I'm baaaaaaaaack !! I took a little break after moving in December and I am ready to jump into the pool.
Tonight is the start of something great....fingers crossed.
My friends have heard me talk about my idea for a store forever....you see I am the idea girl, the dreamer. Daydreaming about it, going to bed and dreaming about it, waking up and thinking about it, going for a walk and thinking about it, making notes about it, designing plans for it. Like many creative people, I can't get past the dreaming ...but tonight I get to try out my idea.
It is Girls Night Out in Maplewood, NJ and my friend Geralyn has offered me a space in her art studio to try out my Reclaimed Style and The Art of Thrift idea. One night only...make it or break it. If it works, it is a start. I am excited ! You would think that I would be a bit nervous but I am not. I have a strange sense of calm...it is all going to work out.
Will keep you posted on that and check out my blog every Monday...I have some great finds to share with you from thrifting in Pennsylvania, Houston and Rome.
Make it a great day!! Dreams can come true. ( Thanks Geralyn)
Thursday, June 7, 2012
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
A perfect match....
Today a real estate agent showed my house to a rental client. I have to be here because there are so many houses for sale that it seems the agency doesn't have enough lock boxes to go around. It doesn't bother me though because I get to scope out the probable tenants and today I met an amazing woman.
She - we will call her Mary - LOVED the house and was excited just like I was when I first saw it. The one big difference between us is that she has a 31 year old disabled son that lives with her ... Mary said she had been looking for a place that would give both of them space and her son a sense of his own place and this has both . She was in total awe of the view - even on a foggy day - I could see her mind churning with the ideas of sharing the warmth of the house and the closeness of nature with her son. I hope she gets the house....she deserves it.
My friend Wendy happened to be here when this was all going on and actually negotiated a deal with Mary so that when I needed a break from urban living I could come back and sit on the deck and take in the view...perfect ! Who knows, I might even have a decorating gig....she was so taken by every piece I have that she might want some decorating help. Just another excuse to Thrift. It is all working out !
She - we will call her Mary - LOVED the house and was excited just like I was when I first saw it. The one big difference between us is that she has a 31 year old disabled son that lives with her ... Mary said she had been looking for a place that would give both of them space and her son a sense of his own place and this has both . She was in total awe of the view - even on a foggy day - I could see her mind churning with the ideas of sharing the warmth of the house and the closeness of nature with her son. I hope she gets the house....she deserves it.
My friend Wendy happened to be here when this was all going on and actually negotiated a deal with Mary so that when I needed a break from urban living I could come back and sit on the deck and take in the view...perfect ! Who knows, I might even have a decorating gig....she was so taken by every piece I have that she might want some decorating help. Just another excuse to Thrift. It is all working out !
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
The Inspiration Piece...
Today is the day that I bid a fond farewell to my inspiration piece...my sofa. It is a 9ft, orange and yellow velvet tie-dyed, mid - century modern sofa and was the first piece of furniture I had in this house. My "muse'" inspired me to create an amazing living space....from the orange walls, to the gold 70's hanging lights, to the vintage fabric I found for the dining room chairs....she had a hand in all of it. (tears in my eyes).
It is going to a nice home and I will have $$ money in my pocket - Craig's List is great. The funny thing is - the people who are buying it both work for Raymour and Flannigan which is a furniture store on the east coast. She said she is so tired of looking at boring traditional furniture and needed to find something unique. She found it !!
Now to look for the next inspiration piece , maybe one of the pieces that I already have will be the one ... can you build a room around an oversized gold lamp ? I doubt it... but we shall see.
It is going to a nice home and I will have $$ money in my pocket - Craig's List is great. The funny thing is - the people who are buying it both work for Raymour and Flannigan which is a furniture store on the east coast. She said she is so tired of looking at boring traditional furniture and needed to find something unique. She found it !!
Now to look for the next inspiration piece , maybe one of the pieces that I already have will be the one ... can you build a room around an oversized gold lamp ? I doubt it... but we shall see.
Sunday, December 4, 2011
A dandelion seed drifting over landscaped lawns...
On the move - again. Yes...you read it right...I am packing up and leaving the suburbs and headed back to urban living. The life of a renter ... not tied to anything ... I can pick up and go anytime I want and start over . I breathe a sigh of renters relief that I am not tied to a mortgage and market value - the (rough) Latin translation of mortgage is "death pledge". I recently read an article in a magazine , the writer admitting that she rents and describing her transient self as "a dandelion seed drifting over landscaped lawns." That is me... you never know where I will plant myself.
I am one of those rare people that likes to move - weird - I love sorting through my stuff and getting rid of things ... rethinking what I really need. The whole move thing started for me in 1982 when my parents moved from Indiana to Texas... my father's new job took the family there and my mother seemed to like the idea of a change. Change is good...I have moved 17 times in 30 years. My mother's address book has all of my addresses crossed out - she should have used a pencil !
I will admit a few things about moving this time. I love this house . I have had the most amazing parties. It has the most amazing views. I will miss the sunrises, sunsets and the hawks. I will even miss my crazy landlord who would bring me fresh eggs from his farm. It has been like being on a vacation every day
(what the Helen the realtor told me when I looked at it)...but the vacation is over and it is time to get back to living! I have spent endless days staring at the landscape and have missed being with my friends, missed being able to jump on a train at a moments notice to go to NY, missed the energy I get from a town, missed being able to walk around the corner and get something to eat or go to a bar or listen to live music.
