Dead Man's Shoes Vintage & Other Curious Goods

Don't you love it when you find great new local shops when you aren't really looking for them?  That happened to me and my mom over the weekend when we ended up at Dead Man's Shoes Vintage...

Alex was out of town on another business trip so I asked my mom to come for a visit and thankfully she hopped in her little red hybrid and drove on over from Michigan to keep me company over the weekend!   Or maybe she did just to make sure I don't end up in the ER like the last time Alex was gone?  Anyway....

Shopping adventure selfie with mom :)

We were out and about on Sunday heading to a few estate sales and one of the sales happened to be next to Dead Man's Shoes Vintage.  Naturally, when I saw "vintage" I told her we had to stop in to check it out, so glad we did!

The store had oodles of fun vintage clothing, shoes, accessories, furniture, home decor and other fun curiosities or as they describe it-  "A truly one of a kind collection of curious goods".  I also loved the way the store was curated, the mix of color and pattern throughout added to the fun retro vibe and made browsing through every little bit irresistible.

I have to comment on a few items now- the favorite being the Disposable Dress!  Did you know there was such a thing?!?!  The packaging said it was for "shopping, dancing, partying, funning, and house cleaning" and that it was "for today's Swingers".

It made me wonder if this is where the phrase "she'd look good wearing a paper bag" came from?  Because it is really just a paper bag... with a paper belt/sash.  At least it was water resistant and flame resistant so you can't soak your dress with a spilled a drink or get light on fire during your Swingers party :) 

Lastly, I have to tell you that the best thing about this store is that the prices are reasonable!  That's usually my beef with some vintage stores when you find great things but the pricing is outrageous.  I mean, that dress form in the above pic is $42!  Such a deal!

For all you local Minneapolis/St. Paul folks, you should definitely check it out!  After writing about the Disposable Dress I am kind of kicking myself for not buying it, should I go back and get it?

What did you think of Dean Man's Shoes Vintage?

Would you wear the Disposable Dress?

No update on the sofa situation yet due to Alex's business trip (and the warning he gave me if I buy a couch by myself).  Hopefully we'll get to decide and buy this weekend!

"G"...What a Lovely (and Mysterious) Vintage Trunk

As promised, here are some photos of the trunk we picked up at Hunt and Gather during our Valentine's Day adventure.

Everything about it was perfect for the color scheme we are going with for our Master Bedroom redo.  I loved every little detail including...

... the brown canvas (perfect with Behr's Bitter Chocolate), the gold dowels & lock, black metal edge clamps, and hardwood slats. 

 An extra little fun detail was this monogrammed "G." on each side of the trunk.  Too bad it wasn't a "Z." but the random letter is still pretty fun, makes me wonder what story this old trunk has.

Here is a look inside, it has some kind of garment holder/ organizer.  Not sure if it originally came with the trunk?

 If it did, my only clue as to where the trunk came from is this label on the garment holder that says "Thiss Luggage, Leather Goods, Minneapolis"

I tried searching the name and nothing came up. I also looked through old photos in the Hennepin Country Library's Online Special Collections Database and again, no luck.

So, the trunk's history is a mystery, but I am excited that we have a unique decor addition for our Master Bedroom redo! 

Hope everyone is enjoying the weekend.  We are having a very warm February day here in Minneapolis, so Alex and I are going to grab a coffee, walk along St. Anthony Main, and enjoy the sunshine!  I'll be posting some more Master Bedroom updates soon! 

Vintage Finds From Michigan To Minnesota!

I am the lucky new owner of quite a few vintage items this week!  As I mentioned on Monday, Alex was in Traverse City Michigan for the Iceman Cometh Challenge (while I got busy painting without permission- which I will follow up on later this week).  Anyway, my hubby was such a sweetheart and brought me home a couple unexpected presents! 

While in Traverse City, he spotted this vintage Ironing Board and Croquet Set at an antique shop and snatched them up to surprise me!

I just loved them!
 He really knows the way to my weird heart... random old stuff :) 

 I was sooooo GEEKED!  Especially because I just saw an antique ironing board at Bachman's Fall Idea House used as a sofa table.

Not completely sure if I will do the same thing with the board. I might have to see what it looks like in a couple rooms!

During the time Alex was gone, I did some thrifting of my own too and boy did I hit the jackpot! 

The first item I found was this oval gold framed mirror for $7.00!!!!  Crazy awesome deal right?!?!

 (Gratuitous Rocco photo included)

\

The mirror measures 20" x 31", Ikea has an almost identical mirror called "Levanger" measuring 22" x 37" that is $79.99!

Oh yea, I totally scored with that DEALY-O!

My second find were these vintage embroidered pillowcases.  I thought they were beautiful and ooozed a vintage/ handmade feel.  Plus, they were only $0.99 each!  I couldn't pass them up!

My last, and perhaps favorite find from my trip was this vintage chenille bedspread.

I have been on the search for one of these to call my own for quite sometime.  

My grandma had one just like it, only in a white/ pink combination.  Growing up, the only time I saw a bedspread like it was at her house.  So for me, it is another sort of sentimental thing that reminds me of my grandma (like a couple other antiques we have in our house).

Besides that mushy stuff, of course I also think it is a unique and beautiful vintage textile I can add to my growing collection!   I was able to happily take this home for only $8.00! Not sure where it will end up exactly, but you can't go wrong with items you truly love (and feel connected to)!

Now I need to go play with my new 'toys' and figure out where they should go! Along with washing, bleaching, and ironing the bedspread and pillowcases (a must for used textiles of course).
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What do you think of the goods????
What would you do with the vintage ironing board & croquet set???

Head Over Heels Friday: Vintage Finds from Art and Architecture in St. Paul

I have a new favorite spot for vintage finds in the Twin Cities, Art and Architecture in St. Paul!  So many glorious, gorgeous piles of vintage goods... heaven! I am totally Head Over Heels!

~scroll to the bottom to see what I took home!~

I found out about this wonderful place from Megan over at Nomi Passenger.  She mentioned it during our National I Heart Thrifting Day adventure.  So glad we finally got a chance to get together and check it out!  They have just about everything you could want when it comes to vintage decor.  The prices are great (you can even bargain) and it is a bit neater than my other favorite spot Bauer Brothers Salvage.

I couldn't believe this mountain of crates!  Reasonably priced as well!  I wish I knew about this when I was searching for crates for my Dressing Room!

They also had TONS of maps!  Some were antique maps of the Twin Cities.  I was able to find one of our neighborhood from the early 1900's even before our home existed, it was pretty neat.

Here are a few other pictures of the shop...

(Pardon the blurriness- I didn't have the fancy pants camera with me...boo!)

We even found an old fencing mask mixed in with all the merchandise.  Megan and I couldn't pass up taking a goofy photo of me with the fencing mask on... On Guard!

Also a bonus, next door is Cupcake!  You can grab coffee, a treat, and head over to start thrifting!  It made for a perfect Saturday morning!

So what did I get???
This old wood crate/ caddy for bottles or kitchen storage

I'm thinking I might have to paint something fun on this, maybe a number or an old sign type thing?

An old metal crate to hold bottles

Sort of like this...

Did you notice a theme with those 2 items?  Both are for holding bottles... I might have mentioned before that Alex is into home brewing beer.  That means there are always empty bottles around because he needs to clean and reuse them for new batches of beer.  I thought it would be fun to get him a couple crates/ caddies for his bottles so they don't look quite as messy and can also help him transport bottles from the kitchen to his 'brewing lab'.

