My Day Thrifting

A couple of days ago, I got the urge to go vintage shopping. I arranged to spend the day with my mom today & that's what we planned to do - go to every thrift shop, antique shop, & second hand store we could in one day. What a fun day we had!!

We started out at Value Village & the Salvation Army thrift store. We found a few little goodies. Then we moved on to the big dogs.

We headed to Creekside Country & Antiques. What a charming little shop! Here's a few tidbits from our visit: 

We really liked how she would put things like game pieces & puzzle pieces on display.

Her store was displayed so attractively! She definitely has a knack for it!

The pretty antique looking bracelet my mom got there:

The one nearest to her hand

Then we went hard core antiquing. You know the kind... dusty, piles of collectables, the places you have to hunt to find the little treasures you didn't know you wanted until they leap out at you.

Here were some favourite finds:

This guy's prices were OUTLANDISHLY high or I may have made an offer on this beauty.

Antique library card holder

We stopped at Calories for lunch & ate light so we'd have room for dessert. We were at CALORIES after all! 

My salad

Mom's super yummy mushroom soup!

Dessert case - how do you choose?!

Apparently you ask your server what's good... funny story... read on.

Funny side story: Mom & I had decided what we wanted for dessert & when we told our server he calmly said, "Disappointing choices, ladies." To which we started laughing & asked him what he suggested. The above were his suggestions. Mom had the carrot cake & I had the toffee cheesecake. They were both fabulous!

After fortifying ourselves with desserts, we marched on. This next store was my favourite, even though I didn't buy anything. It was a feast for the eyes!

Here are some delectable images from Past & Present Antique Shop:

This guy's prices were quite high. I'd like to barter with him to see if he would be willing to bring them down to the reasonable category. His store is PACKED with goodies. Don't go if you're in a rush. You need time to appreciate this place.

Stacks of old luggage... I now have a hankering to start a collection of old suitcases!

I'm a sucker for anything turquoise! 

Great old radios

Again with the turquoise.

More old suitcases & a pretty chenille bedspread.

This "Elevator" sign intrigued me. I wonder what old building it came from?

Look at that HUGE bass drum!

My mom was tickled to find something she already owned. Guess how much SHE payed for hers?? Hint: it starts with 50 & ends with cents. Let's hear it for garage sales!!

Check out all these vintage phones. What colour would you pick?

 After a fun day of epic proportions, here's what I came home with:

Chair: $12!! (Major score of the day)

Sleeping Beauty Record: .50 cents 

Vintage postal scale: $10

Black & White photo: free with purchase of above scale

Vintage silver clutch purse: $3.99

Wire basket: $3.99

Colourful crochet thread - big bag full: $1.99

I will definitely be going "thrifting" more often. I love the history of the objects I see. Wondering where they came from... Who's houses did they decorate?... Who bought this brand new? And I love the eclectic look the items add to my decor. 

If you would like to see what I did with my goodies click here and here.

I hope you enjoyed my day thrifting almost as much as I did!

~Steph

Rolled Squares Flower Card

I made this card last weekend. It took longer than my usual cards, but it turned out pretty cute, if I do say so myself. You could change the colours to make it a bit more subdued, if you wanted. I was in a bright, summery mood so I picked bright colours.

Begin by making your card from cardstock, stamping your sentiment in the bottom corner, & adhering an additional piece of cardstock as a background to your flower.

Next, you need 12 squares of patterned paper, each measuring 1 1/4". Using a punch would definitely make this step go much faster.

Roll the squares into cones & staple the ends. Staple them as close to the end as you can. I did some too high & then had a hard time hiding the staples.

Arrange the cones into a circle on your card & adhere. Glue Dots work very well for this.

Thread some twine through a large button & adhere to the middle of the flower. I didn't have a button big enough to cover the staples on my cones so I added a cardstock circle under my button to help.

Punch some circles from scraps of patterned paper, cut them in half, & adhere as a border along the edge of your background. Or use a border punch. Cut a strip of patterned paper & adhere over the edge of the circles.

