What is a monkeybox?

When I was a little girl, we had a pet monkey named Amanda. My Dad worked in the produce business, so each night he brought home that days culls in a big box - spotty cucumbers, pithy apples, limp celery, moldy oranges and the like. We called it a monkeybox. It was really just trash, but my Mom would take each piece of fruit and trim it, pare it and cut it up to make a beautiful fruit platter for Amanda. Even though it was deemed trash by one, it still had life left in it and was good for the purpose we needed it. That's how I live my life - thrifting, yard saling, looking for another's trash to be my treasure.

Tuesday, June 17, 2014

What I Brought Home

I wasn't able to shop at The Junk Ranch which is a really good thing.  I took all my strength not to grab the customers bags and rifle through them.  All that good junk just going right past us.  Argh.  It was awful!

I did manage to buy something from the booth beside me, the booth behind me and one other booth PLUS Lara and I traded a few things because apparently, we are INSANE.

I love happy bright cute whimsical things.  None of these things fit that bill at all, but I still can use them.  


I could see this old candy box from my spot all day on Friday.  My Mom loved Cherry Mash when she was little and she passed her love of them on to me.  Anything coconut is my favorite.  Staring that Coconut Mash box all day had me salivating.  Of course, they haven't made them in fifty years and I will never, ever get to actually taste one.  So, I had to have that box.

Lara had this neat Mason jar with a star on it, plus it was full of new bottle caps, so I traded her for some of those new old labels I had.  I liked the jar and I can think of a use for the bottle caps.  

The people behind me had a big stack of old wire edged berry baskets.  I use these to hold all my little ephemera things.  I pint one side with chalkboard paint and then I write what is in the basket and the price on the front.  I'm always on the hunt for more but they are usually pricey.  *Laura that I met, was sweet enough to send me a few in the mail a while back and I use them all the time. Anyway, these were only 50¢ each, so I picked out the best ones that had nice straight sides for writing on.  Most of the others wee warped.

I got this old step stool bench thing for $4.00.  The 14 year old boy helping his Mama run the booth had come to me asking for a better price on an item earlier, so he gave me a better price on this bench.  He talked about helping his Mama and always being with his Mama earlier.  It was sweet.  When I asked him his name, he said, "Christopher."  Which made him doubly sweet since that is The Bean's name too.  And The Bean likes helping HIS Mom.

Lastly, Lara had a stack of these old chalkboards, so I traded her a piece of pottery for one.  Chalkboards make great signs and I am still partial to the green ones since that is what we had in school.  

Some very sweet vendors had seen on Instagram how very excited I was to find my spinner rack for my jewelry.  They also knew that I deal with a lot of ephemera and cellophane packages of randomness.  They had contacted me to see if I would like a six foot tall metal spinner rack that they had - for free.  I was shocked - how nice is that?  Well, fast forward to Saturday when they happen to be selling at the Junk Ranch and they appeared behind me carrying that rack.  Free rack and delivery too.  Amazingly nice, I tell you.  And so sweet.  I am all full of ideas on how to pack that sucker full and all the fun things I can put in it.  Man, people can be nice.  It just made me feel all bubbly inside.  :)

*I blogged all about The Junk Ranch below in case you missed it.  

5 comments:

  1. Precisely why I don't do shows, Shara. My booth would constantly be abandoned. I cannot handle the thought of all of the amazing treasures everybody else is finding! I'm proud of you for your restraint!

    Erica

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  2. Looks like you got just enough to take the edge off not being able to buy. Good stuff.

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  3. Looks like you got just enough to take the edge off not being able to buy. Good stuff.

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  4. Yes. There is a lot of GOOD still out there - and I don't mean just 'junk' ;-) ! GLAD you had a Great weekend (too bad for that hatbox though!!)

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  5. You traded me ONE measly chalkboard for the BEST dog planter EVER. I still owe you big time.

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