Estate Sales With Dad

Brian-the liquidator, and my Dad!



One of the best days I can remember (okay, not including my wedding, and the birth of my children~!), was the day I got to be my Dad's secretary for the day!  I'm not sure how old I was, guessing maybe around 12?  I got to answer his phones, and do other fun secretary stuff!

So here it is, years, oh-so-many-years later, my Dad joined me for one of my favorite parts of running my Etsy shops, shopping! 

Nippon (one of my estate finds)



My Dad had never been to an estate sale!! Can you imagine that!?  I wasn't sure he would be able to keep up with me, as I know what I like, and I can shop quick!  Sure enough he kept up, and I think he had fun!

We had so much fun at the first estate sale, that we went to a private estate sale, where my Dad got to meet one of my favorite people, Charlie!  Charlie helps out at the estate sales, and we've become good friends.  He was actually the police chief in the 1970s and 1980s in Lakewood, Ohio!

Another pretty estate find!

So who would have imagined, that one day, I would have my Dad as MY assistant!?

I hope he did have fun!!  Thanks Dad!!

Jen

beautiful pottery

I love Etsy!  If you haven't check it out, you must!  etsy

I love Etsy not only because I'm able to make a nice living selling things that I love, but also because there are so many talented artists on Etsy!

The bowls above remind me of my daugher, Katherine!  She loves rice and I could see her eating her rice out of cute bowls like these!

These also remind me of Katherine

How cute are these cookies!?  Sweet Ambs These also remind me of Katherine!  She just turned 19, and has been baking and decorating cookies for years!  I try to help her, but I just don't have the standards that she has! 



Gorgeous succulent wreath



This gorgeous succulent wreath reminds me of Colorado!  I lived there for 9 years in the 80's and just loved it!  Plus, my daughter, Lindsey was born there!  Wreath

So 70's!



Yes, I am vintage, and proud of it!  I swear I had this outfit in the 70's (oh how I love the fashions from the 1970's!).  patterns 

Check out Etsy!  Tons of beautiful vintage and handmade shops!

Happy shopping!

Jen

Fresh Flowers

Love fresh flowers!

No matter what a crazy mess I have in my house (my shop stuff has taken over my house), I have to have fresh flowers!

From Costco

I love Costco!  My favorite bouquets come from there!  Always gorgeous-and they last so long!

Beautiful color!

Not only do I love fresh flowers, but I have found I have a passion for photographing them too!  I just use my trusty Canon Power Shot!

Flowers!

Another good source for fresh flowers is Trader Joe's!  They have a huge selection, and I must get there soon!

Think spring!

Jen

High Tea For Alice

High Tea For Alice

If you haven't see this Etsy shop before, you must check t out!  That bottom cake plate was from my shop!  Perfect for a tea party, wedding, or just about an occasion!

Custom orders

Lisa Marie is the shop owner.  She can even take pieces you already own and create a custom design just for you!

Pink!!

I love this pink one!  I just think these would be gorgeous for a wedding!

So many to choose from!

So lovely



Be sure to take a few minutes to check out Lisa Marie's gorgeous shop!  Shop

You'll be inspired to throw your own tea party!

Enjoy!!

Jen

Shipping Shipping Shipping

My USPS Scale

I absolutely love love love running my three Etsy shops!  Everything, the marketing, photography, shopping, even the packing!

My one nemesis is shipping!  I honestly think some shoppers think I make up random shipping costs!

But, I use a scientific method (okay, it's as close as I get to a scientific method!)!

Milk Glass Bowl

Take, for instance, this pretty milk glass bowl.  When I listed this, I placed it on my scale, with a box (that has a bit of packing material in it).  It weighs 1 lb, 5 oz.  I know from experience, that the total weight will end up being almost an extra pound from the original weight.

I usually use priority shipping, and have printed out the costs (for the USA).  I will use the farthest zone for my shipping quote, and refund if it is less. 

I will also add at least a $1.00 for packing material.  I use plenty of bubble wrap and that is an expensive item!

For international shipping, I have made up a list of shipping information for Canada and "Everywhere Else" (I usually use the costs for Australia since that is one of the most expensive countries to ship to).

