Teapot and Sheep Pin

More treasure hunting: While I was at Westlake the other day, I popped into the Discovery Shop to see what was new. I found this ceramic teapot.

I loved the color. It looked as if it might go nicely with the blue dinnerware I'd gotten at Discovery not long ago. And it was in mint condition. 

Here's another view:

And here's a view showing what I paid for it.

Of course, I'd already stopped by Goodwill where I'd already found a few other treasures. For instance, I bought this ceramic sheep pin for a dollar.

I figure I can wear the sheep when I do presentations about Ferradiddledumday, my Appalachian version of the Rumpelstiltskin tale.  I'll wear it on August 7 at the Hanover Book Festival, where you will find me sitting at the Cedar Creek Publishing table.

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Decorated Cat Pin

Today at the Westlake Goodwill, I made a few good buys. I hadn't planned to buy any jewlery, but I confess that I did.

Since I love cats, this pin caught my eye. Usually pins at Goodwill sell for a dollar, but this one was a bit more. Should I splurge? It was still attached to its original card and looked like a nice piece of jewelry.

The card the pin came on had an inside:

On the inside was a message from the artist. (You'll probably have to click on it to read it.)

Hmmm. The artist's statement bode well for the little pin. I decided to buy it. When I got home, I did a bit of Googling it to see if I'd gotten ripped off. I found the pin on the Zarah website, but—alas!—no price.

There was a link to Paul Brent's website, but no info about the "Decorated Cat" pin. So I Googled more. Finally I found some identical pins and their prices:

OK, that made me feel better. I guess I got a good deal after all.

How much did I pay? A whopping $1.39.

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Cats 'n' Flowerpot

My latest finds at the Rocky Mount Goodwill yesterday:

These little two-inch high pewter kitties were fifty cents each. They look like they might be for small candles, but I'm not sure. Until I figure out what they are for, they'll sit on a shelf and be decorative items.

The original tag on the back looked like it said $5.60, but that couldn't be right.

This flowerpot was a dollar. The colors are perfect for my kitchen. That shade of blue is my favorite color.

A hand-written tag on the bottom said $2.50. Here's another view:

The opening is four and a half inches across. I can't decide if I should use it as a receptacle for utensils, or if I should plant a spider plant in it. I'm open to suggestions.

And if you have an idea what those little pewter kitties were originally used for, I'd love to know.

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Pet Dishes

I bought a couple of nice ceramic feeding dishes for the cats the other day. The white "doggie" dish was $2 at the Discovery Shop at Westlake; the bowl was only a dollar at the Dollar Store in Bedford.

Yeah, both are actually dog dishes, but the cats don't care.

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Book Sale

I bought these at the Westlake Library used book sale yesterday:

The two on the right are for my husband, whose hobby is law. The others are mine.

The current prices on Amazon:

•  A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson ($11.55)
• Politically Correct, the Ultimate Storybook by James Finn Garner ($4.60)
• Law 101: Everything You Need to Know About American Law by Jay M. Feinman ($18.45)
• Prize Stories 1999: The O. Henry Awards  by Larry Dark ($23)
• The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini ($8.25)
• An Introduction to Legal Reasoning by Edward H. Levi ($10.58)

Total Amazon cost for new books: $53.43 

My total cost of six gently used books: $7.00

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iPadding

A few weeks ago, I bought an iPad, a delightful little gizmo. Figuring that I didn't need the 3G network one, I bought the bottom of the line model. It fits my needs quite well. I can surf the net, check email, post on Facebook or Twitter, play games, read e-books, listen to music, take notes, and a bunch of other stuff.

But the little iPad needed a protective case. I Googled around until I found a leather portfolio-type I liked—but it was nearly $30, plus shipping. I Googled more and found the one I liked on Amazon for about $12—including shipping. I ordered it:

It has a place to put my business cards, and a little nook to tuck the microfiber cleaning cloth. The iPad looks right at home in it. Very businesslike. . . .

But what if I'm feeling whimsical? At Goodwill, I found a padded make-up pouch that will do nicely. See?

And it was only a dollar.

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Little Pots

I bought these little hand-painted flower pots for 79 cents each at Goodwill.

They're too small to plant anything in them, but they're the perfect size for a votive candle.

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The Blues

Yesterday, the Discovery Shop at Westlake was running a special. Everything was discounted an additional 25% from its usual sale price.

My husband and I, who had just redeemed our 1,000 Kroger gas points for 6o gallons of gas (the most we could get before cut-off) at a dollar off per gallon (total per gallon: $1.34.9) were headed past the Discovery Shop on our way home. We decided to stop.

I'd admired some blue dinnerware a week earlier—but it was priced $12 for an incomplete set. Isn't it pretty?

Yesterday, it was just $9, so I decided to get it.  When I turned a plate over, I saw it was made by Pfaltzgraff. I wasn't familiar with the pattern though. A bit of Googling revealed that the stoneware's pattern was "Sky," which had been introduced in 1987 and discontinued in 2002. 

Here's a closer look: 

I paid less for the lot than I would have paid for one plate.

I love the shades of blue. This dinnerware coordinates nicely with some other blue and white items I own, such as some rooster plates and salad plates I bought at Discovery last year, some rooster mugs I got a Goodwill for 25 cents each, and some salt & pepper shakers and a sugar bowl I bought at a Newport News Goodwill for $2.95.

I might buy some more blue dinnerware—if the price is right and it goes with what I have.

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