In case you haven't picked up on it, summer is my very favorite thing. First, there's the weather. Sun and warmth is what (my) dreams are made of. The outfits that go with sun and the warmth are equally beloved. I love all the things you get to eat in summer (fresh veggies! grilled food! ice cream!) and all the things you get to do in summer (back yard breakfast! swimming! kayaking!). Being a teacher, I love all the things I have the time to do, like sleep and read books and go to thrift stores and to estate sales with my friend Sarah (and then blog about it).
Every year I have mixed emotions about summer's end. There's a lot I love about fall. A crisp, sunny fall day is the next best thing to a steamy summer one. I love squash and pumpkins and apples (all plentiful in our neck of the woods). I love sitting in our yard with a mug of tea by the fire while my husband makes chili on a grill. I love heels and dressing up for work. And I'm one of the few lucky people who sincerely loves what I do, mostly because I happen to teach the best kids - no, the best people on the planet. On the other hand, I will never not be sorry to see summer go. I will never be happy to think of the days getting shorter, winter approaching, and having to set an alarm. I'll be disappointed to have my estate-saling partner-in-crime go to estate sales without me.
So it was a little painful to go to our last joint estate sale of the summer last week. We were looking forward to it and a bit bummed all at once.
I wore my rainbow dress one more time as a fitting bookend to the summer!
We got in on the first round with these numbers.... but then again, literally every person who was waiting got in on the first round!
This was the first thing I saw upon walking into the room. I'd seen the one on the right in the pictures, and I wasn't that excited. I have been hoping to find some vintage Genesee beer (it's brewed here in Rochester and my husband is a big fan) stuff to give to my husband for Christmas, so I was really excited to find the one on the left! Sssshhh, don't tell. (Good thing he doesn't read my blog).
I have this exact one at home! In retrospect, I kind of wish I'd bought it. I have a feeling I'm going to be getting more, not less earrings in the future.
This closet seemed promising, but was filled with mostly nightgowns. Now, I love a good vintage nightgown, but some of them bore me. This had ones that bored me.... all exactly the same, but in different colors.
Light blue/pink....
Deeper blue...
...medium blue.
We've moved on to a blue with a collar...
...pink with a collar...
....buttercup yellow with a collar. I guess if you find something that works, you stick with it.
This lady really liked faux angora, too.
Fuzzy heeled slippers!
And fuzzy...whatever these are. Although that might be real angora, now you mention it.
Sarah decided to get this after going back to look at it multiple times. Spiffy!
There were a lot of glasses at this sale. I saw these and kept saying "Harry Potter glasses! Harry Potter!" Because, well. They're Harry Potter's glasses.
I don't know who exactly wore these glasses, but they were CRUSHING IT in the 80s.
I thought I rocked these cat eye glasses. Someone disagreed.
If I hadn't bought a sweet rainbow tomato pincushion earlier this summer, I'd have been really tempted by this guy.
I hemmed and hawed over a bracelet that may or may not have been Bakelite. I really, really want to start a Bakelite collection, but it was $20, not my favorite color, and not confirmed. If any of those 3 things had been different, I'd probably have done it. But as it was, I resolved to go back at 1 when everything was going to be half off to see if it was still there. After a LOT of hemming. And also hawing.
We moved on to a church sale.
The tent and the sign seemed to bode well! Lots of stuff!
I was really tempted by this. My husband would have been SO tough using this to boogie board next year. But we already both have boogie boards, and you don't really need multiples.
I wasn't really tempted by this, but I was amused.
You'd think a music teacher would be excited to find these vintage games, but I promise you I am the worst at Encore. I've played it. I'm the worst. Not only can I not remember lyrics (bad vocal music teacher!) I often think lyrics are different than they actually are.
Hooray for more glasses!
A little bonus pic... zoom in and you can see my rainbow dress reflecting in her glasses!
We killed a little time and went to AmVets until a restaurant opened. We didn't buy much but I did get this 70s number. I love the color scheme!
We got one last lunch in, and I forgot to take pictures. Mostly because I was starting to get a nasty migraine and couldn't think straight. I did go back to the first sale, and the probably-Bakelite bangle was gone. A little bit of an underwhelming end!
I did find some good stuff at the estate sale, though!
A sweet little mini nightie, a purse with a fun clasp, a lucite 60s belt, and a bunch of jewelry!
Most of this was in a bag with a bunch of other stuff I didn't want, but it was worth it for these and especially for these:
They're Laurel Burch! While the back tells me they're peonies, I can't help seeing butterflies when I look at them!
A side note: I'd started accumulating vintage jewelry over the last year. I bought a standing mirror that opens up to hold most of my jewelry, but the bracelets just weren't fitting. So I followed Sarah's lead and bought a bracelet rack. Here it is at the beginning of the summer:
A few bracelets and a few earrings on my earring holder (look familiar?).
And now... well, I may have bought a few bracelets and pair of earrings this summer. Just maybe.
Don't forget to read Sarah's partner blog at the Snug Bungalow here!
Our days of joint estate sales are over for the summer, but never fear! There will be holidays and vacations! Keep an eye on our Instagram accounts to catch the next ones!
