GOODWILL $5.00 WICKER HIGH CHAIR

Last summer as I was dropping off a load to Good will, I spotted this precious vintage wicker high chair for $5.00.

The right arm of the chair was quite mangled but I bought it anyway thinking that I could repair the arm and repaint it with a fresh coat of white paint.

Here is a picture of the chair.

Well, the best laid plans do change.

Cut to this week when I spied the cutest mixed  bloom basket at Aldi's for $4.99.  I scooped it up, came home, pulled the price tag off of the chair and drug it to the front porch.  I placed the basket in my sweet copper planter and set it on the chair.  Adorable!!!

Sometimes you just need an inspiration!

As you can see, the blooms are bursting.

So glad that I picked this high chair up to give it another life.  You can't even see the broken arm of the chair anymore.



SEASHELL TRAY #2 WITH GLASS INSERT

A few years back, I created a shell tray for my dear friend.  I found this cabinet door at Habitat ReStore for $4.00.  I was wanting to use the remaining shells to recreate another tray like the first.

I got busy and placed rows of shells in the recessed part of the door.  They fit perfectly.

After removing the door pull, I was ready to fill the hole with wall spackle.

Also on the back there were two holes from the hinges.

I pulled out two of my handles from the knobs and pulls box.  Whenever Hobby Lobby has a 50% off sale, I pick these up.

Mr. Thrifty used the drill press and made holes to fit both of the handles.

Next, I made sure the handles fit.  Perfect!

Using my favorite spray primer, the whole door and handles were given a good coat of paint.

Then two coats of gray chalk paint were applied.

And the screws too.

Sorry about the blurry picture.

I then used sandpaper to knock off some of the paint on the handles.

I did the same on the cabinet door.

A layer of adhesive was put on the recessed area of the tray and the shells were placed.  A good overnight and the adhesive would be dry.

Mixed up a batch of non sanded grout.

Some of the shells had holes in them.  It was sort of tricky, but I placed toothpicks in the holes to avoid having grout stuck in them.

At the same time, I grouted the cross for a teacher.

After cleaning the excess grout out, here is the finished product.

I took a trip to the mirror and glass store and had a thick piece of glass that was sanded on the edges made to place over the shells.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do with the tray but for now, it has a home in the grey great room.



ODE TO GRANDMA END OF THE PEONIES FOR THE SEASON

When I was out in the perennial bed watering this morning, I spied one of the last peonies of the season.  That very instant, my Grandmother popped into my head.

  I know the peony bushes were in her backyard when I was a tot and today-- they live in my garden.

  That emotional connection means a lot.



MOTHER'S DAY 2017

 

I feel that the yearly celebration of Mother's Day is a tribute to both my mothers.  Most children only have one Mother.  I had two   Let me just say that I was given abundant blessings from both of you.

 

 

 



UPCYCLED, UPCYCLED AND THEN AGAIN, UPCYCLED

I apologize for my lack of postings the last few days.  A lot is going on at home with the girls, and I know that we all know what's thats like at the end of the school year.

This upcycle started with a chair that I found in my neighbor's garbage in Virginia many years again.  The seat was rotted out, so Mr. Thrifty cut the chair seat out, some chicken wire was stapled onto the seat and plants were set in it.

After a few seasons, I stripped out the chicken wire and repainted the chair.

This upcycle was rather simple.  I used the chair as a support for the growing peony bush in the back yard.

After a season, the chair began to fall apart from the outside elements.  I just couldn't throw it away.  Instead, plans were being made to make it a shelf for the bathroom.  Now looking at the next photo, you would say, how could one possibly resurrect this chair?

I asked Mr. Thrifty once again to cut off all the rotten parts of the chair and this is what I had left.

I found a piece of wood at Habitat REStore and decided to cut a shelf to insert into the chair frame.

This piece of wood set me back $2.50.  Not bad....

I stopped by Home Depot and purchase two baseboard decorative corners and spoon hooks from Hobby Lobby.

After I returned home, I found these two vintage iron hooks that I liked even better than the spoon hooks.

Mr. Thrifty cut two channels to insert the shelf.

The shelf fit beautifully into the channels.

Because the wood was so brittle, a chunk broke off.  This slowed down my progress, so I used wood glue to put the two pieces back together again.

Finding a dowel rod in the wood bucket, I cut two pieces to use as a towel hanger and a shelf support.

The hooks were screwed onto the sides of the chair and I was ready to paint.

The entire piece was painted with a French blue paint.

Once top coated with Screen Door Blackberry House paint, I heavily distressed all the parts of the chair.

The last step was to apply a final coat of Annie Sloan clear soft wax and buff well.

Then, all the parts were put together and glued.

 After attaching two screws to the back and adding framing wire between the two screws, the shelf was ready to hang.

It wasn't too difficult to look around the house for a few accent pieces.

 A small lidded glass decanter will hold cotton balls.

 A vintage perfume bottle and an embroidered towels now hang from the upcycled shelf.

I think this shelf will last a long time.  Hard to believe that it all started with a single chair.

A practical piece can now be used as a work of art in the bathroom.