Your Opinion Please!

I found these stunning vintage Villeroy and Boch teacups for $1 each in Vinnie's a few weeks ago.

There are 2 different designs...

Even the underside is pretty!

I'm keeping one to go with the Villeroy and Boch plate I picked up for a couple of dollars recently...

But here's where I need your help. I'm thinking of using the rest of them to do this...

Image and tutorial here

What do you think? Would it be a travesty to fill these beautiful vintage cups up with wax or do you think they'd be fab? I think it's a lovely idea :-)

Today's Finds

This morning, after all my munchkins had been deployed at their various places of mischief, I had two options - go home and tackle the mountainous pile of ironing awaiting me or go shopping.

We all know which I chose and here's what I found!

I am in love with woven baskets and trays at the moment (a post on that soon) and this one is really beautiful, such gorgeous workmanship, it's huge and cost only $2 in Salvos!!!

I mentioned before I have a lovely collection of cake plates and domes and was delighted to pick this one up today for $10. I already have two very similar footed cake plates, but one is little and one is medium, this one is BIG - now I have a set!

Another bowl - 50 cents. I should really do a post on my bowl collection but it would take me about a week to photograph them all!

This cute pair of salt and pepper pinch pots were $2.

Another basket, nowhere near as fab as the other one but handy for breadrolls and only 50 cents.

I fell in love with theses 2 original oil paintings the very second I saw them, they weren't priced so I brought them up to the shop counter and was given a price of $4 each! They definitely need TLC - a good clean and new framing (that horrible plastic framing is glued on, yuk) but I think they'll look fab when it's done and I love the little cyclists, it makes me think of my boys on a trip together :-)

I am amassing a worrying number of fishy dishes - I love this platter - $3.

And finally...

This fantastic big fish platter is by a high end Australian brand called "Mud Australia", it costs $119 new in department stores and online retailers such as this, I got it in Vinnie's for $8!!!

Aaah, there's nothing like a good morning's shopping, I have a few minutes left to get that ironing done before school pickup, hmmm maybe it can wait until tomorrow...

Linking to Sophie's Flea Market Finds and Apron Thrift Girl today :-)

Stepford

OK, I know I may be painting myself as a bit of a Stepford wife if I admit my heart almost stopped when I saw this beautiful kitchen trolley...

Isn't it perfect? The gorgeous greenish/bluish colour, the size (exactly the right dimensions to fit in a little dead-space in my kitchen) and the retro style. My fruit and vegetables would live very happily here.

It's new to Ikea and available here.

Sum total

I don't get to go shopping in thrift stores or markets that much these days! My boys are older now and not so happy to be fobbed off with a little toy while I browse so I don't inflict the experience on them. But in the last couple of weeks I've made some time for myself and hit a little rummage sale and a couple of thrift stores and found lots of lovely things, here they are...

Some pretty pieces of china - $1 each.

I love putting mismatched patterns together and seeing how lovely they can look.

This little olive dish was 50 cents.

Only $2 for this Villeroy and Boch dish.

A cute little Royal Doulton bowl for $1.

This chicken-shaped wire egg basket was a steal at 50 cents! I've wanted one of these ever since spotting one in Nigella's kitchen :-)

I'm not really a "pink girl" but occasional little pieces contrast nicely with all my robin-egg blue kitchenware, this bowl was $1.

My tiniest bowl ever - 20 cents.

I still can't believe I scored this harlequin set of Pyrex ramekins for only $1!

I LOVE this turquoise and white platter - only $2.

A set of tasting spoons (I am building a little collection of these) - $2.

A pair of salad hands - 50 cents.

This multi-aperture box frame (brand new in its packaging) only cost $1. I think I'll do a montage of beach pictures in it :-)

Hello little dolphin - 50 cents. My youngest spotted this on my bookshelf and exclaimed "That's MY dolphin"! Now he won't give it back.

That's a sum total of $15.20! I'm happy with that!

And today I'm linking up with the lovely Rhoda at Southern Hospitality and the beautifully vintage Sophie at Her Library Adventures.

My cookshelf

I have mentioned my cookbook addiction before and thought I'd chat about it today :-) I used to wonder if I was a bit weird in that I devour cookbooks like novels. There's nothing I love more than to curl up with a gorgeous cookbook and browse through the lovely photos and recipes and come up with new ideas and combinations of flavours. When I visit friends I always have a nosey through their cookbooks too.

There are many others out there though! Since I have started reading foodie blogs I have realised it's pretty common to enjoy cookbooks not only as something to use as a strict guide to follow, but also something to browse and just enjoy and not necessarily adhere to. My hubbie thinks my collection is getting a tad large, but I beg to differ, Nigella Lawson has over 4,000 cookbooks! My collection pales in comparison but I thought I'd share some of it anyway ...

This is not all of them, I have little piles tucked away in drawers and cupboards and a whole other collection in my parents' attic back in Ireland. I used to have to stifle my collection due to the ridiculous prices of books in Australia but the discovery of the Book Depository got me back on track, I buy the majority of my cookbooks brand new but have a little collection of retro books I love to read as a nostalgic look at the way food was when I was little :-) I've also found Abe Books to be a great source of hard-to-find titles.

Anyone else out there a little bit addicted to cookbooks? Please share :-)