Thrift Store Thursday

For this installment of Thrift Store Thursday, I'm going ski crazy despite the predication by Puxatawny Phil that we're expecting an early winter. I'm showcasing something that came from a thrift store ages ago. It's this amazing patriotic ski sweater made by Bemiji Woolen Mills. According to their website, they've been in business for 90 years and now it's being run by the fourth generation. The company was apparently started in 1920 to make clothes for the Minnesota logging industry.

I'm not a skier, but I have enough snow in my yard to need a pair of snowshoes. And I really love the look of ski wear, especially this amazing women's ski shirt, and this adorable sweater with skiers.

Ultimate Best of Guide to Minneapolis/St. Paul Thrift Stores

I don’t live in Minnesota, and therefore, providing a thrift store guide to the Minneapolis/St. Paul area does not infringe on my own territory. So, without further ado, I now present you with the best-of-the-best thrift store guide to the metro area (hope I’m getting this to you in time, Lisa!). Now, keep in mind this list is not exhaustive. For that, my favorite resources is thethriftshopper.com, which is a user-input source for all charitable secondhand stores in the country.

TOP 4 THRIFT STORES:

1. Unique. Two locations I like: County Rd. D and Rice St. in St. Paul. Extremely crowded at all times. Can be overpriced. Best feature is Rice St.'s vintage section and the fact that they are constantly adding inventory. Best score: LOTS of vintage clothes and cheap kids books.

2. Hidden Treasures. In Nordeast, hidden in a strip mall. Very neat and organized, friendliest staff ever. Best score: a brand new Radio Flyer tricyle for $10.

3. Arc's Value Village. On Winnetka in New Hope and Brooklyn Blvd. in Brooklyn Center. Usually very organized. The Brooklyn Blvd. location has lots of collectibles and designer purses (if you're into that). Best score: Also great vintage clothing on a special rack in the back of the New Hope store.

4. Bibles for Missions, 4713 36th Ave. N, Crystal, MN. Call before you go. Pretty sure they have weird hours and are definitely not open Sundays. Love the little ladies that work there. Best score: honestly don't remember. I know I've scored lots of weird knick knacks, but nothing sticks out specifically.


The best things about thrift stores in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area:

• No sales tax on clothing
• Plenty of winter gear if you are in the market for it — boots, hats, coats, etc.
• A wide variety of shops from mega-stores like Savers and Goodwill to awesome hole-in-the-wall joints
• No matter where you live, there is one near you (seriously…there were two within walking distance of my old place)

The worst things about thrift stores in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area:
• It’s a big city, so you gotta be on your game to compete with the crowds
• I’m not a huge Savers/Goodwill fan, and those make up a huge portion of them
• Because the city is so spread out, you can drive a long way to get from one to the next
• As with everywhere, thrift stores have started to try to get smart about what things have a little more value; unfortunately, I find that prices are often ridiculously overblown

Minneapolitans and St. Paulites, did I miss any?

Thrift Store Thursday

Ahh, the dead of winter. Good times. The temperature hit 25 this week and so I trekked outside for a mile walk on my lunch hour yesterday. It felt WARM! Seriously sick when you think of it. But 20 degrees or more above last weeks highs, so it's all relative. All this balmy weather got me thinking about garage sales. And you know what? When I checked Craigslist, I found TWO garage sales! Indoors, mind you, but garage sales nonetheless. So of course, I hit them up.

One was a total bust, but the indoor church sale proved pretty okay. I got a great sweater and a cute vintage tank, so I consider it a success.

Now, I am really looking forward to the return of estate sales, garage sales, church rummages and everything that will break me out of what could definitely become a thrift store funk if I keep hitting the same spots as regularly as I have been.

Speaking of which, a friend who reads my blog said I should post my favorite thrift stores. Hmmm. Isn't that kind of like divulging grandmas secret apple pie recipe? Dare I give out my most closely held secret? Will you all go rush out and pillage my hot spots? Or should I play nice and share? I could definitely give a pretty good run down for Milwaukee area, Madison area and even my old stomping grounds in Minneapolis. Should I?

