the Heller and have two other larger ones that are yellow too.

photo NC Modern

While hitting the thrift store pavement last week, I came across some nice sturdy Heller plastic plates. On the lookout for things to use on the deck, I purchased a whole stack in colors that I liked. 

After getting home, I did a search on Heller and was pleased to find that they are collectible, (I would still like them even if they weren't) as this is always a bonus with thrifting.  As a newcomer to modern design, I wasn't familar with Heller, but am learning as I go.

Conceived by Italian designer, Massimo Vignelli,this melamine tableware is made to be stackable. (It won an award for good design in 1964.)  Originally produced in Italy, it was introduced later to the U.S. and produced by Heller who added more colors and Heller tableware became very popular. Apparently it is still in production and sold by Unicahome in white.

Photo Mary & Matt

Here you can see some of the colors they were made in

photo Domus Modern 

Here is some cutlery made to go with

I like this color combination. You can also see some other pieces in the line.

Nice Ice Bucket

Photo from White Mole

The yellow Heller pieces look really 

nice on the gray table, nice and cheery!

I think these will be great for outdoor summer gatherings. I have added Heller to my list of things to look for.

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?