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: 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!

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.

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.