Thrifty Goodness

I went to the thrift shop this morning. It was exciting because I was able to have a nice long browse without becoming horribly ill (and I'm feeling remarkably well even now). There was a lot to see too; all their Halloween merchandise was put out recently and hadn't been picked over too much yet. I found this painted bucket that is just the right size to house one of my potted plants for the season.

It's a grinning cat's face in case you're having a hard time deciphering the image.

One of his eyes is obscured by the plant leaf.

I brought home several small treasures but the most interesting is a set of 5 china salad or dessert plates. I wasn't really looking for such things and almost missed them entirely. Then when I saw that they were priced as a set, not singly, I really had to work to convince myself it was okay to buy the whole collection. I'm accustomed to spending $5.00 or less when I go to the thrift shop. The set of plates was $9.50... plus I had all my other goodies. I'm nothing if not a creature of habit. It's pretty silly how hard it can be to break out of those habits sometimes. So here's a shot of one of the plates:

There were no cups or saucers or anyting else that I could see. The plates are marked off center on the back with Foley China, a horizontal oval with the inscription EB&Co, and Made in England below that. There's also a tiny orange dot to the right of the oval. I don't know what I have here but I couldn't leave those birds at the store!

My first thought was to hang one plate on a wall where I could enjoy it everyday. Someday I'll have to show you the wall of bird prints I have in my dining area. I also have a small collection of decorative plates on another wall. I may eventually hang one of these on that wall. In the meantime I think I'm just going to let myself use them for my luch each day. :- )