antiques/junking – Page 17

Style Evolution party

antiques/junking, magazine pictures or articles, parties

By Karla Nathan / February 1, 2011

Has your look changed over the years? Mine used to constantly change, back when I was working full time as a decorative painter and antique dealer. My home was my workshop and where I experimented.

Now that I don't do either of those professions much, I've stopped the revolving door of furniture moving in and out, but I do still come up with some upgrades here and there.

This was my dining room a few years back, this photo is from Country Almanac, or Country Victorian, I can't remember which magazine.

Here is the dining room now. Less flowery, more neutral. Definitely less country. The hutch in the first photo was a maple one that my mom had, and when she died, I took it home with me and gave it a redo. But it never really fit in with my home, so I gave it to my niece.

Yet another version, this was in Paint magazine. Sometime between the two previous pictures. It was just a little too blue for me. I liked it for a while….

Now, this is a REALLY old version of my dining room (from Country Almanac). It was so different then that it used to be a living room! When we first bought this old farmhouse, we used to move the sofa to the room with the wood stove in it every winter, then switch the living and dining rooms back in the spring time.

I liked the idea of having a portable space, one that you could easily adapt for the seasons. But then, we got a satellite dish and all the TV hook ups and wires changed that concept. It became too hard to switch the entire room, the TV cabinet wasn't easy to move. (with my love of TV viewing, I'd trade a wide screen for versatility any day!)

I can still change the look of the living room for the season just by changing the accessories.

In the spring, I bring out all my rose pattern pillows and curtains, then in the winter, I like to go all white.

Here is a shot of the white version, taken by Carol Spinski when she photographed an article for Somerset Home.

This look was in Romantic Country. Its from when I first discovered white paint and learned how to make slipcovers. I fell in love with light and airy, but burnt out on the over the top floweryness of it all.

I can afford to do the big switcheroos because everything I get for the rooms is dirt cheap. I scrounge and shop garage sales, estate sales, auctions, and have been known to go through a dumpster or two. I find things that need work, are beat up, or on clearance and redo them myself. When I do treat myself to something new, its usually not expensive, like these curtains from Target, or the rug from TJ Max.

And I recycle things from one room to another, this salvaged mantel has been in the dining room, living room and now is a head board in my bedroom. (this photo is from Romantic Country too)

This shot was taken for Romantic Country, almost used twice but rejected at the last minute each time. Funny, I like this look so much better than the previous pictures of my house that were actually used in the magazines.

This was in Country Victorian, I think… there is that mantel again. And the same furniture, different slip covers. I wish I hadn't painted over the border by the ceiling, I kind of liked that.

This used to be what my studio looked like, not too long ago. Twice, I have been asked to be in Where Women Create, but nothing has come of it. I adore my studio and would LOVE for it to be photographed for that publication.

Here is the same corner now. I use the bench (hand built by my son, from an old headboard) at the studio dining table.

I feel pretty lucky to have been in so many magazines, probably about 40 or so at this point. I don't really pursue it, its a hobby. Every once in a while I come up with an idea and run it by an editor. I wouldn't exactly say its a job, even a part time one. Its just a whim, and every time I do an article I think its probably the last time, because I can't believe that I was even chosen to do one let alone dozens.

I'm certainly not a professional writer, or decorator , just one of those people who happened to be in the right place at the right time. Just lucky, huh? Its always fun to do an article, and I really do like having these old pictures chronicling my home's metamorphosis.

If you enjoy looking at before and afters, please check out Jen Rizzo's blog today, she is having a Style Evolution party and the pictures of her home are just to die for. Gorgeous!! She makes me want to redo mine….. hmm…..

By the way, if you'd like to come and visit me and spend time in the studio, sign ups for the spring workshop are coming soo. I'd love to have you come to the cottage! Meeting blog friends is always a good experiance.

Kansas City will be lacking Curiousity

antiques/junking, free images

By Karla Nathan / January 10, 2011

Yesterday, I just had to go and say good bye to the Curious Sofa. It was Debbie's last day and I figured there wouldn't be much shopping left, but that isn't why I wanted to go anyway.

I just wanted to say so long to one of the prettiest shops I've ever been in. Debbie has decided that she is ready for a change and is happily moving on. She has tons of customers who love her and I think all of them turned out to get one last purchase from Curious Sofa.

