Treasure Box Wednesday: Flowers, Feathers and Fairytale Finds

Chintz: (noun) a usually glazed, printed cotton fabric.

Chintzy: (adjective) Gaudy, cheap... or stingy.


This weekend, I'm proud to say... I was one, while I bought the other.

The chintz first comes to play here...


With this cheap and cheerful Shabby Chic style flower printed shower curtain. I got this from the Red, White & Blue thrift store in Bellevue. I was chintzy, because I only paid a couple of bucks.

I was chintzy again here, with these charming little vases I found at the brand-new St. Vincent de Paul in Castle Shannon...



I also found a No Doubt CD there for $0.99--- though I have no doubt you don't really need to see a photo of that.

For those of you who haven't been to the new St. Vincent yet, by the way, it was a really nice store, clean, well-lit and spacious. And just down the road from the Pittsburgh Antique Shops, so convenient, too!

At the Red White and Blue on Route 51, I found some vintage pottery planters...


The one on the left is interesting to me, because I'd thrifted one like this but with a tiny bear cub on it once. I might do a display with them for Fall.

And this large trunk isn't mine-- it's my friend Scoobie's. But she found this on a thrifting adventure of her own and because it was such an amazing buy, I asked her if I could take pics and share it with you today...


I believe she said she'd found it at a St. Vincent de Paul in Apollo, and when she first saw the price, she thought it read $20... and then realized the decimal point was in the wrong place for that...


Her total came to $2.12. Yup, for a vintage steamer trunk.

I told her you all would probably be pretty excited about that kind of find!

And before we go today, I wanted to show you some minor decorating photos, just to balance things out. The birdcage I'd had on the mantle in early spring is here now, in the entryway...



The aqua coordinates pretty darned well with other things in this room. And my bird friends still look pretty content, if perplexed at the change of venue...


Then I started noodling with my mantle again. This time using... see, we're tying it in with the beginning of the post again, now... chintz!


When I'd first started decorating, I was all over the chintz plates and cups. Also, there was a Royal Albert outlet not too far from me, where I used to clean up on closeouts. A very dangerous prospect!

Well, eventually the outlet closed, time passed, things got moved around, and I downgraded some items in my glassware collection. And I almost got rid of these, because, though I loved them... did I really need them?

Until I made myself sort of sad about the whole thing. I mean, after all, I was cleaning out. Not mortally wounded and ready to snuff it.

So, I kept them. And I'm very glad I did.


Funny how a few flowered plates, a couple of fairy figurines and a storybook from Half Price Books can do the trick to cheer up a room.

But then again, funny how a simple rose in a pretty glass can do a lot for the morale, too.


I wish you could smell its heavy perfume. It about knocked me over as I knelt to take the photo.

• If you missed Sunday's post, taking an in-depth look at the decorating on period film sets, click here.

Otherwise, have a great week, and don't forget to take time to stop and smell the flowers. (Or be chintzy.) :)