I’m Thrifty
I’m usually kind of a name brand junkie. Not proud of it, but I can admit it. I do give in to cute vintage finds, but I rarely find clothing at a thrift store. But, I was feeling creative last night when I stopped at the Salvation Army for the little glasses. I was just creative enough to see the potential in a long, red, vintage jacket. I snatched it up for three dollars and ended up loving it! So, here you go, I just had to share!
Go ahead, be honest. But, I think its cute!
Organized Jewelry
Last night I decided that I had had enough digging around for jewelry in the mornings. Or, even worse, just not wearing my fun jewelry because it was too hard to find. So, I organized the vintage medicine cabinet we have hung above our dresser in the bedroom. I took a few old little shot glasses and dishes and a short candle holder and arranged some of my favorite costume jewelry. Now everything is visible and arranged neatly. And, the inside of the cabinet looks so pretty!
Here is the outside of the medicine cabinet. I know you have seen this before, but this is a good angle of the chandelier crystal I used as a pull.
This is the inside of the cabinet all neatly organized and pretty.
Close up of the jars. I love that little one with the skull on it.
FYI: I found these little jars and glasses at the local Salvation Army for about 25cents.
Chair Love
I love chairs. Tony says that I have a strange chair obsession. Its true. I would collect chairs if space would provide. I have even thought about hanging them on walls like art in order to accomodate my passion. But, for now I will post about the chairs I am drooling over. This is my latest love (since I finally aquired my Plycraft lounge and ottoman;)
Here is a vintage Barcelona chair and ottoman:
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.pdxinteriors.com/profile/hawthorne/leather-chair-with-ottoman.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.pdxinteriors.com/profile/vintage-hawthorne.php&h=263&w=350&sz=27&tbnid=EKUbLTi-5iDUFM::&tbnh=90&tbnw=120&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dvintage%2Bbarcelona%2Bchair%2Bpicture&hl=en&usg=__2thZF7Qzm1c2X5FleLbCACv3w6U=&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=1&ct=image&cd=1
All Things Can Become New Again
I have talked about this before, but just can’t get enough. Old things becoming new again. I love this idea. I especially love repurposing items when the new purpose is something completely different than its previous use. This has actually become pretty popular lately, so there is a lot of inspiration out there. I thought I would compile some of my favorite repurpose finds. I might even have to start a new project soon!
These ideas are all great. The first picture is water skis made into a chair. I have also seen old surf boards used as shelves. The second is a shopping cart made into a chair. These would be totally cute on a deck or around a camp fire. The next photo is a library card catalog with added legs used as a coffee table. Then there is the side board dresser turned into a bathroom sink vanity. I love this idea. More storage and totally unique. The last is a side table made from suitcases. Great because storage is built right in!
Try thinking of new uses for old objects. Not only will your home be more unique and express your personality and taste, but it is greener for our world to recycle old items. Its a win win!
New Little Project
I love finding odds and ends to fix up, remodel, or work on that I can then add to our home. These little projetcs are fun for me and keep me busy. This new task is a stool from my grandmother. Its not new, not antique, not anything special really. I almost truned it down. But, she said that it opened up. That caught my interest. Then, she suggested that maybe I could keep some interesting photos in it. BINGO! I snatched it up in a hurry. I love a bit of unexpected, and her idea of putting snapshots in the stool was perfect. I plan to recover the top with some funky material. I’m not sure if I will paint it yet. Then I will add some old, random photos to the inside for company to explore. Cute! Any suggestions on print or paint? Let me know what you think!
So much potential...
Vintage photos tucked away in here would be perfect!
My Favorite Place In The World
Nope, not Hawaii. That ranks very high on my list, but not my top. My favorite place in the world is my grandparents’ house. That’s it. Simple. Ever since I was little they have had the coziest house (even after moving). Not only are they interesting people and amazing story tellers, but they have such a great home that brings back memories of staying there as a kid. They have always been antique collectors, and this is probably why I have an antique obsession. Their basement is packed with antiques, and trinkets, odds and ends, and so many goodies to look at. Now that I am older and have a house of my own, they have been slowly passing along some of my favorite gems to me. We went to their house for Christmas this year, and I ended up coming home with a truck load of goodies. I hope to someday inherit some more of their great furniture, but I also love the littles they send home with me. Here are a few of my favorite finds from my recent trip to my favorite place in the world:
A close up of the doors and some things stashed inside already.
This is an old pin cushion made from a hoof that we used to play with as kids. I know, kinda creepy, but I think it is totally cool!
This is an old lamp that needs some cleaning. It hangs from the ceiling and you put oil in it. The oil drips down the clear threads that run from the top to the bottom. The oil then glows colors when the light bulb is on. I think it looks kind of like early fiber optics. Its very neat, but has been stored and needs TLC. A project! YAY!
This is a Christmas tree made out of my grandma's antique jewelry. What a cool idea! It is framed in a very old frame and there are Christmas lights behind the black velvet. It is really so cute that I might have to leave it our all year!
Trends? Psh.