Knowing that her clearance sale had been a success, I still was shocked when I arrived and saw this! Nothing left but sold items waiting to be claimed, extension cords, and work room supplies like the microwave and blender.

Yet, with all the inventory gone, the shop still held its beauty.

Even though the store was bare bones, it sure wasn't some spooky Halloween skeleton! With everything moved out, I could really appreciate the care that Debbie put into creating the whole atmosphere.

Each bit of wall and ceiling held evidence of her vision. That woman is so talented that even with her inventory sold, her shop still was an inspiration to see.

No matter what her next adventure in creating will be, I have full faith in her success. She has the dedication to detail that makes everything she touches make her audience say "ooooh".

I feel really lucky that she will be coming to my studio to teach one of the workshops for our Bird Song retreat on May Day weekend.

(details about the event coming soon- I'm not quite done with getting the website up for sales yet, thanks for waiting. There will be 20 spots to sell, its going to be a cozy, casual weekend at my home)

While I wasn't expecting to shop at Curious Sofa, I was lucky to find a few old photos left over from the big exodus, as well as one lonely post card sitting on a shelf by itself.

The card's picture seemed appropriate for the situation, a road leading off to the distance and a person walking away, with the words, "A bright and happy new year" printed below. I hope that this is a what awaits Debbie, as she walks away from her well loved shop toward greener pastures.

I've scanned the card for you, so you can have a souvenier of Curious Sofa too. Click on it to open in a larger window, then save that bigger image to your computer to print.

Gotta love the KC gals!

antiques/junking, Books, jewelry, the Boutique at Karla's Cottage

By Karla Nathan / December 1, 2010

Is swoony a word? If not, it should be. This article is very swoony!

Its in the latest Joan d' Arc. This was a gift from Carol, now, that is a good friend, huh??? I'm lovin this book!

This one too, a gift from the uber talented Amy Barickman.

I'm planning on packing both in my bag when I hit the road next week with my husband to visit Virginia. The trip will be different now that we no longer have a spare apartment or car out there.

It will be more like a vacation, staying at a hotel and not cooking and cleaning. Yippee! I'll be needing this great reading material while I am there.

Of course, its dangerous reading books like these while staying in a hotel room. Both will be inspiring me to create and decorate.

Kansas City gals got it goin on. First, Amy comes out with yet ANOTHER book for us to drool over, then Gwen's Bottom's Up antique show just keeps growing and growing and getting better all the time. Beth will be there with her to die for bargains, and dealers from my favorite mall in the world, Rusty Chandelier are going to be bringing their GREAT stuff this time too!

To top it off, Curious Sofa is having a sale. There is no where prettier at the holidays than at Debbie's.

I've been sprucing up my own store too. This is the new banner I made for my Etsy shop and I'm making an effort to add to it every couple of days.

Today I added these itsy bitsy little trees, they are only about an inch high.

The Boutique has some new, old, books.

I've added The Secret of a Happy Day (full of angels!), Oh Little Town Of Bethlehem, and Hark the Herald Angels Sing. There is also The Lord is My Shepard, but I forgot to take a photo of that one somehow, I'll have to add it later.

I think this looks like a shooting star, don't you?

And this brooch is crown shaped.

And there are sparkling buttons along with the books and baubles.

And a sweet little vintage deer on a wallpaper covered box under an archway of millinery.

I'll leave you with some photos of whats new, then I'm getting back to work. Tomorrow I have Sugarwings and what doesn't get done today, just doesn't get done!

Ooooooh, Curious Sofa!!!!!!!!!!!!!

antiques/junking, give away, holiday decor

By Karla Nathan / November 2, 2010

There are few things prettier than Curious Sofa at the holidays! And nothing better to inspire me and jump start the transition from Witches to Angels. I know, Halloween barely cold in its grave at this point, but I'm all in gear to move on and start Christmassing it up!

And I just adore her whites. Being there, surrounded by all the shades of ivory and silver was just what I needed as that extra boost for completing my projects for Romantic White Christmas, the online classes that Beth and I are teaching.

She is coming over today so we can get pictures done for our sign up page. Which means, I'll be pulling out some of my Christmas decorations as backdrop for the photos.

