Thrifted Thursday...back with some vintage luggage action!

Hi!
I know, it's been a little while...but that's OK. It's my blog and I can post when I want to...(if you sang that sentence then we are totally on the same page).
I wanted to share a quick side table idea that I put together. I recently sold my den side tables at a yard sale (they had a glass top and shelves on the bottom=super hard to keep clean). So my lamps sat on the floor for a couple of weeks. Then, on two separate Goodwill trips, I picked up a vintage briefcase, and a really awesome giant picnic basket.
I still needed a base, so I scoped out the local neighborhood streets and...SCORE!

 These guys (the bottom two) were just sitting with someone's trash.

 I love the different looks and textures of each one and how they stack nicely to the perfect height!

These are vintage Platt suitcases from somewhere around the 30's-50's, and are apparently sort of rare. It made me a little sad that this even has someones initials but was still thrown out. (You can't see the initials unless you pull up the handle)

So for $10 total I have a new side table. And if I need to store things like blankets in the Summer I have a perfect place!
A tip for those of you wanting to find cool things like this for free and don't mind doing a little leg work: drive around your local neighborhoods the night before garbage day. You would be surprised the things that people toss out! The funny thing is that this is exactly what I went looking for and found it on the first try! That never actually happens!

Using magazines in everyday decor

If you are like me, you get several magazine subscriptions and aren't sure what to do with all of them after you've read them or while you are waiting to read them.

I like to keep some of mine for tips/recipes so I keep them stacked together and use them as part of my room's decor! If they are kept neatly it doesn't just look like a pile of mail.

 

 I love my Mississippi magazines and can't bear to throw away all of the good stuff that is inside, so I use them on top of the table under my TV so it's not just a bare surface.

 They work perfectly to add some interest without blocking the TV! The white covers give them a sleek look without being distracting.

What do you do with your old magazines? Recycle? Donate? Hoard them like me? I'd love to know!

Master Bathroom/Closet: Latest Updates

The closet is starting to look more like, well, a closet. Here are a couple of pics.
From the last POST, just the base:

And here it is currently...with areas sectioned off. Straight ahead will be a shoe rack, with hanging areas on the left and right.

Here is another before pic:

A similar view now...this gives you a better idea of the layout.

The left and right sections will be for hanging, while the middle will be drawers/shelves. There is one more section on the right for hanging that wouldn't fit in the picture. I have created a special "Master Bath/Closet Project" label, so you can see all of these posts in one spot. Find it under the "labels" section on the right side bar!

Master Bathroom Progress Report

A couple of weeks ago I shared this picture along with some more master bathroom updates. You can see more info on this ongoing project HERE and HERE.

The master closet is the second part of this project and you can't see it, but there is a door to the right when you walk in the bathroom that leads to it...

It was originally a small closet with sliding double doors. You can see where the old wall was where the floor has been repaired.

This base that goes all the way around the room is going to be wall to ceiling built-ins to house hanging clothes, shoe racks,and drawers.
But let's step back to show you exactly where this is:

This view is looking into the bathroom (on the left) and the closet (on the right) from the master bedroom...before the drywall was up.

If you step into the closet, you can see where it used to be a closet/hallway combo, with the hallway looking into the Great room. That trim around the door is where the closet started. Right along that far right blue line.

And now the door is closed up, floors are patched (and will be re-stained), and the bases are built! This has pretty much doubled the size of the closet. And in case you are confused by this view, the bathroom door is just out of sight to the left.

Like I said in the last post, I will continue to update you on the master bath/closet as it progresses!

See you back for "Thrifted Thursday"!

Shelving Under a Wall-Mounted TV

I know you have been on pins and needles since I told you that my McCarty pieces that previously lived in the kitchen were getting a new home (ok, maybe not, but humor me...) Well, you may remember last year when I decided to tackle a Pinterest project as a temporary shelving idea under the newly mounted TV in the den:

I used crates from Joann's and stained them. This worked for the time being, but I wanted an actual furniture piece there.

 

 A few weeks ago I walked into Pottery Barn outlet, and saw this...

It's actually PB kids, but we won't tell anybody :) It was the perfect fit for the space and also provides lots of storage. Not to mention it has two nifty back panels, so it was easy to keep one off to allow for outlets/plugs.

