Thrift Store Adventures: Various Things I Bought!

I'm too tired from the holiday weekend to come up with a good theme today, so I'm just going to show you some fun things I've picked up recently.

But first! Everyone interested should sign up for a chance to be my Thrift Store Pen Pal extra-early this week :) I'm doing something very nerdy in Wisconsin this weekend and will be leaving on Thursday, so I will likely pick a new Pen Pal on Wednesday night or Thursday morning. By the way, my computer randomly chose Myli from Asian Girl Hearts White Boys to be last week's Pen Pal! Before clicking that link, though, know that her blog is a bit... shocking. Fair warning.

We shall begin, yes? First up is what appears to be a cheese tray.

This thing is great for a lot of reasons. It is an awesome Japanese-made wooden tray with a tile embedded into it with a fork and a knife. What really convinced me to shell out a whopping $3.00 for this is the design and colors of the tile. It's marvelous. I want to decorate my entire house with those colors, or at the very least dye my whole body to match.

Why did I buy this? Because it was cheap, stylish, and my brain wants to start a family with that color combo.

Next up is a plate.

I originally thought this plate was done by a child, but the back of the plate says "Louisville Stoneware," which I looked up. It's a professional plate, it just LOOKS amateur. Very sneaky. 

Why did I buy this? I think it was an impulse buy, but it's hard to get buyer's remorse on a $0.50 plate. However, I do like things that are styled simply, so it kinda fits!

Here is an awesome pottery elephant.

He's a pretty great elephant from this angle, but gets better in the next angle:

He's starting to look a little strange, but it isn't until you see him straight on - when he's looking you right in the eyes - that his strangeness can be fully appreciated:

Gah! What's wrong with its eyes..? :(

Why did I buy this? I love weird/funny things so Mr. Elephant here will be a welcome addition into my home (and a steal at $0.75!).

Next up is a nondescript deck of cards...

...or at least you THINK it's nondescript! It wasn't until I opened the cards' box that their true awesomeness washed over me.

What stands out most about this deck of cards? Obviously, it's the fact that they smell like concentrated Eau De Old-Lady. But since you can't smell them, it's the fact that instead of A, K, Q, and J they are labeled 1, R, D, and V! After some research I learned that they are French, and that R, D, and V stand for Roi, Dame, and Valet. 

Why did I buy this? Well, $2.00 seems a bit steep for used cards, but I couldn't pass them up. The face cards and all the suits have fantastic graphic design. Plus, the smell of old lady perfume really gets me going.

Finally, we have another plate!

Normally, I wouldn't buy something this hideous - it goes against my grandma-stylings - but I saw that the back of it was signed and numbered so I took a huge risk and bought it for $3.50. The plate depicts a muscley guy wearing Raiden's hat from Mortal Kombat, holding a baby, with a giant black panther in the background. 

Why did I buy this? I looked it up when I got home and saw that it was going for like $250, in the box. I was shocked! This plate didn't come with the box but even if I sell this for like $20 I'll still make a good profit and pay for everything in this post, twice. Too bad I'm usually too lazy to actually sell anything...

On an unrelated note, anyone want to buy a beautiful decorative plate :D