Treasure Box Wednesday: Pastels, Prints and Posies

A quick trip through one of my favorite local thrifting routes brought a few nice vintage surprises I wanted to share with you.

It was an early start, and one of the places closest to home wasn't going to be open yet. So I popped by Rossi's Pop-up Flea Market in North Versailles. Which presented a purchase of such pleasing proportions I could not pass...

I'm guessing the courting couple there in this 30s romantic print may be Romeo and Juliet-- before the downer ending. The landscape has a bit of Italian flair to me. What do you think?

At the L&L Fleatique, I got this pretty but watermarked print by Annie Benson Miller...
It was framed and extremely inexpensive because of the damage. Yet, I know I can either add a little bit of matte, or hang it with a vintage scarf dangling off one side, and the soft aesthetics of the piece won't be ruined a bit!

I just thought the imagery was charming, and the size of the piece is quite large.
Folks who read Sunday's post know I got a little haul on Hull pottery... With the two pieces on the left...
And lastly, the day was sweetened by an iridized pink candy dish. I love the creamy color to the pink. And as fall sets in, and gloom overcomes the Pittsburgh region, I tell you, I can use all the sparkle I can get.
Wishing you a week that is easy on the eyes, the nerves and the wallet, as we wave a fond farewell to the summer season.

Treasure Box Wednesday: For the Love of a Desk

I had no sooner set foot in the St. Vincent de Paul thrift store in Monroeville, when my eyes fell upon the desk of my dreams. Not that I'd actually been dreaming about it, per se... I mean, I didn't know something quite so weird and wonderful would have existed...

But this carved ladies writing desk, with storage inside, was too unusual to pass up... I notified the cashier right away that it would be coming home with me, before any interlopers put a crimp in my future desk adoration.

As you can probably see, it's got some issues. Scratches and gouges to the finish, and some loose legs indicate a good suring-up and possibly a finish job in its near future. I'm debating painting it cream and using it in my blue room, where the courting couple designs would be wonderfully at home...

But it's a tough call. I think given its life hardships, I probably wouldn't be devaluing anything important by doing so. But neither do I want to slap paint on something I really shouldn't.

In terms of date, I'm thinking it may be from the Depression era. The lady pictured here in the center appears, if I'm not mistaken, to be wearing a 20s/30s sort of hat, along with bob hair...
I love the almost art-nouveau fluidity of the lines around the top.

Anyway, while it may seem anticlimactic after the desk, I also found some vintage tins this week. There were quite a few of them at the Goodwill on Carson Street in the Southside, and stylistically, they all seemed to be of one person's collection. I relieved them of three in the aqua and pink color palette...
Anyway, they'll be nice for gifting. Pretty on the outside, and containing goodies therein! (Also, I won't have to wrap things... which is a gift in itself because I'm lousy at it, and avoid wrapping at all costs.)

So that's today's Treasure Box Wednesday.

• If you missed Sunday's post on funny knitwear photos, click here.

And I hope to see you this coming Sunday for more nifty thrifty fun!

From Empty to French and Shabbily Romantic in a Day

Those of us thrifty folks do ourselves a serious service by planning ahead. I knew there would come a day when the friend who was renting from me would be able to purchase a home of her own and the extra bedroom she occupied would be a blank canvas once more.

Well, almost blank, anyway...
With just a few remaining things to pick up and take to her nifty new digs, boy was I glad I had developed a plan for the blue room long ago! And even gladder was I that I'd tucked some things aside as I'd found them, to decorate it.

The theme? A shabby chic old world French feel.. A bit pastoral, a bit faded, soft and lush and relaxing... A place a person could come sit and read a book, play some music, or paint.

Here you see a last framed artwork that needs to find its way to my former housemate, and a ladder waiting for me to hang some drapes...
The stack of prints below are from my own hallway. I'd taken them down so the movers could get through easily. They'll go back to their places shortly. They won't live here.

Here is my old black Ikea couch, brought up from the livingroom when the red velvet vintage-style sofa I'd thrifted recently took its place. This black sofa's going to get cover-up job done to it shortly. (Apologies for the photographed spheres... too much dust there for a second!)
The cover you see below was one I bought from the Salvation Army thrift store years ago and tucked away for just this occasion. It's got an elaborate pastoral scene on it, chock filled with minstrels and courting couples. I hadn't seen anything quite like it, but thought it would come in handy...

You can se the figures up close better here, with this romantic couple...

And here, with these instrumentalists...To cover the arms, I had a vintage pink burnout velvet futon cover I'd also thrifted some time ago...
It looks a lot pinker here in the photos, for some reason. It's actually a rather faded soft pink, like the dresses in the pastoral cover.

Here you can see I put up some curtains. I'd gotten these two years ago from TJ Maxx, at $16.00 a set, valences and tasseled tie-backs included!...

