Magpie Ethel

Detective Magpie Back Again

Detective Magpie is on the case again and this one has her stumped.

I found this little brush at an estate sale and bought it for the color and the floral design. What is the little brush used for?  The bristles are coarse and wiry, not soft to the touch at all. It measures about 2 inches.

Blogland, can you help Detective Magpie solve this case?

(p.s. Do not be led astray by the dusting of red glitter in the photo..Detective Magpie is often covered in it and leaves trails of it here and there.)

 

Detective Magpie On The Case Again

I was sorting thru an old jewelry box full of jewelry and came across an item that I have no idea what it is.  I was hoping some blog readers could help me solve this case.

The item is about three inches long and at first I thought it was some sort of pencil. On one end it has a ring so you could hang it on a chain.

When you pull it open it slides out to reveal this.

It has Detective Magpie stumped.  Blogland ..can you offer me help?

Detective Magpie On The Case

I had a email the other day from a blog reader named Pegi. She attached a photo of an item with this description and asked if I knew what the purpose of the bird was.

"They were part of my husband's baby things so they are from 1944. They are hard plastic and the beak opens and closes and acts like a grabber.  The tail section also moves but I can't figure out it's function.  Under the beak it says "do not boil"

I was stumped.  I KNOW that someone in blogland has the answer for Pegi and that Detective Magpie can close the case and give Pegi the answer. 

Thanks for your input..

Thanks for the birthday wishes yesterday - I had a wonderful day!

Vintage Clues

Detective Magpie Ethel here again with a few vintage clues about the significance of today.  Here are your clues.
Two vintage spun head figures ready for a celebration.

A vintage metal cake plate top.

A special birthday record.  The flip side of the 45 plays "Open Your Gifts".

Old paper plates for a birthday celebration with a darling bird theme.

An assortment of plastic cake decorations.

A party book on how to throw themed parties...this is the page for birthday party ideas. (book was a give away from Staley's Syrups and Cream Corn Starch...can't find a publish date) A vintage birthday candle box from my collection.  You may remember this post from last year with my birthday candle collection.

Some vintage birthday wrapping paper in very cheerful colors.

A couple of old metal pins to wear on the big day...altho I passed the age of seven quite awhile ago.

A spool of old "Happy Birthday" printed ribbon for that special gift. 

A old flashcard. 

A old party loot bag to bring home those goodies from a birthday party.
I am sure your detective skills have been put to the test.  And yes, it is my birthday today!  Happy Birthday to me!  If you really had your detective cap on you would have noticed that one of the photos also contains my age...and it isn't 7.  Thanks for playing along on my birthday.

Call Me Detective Magpie

About a month ago I bought what I believed to be a flower frog at an estate sale along with my other goodies.  It was super tiny, so could only hold teeny tiny stems, but my best guess was a flower frog.  I asked me blog pals if they had any other ideas...but no one did.

The Mystery Object

I put it on a shelf and didn't think much more about it.  However today the mystery was solved.  Let me get into detective mode.

Today I had breakfast with my friend Pam from One Gal's Trash.  She was very excited as she presented me with a little bag with this inside.

A great old box.

Mystery solved.  These ARE flower frogs and the box contained a set of two.  The tiniest I have ever seen.  So thank you Pam for letting me play detective and solving the mystery.

 I love the things I find at estate sales!