topic Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend... in Community Chat

A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

terrier3 — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 13:56:20 GMT

My walk in closet has two windows...one overlooks my back garden. I decided to turn the area in front of the window into a mini-office with a small desk, chair & lamp. The shelves behind me will hold my printer and supplies.

I looked for a long time for a small desk and chair. I checked out al the usual sources - local stores and Ikea and Pottery barn and some other catalogues. On Thursday I went to a local estate sale. On the third floor, up in the back attic, the owner had placed all the feminine things - his wife's hair dryer, complete with plastic bonnet and other stuff. Over in a corner, covered with cobwebs, was a small vanity table. It had cubbies on top like a desk and gatelegs that held an extension. It was painted pale green with cream trim, with a basket and flowers on the apron. They wanted $90.

I waited and went back on Saturday when everything was half price. It was still there! I got a small cream wooden chair, the desk/vanity and a metal lamp with a green tole shade - all for $65!!!! The people conducting the sale said they wondered who would spot the vanity - they said it was from the 30s-40s. As I was leaving, shoppers asked me where I got it from. There was a stampede to the attic!

I went on to another estate sale in a very large, old home. Once again, I headed to the attic - this time on the 4th floor, up a very narrow staircase. I spotted a turned leg console table with a doily and books on top. When I removed the books, I found out why they were asking $10 for it - the table top veneer was half off. I got them down to $6 and took that home too.

Everything needed a thorough cleaning. I scraped the chipped veneer off the top of the console and spray painted it black. It's now in my back hall. The vanity was perfect, same with the chair & the lamp. They had obviously been in the attic a LONG time w/o being used...just waiting for someone to find a new home for them!

I'm typing at the small desk, looking out at the trees and the garden.

For $71, I completed furnished my new small study area and got a great console - I already had the spray paint!

Plus, no products from China or Vietnam...no waste, everything will continue to be loved and cared for.

Anyone else have some great tag sale finds????

Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

Preds — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 14:06:08 GMT

Sounds beautiful! What fun finding such goodies. Enjoy your little sliced out piece of heaven.

Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

terrier3 — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 14:28:42 GMT

On 6/23/2014 Preds said:
Sounds beautiful! What fun finding such goodies. Enjoy your little sliced out piece of heaven.

Thanks!

With everyone complaining about China products, I thought this was a great way to keep things local.

Plus, I love bringing furniture back to usefulness. I imagine where and how these things were previously used. It reminds me of the post on Depression era people and how they recycled and made do with what they already had. The gentleman in this home passed away at 82 years of age....a Depression baby for sure! I tend to find the best estate sale items up in attics...if people thought they wanted to save these things for the future - they often were the oldest and sturdiest things in the household.

Does anyone else re-cycle this way?

Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

Emma bunting — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 15:45:39 GMT

I thought you said you didn't have time to blog?

(lol.....sorry....just kidding with you. I love estate sales....and it sounds like you had a fun weekend)

Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

terrier3 — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 16:46:03 GMT

On 6/23/2014 Emma bunting said:
I thought you said you didn't have time to blog?

(lol.....sorry....just kidding with you. I love estate sales....and it sounds like you had a fun weekend)

Haha!

Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

minkbunny — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 16:47:00 GMT

On 6/23/2014 terrier3 said:
On 6/23/2014 Emma bunting said:
I thought you said you didn't have time to blog?

(lol.....sorry....just kidding with you. I love estate sales....and it sounds like you had a fun weekend)

Haha!

Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

Emma bunting — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 16:48:44 GMT

On 6/23/2014 terrier3 said:
On 6/23/2014 Emma bunting said:
I thought you said you didn't have time to blog?

(lol.....sorry....just kidding with you. I love estate sales....and it sounds like you had a fun weekend)

Haha!

.....I admire someone who can take a joke, terrier....

Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

minkbunny — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 16:51:22 GMT

Me, too.

Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

terrier3 — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 16:51:54 GMT

On 6/23/2014 Emma bunting said:
On 6/23/2014 terrier3 said:
On 6/23/2014 Emma bunting said:
I thought you said you didn't have time to blog?

(lol.....sorry....just kidding with you. I love estate sales....and it sounds like you had a fun weekend)

Haha!

.....I admire someone who can take a joke, terrier....

Thanks...life is short!

We all post under nics...no harm done!

Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

Emma bunting — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 16:55:15 GMT

On 6/23/2014 terrier3 said:
On 6/23/2014 Emma bunting said:
On 6/23/2014 terrier3 said:
On 6/23/2014 Emma bunting said:
I thought you said you didn't have time to blog?

(lol.....sorry....just kidding with you. I love estate sales....and it sounds like you had a fun weekend)

Haha!

.....I admire someone who can take a joke, terrier....

Thanks...life is short!

We all post under nics...no harm done!

nics?......you mean.......we didn't need to give our real names?

Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

occasionalrain — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 16:58:42 GMT

What a wonderful find, I'm envious. Now all you need to do is disguise the door into your closet and you'll have a safe room.

Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

terrier3 — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 17:03:02 GMT

On 6/23/2014 Emma bunting said:
On 6/23/2014 terrier3 said:

Thanks...life is short!

We all post under nics...no harm done!

nics?......you mean.......we didn't need to give our real names?

You didn't get that memo, Emma?????

Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

kittymomNC — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 17:11:27 GMT

What a great find! The vanity sounds like something that would fit in perfectly at my house. I love estate sales, tag sales, flea markets, etc., but one of my best finds was at a yard sale. I had been looking at antique oak dressers with mirrors for quite a while, but all were just asking too much. I walked up to a yard sale, looked up the driveway (the house was on a hill), and at the top sat the perfect antique oak dresser. It was all I could do to keep from running up the driveway! Two large drawers, and the top drawer was sectioned into two drawers and rounded out. The mirror was framed and held in place by two beautiful slightly carved pieces and attached so it would move. I got it for half the price I would have paid anywhere else, and since I was driving a sports car, they even delivered it to my home for me!

