SPLENDIFOROUS. IS IT A WORD? OF COURSE IT IS AND WE GOT IT AT THE TURNABOUT SHOP!

We have here somethings new, somethings old--all together in a fetching cupboard. Don't you love words? Like the word cupboard: a board where you keep cups? I think "board" was a term once for a cupboard, which brings this silly couple of sentences full circle. Here we keep a lot more. Look and see if anything suits your fancy. I've been eying that green dish down on the bottom shelf.
Cupboards sometimes hold plates and bowls and shiny things, which I love. What is it about shiny things? You want to hold them up and look at yourself in them? A kid would do that. I'd actually like to see a whole row of shiny stuff.
Our Books have been ignored lately and they want attention. (You notice, they capitalized themselves? Very vain are books.) Well, God Bless It, Books, you're hard to photograph so you can see all those titles! Besides, who would want a Book on Medicine, (OK I'm bowing down and capitalizing you) and old ones at that? Come on, you can do better than that. Oh, so you're good for research. OK, I can go with that.
More Books, Friends, and I can't tell what they are because I can't enlarge the picture until it's published and then I'm too lazy. That's why the Medicine Books got it. I could see them, but you notice, I'm still capitalizing them. They are so vain.

Below we have the Splendiforus Dollar Rack. I'm going to go for Spell Check sooooo fast. You try spelling Splendiforus! Blouses and shirts and maybe some pants and skirts? Well, I have to tell you. My spell check doesn't like Splendiforous. It thinks there's no such word. We know better, don't we? Hee Hee Hee. My spell check doesn't like Hee either but hey I love to make up words. That's how words happened, for Goodness Sake!

NAMELESS NUT TREE ARTIST. OK, WHO IS IT?

Although there are some wonderful things in view here, what I'm interested in are those buttons. Click on the picture and zoom in on them. They're left center. Beautiful, small, delicate probably silver, but don't quote me on that.
Another view of the night sky, lovely, but what I like about the assemblage seen here is that way those necklaces have arranged themselves so artistically. Oh, I know the necklaces didn't really arrange themselves, but I like to think that. More fun.
I love this print. There are about five of these in the shop right now, another one to be seen shortly. If I had a phone I could find out the name of the artist. Right now our house is phone less unless my husband has hidden one away upstairs. We have already lost one phone, which is OK I guess but to lose two? I'm thinking we needed to get a new set of phones anyway.
This is one of the other prints by this nameless artist. One clue. His work hung in the Nut Tree Restaurant on Interstate 80, which may shortly be resurrected--at least that's what I've heard. Let's hope. The Nut Tree was a sure stop on Route 80.
The Dollar Rack again is semi hiding behind the front counter, which is sporting a couple of flags. If you look carefully, bottom center you'll see a lamp sprawling flat, trying frantically to hide. I banished it and it's feelings are hurt.

CRAZY MIXED-UP TREASURES!

This is a treasure of "Depression Glass." I guess that means it hails from the thirties--like me. Well, what can I say. if you hail from the thirties you're OK.
I love this photograph because of the umbrella and because of the way it leans imperiously at the far left corner of the picture--as if to say, look at me! Look at me! I absolutely adore that umbrella!
I have a personal attachment to that amazingly LOUD square you see smack in front of you. What it is I have no idea but I really rock with it. I like the small mirror to the right too with that mysterious gray blue shading and what is that directly above it? Ah, the mystery of the Turnabout Shop!
Well, here we have a mirror interesting in itself--great for that special spot on the wall, but what I really love is the collection of boxes hiding from view but fully exposed in this picture. Oh My God They See Us!
I found this little mannequin hiding in a back room with arms akimbo. With the help of some scotch tape she greets you, displaying our collection of children's clothes surrounded by bears and bears and PIG! PIG! Yes, PIG is now our official mascot--not to be fooled with for he is one tough PIG.
This collection of dollar items is truly amazing and I thought you'd like the feeling of being behind the counter, for a change. Look and feast your eyes. Maybe there's something here for you!

July Treasures At The Turnabout!

Above you see something old and something new----the new that plate and what appears to be a jar smack in the middle. They match! The shelf above contains some interesting things--rather mysterious. I will need to go closer for a further perusal. There's a wonderful little animal on the very top shelf I haven't seen before.

My favorite thing on this set of shelves is English in origin and it holds toast. It brings back fond memories of being in London and staying at a wonderfully funky place called Jenkins. I could see my younger son's face as we climbed the stairs, which circled around as we ascended. He was nine at the time and as we climbed his face dropped. Did I mention the carpet was threadbare and there was no elevator? My husband and I went back there about four years ago and nothing had changed. We were on the eighth floor. My husband had to push me up the last set of steps.

Do you see that wonderful plate all the way to the right on the second shelf? It's part of a set of four, the rest of which resides on the bottom shelf. The set of jars for things like flour and sugar and such is wonderful too.

There's some things--both wonderful and mysterious here: a swan pin; gold earrings which look to be classic in design; a large gold pendant or pin to the right--I'm not sure which. Last, what in the world is that jewelry all the way to the top right? It's fun to see what things are compared to what you think they are. I'll take a guess. Alligators pin?

