three thrifty finds..

Inspired by all the beautiful brights I saw on the Anthropologie site, I snapped up a couple of cheerful items this week to chase away the rainy day (or should I say rainy month) blues!

All on the cheap though, I'm trying to be good..

One soft cotton boyfriend cardi in rasberry red, for keeping the bump cosy this Autumn,  $19 from MIX at Coles (yes, as in the Supermarket).

A set of vintage billiard balls  just for a bit of fun,

$2 from the Aid for the Blind Store, Wynnum 

A luxe new cushion cover in jaffa orange velvet, perfect for story time or a little 

r & r with a couple of new mags. $16 from Ikea.

Feeling brighter already, a wee bit of retail therapy always does the trick. Hey and the rain has stopped too! Hurray!!

Have a great weekend! xx

colour or neutral?

Yesterday I picked up a couple of bedside tables I won on Ebay...

We were in desperate need of new bedsides (not my husbands opinion exactly) and these two fitted the bill. The price was right; they're in great condition; have drawers to stash things away from little fingers and (non dust collecting) space underneath for all those books I never get around to reading.

But before they take pride of place in our bedroom, the one thing they do need is a colour make over. Currently a wishy washy grey (very 80's Gold Coast apartment), they need a little drama to bring them up to date.

There's so many great examples of vintage cane refinished in bold colour right now and so I was thinking maybe a beautiful peacock or teal blue...

Or do I go neutral?? I don't think white is right for these, the cane is too fussy and our walls are a blah cream colour.. A soft charcoal could be kind of cool, what do you think??

salvaged crystal for Summer cocktails..

Recently I came across these four crystal tumblers at a local opshop. I immediately fell for their simple lines and the fact they were all slightly irregular in size (a sign that they were handmade I'm told).

They were however very cloudy, which was probably why they were 50 cents each. I had a vague recollection of reading how to correct the cloudy issue and brought them home...

Then I consulted my somewhat trusty friend Google and came across everything from soaking in lemon juice or vinegar, scrubbing with toothpaste to using fine sandpaper to rid crystal of this seemingly common problem.

A gentle wash and polish, still quite hazy..

 

post vinegar bath, getting there...

After a little consideration, I decided on the vinegar solution, as it seemed the most gentle... Several hours in a diluted white vinegar bath (balsamic didn't seem right)and my tumblers do look a whole lot more sparkly. A couple more dunks, maybe with a stronger solution this time and hopefully they'll be good as new! If anyone has any better ideas though, I love to hear them...

In the meantime we road tested our (almost) lovely new tumblers with a kiwi/apple/vodka concoction...

We agreed, they do the job nicely!

home and made not lately..

Ummm hello it's me, your absentee blogger...

A polite tap on the shoulder from a blogger friend (thanks Alicia) has brought me back into the bloggersphere after an embarrassingly long absence.

Where have I been?! What have I been doing?! A little bit, but nothing (other than having a very active 1 year old) that excuses such blogging slackness.. So I won't try and redeem myself with more lame excuses..

Instead I spent a very nice hour this morning reconnecting with all my favourite blogs, oohing & aahing at all the truly fabulous, inspired and often hilariously written stuff I've missed out on!!

In attempt to bring you up to date with my goings on and without resorting to a rambling essay,  here's a little scrapbook of what life has looked like here in my world lately...

1. Spring began with gorgeous pink peach blossoms, a gift from Cloudlake.

2. Yum! Rhubarb crumble muffins, my best yet (muffins that is, they're all I really bake).

3. This beautiful book is a typophiles dream, originally a gift for a like minded friend, who turned out     had it already and now is a worthy addition to our fledgling library.

4. Another gorgeous springtime gift.., these Queensland grown proteas & banksias are still gracing our dining table.

5. The garden's flourishing after early spring showers, especially my growing collection of spiky things...

6. A fun retro find at Woolloongabba Antiques was perfect for husband's first Father's day! I'm a really bad shot though, see E's score...

7 & 8. On a recent escape to Byron, we fell in love with this beautiful Robyn Sweeney piece at the very charming  Art Piece Gallery in Mullumbimby and picked up this colourful (and very forgiving) recycled leather rag rug at the super deluxe "Island Luxe" in Bangalow..

9. ""South of The Border", the cute beach shack with loads of personality, we called home in Byron.

10. My precious wee boag... Determined for this one to grow into a magnificent cloud of shocking pink, or at least survive this time...

11,12 & 14. Our Mexican flavour Byron lodgings also inspired Thom's 1st Birthday celebrations, maracas & all..!!

13. Sunny yellow lilies left over from the party. It's so nice having flowers in Thom's room (out of reach of course).

15 & 16. I Found these two retro treasures in my trusty local opshops, both for under a fiva too!!
17. My new (a wee bit Mad Men) Summer frock. I've got a bit of thing for orange at the moment.
18. More orange, an olde but a goode.. This bag was a gift from a friend many years (perhaps even decades ago) and it's probably my favourite Summer Bag..

Now to steal another 15 mins pouring over your blogs (before Thom wakes up).

Have a lovely weekend! xx

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

spring fabric finds...

There is still a month of winter to go (officially) but with recent days looking like this and temperatures in the early twenties, it feels like Spring is here already...

Although for the past two weeks I've had my head down, working away on a little freelance gig (hopefully I can share more on that soon) and haven't stopped to appreciate this wonderful warm weather we've been having... 

That was until yesterday, when Thom and I got to spend a lovely couple of hours down on the waterfront. All that fresh air and sunshine has got me in the mood for some serious pre spring sprucing!