Daytripping: Cedarburg, Wisconsin

Last weekend we took a "Sunday Drive" -- and it was a much-needed escape from our runnings-around of late. We took a little drive to a nearby town called Cedarburg. It's cute and quaint and has a nice little downtown that seemed to be the gathering place for all the neighborhood peeps. There were two (two!) coffee shops, so we stopped at one called Cedarburg Roastery for delicious pick-me-ups. The coffee was awesome and the young staffpeople were super friendly.

After the coffee, we wandered around, meandering across a river and past the fire station, where we admired the old jail and all the big trucks. We hit up Amy's Candy, where I frothed at the mouth over all the unbelievable candy apples. Although I had to physically restrain myself from buying one of these $13 beauties, I can honestly say I don't think I've ever seen more beautiful-looking apples. And I LOVE caramel apples, so it took some doing to talk myself out of eating one. Next time, I will just give in to the apples and skip lunch.

I seem to have missed quite a bit, though. Next time, I can wait to check out the Textile Museum and the Wisconsin Museum of Quilts and Fiber Arts. I think I'll hit those on a girl's trip, though. No need to torture the hubby, right?

It's really a cute town if you ever get the chance to take a stroll through it. I think we all thoroughly enjoyed poking around on our little daytrip!

Bad Economy Or No, Thrifting is a GO!

We spent all weekend at the thrift stores it seems. We are pretty regular pounders of the thrift store pavement. I actually have come to hate shopping, with the exception of thrift stores, antique stores, craft stores and usually the garden centers. Sometimes I get really burned out, especially since it seems like our local joints have really started to jack up the prices on certain "valuables" like Levi jeans (c'mon, people, these are NOT worth $14.99).

But, alas my faith in buying other people's junk at what I consider a reasonable price was restored. We got Wee Pumpkin a new (made in China) yet metal Radio Flyer tricycle for $7 at Hidden Treasures, a whole mess o' board books in almost unused condition at Unique, some water shoes and some cute Oshkosh red stripey "haw haws" for when he's a bit older. I can just see my guy tooling down the sidewalk in his red overalls on his red trike. I also found Mr. Pumpkin a sweet Duran Duran 45 record with "Notorious" on it. Hey, wait a minute! I didn't buy a single thing for myself. What tha!? Oh, well, maybe next time.

Psssssssst...where are your favorite thrift stores? I need to add some new places to my rotation!

Tonight we're going to take advantage of the heatwave we're having (it's 45 degrees) and grill out. Mmmmmmm venison hot dogs. Hope you had a fantastic weekend!

What I Bought at No Coast Craft-o-rama

I did spend a sizable sum of money this weekend at No Coast. Here's the roundup of items that can be disclosed...

1. An ornament and coaster set from Keen Olive
2. A perpetual calendar by Cassie Medema Design so that I can keep track of family birthdays (not my strong suit)
3. A cute onesie from Happify
4. A really cool pencil box from Mogo
5. A shirt from Campfire Goods for Mr. Pumpkin

Here are some vendors I saw that I thought were really amazing and might have to patronize over the interweb:

1. Aaron Sober ceramics were so original, I was really impressed; I really loved the animal shapes
2. Hat Menagerie's cute hat knitting kits were cleverly packaged and even cuter knit up
3. Numsi had a really cute picture of a digger suitable for the Wee Pumpkin's room that I'm considering
4. Loved the great camera straps by Souldier

...and really, so much awesome stuff. It's hard to write about it all!

Martha Stewart Ornament Shopping

My grandma was a HUGE K-Mart fan back in the day. In fact, I have very fond memories of loitering there with her in wait for the much-anticipated loudspeaker announcement of the next big blue light special item. It usually went something like, "Attention K-Mart shoppers! For the next 20 minutes ladies plus size polyester Hanes underwear are 25% off! Head on over the Ladies Intimate Apparel to take 25% off today!" Off we'd rush, no matter how lame the sale item was, and stock up. Grandma Betty's philosophy was that a sale item was a must-buy, and some day you'd have a need for it. I guess that explained many a strange Christmas gift. But, I never really cared much, because I knew her secret.

My mom and I shopped there, too. I specifically remember these white tennis shoes my mom bought me there. It must have been in elementary school. They were so cool when they were bright white, but the faux leather got dirty and brown so fast and then they looked really gross. So we'd buy this shoe cleaner stuff there and try to polish them up. I think they might have been high tops with little "air vent" holes on the top. Boy, they were super ugly. But I know I went through several pairs of them, so they must have been stylish at the time. Or not.

