from drab to fab: the craft hutch

 Ta-da!  Would you believe this gem was once a curb call!? You're witnessing the before & after of my favorite side-of-the-road FREE furniture piece yet!  I am SO happy I was in the right place at the right time to adopt this lovely piece.  After some serious sanding, primer, and a quart of plain white decorator paint, it has become the best thing that ever happened to my craft room.  Perfection.  Of course I couldn't show it off without snapping a few extra pics of its contents, some of my most beloved supplies:

How about you? What is your favorite freebie?  Have you ever found something on the side of the road and transformed it into a treasure?  I'd love to hear...

picket fence gals

Yesterday my super crafty friend Amanda & I took an impromptu mini-road trip to check out the Picket Fence Gals vintage sale in Lindstrom, MN. Lindstrom is the most adorable little Scandinavian town, with a tea kettle water tower and the yummiest little main-street bakery. Right along the main drag, you'll find the Picket Fence Gals are nestled in a big, white, old, and adorable Victorian house. Once a month (Wed-Sun), twenty-something awesome antique vendors pool their goodies and open their doors for a giant sale of vintage items. They are constantly updating their displays and the treasures are all new every month!
I was so excited to spend an afternoon here! So many fresh ideas and finds. I came home kicking myself for not buying a piece or two...All part of the adventure! However, I did not return empty-handed. I could not resist the small minty-green metal tray, children's book with orange illustrations in the inside cover, and this little wooden octopus puzzle (which I doubt is very vintage at all--but cute, nevertheless).
Happy weekend friends! This poor little blog has been on the back burner for far too long! Am planning a little giveaway + some photos of our most recent road trip next week.

vintage goodies

Saturday I had a lovely antiquing date at Hunt & Gather with my friend Naphtali. If you're ever in South Minneapolis and you love vintage things, this place is a must-stop. (It's the same place I found that killer granny patio set last summer.) I always marvel at the quality of the collections and displays. There are so many different vendors under one roof, all with their own unique style; it's easy to get lost in this place for hours! Their down-to-earth pricing is just the icing on the cake.

Enough chit-chat. Want to know what I found!?
:A yard of neatly folded plum-checkered fabric, no doubt straight from a little old lady's sewing room.

: Loose pages from old field guides. The hand-painted bird + tree photos are a slice of springtime and make me really happy. I can't wait 'til March rolls around so I can string them from my mantel with mini clothespins.

:A copy of Hans Brinker, The Silver Skates. (Not because it is a classic, but because the spine is the prettiest teal blue and the edges of the pages are the loveliest pink/red. There, I said it. I judge books by their covers. Go ahead, judge me.)

:A rectangular (porcelain?) dentist's tray. It has six compartments that are perfect for the following: a) office supplies b) sewing notions or c) jewelry. I can't seem to decide where I will enjoy it most. I should have bought 3. For the sake of the photo, I set some of my jewelry in it. I'm digging this.

blog lovin

One of the things on my New Year's agenda was to ditch Google reader. Mine has just grown out of hand. I would frequently open it and find 500+ unread posts and feel all this undue stress about having not kept up with dozens and dozens of blogs. I could feel my blood pressure surge and I wouldn't even know where to start. It was beginning to feel like some sort of inbox obligation. Not fun.

So I was so extremely delighted when kt introduced me to Bloglovin! Have you heard? It's a similar feed, but it nicely integrates all the latest posts in time sequence, plus gives you a preview pic right on your screen. It seems especially designed for me. Don't get me wrong--I still love hopping directly to blogs as much as possible to take in the full effect, but let's be real, there's no way you can do it all, every day.

I've only just added a handful of blogs, but already, I am in love. Off to add some more!

cheap thrills

Hello sweet friends. Can you believe it is December? I'm so excited that this season of celebration + reflection on Jesus' coming is here once again. This year I'm wishing for a scaled-back Christmas. We're trying to get back to the basics around here and start some simple traditions that are meaningful for our family and dodge some of the consumerism and hustle+bustle that is, let's face it, consuming our culture. More on my gift mantra soon, but for now, I just wanted to share some of my latest treasures. Confession: I did step into 2 stores on Black Friday. Both were thrift stores with some A-mazing ugly sweater collections, which are fabulous entertainment in-and-of themselves. I digress.