Lastly, I got this cute vintage wire basket.  I thought it would fit perfect on that old stool from Bauer Brothers that I refurbished.  We have been keeping the stool in our dining room and for now we placed the numbered chair covers I made in the wire basket.

We don't always have the covers on the chairs so I think this is a nice way to still enjoy them.

Are you Head Over Heels for Art and Architecture?  What about my vintage finds?

 Hope to get going on a project for the wood caddy soon!  Have a great weekend everybody!

DIY Vintage Stool Refresh!

I finished up my little $10 vintage stool project over the weekend!  Here's how it turned out...

What do you think? 

Most of you voted for option #1 in my previous blog post.  I decided to go with that look but also painting the chair back white so that if it had to sit with my other vintage stool they would coordinate (this was also my mom's suggestion- thanks Moo!).

 Now, here is the rundown for this simple little DIY stool makeover:

 First, I picked up my spray paint from Home Depot.  Both were about $2.97 each. I highly recommend the Rustoluem Metallic Finish paint, it looks like metal but it isn't super shiny like most metallic paint.

Next was sanding the legs, seat, and chair back.  I covered the sanding is my last post, but here's a visual so I am covering all steps.

Then I had to cover the seat and chair back so I could paint the metal parts of the stool.  This of course was not the fun part, I hate prepping for paint (don't you?).

 Time to spray away!

 Woo-hoo!  The paint was looking pretty awesome on those legs, I was pretty pumped!

I let the paint on the legs and back support dry and set for a day.  Then I removed the covering from the seat and chair back and taped off the newly painted areas to safely allow for the painting of the seat and chair back.   Side note- I thought the stool looked pretty funny all covered up, like it had a skirt on.  I kind of reminded me of ET for some reason, weird I know :)

I then stepped out into the 100 degree heat (and full on humidity) to finish up spray painting.  Maybe that is why I thought the stool looked like ET?  The heat must have been getting to me, ha!

 Finally, I let the paint dry and then uncovered the stool.

Goodbye rough dirty stool...

Hello gorgeous refinished stool!

 I was happy that the stool still had a few rough spots so it still looks a bit vintage. 

 Here is a closer look at the metal chair back so you can see the paint a little better.  I really love how this color turned out, looks like an original metal finish.

The white and metal color also allow me to put it into whatever room we choose since it is pretty neutral.  For now it seems to have found a home in the corner of our dining room.  I thought it might be cute to set an old wooden crate or antique metal wire milk crate filled with my antique table cloths and napkins on top of it.... or maybe other vintage dining room accessories?
Something similar to one of these maybe?

Left: Anna White, Right: Etsy

Hmmm, must antique shop this weekend!

So, what do you think?  It was a pretty simple little project, I think figuring out what I wanted to do with it was really the hardest part, LOL!  But I did have fun with it, and thanks for the suggestions everybody!

Now what to do with those burlap sacks I got on Thrifting Day, hmmmm?

Have a great week and stay cool everybody (I am melting in this crazy odd Minnesota heat, ick!)

'Polishing' Fail and Stool Options

Someone was giving me an awful lot of trouble last night (and for once I'm not talking about naughty Sadie).  It was that vintage warehouse stool that I picked up from Bauer Brother's last week.  Grrr!

I loved all the suggestions you gals gave me in the comments (also the sweet messages that made me feel better about our home repair situation).  Ultimately your comments led me to a good plan for the lil' ol' stool.  Here's a little photoshop visual for what I was thinking:

A few of you said to leave it as is and just spiff up the seat and chair back.  I thought that might work, but I did decide that the legs had to be a different color, especially since the stool started to find a home in our kitchen/ dining area and those red hot legs were not very complimentary to the dark red paint on the walls.  So, I will be DIY updating the legs with Rustoleum's 'Gloss Gray Hammered Metal' (to keep the industrial feel) and will be leaving the seat and chair back as is in order to keep that vintage look (but with a little polishing).

With my plan in mind, I started sanding the stool legs to chip off loose paint and smooth out the metal surface so it would be ready to paint.

I then started to sand the seat in order to get it cleaned up. It was an odd surface to sand- it wasn't wood exactly, nor was it plastic.  Heck, it seemed kind of rubbery? Hmmm, Mystery Material Anyone? Sounds good, I'll take two!  I still don't quite know what material was I sanding. However, after exerting a little elbow grease while sanding away at the dirt, real grease and paint stains, it started to 'polish up' nicely......or so I thought.

After that I started to clean up the chair back a little bit.  I decided to get rid of the "warehouse" writing so it would look a bit fresher.  The chair back wasn't made of the same Mystery Material that the seat was made out of.  It was plain ol' paint and wood.

Then, I began to notice a problem...

My attempt at 'polishing' up the seat and chair back had completely altered their surface textures.  

Here is a 'before' photo:

And here is how they were looking after my sanding efforts:

 Boo...... Polishing FAIL!

I was really happy with the seat, but I think I killed the chair back.  I must have been sanding like a MANIAC!  I know I might just be super picky, but I'm not liking how the chair back looks like wood, and the seat looks like white painted plastic. 

So it looks like the seat and chair back are going to need a paint job also now.  Back to the idea board!

I started to look up a few totally new ideas, here's the rundown for what I am thinking:

1. Painting the legs and chair back one color (Gloss Gray Hammered Metal) and painting the seat an antique white?

 Or...

2. Still painting the metals surfaces the metal paint color, then painting the seat and chair back a dark brown (similar to a dark walnut wood color)?

Lastly...

3. Paint the whole stool white?

 If I paint the whole thing white, I might have the beginnings of a fun little set of mismatched vintage stools because my other vintage stool will have a color-coordinating buddy!

Yuck!  I need a better picture of this cute little guy!

Well, I did say I wanted a project to work on, I certainly got my wish!  What do you think?  

Option 1, 2 or 3??? 

I Love Thrifting Day Recap!

I Love Thrifting Day in Minneapolis was awesome!  Did you go out and about for Thrifting Day in your city?

Here is our Thrifting group photo: Lauren from Our Big Fat Farm Wedding, Megan from Nomi Passenger, myself, and Angela from Uniquely Attainable.  In case you are wondering, we learned about the event a little too late to order our t-shirts.  Angela was able to get a t-shirt just in time so we carried it around (I guess it was our thrifting mascot)

We kicked off our thrifting at Bauer Brothers Architectural Salvage (aka my favorite thrifting location in the Twin Cities).  Lauren and Megan had never been here!  I was soooo excited to share my Bauer Brother's love with them.

As I have said before, Bauer Brother's warehouse is HUGE and you can find just about anything inside.  The four of us kept our eyes open for cool finds, but we also started to have a funny little adventure wandering around.

We got to a section that was just full of lockers that have been salvaged from old schools. 

Lauren then said, "Hey, we should climb inside, it is just like that old show on Nickelodeon!"

"You know, where they climb in the lockers and get slimmed!"  I thought it was hilarious, I totally watched that show!  Lauren and I seem to have the same childhood TV memories.

Our next little Bauer Brothers adventure was into the Basement.  If you can't tell from the photo, it was pretty creepy.  They didn't have the lights on but we were all curious if there was anything good down there.  Angela bravely led the way.  I thought we might never see her again, I was sure there was a monster or serial killer hiding down there- JK!.  But we found a light on in the corner of the basement and shimmied our way through.  Sadly, no good finds down there.

Adventures, lockers, and monsters aside, we did find some cool vintage styled thrift finds!  

