Shopping Thrift Store Style...#2

My obsession with a good deal continues. After making the bi-monthly Goodwill drop-off I popped in to check out the goods. Usually I walk out empty handed but this time I hit the jackpot.

Everything except the wicker stool was from the Threshhold Target line. Target donates unsold merchandise to Salvation Army and Goodwill. The Target price tags were still on this stuff! These items were put on the shelves that day which is why I was able to snag them.

Okay so let's break it down.

Wicker Stool $5
2 Snakeskin Pillows $4 each
Gold Serving Tray $7
2 Mini Metallic Ornament Trees $2 each
Total Spent $24

The stool was purchased because we currently have 3 discontinued Stefano Pottery Barn stools in the kitchen and have desperately needed an additional one. After searching Craigslist and Ebay for over a year with no luck I had to go in a new direction. This stool is similar in color to the kitchen cabinetry and takes up little visual space since it's backless. I will still continue to look for the matching Pottery Barn stool but this will do until then.

I loved the mini ornament trees the moment I spotted them. The ornaments are silver, champagne, gold and copper so they will play nice with everything else around it. And for only $2 each such a steal. My wreath with ornaments from the dollar store still cost about $16 to make so these were a no brainer for next holiday.

Now why did I purchase ANOTHER tray? It's gold. It's animal print. It's a tray. Plus a good friend with great taste already has this in her home. Enough said.

Finally the pair of snakeskin pillows. Finding any cheap accessory item in pairs is downright exciting. Plus it would cost way more than $8 to make pillows like these. The faux leather metallic piping is spot on so hopefully they will work in the girls room.

Did I just post one of the most boring pictures of a girls room ever? Yes I did. But this is real life and putting together these rooms takes time. I've already painted the lilac dressers, remade a thrift store lamp and spruced up a gold animal print bulletin board for these little ladies. Hanging curtains are next on the list!

Easiest Little Girls Dress Ever

I'm all about keeping projects short and simple. Well this girls sundress is as easy as it gets. One day when trolling the clearance aisle at Joann Fabric my 4 year old spotted this fabric and was obsessed with it.

With an additional 50% off the sale price I picked up a half yard for $6. My plan was to cut it to make 2 dresses, one for each of my girls. After hemming the bottom, a basic straight stitch attached the sides of the fabric to create a tube. A 2 inch strip of leftover fabric was folded and sewed to make the straps.

The seam is on the side and barely noticeable. My daughter wanted the dress very long and has been wearing it around the house everyday since.

The dress will grow with her for a few years of use. When she saw the camera she went right into her Tae Kwon Do kicks and blocks followed with these poses.

Unfortunately I was a little short of fabric to make the second dress. I sewed it together anyway and my youngest happily squeezed herself into it to be like her big sis.

Not the typical clothing choice for the "Polar Vortex" we're experiencing but the girls love it!

Bentwood Chair Makeover

Would you pass this chair up if it was on the curb waiting to be saved?

Well I couldn't. There are so many things to love about this chair - the bent wood, vintage vibe and small scale. Just a basic fabric seat recover, clean the wood frame and voila new chair! Mostly. See, it had 3 layers of fabric that were stapled like staples were going out of style.

After removing all the fabrics the thin foam pad was peeled and scraped off the seat. The wood circle seat was tightly covered with an additinal vinyl layer that proved too difficult to remove so I scrubbed it down with soap and water to remove years and years of grime. The frame was wiped down multiple times with a damp cloth followed with a good rub down of Old English Scratch Cover. The wood was very dry and soaked up the oil easily leaving a weathered medium brown stain.

I used an indoor/outdoor fabric purchased at JoAnn Fabric that was left over from this pillow cover. It has a linen look but I prefer the lighter backside.

Foam was cut from some leftover egg crate foam already on hand. Also I was out of batting and didn't want to make another trip to the store so an old sheet had to make do. The sheet was stapled on followed by the teal fabric.

Even though the seat wasn't secured on when I found it, Mike used a couple of screws to attach it from underneath. Here she is.

This chair immediately went into action on Christmas Eve since we hosted 35 family members for dinner at our house and were short seating. Since then it has found a new home at the kids craft table in the office.

Once again a completely free project. I'm not afraid of the kids damaging it and have always loved vintage bentwood chairs. Now I finally have one!