Found Treasure

Hello, all! This past weekend was an exciting one for me and my rummaging ventures. I came across some great deals on some awesome items! The best deal, by far, is at the bottom of this post :)

First, is this cute set of ceramic owls. I love the mid-century vibe and my obsession with owls has always been major. With how hot they are right now, how could I resist?

One of them has the sticker still on and is labeled OMC Japan.

Next up is this adorable set of ceramic gnomes. I bought them for my daughter's bedroom but she's already taken to playing with them like dolls. She's so funny with them!

 

The little sleeping one is my favorite :)

Next is this adorable set of kissing Dutch kids. They're salt and pepper shakers but I think they would be perfect just on display.

The paint isn't in the best shape but I think that adds to their vintage charm.

I love the flowers he's holding behind his back! She's been broken and repaired :(

They still have the plugs and are both stamped with "Japan".

Almost done...this is a set of cafe curtain tiers. They are so vintage and kitschy. I love them!

They look to be hand-made with these little crochet (is that crochet? I don't know....) fruits. I think they're tomatoes, lemons and oranges - kind of a weird combo but hey, whatever works!

I don't have a window they would work in and they definitely don't match the style of my home but they were so cute, I just couldn't pass them up.

 

This was my best purchase of the day. Three (plastic) Adirondack chairs and two ottomans for TWO DOLLARS!!!

 

I've been looking for lounge furniture for my deck at a reasonable price and although they really aren't the style I was looking for, at that price I can afford to make them temporary!

 

They're really faded so I'm giving them a fresh coat of paint. I can't wait to get them out on the deck! I'm by myself this weekend so I'm planning on finishing lots of projects. Why does it seem impossible to get anything done when my kid and husband are home?

Anyhow, if you're interested in any of these items (except the gnomes and chairs, of course!), drop me an email at WonderfullyDomestic@hotmail.com. I couldn't pass them up but they just don't belong with me.

I'll be back this weekend with more projects and recipes. I can't wait to share!

Found Treasure

Hello! My discovery of the super bargain I missed out on while thrifting encouraged me to do some thrifting this weekend despite being sick. I didn't find much but did come home with two treasures I wanted to share.

I got this set of six little glasses for $4! They're very pretty. I'll have to take better pictures when I get them washed up and sparkling! Also, I was too lazy to run out to my car to grab my camera so these cell phone pics will just have to do.

The glasses are small and they're trimmed with silver. So pretty and I LOVE them!

I was excited about this little trinket/jewelry box as soon as I saw it.  I love anything bamboo and this is going to be perfect on my dresser!

You can't see very well but the stamp is "Bambous D'Or" and signed "Georges Briard". A quick google search let me know that Georges Briard was the brand of an artist named Jascha Brojdo who was quite popular in the 50's-70's. Awesome! Also, if you can't see in the icky pic, the price tag on this says $2.49 BUT I got it for 50% off! Score! I'll be on the lookout now for more Georges Briard pieces!

Did you have any luck over the weekend? Share some of your treasures with me!

Kicking Myself

A month or so back I saw this awesome faux bamboo bar cart at a thrift store. I was thisclose to buying it. Now I wish I had!

It was $15!

Now today I see this! Same thing, yes? I've got to say, I think the brass is prettier than the green finish too...

Giveaway Winner!

Congrats, AubreyLaine! You're going to love the Tastefully Simple products! An email is on the way!

Blog Crush: Gorgeous Shiny Things

How is it that I've never seen Goreous Shiny Things before? I saw this post and was hooked. Check these things out:

When they decide what to call these and start selling them, I'll be a customer for sure!

Amazing! Go check out Gorgeous Shiny Things...you'll be happy you did!

My First Giveaway!

Hello, all! What a week this has been! I'm finishing up my Craigslist dresser, searching for a mirror for my mini-redo of my bathroom and painting items for my office redo! Even with all that in the works, I decided it was time for my first giveaway.

I've told you before about Tastefully Simple products and how much I enjoy them. Well, I'm also a consultant so I figured what better to feature for my first giveaway than a few of my favorite Tastefully Simple items!