Here is a pic of our Bauer Brother's thrifting goodies.  Megan got a small glass bottle, I picked up (what else) some burlap sacks, and Lauren got a vintage crate which may possibly be used at their wedding!

PS- Lauren and Jessie's wedding is only about 6 weeks away now!

Our next thrifting stop was the downtown Minneapolis Salvation Army.

I have to say, the basement section of this Salvation Army was AWESOME!  Nearly everything was brand new- nothing used here.  Everything came from local retailers, I almost felt like I was in a TJ Maxx or Marshalls.

I found some pretty nifty accessories for my outfit :)  Yeeee- Haawwww!

Sadly, since the deals there were so fantastic I seemed to forget that I was on photo duty :( I missed getting a photo of all of us and our carts filled with thrifty finds and goodies.  I still think Megan got the find of the day at Salvation Army- a super cute brand new summer styled handbag.  I challenged her to a duel for it I was pretty jealous of her find.

Whew!  After all that shopping we were pooped!  Megan suggested we stop over at Local D'lish to grab a snack and take a little break.

 Megan is friends with Ann, the owner of Local D'Lish (she's also a Northside resident).  Local D'Lish is an organic grocery store filled with lots of local treats and gifts.  Don't you love her vintage windows in her store front?  It was a really fun stop on our day.  I loved chatting with Ann and learning more about local businesses and women-owned businesses in the Twin Cities.  Made our day all the more special.

***Alright, onto the good part- So what did I come home with after Thrifting Day???***

Let's have a look...

You already got a preview of my burlap sacks from Bauer Brothers, but here is a closer look.  I got these for just $5.00!!!  Steal!  I can't wait to get started on a project with these (and you know I NEED a project right now).

Here is my Salvation Army score, everything was brand new - crazy right?  I got a neutral looking rug, skirt, cookie sheet (we really needed one), and a fun crossbody handbag for my laptop!

I also got a few (non-thrift day) items at Local D'Lish including pasta, salsa, and goat cheese (YUM).  I know that is a weird group of items, but we got to sample them already (not all in the same meal of course).  Everything was delicious!  Loved our pasta dinner and Alex approved of the salsa- he is picky about spicy stuff and this salsa was hot enough for him and almost too hot for me :)

All in all, I couldn't have asked for a better Saturday :)  It was so much fun connecting with my friends from the blog world that are as crazy about thriftin' and junkin' as I am! We must do it again ladies!

Were you out for I Love Thrifting Day?  What did you score???

A Vintage Warehouse Stool In Need of Some TLC... and a Confession

I was enjoying some free time wandering through Bauer Brother's Architectural Salvage yesterday and found this guy:

This little stool seemed to say to me "hey, I am rustic, chippy, industrial, and a bit vintage- Carla you can take me home and give me the Hammers and High Heels treatment and make me look cute!"

For just $10 I decided I was up for the challenge knowing this stool has the bones to turn into something really stylish.  But it sure is going to take some work!

The chair back had 'warehouse' written on it.  Call me Captain Obvious, but I assume this was used in a warehouse at some point.

I am pumped to get working on this warehouse stool and turn it from trash to a treasure!

And now, I have a confession to make... 
 I don't really have a need for a stool, or even a place to put it in our house, I am just DYING to do some DIY work on something!!!

Why? Because we can't work on anything in our house right now- and it's driving me BONKERS!

Since the upstairs of our house is still a big ol' fat mess with a hole in it and water damage from the tornado, we can't work on anything we want or need to. The only rooms we had planned to do some redo's/ DIY on are all upstairs (like the Master Bedroom redo I really wanted to get started on in May).

Our bedroom is still in 'Before' condition- when I was hoping to be closer to an 'After' 
It has been almost 7 weeks now, or 47 days to be exact- yes I am COUNTING days now.  I apologize if you are sick of hearing me complain about it, but I can't seem to help it at this point in time.  (Insert super sad face).  I am getting less and less optimistic as the days go by.

We have no idea when it will get fixed- and that totally stinks. I used to fill my time thinking up fun home decor and DIY ideas.  Now, the daydreaming has been replaced constant thoughts and worries about so many things related to the tornado damage (and I feel like it just gets worse as time goes by).  Worries like...

-Damages to our house, and if it sitting there still is going to cause more damage (water damage = mold)?

-Our insurance company, are they really trying to help us or save their own money?

-Is my cell phone ringer on and by my side in case insurance or the contractor calls?

 -Could Rocco and Sadie run away when they are outside because our fence is still broken?

-Will my house still have a hole in it when winter starts?
- How much more money out of pocket is this going to cost?

-Whenever a storm rolls through, will our tarp covering our house fly away?

 -Will Alex and I have to fix or repaint things ourselves?

-Our garage has no tarp, is that going to grow mold and deteriorate?

-Will they find more damage once the house starts getting fixed?
-Are all of my coworkers annoyed with me because all I talk about is the house damage?

-Will our house look/ feel the same once it is fixed?

-Are our neighbors having these problems too?  Are they feeling as worried as I am?

A bummer for Alex and I, anytime he asks me what I am thinking about I rattle off a question about our house, insurance, or the contractor.  It has made for very boring and depressing conversations for 47 days now.

Alright, so there was my confession.  Maybe putting all my worries out there will help me stop thinking about it so much.  And hey, maybe after spilling my guts here on the blog I will finally get resolution from our insurance and the house will get fixed.  Then this post will seem kind of funny- hmmm, I hope!

Thanks for listening, sometimes just venting helps :) 

If you have ideas for my stool redo let me know (and keep my mind off the house damage, hehe!).  Should I go totally industrial looking?  Or shabby?  Add a cushion?  What do you think?
-Or- 
I'd love advice/ words of wisdom from others that have gone through a similar situation with severe home damages.
Comment away! Pretty Please!

'Hot' Ideas: Bachman's Summer Idea House

Get excited for a look at Bachman's Summer Idea House!  This house takes a fresh approach to casual living with it's "New Naturals Celebrate the Outdoors" theme.

Bachman's is a home and garden store here in the Twin Cities.  They set up their Idea House 4 times a year with themes for Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter.  For additional background info on Bachman's Idea house click on this link and review my first post about Bachman's.  Also, click these links to see their Spring or Holiday Idea Houses.  

Now, let's get to it! 
We'll start with my favorite part of this season's Idea House- the stunning outdoor spaces! 
The best part of summer is being outside and they didn't disappoint with their fresh and fun outdoor ideas.

This space called 'The Nook' was set up as an outdoor reading and writing room.
Could you imagine a more soothing and inspiring place to blog in?

These straw hats along the window shade add charm to the space.

These vintage word plates were used to create a wall poem. Also, they used salvaged corbels and wire to create a shelf.

The typewriter, jars, and birdcage ooze with a vintage feel atop the desk.

The letter 'Z' was cut out using vintage ceiling tiles.  Love the numbered pillow as well (we have a few like them at home too).

This step ladder was used as a bookshelf. The addition of the clip on lights was simply illuminating (get it?). Oh I'm a nerd.

Here is a peek at the outside of 'The Nook' Can you believe all that design fits in there?

Along the side of 'The Nook' were cute birdbaths and wreaths created from clay pots.

The backside is decorated with garden hose and bundt pans turned into flowers.

The next outdoor space called 'Garden Party' was equally as sweet.  

They used a vintage bed frame with mismatched chairs to create an amazing dining area.  How fun is that?!? The bed frame posts are placed in large clay flower pots as a secure and decorative base.