Things have been so crazy busy around here, and on top of that, I've had a dreary cold. So, my baby shower decorations are still up, along with the Halloween stuff. Its going to look like quite the holiday mash up when I start adding white Christmas to the mix.

Next week, some Bella Buds are flying in early for Silver Bella and visiting Kansas City for a couple days. I've invited them out to the cottage to dinner, and I sincerely hope that I can tame the run away holiday mess before then.

I have a feeling that I might not. But that won't stop me from enjoying my evening with them. I'll tell them that its extra festive to be celebrating so many things at once, and throw some Silver Bella decorations on the Halloween, Christmas, and baby shower conglomeration to top it all off.

We'll take them all to Curious Sofa, and we'll visit Carol's farmhouse, too. So they won't be under the impression that midwesterners have no sense when it comes to decorating. Carol and Debbie are the queens of understated glam decor.

My favorite thing at Curious Sofa was this set of plates that Debbie embellished. She is so busy with the store, I doubt she gets much time to do artwork, and thats too bad. She creates beautiful things.

My other favorite thing that night? Well, my BFF, Beth, of course! She met me at the open house for the evening. It was nice to get out of the house and do something festive.

I'd better get busy now, and set some things up for pictures today before Beth gets here. Before I go, I have three winners to announce-

The Romantic Gothic Ghost giveaway from me goes to Janet Ghio.

The one from Beth goes to Samantha Miranda

And my October Giveaway is for Laurie

I'll have details about the Romantic White Christmas as well as my November Giveaway in my next post.

The end of an era

antiques/junking, family

By Karla Nathan / October 12, 2010

We've done it. The shed is empty. In clearing it out, we came across the sign I used to put bythe road during sale weekends, and someone stuck it in the ground here. Isn't the whole set up cute?? I was surprised that I felt no remorse at all, it was truly a relief to have it all behind me.

I'd stopped having the sales quite a while ago, but always thought that I'd have just one more little one to clear out remnants. But each year, the stuff got dustier and dirtier. There was still some great inventory left, an old iron bed, a mosaic table, doors, colums, dressers, chandeliers…. on and on.

7 truckloads total of goodies left here this weekend. All given away. It felt wonderful.

I could have taken it to the Salvation Army and gotten receipts for tax write offs… I could have listed the good stuff on Craigs List…. I could have had a sale… I could have just let it sit and rot… all these things were in my mind for years.

But I didn't do a single one. And it hung over me. Looming as a big chore that I had to face.

Finally, I just decided to let it go. Just let it leave. I knew there were things in there that people would love to have. It certainly wasn't just trash. It was good stuff that I had lovingly scrounged! But it was no longer worth anything to ME.

I'd made my profits from the business. This accumlation was paid for long ago, and I find things so cheap that I had very little cash into it. And if I considered how much I'd made over the years on the stuff I did sell, it certainly covered the small loss on these things.

And now we are ready for chickens!

The building is large, one side long and narrow, the other a big square. I'm thinking the smaller side for birds. If I ever get a pony for Sugarwings someday, it can live on the other side. We used to have 5 horses, but have since taken down the old barn. But I think that a pony would be really happy in my antique shop.

We also cleaned out the garage, to make room for two cars and the tractor. I had a furniture painting business in the past and the 24 x 24 building had been my workshop. So, another collection I had was bits and pieces of trim and hardware and interesting bits of wood.

In other words, stuff that rats love to build nests in if you leave it sitting for a few years unused!

So, everything was pulled from the garage, some was burnt, some went to a junker friend who also hauled off dozens of cans of paint.

We got the saw out and cut up my work bench. Since it had been built of pressure treated lumber, I thought of using it the top of it as a "bridge" or sidewalk in the garden, so we sat it in the creeping myrtle behind the house. The bottom half will be moved to the chicken coop to hold the nests.

And speaking of nests, here is a baby update:

My son's Beloved is still having contractions. She did way too much yard work on Saturday building a compost pile in her yard and had a rough weekend from that. On Sunday, I was really worried about her, she was so weak and pale, from contractions all night.

But she is on bed rest and now they have slowed down.

The newest fairy baby isn't due till November 11th or so. I'm hoping that this girl will be patient and wait till then to arrive, but her folks are hoping otherwise. The momma's other 5 kids were all born early and she feels ready NOW.

I'll let you know as things move along. Keep them in your prayers, please?

