Thrift Store Finds

One of the things I've run into this year -- and some of you have probably also experienced -- is that after all these years some of my kitchen bowls and dishes are either biting the dust or ready to be retired.  One of the upsides to cooking at home is that you use things….the downside is that nothing lasts forever.  In this case, some of my bowls that were older than my children have just outlived their safe usefulness.  After clearing out a lot of things that I didn't use and then clearing out all the items that had reached their "expiration" date, I found myself with very minimal pieces.  Fewer than I was comfortable with.

My last trip to the thrift store didn't yield anything, but today I had to drop off some items from my continued downsizing. Seems odd to talk about downsizing and buying at the same time -- but it all ties back to my theme of purposeful for this year.  The downsized pieces did not serve a purpose for us, and I know someone else can use them.  My finds for today will serve me for years with a little care just like the pieces I had to retire.

For $17 -- less than half of just the cost of the casserole dish new -- I found just enough pieces to replace a small portion of what I cleared out.  I knew I didn't want as many pieces and definitely wanted multi use options from whatever I found.

A Rachel Ray 4.5 quart casserole dish, which was the most expensive piece at $4.99.  I'll use this for casseroles for family dinners and as a serving tray for finger foods.  It also heavy enough to make a great tea and biscuits try.  In my local stores these are ranging anywhere from $40 to $60.  Not a bad savings at all.

A pasta bowl from Italy.  I'll use this for serving almost anything.  They're beautiful not only heaped with pasta, but with a pretty salad or any veggies and fruit.

3 nesting Corelle bowls in a print I love.  These don't even appear to have been used. I'm guessing someone just stuck them in their cabinets.  (I scrubbed the sticker residue off of them kind of thing.)  They're oven and microwave safe so they'll do triple duty.  I can use them for mixing, for baking, and for serving. These are a 1, 2, and 3 quart sized.  (This pattern is discontinued, but online it varies in price.  Amazon has a set listed for $60.)  I may see if I can find more of this set because I really like the pattern.

A Few Household Items to Start Out the Year

Back in November whilst we were traveling my husband and I decided that our joint theme for 2019 would be purposeful living.  For me this means a lot of things, but one key thing I’ve decided to do is not fill my life with things that do not have a purpose.  (I’m not treating purpose and practical as synonyms, but purpose as in meaning for me.) With that in mind I have been purging some things and on the flip side also keeping a running list of some things I feel will enhance our lives.

On my list — now that I am cooking for two almost exclusively — was some smaller baking dishes.  I found these cute mini pie plates at Walmart and some cloth napkins in prints that make me happy.  (I used a gift card to pay for these.)  They’re from the Pioneer Woman line.

There was also a small set of two pots / casserole dishes that I liked.  They were perfectly sized for fitting in my new air fryer oven, but I balked at paying $20 for them.  I decided to keep using my cake pans even though in the back of my head I’ve been worried about messing up my favorites.

When my daughter and I were out at Goodwill looking for something totally unrelated, I decided to look through the kitchenware.  I found two Wilton egg shaped pans.  They’re the perfect size for my air fryer oven and the perfect size for a casserole or dish for two people.  Not only do I not have to worry about my cake pans, but I paid $1.69 a piece for these.  A frugal win!   

(I realize they aren’t floral and all pretty, but in this case I was willing to trade the pretty for the practical.)

Kitchen Bits and Chatter

One of the things I try to do with the kitchen is buy items of a decent quality with longevity in mind.  While I don’t aim for extravagant, I do like that I have items that have been in use for a long time.  I always feel like a moderate price with a longer life is a more frugal option.  I know funds don’t always allow for it, but when they do I try to stick to that motto.  When I have purchased items of lower quality, I have often found I spend more buying multiples of them than if I had picked up a better quality item the first time.  In the cases where I have bought the least expensive I try to replace them with better as they die.  

 Recently I’ve had three items go kaput.  Well two and one vanished, but it seems to have come in a wave.  I use a lot of non stick pots and pans.  (Meals that are too greasy do not settle well on my daughter’s stomach so I try to balance things.  I kind of consider it the equivalent of choosing our poison.)  Anyway, in a month I have lost a set of measuring spoons....as in they are nowhere to be found in this house.  We’re wondering if our kitten has dragged them off and hidden them.  My flat whisk that was safe for nonstick has begun to come apart.  Then finally two days ago my tongs fell apart.  

I decided it was finally time to justify a trip to Walmart to replace these well used items.  Despite that I was determined to not make a special trip.  However, I found myself going passed the Walmart in the next town over so I stopped in to see if they had what I needed.   As usual, I went with my policy of middle of the line.  

These measuring spoons are identical to the ones I’ve lost.  

I loved them because they include a 2 tablespoon measure.

The tongs are something I use all the time.

(Mine died when I was removing waffles from the iron...sigh)

These whisks are smaller than my previous whisk, but I make a lot of slurries and gravies from scratch so I know they will be well used.

My cost for these was $18.46.

I feel like it was a lot, but I have excellent success with the Farberware brand not only working well, but being long lasting.

I had had my last tongs so long I can’t remember when I bought them.

The whisk was almost 16 years old.

The measuring spoons only a couple of years — but they didn’t fail me....sigh.

Even when I count up the years, the price isn’t bad.

If I could come up with the cost per use, which will never happen, I think I’d find these to be well worth it.