Fringe Benefits

The best part of giving new life to sad old castoffs is that I’m ALWAYS shopping for “that special find”.  Sometimes that “special find” never makes it on the market…I fall in love and it stays with me!  I thought I’d share of few of the treasures I just couldn’t part with…

I hit a thrift store at least two days a week, usually more.  I drive right past the Good Will on my way home from work and it takes me less than five minutes to cruise through the furniture section. And if I’ve got the time, there are three other thrift stores within ten minutes of the Good Will.  NO TWO VISITS ARE THE SAME!  I can come up empty one day, and bam, the next day I find something fantastic!  So persistence pays off!

I found this great lamp on a day when all the good pieces in the entire store had a sold sign on them.  I was so bummed out.  Then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw this dusty, dirty metal pole leaning on a box.  A closer look revealed it was one of those floor to ceiling lamp thingys.  The pole has tension on it like a shower rod, and it stands on the floor and goes to the ceiling.  Those dark tips on the shades are actually wood!  So I felt triumphant, for one day at least.

I usually take a quick walk through the house wares department just to see if any little vintage thing has been thrown in with the mismatched Tupperware, chipped up glasses, and skillets that have no Teflon left on them. These are a few of the things that I’ve found:

Vintage Pyrex is always an exciting find.  I don’t save it for special occasions, I use it everyday. I love serving pieces too.

 
I bought this single aluminum canister because these are the ones my mom had when I was a little kid.  Such a blast from the past.  I store dry goods in it and keep it in my pantry. 

 

 

 

 

This little carafe holds eight ounces.  I gave it to my daughter to steep her tea in.

 

And then there was my “lucky owl day”.  I think that someone must have been cleaning out their dear old grandma’s house, because why else would there be this many owls sitting on the same shelf on the same day?

 

 

 

 

 

I know they don’t look like much, but I painted them all white and now they look like these at West Elm!

And then there’s my set of tacky table/floor lamps.  They were pretty ugly, but I thought they had sleek, modern lines.  Nothing that a few cans of white spray paint can’t handle.  And the shades had been sitting in a closet for two years.  I’m planning on covering them with burlap. 

And now I have found myself collecting something that to some may seem disgusting, but I am in aw of the funky design and color of these mid century ashtrays.  They make a great dish on the dresser for hubby to empty his pockets into.  I have several groupings of them.  Throw some shells,  pinecones, or acorns in them, and you’ll forget all about their previous life.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So th

So there you have it.  One woman’s trash is another woman’s treasure!

Stripes

OK, I know I’ve done this same look before.  But my first drop leaf table, painted with multi-color stripes was received so well,  my thinking was “why reinvent the wheel?”. So I found myself with another small, drop leaf table, and also a corner desk.  Their lines were both screaming “stripes” to me.  So I gave in to my lack of creativity.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Red has also been a kick I’ve been on lately, so I spray painted the metal base and metal chairs of the table with a gloss red.  And while I was at it, I painted another metal chair from my stash glossy red to go with the desk. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And to top it off, why not cover all the seats with burlap?  One of my favorite default fabrics to reach for.

So here’s how the sets turned out…

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’m pleased with the final result, but I am going to try to move on… leave the stripes alone for a while. 

Oh, and while I’m at it, here’s what these guys looked like in their previous lives: (Crap…no before shots of the desk)