flea market |

April’s Flea Market Finds

Posted on May 2, 2013 by Christy

There’s a great flea market in Nashville, held once a month at the fairgrounds. People come from all over to attend, and I highly recommend it if you live close enough for a day trip. This month’s promised to be a good one, with most of the vendors back after the slower winter months. However, it was absolutely pouring last weekend, and so many of the booths are outside and in open-sided barns, that I almost didn’t go. But, my daughter and her friend were dying to check it out, so we put on our rain boots and coats and gathered our umbrellas to brave the elements.

The little girls scored some amazing (to them) things: 3 packs of gum for $1, new styluses (is stylae the Latin plural?) for their iPod Touches, homemade lipgloss, and more. The entire time they were checking out these treasures, though, I was itching to get outside to Antique Alley. When they finally let me go outside, here’s what I found:

~a white enamelware tray for $5

~an old wooden sugar mold for $15

~a huge, gorgeous wooden dough bowl (score! I’ve been looking for one for ages, and the price was right on this big girl! I paid $115, but have seen others this large–over 48″ long–for $300 and up)

~fresh basil for my neighbor, and fresh thyme for me (2 for $5)

~an old wooden pear crate ($8)

In hindsight, I’m so glad we went in the rain. All the vendors were there, and the crowds were pretty thin. That also made the deals much better!

I worked the sugar mold into my decor first. The kids and I learned about these as part of our homeschool studies…they used to pour hot, liquid sugar into these wooden molds to make cones of sugar. Then, it was chipped off as needed. Sugar was an absolute luxury item back then, and the cones were often guarded by the lady of the house (or the housekeeper in more well-off homes), and kept in locked pantries.

This one is nice and old…lots of worm holes in the wood. My husband died laughing when I told him that worm holes are a desirable touch in antique wood pieces.

I wanted to put votive candles in the mold holes, but I didn’t want dripping wax to damage it. I’ve seen places online that sell metal inserts for the holes, but those are the same stores that sell reproduction sugar molds for a couple of hundred dollars, so I figured I could do it less expensively. Enter the tea light candle holders I bought at Ikea last year:

Easy! Then I tried my new candle holder in a few places to see where I liked it best:

On the piano…

On the dining room table…

On the open shelving in the dining room (I really liked them here but didn’t want to get carbon on the top shelf)…

Finally, I put it on the hall table, and there it will stay (for now)…

I put the enamelware tray in my pantry so I can use it when I need a cute serving tray. Most of the time trays get worked into my decor and wind up with books stacked on them, or something similar, and then I don’t have an empty one when I need to serve drinks or snacks. So this one will be put to use in the “normal” way!

The wooden pear crate is holding books next to my son’s bed. He usually has a pile on the floor that he’s in the middle of reading. This is my attempt to corral that mess!

I planted the thyme plants in these cute, narrow flower pots I grabbed at Goodwill one day. Thyme is such a pretty plant, and obviously it’s nice to have fresh for cooking. These are sitting on my screened porch right now, but I think they’ll move to my kitchen windowsill soon.

And my gorgeous dough bowl is currently on top of the armoire in my bedroom, but I have other plans for her eventually. I think she’ll wind up on top of the dining room table, or the buffet, full of dried hydrangeas.

Only one more flea market for me in Nashville, and then I get to see what Savannah has to offer. I’m guessing they’ll have some amazing things, too!

Thanks for stopping by!

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Posted in Home Inspiration, Real Spaces, Shopping | Tagged antiques, flea market, Nashville | 4 Comments

Burlap & Lime Green–My Winter to Spring Front Porch

Posted on February 23, 2012 by Christy

Are y’all getting tired of my front porch? I hope not! I like to post pictures whenever I change it up a bit, because I like to show that with just a few minor tweaks (and not a lot of money), you can completely update your space for the current season.

My goal as I transition from one season to the next is to keep it fun, simple, and inexpensive. I’m always on the lookout for pillows and cushions for the front porch. It’s covered, so I don’t have to buy outdoor cushions, but I often do (my favorite Ebay source for outdoor pillows is mentioned HERE). I also pick up pillows at yard sales and thrift stores and give them a good coating of Scotchguard to minimize dampness and sun fading, but even if they don’t last forever outdoors, the price was right!

