collecting goods: books

i have been having some fun recently collecting these books.

they are condensed reader's digest books.

i really love all the different colors.

and the patterned paper on the covers.

i only buy the ones with cute patterns and good colors.

i have been finding them for $.25-$2.00 each.

at garage sales, thrift stores and antique malls.

right now they live in our guest room.

i think my mom might have actually read one the last time she was here.

i love that.

i will probably never read one.

but i love looking at the colors.

it's fun to have something to search for that is inexpensive.

have a great thursday!
~elisabeth



thrifty goods: a few recent finds

a few weeks ago my friend stephanie and i went on a thrifting adventure.

here are a few of the goodies i came home with:

this ottoman wasn't priced.

i asked the guy working and he said $5.

sold!

as you can see, the lovely pillow comes off.

it needs a bit of work.

a coat or two of paint and some new fabric.

i think it looks a bit like a cat bed.

i don't have a cat.

but if i did it would have a fab new bed!

i have no idea how or where this will be used.

but for $5,

who cares!

this mirror is by far the best thing i came home with.

it is solid and heavy!!!

i have an idea where i will use this.

i am thinking yellow.

it was $25.

as stephanie and i were heading out i spotted this sweet little yellow bowl.

no price.

i carried it up to the counter with me and sweetly asked the man working if he could just "throw it in" with the mirror.

he said yes!

it never hurts to ask.

isn't it pretty?

(the bowl. not my picture. horrible picture.)

two weekends ago i went to a garage sale and picked up this frame

for a buck.

it had cracked plastic and cardboard inside.

but i didn't care.

that stuff went in the trash.

(ha! i just noticed the distorted reflection of my legs in the plastic.

no, my feet aren't freakishly tall.)

just in case you didn't believe me...

i picked these sconces up at my favorite local thrift store.

i think they were $2.

they will definitely get a spray paint face lift.

and then, today.

ahhh today.

it started off pretty bad.

my youngest got sick in the car.

all over the car.

why do they make car seats so dang hard to clean?

poor thing.

poor mommy.

after cleaning out the car i left the windows cracked so it could air out.

i went inside to make sure my sick daughter was taken care of, washed her clothes, made lunch, etc.

all the while we are getting slammed with a major thunder storm.

for hours.

and hours.

i get in the car to take her to the dr. and the car is soaked!

ugh.

back inside for towels.

and dry pants.

silver lining?

we had an hour to kill before picking up my oldest from school.

not enough time to go home and get anything done.

sooooo, what are a couple of girls to do?

thrift store!

(by the way, everything checked out at the dr. she was feeling like a new lady at this point.)

i rarely look at clothes in thrift stores.

i am more of a furniture, fabric, odds-n-ends type person.

but today we had time to kill so why not?

boy i am glad i did!

check out what we found.

only the shiniest, most prettiest, most twirliest dress in the whole wide world!!!

and for $.99 at that!

i had never heard of the brand, marie chantal, but checked it out online when we got home.

this brand sells at saks in the three digits.

yikes!

and i couldn't resist this little number.

it's linen.

the brand is cottontail originals.

never heard of it.

it reminds me of something from olive juice.

of course, you know which one my little likes best, don't you??

we picked up a few more things today at the thrift store including

an oriental parasol $2.99,

a salor dress/costume for lucy $3.00, 

a mini speed racer lunch box $.99,

a bag of red craft pom poms $.99,

two large wood picture frames perfect for painting $2 ea.,

a grab bag of girls dress patterns $1.75,

i drove around the whole day with the back of my swagger wagon filled with good will donations,

but never got around to good will.

ironic.

hope you are having a great week!

~elisabeth

craig's goods: finally a deal in my town!

i don't know what it is about the area where i live in SC but people want a TON of money for antiques down here. i'm a girl who likes a bargain. a deal. a steal! i can appreciate that some people collect antiques and are willing to pay top dollar for a specific item. i am not that person. i love antiques. i grew up with them, have tons of them in my house, love to shop for them, look at them, search for them. but i don't and won't pay top dollar for them. since we've lived here i have been searching for an antique buffet like this one:

this one belongs to my friend kelly. she originally purchased it for her dining room but is now using it in her daughter's room. so versatile! isn't it lovely? i was smitten by it from the get go and have been searching ever since.

searching on craigslist in sc is sooo frustrating!!!! people are asking hundreds and hundreds of dollars for things and i keep thinking to myself, "WHO is buying this at THIS price???" "they are CRAZY!" now, i don't claim to be an expert on antiques. i know what i like and what looks good to me and what seems to be good quality. could it be that the people of my town are just selling more valuable stuff? maybe. all i know is that i am a frustrated craigslister. here is a little example of craigslist items in my town vs. ohio (ohio is where i am from and i often search the list there in the hopes that if i find something wonderful my lovely mother will go and fetch it for me. i often do and she often does. thanks mom!)

SC steamer trunk $350

SC steamer trunk $450

ohio steamer trunk $150

SC wagon wheel $185

ohio wagon wheel $50

SC buffet $700

(it's not even perfect!)

ohio buffet $150

ohio buffet $100

SC buffet $1200

SC buffet $400

ohio buffet $125

ohio buffet $225

SC secretary $450

ohio secretary $150

SC settee+ two matching chairs $1095

ohio settee $250

see what i mean? now like i said, these SC items may vary well be worth every penny they are listed for but what's the fun in that??? i want a DEAL! that's what craig is for after all, right? well, just when i had about given up on my town's craigslist i found this beauty...

guess how much i paid?

$125!!!!!

i was so excited! my mom just happened to be visiting last weekend and for fun i did my usual "antique buffet" search on the list. and there it was. i thought it was too good to be true and didn't follow up on it. then the next day i showed my mom and she convinced me to call. low-and-behold the woman selling it lives down the street from me, she and her husband go to our church, she's an interior designer, her two sons went to the same college i went to, her son played soccer with a good friend of mine, and last but not least...the buffet was absolutely beautiful. even better than the picture! perfectly painted and distressed, tons of storage, perfect proportions, dovetailed drawers, lovely aged brass hardware, working doors and drawers, on casters...and the price was right! meant to be? i think so. SOLD!

the next day i searched again and found this one for $395:

guess where? columbus, ohio of all places! (between you and me i like mine better and it was $270 less.) but, this gives me hope! maybe my craigslist is turning around, changing it's ways. i sure do hope so!

here's one last look at the buffet that started it all. thanks kelly for having such great taste and inspiring me to search for mine!

happy craigslisting!
~elisabeth

p.s. hopefully in the next few weeks i'll be able to share some pictures of where i put the buffet. the room is a work in progress!

two dollar goods: grandma's ugly chair

this past sunday i picked up this chair at my church's Oktoberfest white elephant sale for $2.00. yes. that's right. t-w-o d-o-l-l-a-r-s. originally, i liked it because it has cushions that are easy to remove and recover and it wouldn't require re-upholstery. but after i got it home and looked it over i began to think that this "ugly" two dollar chair might be something a little more special and possibly mid-century. i proceeded to find the exact same one on ebay. the ebay listing calls this chair a "danish mid-century modern lounge chair". i also found out that the "baumritter" furniture company was bought out by ethan allen in the 70's. i guess grandma's old ugly chair is making a come back...these types of chairs are all over ebay. sets of them (nicer than this one) are selling for $500-$800 per pair. the only thing better than paying $2.00 for one would be to inherit one from your actual grandma.

bed goods: are you kidding me?

ok people. seriously? what are the chances? i'm looking around on style swoon and there it is. look familiar? (if not...look here.) isn't it beautiful? now i love it even more. darn that bed.