Here you can see the cherub and lady painting, which had been in my entrway downstairs, got moved to an appropriate placement between the windows, against the flow of light...

The music cabinet underneath it had had an unfortunate mishap when I'd moved it. The momentum of the cabinet door swung the door right off its hinges, pulling the screws away from the soft pine piece. A sad thing, naturally, and I cursed myself a bit over it. But I think I can fix it. It's really the right height and size for the area.

This French tapestry chair was a Salvation Army find too, about four years ago. It was just waiting to come into the blue room!

And you can see it coming together so far...
This large Italian tapestry will soon hang over the couch. This was-- probably not surprising to you-- a Salvation Army find, as well!...

The frame is quite scratched, so I think I'll gold leaf it so it will match the other frames in the room.

I also have some small lyre endtables, a desk, and a couple of vintage lamps that will find a home here.

I hope you folks enjoyed the little preliminary tour. Knowing your taste, developing a plan, and having a lot of patience is a great way to decorate a room with interesting items-- and not a lot of money.

• If you missed last week's Treasure Box Wednesday, Rainy Days and Roses, click here.

If not, I should have some other goodies to share with you this coming Wednesday. I hope you'll pop by to see what awaits.

Treasure Box Wednesday: Thrifted and Wired

No, no, no... Don't worry-- the lamps above aren't mine. They'll be heading off with my bud Scoobie, as she moves into her new house early next month!

Ah, but they needed rewiring first and a bit of TLC. And, since you all probably know by now how I have Lamp Addiction, I was more than happy to take a little time to help them work and look their best.

The green luster lamp with the courting couple scene was something Scoobie had gotten at Construction Junction for $5. Structurally, it was in pretty good condition, but the more I got to looking at it, I didn't care for how mottled and rusted its base was...


So after rewiring it, I busted out a nice shade of gold leaf paint, and gave it a careful coating! Looks much cleaner and fresher, no?...

Normally, I don't mess with the metal bases unless they're really looking poorly. Generally, I like the more worn, vintage patina to them. But in this case, I think the gold leaf was the right decision. Here you can see the full lamp...


And here you can see the lamp trio I rewired that day. Now all Scoobie will need to complete the look is a couple of cheerful shades! (Oh, and to close on her house next week. Y'know, those piddly things...)

At the Salvation Army thrift store this week, speaking of these courting couple items, I'd uncovered this red tin bowl. This'll be headed off to Scoobie's new place, too-- possibly to hang out with the lamps...

Sort of an early housewarming!

And then this, this is for me...
Just a cute little vintage Valentine's Day figurine I'll use in my holiday display in February. Hey, when you thrift, it's always good to think ahead!

And that about wraps up this week's Treasure Box.

• If you didn't get to check out all the drama, the sweaters, and the angry, angry 60s skiiers of Sunday's "Slope Opera" post, click here for a bit of a chuckle.

And if you already did or you simply have to run, well, perhaps I'll see you on Sunday for something new! Take care!

Sweet on Decorative Tins

I believe in decorative tins. At one time, they held English toffees, nuts, cookies or maybe even Aunt Mildred’s fruitcake. But these now-empty containers-- available at virtually any thrift shop-- can be a gift-giver’s dream.

I’m particularly grateful for them because, when it comes to wrapping presents, I am completely tape-and-scissors impaired. Too much paper, too little paper, bunched paper, over-taped paper… Most of the time, my finished packages look like they’ve been cobbled together by Dr. Frankenstein. And reanimation of the dead just doesn’t say “Gifting” to me.

But a nice tin looks good all by it’s little ol' self. And with a wide array of colors and patterns to choose from, the right tin can actually enhance a gift.

As for usefulness, once the gift is opened or used, the packaging is also ideal for storing loose change, paperclips, pencils, what-have-you. It’s a gift that keeps on giving, really.

So I try to pick up interesting-looking tins all year round. I look for different sizes and shapes-- you never know what size you’re going to need someday. And I won’t hesitate to buy a pretty Christmas tin in mid-July if I think I might be able to use it.

One particular brand of tins I find regularly is Daher. This was a Long Island New York company that manufactured tins in both England and Holland. They’re usually very colorful, often floral, and have an authentically vintage or retro look to them. The picture here is pretty representative of the later Daher tins.

When buying tins, make sure you open them up before you buy them, to verify that they’re in good condition. Some vintage tins may have been exposed to moisture over the years, and that moisture can corrode the metal. If you open the tin and discover significant rust, I would recommend avoiding that tin. It might be possible to treat it with a rust-preventing paint, but you run the risk of exposing your gift to rust, and given that most tins run in the fifty-cent to one dollar range, it may not be worth the effort.