Thursday, July 16, 2015

A Little Fire in Your Belly!

How about a little fire in your belly? I am still continuing to feature small and independent businesses, owned and operated by awesome individuals that are super creative.

This weeks business.....(drum roll please....)





Seriously, do yourself a favor and check this shop out! Fantastic gifts for someone you love a lot (or yourself)

Looky Looky!


No way, it GLOWS! How cool is that!!





Or a bit of copper if you fancy.....



I really like the color contrast with this one. The red really pops!








I have seen other Tree of Life necklaces and I will say that there is absolutely NO comparison.  The other fakes are all chinzy and cheap looking. Who wants that crap? The craftmanship of these are bar none.  Thick, sturdy details in the wires all hand made with precision by a super awesome artisan.  These make a major statement. Trust me, if you were to wear one of these beauties, you would have people compliment you and ask where you purchased it!


So again, please check out Phoenix Fire Designs at the link above and feel good about supporting small businesses and hand made one of a kind jewelry!




On another note....Evan (my son) and I hit Spring Hill once again. You know, that city full of very old people. And as you know, old people have old things and they donate them to thrift shops, or when they die (old people tend to die) they leave an estate to a thrift shop or the family clears out the house and dumps everything at the nearest donation truck. So you get the drift. We like to shop in Spring Hill for secondhand goodies!


As we drive around, Evan sits next to me with his phone, guiding me through every turn to head from thrift shop to thrift shop. I think we hit at least 12-15. Sometimes the shops are no longer there...sometime google gives you the wrong directions. Whatever happens, it ends up being a fun time!

We hit a few and picked up some great items. I was geeked about a few scores!

All items are available in my shop



This thing is ginormous! Someone was latch hooking for a decade! But it is a super cool wall hanging that looks like it was stripped of the walls of Bob Newhart's condo!






Okay this next one is a bit foggy, I was a bit lazy when I took this pic and kinda didn't feel like retaking it, but I think you get the drift. Again 70's latch hook glory, with a bit of macrame for extra retro-ness!




Meanwhile, I was feeling all 70's  and shit.  I was kinda apprehensive about this one, but there was a giant sticker on it that said "TESTED! WORKS!" So who am I to question the honesty of a thrift shop, right? I mean, they sell used underwear, sooo.....



It was so cool I couldn't resist. And its smokey retro plexiglass, so it doesn't weigh ten thousand lbs, Which is important when you gotta ship stuff.


And as Evan was guiding me around  through Crapsville Spring Hill, We were on the hunt for the next place TTOs (apparently that stood for This That and the Other)

I guess it was no longer around, this is what we came to:




Looks creepy as hell....but it gets better:



FREE STUFF!


Actually I took this picture after we took our FREE STUFF. We kinda wanted to take the FREE STUFF sign too. But that would be kind of asshole-ish.  The free stuff was awesome. And FREE.


Evan decided that he was going to start rating the shops we visited...I mean, he was just goofing with his phone between trips, so he said WTH, may as well rate them.

The next place that google took us to was some house inside a retirement community. (LORDY, this happened last time too, for crissakes!), so we left the neighborhood and Evan decided to rate it:



I about peed my pants! It comes up under my name of course because his phone is under my account. Can you read it? 

"This is an old mans house, we knocked on the door to see what he had, but he said he would call the cops if we didn't go away. WTH is that? That's not good customer service! Worst thrift store ever" 

(okay, I corrected his spelling errors)

AND no, we did not actually knock on the man's door. Although we were tempted....


Hmmm....so that's about it. We have a wonderful day trip, always a fantastic adventure, I came back with a full, trunk, that is always my goal.
  

If you like my blog, or like me, please follow me, Also give some love to me on Instagram and Pinterest. @Random Goods Vintage. 

If you don't like me or my blog, its cause you never met me:-) 

So don't forget to check out Phoenix Fire Designs and remember its important to shop small and independent businesses. They care about you more than Walmart ever will. 
And don't forget to check out my shops (in the side bar)

 So whats on your mind this week?


I love to read your comments. It makes me think that someone actually read my blog!







Saturday, July 4, 2015

Pick Away at This!

I have decided that I have so many friends that run small businesses that its time to share the love. As you already know, I am a big supporter of shopping small independent businesses. I am going to share an independent shop every week....unless I get lazy and...it ends up being every other week...But I am going to try to stay on track. The holiday shopping season (UGH!) creeps up before you know it. Just a blink of the eye and BAM...and its a holiday! So keep those holiday gifts in mind. If you want a taste of how quickly those holidays creep up, walk into a Target and look at the wall banner when you enter. They'll give you ample warning.


Also, I will not feature ANY business that has crappy people running it. Only cool kick ass people that actually care about good customer service and have awesome products. No jerks allowed!


With that being said...(drumroll....) My first indie biz feature.....




One of the special things is not only do they have unique handmade items...but they are at a perfect price point for a gift for a music lover, music teacher....etc, without spending your whole paycheck.






I like this one because you know that I am a retro lover!








This one is kinda bad ass! AND you can even get them personalized with your name, or a cuss word...whatever floats your boat.  Remember, it is always important to shop small and independent! Your friends and family would rather have some thoughtful one of a kind gift, than some cheap crap from Walmart!



So check out my pals at Twisted Picks at the link above. Owned and operated by a creative mom and daughter team. A true family biz! 




Continuing with  the theme of music, rock on with a few goodies from my shops:






Mid Century string art. Perfect unique item for a harpist....Actually, do you even know any harpists? I can't say I've ever met a harpist, but I think it would be the coolest instrument to play. Can't imagine lugging that thing around, good lord! Shop link in side bar.





Some vintage fun music books to help you get your retro jam groovin!



Hey Mr. Tambourine man....(those damn 60 jams!) These aren't even for grown ups. I think they are kiddie toys...But they jingle enough to give you a headache ......





These mid century high balls will fill enough wacky juice to make you kick out some psychedelic tunes...(yea...set of 3...always a set of 3....)




Well, thats about it for now, Support indie biz and share the love, peeps!

If you enjoy my blog, please give me a follow. Witty comments are also always appreciated. 

I am on Instagram and Pinterest. Give me a looky (and follow), @RandomGoodsVintage. I sneak stuff on there that you might not see in my shops or blog.  Cause I like to be sneaky. Plus coupon codes.... 


What jams are you currently listening too? Any good music recommendations? Share some thoughts!