It is the end of the year and every one starts rounding up the “best ofs” lists. I have been seeing a lot of lists of trend that people would either like to see more of or never see again. The lists made me ponder. I came to the conclusion that I do not care what is considered “trendy” or “in style”. I like what I like and could care less what others think. Actually, I think that I prefer things that were never in style (both clothing and home decor), because then it can never be considered out of style. Also, if I like something, it is because it speaks to me. It shouldn’t matter what list it is on. I change my mind all the time, but not based upon what other people believe is “cool”. I, personally, never fit into one category anyways, because I mix pieces from all different styles. There should be no rules when it comes to your own tastes and your own home. If you truly love it, go for it.
Whew. With that said, I will step off of my soap box and show you all a visual list of the things that I have loved this year. Not because they are trends or not, but because that was what was speaking to me this year. I hope some one can find this inspirational, but in no way am I saying go out there and copy every picture. (Would that make it a “trend”?) Here goes:
1. The first thing that I have loved this year is collections. They can be utilitarian or completely useless. To me, collections can be like art. Some people think that if objects don’t function, they just sit there taking up space, but I think they can be beautiful. Here is a group of cameras and a small group of stereos.
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/la/look/look-framed-vintage-camera-collection-on-the-cheap-072111
Angela and Adam's Mood Change. http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/chicago/fall-colors-2008-midwest/midwest-25-angela-and-adams-mood-change-066295
Graham and David's Modern Escape. http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/la/2008-fall-colors-southwest/southwest-26-graham-davids-modern-escape-066631
3. This is a little strange for me, but this year I have love all clear, or acrylic, furniture. There are so many great pictures, but here is a gllimpse of one that I am wanting:
This one even contrasts well with the cabin decor. http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/la/look/look-modern-cabin-071787
4. No matter what anyone says, I love love love both empty frames and leaning frames. I lean frames as opposed to hanging them all the time. Against a wall, on a desk, on the floor… Just a couple examples:
Damien and Rachel's Chromatic Casa. http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/dc/fall-colors-2008-east/east-56-damien-rachels-chromatic-casa-066516?image_id=28726
6. I am loving repurposed decor and furniture. I have always been a fan of old, vintage, or antique items, but it more recently has occured to me how great it can be to repurpose some items into new things in the home. Some of my favrite ideas below:
Mail box used for laundry. Patrick's World of Wonder. http://gallery.apartmenttherapy.com/photo/121808patrick/001h
This is a vintage sign remade into a sliding door. I'm sorry, but I do not find where the image came from!
7. I am also a fan of decorating in black and white. Don’t get me wrong, I love punches of color, but black and white can make a huge statment and go with so many additional colors. Some great black and white pictures:
I'm not sure where this picture came from, but it is gorgeous!
Our Office/Den
One of the extra bedrooms in the house has been turned into a den. We added a projector and a futon from my appartment. Its cozy, but still a work in progress. We do like going in there to watch movies, but it needs some work. We plan on mounting shelving along the walls right under the ceiling. We have a sort of music/art theme going, so we would like to set some of our memorabilia on the shelves as a border around the room.
The closet in the den has become a mini office. We are both still in school and it comes in handy to have a place to sit at the computer. Tony built a wall mounted desk and we painted it black.
From the doorway looking into the den. You can see the futon and the projection shelf. I have a plan for some art to hang along the empty wall.
This is the wall that the futon faces. The bookshelf holds all of our school books. Above that is empty because it is for the projection screen. We have a large frame for the area, but it has yet to be hung. The file cabinet is an old Shaw-Walker that I painted bright red.
A close up of the bookshelves and our fish Van Halen.
This is the closet office. Tony made this desk for me. I used wire to hang pictures. I'm not sure, but even after editing, it still feels a little cluttered to me. Any suggestions?
The chair that we are using right now as the desk chair was found in the garbage. I hate to admit that, but it was perfect and I couldn't pass it up! All it needed was a good scrubbing (thank you Magic Eraser!). I thought it was so vintage cute, so I made Tony go swipe it. Gorgeous.
Next Comes The Bathroom and Master Bedroom
This is the bed. Matching side tables and lamps.
A close up view of the side table. This one happens to be Tony's.
This is the dresser facing the bed. An old full length miror stands against the wall and an Asian keepsake box sits on the floor next to it.The dresser is vintage from when my mom was a little girl. She used the room set and then I did when I was little. The black strips are removable, and flip over to change colors. We painted one side of each black.
The hand is a vintage glove mold, the box is an old Kodak box, which we keep our momentos in. The mirror is an antique medicine cabinet, which we painted black and added a chendelier crystal for a pull. Close up of sink and storage.
The view from the door into the tiny bathroom. It feels really bright and spa-ish because of the light blue walls and white curtains. We added a blue rug and blue curtain hooks.
The little shelf we hung across from the toilet with pretty perfume bottles on it. The only little "extra" that fits into the space!
Close up of sink and storage. Pretty much the entire bathroom.
Here’s A Question…
Here is the desk and the huge wall. The one picture is hung, but the other two are waiting to be framed.
Make Mine Eclectic 
