Four Words...

City. Wide. Yard. Sale.

This year Morro Bay's annual city wide yard sale boasted over 125 sales! It's a little overwhelming (so many sales, so much competition), a little frustrating (think traffic jams on residential streets) and really, really awesome! Our plan was to systematically work our way through the town until we could yard sale no more and I think we did pretty good. We found some really great treasures and only spent $15!

The metal "Public Telephone" sign was our first buy. It's double sided and in great condition. I originally planned on putting it above our phone (where else) but after doing some research, found out they sell on ebay for around $80 and up! Im tempted to sell it but will probably end up keeping it.

The little orange jug fits in perfectly with my growing collection of pottery pieces. The yellow cream and sugar are California Pottery from the flea market ($1!) and the little teapots are actually salt and pepper shakers.

The yellow pyrex bowl and the metal chair came from the same barn sale. It was my favorite kind of sale - where you have to dig through piles of junk to find the treasures. It makes me feel like I'm on American Pickers. I love the condition of the chair and wouldn't change a thing. We also got a few unexciting, utilitarian household items (including a free full size, lidded rubbermaid garbage can perfect for recycling).

This is a vintage aluminum foil/ wax paper/ paper towel dispenser. Its three serrated doors flip open and inside are curved trays to rest the rolls in. Its wall mountable and a great way to free up drawer and counter space. I really love it but unfortunately I don't have the right kitchen decor to go with the chrome and it comes across a little too much like a towel dispenser in a public bathroom. As you can see in the first picture, it was in rough shape but I got to shine like new by rubbing it down with a piece of balled up aluminum foil. I had read about this trick when I was researching how to restore my vintage suitcase. I was a little skeptical but it works like a charm!

All in all, it was a perfect weekend :)

Linking up to Her Library Adventure's 'Flea Market Finds' and Apron Thrift Girl's 'Thrift Share Monday'!

Wine Bottle Lamp

Remember how I needed a clear glass lamp but didn't need the $200 (and up) price tag? Well, I decided I just couldn't wait for one to show up at the Goodwill and that I would just go ahead and make my own.

This is what my lamp started its life as:

Thanks for selflessly taking care of the wine Dad!

And this is what I ended up with:

Who needs Pottery Barn?!

Home Depot has lamp making kits for $9.97 that include three sizes of stoppers to fit different bottle openings. The largest size was just a little too small for my bottle, so I wrapped it with a couple of layers of painters tape and now it is a perfectly snug fit. Putting together the electrical components was fairly simple and there are step-by-step instructions on the packaging. All you need is a small screwdriver. The lamp shade was $12.99 at Target.

Ta-Da!

My cute little owl is actually a bank from Urban Outfitters (originally $8.00). I got it at Goodwill for $0.99 :)

Linking up to Funky Junk Interiors 'Saturday Nite Special' !

Chair Makeover

It's been awhile since I've had a good before and after to put up here! I bought this vintage sewing chair at the Goodwill for $5.25. Its seat lifts up and there's a secret compartment underneath. It was in good shape to start with, just not my style of fabric. This was my first reupholstery attempt.... I think Im in love with my staple gun.

before

after

Linking up to Miss Mustard Seed's 'Furniture Feature Friday'!

One Woman's Trash......

On Saturday, while Will and I were on our way to a yard sale in Morro Bay, I spotted this mirror in a pile of garbage on the curb! There was a man with a weed wacker working in the yard so I yelled at him to get his attention and asked if they were really throwing this away. He said that the house was being cleaned out and I was more than welcome to take it. I was really excited because Ive actually been needing a full length mirror for a long time. The amazing thing about this mirror is that the glass is in perfect condition, not a single nick or crack. All it needed was a little sprucing up. I painted it this morning (coincidentally the color is called 'Morro Bay') and glued some heavy, silver wrapping paper in the inset panels for some extra pop.

An Ebay update: last week we hit the jackpot when we scored 3 camera lens at a yard sale for $20 dollars. Today my auction went off and I sold two of the lenses for a combined $139! I also got $20 for a messenger bag that I bought for $5. Yard sales were slow this weekend and I mainly bought things for myself but I still have some cool things to put on ebay from last week including several sets of vintage souvenir coasters.

A beautiful Sunday in Los Osos

New Chairs

I just picked up these chairs here in Los Osos for free! Thank you Craigslist. The cushions were extremely gross (they had thicker cushions for the back and seat) and immediately thrown away. I imagine these have been sitting in someone's "man cave" or garage for awhile. I don't love the oak wood grain or color BUT I do love the shape of these chairs. I plan on painting the wood and making new cushions with a cool graphic print. Designspongeonline.com has some awesome before and afters that have me inspired.

I've also been inspired to start making some different things to sell at local craft fairs around the holidays. So far I've made a bunch of 'coffee cuffs' and some christmas stockings. Next on the list are oven mitts and aprons. I'm trying to use fun, colorful, retro prints and stay away from the tackier side of crafting. It can be a fine line. It would be great to make some extra money around the holidays but either way it's fun.

... and if my craft business is a bust, I can always stick to gourd farming.

My Rule....

... never pay more than $20 for a piece of furniture! Unless it's something incredibly spectacular of course. I found this table at the flea market last Sunday (yes, the flea market is my second home). It was only $5.00!

I love the caning and the 'mid-century' design. When I got it home I discovered that it is a really high quality piece from Lane furniture. The serial number on the bottom tells me it was made in 1961. The caning on the bottom was in perfect condition and all it took to restore the top was some light sanding, a few coats of Tung oil and paste wax.

I am so happy how this turned out. It is a perfect piece to go in front of our love seat. I'm going to be on the look out for some vintage coasters to complete the look :)
Working on my new table got me inspired to finally finish my side table. The whole project was a good introduction to refinishing and I like how it turned out. It's hard to tell from the picture but it has an ebony stain that lets the wood's grain show through nicely. Now I just need to figure out where to put it!

Projects in the Works....

So far I have six squares done and I am still not sure what its going to turn into. On good days: a queen size quilt. On bad days: a series of pot holders :)

Table update: this is not paint...it's furniture stripper. I HATE furniture stripper. The stripper is now gone (thank god) and I am getting ready to stain.
We are being run out of the house by rocks! Every trip to the beach results in pockets (and sometimes bags) full of rocks. This is our first batch into the tumbler and they turned out beautiful. I'm hoping that with a few more supplies I can start turning our piles of rocks into beautiful pieces of jewelry!

My Next Project

I got this end table today at the San Luis Obispo flea market for $5. Don't worry, I'm not going to paint it turquoise :)

Craigslist Nightstand

I got this nightstand for free on craigslist in Morro Bay! All it cost me was some sample size paint from Ace Hardware (Turquoise Bay and Warm Scones). I sanded it and did two coats of each color. The handle was originally painted a brass color and was covered in grime but some steel wool cleaned it up really nice! I am really happy with the way it turned out and now have the urge to paint all my furniture turquoise.....

Before

After

Before
After