DRESSER MAKEOVER

For a while, I had been on the look out for another dresser. I was wandering around one of my favorite thrift stores a few months back and came across an old waterfall dresser for only $15. These dressers were made cheaply back in the 20's - 40's but this one was still in pretty good shape. Unfortunately, someone had painted over its beautiful two toned wood color (that I discovered when stripping the paint off) and made it an ugly yellow color. I had never stripped furniture before so I was excited to get my hands dirty and make this dresser my own using some tutorials from Design Sponge and This Old House. Here's the before:

The handles are plastic but have a pretty shape though one is sadly missing. The paint on the frame was really stubborn to get off and took me a few applications of the Citristrip. Even then, there were some white putty patches under the yellow paint that would not come off. My original idea was to re-stain the frame and paint the drawers with some Montana Gold spray paint I had gotten a while back in the Pine color. When I couldn't get the giant white patches of putty off and seeing how easy all the paint came off the drawers, I changed my idea to then paint the frame and leave the drawers, maybe to refinish at a later point. I thought they looked kind of unique left raw.

The color of the paint is deeper than it appears in these pictures and I still need to do something about the missing handle. I don't get into that drawer too much so it's not that big of an issue at current. I had never done a project like this before but jumping in and seeing my finished dresser gives me confidence and excitement to do more things like this for our little place.

HELLO, WORLD!

I've been away so long! Honestly, I lost my camera battery charger...and was working on some artistic endevors. And let's just be real, sometimes life takes over and you forgot to take pictures of things and then put it off and then put it off some more. But I'm back with some new and some newer treasures! Lately I've really been working on editing at the store. Sometimes I get carried away at thrift stores. I think, oh, this is cheap and I kind of like it, maybe I'll find the right use for it. (Mostly I'm guilty of doing this with clothing that isn't exactly my size...call it a costume lovers weakness.) And sometimes I do. But what I really have been focusing on now is do I have to have it the minute I see it and then is it within the budget parameters. I want to get things that I think are beautiful and sometimes I can't always visualize right away how it will all come together. I also feel it's hard now with so many wonderful sites at the tips of our fingers and being able to peak into everyone's homes with a click of the mouse. I know I'm guilty on more than one occasion of home envy and thinking, how can I stylize my home a little more like that. Being inspired is great but I want to make sure I'm staying true to myself and not getting swept up in others visions or accumulating a bunch of half-hearted items. What I'm finding are those treasures that I instantly fall in love with even though I think they'll never work with all the other things in the house are the things that fit in best of all. Now that I've talked into a few different tangents, on to the pictures.

This isn't a thrifted item but I love it too much to leave it out of the post. My mother bought this light pink scale at an antique shop when I was little and after many years on their kitchen counter, it had been sitting in their basement for the past few years. I've been wanting a kitchen scale and had loved this one for as long as I can remember. (Side note - Please forgive my low light pictures. We live in an older apartment that has only a few ceiling lights. Also, I'm say now that all the items in this post are vintage, instead of prefacing it under each picture.)

Oil lamp  I wish this still had its little hurricane glass top (and almost even put it back because it didn't) but it's delightful all the same.

Solid wood chair  I spotted this chair 20 minutes before the store was closing and carried it around, vacillating whether or not to buy it since I wasn't sure where to put it or how comfortable it would be to sit in it for more than a few minutes. Luckily my sister was with me and pointed out that if I couldn't put the chair down, I should go with my gut and just get it. I even love the lumpy seat now that it's become my favorite reading chair. I have no idea how old this chair is but the wood intersections at the top look remind me of the Arts and Crafts homes I love so much. The below picture is how it looks with the lovely owl pillow I got on clearance at World Market.

 

Hammered watering can  This was also something I spotted and loved but wasn't sure how it would fit in with everything. I couldn't stop thinking about it and ended up going back for it a few hours later. I'm so glad I did! Once I got the price sticker off the bottom at home, I saw there is an engraved signature but it's hard for me to make out what it actually says. It reminds me of the Georgian Copper watering cans but the look is a little different than the other ones I've seen pictures of and it's gold.

Federal Glass Golden Glory (and one other pattern I haven't identified yet) assorted pieces  I have a real thing for milk glass and gold dishes. Now that I'm really seeing what a weakness I have for pretty dishware, I'm going to need to find a pretty way to display them without fearing my cats' curiosity. Also, the thrift store totally had these labeled as Fire King pieces.

Happy weekend and thrifting!

THRIFTED TREASURES

I finally got a new camera! Here are some of my finds from the past year...

 Vintage saucers  My sister is getting married this fall and for her bridal shower I want to do a Downton Abbey type theme so I've started collecting pretty teacups and saucers!

 Vintage Milkglass Cake Stand  I love pretty cake stands and had been on the hunt for this one for a while. Glad I didn't cave to buying it online and end up paying 4 or 5 times what I did! Sometimes it's hard to remember persistence and patience pay off...

 1970's Southwestern Carpet Purse  I had also been stalking purses like this on Etsy but couldn't bring myself to pay what sellers were asking when I had a feeling someday I might be able to find one in person. As my sister said, it takes a special person to love some thrifted things and that's kind of how I feel about this purse. I know some people probably find it a little bit ugly but to me it's gold.

 Vintage Wood Bird Hangings  I spotted these on a thrift trip this weekend but wasn't sure if I wanted to pay as much as they were marked ($2/ea). I admired how cute and Victorian they looked. And then I put them back. I came back to look at them again. And then I put them back. Today I could not stop thinking about them. So I rushed over and scooped them up as soon as I'd made up my mind, because you know, everyone thinks the same (probably tacky) little things are beautiful that I do and I'd regret it if I didn't go back for them right away. I first thought I'd paint the brown chipped wood black for a modern makeover but I'm digging them as is for now.

