Monday Thrifting...required the top down on the Convertible!

I decided to hit the St Vincent store in Monroe, as you never know what may be lurking in some dark corner...and today everything was half off if you were wearing blue...yes that is what the sign said... (except furniture which was 20% off). Did you know that St Vincent has punch cards? Once it is filled, you get a discount on next trip. They also give a $5.00 off a $20.00 purchase when you donate, so I keep donations in my trunk for such occasions.

 Afterwards I went down the street to the local Goodwill, for Monday $1.29 day where today's tag color was green. Picked up a few things there as well! This Goodwill also excepts the $3.00 Value Village coupon on a $10.00 purchase, and the St Vinny $5.00 coupon, off $20.00.

Most of the pile of stuff below came from St Vinny's, and you may see the round table it is all piled on... is missing it's top. When I looked at this I knew it was calling "re-purpose me!"  It was $5.00, and 20% off that.. so I don't feel bad about that, and sort of have a plan.

I left out some items in the picture, as they were already getting started on their makeovers, when I grabbed my phone to take a picture. I need to just go grab the camera!

 The beautiful large wood bowl on the bottom shelf has found a new job on my dining table...do you want to see it?  

What is great about this wood bowl, is that no work was necessary! It was lovely just as it is. And at half off, it was $2.50...can you say SWEET! 

I am also going to show some of the things I mentioned on the last post, from the weekend garage sales. The items below are combined (weekend and Monday) including the rust and wood table which I adore...can you say ASCP top for the table?!

 A box of bottle's for  $3.00, and below an old plant stand, which had been a yucky pink...$2.50..love it!

Magnetic letters $2.00, in an old tarnished dish $3.00

 A bunch of kids blocks $2.00...love the color in the old bowl I already had

 A bunch of cedar Acorns...cheap!

 Cool old zinc canning lids, $2.00 for all...love them!

And this is my fav!

I got the so very cool old bodice at the weekend garage sale for $10.00, and found the Holiday bells at a sample sale later that day..a bit early for Christmas, but I had to try it out!  

When my sis and I left the sample sale, we were almost to her house and a girl in a SUV smashed into my sis's car...and just as my sis reached for her cell phone the Kirkland Police was there, wow, how convenient for us!

OK, I just had to share that, but back to the subject at hand! I have a convertible, so it required the top be down, to get all this in the car on Monday. My husband picked up the bigger Saturday garage sale stuff in his HHR, as it was close to home. 

Since we have been experiencing record highs and sun for this time of year, its been nice to have the convertible top down anyway!

So my question is, any suggestions for the Duncan Phyfe type round table in the first picture, that is missing it's top? Or the box of bottles?

To see other fun vintage things.. go to Knick Of Time Tuesday!

It all started with this, a little cup...

Being a collector of old stuff, I have stuffed some of the small things in this old hutch that I picked up in the mid 70's.

Since we are in the Seattle area, I have accumulated a collection of Worlds Fair items, which are mainly on the top shelf.

Do you see the little white mug with pink on the bottom shelf, on the right? That was my first "find", and I was about 12 or 13. There was an old house that was abandoned in an area near the area we lived, where I found it in a root cellar under the house. 

It's a mustache cup, the bottom says Germany....It was crusted in dirt when I found it, and surprisingly no break or cracks.

So, that was the beginning...and it hasn't stopped!

I went to a great moving sale today...and will gather some pictures soon, to show the cool things I got there... I am so excited!!! Can you say rust, wood and old! The gal having it had all these future projects , and said they were just not going to happen.. truly my gain here.

So back to the beginning, do you remember your first treasure, the one that started it all?

An old work horse of a teacart...gets a facelift...

My folks were famous in their neighborhood for the garage sales they had over decades. 

They had at least 2 a year, maybe 3. In essence they were "mini" flea markets, as they were avid garage sale scavengers themselves, and would resell their finds.
They always had new stuff at each garage sale they had, and since my dad loved refinishing old furniture they had all sorts of furniture and trinkets.

