My little green apple

I buy a lot of junk.  There, I said it!

I have big plans of refurbishing, or painting, or upcycling.  The treasures sit in a box until I get sick of them being there, and donate them back to the thrift store I bought them from.  Still, at least the money goes to charity.  So on Saturday I paid a visit to the Jimmy Hale thrift store in Irondale. 

I picked up a few knickknack bowls, a planter and a couple of plates.  I also bought what I thought was an apple sponge holder (yeah, classy, I know!).

 

The weird thing was, the opening faced up. Hmmm, not very convenient for easy access to my sponge, but for 99c, I bought it. 

I always like to come home and search my purchases on eBay and Etsy to see if I've struck gold.  The plates were going for a whopping $5 on Etsy ($4.50 profit, woo hoo!), but I couldn't find the apple.  I was starting to think maybe it was a tea light holder.  I Googled pottery apple, and I couldn't believe it when this popped up:

Turns out my little green apple sponge holder wasn't a sponge holder or a tea light holder at all, but a vase designed by Henry Booth for Bretby Art Pottery, around 1890!  What!!!!  1890 - that's ye olde Sherlock Holmes type stuff!!  And there's not a crack on it (although the thrift store did kindly write the price on the side!).  Jeez, don't these people know an antique when they see one :-)

My very own Ozzy the Owl!

Early retirement here I come!!

Green space

When we said we wanted a garden we didn't mean a bloomin' forest!  No really, the trees in our back garden are HUGE!  So huge that the Direct TV man refused to set us up as we wouldn't be able to get any reception.  U-Verse to the rescue!!

There is a little sliver of grass where the sun breaks through the leaves. 

And we have ivy.  A lot of ivy. 

Otherwise known as the chipmunks playground. 

The positive is that the garden is flat, a great size and completely fenced.  We've been advised to have some of the trees cut in winter when it is cheapest.  We'd also love to grow some fruit and veg (though those pesky chipmunks may have other plans!).

This will be a seriously looong term project!

Orla, is that you?

My slight obsession with Orla Kiely continues.  We managed to squeeze in a visit to the London flagship store a couple of weeks ago.  It looked fantastic on the inside.  I would have taken some pics, but the snooty man shadowing my every move put me off!

Anywho, on a recent trip to Kirklands I spied this hidden gem.

Orla Kiely for $20 (actually $15 with an in-store special), don't mind if I do.  It really is all in the styling - I can't see Orla going for a plastic plant and crap props for her packaging!  Maybe she forgot to copyright her pattern, or maybe Kirklands are holding Orla hostage and forcing her to make cheap lampshades?  What I do know is that I scored a complete bargain.

And here is the real deal, taken at the Orla Kiely flagship store in London (by someone braver than me!).  I'm pretty sure they were kicked out shortly after taking this.

And we're back!

We took a couple of weeks off from home improvements to head home for a visit.  Now we're back and it's full steam ahead.  The countdown to P-day (parents arriving for their first visit to the new house) is officially on.  7 weeks and counting!

We're still working on the kitchen - will it even be finished!!??  And I've been in a picture hanging frenzy.

I hung the first pictures in the second guest room. 

These were cheapo frames from Michaels and a $5 scrap booking pad from Big Lots.  I picked the pages with the patterns and colours I liked the most. What took the most time was hanging the frames so they were evenly spaced (maths hell!!).

I finally hung the London Underground map I'd framed a couple of weeks ago.  The print is wrapping paper, and was only $3.95 (www.paper-source.com).

It's hanging right above the sofa in the living room.

Below are the three pics I've hung in the dining room.  These have been up for a while and are, surprise surprise, more wrapping paper!  What can I say, it's just such good value!

Pirch on the porch

I can't believe we have been in our new pad for over a month.  It feels like we have accomplished so much but there is still a whole load more to do.  In just a month, we have gone from this:

To this:

Ok, so it looks exactly the same from the outside, but we have made lots of changes on the inside!

One of the things that drew us to our house is the curb appeal.  The front porch that runs the full length of the house could will be a perfect spot to watch the world go by.

I've had a peek at the neighbours, and adding a few pieces of furniture seems to be safe.  I don't want some pikey trying to nick our stuff!

I'm thinking hanging baskets, maybe a couple of rockers or a bench, and some nice planters on each side of the door. 

I've ordered the house numbers in the pic below from Pottery Barn (super sale and free shipping, jackpot!).  And I'll be scouring the thrift stores in the next couple of weeks to track down some rockers.

Watch this space!

Oh Deer

I am officially jumping on the stags head bandwagon (sounds uncomfortable!).

I'm not too keen on a beady eyed woodland creature looking down on me while I eat my tea, so I've gone for the silhouette variety.

This was the easiest thing to make.  I Googled "stag head silhouette", printed it out, traced it out on the black paper and cut around the outline with my Xacto knife.  Cream paper underneath, stick it in a frame and I was done.  Jobs a good'un.

Kate

xxx

 

See more crafty ideas HERE

Have a seat

I've been in search of a desk chair for a few weeks (I'm also in search of a desk!), so when I saw this one on Craigslist for cheapo I snapped it up.

The blue bed sheet upholstery and slightly battered appearance aren't exactly what I had in mind.  But with my newly acquired spray painting skills (watch out Banksy) I am up for the challenge.

I'm planning on painting it white and then reupholstering it in some kind of funky fabric.  It will eventually be in the living room.  These are my options so far:

Robert Allen Jacquard Ikat

Braemore Emperor's Garden

Waverly Santa Maria Desert Flower

Swavelle/Mill Creek Glamis Oasis

Now all I need to do is get on with it!