Resale Shops, My New BFFs!

A few weeks ago I posted about a group of ladies with whom I went to high school and the get-together we had on January 25th.  For that gathering I asked that everyone bring a dozen cookies.  As I was preparing for that afternoon, I thought about how I could make the set-up special.  Early that week I decided to look at resale shops for serving platters.  I live in the Museum District of Houston and there are several shops within a few mile radius.  The shops I explored included The Blue Bird Circle Resale Shop on West Alabama, The Guild Shop on Dunlavy, Charity Guild of Catholic Women Resale Shop on Lovett and The Goodwill Shop on Westheimer.  There are more but I ran out of time.  I must say I had the best time looking through everything!  It's probably best if you have a game plan to stay focused.  I decided I would look for crystal serving platters. The picture above is the island in our kitchen fixed up for the gathering.  I found a candle holder and several platters.  Each piece was $7.50 or less.  The antique tablecloth was my grandmother's but I remember using it in the early 80s when I lived in St. Louis so I've had it many years. My husband kindly ironed it (what a guy!). When you're planning a party at your home or another venue, it's really cool to personalize it with items you already own or ones you can purchase inexpensively.