Friday church sale, yard sales and a visit to an artist's studio/shop

Yesterday morning, Duane, Linda and I decided to hit some 'lower-down-the-scale' sales since, lately, we had been hitting estate sales almost exclusively.  The first sale was being held at a gay church near where Duane lives.  We went to this sale last year but hit it on the second day so this year we got in earlier.  Everyone at this church is really nice and they have a big book selection.  Linda and Duane both bought books.  I bought a never used rain gauge for my backyard and a vintage celluloid hair receiver.  I've looked at these a number of times and I've always been intrigued by them.  For 10 cents, I couldn't pass this one up.  It has a few dark stains on the lid which I discovered were usually caused by contact with perfume and/or body oils from the hands of the lady using it.  Otherwise, it's in great shape -- no chips, cracks, etc.  The bottom has the words 'French Ivory' embossed into it.  That's what celluloid was called when it was invented because it was made to resemble ivory.  When I went to pay, the guy who took my money told me it had belonged to his grandmother.  He was surprised (and pleased, I think) to discover that I knew what it was. 

Between the church sale and a couple of yard sales, Duane also bought a number of other items.  A wicker tee-pee/bed for her cat, Jasmine, a mint condition set of matching bathroom items (soap dish, lotion dispenser, toothbrush holder, etc.) and a pair of nice wood shelves complete with plate grooves that she plans to paint comprised the rest of Duane's finds.

We finished hitting the church and yard sales early enough that we decided to stop in at Susan Gott's studio Phoenix Glass.  We've shopped there before and Susan was having a 'make your own glass item' day along with refreshments and a little Halloween decor.  Check out her website if you've never seen her work before.  Beautiful things.  She does have some items available for purchase there, too.  We all bought gift items so, sadly, we can't show them in the picture.  That shopping bag you see that says 'American Craft Council Show' was one of our bags from her shop/studio.  Susan is a very nice and warm person and welcomes you as you come into her shop.  She's going to be participating in the 'Shop Small' business Saturday after Thanksgiving with some great deals so we plan to go back then.

After our haul from Phoenix Glass, we hit the coffee shop for our usual treats and had a nice long gab.  It's always fun to see what we end up with on these outings. 

Our purchases.

Closer look at smaller items.

Some of the beautiful paperweights available from Susan Gott's Phoenix Glass Studio.

Courtesy of Susan Gott's website.