Vacation Shopping

Thank you for all of your kind comments regarding my Home Tour at Debbiedoos!
As I mentioned before, we just got back from a trip to Arizona to visit my sister and her family. I managed to get some fabulous shopping in, and some good eats, too. I promised to share pictures with you, and I'm giving fair warning, there are a TON! Are you ready?

I have followed Karen at My Desert Cottage for awhile, and have enjoyed her posts about a monthly sale in her neck of the woods called Sweet Salvage.  Well, I was absolutely thrilled when I realized that the sale would be going on at the same time that we'd be visiting (and no, I didn't plan our vaca around the sale, as my hubby teases me! It was just serendipity :) 

I'm not exaggerating when I say that this is one of the best 'junk' shopping experiences!!  My sweet hubby drove me almost 2 hours from where we were staying in Tucson, to the sale in Phoenix, and we got there right when the doors opened.  There was a line of people, but as you enter they give you a number so that you can 'tag' the items that you want, and there's also a very friendly staff there to help. They have it down to a science!

The sale is in a huge warehouse, and every nook and cranny is filled with the most incredible 'junk'!  It's all so artfully displayed-just a feast for the eyes!

I was in full-on shopping mode, so Keith was a doll and snapped a bunch of pics for me with his phone-not the best quality, and they don't really do it justice, but you'll get the general idea!

The owner, Kim, just happened to be the person who checked me out, and she was such a sweetie! It turns out that her hubby went to BGSU in Ohio where Keith and I went-small world!  We enjoyed chatting with her.

Here I am with some treasures in hand... I could've done some serious damage if we lived closer, but I only bought things that would fit into an empty suitcase that we brought. (Luckily these inscribed silver bowls fit :) Talk about exercising restraint!

I was smitten with this amazing sign, but it wasn't packable (sigh).

There are many other fantastic shops located near the sale that we got to visit (thanks to Karen for recommending them to me!)  One that stood out to me is called Rust and Roses, and I was swooning over all the fun 'junk' there, too!  (Look at all the great dishes and again, silver pieces!) 

Keith had heard about a place to eat called 'The Duce' that sounded fun, so we tracked it down. I'm so glad that we did, because it was one of the most unique, coolest places that we've ever been to! (And we found out from our server that Guy Fieri was there the previous week filming for Diners Drive-Ins and Dives!) We got there just as they were opening for lunch, so we were able to snap lots of pics.  It's in another HUGE warehouse with half as a restaurant and half as a shop. We ate outside in this 'open-air' part, just last week, on a gorgeous sunny day. (We returned to Ohio to freezing temps and icy snow-no, I'm not bitter!)
Check out the painted pallets on the brick wall they use as planters-love it!

The kitchen and order window is in an old airstream trailer.

They have the menu painted on a pink chippy door-how fun is that?!

The factory cart, the wildflowers in mason jars, the old doors...a junk lovers paradise!

Even the bathroom was photo-worthy! (I don't think I've ever taken pics of a public bathroom before-ha!)

This is inside the actual restaurant part.

I wonder where they found these salvaged bleachers?

And this is the other half, where they sell clothing, and have the coolest vintage props!

Ok...are you still here?  This is only a fraction of the pics that we took, but I figured that you might have other things to do today, so I'll stop! ;)  I'll have to wait and show you the treasures that I brought home another time.
Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful day!!

Tour My Home!

I'm so thrilled and honored to be featured today by Debbie at Debbiedoo's as part of her Home Tour series!  Her Sunday link party is one of the first parties that I found when I started blogging about 8 months ago, and I've happily participated ever since.  Please go visit her fabulous blog-it's full of inspirational ideas and projects, and there are many fun Home Tours (including pics of her own gorgeous home!)
I hope you enjoy my home tour! :)

Vacation

Hi!  I want to thank everyone for their comments and suggestions regarding my mantel here, and your comments on my junkin' finds here.  I haven't replied to you or stopped by your blogs in awhile because I just got back from 9 glorious days in Arizona!  My hubby, mom, dad and I went to visit my younger sister, her 4 kids, and our niece's 2 little ones.  Of course our great-niece (age 3) and great-nephew (age 1) are the cutest things EVER, and we had so much fun with them!! :)

The weather was sunny every day, and mostly in the 70's...just what I needed! I'm definitely a warm-weather girl, and I wasn't too happy that I had to come back to freezing temps and snow :(

We traveled to both Tucson and Scottsdale, and I have to tell you folks that live out there that I am truly jealous! My sister and her family have lived in Arizona for over 10 years, and every time I visit I think I fall in love with it a little more (especially in the winter!)

