Follow My New Blog

I've started a new blog. Follow my crafting adventures on creativeirony.com.

Wednesday, June 01, 2011

Let's Thrift!

I came across this iPhone wallpaper and fell in love!

Let's Thrift iPhone wallpaper

Dang, so cute! One of those things that when I see it, I really, really wish I had designed it. I may not have designed it, but I certainly have been doing as it suggests lately. I've been picking up little treasures at garage sales, antique stores and thrift stores everywhere. (Saver's in a favorite.)

The other day I looked down at my outfit and realized my shoes, pants and shirt were from thrift stores, my bracelet was costume jewelry from an antique store and I'd made my scarf. Maybe I need to start taking photos of my outfits occasionally and sharing.

Because I have soooo much fashion sense (that was dripping with sarcasm). But, I have had some fun trying to be more playful and daring lately.

Anyway, this post is all about what I've bought lately. Some of these still need some major makeovers. Some of them are pretty as they are right now.

This green vase was $5 at the nearby antique mall. I adore its shape! It's now hanging out on my kitchen shelves.

green glass vase found at antique mall--fun, unusual shape



Just a fun little candle holder. It was $.50 at the thrift store. It's probably getting a coat of spray paint--I don't have any orange in my house.

metal, orange, flower candle holder, thrifted

I seriously scored with these mail holders! I got them at a yard sale, all three for $1.00. So, 33 cents a piece! They will probably end up in my craft room, or maybe as bill sorters on my kitchen counter.

wooden mail holders, garage sale find

These are Reader's Digest condensed books from the early 70s. I was soooo drawn to their covers. They were $.50 a piece at a charity yard sale (normally I would say they were worth about a quarter). They are in great condition though. Right now I have them displayed on my buffet, but I'm thinking I might take them apart and use the pages and covers for projects--I would feel no regret either because they are condensed books after all. They would make THE cutest book purses.

They had so many of these at the yard sale--boxes and boxes! I bought 8, but I could have bought 50 or 60.

Reader's Digest condensed books from the 1970s, with awesome graphic covers

I adore this coffee pot. It too ended up on my kitchen shelves. I paid $7.00 for it at the thrift store. It's J&G Meakin, which was an English company that made cheap ironstone china for export until 1970. I love the pattern and similar ones were selling on Ebay for around $25.00, so I'm pretty happy with it.

J&G Meakin tall coffee pot from the 60s or 70s, thrifted

Glass container. I paid $2.00 at the thrift store. It's probably getting a coat of spray paint soon.

red glass jar, thrifted

Ahhhh, the ugliest ottoman in the history of the world. I have been keeping an eye out for ottomans. I'm so lazy and I like to move so little that if I sit down, I want to put my feet up immediately. We actually found two ottomans on clearance at Target for $15.00 each (need to get pictures), but they ended up not really working in our bedroom, but will be perfect in our family room.

I hope once I take the hideous puffy top off of this one and recover it in a pretty fabric that it will work for our bedroom chair. It was at a yard sale with an equally hideous chair. We asked if they would be willing to sell them separately, and they said yes, so hideous ottoman was mine for $5.00. I can't believe I paid $5.00 for this, but there you have it. You can see my ugly free couch in the background. The seating situation in my living room is all-around sad.

1970s ottoman, garage sale find

I love this sweet little aqua tinted bowl. $5.00 at an antique shop in Ogden (can you tell $5.00 is my magic number?).

aqau glass bowl, antique store

Pears. Probably destined for spray paint too. $6.00 for the pair (that was an unavoidable pun). I was looking at Hobby Lobby at some pears the week before I found these and I quite like these better.

Ceramic pears fromt the 1960s or 1970s, thrifted 

This lamp I bought for $3 at a yard sale. It's going right there by my new art, but I have big plans for a new lampshade. 

lamp for lamp make-over, garage sale find

And the find I am most excited about! I popped into our local Habitat for Humanity ReStore a few weeks ago and found these beautiful doors! They were $30 for the pair, which for someone cheap like me, seems like a lot. But, on the other hand, I have seen stained glass at antique stores for hundreds of dollars.

And, I was on the look out for some stained glass. Remember that opening I put in my wall? My brother-in-law suggested that we could hang some stained glass in the openings (I may still put shelves at the top--we're still deciding, although we've done a ton of finish work on it so far). It was at this moment that I knew why my sister had married him. It was so, at this moment, 9 years later, he could suggest this to me.

Um, yes. I love that idea. So, when I saw these doors, it was like click, click, click.
stained glass in cabinet doors

Emotionally, I had to get up the will to remove the stained glass out of these beautiful doors, but I eventually did and David carefully removed it. They are beautiful pieces and fit perfectly into the openings. I can't wait to see it finished and hung.
beautiful stained glass in cabinet doors

So, those are my previously-owned finds. Have you found any treasures lately? Tell me about them! Or, pick your favorite from mine. :)

I've started a new blog: Come follow my crafting adventures on my new blog. Find me at: creativeirony.com.

1 comment:

  1. I LOVE THRIFT STORES!
    And garage sales are even better! The treasures you can find are just unbelievable. One person's trash is another's treasure :)

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for stopping by! I love your comments and look forward to hearing from you.