Wednesday, October 27, 2010

A little treasure

My little treasure...isn't she pretty?  I might call her tootsie:)
O


ne thing I forgot to mention about this past weekend, was that I was able to steal away to an Estate Sale for an hour.  My wonderful husband said, "did you know there was an estate sale down the road?"  What? What? WHAT? An estate sale that I DID NOT know about!

Since I had been housebound and laying sod and doing yard work, I had not gone out in a couple days (well at least not down THAT road) and didn't see the signs.  So, true to my style, and lucky for my understanding husband, I jumped in the car.  It happened to be the SAME home that had an estate sale in the spring where I scored my 16 piece (full place setting) of Rosenthal White China...for $100!  The owner of the property is a professor that just has accumulated (I would say a bit of a hoarder, but if you are gonna be a hoarder you would want to be this kind) because he has TREASURES!  And they haven't even gotten to the inside of his house yet.  I have heard it is a treasure trove.  All of this sale was outside...and from his shed.  (I forgot my camera, so you will have to imagine a secret garden with tables and tables of brass, and copper, and china, and pots, and on and on!   I may have missed out on all of the Fatabulous "finds", but I think it was fun to find the little diamonds in the rough, the ones that got away, that were looked over because of all the "great" stuff.  And it doesn't hurt that an hour before they close up shop everything is 75% off!

Last night, while polishing the couple pieces of hotel silver, I got to this little footed dish.



I had bought it up because I really liked the lines...and the hammered pewter finish, and the sweet little balls around the foot.  I turned it over and saw the imprint, quick search on google...turns out...I have a little piece of collectable metal art by a metalsmith named Serge Nekrassoff.

via Kellscraft.com
One thing about estate sales is that you DO have to dig, don't be put off by all of the dirt and grime.  There are little treasures amongst the mess.  Look for the lines of peices, turn peices over and look for stamps. If you love it buy it!  I am really happy I did.  I am really a newbie at all of this, but it is really fun to learn how to find the "good stuff", and really rewarding when you find a little treaure.

I am not sure how much it is worth, but I am quite positive it is worth more than I paid for it.

Happy Hunting.

7 comments:

A Perfect Gray said...

love that piece. hammered finishes are my fave. and the detailing is lovely. great find. why can't I find a few sales like that 'just down the road' from me!

pve design said...

Tootsie really is a shining star! I love that bowl, perfect for a low centerpiece or even for a secret stash of bon bons.
Been meaning to ask, how do you like your stove?
pve

René said...

Great find Gretchen. Definitely the kind of hoarder I want to be :)

-Rene

ALR said...

I love to find pieces that I can shine up and make my own. Lovely find.

Amy R.

Unknown said...

Now, that IS a treasure! Good hunting, Gretchen!!

designchic said...

Love Tootsie...great find!

The Buzz Blog said...

No matter what it really is worth, that bowl is YOUR little treasure and that's what counts in the end. So pretty!
xxoo