Upcycled Scarflette

A few weeks ago when I was blogging around town, I came across a post with this photo that stopped me in my tracks.

Now how cute is that???!!  I loved it!  It was made by Cheri over at I Am Momma Hear Me Roar.

Click here for Cheri’s Upcycled Scarflette at I Am Momma, Hear Me Roar to see her great tutorial on how she made it.  I love the giant buttons she used and love that she called it an “upcycled scarflette”.  It’s made from an old sweater.  As soon as I saw it I knew I had to make one too.  So I did.  Actually, I made two!

The first thing I did was head to Goodwill to find a sweater that I could cut up and I found one in orange made by Land’s End in the Men’s section. You need a rather long sweater and the one I bought was a size large.   It cost me $3.99 for the sweater.

I absolutely love the gigantic buttons Cheri use on her scarflette but I was impatient and so I used these cute little crocheted flowers that I bought last weekend when I was in Pinehurst having a wonderful day with my blog friend Melanie from Southern Comfort in a Northern Life.  Melanie wrote an extremely nice post about our day together and you can read it if you go here.  And her pictures turned out much better than mine did. :)  It was so great to finally meet her and she is a lot of fun and I feel like we have been friends for ever.  She is just another reason why I like blogging so much. 

Anyway, back to the scarflette.  I followed Cheri’s instructions and I am delighted with how cute mine turned out.   I thought the orange would be perfect for this time year.   I was so delighted with how my first one turned out that I made two.  The second one I made was light blue.  Tarheel blue to be exact and I made it for my daughter who is a student at UNC but she told me that although she thinks it is cute, she is not a big fan of having things on her neck.  I guess I can respect that. :)  So two for me!   

 

And I still want to make one exactly like the one Cheri made with a red sweater and the giant buttons.  I am still on the hunt for the gigantic buttons and I am periodically stopping by Goodwill in search of the perfect red sweater to destroy…I mean “upcycle”. 

Now, if only some colder temperatures would come our way so that I could wear it.

I know I am going to regret saying that!

Barstool From Goodwill

 

I found a black barstool at Goodwill for $10.00 the other day.  I have seen this type of barstool there before and usually they are a bit cheaper but they seemed kind of rickety to me and they were not painted.  This one was already painted black which saved me the step of having to spray paint it.  All I needed to do was wash it and then use some sandpaper to distress some of the edges.  Very easy.

Whenever we have people over we always seem to hang out in the kitchen and usually its around the kitchen counter.  I only have 3 counter height barstools.  I thought 3 looked better when I bought them many years ago and now that I think I might want another I can’t find them anymore.  Besides,  I also didn’t want 4 barstools because I though it would look too crowded and the stools would always be bumping into each other.   But lately I have been thinking that it would be nice to have one or two extra stools to keep out in the garage and then pull them out when company comes over.  So when I saw the barstool at Goodwill for cheapness I grabbed it.

    

After I cleaned it up and used some sandpaper on it to distress it a bit, I wiped on a poly-stain to age all of the distressed areas and to give the entire barstool a glossier finish.  After it was dry, I whipped out my number stencils. 

It looks like I might need a finishing spray on the seat.  I’ts looking slightly dull in this photo.  I have a clear spray sealer that will take care of that.  So, yes I have another piece that is marked with a number.   I think I am starting to run out of ideas on what I can put a number on.  I said “starting”.  I still feel I have a few more numbering tricks up my sleeve.   :)

Goodwill Lamp

   

As I said earlier in the week, I have been having an extremely dry spell at the Goodwill!  I did find a wood crate last week that I posted about and added some number stencils to and I also brought home  this mini lamp that I was able to perk up.

      

It was nice and sturdy and just the right size.  It was a bronze color but in very good shape for $3.00.

I spray painted it black.  I like this Rust-oleum American Accents black spray paint the best.  I seem to only be able to find it at Hobby Lobby.