Here on the table they used seed packets as napkin/ utensil holders, terra cotta saucers as chargers, vintage watering cans as vases, mason jars as candle holders, and lotus votive holders planted in terra cotta pots.

It looks just perfect for an afternoon or evening summer celebration.

Over in the Garage they had a birthday party set up. 

Here you can see the garland and wall collage made from colorful paper bags and plates.

I just love the simple vintage booth with benches along the walls.

A Ferris wheel was used for candy and plants.  Pop cans were also used as floral vases.

Now let's head inside for a peek at how they decorated the interior for summer.

Front Porch

This glass table was held up using using a garden fence below.

 

I just loved the vintage rake used as a margarita/ wine glass holder, just fun and summer-y.

Plants stored in vintage lockers was fun and unexpected.

Here they used hay hooks as a decorative ceiling hanger.

Dining Room
This great chandelier was made out of garden fence.

The table settings included a plastic glove mold utensil holder (sadly it's not visible in this picture), bracelet napkin rings, salvaged wood candle trays, silk leaves as decor, and scarves with broaches for chair decor.

The buffet had an adorable beverage set up with different water and lemonade mixtures- perfect summer refreshment!

The wall decor was made from mirrored cake pans and salvaged metal fence pieces.  It was gorgeous!  The wine rack/ table was made from salvaged wood.

Living Room
The wall collage was made from mounted vintage shutters.  I loved they way they layered them perfectly. It even makes me wonder if we have any of those hiding out in the basement or garage.....

This great coffee table was made from salvaged scrap wood and metal fencing. The summer idea house really oozes with DIY spirit (probably because it's finally nice enough to go outside in Minnesota).

I just loved the side tables but I think they may have been vintage reproductions. Forgot to get more info on these, but I love that industrial feel.

Placemats were used as wallpaper above the fireplace.  The mirror frame was made from wood shims and a tree stump was used as plant stand in the hearth. Funny, I think there are a few extra stumps in my neighborhood since last Sunday.

This side table was a vintage hospital tray.

How cute is this vintage file cabinet as a plant stand?

The Sunroom

Here they used another garden fence chandelier.

My favorite part of this room were the salvaged pipe and wood display shelves.

The Kitchen
Love the vintage garden fence turned wall mounted pot rack!

The shelving and jars look so lovely with it.

The always do something fun with the light fixture in the kitchen.  I thought the wooden spoons chandelier was delightful.

This vintage shopping cart was used as pot and utensil storage. Love the addition of the burlap to line the cart basket.

They tied together the 'strawberry' color scheme for the kitchen with green glasses and pops of red textiles.

The Lower Level Bathroom
Wood basket tops were used as wall decor.

This galvanized bin was mounted to the wall for storage.  Also, it is a small detail, but I thought the twine around the toilet paper was so cute!

This clothesline used as a towel holder was also so sweet and charming.

Girl's Bedroom
Different from the Spring Idea House, they seemed to age up the girl's room to maybe a Tween-age girl?  They had even created a daybed from garden fencing.

I loved how they used a vintage window frame for the light fixture

The desk was also made from garden fencing.  The wall decor by the desk included flowers made from cork board mats, trivets, coasters and tape measurers.

Boy's Bedroom
I have to say, the best boy's room I have ever seen was the Spring Idea house.  Again, I think they were age-ing up the boy's and girl's rooms this year.  The theme in this room was skateboarding.  I honestly didn't care for it all that much mostly because this theme lacks vintage style, so I couldn't connect with it all that well (and I am not a boy, ha).  One neat thing was the headboard made from scrap wood and metal.

The wall shelves made from skateboards were fun too along with the skater chalkboard decal.

Master Bedroom
The summer theme here was clear with the headboard made from oars and paddles.  Also, it is hard to see in this picture, but the nightstands were made from clothes-drying racks.

I loved this vintage truck dolly used as a magazine rack.

They used a decorative piece of salvaged wood for scarf and jewelry storage.

Media Room
I thought this was fun and different this time around.  Normally the spare room upstairs is turned into a craft room, but this time it was a Media Room- perfect for entertainment on rainy summer days or nights.  Note in this photo the lamp shade made from photo film and curtain valences made from film reels.

I loved this vintage shelving unit with old bingo cards used for storage.

Vintage lockers and a salvaged wood barn door were turned into the media unit.  Slide carousels were turned into mirrors.

The coffee table was made out of a game table.

Here is a closer look on the chair cushion, it was made from a grain sack, loved it!

Upper Level Bathroom
This photo holder was made from an old garden trellis, ceiling tin and magnet clothespins.

I thought this was hilarious and adorable.  They used a vintage frame around the toilet paper and added the letters 'TP' above it.  How fun!?!

The towel holders embraced the same idea, using wood picture frames, hooks and vintage hangers.

So that's it!  What did you think?  One thing I noticed was how open and clear the spaces seemed in comparison to their Holiday Idea House.  You could tell they intended to make the interiors feel more cozy for the colder months and more open in the warmer months.  I also think they paid more attention to the outdoor spaces this time since that is where most of us prefer to spend our time in the summer.
So, did you get tons of fun new ideas? 

I was so happy to get a chance to see Bachman's Idea House over the weekend, it was a nice way to get back to thinking about normal things after the tornado (which I promise to stop talking about once our house is back to normal).

Maybe I can set up a cute little outdoor party this summer once our house is put back together?  Thanks for stopping by to check out the Idea House!

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PLEASE NOTE: In case you didn't read the top of the post, I just want to reiterate that this IS NOT OUR HOUSE and I am not employed or affiliated with Bachman's in any way (which means I did not decorate the rooms shown). I am a HUGE fan of the Ideas House and love sharing it as long as they allow people take photographs when they visit. It seems some people have been confused about that and I would NEVER want to take credit for something I did not work on. There, I feel better now :)

Hope you found some inspiration, thanks for stopping by!

A Truly Nordic Antiquing Experience

This past Saturday I headed out to the Minnesota Antique Spectacular at the State Fairgrounds with a few gal pals. How did it go?  Well let's just say yer dern tootin' we sure were freezin' our buns off!

(I hope you liked my stab at Minnesotan Speak)

  Why?  Well it is mid April here in Minnesota...so of course it snowed, and it was FREEZING outside!  Heck it is snowing out today too, boo!  My teeth are chattering and my hands feel numb again as I look back at this experience. I knew it was going to be cold out before we got there, but the 20 mph winds didn't help much either. 

There were antiques and flea market finds galore, but I can't say the experience was spectacular.

On the bright side, I did buy one item!  Which made Alex happy too. I always get the "Now Carla, don't go crazy" warning from him before I head out to these kind of things (he knows me so well).  So I'm proud of myself for sticking to only one item I really loved!

 Also, I did learn a few things about 'junkin' while you are freezing....

1. Chances are you won't find a lot of good 'junk' because you lack patience to sift through all the real junk. 

2. Locate a hot chocolate or coffee stand immediately! This will help you maintain the feeling in your hands if you forgot gloves

3. Antique dealers will bribe you into making a purchase with Hot Hands Packets. Some even included Hot Hands with purchase (how dern Minnesotan is that?).

4. It is really hard to be creative. I am sure I could have found tons of items for neat DIY projects, but my brain was too cold to function

5. You lose the ability to have fun bargaining, people don't have patience for that either when their teeth are chattering

Tip #5 is illustrated in the image below.  My friend Ally snapped a picture while I was bargaining.  It didn't go very well and he looked at me like I was nuts. I only got him to lower his price by $2 but he included some ice cream cone shaped salt and pepper shakers (totally random but true).