Luckily, I tracked down a K-Mart store last weekend when I was really missing Grandma B. I thought it'd bring back memories to head over there and see what sort of deals they had going on. Much to my delight and amazement, Martha Stewart holiday stuff was on sale, so I scored big time. I left with about $50 worth of other random crap, too. I did Grandma proud.

Eco-Friendly Etsy at All Prices

Recycled Firestarters by Crayon Bin: $3


Reusable Silk Food Bags by kootsac: $10.50


Recyled Red Stripe beer glasses by bodhicitta: $18


Ecospun Felt Stocking by rikrak: $18


Recycled Coffee Table by SeguinWoodWorks: $750

I've been thinking a lot lately about how our family can be more environmentally responsible. It's not always natural for me even though I think it's really important. I haven't converted our car to biofuel, or installed that green rooftop I've been wanting, or even gotten a rain barrel. Shame on me. But what is easy for me is shopping on Etsy. I discovered today that there are lots of really awesome recycled and environmentally friendly products being sold there (no surprise).

I thought I'd share some of my favorites at every price range. How I would love that beautiful coffee table instead of the painted monstrosity that I created this week (photos to come). But at least I bought a thrifted one instead of new, right?? And that felt stocking...wow. Totally cute.

Happy shopping!

If the Shoes Fits...

It's coming into fall here in the Midwest and my little Pumpkin is just starting to show signs that someday he might walk. I can't tell you how many times I've heard "You're not going to have to carry him to college" but I still long for this next milestone in his achievement. Mostly, it's my husband's longing so that he doesn't have to carry him anymore. But, I do think it will be a thrill to walk down the sidewalk holding his hand rather than pushing him in the stroller.

Recently he outgrew the gifted Robeez he had -- both the pair with the little fish and the pair that said "MOM" (my favorite). He also outgrew the pair he had that matched dad's Addidas soccer shoes...bummer! I went searching Etsy for some new leather-type shoes and found lots of great handmade and even recycled options. My criteria was that they had to be safe and non-skid, under $25, and also needed to have boy options.

Here are my favorites:
--Piddies shop (okay, kind of cheating since these are slippers, but they have mommy/toddler sets!!!)
--Chicksandeggs has some great monkey shoes!
--Softbabyshoes has some really cute penguin ones
--Plateauproducts has some fleece lined ones that look super cozy
--BellaTaylor has some absolutely adorable products all around, including shoes
--The winner was...StarryKnightDesign who makes recycled leather shoes with cars on them -- a must have for my kid who says 'vroom vroom' all day long!!

Now if price were no issue, I may have splurged for these ridiculously cool elf shoes by Randyandclaudia. For Halloween, anyway.

Got any more recommendations?

I Piddie the Fool Who Doesn't Have Slippers!

I bought the coolest (ever) slippers on Etsy and you MUST get a pair!!! Check me out in my new Piddies slippers! Not only are they adorable, but Baby Pumpkin thinks they're hilarious, Mr. Pumpkin wants a pair "but with boobs on 'em" (of course birds are for girls) and they are super soft and warm! They also have this grippy stuff on the bottom so I hopefully will not kill myself wearing them!

Gotta love it. I put a pair of the whales on Baby Pumpkin's Christmas list so he can sport some too. Unfortunately I don't think they come in "boobs" so my hubby is out of luck there.

Get anything cool lately? Do tell! Fall makes me want to shop!!!

Hometown Fun Times

Good girlfriends are such a precious commodity, aren't they? They tell you when the sunglasses are too big for your face, guide you gently back to the skirt you should have bought but passed up, and smile and nod when you ask if it's okay to just sit and watch your kid play on the floor for two consecutive hours.

Every year I take a girl's roadtrip back to my hometown of Madison, Wisconsin for their big mile-long sidewalk sale called Maxwell St. Days. It's always fun; we always spend and drink too much. This year we had a bit of a fiasco trying to find just the right bar, but settled with beers in my parent's basement. I guess we're getting old! But not too old to play MASH and that game with the little folded up paper "fortune teller" thing (pick a number, pick a color, pull up one corner of the paper and there's your fortune). Ah, good times. I'm really looking forward to my future life in a house with Johnny Depp...and many more travels with the girls!

