Fab Find Friday: What's in my Workshop

I have to admit, this blog has seen better days, but to be honest our mind is on other things...namely waiting for Baby Madia to show up! Today was my last day of work, so I am now officially on maternity leave. I celebrated with pedicure- classic OPI Red.

On to Fab Find Friday! My workshop has started to collect a number of items that I can't really do much with until I am without child and able to use my furniture stripper and paint products again. I probably have half a dozen projects waiting for a little TLC.

On the left is an industrial stool Chris and I picked up for $5 at a garage sale last weekend. I'm not sure where it will end up (Kitchen Island is currently in the lead), but it was too good of a deal to pass on. The item on the right was also a yardsale find. It's a wooden suitcase. I have never seen one before, not even at the antique shows. It has leather straps, and I have no idea what I will do with it, but that's half the fun right?

Handling the Dresser

When I last left you, this was the state of the dresser that we purchased for the Nursery. After testing to make sure it didn't have lead paint in it- which it didn't- yay; I then had to decide what we were going to do with it, and specifically if I was going to do it myself. Although I feel my pregnancy has been fairly easy (knock on wood) all things concerned, the one struggle that I have consistently had to deal with is not being able to do everything I want to do independently. Asking for help is hard, especially when you are used to doing things on your own and you enjoy doing those things.

That said, my super friend Dixie Anne agreed to paint the dresser for me, and I couldn't be happier. She has been keeping me updated by texting photos of her progress:

1. Here are the drawers all primed (love your thumb DA)!!!

2. Here is the frame primed and ready for paint!

3. And here is the finished product she texted me last night- so exciting:)

The next step for this project, will be to replace the handles for an updated look. My dream handles are little white anchors from Anthropologie, but for $10 a pop, i'm not sure they're worth it. Here are some of the ones I have liked so far.

What do you think? Any that stand out as favourites in your mind?

Christie Favourites

Last Saturday was my favourite day of the year; the Spring Christie Antique Show. It was an absolutely gorgeous day, which meant the prices were a bit higher, but there were definitely great treasures to look at!

Here are a few of the items that caught my eye, but didn't come home with me:
Top Left- This coffee table was amazing, but it was also $945
Top Right: This cart was a good deal, and I thought maybe it could be used in the Nursery closet, but I wasn't sold on it, and it wasn't there when I went back for a second look
Bottom Left: The orange door would make an awesome blackboard
Bottom Right: I loved this little shelf, but I didn't love its $95 price tag

I did end up walking away with two items, a small picnic basket and this great windsor back rocking chair. The rocking chair is going to get a fresh coat of paint and a new cushion, which will be the subject of a future blog post!

Dresser Hunting

We were on a mission to find a dresser for the nursery at the Aberfoyle Spring Sale. We looked at almost everything and as you can see from the pictures below there were lots of styles and colours to choose from. We're planning to use the dresser as our change table, so we needed it to be a specific height and length- tip: always bring your measuring tape to antique shows!

In the end we went with this cute 3 drawer dresser with original hardware and casters. It was an absolute steal at $40 and is clearly in desperate need of a paint job (right now, I'm loving the idea of bright red or cobalt blue). Most of the others ranged from $95-$250, and some were a bit too big for the space. We think with some TLC and a fresh coat of paint, this guy will be perfect for our little peanut

Favourite Spaces- Bathroom Corner

Although this room has a long way to go, and I have major plans including a full paint job and totally new light fixtures before Spring, I love this space. With the cold winter we've been having, I've spent many an evening soaking in our deep claw foot tub, which I hadn't really taken advantage of until now. I added the snowflake garland at Christmas time, and liked it so much I left it up. I think one of the reasons I like this space so much is it has so many treasures I've collected over the years, and everything has a story (like the old liquor bottle or the cracked Japanese china jar on the little shelf above the tub.

In the picture below, you can see the old metal hospital table that Chris negotiated at Christie a few years ago, a wash-stand given to my by close friends, a pretty tray I picked up at Aberfoyle, a vintage suitcase and old painting I found at Goodwill

Here is a close up of the pretty tray. I think I paid $6 for it, and loved it the moment I saw it. The frame is wooden and the tray is ceramic. No room would be complete in our house without a couple of fruit jars. I have also added an old first aid kit and tin of baby powder for good measure!

As you can see from the pictures above, I'm not the only one who likes this space. This is Missy Cat's favourite bathroom activity- catching drips on her nose. In our old house, we used to let the tap run for her, now we use an old enamel pan to catch her drips.