You're done!! 

Enjoy your day! 

~Steph

Vintage finds

I quite enjoy vintage-y type things. Not just anything vintage, but something that fits my style or that I can see some potential in. I haven't been thrifting / antiquing / flea marketing / garage saling / buying on Kijiji for a while but today I have resolved to do it again soon.

The last time I went out, I found a couple of little treasures. This one is perfect as is.  It's just a little fellow. I think I paid .50 cents for it. Don't you just love the swirl effect?

It now sits on my front entrance table. It's perfect for catching a few coins from someone's pocket. It would also be pretty on a lady's dresser to catch rings.

The other thing I found that same day was an adorable owl. I'm crazy for all things owl these days. They are (usually) just so cute! So I found this guy in the thrift store & could see the potential for something great. 

Before

My mom (an interior decorator) had got me thinking about taking things that have been painted in a busy, fussy way in the past & spray painting them in a solid colour. So, guess who my first victim was? You guessed it... this wonderful fellow. Check out the transformation with just a few coats of white spray paint. 

After

I have him sitting on some books in my bookcase. He is sitting on a book, after all, so it seemed fitting. 

I find inspiration for vintage finds in a couple of magazines from Better Homes & Gardens. They put out some great special issues several times a year. One title is 100 ideas: Makeover Style. Another is Do It Yourself.

Do you like to buy second hand? What are some of your favourite finds?

Before & After home tour (part 1)

Two posts in one day? What is this world coming to? I'm feeling very inspired now that I'm blogging & am having all kinds of ideas of things to post. So today I'm going to post twice.

I don't know about you, but I love a good before & after show. Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, all kinds of shows on HGTV (Summer Home being my favourite new show), & What Not To Wear are a few favourites. What is it that we love about them? Well, besides the fact that we see something that looks nasty (or boring or outdated) turn into something that looks beautiful.

I was visiting with my friend, Vanessa, today in her great new home. She & her husband are in the midst of picking paint colours & embarking on a home makeover of their own. I had the pleasure of helping her pick a paint colour for her front entrance. I hope she doesn't disown me as a friend after she's done painting! ;) Seeing her home & talking about renovations, painting, floor plans, etc. got me remembering our home makeover...

Four years ago we purchased the home we live in now. It had been pretty neglected & someone who lived there in the past had been crafty... in a not-so-great, don't-quit-your-day-job kinda way. We're talking orange tie dyed paint effects in the living room, stained glass insets in the bright yellow kitchen cabinets, fruit wallpaper applique on the roll down blinds, a stainless steel paint effect gone terribly wrong... oh ya, this house was a piece of work. But we were excited about the challenge & knew we could turn "her" into something beautiful.

After painting, putting in new flooring, painting, knocking out a wall, painting, putting in a new kitchen, painting, replacing the mauve toilet & tub, & painting some more it was finally ready for us to live in. But the work wasn't done.

It's taken us this long & it's not quite done yet. There are a few things left to be done. But since when is a house ever "done"? We're very happy with our progress thus far & I thought I'd share some of it with you all.

Nasty orange tie dyed paint effect in the living room. This wall actually got removed to open up the kitchen/dining room area.

Living Room BEFORE - complete with African Safari style homemade curtains.

Living room AFTER

Where the wall used to be.

Recap:

I'll post a little of our home makeover at a time. We're pleased with how things have turned out so far. I hope you enjoy seeing the transformation.

If you'd like to see our kitchen makeover click here.
If you'd like to see our main bathroom makeover click here.

Enjoy your day!

~Steph

Summer produce

Well, it's that time of year again. The time when my garden starts producing yummy fruits & veggies. I've been chopping rhubarb & getting ready to make my annual batch of rhubarb jam. This year's batch will be HUGE! I'm pretty sure I'll need some more jars... I'll post the recipe & photos once the deed is done. :)

I'm starting to get apples from our apple trees so I'll have to figure out something to do with those. Maybe I'll try my hand at apple juice as a couple of people have suggested. I've also harvested a large quantity of raspberries from my next door neighbour's raspberry batch (with permission of course). I've made a chocolate raspberry torte & a raspberry crisp already with plenty of additional raspberries tucked away in the freezer for future use.