I found five lime green chair cushions at Goodwill a few months ago; I think they were $1.99 apiece. Three of them were squeezed onto my glider and the other two are on my black wicker chairs (hmm, the wicker chairs will need another coat of spray paint come spring). I think the lime green really pops with the black and white polka dots and paisley. I also put lime green candles in my chandelier; they’ll get burned sometime over the summer, although I’m not going to be sitting out there anytime soon!

I have a mixture of pinecones and Osage oranges on my table. The Osage oranges are from my back yard, and yes, you’ve seen them before–I’ve had them in my outdoor decor since Thanksgiving (that post is HERE). They last forever and smell great.

The burlap is cut from a grain sack that I found at the Nashville flea market back in September. I bought a metal cabinet for my laundry room {HERE} and asked the guy to throw in the feed sack, figuring that I can always use burlap. I cut it into strips and tied it around the pillows on the porch, and also fashioned some into a bow to make a simple grapevine wreath for the front door.

The rosemary topiaries on either side of the front door are still left over from my Christmas decor, and hopefully I can keep them alive until it’s warm enough to plant them. I LOVE great big rosemary bushes in my landscaping! I thought about tying some burlap around the planters, but I decided that might be overkill. Just like accessorizing when I get dressed, I need to remind myself that less is more. Oh, and do you like my NRA sticker on the right sidelight window? I figure that should be even more of a deterrent than the alarm signs that my neighbors put in their yards!

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The little corner to the left of my front door is a great place for a vignette, although often there are footballs, pieces of sidewalk chalk, and bike helmets stashed there. Right now, I’ve got my watering can and a couple of grapevine wreaths in there. The grapevine wreaths were hanging on either side of my mailbox at Thanksgiving–see, I told you that I just keep moving the same pieces around.

My total cost for the front porch was under $15, for the five cushions and the four candles. And, of course, Easter’s only 40 days away, so it won’t be long before I show you what I do out here for the holiday. I promise that the Osage oranges will be gone by then!

Thanks for stopping by!

Posted in Home Inspiration, Real Spaces | Tagged Burlap, cushions, flea market, lime green, polka dot, Porch, rosemary, shabby chic, topiary | 4 Comments

11 Magnolia Lane’s Best Holiday Home Tour EVER–Part 2!!

Posted on December 22, 2011 by Christy

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Remember that I left you hanging in the Audrey Hepburn room last time? Well, as promised, here’s part 2 of the tour of my friend Andrea’s amazing home in Ft. Campbell, Kentucky. You can take a look at Part 1 of her holiday home tour here. Just a reminder, this is military housing (!) she has worked these wonders with! Also, take a peek at her Facebook page for her shop, Mildred & Mable’s, located in historic downtown Clarksville, Tennessee (do you have any really last-minute shopping to do, still? I do!!). We’ll be hosting a M&M’s giveaway shortly; in fact, I’ll be at the shop this week picking out something wonderful to offer our followers. Can’t wait!

I’m going to show you a ton of pictures and not “talk” too much; they speak for themselves. There are a lot of pictures so it may take awhile to load, but I promise you that it’s worth it. I will finish up with pictures of the front of her house, which might seem backwards, but they’re worth waiting for. So, without further ado, back to Andrea’s office/closet/boudoir. This used to be a playroom for her two girls, but Mama’s taken it over now!

Open shelving and mannequins artfully display jewelry.

The Tiffany boxes under the tree are a great touch–I never throw mine away either because they’re so pretty, and now I know what to do with them. By the way, the open cubbies you see in the picture are actually on the opposite wall–they’re reflected in the collection of mirrors on the wall behind the mannequin and the Tiffany tree.

Below is her desk area–what a great place to make buying decisions for the store!

Love the open steamer trunk on the floor.

You are so classy, Audrey!

There are two towers of open cubbies on either side of the bench. Andrea knows a wonderful gentleman who can make anything she can dream up.

I just love this room–it’s so glamorous!

Just a quick shot of the stair landing–I never would have thought to have put a piece here, but it looks great.

Check out the “Family” saying on the wall–black vinyl on top of the wall that was simply painted a darker color and framed out. Easy instant artwork!