Spoonflower

Have you ever stopped to marvel at all the things the internet has brought us? Remember when we used to furrow our collective brows and worry about how isolated we might become? "We wont ever leave the house!" "We'll forget how to interact with humans!" "Social retards!" "Pasty white, malnourished recluses!"

Here I am to tell you that none of that has happened. Al Gore did such a great thing when he created the internets, that now we all sit around in our pajamas telling complete strangers about our lives, our children, our cats, what we did last weekend and really connect with our new, extended group of friends -- our e-friends.

Know what else we do? We buy stuff online. We buy lots of stuff online. Whole Christmas shopping lists are completed at a PC in a home office or laptop at the local Java Joint.

I am a fan of both. Blogging and shopping. Today I'm actually blogging about something I created on my computer AND ordered online. To sell, perhaps in my online store?! A labrynthian tale of ecommerce, social media and more!

No, really. I got my fabric from Spoonflower on Friday and it kicks arse. The stuff I had made for my niece is so cool, despite the fact that I'm a design nincompoop and it's got weird black lines in it. I think she'll love it, because it's her doodles! In fabric! I also got a couple of swatches of some stuff I "designed" and even it is cool! Spoonflower, you're one of the reasons I love Al Gore, inventor of internets. You make me happy! I can't wait to order more!

Estate Sale Weekend

Now that garage sales seem to really suck (what is it with people putting out one lousy table and calling it a sale?), I really enjoy going to estate sales. I find such great things, especially on half off days. Yesterday this weird theatre training place in our 'hood was having an estate sale, and I got this lovely wig and head for my mom, and some really great patterns. They had boxes of patterns, so I'm headed back to see if I can get a lot more of them (for a lot less). My favorite pattern is a men's vintage western shirt in a large enough size to fit a "normal" sized man. Often old patterns don't fit us giant-sized modern people. For example, the dress pattern I bought in a size 14 says "Bust 32, Hip 35". Now seriously, what size 14 person do you know with those measurements. I don't think that would work so well.

Maybe tomorrow I'll have more great finds to report! Wish me luck!

Trendy Tots Featured Us!

Yay! Trendy Tots featured Baby Pumpkin and his awesome bicycle bucket hat! Check it out!

It's a great blog -- today they're featuring Dad's Day gift (which, if you haven't gotten yet, you need to). They also clued me in to a great shop selling Mr. T shirts for babies, great baby shoes, so many cool things! I'm honored to have been featured!

Cool Moms Read Cool Mom Picks

If you're a cool mom (am I?) and you like to check out all the new gadgets and gear for you and your kiddies, you MUST check out CoolMomPicks.com! I just stumbled across the site the other day and am already ooohing and aaahing over several things, like the Father's Day Gift Guide (*edited* written by two moms who know what dads like!) and their guide to lead-free toys. Geesh, now I have another great web site I must look at daily. It's overwhelming sometimes!

Ribbons from Frisco

I recently *had* to spend a week in San Francisco, which under normal circumstances would have been welcomed. I wasn't too keen on it, though, since I had to leave on Mother's Day (my first) and be away from hubby and baby for so long. I tried to cheer myself up by spending one of my evenings at Britex Fabrics. If you go to San Francisco and you are a sewer, for SURE visit this place. It makes Mood in NYC look pale by comparison. It's four floors and one is just ribbons and buttons. Unlike Mood, it's very welcoming and the sales staff are ever-present but not hover-y; helpful and not snobby. A friendly saleslady helped me pick out these ribbons (a total of $45 worth!) and spent quite a bit of time with me, making suggestions and oggling right along with me. I had at least 4 compliments on my sweater while I was there. Overall, exactly what I would want in a fabric store experience. Oddly I didn't buy fabric, but all this ribbon. I guess with so much to choose from I had a bit of a tough time picking a few to come home with me.

I also had some great food while I was there, like Shrimp Chow Fun at a great Chinese place off Market St. and some delish Korean BBQ and potstickers at the food court at Westfield Mall on Market St. at a place called Sorabol's. My big food night out was at One Market right in front of the Ferry Building. I spent a ridiculous amount of money on my meal, but oh, it was so good. I had scallops and wine (lots of wine) and dessert and shrimp and ooooh I was so stuffed.