 

After a couple of coats of paint, and a new shade from Target for $9.99, I have a new small table lamp.  I really been in the reading mood lately so I place the new lamp right next to my favorite reading chair.  (It’s also my “watching a lot of college football on Saturdays” chair”.  :)

And if you didn’t catch it yesterday, I announced the winner of my Giveaway for the Monogrammed Lap Top Bag from Simply-Bags.  The winner was Sissie from Sissie’s Shabby Cottage.  Congratulations to Sissie and Thanks to all who entered!

The Desk…Finally!

Oh Happy Day! The desk is finally finished!

BEFORE AFTER

It was a proud and happy day when I dragged this desk home with me from Goodwill several weeks ago.

I removed the dated hardware, scrubbed it up and gave it a spray painted coat of primer. I let it dry in the sun for several hours. A few days later, I gave it a coat of latex white satin finish paint…with a paint brush. And let it dry for many more days. I wanted it to “cure”. I only sanded it in the areas I wanted it to look “distressed”.

Then I wiped on some Minwax “Provincial” wood stain and quickly wiped it off. I tried to work it into any nicks or crevices along the way. And I let it dry for several more days. My plan was to take furniture wax and rub it into the entire desk and then buff it off just like I saw it done on a blog post by Cindy over at My Romantic Home. This girl knows what she is doing! Anyway, I started to apply the paste wax to the desk and I saw that it was removing the wood stain I had applied over the white paint! So I immediately stopped, touch up the stained spot with the old stain rag that I used and let it dry for several more days. I was gun shy after that so instead of going the paste wax route, I applied a coat of clear poly. Because, I was tired of waiting and it was time to get it done!! The poly coat dried in a day. :)

Next I added the new hardware that my daughter picked out.

It was starting to look like a real piece of furniture now!

See all the distressed marks?

Oakley supervises all home improvement activities at our house.

So much fresher and cleaner.

I lined the drawers with some decorative papers that we tacked down with a little bit of tape.

BEFORE AFTER

This desk is leaving for Chapel Hill later this week. I’ll be sure to take a picture of it in it’s final destination in my daughter’s new apartment. And my husband is delighted because he thinks he is getting his garage back. Ha! That’s what he thinks. I have a few more projects to tackle before that happens. :)

I am linking up to Nifty Thrifty Tuesday over at Coastal Charm. Amazing bargains were had this past week! Stop by to see them all.

I am also linking up with Maryann's Power of Paint Party over at Domestically Speaking. Impressive makeovers to be seen here!!

Can’t I Please Just Put Some Numbers On It???

Our daughter is home from her first year in college.  Her “stuff” is everywhere!  But, it’s nice to have her home even though it is only temporary until the apartment she and her friends are moving into becomes available on June 1st.  Then she is going back to take a summer session class and to work at her part time job.  She is going to need some new furniture like a bed and I am happy to say that I am almost finished with re-painting the desk I dragged home with me from Goodwill a few weeks ago.  I had big colorful and creative plans for that desk.  I wanted to try my hand at painting it a bold color like “aqua” and then maybe trying my hand and “antiquing” it with a glaze of some sort.  That’s not going to happen. “:(  The “Just Finished Her First Year of College College Student” wants a white desk.  WHITE with no bells or whistles.  “You know I could paint it black and put some numbers on it…would you like that”?  No…just white.  So…..I am complying with her wishes and white it is. 

As you may recall, a couple of weeks ago I cleaned it up and gave it a coat of primer.  Yesterday I gave it a coat of white paint.  It’s rather boring but it’s clean and pretty now and my daughter is happy with it.  We ordered a piece of beveled glass for the desk top which was my daughter’s idea.  She wants to be able to put a bunch of her snap shot photos underneath the glass. I thought that was a great idea and the cost of the glass for anyone who is interested the piece of glass was $35.00 for a 40 x 17 inches pieces with a beveled edge.  The plan for today is to pop by the Home Depot to get some new hardware for the drawer fronts, get some fine sandpaper, and to buy some paste wax to use as a sealer.