Two and a half bucks later, I found:
a lovely rippled plate with aqua edges
a handful of chipboard Victorian ornaments (the gnome is my favorite!)
one bedazzled felt ornament
and one pretty peach bud vase

Hands down my best Black Friday deals ever.
Don't miss out on this week's giveaway!

the granny garage

It seems that I hit the mother of all garage sales this weekend, the grand finale to garage sale season in Minnesota. Let's face it, most g sales are at best, 75% garbage, 25% treasures...This particular one was 100% fabulous granny chic. I seriously could have filled an entire truck with goodies. Err...I nearly did. The 80-something year old woman holding the sale told me that this was her 63rd! 6-3! I don't even know if I've been to 63 garage sales in my entire lifetime. I give this sweet woman props.

There, I scored 2 beautiful vintage table cloths, two funky gold frames (which I've already spray painted white), a 50-cent pearl ring, and not one, but four of those glorious chairs. I truly just bargained for one, but she insisted upon selling them as a set. $20 for 4 chairs that hold such lavish potential? Why not. I have big plans to reupholster the seats with mod fabric and spray paint their pretty little backs with a statement color. Perhaps aqua blue? Suggestions?

And this, my friends, is the perfect example of why thrifting is such highly addictive behavior. You just never know when you'll stumble upon the most serendipitous sale.

latest treasures:

Ahh, I love the crisp, sunny, fall feeling day outside.
As promised, am finally sharing a few of my latest + greatest vintage treasures from last weekend's Junk Bonanza.
I brought home some goodies for the whole fam:
1. A vintage ring for me. How fun is this? I don't buy jewelry often enough! Definitely need more where this came from.2. A reel of super 8 film for Jeffrey.
3. And a horse for the boy (the ride made complete with the mama's cell phone).

mara-mi

One of my big to-dos over the summer was to spend an afternoon in Stillwater--a darling old-fashioned town along the Mississippi River. Its downtown is lined with antiques and cute shops where all the vintage goodies and small-town charm are enough to paint a smile on your face and put a spring in your step...but adding Mara-Mi's new store into the mix makes this place heaven on earth. The folks at Mara-Mi combined their beautiful stationery line, racks of letterpress, ribbon hanging from the ceiling, along with home decor, a counter of vintage jewelry and an adorable little bakery in the corner. If that's not enough, they have an entire smorgasbord of ice cream to top it all off. All the things that make my heart go pitter-pat under one roof.

hunt & gather

The prettiest place I ever sipped a glass of raspberry lemonade was in my own backyard, on my sweet new retro patio set. I scored all 4 pieces for just $30 yesterday afternoon at Hunt & Gather, the hippest antique store imaginable in S. Minneapolis. The collections here will seriously knock your socks off. Every booth there seems to be extremely well-edited and inspiring.

I always saw myself as more of a rod iron, French-bistro style kinda girl. But lately I find myself gravitating toward these great retro, granny-style items. Watching your own tastes change over time is half the fun, don't you think?

I thought for sure Jeff would hate this quirky set and all its blue floral splendor...But instead he surprised me with an "awesome, thanks!" when I arrived home and we pulled the prize out of the trunk together. And that, my friends, is why I love him and I love sipping lemonade here with him, no matter what decade it is.

imagination vacation

August, already? My oh my. Not sure what's come over me, but I'm feeling a little blue about the fact that we have no vacation plans whatsoever this summer. (Err, not counting a quick weekend to visit granny & gramps.) It has nothing to do with the fact that we are flat broke--we haven't even gone car camping since G rocked our world. We just haven't managed to make time.
Thanks to etsy, my travel bug bites have been soothed. I had great fun picking out some items reminiscent of a vintage road trip in my first ever treasury. Yep, the imagination vacation is sufficient for now. Isn't the 1982 Disney passport positively dreamy!?