However, he was really happy to make a sale since there weren't a lot of shoppers around. And, yes I know I look sort of like a trucker... I was SO COLD!  I wish I had gotten his business card, but again, my brain was too cold to function at the time.  He had a lot of really cool vintage styled items, I loved it all!

So what did I purchase?  Not sure!  But it is pretty neat and only $18!

I guess you can call it a decorative wall rack made out of repurposed wood trim.  I just thought it was so fun and unique, totally my style!

It has chippy white paint, vintage hooks and bead board.  It was way too cool to pass up!  The gentleman that sold it to me said he makes them using old pieces of wood trim then adds the bead board and hooks.  Could be a fun DIY project!

What do you think of my find?  I still don't quite know where it will live in our house.  It would be perfect by our back entry but it is too wide for all the walls (dern it!).  I think it might end up in our master bedroom once we finally get going on that project.  Our bedroom has a lot of walls in need of decor.  I might add small hooks to the center and use it to hang jewelry on?

If you have any other fun ideas for this let me know in the comments.  I'd love to hear them!

Bachman's Spring Idea House: European Romance

Get ready for a TON of decorating ideas, this is a MUST READ!

Last week I stopped over to see Bachman's Spring Idea House.  If you remember, I did a post back in December featuring their amazing Holiday Idea House. So of course I had to see their Spring version!

Again, here is a little background on Bachman's, similar to what I wrote in the Holiday post:

Bachman's is a Floral and Gift Garden here in Minneapolis.  Their Idea House was their original founder's house built in the 1920's (similar layout and details as our house!).  The company now uses it for their seasonal Idea House creating entirely new rooms for each of the four seasons. 

Everything in each room is different for every season's idea house, right down to the paint on the walls.  When you enter the house you get a brochure that lists all the details for each room including the paint color and 'ideas'.  The cool part?  Everything in each room is for sale!  Bachman's mixes new and vintage items, so you can score some antiques if you visit the house early.

Now let's take a tour through the "European Romance" themed Spring Idea House. For fun, you can take a look back at their Holiday Idea House to see how they totally revamped every detail of each room!

Front Porch

My favorite part of this space was the glass bottles that had been turned into a hanging ceiling fixture.

Also, how fun is this tin bathtub converted into a coffee table/ planter combo?

Dining Room
Isn't that wood bench gorgeous?!?  

I love the centerpiece made from floral foam covered in moss.  Looks so fresh, bright, and springy!

The buffet was also covered in flowers. The tulips in the glass jars with candles is so clever!

This was probably my favorite detail in the room.  They turned decorative sugar containers into hanging planters by using vintage necklaces, so adorable!

On the left wall they had a side table made from a salvaged decorative fence, which complimented the decorative plates and mirrors that were used as a wall collage.

Kitchen

Don't you love the salvaged wood drawers repurposed as wall shelving? Such a fantastic idea!

Back during their holiday idea house they used cookie cutters around this light fixture.  Now they used vintage silverware to create a chandelier.

The opening shelving adds to the decor and style of the room with colorful dishes.

Sunroom

The big surprise in this room... a casket carrier turned into a coffee table.  Yep, CASKET carrier!  Not sure if I'd like that in my living room, but it's all about the crazy ideas that make this place special.  That items is still for sale if you are interested :)

I thought this chandelier had a fun spring look with a planter inside and burlap bows.

They had these in a few rooms, but I just loved this little lamp shades made from old book pages.

Living Room

Lots of beautiful things to note in this photo.  The two side tables are made from salvaged fence and trim pieces. I love the way they arranged the wood frames  to create a wall collage.  They used some burlap and silk stems in a few of the frames.

Here a salvaged round stained glass window is given a new chance to 'shine' as a coffee table.

This side table is made from a vintage suitcase and salvaged trim pieces.  Oh, and how fun are those little bunnies?!?

Here they created wallpaper out of old book pages, I never would have thought to do something like it, but it looked so beautiful!

Stairwell

I always love what they do with the stairwell and this time I was even more amazed!  Here they used assorted salvaged grates as wall decor and photo holders.  I see grates all the time at salvage stores!  Now that I've been given a little inspiration, I need to get some! They also have an old doorknob used to hold one of the grates.

In this closer look, you can also see they added magnets to the backsides of vintage jewelry to hold the antique photos in place.

The opposite wall had a mix of artwork and more grates.

At the top of the stairs (where they had a hanging window for the holidays), they had planters hanging from vintage pulley system wheels.

Boy's Bedroom

Okay, I am NOT 8 year old boy, but I totally thought this room was so stinkin' cool! It had an Indiana Jones/ treasure hunt/ world adventurer feel to it!
How fun is the barn wood turned into wall shelves and suspension bridge- yea, who has ever had that in their bedroom? Love it!  The maps used as wallpaper are so fun too!

Here is a look from the other side, they also hung apple crates for storage.

Um, and I am just going to assume maybe they got this idea from us? I kid, I kid! But it looks a lot like our vintage inspired crate shelving unit.

For the headboard they reused a wood sliding barn door and wrote the name Jack with a rope.

Here they have vintage suitcases stacked as a nightstand.

Bullwhips!  Yes, bullwhips used as a curtain rod complete with a curtain valance made from treasure maps.

The desk is made from salvaged wood pallets and the pendant lights are made from a globe cut in half.

Wasn't this whole room just awesome inspiration for a little boy's room? I was really impressed!

Master Bedroom

The headboard is made from vintage ceiling tins.  I just love the chandeliers on both sides, so romantic!

On another wall they had more vintage ceiling tins hung with mirrors on the walls.

I loved this decorative metal railing repurposed as a scarf organizer.

Upper Level Bathroom

Here they have a storage table made out of a vintage ladder/ step stool ().

Wood shoe forms are used as wall hooks. "Hey don't wander off with my towel"-hehe, get it?

Towel holder repurposed as a vase hanger.

Girl's Bedroom

The girl's bedroom had a ballerina theme. Sorry for the dark photo, the lighting in there was tough! Note the rosettes on the bedding and ballerina tutu window valence.

I just loved this chippy old cabinet rebuilt into a desk unit with built in pendant light.

This was just the most adorable thing in the room! They put a garden trellis behind the 4 mirrors and used a decorative hand rail and made a ballet bar. Isn't it so cute with the chandeliers?

Over on another wall they used 'sap' buckets and turned them into decorative wall bins for stuffed animals.

Scrapbooking Room

Yep, a whole room just for scrapbooking (which would not be for me, I made 1 scrapbook and it took me 2 years to finish it). But back to the Idea House...

The coolest part of the room was the salvaged door and porch posts turned into a worktable. See those old hinges?

Here they used belts and decorative clips as wall organizers. Also, they have little lunch boxes hung as storage containers.

They hung a radiator cover and made it a magnetic wall calendar. You can also see the flower bouquet made of sewing patterns on top and the vintage suitcase turned crafting tote.

Here they made a storage/ work unit out of a potting bench.

Cork added to window frames was used to create a spectacular bulletin board

Love the light fixture made with vintage buttons!

Lower Level Bathroom

I loved the mirror in the bathroom, but this room didn't have as much decor as it did in their Holiday Idea House.

Hung metal artwork from thread spools.

For Dog Lovers

I had to show a couple things specifically for pups!  In the living room was this dog bed made from a flipped over wood side table. So cute!

