One last thing about the free stuff

Saturday we picked up the last two loads of free furniture left over from my friend's estate sale, and I got excited all over again.  We filled my workshop to capacity, and we plan to have a big sale of our own in a couple of weeks.

I thought my daughter and son-in-law were going to take several pieces, but as it turned out, I got to keep everything.  I suppose it was an unselfish, motherly gesture to offer them anything they wanted, especially since my wonderful son-in-law did all the heavy lifting, but my greedy little alter ego was secretly delighted when they didn’t take some of the things I was coveting.

The huge Van Hoople picture that I was certain would be hanging behind the their sofa right now is prominently ensconced behind my own, and the blonde bookcase has been repurposed into a small bar/glassware display.

After more discussion with my daughter yesterday, I learned that she may actually want the blonde bookcase, although she thinks she might prefer the bottom section of the china cabinet, which was not a piece I needed. Naturally, if she chooses the bookcase, my motherly instincts will kick in again, and I'll gladly let her have it.  After all, this was a windfall, and it should be shared.  To be honest,  I get almost as much pleasure seeing their 1950-built house evolve into a mid-century gem as I do decorating my own. For now, though, the little bookcase looks great in the corner of my dining room.

I promise this is the last time I'll post about the free stuff.  It really is kinda tacky to keep rubbing it in, isn't it? ;)

Van Hoople painting over my sofa

Blonde bookcase repurposed as bar

To buy or not to buy?

On the second day of my friend’s estate sale, she called to ask me about several items I’d been looking at. Did I want to buy them on Half Price Day or wait until the sale was over? Puzzled, I asked what the difference was. She laughed and said, “Well, if you get them on Half Price Day, they’re...uh...half price, but if you wait till the sale is over, they’ll be free.” FREE? Whoa…I hadn’t expected that. “Yep,” she said, “the owners said to sell whatever we could and to give the rest away when the sale is over. They don't want to store anything.”

Immediately, the big question loomed: “Do I buy the things I really, really want when the sale opens the last day, or do I gamble that some of them will still be there when the sale ends?” I’m not much of a gambler. I’ve never bought a lottery ticket, and when I go to a casino, I limit myself to $40.

But FREE? That’s a very strong incentive to gamble. So, after agonizing all day Saturday and forcing myself to stay home when the sale started this morning, I watched the clock in nervous anticipation of the 3:00 closing. At 2:50 I jumped in the car and headed over to the sale, telling myself not to be too disappointed if everything was gone.

To my surprise, every single piece of furniture I wanted was still there. They simply hadn’t drawn a mid-century crowd, and my gamble had paid off…in a huge way! I ended up with a small blonde glass front bookcase, two green glass lamps, a huge Van Hoople picture, a blonde china cabinet and matching table, another piece of Blenko, and an Art Deco chest, dresser and night stand.

A stroke of luck like this might make me rethink buying a lottery ticket every once in a while.

Van Hoople painting, 59" x 29"
(You can see how much bigger it is than my fireplace.
Oh, and did I mention all these things were FREE????)

 Glass lamps with walnut and rattan base
(Yes, I'm doing the happy dance.)

 Blonde bookcase with sliding glass doors
(This was the piece I wanted most.)

Blenko pitcher, 569P
(Looks great with the decanter I got the other day.)

One man's junk

A good friend of mine conducts estate sales, and the biggest one she’s ever done starts next week. It’s taken her almost three months to sort through everything, because the owners were hoarders. Hoarders with money.

When my friend started cleaning out the cabinets, she found 37 boxes of Ritz crackers and 17 bottles of Liquid-Plumr. They bought everything in outlandish quantities, including decorator items, linens, jewelry…and, to some extent, furniture, which was lined up around the walls end-to-end.

On my first brief walk-through, I saw several great pieces of Blenko, a pristine Adrian Pearsall sofa and a cute little blonde glass front bookcase that I may buy if it’s still there on Half Off Day. There was also a huge lighted Van Hoople picture, a great china cabinet and a funky blue and green lucite chunk light fixture.

The next day, my friend called to say she’d practically give me the sofa for $125 if I’d promise to come get it right away. They needed the space to walk around more than they needed the sofa.

I know most of you mid-century lovers are already avid estate salers, but if you aren’t, you should give it a try. The treasures are out there if you have the patience to hunt for them…and literally dig them out, if necessary.

Adrian Pearsall sofa at the sale house, lost in "the junk"

Sofa at my house, right before I sold it for a really nice profit