Happy Friday everyone! Hope you have a good weekend, we're going to see a good friend, and I am hoping to get some thrifting or antiquing in at some point, definitely in withdrawl this time of year!

DIY Friday: Wedding Venue Decor

After reading the Style Me Pretty and Ruffled blogs religiously for over a year and a half, I knew the decor for my venue was going to be really important to me. I didn't want to spend a ton of money, but I did want it to reflect my style; rustic, colourful and full of patina! It was hard because we don't live where we got married, so I had to make sure whatever I planned was manageable. I was very lucky to have the help of my parents on this one. They travelled to visit us earlier in the year, so they were able to take all of the jars I have collected over the years that I planned to use for my centrepieces. My dad also arranged with a friend to borrow a few items his daughter was using for her rustic wedding that was held just a few weeks before mine. One tip for brides getting married in a different city is to check Kijiji and Craigslist in the city their getting married in for items they may want to use. That's where I found my colourful bunting and old door I put my menu on. You just need a Super Dad or Relative to pick stuff up for you. I'll never forget when I sent him for the door- "You need me to pick up an old door...and you want to use it as decor?"

I found the wooden C and J at the Christie Antique Show, after a coat of paint they were ready to go. My mom and grandmother arranged all of the flowers in the canning jars.

I got this printable online (Wedding Chicks Blog) and put it in an old frame that use to have my mom's grad picture in it!

This old door was converted into a chalkboard and used to display the buffet menu. It is currently living in my parents shed and we're working on ways to bring it back to Ontario as I am in love with it.

The centrepieces were a burlap square with a stack of old books, two flower arrangements in canning jars (the smaller one on top of the books) with tea lights and a floral table number held up by a vintage spool. My friends did an awesome job arranging these and I loved how they turned out. We personalized a few of the tables by picking books that related to the people sitting at that table. 

Since only my maternal grandparents were still alive to witness our special day, we wanted to do something to remember all of the grandparents. We got black and white copies of each of them and had a table dedicated just to them with the word "Memories" in scrabble tiles.

When we asked our baker to put sprinkles on our wedding cake, I think she was probably very surprised. It turned out exactly how we pictured it, and looked great with the DIY bunting cake topper I made (tutorial here). When I sent a thank you card to the Baker, she said that her and her husband drop off a lot of wedding cakes, and most decor set ups don't make them take a second look like ours did. I like that we didn't have a cookie cutter reception, and I'm glad we did it on really light budget by using a ton of items we owned already.

We also used scrabble tiles as place settings for the wedding party at the head table.

Speaking of head table, here was the panoramic view I took on my iphone during the reception. My dad and brother hung all of the bunting along the top of the room the morning of the wedding. Did I mention how thankful I was to have family and friends pitch in to make this day great?

I love this picture. Chris surprised everyone with this big kiss! I made the Mr. & Mrs bunting out of burlap and stencils I got at the dollar store. Behind us is the crocheted bunting my mom made that says "Love Is All You Need". It was such a great day, and we truly are blessed to have such wonderful people in our lives that helped put it all together. I also need to thank my friend Shaun for taking many of these decor and venue pictures. He knew how much work I put into planning everything, and knew it would be important to capture all of the details. He did such a phenomenal job!

Last Day of Aberfoyle

Last Sunday was the last day of Aberfoyle for another year. I love going on closing day because despite the cold, you can actually get some really good deals as it is the Sellers last chance to make a sale (the cold probably helps).

This was the first thing I noticed when I walked up to the market from the parking lot. I have dreams of owning a truck just like this...or a little older...you know for when I own a business in a quaint little town (think Julia Roberts in Runaway Bride).



The next bright light in my Aberfoyle trip was meeting up with this cute chick. It's been a while since we've seen each other, and I always love the time we spend together. For the record, this isn't her bike...but she really wanted it to be...you know for cruising around town!

As always, there were many things I loved that I didn't take home with me. Here are a few of my favourite things that didn't make the cut:

Top Left: Sweet grey chair; Right: Nice car blanket, perfect for Christmas styling. Bottom Left: Wooden crate that I was considering as a side table; Right: Sweet candy can from Halifax

I thought long and hard about this guy. I was thinking he might be perfect in a small corner I have in my kitchen, but alas I wasn't sure he would fit and wasn't totally sold on the price.

