Forever Decorating!: Garage Sale Decor

Showing posts with label Garage Sale Decor. Show all posts

5/06/2011

Welcome Surprise!

Here

your

hint...

With

SURPRISE!

Okay, I'm teasing you! Basically, I found a wooden tray at a garage sale for only $1. It was already painted black.

Instead of keeping it a tray, I decided to make it into a usable wall art!

First, I painted the word, "Welcome" with some vines and leaves in white.

I also attached these metal hangers to the back so I could attach ribbon for hanging.

So what is the surprise? It's the oval in the center...

I painted the inside oval with chalkboard paint. Now when we come home and enter through the back door from the garage to the laundry room, we are welcomed home!

Then I did a bit of tweaking...

I added a sweet yellow bird for whimsy

I have fond memories of a small chalk board at the back door entrance of my Grandma's house. As a child, I would sit on top of the washer and write and draw on this chalkboard and just get lost in the creativity of it. Do you have memories of something simple and small at your Grandparents home that wasn't big but you still remember it fondly?

NOTE: You should be able to click on most of the pictures to enlarge to see further details.
These parties I love to link up to or check out my Blog Parties tab
Party Time @ It's So Very Cheri
Metamorphosis Monday @ Between Naps On The Porch
Motivate Me Monday @ Keeping It Simple
Creative Blogger's Party @ Homemaker On A Dime
Making The World Cuter @ Making The World Cuter
Amaze Me Monday @ Dittle Dattle
Twice Owned Tuesday @ House Of Grace
Nifty Thrifty Tuesday @ Coastal Charm
Time to Shine Tuesday @ A Diamond in the Stuff
Tuesday Treasures @ My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
Trash 2 Treasure @ Sassy Sites
Power Of Paint @ Domestically Speaking
Swing Into Spring Wednesday @ DIY by Design
White Wednesday @ Faded Charm
Wow Us Wednesday @ Savvy Southern Style
Piece of Work Wednesday @ Primitive & Proper
Good Life Wednesday @ A Beach Cottage
Open House Thursday @ No Minimalist Here
Strut Your Stuff Thursday @ Somewhat Simple
Transformation Thursday @ The Shabby Chic Cottage
100 Ideas Under $100 @ Beyond The Picket Fence
Show And Tell Friday @ My Romantic Home
Furniture Feature Friday @ Miss Mustard Seed
Remodelaholic Friday @ Remodelaholic
Frugal Friday @ Shabby Nest
Look What I Found Friday @ Vintage Revivals
Feathered Nest Friday @ French Country Cottage
Vintage Inspiration Friday @ Common Ground
Weekend WrapUp Party @ Tatertots and Jello
Saturday Nite Special @ Funky Junk Interiors
Strut Your Stuff @ The Saturday Morning Blog
Show and Tell Saturday @ Be Different, Act Normal
Sunday Showcase Party @ By Stephanie Lynn
Sundae Scoop Weekend Wrap Up Party @ I love Nap Time
Before and After Party @ Thrifty Decor Chick

5/03/2011

Eastlake is FINALLY Working for me

Hubby and I love architecture and its design. Hubby is especially good at knowing the dates when certain architectural styles were in fashion. One of my least favorite is Eastlake from the 1890's.

I took this picture from the Internet for an example of Eastlake style.

Recalling back to my Diamonds In The Rough! week 3 continued post (HERE), I showed you (below) a $5 Eastlake mirror surround, minus a mirror. I only purchased it because I knew what I could do with it and I also knew that Hubby would like it. Someone had done most of the work for me, because it had been stripped of paint and varnish. If you do this and then just let it set unfinished for months and years, the wood will dry out badly. So I had to chip off the areas decorated with burled walnut veneer because they had dried out and were warped and peeling off and just give it a good cleaning and sanding.

See how similar this frame looks to the one taken from the Internet? Side shelves and all! I didn't have a dresser to use this on, but instead a faux fireplace in our master bedroom was its destination. Since the fireplace was painted white, this wood frame would also get a white paint job without any distressing.

Now for the rearranging of the wall art. This is what the area around the faux fireplace looked like before I added the Eastlake frame.

I sent the antique birdcage to my antique mall booth for resale

Now, It just fit perfectly don't you think?

I picked up the antique rose oil painting on an antiquing journey for a song

Details at the top

Adorable side shelves

The decor - $1 framed glove from a garage sale last season

The lady then gave me the unframed glove mate free

A 'T' monogrammed hankie given to me by a friend resting on old pearls in a glass urn.

A collection of old purses hanging from tiny knobs

Then I did a bit more tweaking...

I added a bookpage rose to this picture

And more roses added to this other one

And I topped the gloved picture with a pretty resin scroll-work

4/29/2011

Map It!

Recently I picked up a table for $3. I see a reoccurring them here with $3 tables (see a post HERE on more refurbished $3 tables)!

I did a post that you can see HERE with my Diamonds In The Rough! features. It's where I go to garage sales and then show you what treasures I found. I then refurbish the items or decorate with them and show you the after.

