Thrifty Finds

I wandered into the thrift store Friday afternoon and found a few treasures.

You know I can't resist milk glass. I've been keeping an eye out for a few select vases in classic patterns that I didn't have - until now. At .49 cents each, how could I NOT get them? I have plans for these vases... I also found a sweet little candy dish.

Then I found a set of 8 "new" large mason canning jars, still in the box, with all the lids.

With commemorative liberty bell design, no less (Andrew liked that). They looked like they had never even been taken out of the box - the instruction sheet was still in there. 

I have plans for these too. Maybe to hold tea light candles on the deck. Flower vases. Fun  glasses to sip iced tea. 

 I got all 13 pieces of glassware for $7.49. My lucky day!

Tween Room Makeover Reveal

Remember, about a year ago, when my niece Emma turned 10, and my sister and I started to give her bedroom a complete makeover? Well, we basically finished it...in July, but then a lot of things happened, and I never shared the results. I also didn't take very extensive photos. Shame on me. I was excited about how it turned out and I'm pretty sure Emma likes it a lot!

This bedroom was our inspiration. Lisa ordered the bedding set, which set the tone for the overall theme. White furniture and accent pieces with pops of bright pink, lime green and brown, and light aqua walls.

We found a 9 drawer dresser, tall narrow bookcase and a wicker storage chest on craigslist.

I found pink storage buckets at Target that fit nicely on the bookshelf.

I also found and painted a large cork board from a thrift store, which now hangs above Emma's repainted desk for displaying artwork and papers. The desk belonged to Lisa when she was growing up and it was her first furniture painting project. She did a great job - you go sister! I wish I had a photo of the desk. I'll work on getting one...

I made some quick wall art of Emma's name with letters out of foam core, and hung them above the dresser. You can make your own letters by following my easy tutorial. A mirror was later added to the dresser.

The metal cans I spray painted white now hold markers, crayons and art supplies. Read more about my bargain finds here.

Two cute poodles in Paris canvases were hung on the wall near the bed. 

This fun zebra and polka dot "E" initial plaque found a home above Emma's night stand and lamp. 

The bedding an accent pillows are so cute and fun and made the whole room come together! 


BEFORE
It was very yellow, lacked a unified style and was in need of storage, organization and some new furniture.

AFTER
Now it's a fun and pretty "tween" room for Emma to enjoy and grow with! I especially like the wall color. Chris did a great job painting it. The tranquil aqua-blue compliments the bedding and existing carpet. 

This was a fun project, especially because it was for my beautiful and creative niece Emma. I hope she loves her new room. Now that she's been enjoying it for 6 months! If only she could keep it clean...that's another story :) 

Goodwill Good Find

You might know I'm a fan of Goodwill and other second hand stores for great vintage finds. You might also know how much I like milk glass. Coincidentally, a lot of my favorite milk glass pieces have come from Goodwill and other thrift stores. It baffles my mind that these treasures are donated or tossed aside, ending up at second hand stores for just pennies. I can't help but imagine the homes they might have come from, like Ward and June Cleaver's (Leave it to Beaver). A different era. 

I came across this large lattice edged milk glass pedestal compote at Goodwill. I have not seen a piece like this before. I am familiar with the pattern on the base but the top is new to me. I wasn't quite sure if I wanted to add this piece to my collection, because I have been trying to be more selective lately. When I first started collecting milk glass, I would snatch up every piece I came across. Now, it seems to be everywhere. I have been looking for pieces that are very unique and that I really like. This beauty was only $3.99. I had to take it home. 

Look at the lattice detail. I wonder how it was made without breaking it. When I looked it up on Ebay, this same piece ranged from $15-$45. I learned that it was manufactured in the US by Westmoreland Glass Company, prior to 1948. There were no markings on the piece, which meant it had a paper label at some point. 

I couldn't leave it empty, so I put some (fake) lemons in it for now. White milk glass really goes with anything. Maybe I'll use it as a cake stand or dessert platter. I'm glad I added this unique piece to my collection!

More Thrifty Finds

Here are some vintage items I have picked up over the past few months. I have figured out which second hand stores have the good stuff and which ones do not. The Goodwill usually has a nice selection and very clean stores. There is also an AMVETS second hand store in my area that has a lot of household items, which is what I look for. Isn't this blue teapot cute? I just love the color.

 

I still love milk glass. This candy dish with lid has a grape vine design.  I like how detailed and delicate it is.

This heavy silver charger/platter has a "Made in Italy" inscription on the bottom. It was in great condition and I think it was only $4.

 

Here is another silver tray that was only $2.99. I like it's rounded square shape. I am currently displaying it on my kitchen shelf arrangement with china and glassware. 