First up a proper spring clean, boring but totally necessary. The one downside to all this sunshine.., the dusty steps, dirty windows and blinds etc. are plain to see..

Then on to the fun stuff..!!  Doing something fabulous with my recent haul of vintage fabrics!!

I'm in love with this painterly 60's barkcloth (found on Ebay).  Cushions or  as  husband suggested perhaps a lampshade? It's almost too lovely to cut.., maybe just stretched on a canvas. What do you think?

Several metres of soft seersucker found in an old box at the Aid for The Blind store. After seeing so much of it on Downton Abbey, I couldn't pass it up.

This beautiful embroidered piece came home with us on our first trip to Vietnam. It's been sitting in the cupboard for years, just waiting for the right opportunity...

Not quite Black & Spiro (have you seen Anna's gorgeous new online store),  but it all works together quite nicely, don't you think?! 

I can see a couple of generous floor cushions in this super colourful Ikat, that I picked up from another local op shop...

And last but not least... I thought this would make a fun pair of Bermudas for Thom. I offered to make a matching pair for the husband too. He wasn't at all keen though... Maybe a bunch of picnic napkins instead.

Anyway lots of sewing/make and do projects for me ahead.., so watch this space. In the meantime, I'll be cleaning, cleaning, cleaning...

Have a great weekend!! xx

my father, the collector (of useful stuff)

When I was little, a favourite activity was making the tip (dump) run with my Dad.

This usually meant loading up the trailer, after a weekend working on the house, an 1880's cottage, only to reload the trailer with a hoard of new found 'treasure'. Old sash windows, doors, door knobs, the odd chair... If Dad thought it was worth salvaging, it was coming home with us.

This habit wasn't exclusive to visits to the tip. Dad was always bringing home some little (or not so little) find from an antique/record/junk store or gallery he just happened to be passing..

And now decades later, my parents home and a couple of sheds are chock full of a very eclectic and pretty fascinating collection of stuff..

I should add, Dad is no mad hoarder.., although those that know him would agree he's a tad eccentric, he's very discerning and every piece has been acquired to be useful, as well as beautiful and/or interesting.

This applies particularly to one of his most extensive and perhaps most cherished collections, his gardening tools. Actually, he's become quite well known for this collection, having had it featured on Gardening Australia and in Country Style.

Now ABC Collectors has done a piece on it too, in their latest magazine! Here are a couple of photos from the article, I wanted to share.

Another great thing about this collection is.., next time I'm in need of a hedge trimmer/Korean weeding hoe/pitchfork, I know just who to call...

not so fantastic plastic

Last week, after years of just 'watching'..,  I finally experienced the rush from bidding on and 'winning' my first Ebay item!! 

My glittering prize was a set of classic Kartell nesting tables, at a too good to be true price.. Wow, what a bargain I thought.., perfect side table solution I thought...  

My husband brought them home and it was love at first sight!

On closer inspection however, it became clear that life has not been kind to these little tables at all. 

Alas, even with some serious spit and polish on my part there seems to be little chance of restoring them back to their original glory... 

The next best thing I guess would be to respray them.

I've done a bit of research and it appears that there is several decent paint products out there just made for such a job... I was even thinking of being a bit zany and spraying them three different (maybe tonal) colours. What do you think??

Before I take the plunge and spend up at Bunnings on paint though, I'd love to know if anyone out there has undertaken a similar restoration and has any tips?!

I really hope I can salvage them.., if not they may become destined to be my first Ebay sale...

ps. I've been trying to post this for a couple of days... I seem to keep getting these bugs in Blogger! Anyone else having the same problems..?

a cute tea towel a day keeps the washing up blues away...

Our dishwasher has an annoying habit of leaving everything wet at the end of the cycle (it also has a faulty detergent dispenser but that's a whole other gripe..). This means hand drying, which I usually loath.

The one saving grace is my much loved and ever growing collection of tea towels is getting plenty of use... They're kitsch, colourful, functional and they make drying sort of fun, well almost...

These two vintage numbers from the Manly markets are my latest acquisition. They come from the home of a serious tea towel collector, who apparently has over 700! All in mint condition of course...

 I find it hard to resist a mag with a freebie tea towel attached, especially when they're this cute.

My Bestie gave me this one in an attempt to lure us back north, when we lived in Sydney. 

Guess it did the trick...

Some people collect snow globes from their travels. Personally I love a good souvenir tea towel, so much more practical.

local finds & friday night tunes...

Came home with some little beauties today...

couldn't resist this cutie from The Collective Store

vintage fun from Aid for The Blind Store...

the original WW Birthday Cake Book, Red Cross Wynnum

While doing the rounds of local op shops in the rain this afternoon, I came across this little jewel... The Collective Store in Bay Terrace. This sweet store is like a boutique craft market.., chock full of gorgeous pieces, all handmade by Australian artisans. 

Certainly not what I was expecting to find in super low key Wynnum...

Lastly, it wouldn't be friday without a little music... I've had this catchy number in my head all week, it's called Cameo Lover by Kimbra. 

Enjoy and have a great weekend! xx

on my table... teal & yellow

Just pulled this recent op shop purchase off the clothes line this morning... It's so wonderfully cheerful, it inspired this little vignette.

little treasures

There's a lot to love about living back on the bay... 

One thing being the astounding number of op shops still around!  Many of which I can remember scouring when I was a teenager... 

This week I decided a proper revisit was in order... Although not quite the rich pickings they once were and a tad tricky (in some cases impossible) to negotiate with a pram, I didn't come away empty handed...