Reuse: The Beauty of Antiques

On Saturday I had a few extra minutes to myself before going to a baby shower for a girl friend of mine from Ecuador. I was looking for a good old fashioned hand-held mixer, thanks again to my friend at RainGarden. Why didn't I think of this sooner? I've long been a proponent of the handheld manual can opener, why not the handheld manual mixer? (I fully understand electric can openers for those who suffer with arthritis type pain, however, for the vast majority of us -- Why can't we handle cranking our own cans open manually? I'm at a loss. And, electric can openers take up space on your counter. I digress.) I meandered into this tiny antique store that is quite literally "a hole in the wall". To get into the store, you must walk down a set of narrow concrete stairs and walk through a small door. The owner does a great job displaying various things on the sidewalk so that you know it's there, but until Saturday I'd never set foot in the place. When I did, the owner was pounding away on a typewriter. I thought to myself, is this for effect -- to set the mood? I glanced around. I'm amazed he stays in business, but the rent must be dirt cheap. Records, clothing, accessories, costume jewelry, little wooden drawers labelled in typewritten lettering (aaha!) things like: buttons, watches, game pieces, nail clippers. There was an entire selection of vintage fabric divided neatly by color, but in my opinion was way over priced. Finally I asked the man if he had any hand mixers. He started wandering around the store making all kinds of clanking noises here and there, and lo and behold pulled out four of them from I don't know where. 

I tested them all and chose the one that was sturdy and smoothest when the beaters twirled around. It's possible that it cost more than a new one a Target, but I'm certain that it will last longer. They just don't make things like they used to.

I also purchased a few antique hand embroidered hankies. Aren't they lovely? They aren't reproductions fabricated in China (which I have purchased in the past, accidentally) these are the real McCoy. These I actually use instead of tissues.