In the other corner of my red kitchen are some more vintage finds. Neighbors actually put this adorable little 3-tiered wooden side table at the curb! I almost thought they were going to come running out of the house shouting "Just kidding! You can't have that!" because there really wasn't anything wrong with it, except some "character" to the wood on the top.

It's the perfect piece to hold the milk glass ruffled bowls my Aunt gave me. I keep some cookbooks on the bottom shelf.

 

I could not pass up this green dimpled glass pitcher for $4.99. 

A milk glass goblet-style compote. I just love the scalloped edges and star pattern.

 

This bright orange pedestal plate was $5 at Salvation Army. I got it solely for the impact of color it would bring to my decor. This photo does not capture it's rich orange pigment.

Here is a look at the top section of the glass shelf nook in our living and dining area. (It is backed with mirrors, so that's why you can see the ceiling fan in the background) I have arranged it almost completely with vintage finds. I love colored glass, and have a small collection of goblets. The milk glass vase and pitcher were gifts from my Mom, and I found the little square bowl/ashtray at Goodwill. I have been building my collection of old hardcover books. I've been finding some good ones lately. The pear was picked up at The Christmas Tree Shop a while ago. I had a couple of blue glass wine bottles. And I added a framed picture in the back to balance it out. 

  

I saved the best for last. This set of 3 stackable milk glass footed compotes are my favorite! There's even a story. If you remember, back when I posted I Heart Milk Glass, I found the medium size one at  Rices Sale & Country Market in New Hope, Pennsylvania. It became my favorite piece of all. THEN, while browsing the AMVETS store, I couldn't believe my eyes when I spotted a larger version of my favorite piece, for $6. They clearly were a pair, meant to be reunited. Now I had not one but two favorite pieces. Then my psychotic beloved cats BROKE the original first piece, by knocking it off the console table. That was NOT a good sight to come home to. I was livid mad to say the least. Where on earth was I going to find another one? It was crazy enough that I even found the second one.

In comes etsy.com to the rescue! I did a little searching, and quickly found Yesterday's Memories 09, a seller with a great selection of vintage items, especially milk glass. Not only did she have the piece I was looking for, I discovered a THIRD piece that completes the trio! THREE! How cute is that little one? (Photo below from Yesterday's Memories 09)

There you have it. Some of my best thrift store and other finds (including other people's trash!). These are the little things that make me smile. 

Thrifty Thrift Store Find of the Century

Today was my lucky day. By lucky day, I mean the 1/2 off sticker this week at Goodwill was pink! Do you know what that means? That means that the new-in-the-box, console table, from TARGET, that I have been stalking at Goodwill, for the past FOUR WEEKS, was FINALLY 1/2 off! My wonderful hubby agreed to go check it out with me. I, however, already knew everything about it was perfect and that it would look perfect in our house. Week after week, I kept calling to see if it was on sale. And alas, week after week, it was not. Does this qualify me as a deal shopping junkie? Call me what you will. But are you aware that each week, Goodwill selects a different color price tag to be 1/2 off? Pretty good deal. Especially when it comes to furniture. And furniture from Target! Come on people, I would have to be loco to let this one pass me by. So, what does this glorious piece of home decor look like?

Simple lines, dark wood, cute little drawer and a shelf underneath. It's love. Is it wrong to be this excited about a piece of furniture? Does anyone else share my excitement over a find like this?

I know you are all waiting for the price. Drum roll please... this console table is sold out at Target.com, however, similar styles retail for $159.99. Who would pay that? Not me. What was Goodwill selling it for? $69.99. I still wouldn't pay that. So, at 1/2 off, I got to bring it home for $37.79 (including tax)!! Can you hear the blue light special bells and buzzers going off in my head? That's how I felt. I couldn't wait to get it into my cart and take it home before someone else scooped it up!

There was only one downside to this story. Yes, I know you knew it was too good to be true. Once we got it home and took all the pieces out of the box, we learned that none of the hardware was included. No screws, washers, not even the drawer knob. Bummer! So I made a trip to Lowes (which is sadly starting to feel like a second home, due to the number of trips we take there on a weekly basis while working on our bathroom), and purchased $8 worth of hardware to put the thing together. Which brought the total cost of the piece up to $45.60. Still a fantastic deal! 

Here is how it looks in our home. What do you think? I am still thinking about how I want to arrange and decorate it. The hanging floral arrangement was already on the wall. I may need to re-think that. I got a lot of ideas and inspiration from one of my favorite bloggers Katie Bower (she cracks me up AND has great style).

I love it. This is what I call a God thing. In everything give thanks! I'll be sharing more thrifty thrift store finds soon. Such as the white pedestal goblet on the left...