This weeks treasure hunt finds...

 So this week I found a couple of cool items that work perfectly for me.  The first are these floating shelves.  Floating shelves are an amazing idea, but they are expensive.  I love them and have always wanted some... so of course I squealed when I saw them.

They needed a little touch up but otherwise perfect, hardware and all for $5 each, I found them at two different stores.  These shelves will be perfect for me to display my sculptures, which currently sits inside of a china cabinet, and are just way to hidden.

My next find was unexpected and I almost missed it.  You see I love fishing, I have been going since I was a kid, and now as an adult its really relaxing.  So when we moved into the new house, I decided I was going to decorate the dining room in a fishing theme.  This has turned into an ordeal because it's a little difficult to find that stuff.

Oh there is plenty of Coastal fishing stuff or Country themed.  I am neither of those, but when I found this I knew it would be a perfect fit and functional.  I really like the background and the best part is it opens up to a key rack...  So this will fit right in perfectly!

Thanks everyone!  Coming soon... a project from another find from this week!

Simple hamper transformation!

My favorite thrift store finds is the ones that require almost no work.  I found this cute hamper at the thrift store for only $4!  The outside is beautiful, but the inside fabric lining was very dirty and a bit moldy.  It had these cute little patina brass handles.


So I ripped out the fabric, left the handles on and turned it over!   Walla... instant plant stand!  This was so easy, I love it when a plan accidentally falls together.

Tray Project

Well I found this project at a thrift store, and it is this tray.  Now I am not into the country look, however I did like the idea of a tray.  Recently our tv network started airing the Nate Berkus show, and I really enjoy his show, in fact an upcoming project I am working on is inspired by his show, as well as this one.  He talks about using trays alot, and since I don't have a coffee table but a large foot rest for my couch; I thought this would be perfect to be able to set my coffee on in the mornings instead of adding an entire piece of furniture in my tiny little living room.



Here I had already started spraying it... now I now that someone really spent alot of time and talent painting those flowers, but it just didn't fit for me.  I used some spray paint I already had in the garage which is a flat black paint.  This was an enamel spray paint for something else which is a bit overkill, but I didn't want to go to the store again any flat black paint will do. 

Once it is all sprayed and dried, I began with the distressing it with some sandpaper.  I am not really sure why but this was a total impromptu project, and it felt like the right direction to go in.  This was fairly easy, I didn't use hard pressure when sanding the paint and I used a medium/fine grade.  It was fairly easy to do actually, I did do it on the back porch just in case of powder flying. 

This is after all of the distressing is finished and the paint is completely dry.  I am thinking of adding a swirl to it in the center, but that requires a trip to the store for a thick marker in another color besides black.  The total cost of the project was less than $2.  Now if I had to by the paint, it would be more like $3 total.  Not bad!

Recycling a Diving Board!

So this first project I am sharing is something I did a few months ago but had to share with you on the new blog since it was the inspiration of it!   Though it is not a thrift store find, I do believe it is quite clever... 

The giant asparagus fern I bought at target on clearance for $3... regular price was 29.99.  It was root bound really bad and I needed a giant pot.  And as it turns out, giant pots are expensive.  I started poking around my favorite thrift stores but couldn't find something that was just perfect.  So I started checking the garage and the side yard, and found a perfect solution right here at home.

Last year we took out the diving board because it was cracked and unsafe.  Since we didn't really care about having one or not my husband took it out,  that is where my other free find, my 3 piece bistro set,  is now living.

This is a perfect place for it because it also covers the small bolt holes and prevents the kids from running full circles around the pool.   


We hadn't gotten around to throwing it out yet so when I saw the base sitting there I knew it was the solution I was looking for.  The holes were already in the bottom, so drainage wouldn't be a problem.  


I just filled it with potting soil and inserted plant.  So the total cost is $3 plant, $5 potting soil, and $0 for the planter box!  Much better than a $100 dollar planter.  I will be adding some bulbs in there so I different ones coming up all year long.