Chocolate Raspberry Torte. Not picture perfect, but it sure tasted yummy!

Last night & tonight I've been able to include veggies from our garden in our supper menu. The lettuce, cherry tomatoes, & peppers are all doing well. I'm quite enjoying my little "salad garden" as I like to call it. Of course, I'd enjoy it more if it was weed free, but that's another story.

Maybe I'll have to try making Fried Green Tomatoes... have you ever made them? I found a good recipe (well, it looked good anyway) last year, but never got up the courage to try making them. 

What's growing in your garden this year? Any tips or ideas to share?

Fruit Pizza

Summer desserts are among my favourite recipes... actually, any dessert recipe is likely among my favourites. :) Most summer desserts involve either fruit or something frozen. This one involves fruit - and lots of it! I hope you'll give it a try. It will likely become one of your favourites too. And be ready to hand out the recipe because you're sure to be asked!

Fruit Pizza
Crust:
1 1/4 cups   All-purpose flour
1/3 cup       Brown sugar
3 tbsp.        Icing sugar
2/3 cup       Butter, softened


Topping:
12 oz.         Cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup      Granulated (white) sugar
1 tsp.          Vanilla


Variety of fruit - you can use pretty much whatever you want. Think berries, kiwi, peaches (canned ones work very well), bananas, etc. 
Tip: For best results, don't use frozen or previously frozen fruit. Fresh or canned work the best. 


Glaze:
1/2 cup       Apricot jam 
2 tbsp.        Water


Crust: Preheat oven to 350* F. Mix all crust ingredients together in a bowl until it forms a ball. Press on bottom of a pizza pan. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. Cool.

Topping: Beat cheese, sugar, & vanilla together until smooth. Spread over cooled crust. Arrange fruit in pattern of your choice over top.

Glaze: Mix the 2 glaze ingredients. Rub through a sieve. Carefully pour/brush over the arranged fruit.

Congratulations cards

To my friends, it's no secret that I love to papercaft. I enjoy both card making & scrapbooking. To those of you who are not into papercafting, bear with me. Not all my posts with be on this subject. :)

As I said above, I like to scrapbook. But when you are finished a scrapbook layout, you inevitably end up with a pile of... you guessed it - SCRAPS! This is where card making fits in perfectly. I enjoy gathering a pile of scraps & challenging myself to make some cards with my leftovers. The result varies. Let's face it, not every work is a work of genius. There are those that after I'm done, end up in the garbage... they're just that bad. But more often than not, the result is something I'm proud of.

Here are two such cards.

These were super easy. They are just two strips of papers layered on each other (the narrower strip over one wider strip - just breakin' it down for those of you who may not know the papercrafting lingo. Trust me, it's extensive.) with a pretty stamped image in the bottom corner. Easy & pretty, right? And, let's face it. We don't always have a whole afternoon to dedicate to making one super-detailed-use-every-trick-in-the-book card. Most times, we have little bits of time to create. And it's very rewarding to get something finished in said time frame. :)

Products used:
Cardstock, Stamp, & Ink - Stampin' Up!
Patterned Paper - My Mind's Eye

Cupboard Makover

This spring I took this little cupboard from my childhood that my dad had made for me. It was well "loved," shall we say, after years of being used by me & then for years in my mom's day care. My daughter, Audrey, is now at the age where she's full fledged into playing pretend. What could be cuter than a little cupboard to play kitchen or restaurant with? Especially if you've seen the prices of those plastic sets you can purchase at toy stores, etc. 

Before

After

It's amazing what a couple coats of paint & some new hardware will do!

Paint: Beur Interior Satin Enamel in Ultra Pure White from Home Depot

Hinges: Canadian Tire

Knobs: Ikea