So here we go again... another thrifting and decorating journey ! I love the challenge of decorating a new place . The apartment that I am moving to needed to be painted so I was able to pick out new colors and I can't wait to see what it looks like. The place is smaller and I have been scouring magazines for ideas on how to make the most out of limited space and will take those ideas on my thrifting trips. I can't wait to get started.
So that is the scoop. I will take you on the decorating and thrifting journey with me... exciting !
2012 is going to be great !
I am one of those rare people that likes to move - weird - I love sorting through my stuff and getting rid of things ... rethinking what I really need. The whole move thing started for me in 1982 when my parents moved from Indiana to Texas... my father's new job took the family there and my mother seemed to like the idea of a change. Change is good...I have moved 17 times in 30 years. My mother's address book has all of my addresses crossed out - she should have used a pencil !
I will admit a few things about moving this time. I love this house . I have had the most amazing parties. It has the most amazing views. I will miss the sunrises, sunsets and the hawks. I will even miss my crazy landlord who would bring me fresh eggs from his farm. It has been like being on a vacation every day
(what the Helen the realtor told me when I looked at it)...but the vacation is over and it is time to get back to living! I have spent endless days staring at the landscape and have missed being with my friends, missed being able to jump on a train at a moments notice to go to NY, missed the energy I get from a town, missed being able to walk around the corner and get something to eat or go to a bar or listen to live music.
So here we go again... another thrifting and decorating journey ! I love the challenge of decorating a new place . The apartment that I am moving to needed to be painted so I was able to pick out new colors and I can't wait to see what it looks like. The place is smaller and I have been scouring magazines for ideas on how to make the most out of limited space and will take those ideas on my thrifting trips. I can't wait to get started.
So that is the scoop. I will take you on the decorating and thrifting journey with me... exciting !
2012 is going to be great !
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Thrifting for Fall Fashion - I am so in for the season !!
My sister Allison has this amazing ability to spot good quality fabric, tailoring and designer labels in a sea of thrift shop clothes. She honed her skill at Neiman- Marcus while working at the Estee Lauder counter in Chicago...I am sure every lunch break was spent looking and touching every garment on the designer floor and almost certain she spent almost every paycheck there...with all of those beautiful clothes and a discount...how could she resist!
Allison and I were thrifting at a Goodwill store on one of my visits to Houston and she spotted a dress from across the store ... she made a B line for it. It so happens it was a dress by Escada which is one of those super expensive fashion houses that makes beautiful clothes. The dress is black and white , it has a nice shape and a beautiful back with buttons at the neck...a cut out ....and more buttons. Did I mention it is was my size and it was $9.99.
I almost did not buy it (silly me)...it is kind of shiny...but in New York you can wear anything ! and today while looking through the New York Times fall fashion magazine I came across a dress by Salvatore Ferragamo that looks an awful lot like my $9.99 dress. It seems that I am in style for fall without breaking the bank...Thrifting saves the day (and my bank account ) again ! Thanks Allison !
Allison and I were thrifting at a Goodwill store on one of my visits to Houston and she spotted a dress from across the store ... she made a B line for it. It so happens it was a dress by Escada which is one of those super expensive fashion houses that makes beautiful clothes. The dress is black and white , it has a nice shape and a beautiful back with buttons at the neck...a cut out ....and more buttons. Did I mention it is was my size and it was $9.99.
I almost did not buy it (silly me)...it is kind of shiny...but in New York you can wear anything ! and today while looking through the New York Times fall fashion magazine I came across a dress by Salvatore Ferragamo that looks an awful lot like my $9.99 dress. It seems that I am in style for fall without breaking the bank...Thrifting saves the day (and my bank account ) again ! Thanks Allison !
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| The front |
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| The back |
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| A nice clothing line ! |
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| Fall 2011 Fashion - I am so ahead of the game !! |
Friday, August 12, 2011
The $2.99 Chair Project ( I mention the word 12 times)
I am back from my fishing trip and now back to creative thinking and projects. As of this moment I have a workroom full of projects ...pants and dresses that need to be hemmed and tailored, an unfinished buggy project, a mid century screen door idea/ project and don't forget my creative outdoor space project!!! If you are a creative person you know that if you have too many projects going at one time you don't get anything done ... and those projects sit there until you finally sort it out in your brain and you figure out where to begin.
With that said....while on my first thrifting trip since vacation I found this very nice leather and wood chair for $2.99 . The seat is torn but the bones are good. It is not my style but since I have never reupholstered a piece of furniture I thought it would be a nice PROJECT ! Did I say PROJECT ? Here I go again...the good thing about this blog is that it keeps me moving on my projects ... something to write about and you ask me how my projects are coming along and that keeps me working on them.
Better get going and work on a project...FYI: photos coming of the outdoor space...I did get something done on it - not completely finished but the ideas are flooding out!
My creative mind never stops...just wish my energy level could keep up with it !
With that said....while on my first thrifting trip since vacation I found this very nice leather and wood chair for $2.99 . The seat is torn but the bones are good. It is not my style but since I have never reupholstered a piece of furniture I thought it would be a nice PROJECT ! Did I say PROJECT ? Here I go again...the good thing about this blog is that it keeps me moving on my projects ... something to write about and you ask me how my projects are coming along and that keeps me working on them.
Better get going and work on a project...FYI: photos coming of the outdoor space...I did get something done on it - not completely finished but the ideas are flooding out!
My creative mind never stops...just wish my energy level could keep up with it !
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| The Back - not in bad shape |
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| Nice Legs !! |
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| The reason it's a PROJECT !! |
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Gone Fishing !!
Will be fishing for the next week and will get back to the blog next week...unless of course I come across something great and I can't wait to share it with you. Have a good week !
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