Lucky

antiques/junking, family, housework, magazine pictures or articles

By Karla Nathan / October 9, 2010

You guys are all pretty nice to have around, you know it? Thanks!

Its such a beautiful day here in Kansas, what a great October weekend. We are going downtown with good friends to hear some live music in the park, and to enjoy this weather. But before that….

I have to make a stab at cleaning out this.

It used to be my antique shop. Before that it was a chicken coop. And now we are thinking about turning it back into a chicken coop again.

So, I've been trying to get ahold of people who I thought might want some of the junk that is left over. I'd like to have the building empty by tomorrow. What no one takes will be on the curb, feel free to stop and look through my trash if you are driving by!

And this is only half the shed. The other side is just as bad.

I'd thought about turning it into a play house for Sugarwings, but the idea of fresh farm eggs is just too tempting. We already have some fencing we could slap onto the back of the building and we have some shelves that would make good roosting.

No matter what we do with it, I need to get it de-junked. This stuff has sat here for years, unused and unloved. I know there has to be someone who wants it. I thought about doing a rummage sale, but it turns out that I am too lazy. Cleaning it will be bad enough, but sitting out there early in the morning trying to sell stuff for quarters and dimes? Its better just to find homes for it all.

I had to tell myself that I've already made my profits from that business, and now I'm out of the antique shop biz and the rest of the inventory has to go. Do you ever hang on to stuff, knowing that its worth something? Well, this is GOOD junk, that for some reason just didn't sell. Wrong time, wrong place, I guess. But even though it is "worth something" its worthless to me just rotting in the shed.

The stuff deserves a new home. And I deserve a clean shed.

Untill the chickens poo all over the shed, at least. Not so clean then.

Have you seen the newest Somerset Life? Lots of blog friends are in it!

Including these pretty pages by my Texas shopping bud, Lisa.

I was lucky enough to score two articles in it. And that sweet Lisa actually called me to congratulate me on them! I don't think she has any idea how touched I was by her gesture.

See, around here, no one is very impressed by my work.

One article is about my peat pot frozen Charlotte fairies. The photography was really nice on this article, I loved the faded, blurred pastel backgrounds they used for the pics.

And I was excited to see that one of the upcoming challenges for artists is to use a peat pot in their own artwork and send it in. The deadline is Feb. 15th if you are going to make something for it.

And speaking of good pictures- my friend, Carol, took the photos of my house that are in the current Somerset Home.

I'm feeling pretty lucky right now. Not just being in two magazines on the stands at the same time, but in having good blog friends who leaped to my defense about the deleted post without even knowing the story behind it. Once everyone knew that it was the mom who didn't like what I said about the photos, everyone understood. Many of us were new moms at one time and knew completely how she felt.

And I'm lucky to have such a good family that pulls my foot out of my mouth for me every once in a while when I get it stuck there. And then they love me anyway, even with toe breath.

Save room for dessert!

antiques/junking, Food and Drink, Travel

By Karla Nathan / October 5, 2010

The Dorothy tag books have kept me so busy that I almost forgot to show you one of the BEST parts of Roundtop- Royers!

This yellow brick road was right up my alley. And it leads to some great food.

On our first evening at the flea market, a food stand was pointed out to me and people mentioned eating there. Well, I'm not big on fast food, or fair food, and really wanted to sit down with a nice meal and some air conditioning and was glad when my friends agreed, that a cocktail and cool air was tempting. So we went to a steak house instead.

The next day, they wanted to eat at the food stand for lunch, even though the line was a mile long. I'm usually pretty easy going and can fit in with whatever plans everyone has, so I said sure. Thinking that I could always just eat a power bar if the food didn't look all that good.

But DANG! It was amazing. I had a grilled shrimp salad that was so good it could have been served in a fancy dancy restaurant with starched white tablecloths.

Now, I knew why everyone was raving about Royers. They had a shack set up in the midst of the flea market, as well as their main restaurant down town. So, the next day, we decided to try the main diner, and went early before it opened to put our names in. Good thing we did, when it opened, it filled. In a snap.

Its colorful, funky, funny, charming, and delicious. The second lunch was even better than my first. I had the same grilled shrimp, but this time on top of a tender hunk of salmon. With black eyed peas and fresh vegetables. Lunch wasn't cheap, but it was worth it, and the service was great. Happy, smiling people at both establishments.