Andrea’s girls share a bathroom and they just had their decor updated to hot pink, black and white–Paris chic. Take a look at how she handled the big plate glass mirror below–you can’t pull those down in military housing, so she simply hung two frames. I never would have thought to do it, but it works great. Can you see the darling flower chandelier in the reflection?

These mosquito netting and tulle canopies are pretty easy to find at garage sales, and what a great idea to hang one in the water closet–why not?

Here’s her younger daughter’s room:

Did you see the book racks on the wall next to both beds? I love those! Ikea used to sell a spice rack that doubled as a book rack, but they just discontinued them. I am desolate.

Here’s her own lavender tree…

Check out the chenille bedspread that was repurposed as a window treatment.

Vinyl initials adhered directly to the wall are “framed”. I can’t remember if Andrea painted all the white circles on the wall or used vinyl, but if you wanted to do a similar treatment, either would work (vinyl would be faster and easier, but more expensive unless you have your own machine).

Here’s her older daughter’s room. I think she’s about to get a total room redo, so we’ll try to do a feature on that when it happens.

I love the striped walls behind the bed

This room sports a beautiful pink tree:

Now a few shots from Andrea’s bedroom and bathroom…

Andrea's husband went to West Point--isn't this a great old cadet uniform?

Even the top of the armoire is sporting eye candy!

Every bedroom needs a Christmas tree!

This is the small hall between Andrea’s master bedroom and en suite bathroom. Just by using a tension rod and filmy curtains, she defined the space and made it special and glamorous. That gorgeous vintage chandelier, mirror, and architectural piece above the doorway complete the look.

I don’t normally share so many shots of water closets, but her decor is so clever in here that I can’t resist. The next two pictures are in the WC area of her master bath.

Antique enamelware medical cabinet

Here’s another great use of a tension rod and a repurposed vintage bedspread.

I can see Ellen cleaning in this picture–the tour of homes was that night and she was scrambling to get the house pristine before all the ladies arrived. Thanks for letting me shoot around you, Ellen!

The last thing I’m going to show you is the front of Andrea’s house, just like I promised. The grapevine, threaded with clear twinkle lights, is one of her signature decorating accents and looks wonderful above her front door.

As you can see, Andrea has made their military quarters into an absolute showplace, with a perfect mixture of elegance and whimsy. I hope you all enjoyed the tour as much as I enjoyed showing it to you. Andrea, thank you for opening your home to us!

Thanks for stopping by–and Merry Christmas, y’all!

Linking this Wonderful House Tour up to some of our favorite parties at~

My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

At the Picket Fence

Common Ground

Posted in Holidays, Home Inspiration, Home Tours, Real Spaces | Tagged Christmas, flea market, french country, holiday, Home Tour, shabby chic | 1 Comment

Nashville Flea Market–my favorite finds from last weekend

Posted on September 4, 2011 by Christy

Last weekend was the Nashville Flea Market, held monthly at the fairgrounds. When we lived in Clarksville for nine years, I often made the drive down with my friends, Carolyn and Andrea, and now that we’re all in the area again, we’ve reinstated our tradition.

We went last Saturday, which is different for us (normally we go on Sunday morning–the bargains tend to be better on Sunday). But my hubby was playing in a golf tournament and I didn’t want the kids to miss church since we’re just getting situated in our new Sunday school classes. So, Saturday morning it was.

My first find was this darling lampshade. The woman who made it took long strips of bright and cheerful patterned fabrics and wove them on a wire lampshade frame, then just tied them on the frame. I’ve seen tons of old wire frames throughout the years and know that they’re cute on a lamp all by themselves, or they can be re-covered…but I never thought of this technique! Yes, I could have done it myself, but since I don’t have a bunch of cute fabric scraps sitting around and I needed to find the right size frame, I figured the $20 she wanted was going to be well worth it. We’ve just re-done my daughter’s room–it’s aqua, pale green, and white now (all pink has been banished–sigh!), so this was a perfect inspiration piece for her desk. Love it!

(By the way, I’ve seen these done with ribbons before–also cute–and embellished with flowers, ribbon rosettes, and beads.)