All of the DVR and DirecTV boxes are in the closet behind the TV, so I didn't really need a place for those, but I thought my McCarty would be perfect here!

It now holds all of the pieces that aren't being displayed in my Great Room built-ins...

 It also holds extra pillows, my antiique pepsi crate/candle holder, and some old records.

You can see how I left the bottom back panel out, and how the pillows conveniently cover all of that mess up!

So just for fun, lets look waayyyyy back, to where this little space started 4 years ago...

To wear it is now. Much better, I think!

And the best part...I had a $25 off coupon that I got in the mail along with two $25 reward certificates, and with a price tag of $79, this brought my total to around $7!  Not bad considering it is still $250 online!

Have you found any great deals like this lately? I'd love to hear!!

Also, don't forget to grab my new button to put on your blog!

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Bathroom Remodel Update

I thought you might be interested in an update on the bathroom that I posted about HERE. If you remember, this is where it started once the new studs/plumbing/floors were in:

 And this was it after it got some walls!

 Here is the newest version...with partial paint...and a floor!

 It's kind of hard to get pictures without any lights, but hopefully you get the idea. That large pipe is where the toilet will go. The space in front of it will be the vanity.

 That's the shower on the left, and those 3 pipes will be the slipper tub. The bottom half of the walls will have wainscoting, and the orange protective barrier will be covered with white subway tile.

 Here's a closer look at the floor. It is much whiter than this in person. It's porcelain with the look of marble.

Here is a look at the shower tile. A honeycomb pattern that will look nice with the white subway tile that will go up the wall.
I'll be sure to keep you posted on the progress as soon as there is any :)
See y'all back here for "Thrifted Thursday"!

Awkward Kitchen Space Gets New Life

(Warning: I went a little overboard on the pictures)

I don't post much about my kitchen because, well, it's ugly. And awkward. When you walk in the kitchen door from the driveway, this weird space meets you to the left.

 It's currently home to cookbooks, McCarty serving pieces, cat/dog food, towels for muddy feet, tennis shoes, etc... There was a weird desk that attached to the wall and wrapped around to the right, but we knocked that out and put beadboard over the tile when we moved in. It also sports some really old art and a home-made shelf painted to match the cabinets.

 Oh, and a boob light. Those are so stylish...am I right?

So I cleared everything out. No pics of this...believe me, if my kitchen had been on Restauarant Impossible (you NEED to watch this show), we would have been shut down immediately. Some gross stuff going on behind that shelf.
I also took this opportunity to re-organize that cabinet to the right. It was holding all of my seasonal serving things.

 I decided to move all of that to my new painted console, and it turned out to be the perfect place!!

 Everything has a place and is out of the way. And I still have a few open drawers to spare, which means I can buy more stuff, right!?
Now all of the dog/cat things that I want hidden can have a nice home in the cabinet. Can you tell I have a dog with some major allergy issues (hence the "special" shampoos, "special" food, entire basket of meds, etc...).

I then carried dragged (and possibly pulled a muscle) the really heavy shelf outside and spray painted.

I used this color that you might remember from my mailbox...I'm all about using what you have!

I wanted to add some sophistication to it, so I decided on this wallpaper that I picked up at Goodwill several months ago.

I just cut the paper to size and sprayed the back with adhesive. It was super easy. Then I brought it back in and put my cookbooks and accessories back up. You might have noticed that my pottery is gone, but it has a new home. Look for a post on that soon! I also sprayed the cat/dog food containers with copper paint to coordinate with my thrift store cannisters.

MUCH better already (ignore the gross wood-laminate floor), but next up was art...

 You may remember those posters from my "Thrifted Thursday" post on them... I think they are great here! Here's a closer look of the shelves.

 Some fun antique bottles and this cute quatrefoil tray to hold keys or a phone.

 All of my cookbooks (there aren't many) and some antique bird plates from a garage sale a few years ago.

 My Pottery Barn mini chalk board.

 Some of my glass collections.

Here's the view from standing in the kitchen. I would say MUCH better. The boob light is still there though...baby steps people.
PS, every time I look at those stripes I can't help but think about one of my favorite rockers, Nikki Sixx:

Source

Anyone else? No? Just me? Ok...carry on...

I'll see you tomorrow for "Thrifted Thursday"!!