Thrifty Finds: Knick Knacks

Hey what happened to Creative Tuesday!? Hopefully I might have something to share tomorrow but I wasn't so great over the weekend (my immune system seriously bloooows) so I didn't manage to get anything done and since then I've been busy at work...I know, I know, excuses, excuses. Oh well! I thought I'd share a few new (and one or two old) of my thrifted tackiness. I love everything kitsch and weird I can find in charity shops, boot sales etc especially travel souvenirs...you know those horribly tacky things people brought back in the 50s-70s when they started to head abroad? Love them!

Price: £1.99

Shop: Barnardos Hartlepool

This is a pretty recent purchase. It was a little steep for what it was but the mark on the bottom (which I forgot to photograph!) explained the pricing more or less. Still I love the psychedelic pattern and the creepy stoned bird. Even better when I looked at it this time I realised this particular range is called Gaytime...here I thought it said something like Gamine. Classic name. I don't use it for it's proposed purpose of storing sauce (that's what a ketchup bottle is for) but rather for my fiddly, small earrings.

(via 20th century forum)

Here is somemore Gaytime pottery. That bird needs some serious rehab.

 Price: 90p

Shop: RSPCA Hartlepool

90p?! 90p?! What can you buy these days for that much?! I should say this set of five glasses has pretty much no use at all. They are the size of shot glasses but have little handles (so they look like teeny tiny pint glasses) with different animals on each. There are blue rabbits, green cats, yellow elephants, pink bears and off green ducks...It was a totally random find and when I brought it home my parents thought I'd lost it...but come on, for 90p you can't be robbed! I of course like the cats the best. 

Price: £1

Shop: Arthritis Research Sunderland

This is one of my favourite holiday souvenirs, although it doesn't photograph well being cast in metal and all. It's very kitsch, though I have no idea of it's age at all. Still it was hard to pass up at that price! This is also a care of perseverance paying off. This particularly shop almost never has anything in and I am continually disappointed by the weird mix of funeral flowers, Primark tees and sparse shelves...but every now and then you find a gem!

Price: £1.50

Shop: Barnardos Hartlepool

I saw this as a display piece long before I actually bought it. The design made me think 1950s, as did the lovely gradient colour work but it has no marks on it whatsoever. It's just a clay vase and I probably spent too much on it but I really liked it...I'm still convinced they saw me looking at it for a price and then stuck one on knowing I would come back (since I'm a regular there!)

Price: €5 (roughly around £3 at the time)

Shop: French Antique Market

This badgers head is a real oldie. I bought him way back in my teen years at a French market, back in the days when the Euro was way different than the Pound (whereas now it's almost the same). I love this guy but he sat for about 10 years in a bag under my bed. It wasn't until we moved here that my dad stuck him up on the wall for me. Sometimes he wears a cat masquerade mask from Venice but not at the moment. I must admit he's in a pretty terrible condition and could do with a deep clean but I love his manic  expression and somewhat wonky face...reminds me of myself!

And finally Missy wanted in on the action! And got a flash in her face for her troubles...sorry Miss!