Having a Ball !

Checking my emails this morning I discovered I am the successful bidder on a  

1915-1923 Pint Blue Ball Perfect Mason Jar 

The best part,  I scored my pint size purchase for under $ 2 AUD

Who doesnt love a bargain !!!!

 I'm not quite sure where it will find pride of place in my home 

but in my part of the world these are few and far

between unless you're prepared to pay top dollar.

Lets hope the Postman gets it here in one piece !

Ms V x

For Adrianne with Love

We all have family friends who have been part of our lives for as long as we can recall. 

Often those people are dear to us but not always so near due to geography. 

This is the case with our friend who gifted me this amazing chair. 

It came with a beautiful wooden desk that I have yet to tackle.

In 2004, I had  redecorated a dining room at a friends home. Using a rich burgundy fabric with a fleur de lys pattern. I made table accessories & a window pelmet which thankfully turned out well. Unfortunately my camera skills let me down,  so the photo's below do not them justice.

Nonetheless, I loved this fabric & had some spare from that project. 


Firstly, the chair base was stripped, webbed and recovered 

  Then the repair needed only a little wood glue at its dowel joints 

and a good sanding, stain and a polish. 

I didn't apply a varnish, instead I elected to use a rub on oil 

after the stain had dried which feeds the chair

 & bring out it's colour. 

I have been working on making over this piece for the last couple of weeks

& am thrilled with it's outcome. 

Fleur-de-lys from French to English translation is Flower of The Lily.

The symbol represents a stylized lily or lotus flower. 

Traditionally, it has been used to represent French royalty and it is said to signify perfection, light & life. 

I look forward to starting soon on the matching desk 
and thank our dear friend for trusting me to bring it back to beautiful. 


Thanks Adrianne
You are always in our thoughts 


Big hugs  
  V  x 

Inspirational Reading

Well Hello Mr Postman....    

I couldn't rip open the packaging fast enough.

           My new books have arrived.  Woohoo !!!! 

With these gorgeous books,  I'm never going to get any work done today.  

Huge Dilemma .... which one do I start with first ??? 

 Decisions     Decisions    Decisions 

Ms  V x

Market Madness

I am convinced that getting out of bed on a Sunday morning, before the sun is up, is absolute madness.  I struggle to remove myself from that blissful horizontal position called bed every other day of the week, so how can I manage it on a Sunday morning ???
Maybe its Market Madness. Endorphins and other little neurotransmitters that give me that buzz when I finally find a bargain. Madness is  rife in our market goers. I have seen grown women argue over a 50c blouse, children with one elephant ear each only to almost pull poor Dumbo apart, and men bartering a seller down to save a mere 20 cents. On days I have ventured to the markets as a seller I have been almost set upon like a swarm of bees while trying to unload my car. 

Could markets be addictive?

Do we really need the items we buy or are we just after the feeling of a              

Bargain Rush ? 

These few items below definately gave me a moment of pleasure 

@ $ 1 or less .......

I love glass jars 

and wooden boxes .....

Of all sizes  &  ages

even  my 5 year old cant say no to anything musical 

So get out of bed sleepy head and get down to your markets this Sunday

and discover your own

 Market Madness

Ms V x

Buffet Beauty

Firstly I must apologize for my Blog Neglect but I have been busy, busy, busy with reincarnating relics  buried deep in my garage. I started this piece in July. In August I culled, holidayed in September and I am pleased to say after a little R & R,  October has been fairly productive.

This old pine veneer buffet had seen better days

I had no idea when I first got it home what I was going to do with it,

but as time went on it seemed to transform all by itself !

I started with a primer then chose an Almond spraypaint.

The Almond colour was perfect for the look I wanted, but felt a bit too Queen Anne for this piece so out with the basic flat black for the interior and top.

The weather turned nasty around that time and with cold & rain this piece seemed to take forever to dry.

Frustrated at the lack of progress I decided to ignore the buffet for month.

I went on a short trip to Melbourne & Sydney op-shopping & touring around with one of my good friends.... then came home and spent a couple of weeks of school holidays with my kids.

The weather is now back to beautiful in Western Australia & my boys went back at school.

Time to finish what I started.

Drawers were primed and painted .....

Handles replaced with some nice wrought iron ones.

      and finally....

after stumbling across Tracy's Trinkets and Treasures Hutch Transformation Blog,  

I was inspired to use matching baskets instead of replacing the doors.

 I also added a little labelling to each basket for identification 

        and now this Buffet is a Beauty !!

  

I am feeling really motivated now and back on track having finally finished this piece.

Amazing how a holiday and a little sunshine can make all the difference !

