Well, blow me down.
I got a little pre-Christmas thrifting and antique mall shopping in last week and thought I'd better show you the goods before Santa gets here and decides he wants to haul some of this stuff up to the North Pole with him.
I have started collecting thermoses and thought they were perfect for a little vignette on the kitchen counter. Let's face it, anything that has red in it is good for Christmas decor.
The gray bodied one with red lid/cup to the right of Santa (our right, not Santa's right) and the red, gray and dark brown shorter one to the left of Santa (again our left, not Santa's left) are the newest ones. He has no hands, so pretty sure he would be confused by left hand and right hand anyhow.
The cardboard Santa box to the far right (let's not get into whose right) is actually a small promotional item for a Christmas club at a bank in Terre Haute, Indiana. It has a slot in the top where you can insert your spare change. What ever happened to Christmas clubs?
And I know you are all going to be as excited as me about this next find. I found some new-to-me blow molds this year.
Yes indeedy!
This is where half the people reading have just exited from my page. Let's talk about them now that they're gone.
Can you believe not everyone likes blow molds? I know!!!
When I first saw these vintage outdoor Christmas candles sitting on the porch of a little out-of-the-way antique mall, I about peed my pants.
And then when I flipped the price tag over, I really did pee my pants. $8.25 for the set.
Do you hear the orchestra music and see the rays from heaven shining down on this booth of kitschy Christmas goodness? Oh, I did.
And this is how my porch ended up this year (you can see more of it in it's own post - Adding Retro To Your Christmas Porch Decor). Still using the candles, but more greenery going on!
My #1 Tip For Thrifting For Vintage Christmas Decor
Another of my favorite thrifted blowmolds is this Santa.
He must have toppled over a few times on someone else's front porch because they attached his feet to a piece of wood to keep him steady.
I think my favorite thrift store find for Christmas was this vintage ceramic Christmas tree I found for a few bucks a couple years ago.
I couldn't get out of the store fast enough with this thing, thinking they may change their mind about the price and come running after me 🙂
A couple years later I found this much smaller ceramic Christmas tree with a holly base, which I did a Christmas giveaway for my readers with in 2018.
And just this year I found a white ceramic Christmas tree with red birds!!!
OK, I have to admit then when I found it I didn't even realize it didn't have a base to it. I'll just stick a battery operated candle in it until I run across a decently priced white base somewhere.
This styrofoam snowman ice bucket by Gotham Industries was on my bucket list for the last few years and I finally found one at a thrift store this summer. Gotham also made a rather jolly Santa Claus version of this ice bucket I am still searching for.
These were made in the 1950's or 60's I believe. It goes perfectly with my Tom And Jerry Cocktail Recipe from the same era.
Speaking of vintage Santas (we were weren't we), I found this Rushton Coca-Cola Santa in 2017. And he goes perfectly with some of his other Santa cousins on my dining room buffet.
The Rushton Coca-Cola ones (on the left in this photo) originally held a mini bottle of Coke, but I have NEVER seen one in the wild with the Coke bottle still attached.
You can see the rest of my 2018 Christmas Home Tour: Thrift Store Decor Style HERE.
Both the scale and the vintage plastic Santa with sleigh in this post about A Nostalgic Christmas Breakfast Room were thrift store finds. I think Santa may be a 70's Christmas decoration?
Practically everything in my Vintage, Rustic, Industrial Holiday House Tour is thrifted including quite a few thermoses and this cool old syrup tin.
This vintage Santa and his flocked deer friends are also thrift store finds from my Vintage Farmhouse Christmas Decor where I show you how I mix a bit of farmhouse with a bit of vintage.
Speaking of deer, I've found quite a few of these hard plastic Christmas deer at the thrifts over the years, so I just casually place them around my house to add a bit of fun to my Christmas decor.
I have a whole post dedicated to the little guys, called Oh Deer.
My skis on my Holiday Front Porch For The Picnicking Ski Bums started off life as a nasty old pair of chipped skis I found at the thrift store and transformed them into one of my favorite pieces of holiday decor with a little bit of paint.
I run across nasty, banged up, chipped skis ALL THE TIME at the thrift stores and they are normally under $5 a set.