I want to go back next spring just for another piece of their peach pie….

Gifts for me and gifts for you

antiques/junking, celebrations, Food and Drink, parties, Travel, vintage paper/collage art

By Karla Nathan / October 1, 2010

As wonderful as the shopping was in Roundtop, the best part was the people. Of course. I just love meeting up with blog buddies, and finding out that they are even more fun in person than I expected.

Lisa and Jodie came with gifts too, that's always a big plus when your buddies are artists!!

And I got to meet the beautiful Elizabeth, who'd I'd heard so much about on her Mom's blog.

Sandy also brought her cute daughter, Jen, who I had wanted to meet. Sandy and I have shared stories and worries about our kids and hate it that we live so far apart. If we didn't, I'd be playing matchmaker for Ryan and Jen!

Lisa and I got into the theme of the night for Sweet T's party. We were supposed to come up with unique serving ideas made from junk.

I brought my crown "cloche" for a plate of crackers to go along with her doll head dip holder. The winner was a pair of mellons in a bra, but there were some great ideas. The lamp shade behind our dishes has a plate of treats on top of it, and there was also a chandelier with the votives filled full of strawberries.

And Yay! I got to meet Cindy. Who is not only talented, she has the prettiest complexion you'll ever see. If I ever get down to her Paper Cowgirls event some day, I'll have to drag her skin care secrets from her.

Sandy made these cheerful booties for my new grandbaby. Tonight we are going to the baby shower, so I'll be bringing them to the expectant mom, she will just love them!

And there were gift bags filled with treats from the French Cupboard. From all the gifties and treats, that everyone was giving out, I could have gotten by without doing any shopping at all. But….

Of course I shopped! At Cole's, Lisa found these French net curtain panels, but didn't get them. I scooped them right up as soon as she turned them down.

Heck 2 years ago, I didn't know what French net was, but now I can't get enough of it. I guess I'd always seen it and loved the look, just didn't know the name. Its a very delicate lace, with flowers over a fine netting.

That kind of lace can run really high, but I've been lucky. These were slightly damaged, but I didn't care. The four panels were $125, which is cheaper than buying lace panels at Target. And these are Victorian. Since they were made for some old, elegant, turn of the century mansion (well, at least that is where I've pictured them) they are LONG. Like 9 feet or so. I've just draped them over a tension rod and clipped them in place with a curtain hook.

There was a tent in the "fields" that had vintage linens in mounds on table tops, for great prices. They also had them for sale by the pound too.

I bought decorated scarves, some as gifts and a chiffony one in gray with rosebuds to use as a runner on my dining table. It was 5 bucks!

I found a few more odds and ends, as I unpack I'll take some photos. But the biggest bargain of them all was this basket of flowers.

I'm choosing two winners from the guesses, no one got it exactly right. There were 89 bundles of flowers, and Sue guessed 88.

But if I count the individual blooms, there were over 250!! Cheryl guessed 135, that is the highest guess I got, so she'll get a corsage too.

Thanks for taking the time to guess. Its surprising to see just how many there were. I was shocked when I actually counted them out.

Wow, is it really October? I have to announce the winner of my September giveaway, one of the projects from Romantic Gothic Ghosts. The tutorial is still up and running, you have time to make some Orange-free, romantically inspired Halloween decor for your own home.

Or if you just want to win something to decorate with, leave a comment any time this month. I'll be giving away another one of my creations for October!

September's winner is: Elaine (Etta Rose)

The Hat Whisperer takes on Texas

antiques/junking, flowers, Travel

By Karla Nathan / September 29, 2010

Roundtop was even better than I had expected, the trip was just the best. Of course, with Jodie hauling us around, it had to be good. That girl knows everyone. And everyone just loves her. I can sure see why.

It was a fun group to be a part of. Beth and I had been wanting to meet Lisa for the longest time, and just knew that she'd be wonderful, and an instant buddy. And yep, she was!

This is Jodie, the Cajun Queen Bee, Lisa, Beth and I. Beth is doing everyone a favor and holding my eyes open because we all get tired of taking photo after photo with my eyes shut.

For some reason, I tend to ruin a LOT of pictures by closing my eyes as the shutter snaps-Beth, Anne, and Jodie both have photos posted of me with my eyes closed!!