First, you'll get a Bountiful Beer Bread Mix. This has got to be their most popular item - I sell a ton of it...with good reason! All you do is mix 12 ounces of a carbonated beverage (doesn't have to be beer!), drizzle with some melted butter (totally optional) and bake. How easy is that? Even I can't screw it up :)

Next, you're getting my absolute favorite TS item...Garlic Garlic. I've mentioned a time or two how much I love garlic and I usually use fresh but I always have this on hand. I sprinkle a little in when I'm browning hamburger, I add a little to my Bountiful Beer Bread Mix sometimes, I add it and some shredded cheese to the top of french bread and broil it...but my favorite use for it is as a dip! You use two tablespoons of Garlic Garlic and 1/2 cup each of mayo and sour cream. That's it! It makes a killer dip - super addictive!

Third up, Spinach & Herb Dip Mix. This makes an excellent dip (again, using just 1/2 cup each of mayo and sour cream) but I rarely use it for that. I love it in my scrambled eggs, as a seasoning for meat or mixed with softened butter for a yummy spread.



Finally, you'll get a Classy Chocolate Pound Cake Mix. Mix 3/4 cups melted butter and 1 cup water and bake. This is the kind of dessert I like to make ;) To make this a little bit healthier, you can substitute applesauce or yogurt (I prefer raspberry!) for all or part of the butter.

That's over $30 in free products! I've got so many other products I love and it was really hard for me to pick just a few so I decided to stick with the basics. Next time I'll share some more favorites :)

Okay, here are the rules:

You get three chances to win. First, go check out my online store, come back and comment to tell me what sounds good to you and what Tastefully Simple product you'd like to try.  Second, become a follower and leave a comment on this post to tell me you are. For a third chance to win, "Like" me on Facebook and then come back and leave another comment to tell me you've done so.

That's it! The giveaway closes one week from today, Wednesday, June 15th at 6:30 CST and the winner will be randomly chosen. Good luck!

Faux Mercury Glass(ish) Lamp: Before and After

Hello, all and happy Monday! Okay, so I'm not a big believer in happy Mondays but I like to think that if I keep telling myself that it's happy, it will be :)

I love mercury glass. I love lamps. Therefore, I love mercury glass lamps. These lamps are everywhere these days too. Unfortunately, they're also very expensive. I decided to look for a hollow glass lamp to try transform. A while back I saw a tutorial posted on Martha Stewart's website so I decided to give it a shot. I've learned that no matter how hard I try, I'm no Martha.

I got this lamp at a thrift store for $5. It isn't a cool shape like I really wanted but it is good enough for a first try...and it was cheap! I dumped the potpourri it was filled with and gave the inside a good cleaning.

I disassembled it and gave the inside a light spray of water like Martha's tutorial directs.

I gave the inside a coat of Krylon's Looking Glass paint. I tipped it to let it dry (though I don't show you a picture of that).

I waited a few hours between coats. I didn't have the patience to wait 24 hours like the tutorial says to. Maybe that's part of my problem :(

I gave the base a light coat too. I didn't want it to be quite as brassy as it was but to still look sort of antiqued.

Well, it doesn't really look like mercury glass but I do like the effect. I'm happy with it for now. It seemed like the paint was really, really runny. It didn't stick to the sides much at all...and I didn't do a thick coat either.

I think it will be a nice addition to my husband's dresser. That isn't the shade I'll be using, I need one a size smaller but I do love drum shades! What do you think? Have you attempted faux mercury glass? I'm willing to give it a second shot - I've got lots of clear glass votive holders!

I also wanted to mention that I'm so happy with the reaction to my daughter's new reading bench. I've gotten so many sweet comments and emails - it really means so much! I've also collected several new followers this past week. I'm thinking that it is time for a giveaway. I'll be posting about that in a couple days :)

See you soon!

I Want These!

From Joss & Main today...

I could never justify them to my husband though since we just got new chairs less than a year ago :(  I guess a girl can dream!