This is the before of this table...the one on the right side.

Initially, I said that this would be a great table for a TV on top and with an added shelf inside, it would be perfect for storing electronics like a DVD player, etc. Due to my love for how this came out, I am going to keep it at least until the new wears off, so-to-speak. I have no need for a TV stand because we have built-ins that hold our TV's or they are mounted on the wall. Therefore, this is just a cute table located in our exercise room for now.

Everything you see in this picture except for the flying angel came from a garage sale.

Huge Ornate Framed Mirror - $25 - I painted it black

Antique floor lamp - $15 - I rewired it

Table - $3 - I refurbished it seen in this post

Gold frame with antique baby cabinet card photo - $2 - different garage sales, I put them together

Old books - 25¢ each - great used in displays

Glass canister - 50¢ - I added the old white buttons

Picnic Basket - $2 - I painted the top with roses

Flying angel or cherub came from TJ Maxx

Flowers came from Hobby Lobby but the urn you can't see came from a garage sale

I talked (in the Diamonds In The Rough! post), about how this must have been some kind of desk or enclosed cabinet, because there are signs a door was hinged at the bottom and opened up from the top down. This door was missing, so I made a shelf that is removable. I painted the shelf and inside a fun green color that I received free in the mail as a sample from Valspar. It goes well here with the green wall behind it too.

Also, you will recall that the veneer on the top was completely ruined. So I quickly removed it with a heat gun and putty knife. In it's place I decoupaged an old National Geographic map of the northwestern U.S. I purchased the map on eBay for framing but used it this way instead.

It means something to me because it has the state that I live in, as well as, my son and other family members locations.

The oak on the sides, back and legs were in pretty good shape, so I just glued where it was loose, sanded it down and wiped a stain on the whole piece before sealing it. Don't you think it turned out unique and fun at the same time?

4/28/2011

The Table Dance

Have you ever done the table dance? Okay, get your mind right for this one! I mean, where you swap one table in your home for another and move the original one to a different location.

Let me start the story from the beginning...it's a cheap thrill of a story too!

Last year during garage sale season, Hubby and I went to a garage sale and happened upon a sad antique table that needed love, as most of them do. It needed man repairs and he was up for the task. It was $3.50 and hubby is my fix the wobble or what's broke and I do all the refinishing/painting. He took apart the broken legs, (someone half-attempt-of-fixing-them) and re-glued them correctly. Sorry I didn't take a before picture. But imagine a Duncan Phyfe side table of solid walnut that is all scratched, broken and ugly. Believe me, they probably thought when we bought it that we were crazy! Or were really thankful that we took this off their hands! So I refinished the top and found a beautiful inlay design and just couldn't put paint on this beauty. So here she is, all curvy legs and back in her prime.

She even has a functioning drawer and all original hardware!

Beautiful brass toes at the end of her curvy legs.

And a top that can't be beat. Remember, $3.50 and a bit of glue, stripping and a lot of love.

Sorry, this post is getting rather long...but you will love it in the end.

Now on to the next table. During one of my Diamonds In The Rough! posts, where I purchase garage sale items, show them to you and promise to reveal the after of what I have done with them. This is the before table.

Don't be distracted by all my other treasures. This table cost me three whole dollars. However it is deceiving. The table top was totally ruined. It was not salvageable even for the hubby. Look up in the upper left hand corner of the picture. See the missing part on the table top. Well trust me, it is worse than it even looks there. So he kindly cut me a new 18 x 18 wood square, routered the edge and we reused the original rope trim on top to mimic what was originally the look of the table. I then did my thing with paint, distressing, stain and dry brushing.

I'm loving all the detail on this beauty!

Now for the table dance. Since my sofa has taller arms and the area that the curvy walnut table was in seemed to be the perfect size for the taller white table, I swapped them out and sent the walnut table next to the side chair in the study. Don't you think this white beauty looks perfect in her new location?

Who said it takes a lot of money to decorate with taste? Just give a piece ready for the trash some love!

4/26/2011

I'm keeping it!

I have all the Easter decor put away. And I have been working diligently on reviving the old furniture that was recently purchased at garage sales. In a day or two I will be showing you what I have transformed them into! But, to give myself a break and have a little fun, I decided to keep the beautiful framed garden picture that I picked up for only $5 at a garage sale last Friday.

Remember this picture from my Diamonds In The Rough! post for week 4? I was unsure if I was going to keep this or sell it in my antique mall booth. But upon further inspection after taking it apart and cleaning the glass and repairing the small damage to the frame, I decided that I loved it enough to enjoy...at least for a while. You just can't beat the fabulous patina that old pictures get!

They have history. They have a story. Besides, gardens are one of my most favorite things!

I decided to place the picture in my laundry room of all places, but if you saw my home, you would understand that my walls are filled with 'stuff'. However, you will be pleased to know that I walked past the foyer fireplace and thought, "Hey, why not put the picture here"? So I set it up, did a little photo shoot and wanted to share with you.