 1980's Secretary Dress  This was something that I had originally bought with thoughts of revamping. It sat untouched in my closet until last week when I started to pull things to get rid of and it almost didn't make the cut. However after trying it on again (and finding the perfect nude slip to go under it), I can definitely see wearing this to the office.

1960's Embroidered Wiggle Dress  I was a little bit in shock when I saw the price tag on this ($9) being it's a thrift store and this particular one never used to charge so much. Prices have certainly been on the rise in a couple of my favorite local stores but it's hard to complain when a) the money goes to charity, and b) that's still less than you'd pay in a retail store or on Etsy for second hand items. It's a little tight on me but it was so unlike anything I'd ever found before, and I still have those ideas of grandeur of getting my butt in shape, so I got it.

Looking back at these pictures, I wish I had taken them in the daylight to do better justice...maybe it's time to invest in some photo software. Happy thrifting all!

UKU-LAH LAH

I just received this beauty as a birthday gift from my sister and I am over the moon excited!!! I have been wanting one for a while now. I can't wait to buckle down this weekend and start learning chords. Thank you, Erin!

COLLECTIONS

I try not to collect too many things because I already feel like I have so much stuff. However, some beauties can not be resisted. Here are a few of my collections...

Vintage state and city mugs  I found the San Francisco mug at a goodwill a few years ago and, even though I'd never been there, I had to get it. The colors and graphics just spoke to me. The collection grew out of that. The Alaska mug because I love all things Alaska. The Chicago mug I bought to use when I played Catherine in "Proof" recently. I love personalizing the set.

Old cameras  This collection evolved out of my father's collection. I have more than are pictured here but the two flanking cameras were his and the center one my brother gave me for Christmas one year. You can see a couple of other vintage loves of mine here also--the old Ball jar and the printer's letter tray.

Vintage Pyrex  I'm not quite sure how this one started. I had admired old Pyrex for a while before I bought my first find, the blue Amish print up front, at a thrift store and then avidly started keeping an eye out after that. I don't have too many because I only buy prints I fall in love with and because the collectors market was already a bit saturated by the time I came into it so mark ups are high.

Cats!  I kid but I really do love cats...and cat related things. Those three pictured are mine. I'm pretty sure I've already claimed the crazy cat lady title at work as well. I am totally ok with this.

 In other words, Ohio has been blessed with some amazing snow this past week! Our back yard currently looks like this:

I'm thinking it may be time to try out the fireplace in this apartment! What kind of things do you love to collect?

STITCH FIX

So, per some great praise from another blog I read, I decided to try out Stitch Fix. It's a small company where you sign up, tell 'em what your style is and then for a $20 styling fee, they send you 5 items to try on in your own home. They give you styling tips for each item and include an already postaged bag for your returns. If you keep something, the $20 fee goes towards what you buy.

Now, I am not one to spend much on clothing at all. We're talking, usually $20 or under for me. And I know that's cheap but for a long time, I didn't really have any money left over for clothes after rent and bills and other living expenses. I still am not rich by any means but I've gotten to a point in my life where all those $3 shirts that I liked but didn't love but bought anyway because they were cheap just aren't cutting it anymore. I think I'd now rather spend a little more for one item that I love than buy more items that are just all right. I want to look in the mirror every morning and feel great about myself. Shouldn't we all feel great about the way we look when we walk out the door in the morning? And that's to in no way say I don't have some dirt cheap clothing items I absolutely love--I'd thrift every day if I could! I'm just ready to invest a little more in myself when I can justify it.

But anyway, on to my first fix. I'd read that you need to be specific, so I'd asked for some fall pieces like cardigans and work blouses and some type of motorcycle jacket (something I've been hunting for a while now!)

 

Please forgive the last terrible photo. One of these days, new camera!!! As nice as some of the pieces sent were, this shipment just wasn't for me. The jacket on the left was cool, but I would have rather it had a collar. The two on the right weren't my style at all and the white shirt I liked but didn't love. They also sent me some stud earrings but you can't see them in the picture. 

I ended up sending everything back. I was really hoping to love something since $20 is kind of a lot for me not to get anything. Since specificity is helpful, I made sure to leave extensive comments about each item on their website after I tried it all on. Even though I didn't get anything this round, I still think this is a really cool service. It was a lot fun to see what someone would pick out for me and I love the anticipation and excitement of knowing that package will be waiting at my door. I'll definitely try it again!

*Just to let you know, I did link my Stitch Fix referral page which would give me credit if you decide to sign up and order a fix!*

AUTUMNAL MUSINGS

If you're like me, Autumn could not get here sooner (as I sit here listening to Christmas music). We've just stepped into September and it's still pretty muggy and warm here...but I can see the leaves starting to fall from our windows and my fervor cannot contain itself. I even searched for pumpkins at the farmer's market yesterday to little avail. I am a pumpkin fiend. Ask my old college roommates. I always showed up in September with a pumpkin or two, not caring that I was the only one.

All of this excitement has me remembering back to last fall when us and some friends went on a little camping trip--my first real one! It was late in the season and verrryy cold but I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

top: my sister and I

middle: so cold, there was frost! and critters in the middle of the night!

bottom: our tent

Autumn around the corner also has me reaching for some of my favorite fall/fall-esque movies. I love Hocus Pocus, Sleepy Hollow, The Nightmare Before Christmas, You've Got Mail and watching the this old Disney halloween special. I've also been making this Pumpkin Coconut bread a lot. And I'm just itching fall fashion! I even tried to wear a giant chunky knit scarf to a friend's last night (actually pictured above!) and well, that came off real quick. So come on fall!