Summer "Mantel"

Hello, all! Well, I've mentioned my procrastinating ways before and this time I'm regretting the procrastinating. I'm late for the Summer Mantel linky party over at The Lettered Cottage. Oh well. My loss! I still wanted to share with you what I've done for my Summer "mantel".

How simple is this? I wanted to keep things light and airy because it was such a looooong Winter. I was really beginning to feel claustrophobic being kept in the house so much!

So, because I wanted to keep things light and airy, I decided to decorate with clear glass. I've got tons of glass of all different colors (I'm kind of a glass freak. Weird?) but I really was drawn at the time to colorless and simple.

Can you tell what's different in this picture? My daughter has been using my DIY Dollar Tree hurricane as a holder for her "Belle rose". Remember that in the movie?

Here it is from a distance...

Close up. I got the two apothecary jars on a recent thrifting trip and the cheese dome from another thrifting trip. The tall candle holders are from Pier 1 many years ago.

These are the DIY Dollar Tree hurricanes that were all over the blogosphere a while back and the silver tray was another thrifting find.

The cabinet is from IKEA and my garden stools are from Craigslist...$30 for a set of two!

I've been thinking of posting to show you what I've got in that cabinet. I've got some really fantastic treasures in there I should share...

I hope everyone is having a great (short) week. I can't believe it's already Thursday! I'll be posting more tomorrow or over the weekend. I've got a lot to share!

New Reading Bench

Hello, all! I've got to tell you, I've got several posts in process and I would love to be able to share but I'm having some issues with uploading pictures to Blogger. I'm working on the issue and hope I can show you soon!

Anyhow, last Friday I came across this bench on Craigslist and immediately knew I had to have it. I love the simple lines and the caning detail. It was listed for $20 and I didn't even want to dicker...it had to be mine :)

As soon as I got this sucker in my vehicle, I realized how horrible it smelled. The cushion was disgusting and smelled like cat pee. There was no way I could salvage the padding.

I have never ripped apart upholstery before so I just kind of guessed where to start. I flipped over the sucker and peeled the padding off the rusty springs.

I finally just ended up cutting the fabric so I could pull it and the foam off so I didn't have to smell it anymore. It was really that bad.

Aah, SO much better!

I then unscrewed the spring frame from the bench frame and removed about a million staples. I'm sure I had my neighbors wondering what was going on with the steady stream of expletives coming from my garage.

I gave it a few coats of white spray paint.

Looking better already!

I brought the seat frame inside to get a new cushion put on. I didn't want to spend a bunch of money on foam so I bought a twin sized egg crate mattress topper.

I laid the frame down on top and traced it with a marker so I knew where to cut.

I layered the foam on top, stapling the first layer to the frame so the subsequent layers wouldn't slide around so much.

I covered the foam with a few layers of batting to smooth it out.

Making progress!

Here is the fabric I used to re-cover it. And...as much as I was cursing the staples I removed from the original padding, I stapled the crap out of it myself :)

Viola! (Excuse the crappy cell phone pic. I do have better ones but can't get them uploaded!) I'm proud of the work I did and although it was really tedious, it was pretty easy and the finished result is a hit. I'm going to be putting this in my daughter's room and I think it is inspiring a mini-redo.

She loves her new reading bench :) My mom takes care of her during the days at my house and the first thing she said yesterday when she woke up was "Would you like to see my lovely bench?". I'm glad it was a hit :)

The bench was $20 and the mattress pad was $10. I had the paint, fabric and batting on hand. Not bad for $30!

So, that was one project for Memorial Day weekend. I hope you all had a nice weekend too! I've got more I need to get posted, like I said. I hope to be able to get my pictures uploaded tonight or tomorrow!

Linking up to:

Faded Charm Cottage

The Shabby Chic Cottage

Somewhat Simple

Miss Mustard Seed

Young and Crafty

SNS at Funky Junk Interiors

Amaze Me Monday at Dittle Dattle

Not JUST A Housewife

Thrifty Decor Chick