As you can see, I really suffered a lot while I was away. I jest. I seriously just wanted to come home. I was so restless that one night I walked from Chinatown to Japantown, which is about 2 miles uphill the whole way. It took me about 2 hours! But, I was able to burn off some of my energy AND buy some great Japanese tchotchkes. Yay! I came home, tired, missing my baby and a lot poorer. But I did have fun, despite myself!

Spaceman Spiff Hat

I never thought I'd see the sun again, given that a few days ago we still had sun. But, alas the sun has shone again on our wintry village in the northland! And how it shines right in the eyes of my wee Pumpkin when we go strollering along!

I really searched for a handmade hat to buy, but couldn't find the perfect one. Then I found a pretty okay one at the thrift store, and decided I'd make a hybrid of that and a pattern I bought. It's got a chin strap that fastens with velcro, so it actually stays on the wee one's head, even when he tugs at it. If I could just get those infant sunglasses to stay on...

While looking for the perfect sun hat for a boy, I found these cool things on etsy:

Squid Hat
Mohawk Hat (made in Minneapolis!)
Jungle Animal Summer Hat
Very Un-boy-like Laura Ingall's Wilder Bonnet
Plaid Wool Driving Cap (for kids!)

Sometimes it's so hard to find cute stuff for boys, I thought I'd share! Any other good hat finds?

New Kicks

Photo from ChezShoes.vox.com
I took Sonya's advice, and bought a clothing item that I loved and had to have right on the spot. Now, whenever I have a particularly boring outfit to put on, I can throw these on and not worry. These shoes could be worn with a potato sack and it wouldn't matter — they are that cool. I also got them at a heckuva discount, which is always fun. They are Camper brand, and they are called "Twins" presumably because they are the same, but slightly different...? I think they also made them in brown and red, but black goes with everything! Now that I started looking at the other Camper Twins on zappos.com and some other sites, I want about 20 more pairs. Of course, shoe addicted, just like my husband always says (even though my true addiction is jackets and coats).

Mr. Pumpkin helped me put together some shoe racks from Ikea this weekend, so now all of my shoes even have a home. I was recently asked on a job interview what the interviewer would find if she opened my closet where I keep my shoes. I sheepishly had to admit it was a total mess. I had some in a nice hanging shoe rack, but the others were just willy-nilly at the bottom of my closet. Well, I ended up getting the job despite the fact that my shoe-life wasn't as organized as my work-life. Now I can proudly say they are both very organized. I start the new gig Friday, and I'm looking forward to sporting my new kicks!

New Fabric Shelf!

(photo by zanzara on etsy)
It's been a challenge coming up with innovative ways to organize my craft room. I want to be sensible about how much I spend, I want to buy stuff that's recycled or repurposed or handmade, and I want to make as much of it myself as I can. Enter the cool, modular shelf I *just* bought on etsy from zanzara to put my fabric on. Right now it's stuffed in an Ikea drawer dealie and it really is not easy to look through or see what I have at a glance. I'm looking forward to having it all on display with my new shelves. Yippee! Can't wait till it arrives!

Yellow

If someone is “yellow” they are a chicken, a scaredy cat, or, in the case of babies, they have jaundice. This disturbs me. Why? Because today I woke up with the most intense color fixation on yellow. Bright, sunshiny, fantastic, optimistic, vibrant yellow. Not butter yellow, not neon yellow, not egg yolk or jaundice yellow, but warm, happy yellow. I can’t really say why exactly, but my guess it has something to do with the long, gray, chilly Minnesota January that has worked its way into my bones. Yellow is the perfect foil to the cold monochromatic winter.

Today I spent a while looking for some great yellow clothes to buy, because of course I don’t own a stitch of anything yellow. I found some really great rain boots which obviously had to buy. I also found an extremely cute shirt by MoxieMadness on Etsy (pictured) which I might also have to snatch up. I hope I don’t go completely overboard and start looking like a clown. But on some level, looking like a clown is what I’m after. I need to liven things up around here, dangit!

Here are some of my favorite yellow things. I hope they brighten up your day!

Pale Yellow Earrings by ocbaby
Jumbo Tote with Yellow Handle by bonnabag
Yellow Cabled Mittens by morava
Sunny Yarn by knitmommy
Yellow and Gray Mary Jane Crocheted Hat by dahliasoleil