Thursday, November 10, 2011

Anatomy of a Goodwill Visit

Last Thursday was a horrible day: I had some anxiety issues all day and baby kitten hit his bad side (while being bad and running away from me!) and limped for a few hours. I was convinced he'd re-broke his growth plate but he's now using it just fine again. I think he just smacked his sore that the cast left and it ached a bit. Add to that a few other small annoyances and a stomach bug... I went to Goodwill. I went to three. I needed serious retail therapy, which meant heading out to the ghetto to the head sorting center Goodwill in town, the largest Goodwill in town, and the one with the special furniture room. LOVE!

Obviously I got some stuff. :)

Large frames, 2x3, 2 matching ones for $2.50 each. These are going to go over the couch. 

Lovely picture of a farm (lol this IS Kentucky). $3.50, it's hard to tell in the picture, but it's about 2 foot by 3 foot. I'm planning on painting over the farm with chalkboard paint for the kitchen. 

Blurry kitten and a LARGE laundry basket. He's jumping in this photo. $3.50
(I'm sure this is what the vet wanted when he told us to keep him confined right?)


Ferris Wheel - $1, Map - $1, Dictionary - $2.50, book of Paris prints - .50 cents

The ferris wheel thing is cool. I usually never like any of the accessories Goodwill has. I don't think Welcome Geese or ceramic kittens would look good in my house. But I think the ferris wheel spray painted oil rubbed bronze would look quirky. 

The map will be wall art somewhere. Rob and I both love maps :) 

The dictionary is because I wanted some largish book pages for some crafts. 

The book at the bottom is a reproduction of a book of sketches done by Henri Rivire. There are 36 prints and they all feature Paris at the turn of the century (1902). 


The colors will go great in the living room (gold, grays and blacks). I plan on putting them in 8 x 10 frames and doing a 4 x 4 symmetrical gallery wall behind the dining room table. Like this,





This find will probably gross out some of you, sorry! These are queen sized Martha Stewert 100% egyptian cotton sheets. I couldn't pass them up for $2.50! Look at the trim on the top! Obviously I'm going to bleach the heck out of them and wash them on super high heat to kill the cooties. Then make my guests sleep on them. Muahaha. 

Lastly, 


Office chairs! They were $3.50 each :)

We needed matching chairs for the breakfast table in the kitchen. I was planning on using Ikea wicker chairs til I found these, much better than $60. They look horrible now (the right one looks like it might have a throw up stain?! ha), but we've had great luck with office chairs so far. They're 100% wood and completely sturdy. Once I rip that god awful magenta fabric out and replace it with a more neutral fabric they should look 10x better. 

I'm not sure yet what to do with the frame. It's wooden so maybe I should sand it back and danish oil it up? Or just paint? 

Glamor-less shot. 

Also, that's a sneak peek to the new living room color. ;) Full details when we're done painting it!


I liked the wheels, they're a bit silly as its going on tile floor but I don't care! I could always steal them and use them elsewhere. 

(There is no natural light in our kitchen, hence the odd lighting, sorry!)

I know it's hard, but imagine the table painted white (honeymilk), the chairs reupholstered, the wall painted and that god awful grout kicked to the curb. It will all get better soon. 


6 comments:

  1. What a score on the chairs and that book of Paris prints !!! Sometimes it pays to be a book junkie.
    Looks like it's time to put on the painting clothes and make some magic happen.
    Really enjoy your blog.
    Vanessa

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  2. Some great finds! Retail therapy isn't so damaging when it's Goodwill your shopping at! :)

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  3. Ceramic kittens=no

    Real kitten in basket (aka confinement)=adorable

    Looks like you had a successful trip! I especially like the Paris photos--those will be cool on the wall. I'm always looking for a book like that and never find anything.

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  4. I'm very jealous of that Ferris wheel. I have been looking for a cheap one!

    Hope the junk shopping made things better. I'm glad I'm not the only one that uses Goodwill as stress relief!

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  5. Wow! What a good day to find treasures, -some floor grouting is dyed, our kitchen floor tiles are grouted in grey. Wheels on a tile floor can be fun, and they don't make that scraping noise! Anticipating some fascinating transformations.

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  6. You really got some treasures! Can't wait to see what you do with those chairs!

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