I am back to my old ways again. There were tons of yard sales last weekend. I brought the kids with me to a few of them. Maeve found a Barbie motor home that she couldn't live without and Finn bought a bin filled with Legos. I told him that he was VERY lucky that he was with me. Because his beautiful blue eyes never would have seen that bin if he hadn't come yard-saling with me that day. Straight to eBay!
I paid $55 for everything in this photo. I know - it seems high, doesn't it? It looks like the days of paying a buck for everything are waning.
The three vintage 1950's linens were the most expensive ($25 for all three). But they are hard to find in such nice condition. I also found a box of knitting needles and some old circular knitting pins.
This wire letter tray was a quarter! It will look nice on my desk.
I bought the Mohawk Minnow Pail because of the green graphics (which are tough to see in this photo). I think it would look great as a decoration in a man cave. And how about that wooden Underwood Typewriter box? I have a few Underwoods lurking in my garage. I will probably bring this box to the shop and plop one of the typewriters on top.
The other side of the box has the original railway paper label:
I visited the Cottonwood House Spring Extravaganza last weekend. The organizer, Verna, has the most beautiful property on the edge of Chester County, PA. She has a great selection of antiques, and also brings in other vendors to sell their vintage finds. I get sick and tired (and jealous) of reading about all of the fabulous vintage sales in the Pacific Northwest and California - so I am glad that we have the Cottonwood sale in my neck of the woods.
Anyway, that's where I scored my Find of the Week: a big black enamel Keuken pail.
What the hell does keuken mean? I had no idea when I bought it. It could have meant "crap" in German for all I knew. Luckily, after some Googling, I learned that it was not, in fact, a crap bucket. Keuken is "kitchen" in Dutch. It is also used in a funny phrase, as defined in the Urban Dictionary.
And now, for the finale: The Intimate Side of a Woman's Life, published in 1940. I gave you a glimpse of it on my Facebook page. With sections titled "Constipation", "The Arm Pits", "Moulding the Breasts" and "Woman's Problems", I would say that this book is well worth the one dollar that I paid.
There is so much talk of douching in this book: techniques, equipment, diagrams
of proper insertion, the recommendation that douching during pregnancy is perfectly safe because "marital relations are carried on during pregancy so what difference can there be". This is my favorite list of
"Don'ts":
It's like:
Douche. Douche. Douche. Don't lift heavy weights. Douche. Douche. Douche.
In this list of "things to remember", we find a stunning revelation: most divorces are caused by smelly crotches.
Hey, you French ladies with saggy boobs: ALL FRENCHMEN THINK YOU ARE UGLY:
I will leave you with this page in the chapter titled "Leucorrhea". I had never heard that term before, and neither did any of my neighbors (as we were drinking wine and reading from the book aloud on my deck). I don't even want to mention what Leucorrhea is, for fear of getting unwanted Google traffic from people searching for "vaginal discharge".
Oh, well. I guess you know what it is now.
I tried to choose a short excerpt from this page, but I just couldn't. The madness just kept going and going, so I took a picture of the entire page.
Read it at your leisure, preferably with some Chardonnay and a few friends. And for God's sake, keep your vagina clean and your feet dry!
for the love of god ...
Posted by: Jenny | June 11, 2010 at 05:22 PM
Woo Hoo! Or should I say Hoo Haw! I bought a big old book all about Syphllis the other day. It is absolutely hilarious/stomach turning. Not to be read during mealtime, I assure you!
Posted by: Shara @ monkeybox | June 11, 2010 at 05:29 PM
Wow! Even girls from one of "Pennsylvania's finest boarding schools" have stinky lady bits?!? Now that's something!
xo
Pam
P.S. I recently found a 1940 book entitled "How to Attain and Practice THE IDEAL SEX LIFE". Sadly, there are no illustrations.
Will be posting about it soon.
Posted by: Pam Fromuth | June 11, 2010 at 05:39 PM
I absolutely ADORE you!!!
Posted by: Catherine | June 11, 2010 at 06:13 PM
Well, my dad has always said, you learn something new every day if you're not careful...and this posting takes the cake! I now have another item to look for when I go to the flea markets...old books on sex. Who knew?
You are a hoot!
Posted by: sue | June 11, 2010 at 09:26 PM
oh my heavens, i'd say you definitely got your dollar's worth!
Posted by: LoriR | June 11, 2010 at 09:42 PM
I must admit that reading your posts are better than watching cable TV. I'm going to direct my friends to your site even if they're not interested in antiques just for the pure entertainment factor.
Posted by: jennifer gidaro | June 11, 2010 at 11:16 PM
Hey Colleen....!!
GREAT finds as ALWAYS & I LOVE the book....Makes ME so HAPPY to be a woman of today as opposed to yesteryear....!!
Hope you have a GREAT weekend....!
Cheers,
Tamarah :o)
Posted by: Shabby Vintage Junk | June 11, 2010 at 11:50 PM
And as I always say, what's not to love about the dutch?
Posted by: pam | June 12, 2010 at 02:07 AM
perfect blog post read this crappy SATURDAY morning in the office.
