Good Finds in the Hot Weather

Normally it doesn’t get too hot where I live, but this past weekend was beastly (over 100 degrees one day) and this coming week is going to be toasty too. We don’t have air conditioning so it’s challenging staying cool. I’ve decided to go easy on myself and let some things slide this week. But, of course, I still had to pop into my local Goodwill for a little picking and I’m glad I did.

First, the “bread and butter” finds…

Like this retro ‘60s Burwood bread tray. It’s not worth much, but it reminded me of a ceramic one I made as a kid. Love the mottos.

And I found a group of Churchill (made in England) stackable Blue Willow tea cups. Again, not worth much, but nice, attractive and usable.

Now,  two good scores…

I snagged this adorable set of four Tiffany “Alphabet Bear Birthday Plates” off a cart that had just been wheeled out. These plates were produced from 1994-2006. Mine are from 1997 and in very good condition. Sold prices are all over the place, but there don’t seem to be many for sale right now. (I will be listing these for $99.99.)

And I got really excited when I picked up this embellished picture frame. Good grief this was sterling silver! And it’s a darn good size at 11” by 8”.

It’s unmarked (or I should say I still haven’t found a mark or a maker’s name and believe me I’ve looked in every curlicue, crevice and along the sides and back), but it’s sterling.

Here are some of the clues I put together to determine this:

• It’s been polished a lot but has no brass or other metals showing through.
• When you tap the silver it has a light, hollow sound (as do similar embellished sterling silver items I own).  Plated items are typically heavier and sound different.
• A strong magnet doesn’t stick to it.
• It passed the ice-cube test. (Take an ice cube out of the freezer and place it on a room-temperature item. If it’s sterling silver the ice cube starts melting within seconds.)
• After removing the backside, you can see the tarnished underside of the frame.
• It has a beautiful, warm patina.

As someone who has bought and sold a lot of sterling items I am 100% (okay 99.99%) confident this is sterling silver, but I may end up buying a silver testing kit just so I can say in the listing that it “tested silver.” Anyway it was a super exciting find for me.

Now to cool off a little (maybe with ice cream?) and move on, slowly, to the next project on my to-do list.

Here’s to happy hunting and staying cool. 🙂