Latest Estate sale finds

We don’t get out to estate sales very often anymore.  It’s just too ‘hit or miss’ as to whether or not it’s worth the trip with the price of gas these days.  This is why I love estate sale companies that offer email notifications WITH pictures to preview!  Kathy’s Estate Sales  is one such company, and actually the ONLY one we ‘bother with’.  They are very nice people.  Price things very reasonably and always have GOOD STUFF!  Here’s what I found at their last sale:

Little PINK storage chest.

I had actually only opened up the TOP couple of drawers before I grabbed it to buy it.

Look what I found in the bottom drawer when I got home!!!

Ooooohhhhhhh  . . . . I am so very tempted to KEEP this one to store my craft supplies in!!

Such pretty wood grain patterns on this piece!!  The door will have to be worked on (it doesn’t close)

And there is a pretty big gouge in the veneer on the top AND it’s warped quite a bit.  (but we CAN always take the old top off and replace it)

And such pretty FEET.  You know how I love feet on furniture!

Pretty crystal drawer pull, but the pull for the door is missing.  This might be a good candidate for some of those other old pulls I got recently.

The inside of the door is pretty chewed up too.  STILL was worth it for the price we paid.  Another great thing about Kathy’s estate sales is that on the last day of the sale (usually Sunday) everything under $50.00 is half price!  And they will take bids on the higher priced stuff.

This is probably the most expensive item I have ever bought at an estate sale.  Bear in mind that I am ALWAYS shopping for items to re-sell at the antique malls; so MY top price has to be LOW enough to ‘up’ to cover rent, commission, gas and a bit of profit.

OOPS!!  A little too close on that picture, but the claws have actual GLASS balls under them.

At least THREE of them have glass balls!  This one has a wood replacement.  sigh.  Didn’t notice it at ALL until I turned it upside down at home.

Very intricate carved details on the center support post.

And legs!

And the seat rim.  It ‘used to’ be a piano seat that you could raise and lower, but it’s been changed to a fixed height.  Not sure if I should LEAVE this one as is, or paint it white or aqua??  It’s probably not a ‘collectible’ piece due to the flaws; but it’s still pretty cool looking ‘as is’.  But all those intricate carved parts would really POP if painted a light color then distressed!  To alter or not to alter?!?

Grubby little foot stool with cute feet!

Looks like it was ‘meant to be upholstered’ but just never got covered and was used for years ‘as is’.  Again, I can’t decided if I should leave it as is to sell, or upholster it?  Maybe with burlap?

LOTS of neat old frames at this sale too!

Round frame.

Oval frame.

BIG old gold frame.

In incredibly good shape for as old as it is.

Can’t really even TELL how old it is until you look at the back.

And one last frame.    I’m probably going to take these frames to the antique malls ‘as is’; since I have been finding quite a few at thrift stores lately to re-paint.

New in the store: Saturday, June 7, 2008

Lots and LOTS of new things to show you this week.  I painted lots of birdhouses, frames and BIG candle pedestals . . . played with seashells . . . . got in some new scrapbook embellishments . . .

DON’T FORGET!!!  We are now open Saturdays only; 9 am – 4pm.  Nearly all the new items are ‘one of a kinds’.

Weathered beachy blue birdhouses.

LOVE the way these turquoise birdhouses stand out on this green chair!

There are also some WHITE spindle birdhouses like there.  I just forgot to take a picture of them!

Sugar cookie scent panrty jar candles.

One of a kind primitive red candle holder comes with the grubby candle.

Loooooong black primitive tray with cinnamon dusted votives.

Turquoise pedestal candle.

These next three candle pedestals were made from ONE vintage table leg cut into three pieces:

One of a kind framed grubby flag.

A few more little birdhouses on posts:

Little silicone dipped replacements bulbs have arrived!

LOVE this estate sale find clear ginger jar lamp filled with shells!

Lots of little jars of pretty shells too.

Primitive ‘carved’ black frame.

LOTS more black frames just in!

I ‘tried’ to get up close to show the detail on these . . .

And some shabby white frames:

And of course some turquoise frames!

 

A ‘happy’ accident

Gotta love it when things ‘just happen’!

Those of you who are ‘junkers’ well know that more often than not, things you pick up ‘here and there’ because you ‘think’ it will work perfectly with something you picked up somewhere else a while back; just don’t fit together they way you envisioned them.  And off they go to the pile of misfits; those orphaned pieces awaiting their destinty of a perfect match ‘one of these days’. 

So, it’s a major thrill when things just happen to work together without having given it any forethought. 

Here’s my happy accident of the week:

Found this little white shelf at an estate sale.  I can always use another small shelf, especially a white one.  All kinds of places I could put and unlimited options for kinds of things I could put ON it.

I decided it would go in the pink section of the store.  To make room for it I needed to move a few things around; one of which was a baby bassinet that I had three pink frames propped in.  I took the frames out, moved the bassinet, put the shelf in place, and then had to move the frames while I pondered where to put them.  I had just set the frames up against the white shelf while I studied the space and considered display options.

Hmmmmmmm . . . . It looks like the biggest pink frame will fit perfectly on the front of the little white shelf!

It did!  And the two other frames fit perfectly on top of the shelf!

For now I still just have the frame leaning against the shelf.  But I will probably go ahead and have Michael air nail it to permanently attach it.

The day before I put all this together, I had stopped by the thrift store and saw a HUGE (3′ x 5′) big, heavy, black and gold, totally gaudy frame.  I pondered buying it, but had no idea what I’d use it for.  So I passed. 

But after I saw how cool it looked to ‘frame a shelf’, I called Michael and had him go back to the thrift store and pick up that black frame, and will have him build a shelf to fit behind it.  Just have to decide what color to repaint it!

Here’s wishing you a ‘happy accident’!

OUR WEBSITE:  www.cscrafts.com/aj.html

More old frames

Before

 . . . . . & after:

Framed

I’m not sure HOW or WHY I got so ‘into’old picture frames, but I do love them; and use them in lots of different ways in the store.  (and always sell a lot of them!)  Old frames are plentiful at garage sales, and very inexpensive when the glass and/or backing are missing.   Just check to make sure the corners are still in good shape and tightly connected.  Old brown frames are my favorite color to re-paint.  A light sanding, (unless there is a lot of ornate work!)  topped with a coat of black paint, then another light sanding to distress it a bit and you have a wonderful looking frame.   For frames that have a lot of ornate detail on them, I use flat black spray paint.

In this picture you can see the distressing close up.

I love how assorted sizes of frames look displayed in a group.  Here I’ve set them on top of an old trunk.  They would look wonderful set atop a fireplace mantle.

I also like them lined up on a wall shelf!

Black seems to be the most neutral color for repainting frames, and what sells the most in our store.  But, colors can be fun too.  Couldn’t resist doing a few for the shabby beach cottage section in the store!  The bulkier white frame and two toned turquoise/blue one setting on the table were made by Michael out of some vintage moulding.

In this next little vignette, the frame sort of frames out the whole display.

Just a couple of frames on this shelf gave the display the height variance I needed.

Sometimes I hang a frame within a frame with something else framed in the middle.  This old door was the perfect backdrop for such a display.

Or make a wall hung shelf display really stand out by framing it with a great big frame.

And when I ran out of wall space and needed something to just prop all my misc frames and mirrors in, this old sturdy doll bed (HEAVY 2×6 construction!  I can barely lift the thing!)  was perfect! 

Happy framing to all!

OUR WEBSITE:  www.cscrafts.com/aj.html