pashmina

Now that we're getting more settled in, we've been trying to make an effort to get out and check out some of the local haunts. I know it's mid-summer, but still I couldn't pass up this up. I've always wanted a pashmina scarf and I found this cute+colorful one for cheeep at an indian textiles store in our neighborhood while on our way to grab dinner at a great taqueria. All of the diversity + authentic ethnic businesses are one of the great perks of big city life.

P.S. I have a confession to make regarding yesterday's post. The walls of my craft room may have been a bit fabricated. They are in actuality as boring beige as that above. (This photo was taken in the same room.) I always run my images through photoshop before blogging them and I may have tweaked a little too much wishful thinking into the shots. Everyone had such sweet things to say about my wall color and a wave of guilt came over me. Forgiveness? There is a happy ending: I had been scheming on painting the room a pretty aqua blue, but now I'm considering a real blush pink. I hadn't thought of that!

if you would like to brighten my hours

Today it's 60 degrees and drizzling--I believe for the 7th day in a row. We are cooped up inside with heaps of laundry and messy floors. A classic murky Monday. But I'm happy to report that thanks to this new doodle quote in my window, I'm not feeling nearly as gloomy inside as out. This cardboard masterpiece was one of my absolute favorite little treasures found at Farm Chicks, made by Krys at Hutch Studio. Her art is so serene and magical. I'm really excited to hear she'll be here in MN for the Creative Connection in September. What's getting you through your Monday?

my first toms

I'd been scheming on a pair for a while now, but I just slipped on my first pair of TOMS this week with an entirely clean conscience. You see, for every pair sold, TOMS One for One campaign donates a pair to a child in need. My feet could not be happier about that. Super comfy and cute for spring, I plan on wearing my TOMS baby chasing...check out how others are wearing them. {My favorite is the row of bridesmaids sporting yellow TOMS. Could not be more awesome.}

spring bling

Welcome Spring! You've been on my mind so much lately...It's about time you finally came around. I even went to the store today intending to pick up some flowers to celebrate your arrival...but was gently reminded just how much bouquets can cost this time of year in Minnesota. Drag.

So instead I planned to treat myself to a lil' somethin from the new Liberty of London line at Target. All of those vintage floral prints had me at hello. Judging from all the buzz in blogland, I'm apparently not the only girl who is head-over-heels obsessed with the new blooms either. Please don't laugh, but I seriously wandered around the store hunting for every end cap and flowery display, trying to decide what one thing I needed most. Ok, laugh. That was ridiculous. I just could not get enough!!Though I would happily have bought it all, I settled on this, my own loose interpretation of aforementioned flowers, something I can really justify putting money into. (Ouch, that was lame!) All of its floral splendor spurred a thorough spring cleaning in my purse. While tossing receipts and wiping out Cheerio dust were long overdue, they were not nearly as overdue as swapping the wallet itself. You see, I'd had the same boring brown leather one since high school (embarrassing) and it was high high time to appoint its replacement.

Three cheers for the new pretty pansies in my purse.

notes to my spring-fever self:

: just finished a fun weekend of power shopping with my mom. my head is still spinning with pastels and open toed shoes. spring is definitely in the air.: consider splurging on this necklace. i searched all weekend to find its slightly cheaper counterpart, but to no avail. i have the biggest crush on this and can't get it outta my head. plus i have a hunch that it might perfectly complement my new target dress.
: craft g a lil' monkey outfit half as cute as this mini boden t. sidenote: his 1st birthday is right around the corner. the theme: Curious Graham and the Big Birthday Bash. in honor of the real Curious George and our very own mini monkey man. the plans are beginning to swirl in my head...the excuse to plan a little party is keeping my sappy, sentimental self from completely mourning the fact that my sweet bundle of joy is becoming a real little boy.
: convince jeff to wear coordinating Man in Yellow hat costume.
: meanwhile, i the party planner, will wear this to the 1st birthday bash. (no need to overdo the monkey business.)
: embrace the ruffles, flowers, and superfluous ribbons on clothing + accessories everywhere. if ever there was a trend i swear was invented just for me, it's this one. i am loving the girly-girlness in every store. it's a wonderful thing. i simply can't get enough.: swim season is just around the corner. resist temptation. wait to buy this beauty of a bathing suit on sale. in the mean time, must do more sit-ups and eat less chocolate.

