This and That: A Blog

 I found what I think are some nice things to share this week!   First, from St. Vincent de Paul, my first salt and pepper shakers in the nodder form.  They're the cutest shakers I've ever seen!  I was happy to pay $8 for them.   They are older than I expected, made in Japan by the Takito Company (1880-1948) between 1935 and 1945. Moving on the a Goodwill store.  A Makonde, Tanzania, carving from mpingo (African blackwood). The dark wood isn't painted or stained, it's the heartwood, the pale is the sapwood, the live outer layer under the bark. It's about 6" high and probably made in the 1960s. In the 70s they began using power tools, and this shows chisel marks. There are several different types of these carvings, this is the Binadamu, realistic human figures representing everyday people.  I only paid $3.88!  Now to the Goodwill Outlet, or Bins. A fabulous birdhouse! It's folk art, most likely done in Connecticut or upstate New York, pa...

Our last letter, Z .   It's a Z oo Out There was bought at Goodwill for $2.69.  How could I resist!  There must be a story behind this trio of Washington D.C. powerhouses!  The title is one I picked for the Challenge, I usually call it Animals in D.C.  A Z poem is here .  This is the end of another April A to Z Blogging Challenge.  It's always fun to participate, and read so many other A to Z posts.  Come back soon, I post multiple times a week beyond April!

  U rban Showers  is my U , and my title for this ink on newsprint by Mary  Pedri.  In a previous life it won an award at the 1963 Lodi (California) Grape Festival and National Wine Show. It was a birthday gift from one of my sons, who found it at Goodwill.   An U ta poetry form can be found here  for U Day. 

O ut of Order gets its title from the sign on the bathroom door in this pen and ink drawing I got at a Goodwill, framed, for $1.65.   Part of its charm is the note the artist wrote on the back. There is a light-hearted O poem, an Ovi, here .

  M agpie Goose (artist's title) is a limited edition (154/500) print by Australian artist  Doris Gingingara  (1946-1999).  I bought it as Goodwill for $2.06 with the signed and dated (9/99) Certificate of Authenticity on the back. I've written a Mondo poetry form for this one  here .

 I had the best thrifting day in a long time a few Saturdays ago!  First a stop at St. Vincent de Paul gained me a few interesting, but not fabulous, things I'll share in another post.  This post is for the fabulous finds! I hesitated on this, as it was $8 and that's a bit higher than I usually go.  However, I do love religious art for it's beauty.  This was on wood, with a label from Venice, and old.  They had it marked "vintage," which was an understatement!  It's actually at a minimum 150 years old, likely older, perhaps as old as 1780.  It's a panel icon painted in the Byzantine style with raised relief work, and gold leaf.  It would have been produced in a Catholic workshop in the area of Venice, Dalmatia, Istria, or Northern Italy, in the Byzantine iconographic form.   The photo does not do it justice, it's much more golden, it really shines in the sun.  Although I don't let it sit in the sun, I don't want to damage it! The sa...

 Finally the thrifting dry spell ended.  I found this still life on fabric (not art canvas) that was framed in Paris ( O h là là! ) on a new cart at Goodwill.  The color is a bit brighter than here. St. Vincent de Paul had these Japanese made ceramic dogs.  The pair was surprisingly sold as a set, they often label things "each."  Another new thing they'd done was to white glue them down to index cards.  At least it was white glue and I just had to soak their feet to melt it.  Still, it might damage some items. Plus, I couldn't verify the Made in Japan mark for myself.    I'm pretty sure I have another dog in a hat, a yellow hat.  It's not on the shelf, but I had all of the dogs down for Christmas and some are still packed.  There is no photo of it, but I might have gotten it long before I took photos digitally.  I also got quite a bit of ephemera that day.  Some interesting stuff. That's for next week.  

 After buying two antique prints, these  steel engravings , both included here today as well, I took a look at the ages of my antique prints.  You hear the word antique  tossed around a lot, but what does it really mean?  It depends.  In the U.S., according to the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930, antiques are items at least 100 years old. Standards of value and insurance, and U.S. Customs use this definition.   With some exceptions, the UK follows the same 100-year rule, while some European Union countries use 50 years, and even 25 for certain categories. China requires government authentication for items over 100 years old before export.  So, if you're in the U.S., an antique is simply an item at least 100 years old. A few of my favorite prints are from the 1930s and 1940s, but they are not antique, only vintage . Vintage is 40-99 years old.    Retro  refers to new items made in an old style, reproductions that are not old ...

Not a lot of treasures found in the past few weeks.  They may have been there, but I didn't look over the holidays. I rescued two original paintings from the Goodwill Bins, but donated them to St. Vincent de Paul.   One of the local Goodwill stores had several items. A vintage napkin holder.  The puppy has beaded eyes.  It was the half-off color of the week, so cost $2.39.  I like to use these for postcards I'm working on cataloging.  I have other napkin holders for general flat stuff near the computer, and one that holds disposable masks near the door. There's a different puppy on the other side. Surprisingly they had a bag of three vintage Italian nativity figures still out, for 1.34, my price (senior discount).  An ox and two kings.  Not sharing until December!   I used some of my loyalty card points for the purchase.  At St. Vincent de Paul I found some 5¢ postcards.  There were two books of postcards as well, which wa...

My best, or favorite, thrifts from 2025.  There are two categories, Art and Other.  Not every month has both.   January Art St. Vincent de Paul  February  Art Goodwill  Other (which is actually art of a different kind) Goodwill March  Art (I consider postcards art) St. Vincent de Paul April Art  Goodwill  Other  Goodwill Bins May Art Goodwill  Other  yard sale  June Art Goodwill Bins Other  Goodwill July  Art  Goodwill (birthday gift from a son) Other  Goodwill August  Art   (three because they are by the same artist and were sold rubber banded together) Goodwill  Other   Goodwill Bins September Art   St. Vincent de Paul (Christmas gift from a son) Other yard sale  October Other   Goodwill  November Art   St. Vincent de Paul Other St. Vincent de Paul December Art Goodwill Bins There are only links to the Tuesday Treasures posts relating to the photos fro...