My Latest Thrift Store/Garage Sale Finds and Some Co-Op News!

Things at The Carriage Place have been going great and with all the awesome garage sales, estate sales, barn sales, and thrift store ventures, I have accumulated a ton of really great stuff!! I figure I won’t have as many sale opportunities come winter time, so best to stock up now!!! So because of this, I have decided to expand my space to the entire back corner, giving me about triple the space I have now! WOO-HOO!

My current space:

And as of September 1st, I will be taking over this whole corner in addition to the space above! The rent is very reasonable and I am getting a TON more space…I’m so excited! Right now this space is filled with random stuff from lots of different booths, just so there’s not a giant empty space here.

So here are some of my recent finds…some really awesome ones I must say!!! Got this amazing old hanging scale for $2! It would look great in someone’s country kitchen…

I have had this green jar lamp forever but no descent shade to go with it. I found this awesome shade at the Salvo for 50 cents, with vintage horses and jockeys on it, and green trees that match the jar perfectly. I love it!

A heavy brass piggy bank…

and “Prince Albert in a can”….HAD to have this…lol!

This little metal car is a wind up music box. I remember my Grandpa had cars and planes that were just like this one, and I always enjoyed them growing up…so I got this for the sake of nostalgia. I find myself doing this more and more lately!

Love this little folk art “Humpty Dumpty”!

Lastly, I found this extreme prim doll who had come unattached from the wooden star and was missing a cinnamon stick leg. With a little hot glue, she’s as good as new! Plus I added the wire hanger on top of the star, because the old one was making her hang crooked. Greg hates this extreme primitive look or else I would have considered keeping her! haha…

I have a couple of wooden pieces that I am making over and painting at the moment. They’re not finished, but once they are done, I’ll post before & after pix.

Until then…get out to those garage and barn sales while it’s still summer and see what kind of treasures you can score!!!

Making Country Signs Using Foam Stamps

Sorry it’s been so long! I have lots of projects to share, but they are all half-finished and/or not photographed! D’OH!

Anyway, I decided to share a “how-to” on my country signs since a few people have asked me how I make them. I recently made this sign for a lady at the co-op and decided to show you a step-by-step of the process.

Finding pre-weathered or barn wood is ideal. Since I can never find it, I just buy these pre-cut boards at Lowe’s. Use whatever kind of wood you’d like! Paint the board the base color you’d like and sand down to your liking.

For the letters, I use this heavy body acrylic paint. It’s wicked expensive but a little goes a long way, and I use it for tons of projects. It works great on the signs! Use a basic sponge for applying the letters.

Foam stamps usually come like this. Don’t try to tear them down the perforated edges- I have ruined stamps this way. Cut them!

Lightly moisten the sponge. Ring out all excess water…you don’t want it wet; just “pliable.” Dab in your paint and tap off the excess.

Carefully dab the foam letter surface with the sponge. This process goes quickly. You have to do it this way or else way too much paint gets on the stamps. Dipping the stamps directly into the paint will result in waaaay too much paint on the stamp surface, and squish out the edges when you press on it. Trust me!

Line up the edges of the letters with your other letters by looking down the side of the stamp and eyeball it. I don’t lay it out ahead of time…though I probably should! If you mess up, quickly use a damp paper towel to wipe off the letter that you messed up. It comes right off if you do it quickly, so you can re-do/re-position that letter and try again! *Note- that only works with smooth wood that’s been spray painted like the one shown here…it probably would not wipe off of an uneven surface easily, so just be careful!*

Press down evenly, and pull directly up, so as not to smear it!

Once done stamping, I like to immediately wash my stamps off in the sink to get the paint off before it dries. Use running water and just rub/wipe the paint off and lay on a towel to dry.

Once the sign is dry, use a gel stain or regular stain to “distress.” I use the gel stains because they are not as messy and sticky to deal with. Wipe off the excess with an old rag. Sand more if you’d like. Make it as old and distressed looking as you’d like!

The imperfections are what make these signs great, and one-of-a-kind!

The other one I made for her…

Here are some other signs I have made using foam stamps.

Well that’s it for now. I hope this tutorial was helpful! As always, I’d love to see pix if you try to make these! Signs are fun and make great gifts…give it a whirl!!!

 

 

“The Farmhouse”

My step dad is the handiest man I have ever met and has a really unique “project” in the works. He is disassembling this 1850-60′s farmhouse and salvaging the wood and some of the unique structures to reuse and/or re-purpose them. It’s just too great of a building to plow over and destroy, as the owner originally wanted to do. It is in mint condition, for being over 100 years old, that is!

Upon some research I learned about some of the unique structural elements:

• This architectural language flourished from about 1830 to 1850 when it was seen as a national style. With British influence waning considerably after the War of 1812 and the nation rapidly expanding westward, the Greek Revival architectural style was fundamentally an expression of America’s triumphant sense of destiny and the sense that our newly formed nation was the spiritual descendant of Greece, the birthplace of democracy.

• Elaborate door surrounds were frequent features of Greek Revival homes. Typically, small-paned side lights and a rectangular transom were framed by heavy, wide trim sometimes recessed for a more three-dimensional look.

• Columns and pilasters were among the most common elements of Greek Revival architecture. Although classical columns were round, by definition, the Greek Revival style also used square or even octagonal columns. The columns were designed without bases as in the Greek style or with bases as in a Roman adaptation. Columns could be fluted or smoothed, but they were almost always built of wood.

