Monday, May 23, 2011

Fun Finds


Tarnished, dingy candlesticks
On Sunday I did my weekly streak down 17th Street, stopping into the Pippin antiques store, where we practically furnished our apartment, the Angel Street Thrift Shop, and Housing Thrift Shop. You never know what wonderful thing you will find that has just come in off the truck. I have been looking for awhile for pewter candlesticks which I guess are surprisingly rare because I haven't found any yet. The burnished matte silver glow of pewter is something that I find appealing now. They weren't pewter but at the Angel Street Thrift Shop I did find the two silver candlesticks pictured above. They were tarnished and dull, but they were heavy and I thought with some polish they might clean up. Also, they were $8 for the pair.
Down the street at Housing Works I found this little metal bud vase. I liked its small size and silver matte material. $6.

At home I retrieved the silver polish from under the kitchen sink and after five minute's polish – voila. Look at how those candlesticks shined up. That means they're silver-plated right?

Candlesticks require candles so here they are grouped with lilacs and a dahlia plant from the farmer's market, and a dragon fly votive candle holder I got somewhere, I can't remember where. The silver bud vase has a piece of phlox and a bit of ivy from the container garden on the sidewalk.

Here is one in the library on my printer illuminating a photograph which my aunt Monica gave me of my great aunt Milly's wedding day at 611.

One in the bedroom with some other little bits.

$4 for a silver-plated candlestick – not bad, right?

3 comments:

Ella said...

They are lovely and the price was very good!

Gail, northern California said...

I love it that you didn't just put your flea market finds aside, smug in the knowledge that you had found such bargains. No, you immediately set about cleaning and polishing and by evening they were already aglow. The tabletop still life is especially beautiful. I can almost smell the heady fragrance of those luscious lilacs.

Albert said...
This comment has been removed by the author.