I found this wonderful tutorial on how to paint wood furniture off of a beautiful blog called My Romantic Home by Cindy.  If you think you might want to try and paint your own piece of furniture,  this is one of the best tutorials on how to do it that I have come across.   Today, I learned that she likes to use a latex indoor paint like I used but that she likes to let it “cure” for a about a week.  She also, lightly sands her pieces with a very fine sandpaper after the paint has cured for about a week so I have added that to my Home Depot list for today.   And Cindy doesn’t use a polyurethane sealer but instead rubs her pieces with paste wax to get a professional finish.  I am going to give this a try!    Here is the link for the How To Paint Wood Furniture tutorial.

 

Now look at the latest “find” I dragged home from the Goodwill this week!  It’s a filthy dirty end table/night stand.  But as “they” like to say it has good bones and HUGE potential.  It was manufactured by Henredon, very solid, and it only cost me $10.00.  It too will probably be making it’s way to my daughters apartment.  It will either end up in her room as her night stand but since I haven’t seen her new bedroom yet I am not sure if it will fit.  But I am confident we will find a home for it somewhere. 

Stay tuned!  I don’t mean to string you along but this is a slow process!  I hope to have finished desk photos for you later in the week.  And I am sad to say, don’t count on seeing any numbers on this one. :)

Mini Lamp

Another score this week at the Goodwill!  I found this mini lamp an paid only $2.99 for it.  A little black spray paint and it’s now a keeper!

Here she is when I brought her home.  She had a brass base with a gray and cream shade with a beaded fringe.  I decided that black was the way to go because I thought it would look best with the existing shade.  I might  paint the base again in the future if I find another shade that I like better….but right now I kind of like the gray.

Amazing what a little spray paint can do.

I removed the shade and light bulb and then covered the “candle stick” part and some of the cord with blue painter’s tape.  Then I just gave the brass base a coat of Rustoleum’s American Accents Spray Paint in “Canyon Black”.  It’s amazing how well the black paint adhered to the shiny brass surface.  And with Oakley’s expert supervision, the painting was completed in no time. :)

Sorry about the glare in this photo but here it is and I just love it.  There is a switch on the cord and the lamp has two settings.  Low light or bright.  I am trying it out on the kitchen counter for right now.  But I am sure I will walk it all over the house before I decide where it stays.

   

Before and After. I hope my Good Will Karma continues. :)

Goodwill Desk Re-do Before

Look what I dragged home from the Goodwill with me the other day!!  My husband is so happy.  He loves it when the garage is crammed with furniture projects.:)  I initially bought this desk for our daughter who is moving into an apartment this summer and I thought this might work for her.  We will see if she likes it.  I have a feeling it might be too small for her but then again maybe not.  I have not seen the size of her new bedroom yet in the apartment and I think that is what will decide if she is going to take it or not.  Anyway, I am going to proceed with painting it and it will either end up with her or stay here with me.  I’ll probably use it as a sewing table.  Not sure exactly where we’ll put it but I’ll worry about that later. :)

And did I mention that I only paid $20.00 for it????  BARGAIN!

 

First step was to wipe it down with a damp wash cloth after removing the hardware.  I am going to replace all the drawer pulls with something new. See the scribble marks from the former owners?  The primer will help cover that up.  The top of this desk is a laminate.  I am hoping that the primer will allow me to paint that surface and not have the paint chip off.  My back up plan is to decoupage the top if the primer does not prevent any chipping. 

  

One coat of primer gave me the coverage I needed.  (One can gave me one full coat.)

It’s a work in progess.  But I am on my way. Just waiting for the primer to dry which gives me some time to think about what color to paint it.

Any ideas?

Painter’s Cloth Pillow

 

 

I have been wanting to try to see what I could do with some painter’s cloth that I picked up at Lowe’s Hardware.  You know how I love to stencil on to burlap, well, I wanted to try the same thing with the painter’s cloth that I have seen on so many other other blogs and websites.  People have been making curtain panels and table cloths etc…with them and I thought I would try and recover some pillows.  The painter’s cloth worked great.  It was easy to work with and has that Shabby Chic look to it that I really like. 