This was just adorable! In the kitchen they made doggie dishes our of a couple old children's chairs. I'd love to make these for Rocco and Sadie, but given their height difference it might not work :)

I also have to tell you that the house smelled amazing!  They had so many flowers in each room, it was just delightful!

That's all folks! Wasn't it just sweet, romantic, and beautiful? 

Did you get some fun new decor ideas?  I know I did!

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PLEASE NOTE: In case you didn't read the top of the post, I just want to reiterate that this IS NOT OUR HOUSE and I am not employed or affiliated with Bachman's in any way (which means I did not decorate the rooms shown). I am a HUGE fan of the Ideas House and love sharing it as long as they allow people take photographs when they visit. It seems some people have been confused about that and I would NEVER want to take credit for something I did not work on. There, I feel better now :)
Hope you found some inspiration, thanks for stopping by!

Spring Decor Has Sprung At Home!

Hooray!  All of my new Spring Decor is finally up!  A couple weeks ago I wrote my inspiration post (check it out here).  Again, one of my goals was to 'Hold the Pastels' and I indeed succeeded (I hope)!  So let's take a look at the Spring mantel and sideboad!

Here is the left side of our mantel. Items included are the vintage light bulb cover, vintage light bulb plate, framed photo, and vintage *inspired* clockfaces.

 I was unable to find vintage clockfaces (see inspiration post to know why) while antique shopping, so I made some of my own!  I found images of clockfaces online, then printed them on some thicker cardstock paper.  I think they turned out great, and they were FREE!  The real ones are usually a thin piece of metal or they are paper, so I am pretty happy with my version.

 I added one of my favorite engagement photos (taken by our friend Amber).  I love the pale green railing in the picture, it adds that Spring-y touch! Oh, and Alex looks pretty darn cute too of course!

Here's a closer look at that vintage lightbulb plate. I picked this up awhile ago at Bachman's. It has a little mirror in place of where the light bulb would have been screwed into.

In the middle I added some faux moss rocks that I picked up at JoAnne's for $5.

 Now over to the left side, here I have our antique 'Z' bookend, a birdcage, an antique measuring stick, and another light bulb plate.

 The birdcage was on clearance at Michael's for about $4, but it was black and had butterflies, flowers, and all sorts of other crazy tacky stuff on it.  So I took off all the little decor parts and spray painted the cage white.

Ahhh, so much better!  I did keep the little nest I pulled out of it and added a few eggs for a small touch of Easter decor.

 I know I have shown this antique measuring stick before (got it for only $6!) but I thought it was worth another close up.  I love it!

 So here's the whole mantel all together.  It is a little goofy to take pictures of since we have our TV hung over it, but you get the idea!  Love the fresh look!

Now let's hop on over to the dining room (hop, hehe, whoa now I am too into the Easter thing)!

Here is the left side of our sideboard.  I just used those vintage numbered button napkin rings, our antique 'A' bookend, and a tin pitcher with wheat. Oh and our little DIY chalkboard with the 'Happy Easter' message and cute bunny ears!

 Since I already shared the right side and my Pottery Barn Inspired Easter Egg decor, I thought I'd just show you the whole thing!

So I wanted to avoid pastels and still have a Spring-y, Easter feel in our house.  I think I did a good job, thoughts?  I must say it is just nice seeing some themed decor in the house, I feel like we haven't had any since Christmas.  So I am really liking the new updates in our house. 

Hope to see you Friday for a fabulous Head Over Heels post!  Get ready!

St. Paul Antiquing Adventure!

I love finding new antique and architectural salvage stores in the Twin Cities.  My latest search brought me to the corner of Fairview and Selby in St. Paul.  My friend Ally even joined in on the adventure (PS check out her blog, Ally Jean Designs, she creates wedding handbags and accessories)!

Ally was on the hunt for some special items she would use to decorate her basement and sunroom. I was looking for anything to use in that Spare Room (that we have been dragging our heels on) or items for spring decor. 

How'd we do?  Scroll to the bottom to see what scored if you want to skip the antique store recap!

We started at the Mall of St Paul which is a pretty good size store with 55 different antique dealers.

I'd say the best finds were in their basement, more furniture and decor.

Then we hopped through Centennial Antiques, which featured mostly wood furniture.

We quickly stopped in Old Stuff and Sax Antiques.  Sax mostly had lawn ornaments, it was pretty interesting!  Both were totally worth cruising through!

Our last stop, which was probably my favorite, was Peter's Oldies but Goodies Antiques

There were tons of antique furniture pieces all at very fair prices (which was the best part!).  Ally and I also had fun talking to Ted Smebakken, the proprietor of the shop.  He was a sweet older gentleman and gave Ally an awesome price on some artwork!

So what did we score???  Here are the goods!

Ally picked up a vintage canvas piece at Peter's for $40 and it was huge!  The artist was a local artist by the name of H. Rowan and it was painted in 1968.  She also got a vintage mirror with a cute chippy frame for only $12!  Her last item was that cute little chippy ladder (I almost thought I was going to fight her for it, haha!).  We had so many cute ideas for how she could use the ladder, like adding hooks to hang things from it or adding twine and clothes pins to make a bulletin board (like at Bachman's Idea House!).

I picked up (what else) these antique crates, but they were ONLY $4.50 each!!!!  SUPER SCORE!

I also have to tell you about these guys.  I picked them up a couple weeks ago at Guilded Salvage.  They are old metal light bulb covers, the kind that would hang down from the ceiling in industrial spaces.  I thought they would be perfect for some of my spring decor!

I've been getting everything organized to start decorating.  I've also had to make a few things since I couldn't find everything I was looking for, so I hope to get those posts up soon. 

 Alex is still plugging away at the radiator cover, but spring yard cleaning has been an unexpected to-do this week that has been getting in the way.  That is also why I missed my Head Over Heels post (wa-wa), but I will get one up next week! 

So many bags of leaves!!!  Is everyone else doing spring yard cleaning?  I totally hate it, but we've been noticing little plants starting to grow!  Can't wait for our flowers to start popping up!

Vintage Numbered Button Napkin Rings

I'm so excited to share this cute little project I did tonight!  Check out these beautiful vintage numbered button napkin rings (yep, that's a mouthful)! Aren't they the cutest?!?!

 Before I get started on the project, I guess I have to back up and give a little background on how this all came together (because a few people had a hand in this). 

Last Christmas, Alex's sister Amber and brother in law Ryan (check out their 1907 bungalow here) gave me these vintage lettuce edge and embroidered napkins along with...

 ...the beautiful tablecloth to match!  It was the perfect gift! The napkins and tablecloth were in crisp and beautiful condition for being antiques. 

 I simply didn't have a reason to share on our blog until now, so I pumped I finally got to share!
Back to those napkin rings...

While I was in Chicago, we stopped in a store downtown called P.O.S.H.  If you are in Chicago and LOVE vintage and antique style you should definitely stop in there! 

I saw these cute little vintage numbered buttons and fell in love, but I wasn't quite sure what to do with them.  My friend Sarah then suggested to make napkin rings out of them... WHAT?!?! YES! Great idea!!! Hammers and High Fives for Sarah!

 So once I got home I grabbed those vintage napkins and some twine and got to work.

 I threaded the twine through the two holes on each button.

 Then wrapped them around the folded napkins and tied the twine around the back.

 Ta-da!

 I just love how they turned out!

 They look just perfect with the vintage linens and twine.

Also, each number has a cute sentimental meaning of course (since I am a sap for that stuff).

 I think I will place these on my sideboard since they look so nice and we probably won't use them until Easter.  I'm still working on getting my Spring decor pulled together too, but as usual black and white will be part of the look!