I have a beautiful dark oak sideboard that was my first antique piece many years ago (I've never in all these years seen another piece like it), and I love old painted handmade cabinets, tables, etc. -- I know some people don't like the slightly "shabby" look, but they're such wonderful pieces of history. There is always that mystery of who owned them, what kind of families, how were they used? I look at how they're made, and no factory could produce replicas of them. And that's part of the beauty, they're one of a kind.

Let us know what you find next!

Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

JustJules — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 17:38:34 GMT

Congratulations on your discoveries, you got a great deal and it sounds like you found just what you needed at a great price. The vanity sounds lovely, and they don't make furniture like that anymore. These days so much is mass produced, poor workmanship (when actual human labor is involved) and slapped together. Back in those days they used quality wood and took pride in their craft. My father did wood working when he was in high school and made lots of furniture...end tables, coffee tables, lamps, even things like small trinket boxes. He worked a lot with mahogany, and at the time, it was not an inexpensive product to use. I am thinking about having an estate sale, but need to contact an auction house for appraisals first. This house was my families, my parents...not mine. It is full of all their belongings, and while I want to keep some out of sentimental value, there is way too much here for me to pack up and move around. My mom always loved the pretty things, and she has some crystal and porcelain pieces that date back prior to WWI. Of course there is lots of furniture, some that my dad made. There is really only one table of his that I will treasure forever, it was his first "big" project. It is a hexagonal shaped table that would be suitable for a small kitchen table. At first view, it looks perfect, but on closer inspection, the design on one of the table legs that he carved and spun is about 1 inch off the mark with the other 3 legs. He got an A on the project but he said he was still so disappointed in himself because he was a perfectionist. I love the imperfection of the table because it is so hard to find.

terrier, glad that the furniture you found will carry on in your home and bring you joy. So much better than sitting in a dusty old attic, or even worse, being thrown out and destroyed. Once upon a time, someone put a lot of care and love into making those pieces. I hope eventually some other people can give a good home to the things that made my parents happy, and many of them speak over generations of history.

Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

terrier3 — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 17:43:18 GMT

On 6/23/2014 Jules5280 said:
terrier, glad that the furniture you found will carry on in your home and bring you joy. So much better than sitting in a dusty old attic, or even worse, being thrown out and destroyed. Once upon a time, someone put a lot of care and love into making those pieces. I hope eventually some other people can give a good home to the things that made my parents happy, and many of them speak over generations of history.

What a sentimental woman you are! I feel the same way you do.

Just make sure you are FAR AWAY when the estate sale is held. I went to my aunt's to pick up some personal items and I ended up crying in the bathroom, after watching people pawing through her things and trying to get better prices.

A lot of posters who shop at estate sales remember where and when they got all their treasures. I'm sure it will comfort you, as it has me, to know that beautiful things will continue to be cherished and appreciated.

Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

JustJules — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 18:35:17 GMT

On 6/23/2014 terrier3 said:
On 6/23/2014 Jules5280 said:
terrier, glad that the furniture you found will carry on in your home and bring you joy. So much better than sitting in a dusty old attic, or even worse, being thrown out and destroyed. Once upon a time, someone put a lot of care and love into making those pieces. I hope eventually some other people can give a good home to the things that made my parents happy, and many of them speak over generations of history.

What a sentimental woman you are! I feel the same way you do.

Just make sure you are FAR AWAY when the estate sale is held. I went to my aunt's to pick up some personal items and I ended up crying in the bathroom, after watching people pawing through her things and trying to get better prices.

A lot of posters who shop at estate sales remember where and when they got all their treasures. I'm sure it will comfort you, as it has me, to know that beautiful things will continue to be cherished and appreciated.

Yeah, I am kind of a sentimental sap. Your advice is wise, I know it will be difficult to watch strangers barter over things that are just objects to them, but carry personal meaning to me and most have been around me all my life. I know I can't hang on to everything, so there are certain things I will keep and treasure, and the rest I can only hope goes to a good home where it brings joy and good memories to other families.

Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

151949 — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 18:45:52 GMT

In Florida the second hand stores flourish because the families of those who pass away generally do not live nearby so they sell an entire estate off to a second hand dealer. I got a beautiful vanity with a matching full length mirror for $18 - it sits under a window in our bedroom and it's where I always apply my MU and do my hair. My DH electrified it for me so I can plug my hair dryer and MU mirror in. Mine is badly in need of painting so that is going to be a winter project for us this year - stripping, sanding and painting and adding some new hardware.

Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

ROMARY — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 19:31:33 GMT

What a great accomplishment! Any chance of a photo or two? Wish the youngsters could/would have mini-projects to enable them to have a sense of accomplishment. Maybe straighten out their closets, re-organize their rooms, etc. Something to be proud (of) during the Summer.

Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

ROMARY — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 19:36:51 GMT

Yes, in those days/years, every single item was lovingly and painstakingly made. I often imagine all of the proud work piecing items/furniture together, etc. And making it 'perfect'. I'm always reminding the very young youngsters how much time and work it took to make various vintage items. So they will appreciate good work when they are adults. Never too early to teach the young ones..........

Re: A Fun Recycling and Restoring Weekend...

ROMARY — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 19:39:02 GMT

p.s. Very young children are often a 'sponge', soaking up information, advice, and thoughts. (Just thought I'd throw that in.......)