the latest vintage gems

The sun is shining, the snow is melting, and I am glad to report that a delightful little thing called spring may be just around the corner. It's about time. Happy March everyone! It's high time I report on some of my latest vintage gems. I picked up all of the above linens at an estate sale in Spokane, with the exception of the pink+red tablecloth (front right). That lady was a splurge ($15) at an antique store, but I simply could not pass it up. It's still in mint condition and has Valentine's Day tea party or summer luncheon scribbled all over it. The quirky crocheted place mats were the runners up in my heart. Aren't they fun? My how the stash is expanding!
Also could not pass up this nifty little globe. {I realize I am totally jumping on the bandwagon as an antique globe collector. But everyone needs just one or two. They are seriously so awesome.} Now that the equator is glued back into place, we can all breathe easy and enjoy a snippet of geographical history:
Italian East Africa.
Tanganyika.
Hadhramaut.
French Equatorial Africa.
According to my Wikipedia calculations, this globe must be from the late 1930s.
The globe has found its new home resting atop toy land in our living room. On a slight tangent, this cubical book shelf is my attempt to maintain order and aesthetic in the whirlwind that is the world we share with 10.5 month old Mr. G. Here's to a slightly more organized home. {Inspired by Jordan and Emily.} And last but not least, I scored this killer teal tea cup + saucer. Amazing way to usher in jelly bean season, don't you think?

prop shop

Now that the biz is officially official with Uncle Sam, we've been having a ball shopping+stocking up on a few props. Last weekend, we discovered the Haupt Antiek Market in Apple Valley and hoped to stumble upon some vintage goodness that would look great in photos, but would also look great errr "stored" around the house. I'm not sure why I hadn't heard of this place before (my mom just mentioned it to me), but it just made rockin' the suburbs 100% cooler. The market is only open 4 days per month and each month they cycle in entirely new items and displays. Each room is thoughtfully laid out with well selected goods. It's a really delightful experience. I am giddy to see what they have in store in February. Come visit me and I'll take you there! Anyway, we scored this awesome aqua enamelware basin. I want to paint every wall in my house this exact same color. And as G would attest, it is perfect for baby bath photos!! We also brought home the perfect rusty rustic little red wagon. I have big plans for it once the weather warms up! Lastly, I couldn't resist picking up this little magnet+chalkboard for my craft room. It's just a vintage metal tray painted with chalkboard paint. The hard-core crafter in me realizes that this would be a simple DIY project, but the realist in me knows it would take forever to actually get around to it, and the shopper in me demands instant gratification. So I happily purchased it and supported its maker. After all, it would be too tough to top the gold motif painted arond the edges and its pièce de résistance: a pink ceramic flower magnet made from an old brooch. You can never have too many chalkboards, right?

getting thrifty

September is here with a bang. We've been having cooler weather here and it's beginning to feel a lot like fall. Ready or not, here it comes. As you can see, last weekend's garage sales treated me so well! I couldn't believe my eyes when I found this beautiful hand-stitched antique quilt. Am so in love with every bit of fabric, the pattern, and the colors! So much in love that it inspired me to {finally} change up the blog banner around here. I have zero graphic design skills, so it's always a project. :)I also picked up some dandy little milk glass dishes and a couple of pretty vintage linens. Very fun!

born again thrifter

True confession: I've never been much of a garage sale queen. In the past, the mere thought of a second-hand shopping spree would leave me cowering with the urge to scrub my hands and sanitize my clothes. Not that I've never visited my local thrift stores or scoured over Craigslist. It's just that consignment stores and clearance racks were not my forte. I found the chaos of unwanted, surplus, and used items to be completely overwhelming to say the least.

