Saturday, March 14, 2015

Lunch at The Bins

No, I did not eat lunch at The Bins, although I have seen people do it!  Since I work so close I heeded the encouragement of several blog enablers friends to see what would turn up if I stopped every day.  This represents about 40 minutes of digging each day this week, although I did have to "speed pick" the place in 20 minutes on one day.
This vintage girl was already missing her arms and she is destined to lose the rest of her body as soon as I can figure out how to get it off.  There is a metal rod running from her neck to a speaker in her tummy.  Head bone connected to the belly bone, dem bones, dem bones, dem dry bones...
 All in all, the loot was similar to an estate sale only spread over 5 days.
 By going every day I was able to realize that everything left in a bin that goes to the back room is not immediately headed to the dumpster.  There were several times when I saw things I had seen the day before and realized they had piled new junk on top and brought the bin back out.  It would interesting to know what their criteria is for deciding it is time to empty it and start over.
I dug and dug and another picker even helped me but I could not find the lid for that tin in the upper right with the vintage silver leaves in it.  Sometimes people toss things from one bin to another as they are digging so you have to pick the nearby bins when you are looking for something.  In the end I took it anyway because I think it would be great with a glass inside so it could be used as a vase.
 These little spun head sweeties were inside an old Hickory Farms box.  I have learned to ALWAYS pick up boxes and give them a shake to see if there is something inside.  Since I have been picking there I have found a 14K gold ring and a stunning vintage angel tree topper that way.  The best thing is the box has protected them from the dead vacuum cleaners and bowling balls that get tossed on top.
 I adore the little green bowl.  The condition is beyond selling but I think it will be perfect as a saucer under a flower pot.  I learned it is Gladding McBean which was part of the Franciscan line.  My father-in -law worked for the Interpace factory that made Franciscan dishes for years so that was interesting for me to learn about.  When I got married he offered us any set of Franciscan dishes we wanted and we chose some trendy brown ones that I have regretted for 40 years because I could have gotten Franciscan Cherry Blossom FOR THE ASKING.  Yes, I was a teenage bride and that young and stoooopid.  Every time I see a piece I say "there are my dishes I didn't get".  We all have a few life regrets....
 This is a copy of the complete works of William Shakespeare in a lovely tooled leather jacket.
 I gathered up these three Tom Swift books from two different bins.  I adore the titles and they are perfect for display.
  I was delighted when I found the blue INARCO sugar bowl that goes with the set I found at the VOA in this post. Three vintage crochet pattern books and a sweet circus themed baby clothes hanger.  Sorry I didn't take a better picture of that!
 Two boxes of Shiny Brites and a few that will be added to my personal collection for my tree.  The head popped right off this old one-legged doll and I love the wonky, winky eyes.
The picture in the back is not embroidery and not paint-by-number.  It is painted with those embroidery paint pens that were popular back in the day and already framed.
Will I be going back, well maybe not every single day but, boy howdy, YES, I will be be back for more.  I think I'm addicted to The Bins.

16 comments:

Art and Sand said...

You definitely have determination - can't believe you are going every single day!

Betsy@My Salvaged Treasures said...

I think you need to go twice a day, lol. Wow, look what you might have missed if you didn't "lunch" there. Love those wonky dolls and I know your surgical skills will find a way to remove her head.

~Damita's Pretty Wrap~ said...

Wow what a haul!! So many cute things!! Happy Sunday! xo Holly

Jewels said...

Wow what an AWESOME LOAD!

Celestina Marie said...

Wow Kathy, lunch at The Bins has paid off, You got some great finds.
Have a nice Sunday!
Hugs, CM

Kim@Snug Harbor said...

We have nothing like "The Bins" at any of the stores around here.

The Tom Swift books are a treasure.

Maggie said...

Ahh, the lure of that tempting siren known as The Bins! She is irresistible! (I speak from experience, haha)

laurie -magpie ethel said...

Interesting to see the loot after a week at the bins. I just don't have the patience for it. You did do pretty well though...worth those lunch hours.

Shirlee Fassell said...

Can't think of a better place to spend a lunch hour!

Melissa said...

I believe you're referring to the Goodwill Outlet, correct? If so, I got a laugh out of calling it "The Bins!" Either way, I have one that is 5 minutes from my house. There is a park in between my house and the bins. I used to tell myself I had to run 2 loops (3mi) before I was allowed to go to the bins. It was great motivation - several years ago. Our bins used to yield wonderful stuff on all of my trips. Now I'm lucky if I walk out with a few things. I usually only go to the bins once a month now. Last month on a Saturday I went with a friend and we stayed there for 3 hours - which meant 3 times that new bins came out (once an hour). It was good to have someone with you to dig. Now that I've been talking about this enough and you've shown your great finds... I'm encouraged to start going again more frequently... especially now that the weather's nice. Get in a run and go to the bins! :)

The Polka Dot Closet said...

Wow! I think it was well worth missing lunch for. You are going to have such a great collection of smalls when you get a booth!

Carol

WW said...

Can you email me? weinkermeyer@hotmail.com

Annette said...

Well, I guess you aren't "Kluless" any more!! What an interesting experiment and a great bunch of booty. I don't think I could give up lunch every day for the bins but the one week trial would be fun.

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

I love the books you found and that tiny little hanger but oh those pitiful baby dolls. I can't look! hahahaha! Have fun! (I went today and it was FUN!) Hugs!

Anita said...

Sorry to ask such simplistic questions, but I have just discovered your blog and would like to know what VOA stands for, and...what are the bins?

Laurie said...

Our bins are not that great but there are treasures to be had there for sure! Yours seems to be fabulous though. I love the books you got especially the ledgers and the Shakespeare!