We saw some great displays and over the top booths, and we didn't even get to stay for the Marburger show, which is legendary for its originality and showmanship.

One booth that I just fell in love with was Seed Box.

Their style seems so effortless.

Oh, and Miss Sweet T….. so much good stuff to dig through!

Anne of Fiona and Twig joined us for the afternoon, with her charmer of a husband.

Her darling Mr Twig, not only snapped photos of us all together, he watched our shopping carts as we puttered around. Plus entertained us with his sparkling conversation. That guy is a keeper.

Are you wondering why I chose to wear such an unflattering dress ?

(It would be pretty on someone young, tall, and thin, but on me- it looks like a cross between something that Bette Davis wore in Whatever Happened to Baby Jane and an old dress an escapee from a polygamist colony would wear)

I wore it because its made of a gauzy material that was so comfy and cool that I was able to survive the unbearable Texas heat.

The dress is 20 years old and I know I am too old to pull it off, and usually it is only worn during fairy dress up parties with Sugarwings.

But, it is so comfortable, I couldn't help myself.

Beth and I were warned we'd have sticker shock in Texas, just like we were before we went to California. But what I've learned in travelling and shopping around is that prices are unpredictable. They vary so much in booth to booth or mall to mall that it doesn't matter what state you are in, you can find sky high prices and bargains too.

Its all in the digging.

And in asking politely for the best price. These flowers and multi flowered corsages were all marked $5-8 each, which were some of the cheapest ones I'd seen in Texas. When I asked for a "volume price" she sold me the whole bunch for….oh, I'm embarrassed to say…. its such a good deal!

Okay, you drug it out of me.

FIFTY DOLLARS!!!!!!

That is a bargain in any state. I had been happy to find a couple floral hats under ten bucks to start with, but this? The mother lode!

Do I look as gleeful as I feel??????

(and yes, I see that my eyes are closed)

If you can guess how many flowers were in the basket, I'll give you one of the corsages.

Leave your guess on THIS post. I'll announce the winner on Friday, the person closest to the correct amount will win.

You can also win one of my Romantic Gothic Ghost creations by leaving a comment on any post, I'll draw that name on Friday too.

And don't forget that I have a sale in the Boutique. If you use the coupon code " Roundtop " you will get a 20% discount on all of your purchases. The sale ends Thursday.

Here is a clarification: I will count EACH FLOWER. Corsages will be multiple flowers, not count as one.

edit- contest OVER

Art ADHD

antiques/junking, fairies, flowers, paintings

By Karla Nathan / September 12, 2010

Today, I finished a fairy painting that was more than a bit overdue…. Sorry, Janice! But its finally ready now!!

I was given a stack of pictures of these two sisters, and some info about things they liked. The older girl enjoys pulling her baby sister in a wagon, so I put the littlest fairy in a flower petal cart.

As proper Lawrence, Kansas girls, they both like the Jayhawks. So I added a pet Jayhawk for them.

And the older girl enjoys reading to her sister. How sweet is that? So, I included a bag of fairy tale books.

After I have my paints out, I wonder why I don't do watercolor more often. I think that I should at least leave some paints and brushes on my desk to remind me that I am a painter…. and maybe to incorporate some painting into my collage work too.

My interests are spread out quite a bit. I adore working with millinery, ephemera, and well, most things old and pretty. But painting was my first love and I should try to get back to it more often.

What I really love to paint are flowers. Especially if I make the picture look vintage. But I do love cutting and gluing, and using cherished old lace, old postcards, WALLPAPER (yummy yummy wallpaper), and rhinestones in my art too. So, I can't picture going back to painting full time like I used to. Its just too fun to find cool old things and imagine what they can be made into.

Plus, the hunt is half the fun. As much as I love to paint, going to a retail store and buying a tube of paint is no comparison to hitting a flea market to find supplies!

Even silly things like this.

And even sillier ones like this! Life is too short to limit myself to just one style and one type of art. So, I'll dabble in paint like always, and still flit from idea to idea, playing with ephemera, and making stuff no one wanted into something pretty.

Even though, some days I wonder… if I had stuck with one thing and really worked with it for a life time, would I actually be successful?

Or just bored?

If you are like me and love to use vintage supplies, I'm adding these items to the Boutique, with more coming in the next few days.