Last but definitely not least, I saw this guy as we were heading out, and he looked like someone had left him behind...many moons ago. There's something very sweet about this little guy, and I am sure he was loved by a few children before he made his way to this can!

In the end I picked up some hooks for my front entryway and bathroom as well as a little side-table that needs a bit of a makeover for the low price of $20! I will share the table in a future post:)

Happy Wednesday everyone- i'll be back on Friday with a Halloween themed post.

Cottage Weekend

We had a girls weekend this past weekend at my friend DA's cottage. It was a wonderful escape, and just what the doctor ordered with one month to go before the big day! We ate, drank, sunned, swam and laughed the whole weekend, it was truly wonderful!

On Saturday morning, Megan and I hit up a garage sale (of course), and I found a few great items including the sweetest little half pint Ball jar! I am planning to stain the crate and turn it into a side table!

The highlight of our weekend was definitely discovering, adopting and feeding this sweet stray kitten. We named her Mrs. Fuzz Tail. We all really wanted to take her home, but we thought she probably belonged to someone at the beach, as she wasn't afraid to come close and she was up for a few pets. She left with a fully belly, so we're hoping she made it home.

It was a great weekend, and definitely a little sad to be leaving this great view behind!

We've decided we need to make this trip an annual tradition because it was just so much fun. Sometimes you just need a girls weekend away!

Bathroom Progress

You'll recall from this post that I have plenty to keep me busy in our bathroom. One of my first priorities was to add some storage to our upstairs bathroom. The previous owners were willing to leave their existing linen cupboard, and when we moved in I regretted not taking them up on the offer, but I really wanted to make the space our own.

I found this old cupboard at the Aberfoyle Spring Show for $65. The inside was completely grey, so I gave the back of the cupboard a fresh coat of teal blue and then painted the shelves and outside of the cupboard white. One tip to keep in mind when you buy a cupboard that you're going to put on the floor is to prop it up with a few thin pieces of wood, otherwise the doors will not open if they're flush against the floor.

The cupboard really is the perfect size for the space, and adds a ton of storage for all of my extra toiletries and cleaning supplies.  I am looking forward to adding a towel rack to balance out the height.



Speaking of bathroom fixes, my dad cleaned and fixed the bathroom vent when he was in town. Turns out it was just installed wrong. I'll be back next week with a recap of everything my dear dad took care of when he came to visit!

Happy Friday everyone- wishing you a wonderful weekend!

Things I Left Behind

I stopped in at a few Antique shops this weekend, once on the way home from Stratford in Shakespeare (unfortunately there was only one shop open), then the red barn on the way to the Cookstown Antique Market and then in Cookstown. I can't always bring home everything I love, so here is a glimpse at the things that didn't come home.

Clockwise from top: Cute vintage stools, great tall chimney cupbard, a beautiful iron crib converted to a daybed and ornate ladder back chairs.

I loved this chalkboard and thought it would look sweet in a child's room one day!

Hope you all had a great Canada Day long weekend!

I'm in love...

...with a table. Chris (my true love) spotted this sweet, original, well loved, gorgeous, 1870's farmhouse table at the show we went to on the weekend. He knew it would be perfect in our dining room, and it is!

As you may recall, I have posted previously about my existing kitchen table. I still love it, and it is going to make an excellent craft table.

Fab Find Friday: Aberfoyle Recap

I'm ending the week with my 200th post! Last weekend was Aberfoyle's spring sale, and as promised here are some of my favourite items from the show:

Chippy chicken coop chair, small wooden stool and cute Dove crate. I'm looking for a small wooden stool for my bathroom, but wasn't sold on these just yet!

Sweet industrial stools, shabby chic beauty desk, lovely mint accordion rack. I went back for the rack, but alas he was already scooped up...indecision sometimes leads to disappointment!

Popsicle molds, cute side table, the cupboard I almost bought and an old top-lifting  dry-sink

I don't have all the items I purchased that day photographed, but here are two of the bigger items I took home that day:

Beautiful milk-protein paint finished stool- the epitome of gorgeous patina. It is going to live in my kitchen!

Rustic Cupboard- will be refinished and used in my bathroom for storage!

The Aberfoyle spring show was excellent this year, and hopefully a sign of a great antiquing year ahead! Happy Victoria Day to all my Canadian readers. We have tons to do this weekend as it is my big Bridal Shower weekend next weekend and I will have my first out of town house guest!!!