I dug him out of a forest of vinca in a backyard in SE Portland. Since then, he's been the reigning king of the shop. I'm here to report that he has found a new home.
Yesterday, his new owner put him lovingly in the back of a Subaru. He looks like he's trying to see through the window...Don'tcha think? Happy trails, Bambi!
This photo was one of several posted about an estate sale that promised "40 years of Christmas", which really got my attention. However, once Gail and I got there, I discovered that it should have been adverised as "40 years of Christmas garbage". But never mind. I headed into the yard and started to get an uncanny feeling that someone was looking at me. I spotted something by the back fence and as I got closer, I saw that my instincts were right. There was a deer looking at me. A concrete deer, my favorite kind.
See him there, lying in the Vinca behind the gigantic TV antenna? I didn't care that he only had one (broken) antler. It was love at first sight. The gal running the sale was glad to see him go for a song. So I dug him out, borrowed a dolly and rolled all 95 pounds of him across the lawn.
When we got to the Dodge, 2 guys were standing by the van. They asked how we planned to get the deer into the car. We batted our eyelashes and said something along the lines of "we thought you handsome gentlemen were waiting to help us"...
Garry, on the right, did most of the heavy lifting and got Bambi into the car. Jim offered moral support. Gail was the official photographer.
To celebrate Vintage Thingies Thursday over at Colorado Lady , I have a little story for you....
So I took some of the clay pots, the metal urn (chipped, but I don't care) and the pretty white lady. She's not old (bar code on the bottom was my first clue), not concrete, not resin. She's heavy and lovely and just needs a little TLC. She looked very sad to have been thrown over. See?
But this piece was my favorite. A fabulously beat-up concrete line of ladies dancing. Why anyone would leave this on the side of the road is just incomprehensible to me.
I love concrete. I love dancing ladies. I love the guy in the black truck.
How much do you love these sunflowers?
P.S. This is not my house.
The new hut is due to arrive on Monday!
In the meantime, Mr. and Mrs. Bucky and a concrete birdbath are waiting under the laurel hedge until I can plant the new gardens.
I have also stashed a trellis, an old wheelbarrow, more concrete and a window from the original hut. These will all have a new home in Chez Pre-Fab's garden.
I saw this charmer recently at an antique mall. At $85, the price was too steep for me. I like my concrete cheap or free. I just love the happy couple on their conversation bench, sitting in the shade of a PINK umbrella! I hope that whoever came up with the idea of having the boy wear a top hat was justly rewarded.
The girl looks so content. Her little frog hands placed in her lap...she is such a lady.
Lovebirds that my husband thinks look like a big mound of mashed potatoes....
A salty old sailor....
Our enchanted swan with a broken nose...
We also have a couple of amphibians....
A rodent...
And finally, I believe you met Otto last summer. He is not an animal obviously, but he is so delightful, I had to show him off again. He was named after my paternal grandfathter. He actually looks like my paternal grandfather, well, except for the yellow suit.
Happy Junky Weekend!
My friend Maryann helped me load this one into the back of our Jeep. It weighs a ton. She almost lost a finger, I almost lost a toe. It was worth it. It moved with us from Pennsylvania to Oregon. I think the Mayflower guys might have lost a few digits as well. Don't fret....we gave them a nice tip. 
I found this fishy one at a local shop here in Portland. It was a bit spendy for me, but I traded some fab vintage jewelry for it. Thanks, Astrid!
The tiny bird is so happy that spring has arrived. More of my concrete menagerie in a future post...
A vintage PINK oven. How or why it was installed like this, I cannot explain.
Hand made money holders at a retirement community rummage sale. Adorable! 
A cherubic concrete birdbath with lily pad pond feature. This was not for sale. 
Speaking of yard art; there is a line you should never, ever cross.
Look what I found growing by the side of the house...Concrete mushrooms! Actually, I bought this toadstool trio at a garage sale for $1. There was no extra charge for the moss on top. I love where it sits in the garden, all shady and forest-y.
O.K. Not really. It was an industrial accident, but I knew the bar fight thing would get your attention. We had our roof replaced recently. During the removal, a piece of tar covered lumber landed directly on Peter's head. Down he went, off the rock garden and onto the driveway. The guys doing the roof work were kind enough to place him gently back on his perch ~ along with his ears. He also got a nasty scrape above his left eye. Now the bunny is sad. And deaf.
I know we have been down this road before. But have we ever crossed this bridge? I think not. This beauty is in my neighbor's back yard. I'm sure it has been there for several decades. I have offered big money for it...so far, no go. I like to picture it at night; garden gnomes and pixies gathered there, telling fairy tales and watching the full moon.
We are having a snow day today in Portland. I am in the studio, cleaning, trying to stay focused. It is so fun to paw through piles of vintage wrapping paper. I took a break and came upstairs to make hot chocolate. From the window, I saw Beatrice, my lucky garden chicken, covered in snow and ice. I think she looks lovely.
Yes, boys and girls, what I found in a basket nestled among plastic key rings and jars of glitter were vintage condoms. Whoever was the original owner must not have been too lucky since there were 3 unused rubbers in the tin made for 3. Poor thing! P.S. I am SO listing these on eBay.
Greetings dear reader,
We have previously addressed my obsessive yet benign affection for anything crafted from concrete. http://onegalstrash.blogspot.com/2008/02/i-have-problem-chapter-1.html
I feel compelled to share with you another treasure in my neighborhood. This lovely gathering of happy souls is just the kind of thing that makes me happy to live and breathe. Apparently these folks have been parked in this yard for a very long time. A friend told me that during Mardi Gras, these guys are all decked out in green and purple beads and festive hats. I can hardly wait until Fat Tuesday!
Just in case you were wondering, I have a concrete problem. Love the stuff, the more beat up (ahem) aged, the better. The last time we moved, the guys were schlepping the last of many urns and other assortments into the back of the moving van. I said to one of them (as a kind of apology): "We have a lot of stuff, don't we?" He put down the 200 lb birdbath and said "Lady, it's not that you have a lot of stuff; it's that you have a lot of ODDBALL stuff." I swear it was the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me. My husband has explicit instructions that the word "oddball" must appear somewhere on my headstone. That, and "she was sometimes a headache, but never a bore". And the headstone better be crafted from old, fabulous, chipped up concrete.
So the other day, I am screeching down NE Wygant St. looking for an estate sale, and look what I saw? Okay, so if you take away the gravel, the plastic chairs and the rusted chain link fence, don't you feel JUST like you are standing on the steps of the New York City Public Library?
Photo courtesy of harx1.blogspot.com Thanks Kerri!