This old tea cart was one of the workhorses of the many garage sales they had. It was used to display their items at all of their sales, and though it wasn't pretty, it did it's job as needed.

When my folks were no longer in need of it my mom gave it to me. She knew I would keep it, because I care for old stuff like she did.

Well, after about 10 years holding stuff in my garage, it came out of hiding.

 I wanted to keep the nostalgia of it, but refresh it's sad look. This before picture was taken after I removed the really ugly contact paper which my dad had put on the top shelf. It was so UGLY, poor thing.

So, after getting the stickiness of the contact paper off the top shelf, I got out my "Annie Sloan Old White" chalk paint, and went after it.  Two coats of paint, some clear wax, and some distressing to bring back the original feel of the tea cart, and here she is...

I still need to address the casters, not sure what I want to do with them.

 I think Mom would be quite happy with it, any opinions?

Going to the Birds...Yard Art...

OK, I am finding one of my re-create projects that also falls under re-purpose, is Yard Art.

 I love the birds, and have so many feeders, and birdbaths, etc.

I also have lots of crazy Birdhouses, which no bird has yet to call it's own..that will be addressed in a later blog.

I even have a little ETSY store, but the cost of shipping is so much, I may never sell anything, which is OK I guess.

A real easy project for those who scout the dishware section of thrift stores, is bird feeders, and birdbaths.

The little frog dish above was too cute to pass up. I had a champagne flute that had a straight stem...perfect to stick in a flower pot, and some ice glass. With some D6000 glue, and drying time, it made a very sweet small bird feeder dish. I really love  it!

 This one was fun because the green cut glass flower piece has a place for a candle (battery operated in my case) that lights up behind it at night. Again a pretty hand painted vase from a garage sale, a pretty Johnson Brothers Spring Chintz plate, and a old glass candy dish under the plate, & the glass flower candle holder...presto!

I use a dowel, for them to sit on, usually a 3/4" by 36 dowel. The dowels come in several sizes and are a few dollars at Lowes and Home Depot.

I really love this one, as the plate is from someplace far away (Turkey maybe?) and I got it on clearance at TJ MAXX, and matched it with a very cool crackly vase...love it, love it, love it!!!

This one says " I prefer buns of cinnamon to buns of steel" The little plump bird has swirls on it that kind of match the swirls on the plate. The birds love sharing lunch with this cute friend...

 

This was a beautiful plate from Ross's, on an old bottle/vase, add a cut crystal swan...love it too!

This is a large cut crystal plate, with a Mikasa cut crystal vase stand, and a blown glass swan plate...all pieces from the Village or Goodwill.

This is "Garden Girl" she is a funky wine glass that had the face painted on it (from Goodwill) , a cool old white vase (her curvy body) that sits on the dowel, and a couple cute plates, one as her collar, and the sunflower plate is her hat... I smile whenever I look at her....she feeds the birds from her sunflower hat.

This was a cool very heavy large urn type vase thing, I found at the Village (Value Village) for about $10.00 I think. The plate/dish  is a large & heavy one from Pier One. I got it for a dollar at a garage sale, but it still had a $40.00 sticker on it from the store... they are re-purposed as a birdbath.

So, can you see the possibilities? I am having a hard time staying focused with all these projects running through my brain! Oh, I love being a displaced worker!!

 

Have you run across one of these?

I noticed a garage sale sign last Sunday...near my house.

I found an old vintage washtub for $30.00, and couldn't hand the money to the older man  fast enough...I love it!

They were used to wash clothes with washboards. It is all metal, and says Thor.  The metal top lifts off, to access the double tubs, and It has spouts to release the water from each tub, when done with the water.

It would be great for ice and drinks in the summer, and I have not found any like it...  

For now it will be a table in my atrium...I love it!

To see other Vintage treasures, go to this link for Knick of Time Tuesday!

Recent garage sale was so much fun, and this is just one item

I wanted some wicker for our atrium, and have picked up some pieces along the way.
I found this white settee, and. ..well it had me seeing black!

So 5 cans of black satin spray paint later, I am pretty happy with my $20 wicker piece!