Long-term quarantining is, quite honestly, the best thing that has happened to my garage in a long time. It’s the only thrift store I have access to and I’m uncovering things I’d long forgotten about. And one of those things was a square-shaped cutting board. I decided it was the perfect piece to make a stenciled sign that was inspired by a vintage pay phone.Read more ›
Retro Canisters for Vintage Kitchen Decor
February 12, 2020 · By · 52 Comments
Whenever I’m at an antiques mall and see a set of retro canisters, I always pause and ponder if I need them. You know the kind I’m talking about, right? Tea and coffee canisters that come in different sizes, often labeled in a vintage or mid century modern font?Read more ›
Plaid Christmas Decor with a Faux Skotch Kooler
November 20, 2019 · By · 55 Comments
For many years now, I’ve admired the look of a vintage Skotch Kooler. It works so wonderfully as plaid Christmas decor, but I rarely find them at local antiques shops. I did, however, find a red Thermos cooler while thrifting earlier this year, and an idea began to form.Read more ›
Stenciling Fall Leaves in the Colors of Autumn
September 18, 2019 · By · 17 Comments
Like most people, I adore the colors of fall leaves. But even more specifically, I love leaves that are “mid-change”. The ones that showcase a gradient of colors in green, yellow, orange, and red. So, I decided that I really wanted to try to capture those colors of autumn by stenciling some fall leaves on a cabinet door in my stash.Read more ›
Fall Apples and Apple Decor from Monkey Pod Wood
September 3, 2019 · By · 15 Comments
Even though I had already upcycled some monkey pod wood once before, I decided that thrifting fate was telling me to do it again. You see, I came across these bowls twice over the course of a few weeks. And, well – that’s a rarity for most thrift store “smalls”! After I saw them the second time, I decided they kind of looked like Fall apples – or rather, they could look like apple decor. So, in the cart they went.Read more ›
Pirate Decor and Pub Sign on a Cabinet Door
July 10, 2019 · By · 34 Comments
I always have to check out the selection of cabinet doors whenever I’m in a Habitat ReStore. I can typically resist grabbing anything from the pile of usually-plain doors. But on this particular day, there was a bevy of intriguing blue and white doors for the taking. They had a very nautical feel to me and would be perfect for a pub sign or pirate decor that could be used for a home bar and nautical wall decor.Read more ›
Re-Trending from Country Decor to French Farmhouse
May 8, 2019 · By · 30 Comments
Country decor pieces from the 1980s – covered in ducks, geese, and hearts – are a pretty common sight in thrift stores. And while the motif is outdated, the pieces often have good bones and are made of heavy, solid wood. This magazine stand was no different and I decided that I could “re-trend” it from country decor to the look of French farmhouse pretty easily.Read more ›
Flower Bucket for Vintage Farmhouse Decor
April 10, 2019 · By · 36 Comments
Several years ago, I went to a Country Living Fair near Nashville, TN and fell in love with a wooden bucket. It was cute and had perfectly chippy turquoise paint – but it also had a $245 price tag. Obviously I walked away (bitterly) and vowed to recreate it one day. And irony of ironies, that day has arrived! I was recently in Nashville, TN and found this ice bucket while thrifting…Read more ›
Craft Paper Organizer or Scrapbook Organizer in a Vintage Photo Album
March 27, 2019 · By · 29 Comments
A craft paper organizer for my vintage ephemera (i.e., old paper stuff like labels) was not high on my list of “priority projects”. But, I spotted a vintage photo album at the thrift store the other day, and, well, fate had another plan in mind. It just seemed ideal to be upcycled into a scrapbook organizer!
Refinishing a Wooden Lazy Susan as Mid Century Modern Decor
March 13, 2019 · By · 43 Comments
Every now and again, I prefer doing a “refinish” than a “repurpose” on something that needs some TLUC (Tender Loving Upcycling Care). And so was the case with this wooden lazy Susan . It was badly stained with water rings and begging for a makeover. How could I resist?Read more ›
