Finds and Treasures

It has been awhile since I shared my finds and treasures – and believe me, there are a lot to share. The Spring and Summer months, and into the Fall season have been busy and profitable garaging and thrifting months. So much fun – and much to share.

My most recent find was just last week. What a bargain I got! My dear little mother, my sweet cousin, Mrs. C., and I have spent many Fridays out and about together, looking for treasures. Last week we carefully planned our day to include helping Mrs. C. shop for accessories for the wall above her new living room sofa. Her success exceeded our highest hopes. In the process we included a couple of thrift stores where we wanted to shop. As we headed home tired and happy from the day spent together, I slowly made my way through freeway traffic and, realizing how tired I was – and sensing that the other two were equally as tired – I suggested we bypass one thrifting stop we had planned to make on the way home. We all agreed that it would be wise to stop there another time, but we decided to make a quick stop at the big fabric store just across the street from the thrift store. Our plan was to go into the fabric store, find what we needed, pay, go out, get in the car and get back on the freeway toward home.

Well, that was the plan! But it didn’t work that way at all. You see, as I rounded the corner toward the fabric store we had to pass right in front of the thrift store. As I approached, at about the same moment, Mrs. C. and I spied the HUGE sign on the front windows that said ‘Everything half off today’! Now the next thing that happened was totally out of my control – my car absolutely refused to continue on in the direction of the fabric store! Instead it just turned right into the thrift store parking lot. Once we were there we had to go inside and shop. What else could we do? And were we ever glad we did! Mrs. C. found a wonderful wrought iron wall shelf that complimented all the other pieces she had purchased for her living room earlier that day. My dear little mother decided to look at the books before continuing any farther into the store. And I’m so glad she did! I collect old books. Especially books written for young girls.

I already owned a few of the Elsie Dinsmore books and, while I have often looked for more, they have been hard to find. Not long after she began looking at the books my dear mother called me to come over to the corner where she was. I could tell from her voice that she had found something worth looking at. What she showed me MADE my day! It was the find to end all finds – like the frosting on the cake – and the price? - we could hardly believe it. Elsie Dinsmore books! Seven of them. The price tag said, ‘Set: Nine ninety nine’! Now remember the sign on the window? Everything half off? Yes, you guessed it, I quickly carried all seven of those books to the cashier and paid five dollars. Total! For. all. of. them! I couldn’t have been more pleased - and I couldn't wait to get them home to add to my collection.

But that’s not all! I knew I that already owned two of the books in this set – but I had plans. When I returned home I carefully removed the duplicates from the bookshelf because I wanted to keep all the matching covers - and the duplicates on my shelf did not match each other or these new books. On the shelf went my new books!

Not far from my home is a wonderful used bookstore. I love going there and spending time with Miss A.M., the owner. She has millions of books - well, maybe not millions - but there are a lot. And she has a great plan for trading books. I took the two books from my shelf to Miss A.M. and she was happy to get them for her customers. In return, I have twenty-two dollars of credit at her store. And - with my credit - one of these days I’ll find more wonderful old books to add to my collection. I would say I got a good deal!