So what do you think?  Do you love the vintage napkins and tablecloth as much as me?  How about the numbered napkin rings? 

PS- I think Spring finally hit Minnesota (knock on wood, it could snow next week), but I'm just loving this weather!

We just linked this up to the DIY Showoff's Project Parade!  

DIY Tiered Grain Sack Window Shade Tutorial

Ready for the DIY Grain Sack window shade tutorial mentioned in our last post?  Let's get to it!

(If you are curious what my inspiration was click here)

Now here are the supplies you need to get started:

1. Grain sacks or fabric

2. Wood trim to hold the shade (I used scrap wood in our basement...free!)

3. Staple gun

4. Scissors

5. Sewing thread

6. Sewing needle

7. Seam ripper

8. Hook and eyes (this was my secret weapon from the last post!)

9. Measuring tape

It is likely you might already have most of these things in your house, so this is a cheap and easy project!  The only thing I bought were the two $6 vintage grain sacks from the antique store!

First, I measured and cut the piece of scrap wood trim to fit each window frame.

Alex did a quick cut on our saw for me.

Next, (and this is the LONGEST step if you are using real grain sacks) grab your seam ripper and open up the grain sack so it is no longer a functional sack but a flat piece of fabric. I couldn't believe how long this took, they really use industrial strength thread on those things!

Once I got done seam ripping, this is what our grain sack looked like laid out.  Aren't the stripes gorgeous!?!

I then had to do a little ironing to make sure the edges were flat and crisp.

Next, you will grab that staple gun and staple the fabric to your wood trim piece.  In this case Alex did it for me, I did one staple and got nervous I was going to mess up the fabric.

Here is what it looks like with the staples, fabric and wood.

I used a thinner piece of wood trim, so the staples did shoot through to the other side.  We used pliers and bent them down flat to the wood so they were no longer sticking out. 

Once you bend the staples down (sorry I don't have a picture of that, drat!) you will turn the wood trim downward so the fabric covers the staples... ready....

...and turn! 

Now is the fun part!  Creating the tiers!  Depending on the size of your fabric, you can do as many tiers as you want.  Our grain sack measured 36" so I only did 2 tiers.  Here is what it looked like from the back.

To be honest, I didn't use a mathematical formula for the placement of the tiers.  I just folded the fabric evenly 2 times. Sorry, I hate measuring!

To give you an idea of the size of the tiers on my 36" piece of fabric, I did 2 tiers that measured 4" when folded.  The top of the bottom tier should fold right up to the bottom fold of the top tier (see above photo on this description, I know that was confusing!).

Once you know the placement of your tiers, iron them to make crisp, clean folds.  This will also help them to lay nicely once they are hung.

Now the secret weapon!  Hook and Eyes!  This was my super simple idea for this DIY project.  I thought hmm... I already have a bunch of these in my sewing kit and they will hold nicely and be functional as well if I ever want to open the shade.  If I went out to the store to get them, I probably would have purchased larger ones just because they might be easier to use with the shade in the long run. So if you go out to get them, I would get ones that are a bit larger!

I did 3 across each tier, so if you do the same you will need 9 hook and eyes for each shade.  I did a simple tack down with my sewing needle.  Nothing too complicated so if you aren't a super savvy sewer this will still be easy.

Here is a look at one complete hook and eye on the bottom tier.

Then here are both tiers with hook and eyes sewn in place.

To illustrate the functionality here is a look when the hook and eye is unclasped.

The last step is adding these L brackets to the back of the wood trim piece and hanging to your window frame. 

 Yes!  We are done!  Again, here is a look at the completed product!  So simple and gorgeous!

This was how the Guest Room looked before when I was trying to figure out what window treatments to add.  Pretty, but plain-jane.

Here is how it looks now with the Vintage Grain Sack Window Shades!  It added sooooo much personality!  I can't believe how great they turned out!

Our Guest Room definitely got a nice upgrade with these little $6 vintage grain sacks!  I can't wait for the next time we have company staying over, this room is just too sweet!  I can't wait to redo our Master Bedroom, I'm totally ready for that challenge!

*** We just added this to the Lettered Cottage's How-To's Day , the DIY Showoff Project Parade and Coastal Charm!  Link Up!***

Voila! Repurposed Vintage Grain Sacks... Tutorial Coming Soon!

Grain sacks no more! Check out the window shade I made with those vintage grain sacks from my last post!  Isn't it gorgeous?  I didn't entirely go for the formal Roman shade look as planned, but I think this simple tiered balloon shade is just dreamy!

The best part?  It was SO EASY!

Again, here is a look at those $6 vintage grain sacks before I worked my magic...

 It took me about an hour this evening to put it together.  I took pictures along the way so I can write up a good tutorial on how to make one. 

 Thank you to everyone that posted a comment leading me to some other DIY roman shade instructions.  It actually inspired me to create my own SUPER easy DIY shade, I can't wait to share!

 Can you guess what my secret is for holding up those tiers? It might be something you have at home already if you have a stocked sewing kit!

So what do you think? 

I love the little ticking stripes down the center and sides along with the text.

I hope to have the tutorial posted by the weekend. 

On a related note- I am trying to improve my tutorial writing skills. I am aware sometimes I don't write enough information about each step.  So I hope this one is better! I took a lot more pictures than in the past and I will do my best explaining all the steps. 

I will also include better pictures of the Guest Room with both finished window shades!  A Head Over Heels post is coming up too! Get excited!

The Dressing Room Is Complete! Before and Afters, Clothes, Shoes, Decor, and More!

I finally have a dressing room!  Kick up those Heels!!!  I'm just loving the new space!

Let's take a few closer looks and take a trip down memory lane...

Here is that antique crate I talked about in my last post now looking a bit more fabulous with some high heels!

Can you believe this thing holds 17 pairs of shoes?!?

It is so cute and serves a very big purpose for shoe storage!  Love it!

I love the way the crate also compliments the DIY vintage inspired crate shelving Alex and I made (sitting just to the left behind the Ikea mirror).

Here is a close up of the faux sheepskin rugs I picked up at Ikea.  My toes sure love them in the morning when the floors are a bit chilly!  Thankfully Sadie is finally leaving them alone too!

I think the addition of the Stave mirror from Ikea has proven to be way worth the purchase!  I love using the stool and mirror when I am getting ready in the morning. 

My antique dressform still amazes me! Best way to store/display my necklaces and belts!  Swoon!

Vintage feel with fashion and shoes... Sigh, I am so in love!


Now, let's take a trip down memory lane
Remember back in November (holy moly, can you believe we first started this process in November?!?) we asked what the heck we should do with this room? This is what the room was looking like back then, icky carpet and NO personality!

The majority of the comments we got said we should be turning the space into a closet, sitting room, or divide the space.  We obviously decided on all the above to suit our needs.  Check out the original plan and inspiration here!

Alex got to work ripping out the carpet since we knew that ugly stuff had to go!

He then installed some laminate wood flooring, sooooo much better! This part was the most expensive of our redo of course, you can check out that post for all the steps.

After adding some window treatments, a huge failure, finding the right garment rack, lots of spray painting, hanging a vintage window, making some DIY vintage crates,  shopping for accessories, a DIY sign, and a DIY crate shelving unit here we are!!!  Phew!

Thank goodness I don't have to deal with this anymore!  Alex happily took over both closets in our master. 

This is a lot more fun to hang around in, not to mention things are way easier to find!

