Yesterday’s thrifting yielded these three child-sized wooden dishes (Other finds – two prairie bonnets for the girls for 75 cents each, and an April Cornell baby dress for a friend’s little girl for $1.50! I also picked up a like-new Maya Wrap for $2, but it’s a size M and a bit short for my tall frame – if anyone in the Portland area would like it, send me an e-mail at angela dot baker dot knits at gmail dot com, and it’s yours!). The larger bowl and the plate were 25 cents each and the smaller bowl (with a teensy chip in the rim) was 12 cents!! I LOVE my local thrift store!!
These dishes were all handmade right here in Oregon out of myrtle wood with a wax finish. Little Hen remarked right away on the beautiful grain in the larger bowl.
On the topic of beautiful wooden things – two mamas who always are so inspiring with their pictures and thoughts that capture the beauty of childhood moments – Grace at Uncommon Grace, and Shelley at Waldorf Mama.  Grace posted a while back about her children polishing wooden objects with beeswax polish.  The reason this post stuck in my mind is because of the purpose behind it – Grace says, “And, best of all, polishing is such a relaxing activity for my children, especially in the ‘witching hour’ right before dinner.” We are always searching for purposeful things to occupy the children that often-frustrating time of day, and this activity seems like something my girls would enjoy doing very much!
Shelley has shared some pictures of her daughter Maya’s wooden child’s dishes by Heartwood Arts.     Her posts have inspired us to slowly transitioning from plastic play dishes to wooden ones (Little Hen especially oohs and ahhs over Maya’s lovingly handcrafted toys and playthings).  She has such a way of emphasizing the benefit of natural materials in children’s lives. It’s been fun to hunt the thrift stores for pieces to add to our growing collection. Now to find some little wooden spoons…
What natural treasures have you been discovering lately?
(Please visit my giveaway post – comments will close at 11pm Pacific this evening. Thanks!)
WOW! I never find anything that good at my local shops. Impressive…really!
Those are AMAZING finds!
Steph
I’ve been on the lookout for wooden bowls and favorite thrift stores, too 🙂 Might have to come your way if nothing surfaces in Seattle soon. We have a new rental house to settle in to! 🙂