  

I found these not so attractive pillows at the Goodwill not too long ago and after making sure they were clean and had no smell to them, I purchased them for $2.49 each.  The painter’s cloth package that I picked up had a nice piece that was 4 x 6 foot and it only cost me $4.99.  I cut out the cloth about 2 inches wider on all sides than the pillow I was cutting for so that I had enough room for my seems.  After stitching them together on all sides and leaving an opening to insert the pillow, I turned it right side out and after putting the pillow inside I hand stitched it closed.  I haven’t sewed a pillow in I can’t tell you how long and I can’t believe that I remembered how to make a ruffle!  It’s sooooo not perfect but good enough for me.  I am thinking that I might have to look for an Eiffle Tower stencil.  I need something tall to put on this one. 

For this pillow I decide to put “Thank You” in French on it.  I did learn the hard way that it would be MUCH easier to stencil a design on to the painter’s cloth BEFORE sewing and stuffing the pillow.  (also FYI…I did not pre-wash the cloth because I like the stiffer feel when it comes out of the package.  It does have a strange odor…but I have to say that disappears.  I made the pillow a couple of days ago and there is no smell at all right now.)  This pillow was already stuffed when I added the stencil and it wasn’t easy my friend! (Next time I will try to stencil before I sew.)  The paint didn’t cover as well, but you know I actually like how it almost looks faded and makes the pillow look older.  Happy accidents…don’t you just love them?!

10 Things I Have Learned About Thrifting at the Goodwill.

10 Things I have learned about thrifting at the Goodwill.

Shopping at the Goodwill is not for everybody.  It wasn’t for me until this past year.  I can blame it on blogging.   The truth is Goodwill helps keep me entertained. :) Where else can you go and find so much junk in one place for next to nothing?  I am not much of a garage sale shopper.  I don’t really like to do all that driving around and getting up at the crack of dawn on the weekend to hit a garage sale.  That is not how I want to start or spend my weekend.  I like the convenience of Goodwill.  I can pop in whenever the mood strikes or whenever I happen to be driving by. 

I also have to say that I shop the Goodwill mostly for their home goods.  I love seeing what I can find and what I can make pretty.  I have never shopped for clothing there except for pieces to help assemble a Halloween costume or two.  I remember a few years ago my daughter had a school assignment to dress as a character from one of the books on her reading assignment sheet and we laughed ourselves silly looking for the pieces she needed so she could dress up as Muriel Pritchett from the book The Accidental Tourist.  Muriel was a very eclectic  dresser to say the least.   Every colorful piece of clothing that we needed for her ensemble, we were able to find a the GW.  With that being said, I am sure there are great clothing finds to be had there as well.  I am just not experienced in that department.  I simply stick to what I know and what I know is the House Wares Department.

Okay, so here we go with my list of the 10 Things I Have Learned About Thrifting at the Goodwill.

1.  Beware of upholstered furniture.  I hate to say it but if you fall in love with the price of an upholstered piece and you want to take it home with you….you have no choice but to stick your nose in it, on it, and around it.  Did this piece come from the home of a SMOKER?   It is IMPOSSIBLE to get the smoke smell out of a piece of upholstered furniture.  Now I know there are lots of other disgusting and gross smells out there but I really don’t want to get that gagging feeling in my throat by discussing them.  So, just remember this:  Upholstered furniture from the Goodwill is risky!

2.  If you see it, and think you might want it, I say buy it.  Because when you go back tomorrow to get it after getting a good night’s sleep and thinking it over…It will be gone.  Someone else posted on their blog that “the best time to buy an antique is when you see it.”  Good advice for the Goodwill too.

3.  Goodwill doesn’t seem to ever reduce it’s prices. They don’t really do “sales”.   So if you think you will wait to see if they will lower their price they almost never do.  I think if something doesn’t sell…they simply transfer it to another store to see if if moves there.

4.  Don’t put anything back on the shelf unless you are sure you do not want it.  I can’t tell you how many times I have set something down and someone immediately snatched it up.  There are people who are always checking out what items you are carrying or have in your cart and they watch to see what you are looking at.  Kind of creepy I know!

5.  Beware of lamps with old plugs and wiring.  Buy the lamp if you like it and if you think it has potential but if you have any qualms about the safety of a piece…take it to a lamp shop and have it re-wired.  Not very expensive to do and hey….you get brownie points for recycling!  (also keep your receipt because if you get an electronic item home and it doesn’t work you need the receipt to return it and they only give you a store credit.)

