It’s almost Fall and I’ve been working on some Fall tablescapes and Fall/Thanksgiving Decor. I love this time of year because the weather cools down and there are so many fun holidays to celebrate. Fall items are showing up in the thrift store and already I’ve seen a lot of Christmas stuff as well. So I thought today I’d show you a few recent finds and then in the next post we’ll use some of them in a tablescape.
I started to see a lot of ceramic and light weight pumpkins in the thrift stores. As I found them they went into my basket until I now have a nice collection of smaller pumpkins. I can use them in a cornucopia or in individual place settings or as part of a larger centerpiece display. Very versatile and only a dollar or so each. You also don’t have to replenish them but can keep them from year to year.
Candles are another item that’s great to buy at the thrift store. They are getting to be quite expensive at retail stores but I found all of these for about $1 each. Now I have a nice selection of pillar candles in Fall colors.
I always look for Nordic Wear cake pans. Found this one for $5.00. (They sell online for $25 and up.). I’ve already used it and plan to make a turkey cake centerpiece for Thanksgiving this year. A little more practice and I’ll have it ready to go.
I don’t really have a set of Fall dishes and had always admired this Mikasa pattern (Itaglio Harvest Garden) but didn’t want to spring for the rather high price tag. Yesterday I was in Goodwill and found this set of dishes, exactly the ones I was looking for. It’s not a complete set but I figure I can add to it as I go along. It did have 8 dinner plates, 6 pasta bowls, 4 cereal bowls, some salad plates and cups and saucers. It also had a sugar bowl and a salt shaker. Enough that I could set out dinner for four or six without a problem. The best part was the price…..$5.25 for everything. I was “Over the Moon”. A little silly to be so excited by dishes but there you have it.
Also ran across these brand new brass candlesticks. They are quite heavy. Should look good with all the oranges and reds of Fall.
Found a Harvest Time ceramic pumpkin for under $2.00. A perfect size to anchor a centerpiece.
Then found these really cute, never opened turkey place card holders. They were on sale for $1.75.
Last but not least I found some additional glasses to go with my set of Park Lane by Mikasa. I found a group of 30 glasses (show 12 here) that were a mix of water goblets and wine goblets with a few champagne glasses for good measure. Paid about $2.25/glass which is more than I usually spend but I can’t get them online for less than $10-20 per glass and some are more. It was a great deal and I snatched it up. Whatever we don’t need, My husband will sell so the glasses will end up being free.
As always, make sure that what you purchase is in good condition with no nicks, cracks, chips, tears, etc. Be sure to check out the value online before purchasing so you know what you want to pay. Have a plan in mind for using what you purchase and you will enjoy your finds for many years to come.