~Info from the article Greek Revial by Bruce Wentworth, AIA

Luckily for me, one of the upstairs corners hadn’t been cleaned out yet and I was able to salvage a box of old, dusty bottles and jars. We found a ton of old IGA preserves jars with the original labels, which were in GREAT shape! I got mostly different types of fruit preserves jars, and also a hot dog relish jar and a peter pan peanut butter jar. I adore the vintage labels and their colorful designs! For sitting around so long, they weren’t THAT dirty…just lots of dust!

With a little cleaning up, they are perfect! I brought a few to the co-op and threw in some faux flowers, just to present the idea of different ways they could be used…a little vase for your summer wild flowers perhaps?

I also got ahold of this ancient formaldehyde bottle with its original skull and cross-bones label!

The label is very difficult to read but talks about soaking your potatoes in a solution of formaldehyde and water. I just finished reading how formaldehyde used to be used to soak  seed potatoes to destroy fungus and organisms that cause the potatoes to “scab.”  Not sure if this is still practiced today or not…kinda weird!

In other news… we (and by we, I mean Greg) have done lots of “sprucing” things up around the exterior of the house. It looks so awesome!

He put these cool little caps on the deck posts…

And had the back patio area outside the back door all re-done…it looks phenomenal!

P.S. Aren’t the lilies so pretty?

YAY FOR SUMMER!

P.S. Thanks to those who voted in the poll I posted about the snowman faces! I am excited that face #2 was the winner by a landslide, because it was my fave too! I will be posting more on that lil project later!

Awesome Thrift Store Finds

 I have been slacking in photographing my thrift store finds over the last few weeks so I thought a little update was in order. I haven’t found a ton, but what I have found has been AWESOME! Let me start with the best find…this stoneware jug, at the SALVO!!! $5 is a bit more than I usually pay for stuff at the thrift store, but come on! This was a steal!

 Fenton clear/opalescent hobnail sugar & creamer set- $2!!!

 A very cool vintage mosaic ashtray. I got this out of pure nostalgia…I remember seeing one as a kid in one of my grandparents’ house, but I can’t remember where. I saw it and just had to have it…I don’t really know why!

A vintage (50′s?) plum ball pitcher! SCORE! I LOVE the unique color! Got it for $1 and I have seen them sell for upwards o $30-$40 online!!

Got these for a little project that I’ll share later. I have a bunch of mini Christmas trees and thought they would be cute ornaments for them! I am always thinking Christmas because of my annual holiday show up in Potsdam!

An Androck nut meat chopper. I love vintage kitchen stuff, and it sells!

Again with the kitchen stuff…an old noodle cutter!

I have enamelware up the wazoo but I couldn’t resist this great speckled gray & poppy orange color combo. The jar with the wooden lid is going to be filled with some kind of goodies (buttons, marbles, or something…) and I plan on painting the wooden cap black and distressing it a bit.

I don’t normally do country angels, but this one was kinda cute.

It appears as though the “stars” in the wings are indentations from the end of a philips head screw driver…right? What a clever idea!

Had to research these cute lil guys. I found they are single portion honey pots. How cute!! They are supposed to have little spoon “stingers” that come out their backsides but unfortunately these guys have lost their spoons.

Lastly, I got this cool blue tequila bottle for .50 cents. I have a thing about colored glass. This one is even more brilliant blue than what you see here. It may not be super old, but I still think it’s cool!

Well, that’s it for now. Got some really great stuff over the last few weeks and I can’t wait to get it cleaned up and in my booth. It’s SO amazing to me what people “throw out” or donate! Such treasures!!!

Have a great weekend!

A Quick Poll: Which Snowman Face Do You Like Better?

Happy Monday…I mean…Tuesday! Yay!

I need your opinion! I am working on painting these snowman wine corks for my show in December. I am getting a head start because I wanna make lots of ‘em since the snowman stuff is quite popular….and it is a craft, food, and WINE show after all!!! I am experimenting with faces…which ones do you like better? I’d love it if you would cast your vote!

 #1

~*~*~ or ~*~*~

#2

THANKS!

P.S. I am gonna share a more detailed post on this project a little later! I am also playing around with gingerbread men faces and peppermint candies…we’ll see how those turn out!

Happy 4th!

* * * Happy 4th of July! * * *

Hope everyone had a wonderful long weekend, and enjoyed the fun things that come along with celebrating Independence Day! In honor of America’s birthday on this beautiful summer day, I thought I would pay homage to all my favorite “summer things” as well, starting with…

~ Long weekends, like Memorial Day and 4th of July! ~

~ FIREWORKS! ~

~ Going BAREFOOT in the grass! ~

~ Tank tops and flip flops ~

~ Going out for ice cream ~

~ Camp fires & roasting marshmellows ~

~ Camping ~

~ Sitting outside on the deck ~

~ Roadside veggie stands ~

~ GRILLING EVERYTHING! ~

~ Swimming ~

~ Flea markets & barn sales ~

~ Bike riding ~

~ Seasonal fruits, especially juicy peaches and cherries ~

~ Sitting outside at cafes and restaurants ~

~ Iced tea, iced coffee, and smoothies ~

~ Getting out of work and it’s still light out! ~

~ An abundance of the following things: Cold pasta salads, hots & hams, and chips & dips

~ Homemade strawberry jam made by my mom ~

~ Picnics ~

~ Getting a natural tan and highlights from the sunshine ~

~ Cardinals ~

Oh, but there’s so much more! What are some of your favorite summer things? Hope everyone has a fantastic day!!!