6.  Shop after the weekend rush.   I like popping into GW on a Tuesday and Wednesday morning when it is quiet and the trucks from the weekend have been unloaded.  Bigger selection.  Sometimes on Monday mornings the shelves are still picked over from the weekend. 

7.  Most areas have several Goodwill stores and some are very tiny and some are big.  Check each one out to see which one you have the most success at.

8.  Be careful and aware of your surroundings.  Some of the stores are not in the nicest parts of town.  I am lucky in that there is a Distribution Center not too far from me and it is big and gets a lot of great things donated from all the suburbanites cleaning out their attics.  Try to find “That” store in your area.

9.  Goodwill stores smell.  I think the smell is cross between the dry cleaners and somebody’s attic or basement.  A wee bit musty.   But if you can get past the odor and I know you can, there are great treasures to be found.

10.   Frequent shoppers cards are available and I think you can get a 10% discount each time you shop.  I think they might even give Senior Citizen discounts.  I don’t take advantage either because Number 1: I am not old (yet), and Number 2: I think that what Goodwill does as an organization is wonderful.  They take people’s unwanted clothing and household discards and they turn around and sell it to fund programs that really help, educate, and train all kinds of people who really need the help.  Their prices are so ridiculously low already that I don’t mind paying what they consider full price. 

So there you have it.  My list of 10 things I have learned about the Goodwill. I hope you find this information helpful and may the Goodwill Fairy bless you with unbelievable luck and great deals the next time you cross their threshold.  :)

White Dishes

I only made it to Goodwill once this week.  Can you believe it???!!  And I found this lovely white platter.  I have never really owned dishes that are pure white with no decoration or color on them and I hear all the time how food looks best on a white plate.  Okay, I am willing to give it a try.  So I paid the cashier $1.99 for this great white platter and had her ring up a couple more white plates at .99 cents each.   I figure that I have lots of time to collect white plates and I can slowly put together a set….especially at these prices.

Once I got them home, however, I decided to add these French Rub-ons.  They are the same ones that I have been seeing Sissie use on her blog called Sissie’s Shabby Cottage.  I asked her not too long ago where she found them and she kindly told me Walmart!   I have to say I have never used a Rub-on before and I also have to say that it does not get much easier than that…that is literally all you do, cut it out, and rub it on!  

For the plates I decided to only rub on the top part of the design so that I only had a small Fleur de Lis in the middle of each plate.  Too cute! So much for plain white plates.  I gave it my best shot.

TV Tray Tables Paint By Number

Remember these???? I found them at Good Will this past summer. There were a set of four, made out of wood, and they came on a rack for storage. I cleaned them up, primed them with some Kilz spray paint, and then painted all of them black. At the time, I wasn’t quite sure what I wanted to do with the tops of the tables. I thought about decoupaging them but decided against it. I also thought about putting the letter “L” in the middle for our family initial but wasn’t sure that was the way I wanted to go. So I thought about it. For many, many, months, I thought about it…..

(And sipped on one of my favorite wines… Coastline Cabernet Sauvingon while doing all that thinking.) :)

And then it came to me. More numbers!! I still love them. How easy. I already have the stencils. (If you need a source for some great stencils, check out Maison de Stencils on Etsy….that is where I found mine.)

And here they are. I love how this little number tweaking project turned out. You know I swore at one point I would never own a set of these….I thought they were tacky. Tacky? What was I thinking?! These little tables have been so handy and I can store them in the coat closet when they are not in use. They are great for parties, and for doing little projects in front of the TV. I am a TV Tray Table convert!

And FYI: I saw some individual wood tables just like these for sale at Walmart for $8.99 each. If you don’t need a whole set of four….this is a good way to go…and then you can decorate it anyway you want. So handy!

I am linking this post up to Thrifty Thursday over at Tales from Bloggeritaville...stop by for more ideas!!

AND I am linking this post up to Transformation Thursday over at The Shabby Chic Cottage....more goodness to see there too! Stop by!