What's next?!?!

If you remember from the beginning, this room is going to be divided into 2 spaces. Thus why we hung the vintage window...

We still have the other half to deal with. Remember, this room is right off our master bedroom.  The dressing room/ sitting area is the perfect idea to sort of create a Master Suite.

Our plan is to make a TV sitting room on the other end.  If all turns out right, I just may never leave this space!  A dressing room and TV!?!?  Talk about the perfect place for a gal to go relax in! 

We'll be posting about this half soon! 

For the all the posts on this space check out the Upstairs Spare Room Redo label.

***We just joined the DIY Showoff's Project Parade!  Link Up and join in!***

Vintage, Handmade, and Ikea Accessories for My Dressing Room

I finally made some headway in the ol' Spare Room Project this weekend!  I was on a mission to get all the accessories and decor I needed to get my Dressing Room finished up.  Thankfully, I was successful!  There is quite the eclectic mix of decor in my soon to be dressing room!  Just the way I like it!

So here's what I got....

I went on a little antique-ing trip to Stillwater and picked up this awesome vintage crate for only $8.50 at Midtown Antiques.

I dont' have the exact measurements, but it was a really generous sized crate!  I love the handpainted 'Vine Ripened' label on the side. I am planning to use as decor/ storage.

In my inspiration post I showed this image from Arianna Belle, I love that she used an old crate to display shoes.  I am thinking I will do the same with this crate.

Now to my Ikea accessories! 

Last week in Houzz's Ideabook, I read a post about "Warming Up With a Sheepskin Throw".  I thought a Sheepskin rug would be a perfect accessory to warm up the space and give it a little feminine glamour.  I picked up 2 faux sheepskin rugs ($12.99 each), the real deal gave me the creeps since I didn't know if a sheep had to die to make a rug. The faux ones looked just fine.

The only problem with the rugs...Sadie was convinced that these were a toy for her (I guess I should have expected that, they are a little weird).  It took a lot of tries setting them on the floor and making sure she didn't run away with them.  She spent a lot of time 'inspecting' them.

I also picked up this AWESOME mirror name Stave from Ikea for $49.99.  I am soooo happy with this mirror, I love the way it leans on the wall and it is a pretty big size measuring 27.5"W x 63"L.  It really completes my room and gives it a glamorous feel!

The last item I picked up at Ikea was this Dalfred stool for $39.99.  I knew I wanted some kind of chair in the space that would be easy to move around and use.  I thought this stool was perfect and matched the style of the garment rack and antique dressform.

On to the handmade item! 

Here is the vintage inspired sign I made to hang above my garment rack.  It reads "La Vie Dans Le Talons" translating French to English "Life in High Heels".  I thought that was the perfect little saying for my Dressing Room. 

I have to add, the whole time I was painting the sign I kept doing my Nepoleon Dynamite impression and saying "Do the chickens have large talons?" Alex just loved that (JK), but I couldn't help it since le talons is French for high heels, such a weird word!

So here are some pictures making the sign. Before I got started, I just grabbed an extra piece of wood we had laying around in the basement and spray painted it black.

 Once it was dry I got ready to add the text.  I didn't have a stencil for the letters so I used a larger print out as a guide and freehand penciled in the writing.

Then I painted in the letters

Almost finished!

The cursive letters were a bit tougher to freehand.

Once I was done, Alex added some frame hangers to the back and hung it up behind my garment rack.  I love the fun personalized touch it adds to my space.

As you can tell I am almost done with this space!  I'm really happy with the way it is shaping up, I just have to get it a little more organized before I can post the afters, but that is next!  I can't wait to show you the room this week, eeeeek!

From Architectural Salvage to Wall Decor... and Window Treatments?

Remember these fun things I picked up for just $12 at my last architectural salvage adventure? (see Part I and Part II)

(Salvaged Woodwork and Doorknob plates)

Well they are now a part of our home decor!  Here is what I did with both...

Woodwork Pieces

First, the woodwork was terribly dirty (see first photo in this post), so I had to do some scrubbing  This is what they looked like after cleaning.  Our assumption is that these pieces were removed from a house that had burned down (sad).  The majority of what I had to clean off was ash.

Next, we had to put a frame hanger on the back.

Alex nailed it in place for me.

Then up they went on the wall next to the fireplace!  I love the rustic woodwork next to the exposed brick.

We still have to find a home for the other two.  I hope to show some more overall pictures of the living room, but I am starting to feel like we REALLY need some window treatments ASAP. That is now on our to-do list. Anyway, onto the next!

Doorknob Plates

 I got this from Target a year or so ago.  It is a shadow box with linen fabric and some vintage looking keys.

It inspired me to do something similar with these doorknob plates.

I went to Target and picked up this Room Essentials Shadow Box Frame for $9.99

I had some leftover burlap fabric from JoAnne's and cut it into a square to use as the background for the shadow box.  I think you can get some of this for $3.99 a yard at their store.

Of course I didn't cut a perfectly measured square (I hate measuring, it is so terrible!), so I pinned it into place and cut off the excess fabric.

Then I arranged them on the burlap fabric

Once in place, I used large T-pins to secure them to the board.  I didn't want to glue them in or do anything that was going to permanently affix them to the burlap. I put the pins where the nails/ screws would have been used when it was on a door. (Excuse the mess!  I actually did this project before heading to work this morning, crazy!)

Finally, here it is!

We hung it up in our living room as well.

 Here is what the pair looks like together, I just love it!  A match made in heaven!

Again, I didn't include shots of where we hung these on purpose, the wall still looked empty!  We really need window treatments! 

What do you think?  We currently have nice white wooden blinds on each window now (thank goodness they aren't the really awful plastic ones).  I'm really starting to think it is time for nice curtains!  We have that big window at the end of the living room, then a window on each side of the fireplace.  What color (and remember, I fear bold colors)?  What style? Any feedback in our comments would be appreciated! 

Northside Architectural Salvage Stores: Part II Guilded Salvage Antiques

Continuing on from my last post, here is part II!  Dean's second recommendation was Guilded Salvage Antiques and House Parts.  This store wasn't as huge as Bauer Brothers so it was a bit easier to cruise through.  Goodness, it was a beautiful store! Sigh....

 I think this store was pretty comparable to Architectural Antiques in Northeast Minneapolis.  They had a lot of architectural antiques and merchandised them so beautifully.  It was a lovely store to cruise through on a Saturday!

 I was amazed by their table of home hardware/house jewelry.  It was so beautifully organized and really drew you in to look at each piece.

 The detail on vintage hardware amazes me, each piece is truly art.

 They had so many vintage street signs from around Minneapolis and her suburbs.

 This is a photo from the center of the store, I could have spent all day there.

 They also had a great stock of amazing salvaged doors.

 I loved all the vintage wrought iron pieces they had throughout the store.

This store was so beautiful, totally worth checking out.  I think the best part was that the staff/owners had a vast knowledge of most items in the store.  I was eyeing some cool bricks, and they were able to tell me which church state they hady come from.  Crazy!  

So here are the rest of the items I picked up on my trip!  Only $2 each!  I am hoping to make a piece of wall art with them using a shadow box.  I have some antique skeleton keys in a shadow box in our living room and I wanted to make a coordinating piece using these doorknob plates (since they have a skeleton keyhole).

I will definitely do a post about what I create with these and where we end up putting those antique woodwork pieces once they are cleaned.  Happy Monday everybody!

PS- I plan to do a couple posts about the remaining DIY antique crates and progress in the Spare Room Redo this week!