So that's a quick summary.  There's a lot more you need to know, and I will be happy to elaborate.  Maybe next I will talk about the use of oversize boxes (be careful with this one, as you can be charged a crazy extra charge by the USPS!).

Happy shipping!

Jen

Testing testing

jenscloset

Trying the link stuff so blah blah blah and then milk glass

Cool, it's working!

Brookpark Melamine Teacups & Saucers



I thought I'd do a quick blog about one of my favorite colors, aqua!

I just found these cute teacups & saucers today (and some other pieces to match)!

Aqua Canning Jar

These cute Ball canning jars are great for stashing craft supplies, or even used as a vase!

Aqua and Red Tin



Another great item for organization is the cottage chic aqua tin with the pretty red roses!

Frosty Aqua Pitcher

And I just think any drink you serve from this cute retro frosty aqua pitcher will taste just a bit better!

Aqualicious!

Vintage Lace

If you've been reading my blog (thank you!), you'll know that I was lucky enough to have my own private pre-sale of an estate sale!  This house was full of so many gorgeous vintage pieces! 

So feminine!



I did refrain from buying the entire contents of the house, and focused mainly on the milk glass!

Such detail!

The other thing I just could not ignore was all of the gorgeous vintage lace!  I purchased a shoe box full of pretty lace (and I love the fact that the box had the old Higbee's tag on it!).

Beaded bodice piece

I love this beautiful beaded bodice piece!  I could picture my daughter, Katherine, wearing this over a simple white dress! It's quite a heavy piece too!

Unique lace pair

This is a unique lace pair!  They seem to be part of a sleeve!?

Lovely Lace!

I'm no expert on vintage lace, but I know I love it!

Happy weekend everyone!

Jen

Dinner in 15 Minutes

Quick Low Fat Dinner

I started eating this yummy tilapia dinner, and decided I should take a picture of it and blog about it!  (So I'm not much of a food photographer!)

It's so easy, quick, inexpensive, and good for you!  And the best part, you can make it your own! I know this is low fat too (I ate a donut afterwards-geez)!!

I pat some flour on the tilapia and add it to a pretty hot pan that has some olive oil and butter (the flour gives it a crispier texture).  Cook at the higher heat for a minute or two, then lower the them to a medium heat for another minute or two, then flip and repeat! I then tent it with foil (off the burner) for about a minute to be sure it's completely cooked.

While that's cooking, I sauteed up some red and white onion, yellow and red bell pepper, green onions, over medium heat for about 4 minutes or so, then I added fresh baby spinach. I then put a lid on it, took it off the heat to steam for a minute or two.

I also squeezed some fresh lemon juice in the veggie mix.  You can add spices if you want, I didn't this time.

I also squeeze fresh lemon juice on the tilapia.

There you have it, a quick and easy dinner!

Change the fish to chicken, add whatever veggies you like (asparagus would be good)!

Enjoy!!

Jen

Pre-sale Estate Sale Just for Moi!!

Milk Glass!

I'm still not down from my estate-sale-high!  Imagine you're own private pre-sale estate sale!

Yes, it happened to me today!  One of my favorite liquidators has a darling elderly gentleman, Charlie, that helps out at the sales and knows I love milk glass, so he called me and said he had a table of milk glass I might like!



More Milk Glass, Italian Pottery, Lace, and so much more!





Oh if only I had unlimited income and a place to store everything,  I would have bought more!  But I think I bought enough!  A couple of boxes of milk glass, this pretty Italian pottery cake stand, a box of gorgeous lace, and even some cobalt blue handblown plates!

A sampling of the WH Grindley china I bought!



I've been going to the "Granny's Estates" sales for at least 3 years now, but it wasn't until about a year ago that I realized Charlie knew my husband and my son, Mark!  They've been attending the Cleveland State basketball games for years now, and so has Charlie and his wife Irene (who I have met too, a lovely lady).  Their seats were close to each other, and so they've known each for quite awhile! 

It wasn't until I heard Charlie talking about the Cleveland State games that we figured this out!

Small world! 

Anways..it was fun! One of the other guys, Brian, took me upstairs to check out another room full of cool stuff!  The owner, Al, took me to the basement where, yes, even more cool stuff!

So I was a kid in a candy store today!  What fun!!

Jen