The bead necklace in the center caught my eye. Beautiful!

The Dollar Rack once again--dressed up a bit: slacks and pajamas perhaps; jeans for sure. I know there's a wonderful beige sweater all the way to the right. Oh, the interesting things to be found in a thrift store. Sometimes really useful things come in the door. Right in the center there is a man's work outfit, really blue and really large. It's so big the bottom trails on the floor!

BANGLES AND BEADS AND THE DOLLAR RACK!

We have something different from the Antique and DooDads Room today, thanks to my friend Barbara who convinced me I could take a picture through a pane of glass and not get a reflection.  (At one point you would have seen a wonderful view of my shoes but luckily she spotted them.  They are not worthy of the Jewelry Case as they are exceedingly ugly). Here we have wonders of a certain kind, very useful to wear around the wrist.  Click on it and Voila! watches of all kinds come into view.  Wait, what is that Gold Something all the way to the left? Beautiful, but is it a watch?  I finally clicked on it and I still don't know what it is.  Ah, the wonders of the Turnabout Shop!

I'm particularly fond of this assortment of earrings.  How about that set all the way to the lower right with the lovely beads or the gold set almost dead center?

Here is a slice of the night sky. Sorry, it's such a little slice. when you click on it, you will only see it at the top of your screen.  Necklaces and every bead a star.

An assortment of finery, only to be identified for sure by clicking on it.  Necklaces, bracelets, and beads? I can't make out exactly what's there.

Just below, we have the Dollar Rack.  I like the green sweater almost directly in the center, but sigh, again, almost certainly not my size.  There's a whole bunch of short sleeved T Shirts very useful for warm weather, and for cold weather, two robes.  There's a lot of things on this rack and every single one of them available for a dollar!

CLOTHING, DOLLS ET CETERA

We come at last to the Clothing, Dolls, Et Cetera Room. I've always wanted the opportunity to use the word et cetera ever since I saw the movie "The King And I." "Et cetera! Et cetera! Et cetera!" If you don't know what I mean by et cetera. rent the movie but make sure it's the version with Yul Brynner and look for the wonderful scene where he bemoans his confusion with the modern world.

Back to clothes. Clothes. I don't like 'em. If I had my way... Well, we all have to wear them. Sigh. What I really don't like is shopping. Shopping--that ghastly exercise in confusion and sore feet.

Well, right here on this blog I have the answer for those of us who don't like shopping. Look at these pictures, click on them, and Voila! you can do your clothes shopping from the comfort of your chair. Above, for you men, ties that suit every mood and below, jackets and shirts that excite. Excitement--isn't that what it's all about? If you like something you have to go the Turnabout and try it on but at least you've shortened that ghastly exercise.
Below, a wonderful antique girl's dress. Click on it. Who could resist? Isn't it lovely?

Here we come to the et cetera. Dolls and Bears and Curious George and et cetera. Et cetera! Et cetera! Et cetera! Et cetera's pretty good!

Below, for those of us who love beautiful things, a woman's jacket that truly captures a certain Spring day when everything's right with the world. I love it. I'd buy it but it wouldn't fit me. Actually, I don't know why men shouldn't have a jacket like this. I have always found it sad and strange that the only color a lot of men feel they can allow themselves has to be worn around the neck.


More women's jackets below, some lovely fabrics here--I love the look of the jacket all the way to the right and there's a purple one and a black one with white stripes that looks interesting. Click on it; the jackets just sing to you!

THIS ONE'S FOR YOU, KAY.

The Turnabout Thrift Shop lost a dear friend last week. Her name was Kay Davis. Those of us who knew her know how much she cared about the shop. Surely there's a computer and Internet connection in Heaven. This one's for you, Kay. We miss you more than we can say.
I hope this picture comes out because it shows such an interesting variety of things: wine glasses on the top two shelves; odds and ends on the other shelves and just below it just a peak at what looks like something to store wine. Click on it, use the bars along the top and bottom and discover the mystery of the kitchen shelf for yourself.
I love this shelf. Whoever put it together has created an art piece: the mugs at the very top give it a good firm line, the shelf below that shows the mugs in an artistic jumble which absolutely makes you want to shuffle them around. Sorry, you can't do that. The shelf below has what thrift shops are all about--total disorder, but in an orderly way. Now we are truly seeing artistry: you want to pick up those objects--is that a wire thing-a-ma-jig that mixes stuff? Last shelf--ah the beauty of that sea blue something... A colander?
OK maybe you wouldn't put books in with kitchen stuff but both nurture: the kitchen stuff does it for the stomach; the books do it for the soul. Click on it and see whether you can read the titles.

Below we have a beautiful tea set that still sits on the shelf in the Antiques and Doodads Room. I thought of Kay when I saw it. Kay made lifelong friends wherever she went, which was a lot of places: she was born in South Dakota; lived a lot of her life in New Jersey; vacationed in Hawaii and loved it and finally came to El Cerrito and the Turnabout Shop. Gather all those friends of Kay's together and you'd need a tea set this big.