My second fabulous find was also for Annabelle’s room. She was really the big winner here, wasn’t she? I bought a black nightstand for her room for $20 and of course forgot to take before pictures to post. I am getting better at taking pics of “before” but I am usually in such a rush to get to “after” that I still sometimes forget! I sanded that baby down, removed the yucky drawer pull, and spray primed and painted it aqua blue. I finished with a crystal drawer pull, which I already had, and a little light sanding to distress it. Now it’s her new nightstand. She’s been asking me for a nightstand with a “junk drawer” which cracks me up–how many eight-year-olds need a junk drawer?! Come to think of it, probably most of them. Can you say plastic Happy Meal toys?

Can’t wait to get back there in September…you never know what you’re going to come home with!

Posted in Before and After, Home Inspiration, Real Spaces, Shopping | Tagged flea market, lamp shade, painted furniture, trash, treasure | Leave a comment

Clash of Styles–My Daughter’s New Desk

Posted on January 22, 2011 by Christy

Phew-I need sunglasses to look at this!

My friend Megan and I went to the awesome Cameron Antique Fair in Cameron, NC, a few months ago , and I scored a beautiful little desk for $75. I’ve been looking for one for awhile, but nothing was exactly right so I continued to bide my time. I had visions of painting it white, or even pale green, and putting it in her very girly pink and green room, where everything matches perfectly because I worked hard to make it match perfectly. It didn’t quite work out that way, and I have to admit that I’m still grinding my teeth over it.

My sweet little seven-year-old has developed an amazing sense of personal style over the last few months, and I’m struggling with the fact that her personal style is pretty much the opposite of mine. Did I make her this way by imposing my taste on her during her formative years? I happen to think that I have awesome taste, but maybe everyone thinks that, even the people who have hideous taste! She informed me a few months ago that upon our next move, she wants her room to be green, yellow, and robin’s egg blue, with stripes, polka dots, and ELEPHANTS on the wall. Thank God that she changed her mind last week and now wants chocolate brown walls with all white furniture and bedding (I see lots of spray paint and bleach in my future!). My husband tells me that unless I let her express her individuality now, she will come home with pink hair when she’s a teenager, and if things continue the way they’ve been going, he will probably be correct.

My first strategic mistake on the desk was that I allowed her to pick out paint colors with me. Everyone knows that seven-year-olds should be allowed to select from two or three PRE-APPROVED choices (this works with everything from outfits to hairstyles to paint colors), but I forgot to heed that time-honored advice and took her to the store. You must know that I am essentially lazy and into immediate gratification when it comes to fixing up furniture, and so I usually spray paint it (I know, this shows a lack of character on my part, but I am working on it). My favorite color of spray paint green is “Celery” by Krylon, and I have used many cans of it in Annabelle’s room.

This is celery spray paint. Isn't it beautiful?

I painted this darling stepstool with celery spray paint...

: ..and this cool wood initial is also celery.

But did my sweet girl want her new desk to be Celery? No, she did not. She wanted Pistachio, Celery’s slightly tacky older sister, and there was no arguing with her. I suggested the old standby White, or the ever-popular Ballet Slipper, or please, please, please how about Celery? We left the store with four cans of Pistachio, and a can of Watermelon for an accent color (yes, Watermelon is essentially hot pink). I had a bad feeling about the whole thing, right from the beginning.

Pistachio and Watermelon. Uh-oh!

I do think that I was a good mother that afternoon because I allowed her to shoot some of the spray paint on her very own desk, and I also let her use most of the can of Watermelon to spray paint a limb that had fallen from our oak tree. That was a good strategic move, too, since we didn’t have as much left to paint the trim and the hardware and so the desk remains more green than pink. I even painted Watermelon polka dots on the top of the desk at her request (but no stripes or elephants). FYI, a wasabi can makes perfectly-sized polka dots should you ever cave in to your daughter’s decorating vision.

So here’s the final version of Annabelle’s new desk. She adores it even though it is so bright that it clashes violently with everything else in her room. I placed it on the same wall as the door to her room, so it’s not a focal point (you get the best light here for reading, honey). As you can see, the desk itself is darling with lots of sweet details, and I comfort myself with the fact that in about a year, it will get a white coat of paint in her new room, and Pistachio will be a distant, although bilious memory.