And of course, Santa Mugs are one of my favorite vintage Christmas decor that can be found every so often at thrift stores. I just love the thought that some kid in the 40's used to get all excited to drink out of this mug every single year.
Have you found any fun Christmas stuff at the thrift stores?
Any pants peeing incidents? Related to thrifting, of course.
Gloria Carson
I got this idea in November to do my mantle all in thrifted snowmen
and green trees. I thrifted almost all of it, give or take a few things here
and there. I don’t think I found too much that was vintage, but it came out super cute!
Gail Martin
I saw your blow molds. I used to have the candy canes that I got at Walmart when my oldest was still little enough to sit in the cart. He is now 31. AND I have coveted your middle Santa. I have one a bit bigger that him that I got for Christmas when I was a year old. I am now 61. Time flies !!!! I still put him out at Christmas. Your sight just brings back so many memories of years gone by. I tell my sons that they missed out on the best years. My aunt was very crafty. She would make her decorations. Her daughter has taken after her. She will take a drawing out of a magazine and enlarge it ( just for the outline of the picture) and tape it together and then paint it on Plywood. Everything she has done looks fantastic. Thank you for all of your ideas.
Pam Kessler
You are so welcome! Glad you are enjoying my site!
I want to make a huge wooden Santa for my porch next year. I think they used to sell patterns in the wood working magazines way back when, because I've seen them at yard sales and they're always exactly the same. Maybe I'll try your cousins method.
Brenda Latham
Ok. Its been a few years for this post followed a link from Pinterest. I would have brought all of the blowmolds home!
Karen Garnett
My son and I stopped at a Goodwill in New Mexico on our way to take him back to school in California. I found a fantastic 3' tall lighted blow mold Santa!! He was insanely cheap and I wanted to buy him so bad! Unfortunately, the car was crammed full of darling son's worldly possessions so there was no room for Santa...not to mention that I would have to ship him home from CA! (We drove his car out so that he could have it and I flew home!) Sigh! Love all your vintage Christmas goodies!
Ruth Fitzwater
Your decorations are wonderful and I just learned about blow molds. Never heard that term before. I have a jolly looking Santa that I’ve had for a few years and I found the cutest little reindeer blow mold on the fantastic 127 Yard Sale a year ago. I have never seen a cute reindeer so paid the $25 which was more than I wanted to pay. I have a plaid thermos bag (cloth) with the thermos, food containers, etc. inside. I have a vertical swag of greenery and a red bow on it and it graces the fireplace hearth each year. Love the combination of vintage, modern and kitsch. Will be checking you out and enjoying your blog.
Jodie Robinson
Great finds! I like the Buckeyes hat :). I do have a peed-my-pants kind of thrifting moment to share. I found a framed print that I bought for the frame. I took it jome, took the picture out of the frame, and there was an 1890s calendar back behind the picture!!
Here's to many more thrifting adventures, from one Central Ohioan to another 🙂
Yvette moseley
I would love a pair of skies. If you ever come across a set can you let me know the name of a store and phone number. I have a old sled and would love some skies. Can’t find any in Louisiana
Emily
I adore the ceramic tree! It reminds me of my childhood. I've been on the lookout for one for years, but they've all been pretty broken or really pricy. Might have to bite the bullet and just give in on the price. Love your decorations! Merry Christmas!
Evelyn Gilliland
I have my mothers ceramic tree. Might be the only tree I use this year during our house building/apartment living transition year. Thanks for reminding me I have it....stored in one of our storage units....ugh.
Pam
It's become on of my favorite things to pull out every Christmas season. And I think it would be perfect as your tree this year!
Barbm1712
I've never been a fan of the red plastic candles but my mom made a ceramic Christmas Tree much like this years ago and it still lights her home during the holidays to this very day. She's getting older so putting up a big tree in her living room really isn't her thing, so this tree and a few other holiday items she's collected for years pretty much decorate her home during the holidays. No one will ever find that ceramic tree in a resale shop, I'll take it over someday for a touch of mom/Christmas in my home.
Pam
That sounds perfect for your mom! Every year I end up putting the ceramic tree in different places. This year it's on top of my fridge. It makes the kitchen look so festive at night with the traditional colors glowing 🙂 You just don't get that with the white led lights nowadays.