Finders Tweakers

It never fails. Every time I set off on a thrifting trip, I start the day with a skip in my step because I just know I'm going to find everything I'm looking for, and it will all cost, like, a dollar, and I will have so much fun sprucing my findings, and then everyone will lavish me with oohs and aahs because I am the most amazing thrift sore decorator that ever did live.

I don't know where I get these notions. I never find what I'm looking for, things almost always cost more than I think they should, and I am only a so-so thrift store decorator.

Nevertheless, on Saturday morning I set out, giant cafe latte in hand and that little skip in my step, to find whatever there was to find and a few specifics:

1- Two frames to begin my "hooked" project

2- Something large and sculptural for the top of my bookshelf

3- Louis chair for my god-awful bedroom (if I was lucky)

So it is not surprising that after six stores I dragged my tired self home with absofreakinlutely nothing. I know. It's sad. 

But it's OK! I persevered and sneaked in a trip to TJ Maxx on Sunday. I didn't find anything on my list, of course, but I did find some other goodies:

BUDDHA BOOKEND - $7

The plan: Maybe I'll saw him off of the base and gold leaf or paint him a bold blue. Or maybe I will find peace with Mr. Buddha Bookend and just leave him be.

What he could be:

LACQUER BOX - $9
The plan: As soon a I saw this I imagined a copy cat west elm jewelry box

 

What it could be (in a hundred years when I finally find some sort of metal greek key applique)...

NESTING TRAYS - $5 and $4!
The plan: I know... these are the most hideous things ever. I hate map motifs, but I LOVE lacquer trays, and these have a fabulous shape. I think whatever I do will involve some gold, black, and white paint because these babies are gonna live on my entry table.

What they could be (so many possibilities!)...

kolektorbali.tumblr.com
westelm.com
bp1.blogger.com
westelm.com
store03.prostores.com

Return of Venus

My jaw dropped when I saw the first page of the new Lonny issue. If you've been following Swoon, you'll know why... 

My waning inspiration to complete my copy-cat Venus in Yellow has been unearthed! I haven't figured out who this artist is yet, but I wonder if he/she was inspired by Hanseggar's Venus as well. The mood of these pieces is a little dark for me, but I do love them. I hope this knocks me off my lazy horse this weekend so I can get crackin on this project. We'll see.

Make it purrrr

To Do:

1) Find a chair. Any ol' chair.
2) Find a furry throw. Any ol' furry throw.
3) Throw that throw over that chair.
4) Pretend like it was all my idea.

Of course, it wasn't...

designspongeonline.com
theartofdoingstuff.com
joannagoddard.blogspot.com
decor8blog.com
thedecorista.tumblr.com

How to love (and lose) a louis chair

One of my many obsessions at the moment is with Louis chairs. What started this fixation? The moment I found a listing on craigslist for a PERFECT specimen to paint and reupholster for only $25!! Well, the interest started there, but the obsession didn’t hit until I lost it to someone else.

Yes, I called about it first thing in the morning, but instead of jumping out of my chair and into my truck at that very moment, I decided to wait until I got off work that afternoon.  I was so excited about it all day, imagining the color I would paint it… the fabric I would cover it in… how I would magically turn into a princess every time I sat in it. But my swoonings were soon squashed when I called the seller to tell her I was on my way and she said with a forced sweetness, “oh honey, someone just picked it up!”

So I went home, head hanging low, with an emptiness inside that only a fellow buy-something-for-nothing-and-turn-it-into-something-amazing-nut could understand.

Since then I have somehow made it through each day, but I have not forgotten. No, I am now in  full-blown cheap Louis chair search mode.  Come hell or high water I will find her, but until then, let’s dream together…

...Sigh...

Awe... this one looks just like my craigslist loss:

and so do these...

Ok, I'm gonna go eat some ice cream now. Sitting on my floor. Ugh.

Sources:
roost
justinetaylor
etsy
anthropologie
simplifiedbee
lavishbymattandjon

A glittery, girly tablescape for, like, no money

I had a gorgeous group of mommies over for Mother's Day dinner on Sunday, and I wanted to pretty things up a bit. This tablescape is obnoxiously girly, and I love it! I had no money to spare, so I had to get creative. This whole thing set us back about 12 bucks.

First I started with the runner. I found this fabric at Hobby Lobby for $4 a yard. And since I'd sooner die than sew something, I used some left over iron-on hemming tape from a pack of ikea curtains. It took me about 15 minutes to do this, but it woulda taken me a lot longer if I was working with fabric that doesn't have a repeating pattern to cut by. If I had to measure and pin the folds, I would have given up from the start. I'm impatient like that.

Next, I needed a centerpiece. Luckily, my super hot mom is also a super awesome florist. I picked up a few pretties she had left over from Mom's Day deliveries and came up with this using a tray and some bud vases from around the house:

And these placemats are nothing more than some glittery cardstock I had in my craft closet. There are a few drops of wine on them now, but it won't stop me from making something else out of them later!

And one lesson you learn from having a gay uncle is that a place setting is never complete without a gift. So Rosa Leigh and I got to making some cute necklaces for these Mommies. Who knew some cheap hemp and alphabet beads could be so chic?

The most fun part was making these pillow boxes out of that yummy cardstock. I'll post a tutorial on that soon. That cute ribbon is from Hobby Lobby too!

Now that I see it all in one post, I'm thinking it looks like this took me forever. Seriously, I did all this in a total of maybe 2 hours, and this is happy work I tell ya!