*****

Back in Action & Time to Cull

It has been almost a month since I have looked at my blog page. So much has happened in the last month I still feel like I am living in July. Sickness has been rife in my family, and I spent 6 full days flat on my back in bed with the flu, not to mention the last 3 weeks Ive been coughing non stop. Normally I am in my element in winter. It has always been my most favourite time of the year. This year I am getting a little over it though. Constant raining means the painting projects I have half done cant get finished and I am becoming ever so frustrated with stock piles of garage sale items that sit in the garage where my car should be. Local markets have been empty on Sunday mornings thanks to the cold and rain so alas I wait a little longer and hope for some sunshine. 

Yesterday I had my first car accident in over 20 years. Thankfully no one was injured given I had 3 kids in my car . The other party has insurance ( as do I ) to cover the damage being it was their fault. Just a little inconvenient being without a car. Always a bright side being that no one was hurt.

This week I am endeavouring to cull . Kids clothes, paperwork, sort pics on the computer, generally just get a little more organised. After being so sick myself, followed by sick children to care for, things have gotten a little on top of me around the house. I am without a camera at the moment while I am waiting for my new one to be delivered. I bought myself a Fujifilm S4000 Digital Camera after my toddler dropped and smashed my Samsung. Luckily it was old and only a cheapie but I decided an upgrade was long overdue.  
The FujiFilm S4000 has a huge 30x super long zoom telephoto lens  together with all the features including 720p HD video recording. I really wanted a Canon but the $ 1500 minimum price difference I cant justify paying when I am only an amateur photographer and have little time to learn how to be a professional !
This camera looks the part even if it doesnt have the same pricetag as the Canon.

As soon as this little ripper arrives in at my door I'll be clicking like a cricket to get pictures on ebay and a few other classified sites to cull this house. I am an avid thrift shopper but once I start to feel I am drowning in stuff its time to declutter and move things out.

Sadly back in June my father-in-law, Drew, who I'de previously blogged about, passed away.

He, too, was somewhat of a hoarder but on a small scale. Nanny has been wanting to clear out some of his treasure from his shed. Although she refers to it as junk there may well be some handy things that he would have wanted to pass down to the grandkids, like his tools or fishing gear, so this is another job I should get onto sometime this week for her.

Finally this week, I am also going to start major planning for my up n coming trip to Melbourne.

I need to arrange a hire car & some accommodation along the way and map out our intended route driving to Sydney. I cant wait. A girlie week is long over due & what better way than to Thelma & Louise it from Melbourne to Sydney doing a little op shopping along the way.

I really must get culling if I am going to be bringing more stuff home !!!

A Culling I will go ..... A culling I will go 

Ms  V  xx

 

Fridays' Fab Finds

It's been a great week for finds and I have had huge inspiration to get thrifting thanks to all the couples on The Block ... Last week was Second Hand week and the couples had the challenge of creating their room with using only second hand items. I would have been in my element,  as were Josh and Jenna who won Bedroom 2 with their talent for using all things thrifty. Take a look here. So my creative juices are once again flowing thanks to this show and I have almost finished the long suffering buffet I have been working on for what seems like months. I am hoping to have it completely bowled over by the end of the week & then will have the difficult decision as to whether to keep her or sell her. Remind me next time not to take on a project like this in winter.

Friday thrifting can be very hit and miss. Today was a slamdunk ... check out this table ... Isnt she a beauty?  Better still the price included delivery !!



Big Old Solid Table




Lovely Legs

 I was recently reading one of my favourite blogs Red Hen Home who transformed an old table into a masterpiece by adding some french detail to the top. Sadly I dont have an overhead projector & with lousy freehand I'm not sure Im brave enough to take it on, but I really saw this table in a whole different light after being inspired by 
Red Hen Home's French Chocolate work of art.  

Here are a few other bits & pieces I couldnt leave behind

Nickle Silver Thimble

Apron ... great fabric potential !

Nice Glass Jar

Anchor Hocking Bowl USA Made

Chipfree Cut Glass Bowl

3  Jars



 19th Century Picture Frame ARCO
Birmingham England Stamping





Silk Painting possibly Chinese  
 I love the colours & the fact it is an original & not a printed copy.
I will try to investigate the artists mark below thou not sure where to start
given I cant read Chinese !

 

So thats the fun over for another week.

  Happy Thrifting

Ms V   x

Happy 4th July - Go Hug Your Kids !

  

Everytime I see this Video I end up in stitches laughing.

  My adorable 5 year old loves to break out in song at any opportunity.

He's  Priceless in his oversized head phones ..

Don Henley eat your heart out !!!!

He even does a pretty good American accent !

and with America in mind .....

I'de like to wish all my US friends &

my brother who lives in New York City

a very Happy 4th July !!!!

