Vintage Thingies Thursday

My favorite place to find antiques and vintage things is at estate auctions. Not only can you get things at a steal, but it is fun to watch the people, see what they buy and wonder what they are going to do with "that".

A few years ago, I found this Hoosier cabinet just aching for a place in my home.While it was REALLY dirty, it was one of the better Hoosier cabinets I had seen. I decided I had to have this cabinet. Without conferring with my husband, I started bidding on the Hoosier. I had my eye on my husband so I knew I wasn't bidding against him. It wasn't long and there were just two bidders, me and another guy whose wife was standing behind him poking him every time the bid was with him. But, I had $800 stashed for a rainy day and even though it was a hot, sunny Kansas day, I was determined to take this gem home. I didn't have to spend all the money I had stashed before the other bidder gave up. I remember hearing my husband gasp when he heard the auctioneer say "SOLD!" followed by the ending bid and our auction number.

Most of the antiques we buy get a good scrub down and are placed in our home in the condition in which we buy them. However, that gunk on the top was some type of oil that spilled and dried. The oil had also ran down the inside onto the shelves. The only way to get it clean, was to strip it.

Now this beauty is the centerpiece of my dining room. My Hoosier does not have the flour bin and sifter, but it has a salt drawer right beneath the mirror. I have not been able to find out what material covers the bottom part of the cabinet, but I do not believe it is original.

This cabinet even has the shipping label still attached to the back of the bottom half of it. There was a similar shipping label on the top, but all that is left of it is a couple of corners. The original owner's name is on the label in pencil. We can only make out a few of the letters in the name, but we can make out that it was delivered to them in El Dorado, KS.

In the coming weeks, I will share some of the treasures that I display in my Hoosier cabinet, so make sure you come on back.

And don't forget to check out all the other vintage thingies at Coloradolady's blog. Thanks for hosting VTT, Suzanne! See you all next week!