I almost threw it back......

Now, I have found some cool things at the thrift stores!! And, there are a few things that I'm always on the look-out for. Vintage Pyrex, quilts (certainly after my amazing find that I blogged about earlier!), LL Bean boots, Frye boots, designer purses, and anthropologie brands. These things I love! (Insert song here: "These are a few of my favorite things". I know you're singing it!). I also look for Pendleton. That could be sweaters, pants, jackets, and of course, and most specifically, BLANKETS!

I had first acquired an appreciation for Pendleton when my Grandma talked about how nice their suits were and that she'd rather have a few nice, quality items than to have a bunch of so-so pieces in her closet. She even wore a beautiful royal blue Pendleton suit to my wedding!

About a year ago, I found my first Pendleton throw blanket at the local Goodwill Retail store! It is an olive green and brown plaid throw with fringe on the edges. I think I gave $12.99 for it. A pretty good bargain for a wool Pendleton blanket! It's in a cute little basket near my TV and we use it sometimes to wrap up while watching a good movie.

However, finding Pendleton at the thrift store, generally, is not a very frequent occurrence for me. Then, once day a week or so ago, a guy next to me was tossing a pair of pants back into the bins at the Goodwill Outlet. What? "You're throwing those back?" I asked. He says, "Yeah, they're not my size. Neither is this plaid shirt." (also a Pendleton)! He tossed them to me and I try to act cool and say "Thanks, man!" (but inside I was dancing a jig!).

Then, at my regular, weekly thrifting trip this last Tuesday, as they brought out the next rotation of cloth bins, I saw a cute sweater on top and when they let us get into the merchandise, I grabbed the sweater and uncovered the corner of something that looked like a nice fabric. When I pushed back the other fabric items, I saw that it was a brightly colored wool blanket - and then, I saw it! The coveted blue label!! 

But I hadn't ever seen this pattern before, so I wondered if it was even real. 

My husband has been a bit of a collector of the Hudson Bay series blankets, and has read quite a bit about the blankets, their origins and purpose, and the mills that made them in the US. So I sent him a picture of it and asked him what he thought. He said, he didn't know either, so I wasn't sure whether or not I really wanted to buy it. It weighed almost 5 pounds and didn't know if I wanted to spend that much on this blanket. As I paired down my haul for the day, to keep my weight within my budget for the day, I considered throwing it back into the bins, but thought I'd go ahead and take a chance. I mean either way, it was definitely a nice wool blanket and I could probably get at least my cost back. So, I paid the $5.50 for the blanket (4.65 lbs at $1.19/lb) and thought I'd research it more when I got home and had better internet service.

So, to make a long story longer, I ended up finding out that the blanket WAS a Pendleton and that it was a Limited Edition special blanket called the DAY OF THE DEAD blanket in the Pendleton website blog. It originally sold for nearly $400.00!!! And to think, I almost threw it back!! It was totally legit and definitely worth some money!!
You can read about it here: https://blog.pendleton-usa.com/tag/day-of-the-dead/

I was just SO excited!! I put it up on my Instagram and Facebook page right away! Even before I had it on my eBay! This was another BIG SCORE!! And it was only listed for less than 2 days!! It sold right away, because it was such a great find and the only one listed on eBay since it was such a Limited Edition! I boxed it up and sent it Priority Mail to a new home in South Texas where it will have a new loving family! 

You can see my Instagram post about it in here:
A Rural Squirrel on Instagram

Or to follow me on Facebook and see my post about it here:
https://www.facebook.com/RuralSquirrel/

And visit my eBay store to see what other bargains I have available there too:
https://www.ebay.com/sh/mystore

Or read Pendleton's blog about The Day of the Dead blanket here:
https://blog.pendleton-usa.com/tag/day-of-the-dead/

And speaking of Pendleton, check out this great classic black skirt I found at the Goodwill Retail store. Got lucky! That day, all white tags were $.99!!

This classic will be in  my eBay store this fall!
https://www.ebay.com/sh/mystore