Posted by: Hailey Mann | June 12, 2010 at 08:25 AM
Lol, that is one entertaining book!
Posted by: Lynda | June 12, 2010 at 12:18 PM
That book is awesome!
Posted by: lisa | June 12, 2010 at 10:13 PM
Oh my gosh that book is hilarious. Believe me I'll take your advice.
Posted by: sandy | June 12, 2010 at 10:24 PM
I wonder who was interviewing boarding school girls about their secretions! Great finds and I agree the $1 bargains are quickly becoming a thing of the past.
Posted by: bonnie | June 13, 2010 at 08:11 AM
Sometimes paying higher-than-garage-sale prices for items is worth it. It helps avoid those bruises you get from kicking yourself.
I hope that book also gave advice for what to do about laughter-induced peeing your pants!
Happy hunting,
Teresa <)))~~
Posted by: Teresa | June 13, 2010 at 01:46 PM
Oh my gosh...way too hilarious!!!
Posted by: Tracy J | June 13, 2010 at 04:32 PM
Thanks, I was eating . . .
Posted by: Beth Marie | June 13, 2010 at 08:16 PM
Great finds! Great blog. xx
Posted by: Vintage Venus | June 14, 2010 at 05:26 AM
I love these vintage finds, the first picture is such a stimulating treasure. I love the black bucket and the vintage book. I love flipping through these kinds of books every chance I get, too funny. Right now I'm working a book from the 40s that describes all modern art as "sadistic" and a "reflection of insanity" about 100,000 times. Too fun.
Posted by: Van | June 14, 2010 at 12:09 PM
One of your finest posts yet! :)
Posted by: Mindy | June 16, 2010 at 02:43 AM
I just found your blog & love it, always in need of a good laugh--so funny! Thanks.
Posted by: Shara | June 16, 2010 at 01:32 PM
i think we need a group where we can post bits from the sex/physical/instructional/medical/marital vintage books so we can have a good laugh when we need it and think "oh thank goodness, things ARE different Now"!
i think douching was over emphasized as most women wore sanitary napkins, did NOT bathe every day and douching was Suppose to Prevent Pregnancy....
Posted by: deb | June 18, 2010 at 12:42 AM
and i am Totally opposed to 'Stimulation Without Gratification'
but am wondering if living in Pennsylvania leads to an over abundance of Leucorrhea?
Posted by: deb | June 18, 2010 at 12:47 AM
O.M.G... Oh man... that is Priceless...Thank you for an awesome way to start a Friday full of laughter :)
Posted by: Ellie | June 18, 2010 at 07:51 AM
one of the best blog reads of the month. from any blog. super great. thanks!
Posted by: leah | June 18, 2010 at 01:50 PM
Too funny...only you would find these books! Wonder if that author lived long enough to learn that "that discharge" is actually part of ovulation - the way sperm can live to get to destination...my gawd, without it this author would never have been born!! Still great reading while drinking with friends. ;)
Posted by: tammyCA | June 19, 2010 at 12:55 PM
Leona Chalmers was a genius! If only I had dried my feet maybe I wouldn't have been divorced these past 15 years.
Does she have any advice for those of us who get hot flashes - different soap perhaps?
Posted by: Mary | June 29, 2010 at 11:34 AM
Awesome. And educational. I wish I could find that old magazine I bought solely for the ad recommending douching with ... LYSOL. Ah, the good old days.
Posted by: Into Vintage | July 02, 2010 at 09:40 PM
Amazing finds! I want to go to garage sales with you!
Posted by: Shalet | July 06, 2010 at 03:17 PM
I feel so robbed for not having seen this on facebook. Oh well...this was worth the wait. Too. Friggin. Funny. Now that I know that my leucorrhea is from too much over-sexual excitement without gratification, I think I know what to do. :) Oh, and how do we think that investigation of the lovely girls in the boarding school went down?
Posted by: Christine in Dc | July 20, 2010 at 10:42 PM
OMG this book is hilarious - I too am and totally opposed to 'Stimulation Without Gratification'! And wtf about 'not dilating the vagina with mechanical devices' - I guess we took the batteries out of our dildos back then...lol...
Posted by: Cindy Lyles | August 12, 2010 at 11:53 PM
looks like one of those cotton tablecloths on the left, I love those things, and wish to God I had loved them as much a few years back when they could be found everywhere for a song. Now they are cheap if you can find them for $25. I got lucky a month or so ago when I came across a few at a thrift for $3 each.
Posted by: jmp | August 15, 2010 at 05:23 PM
May I vent for a moment? Yes? Thank you.
I went to an estate sale today put on by a company who is notorious for their jacked-up prices. They had a number of these tablecloths, and they were beautiful.
They wanted $20 apiece for them.
$20!!! Apiece!!!
I was so annoyed. I left without buying anything, which is unheard of for me.
Thanks for letting me vent!
Posted by: Shockalulu | December 11, 2010 at 02:41 AM
That Keuken pail is worth quite a bit! I have an old enameled one that says "vegetables" in Dutch that I brought back from Holland (my husband is Dutch). Sounds like you got a great deal!
Posted by: s | June 20, 2012 at 12:28 AM