We went to some really cool places, and I'll be sharing more pics soon.  Have a wonderful day, and if you're in a cold part of the country, like me, stay warm!

Junkin' Finds

Hi, everyone!  My friend Suzanne and I went 'junkin' a couple of weeks ago, and I found a few goodies that I wanted to share.  In my last post I told you that I'm into tarnished silver right now, so I was happy to find this little silver cup.

Another piece of silver that came home with me is this tea/coffee pot.  I like its pretty lines and detailed edges.  I added some greenery, and displayed it in the dining room.

I hope you're not getting tired of seeing this little shelf in my living room, but I just keep switching it up!  I was excited to find these 3 little pharmacy canisters-I thought they were cute, and I knew they'd fit right in here.

 Another item that I found and added to my shelf is this little architectural finial.  It's pretty rough, but that's what I love about it! (I guess I should probably pound that nail in, though!)

This wicker tray caught my eye, and when I saw that it was 75% off, I couldn't resist!  I have another one similar to it, but this one is bigger and a darker color of wicker.
I stacked some grainsacks on it and added some antlers that my dad has collected for me, from his hikes.

You gotta love the crown motif on these jars!   We don't see too many of them around here, so I usually scoop them up when I find them.   Not sure yet if I'm keeping or selling these (I've sold some on Etsy before.)  I also got this 1923 dictionary, and it was only a buck!

I'm not sure what I'm gonna do with this heavy white urn, but I thought it was fun.

This next thing I got may have many people scratching their heads, but I know that you, my fellow junk-lovin' peeps, will get it!  If you've been following me for awhile, you know that I LOVE anything with numbers (or words) on it.  Well here's a big ol' number tag on a rusty chain!  You can't really tell from the picture how huge this thing is-like 5 inches or so!  I think it was a cow tag or something.  An extra bonus is that the number '85' was the year that I graduated high school!  I just draped it over a chippy corbel for now.  Who knows where it will end up?  (Suzanne said that I should wear it around my neck gansta style, and I said that I'd be rockin' it 'farm style'...we were cracking ourselves up!)

That's just a few of the treasures that I found on our trip.  A lot of the other things that I got will be for sale in my shop.  Boy, I sure do love 'junkin'!!
Well, stay tuned, because I'm having my first giveaway soon! Hope you have a wonderful day :)

Mantel Makeover

Hello, everyone!  Since I keep tweaking my bookshelves that I promised to show you in the office, I decided to first show you my mantel makeover and get back to the bookshelves another time.  After I took down my Christmas mantel, I wanted to go with a totally different look than I've had before.  I'm really loving tarnished silver right now, so I used that as a starting point.

I already had one of these larger urns, and recently bought the other one, not realizing that it's an exact match to the one I had!  Happy accident :)  I figured that these little 'trees' that I had out for Christmas could pass for 'winter' decor, so I placed them in the urns and put one on each end of the mantel.  I've had the little zinc pots for a few years and thought they'd go well, so I added them to the mix and I hung the little wreath to 'unite' all of the greenery.  So far so good...I'm pretty happy with how the silver and greenery is looking.

Ok, so now for my 'dilemma', if you can call it that.  I've tried many different things on this wall, but I haven't quite gotten the look that I want.  I've had empty frames, a huge chalkboard (that was up at Christmas,) an old window... and while I like all of those, I just want something different.  While struggling with what else to try, I remembered this large picture that I've had stored in my basement for years, and it fits the space well, however...

 ...I'm not sure if I even like this picture!  It's one of those things where I like the idea of it-the size is right, the colors are good, the frame works- but I'm not really digging the actual picture itself.
Even Keith, who usually compliments everything that I decorate with said..."Hmm, that's kinda ugly!"...which is a little stronger than I feel, but not too far off!

I mean, it's not hideous or anything (at least I don't think so) but it's not ideal, either.  Well, are you ready for it?  Here it is in all its glory...

It's definitely got a vintage vibe to it, and it actually has grown on me a little since I put it up, but I'm keeping my eye out for something better.  The wall is a pretty good size, and the things that I've seen and like that are big enough are REALLY expensive.  So I also want a good deal...I don't think that's too much to ask for, is it?  :)  How 'bout you, do you ever 'settle' for something until you find just the right thing?

Well, there you have it-my new mantel makeover.  What do you think?  (If you hate it, please be gentle! :)  Thanks so much for stopping by, and until next time, have a fantastic day!