antiques/junking

I’m having a lovely time in our apartment out East. Although it is hard for me to not have anything to do…. I am used to keeping busy.  I need to set up an art studio next time I come out or I will go crazy.  I’ve done some shopping, some sight seeing,and I filled the freezer with ready to go meals for my husband.  I must be bored, if I want to spend the entire afternoon of Vaelntines Day baking and freezing food.

Luckily, Robin, a blogger friend, met me today to keep me company.

We met at Starbucks, and both got phone calls from our husbands to check on us, the guys were worried we were meeting up with internet predators instead of blog friends!

I made sure to get a photo of the guy behind Robin so I could show my husband and pretend that he was right.

Here he is, my new buddy, Thrifty Miss Priss.  He does look a bit shifty.  But he seemed so nice on the blog!

The REAL Robin was such fun, we ended up talking for 2 hours. She brought me the cutest nesting birdie in a trophy, I promise to get photos of it when I get home, what a perfect gift!!  She made one for my buddy, Beth too.  Beth and I are getting together on Thursday for some co-craftiness, so I’ll take it to her then. In the mean time, I’ll set them both on my computer where I can enjoy them and try to decide which one I can part with!!

I am in love with the antique shops around here!!!  I wished I had a truck with me instead of a camera while shopping.  This is the dining set I have been day dreaming about forever.  But it would be a bit complicated to get it back to Kansas, and my luggage is already full.

I bought a set of these little plastic plates for Sugarwings and I to play tea party with.  That is easy enough to pack.

And when I bought a few of these old blue bottles, I thought, that isn’t so bad either, they’ll be fine in my bags.

But then, I found more bottles.  And some paper mache buckets.  And some more bottles. Then I found even more bottles. 

I’m sure I’ll figure a way to get them all home, and turn them into decorated button jars.  Yes, I am just sure I can make them fit. Somehow.

Did I mention that I also found some old hats?

This seems to be the land of prom gowns and flowered hats.  Everywhere I look, I see gorgeous, feminine, flowery things.   

The hats I bought should be fine, if smashed, I bought them mostly for the flowers, I peel them off and glue them onto other things.  And these hats I found are ENCRUSTED with flowers!

I’ve found so many curly-q, carved chairs too.  All of this furniture is just my style.

I need a truck!

It causes me pain to go home without this $89 table that just screams my name! I just don’t find stuff this cool at these prices back home. And here I always brag about shopping in Kansas and the low prices.  Well, yes we have great prices, but our stuff is more country looking, or primitive, or traditional.

Of course, there is stuff in this style back home too, but not in the abundance that I’ve seen it here, or at the prices I have seen here.

Also, I came across more than one store that was predominately pink and white!

Heck, I feel like canceling my flight home and renting a U-haul and buying a load of stuff to redecorat my house.   

One thing I could take home with me, was an IDEA.  Look at these stairs!!

I have a plan to pull up the ugly carpet from my stair way, and cover each riser in a different vintage wallpaper, then paint the steps white. Trouble is, my stairs were built to be carpeted, and are very unfinished looking.  It will take lots of bondo (meant for car repairs, but great for painted furniture repair too) and sanding.  I’ll have to router the edges too.  The steps at my house are plain boards, builder grade, not cool, old stairs. I now, HAVE to make them LOOK like cool old stairs.  I have a mission!

Here is another tempting piece from Lucketts.  Just a bit big for my suitcase.  Heck, I am wondering how I will make hats fit, what am I even doing thinking about buying salvage?

In the spring, Luckets has an outdoor flea market.  Oh, I will be back for that!  The outdoors is pretty cute and fun to poke through now, just picture this area filled with 60 different dealers.

What a pretty thought!

I also went to downtown Leesburg.  It was quaint and wonderful, but I didn’t have much time.  A lot of the decor there is more traditional or formal like I expected this area to sell. 

And OLD.  This is a gown that might have been worn by Dolly Madison, from the looks of it! 

We ate dinner at Rivercreek Country Club over looking an extraordinary view of the Potomac while in Leesburg.  My husband had to work there for the day, I had tagged along and gone on the shopping trip while waiting for him.

We also took a train into downtown DC and looked at dinosaurs and monuments and the White House.  

But of course, to me, nothing downtown DC compared to the dining room table I saw at Lucketts!  Am I shallow?  I was defiantly feeling like Becky Bloomwood in the Shopaholic NY book, when she pretends to go on a museum tour and ducks out to shop. If I could’ve gotten away with it, I would have gone back to that antique mall and skipped all the dino bones.    Yep, that is shallow, alright. 

Maybe it was because it was such a chilly gray day, and I was bundled up like a cocoon to keep warm as we walked the city.  If I go back in the spring with the cherry blossoms in bloom, maybe I will get into exploring the city more.

Some how, I think I’d still prefer the white, ornate furniture to the White House!

I’m spending a lot of time blog browsing too, since I haven’t got any work to do.  And Ebay browsing, which can be dangerous when you are bored and killing time!

But here is a blog that will keep you from boredom- check out Angela’s pink round up for Valentines, so many pretty pink links to visit.

That is where I am going now.