Catalina Weekend

I was lucky enough to have an adventure on Catalina with my Mom last weekend and thought I would share some pictures of the beautiful island. It's one of my very favorite places and it was a wonderful visit.

Who Knew?

I love the look of eclectic, mismatched plates displayed on the wall. The more colorful, the better. I have the perfect spot in my kitchen to start a collection of my own. I've been picking up a few plates here and there at the Goodwill with the intention of hanging them when I have enough to make a good cluster.

Sunset

Design Sponge

I picked up this plate for $2.25 because I thought the butterflies were cool. It looks brand new and I assumed (never again!) that it came from Target or somewhere similar.

It wasn't until a week later when I was putting a plate hanger on it that I looked at the back. Hand painted in Italy in 1955? Huh? After some research I found out that Piero Fornasetti was an incredibly iconic and prolific Italian artist/designer. Check out the Fornasetti website and you will probably recognize some of his work.

Most of the Fornasetti plates on ebay are black and white. I only found one other example of the colorful butterflies: a set of two plates like mine that recently sold for $305! Whoa! This plate has been tossed around my house from surface to surface for the last week..... it was in the sink with other dishes!

I like the butterflies but I don't love them so I decided to list the plate on ebay. Here's the listing if anyone is interested: 'Vintage 1950's Fornasetti 'Farfalle' Butterfly Plate'.

“So I dressed with remaining ceramics, furniture and objects; so I placed a message in each, a small story, at times ironic and obviously wordless, but audible to those who believe in poetry.” Piero Fornasetti

Linking up to Apron Thrift Girl's 'Thrift Share Monday'!

Four Words...

City. Wide. Yard. Sale.

This year Morro Bay's annual city wide yard sale boasted over 125 sales! It's a little overwhelming (so many sales, so much competition), a little frustrating (think traffic jams on residential streets) and really, really awesome! Our plan was to systematically work our way through the town until we could yard sale no more and I think we did pretty good. We found some really great treasures and only spent $15!

The metal "Public Telephone" sign was our first buy. It's double sided and in great condition. I originally planned on putting it above our phone (where else) but after doing some research, found out they sell on ebay for around $80 and up! Im tempted to sell it but will probably end up keeping it.

The little orange jug fits in perfectly with my growing collection of pottery pieces. The yellow cream and sugar are California Pottery from the flea market ($1!) and the little teapots are actually salt and pepper shakers.

The yellow pyrex bowl and the metal chair came from the same barn sale. It was my favorite kind of sale - where you have to dig through piles of junk to find the treasures. It makes me feel like I'm on American Pickers. I love the condition of the chair and wouldn't change a thing. We also got a few unexciting, utilitarian household items (including a free full size, lidded rubbermaid garbage can perfect for recycling).

This is a vintage aluminum foil/ wax paper/ paper towel dispenser. Its three serrated doors flip open and inside are curved trays to rest the rolls in. Its wall mountable and a great way to free up drawer and counter space. I really love it but unfortunately I don't have the right kitchen decor to go with the chrome and it comes across a little too much like a towel dispenser in a public bathroom. As you can see in the first picture, it was in rough shape but I got to shine like new by rubbing it down with a piece of balled up aluminum foil. I had read about this trick when I was researching how to restore my vintage suitcase. I was a little skeptical but it works like a charm!

All in all, it was a perfect weekend :)

Linking up to Her Library Adventure's 'Flea Market Finds' and Apron Thrift Girl's 'Thrift Share Monday'!