But that was then, and this is now. I am officially coming out of the closet and proclaiming myself to be a born again thrifter. Second-hand, reused, re-purposed, rediscovered, vintage, antique, you name it, I appreciate it. The past year has really changed my perspective on the value of stuff.

Exhibit A: Martha Stewart Crafts glitter + cards kit, clearance aisle

Some of this stems from Graham's entrance in the world. Kids gear is soo spendy! Once I found his nursery furniture on Craigslist, I was on fire. Yesterday I visited my first kiddy-consignment shop and left with a grin. I'm officially hooked. I found the most darling down jacket and snowpants that will fit him perfectly this winter! Bring on the Minnesota snowstorms, we will be set.

But the thrifting bug bit epecially hard when our budget shrank like my pre-Graham jeans. Leaving cosmopolitan San Francisco, its outrageously-inflated standard of living, and our dual full-time incomes and moving to rural Minnesota jobless has been a dramatic lifestyle change, to say the least. (Not jobless for long--more details soon!) Not to mention, we're house shopping, and all of our loose change is being stashed in the down payment fund. :)

Exhibit B: Antique immigrants' trunk spied at an estate sale $40

Plus, thrifting has become just plain chic. In a culture where it's hip to go green, in an economy where it's wise to pinch pennies, and a society where things sold at Wal-Mart and Ikea are designed to last maybe 5 years, it's a smart choice to reevaluate what is truly needful and make an effort to live a bit more simply. Packing up and moving sooo many boxes made me feel completely disgusting and materialistic. Pretty sure we could live without 80% of that stuff.

Exhibit C: Giant shoebox of rick rack, every size, every color. Thanks to this find at a g-sale, I'll never have to run to the craft store or pay full price ever again.:)

To me, it's exciting to live for less, not to mention addictive. Finding a bargain gives me such a rush. You just never know what treasures are in store. In the right circles, thrifting stories can be like fishing stories. Soon everyone will be getting together to score bragging rights about who found the biggest deal for the smallest price. So go forth, get your thrift on. There are deals to be scored and cash to be saved!

best of berkeley

Last Saturday I met up with my friend Becca in Berkeley for a girlfriendly adventure. We spent the afternoon sauntering around in the Elmwood district, enjoying lunch, perfect sunshine, and happened upon a few of the most delightful places on earth:
We stopped in at Ici for dessert. We knew this place was worth checking out, after seeing a line of 15+ people out its door at any given time of day. {What more advertising does a business need!?} And it's true, this place is the real deal indeed. Our short wait in line was beyond worthwhile. Their ever-changing menu offers 11+ different flavors (like burnt caramel, saffron, or meyer's lemon sorbet) by the scoopful every day. And if one of these does not tickle your fancy, they also have the most amazing ice cream sandwiches, bon bons, and bombes in store. Of course everything is handmade with sustainable, local ingredients, and at a surprisingly affordable price. Swoon! If only I could spend the rest of my days inside their cooler. Seriously, when in Berkeley, this place is a must-stop!We also strolled into one of the most enchanting shops you could ever imagine; the Tail of the Yak {photo found here, and more lovely photos here!}. This place is a true feast for the senses. Its owners have collected some of the most unique+beautiful little novelties from every corner of the earth. Ribbons, papers, trinkets, dishes, art, chandeliers, jewelry, you name it. And perhaps the most breathtaking display: The doves. Yes, beautiful white doves, nesting in a 6' wooden cage draped with beautiful satin ribbon. This is the stuff dreams are made of! We were just lost in the magic of it all. I ended up buying 3 of these {antique repro?} German Easter eggs. They look so sweet on my coffee table!