Happy  Independance  Day

Best  Wishes 

Ms  V x

South for the Weekend

Not often do I get a kid or work free weekend ... I had to take full advantage and get out of town for the weekend ... Woohoo !!!!   My friend, Lynda and I decided to head south to her property in Boyup Brook, almost 300 kms south of Perth. 

         

Gorgeous little cottage with rolling hills in the background & thank goodness for the open fire and loads of wood ... its freezing down south this time of year.....

                                                        
Lynda, like me, is partial to a  little op shopping so first stop was Donnybrook, where we loaded up on morning tea at the local bakery. 

 Donnybrook is approx 200 km south of Perth and is renown for being the largest apple producing area in Western Australia.  

What is it with me & apples ???

My last post had reference to New York City (The Big Apple) and here I am in the SouthWest &  I'm seeing apples again ... an omen  ????

  

After a yummy Sausage Roll & Vanilla Slice, we popped into one of the local op shops to check out Donnybrook's bargains. Our original plan was to head to Bridgetown for an Antique & Collectable Fair & silly me forgot to take something along for a free appraisal.

Making a beeline for the Bric A Brac section I took a quick glance around while Lynda tried on a warm scarf. I was completely gobsmacked when I noticed in the back corner of the shelf sat a EPNS ( Electro-plated Nickle Silver ) Glass Cut Biscuit Barrel with a price tag of  $ 4 .  Well I was in awe, what a find ... even better I knew I had a wonderful little piece to take to the Fair to be appraised.  Grabbing a few more bits and pieces along the way I headed for the counter and the shop assistant announced " It's half price day !!"

Are you serious , I thought, $ 2 for a Vintage Biscuit Barrel ....

It really is a great day !!



Isnt it lovely ???     Any suggestions on age ???

  

The Underside of the Lid showing EPNS mark


Bridgetown Antique & Collectable Fair here we come.

 

Being a freezing weekend down south,  I think kept a few dealers away from the fair because it really wasnt a big turn out for displays compared to some I have seen in other years or towns. However I was very happy to say I found an almost identical decanter to the depression green one I have at home and this was in a lovely pale pink & way cheaper than my green one.

 

Vintage Pink Decanter



 

Vintage Green Decanter & Glasses

                                      Another one of my purchases from the same

                                                  Op Shop was this item below. 

                                        I 'm thinking it is an aluminium camping pot               

                                             but as it has no lid it is hard to be sure.                            

                                         Its similar to a pot my grandmother would sit

                                             on her knee while stringing her beans

                                                  Does anyone know what this is ????

                                                                       

On the way home we stopped at other towns along the way such as Collie & Waroona. 

If you are ever in the Waroona area, check out the most stunningly organised, well stocked, amazing Antique & Collectables store in WA go to

 Drakesbrook Antiques in Waroona 

I could have spent hours in this store  

It is truly amazing & the largest collection of MoorCroft Collections I have ever seen.

So a nice weekend was had by us girls, driving, chatting, junk food, thrifting ...

Our only downfall was completely forgetting the wine !!!

OMG who does that ??

For those of you dying to find out the appraisal on my Bargain Biscuit Barrel 

the Valuer said it would probably fetch anything from $ 65 AUD to the right collector.

Not bad for a $ 2  op shop buy !!

Hope you all had as good a weekend as I did  :)

Ms  V   xx

Postcard from the Edge

Well its been a long week & truthfully one that saw me hanging on by my fingernails. My oldest son has had exams at school & he isn't renowned for high marks but has previously managed to usually at least pass. This is his first year in highschool & he is struggling, thou like most teenagers won't admit it nor does it seem to bother him as much as it does me. 

I remember being in his shoes and the transition from primary school to high school was incredibly daunting, not to mention that paying private school fees is financially pretty tough on me, so I guess I had hoped he'de be a high achiever being in a focused academic environment, but like most parents you come to realise that your children are only capable of what they are capable of . I'm proud of him for trying and he is a polite & talented boy in other areas and is healthy & happy. I do the best I can for my boys with what I have & I have to keep reminding myself that it's ok if they don't turn  to be Einstein's.

  I enjoyed a week off from my job this week & I sure achieved alot at home.    I've have been getting stuck into unfinished projects while the boys are at school . The magazine table that was all rusted I showed in an earlier post is all but finished. I have also given this little box from a flea market a new lease of life & now have a place for my postcards family & friends send from overseas.

Before

During

After



This is one of my favourite postcards from New York of the Brooklyn Bridge.
I am itching to get back there on holidays. One day ! 



Tomorrow its back to work for me & exams are done for my boy.

Another bite of the apple taken .. Phew  

&  another day done

Good night all

Ms   V   xx