A bowl full of fun

One day last week, I stopped by a Goodwill store and found some great goodies that were fun for several different reasons.

First, I've been bored with my current selection of tea mugs. I use "mugs" in my office and "teacups" when I'm downstairs, but I've got so many mugs already that I couldn't see buying another one. I even have a gift card from T. J. Maxx that is unused from my birthday back in May, but still, I can't see using it on a tea mug. These blue florals at Goodwill, however, caught my eye, and this Nikko French Country pattern tea mug was just 79 cents. Perfect!

I'll bet some of you are familiar with this Depression glass pattern, Iris and Herringbone. My mother collected this at one point (like me, she collected a lot of stuff "at one point"), and my little sister called it "Irish Hambone." For that reason alone, I thought this saucer, in perfect condition, was worth the 59 cents I paid for it.

Another odd collecting interest: I like *reticulated* things, which is a fancy word for china with piercings in it. These little 4-inch Schumann Bavarian dishes look like future jewelry trinket dishes to me, and at 99 cents each, the price was right.

Finally, I've been drooling over the photos of some vintage Christmas wares online, and I love the old Pyrex dishes I've seen in red and green that are being used as Christmas decor in the kitchen. This Hazel Atlas mixing bowl was just $2.99, and I will save it to use only at Christmas. I look forward to the day I can tell you that I've found something similar in red that was just as good a deal! (I've told myself no going on eBay, either. That would be cheating.)