Gorgeous New Old Stuff!

Where would I be without eBay and Craig's List?  So many of the things I bought for Coast Awhile Cottage  were purchased secondhand from these websites or they came from 

flea markets.

Two reasons for this:   (1)  I can afford better goods if I buy them used  and (2)  the house will have more character, look more collected over time, if some of the things are vintage.

When I looked over the pictures of the dining room to select some to share I realized that almost everything in it was owned by somebody else first.   I wanted a pagoda chandelier for the dining room.  I love the bamboo look--it's beach-y and elegant but not stuffy.  Most of the ones I looked at were out of my price range.  So I began searching for one on  eBay.  It took some time but patience paid off and I found this vintage tole pagoda for an amazing deal!

A coat of spray paint (Rustoleum aqua) and boom--it looks fresh and ready for it's new life at Tybee!

 

Peter and I couldn't wait to take down the old fan and put it up.

Source:  Jane Coslick

My dining table and chairs were scored by searching Craig's List.  I paid for the table and six nice, heavy chairs with rush seats less than I would have spent for one chair new. The wicker chairs at each end of the table also came from another Craig's List search.

I wanted a buffet or sideboard piece for the white sheetrock wall and this one came from a flea market.  The gorgeous vintage Imari lamps also came from a flea market and I was able to get them for less than I would have spent at a discount store.  They came with wonderful black silk shades but I bought some white ones--it's a beach house after all. 

  I'd have put a pretty painting above the buffet if I had not sold the house.  Maybe one like this one by Bellamy Murphy.  Here's a link with some of her paintings--what a talented lady!

Source

Remember the fabulous shell mirror from this post?  It was a special anniversary gift from my husband Henry.  It wound up coming with us to Doc Holiday when we sold the house but I originally planned it for this dining room.

T

Now let's put these things all together....

The curtains are from Ikea--this style with grommets is called Merete.

  

 My designer Jane Coslick arranged these shells in an antique bread bowl.  Aren't they fantastic?  It's the little details that make everything magical.

 

Source:  Jane Coslick

 Don't you love the oyster shell candlesticks....Jane's son made them!

Source:  Jane Coslick

Source:  Sandy McCloud

Source:  Sandy McCloud

What do you think?  Pre-loved stuff is not so bad, huh?  Sometimes old things used in a new way can look fresh and beautiful.  Who wouldn't like having dinner in a dining room like this?

These Are A Few Of My Favorite Things!

 In working on Doc Holiday, our little beach cottage, my plan for the living/dining space was to try to squeeze as much out of the small space as possible.  I had learned from working with designer Jane Coslick on other projects that it would help to lighten up the dark paneled rooms with white paint--not only does it make the space seem brighter but it also makes it appear to be larger and gives a neutral backdrop for any color I want to introduce.

When it was time to select a sofa and upholstered chairs I chose white slipcovered pieces because they would blend in and take up less space visually plus the slipcovers make it easy to wash away the occasional spills of little (or big) people.  

I shopped IKEA because they specialize in small scale furniture and their goods have a nice design and reasonable price.  The only problem I had with IKEA was getting used to the strange names of the furniture!

Ektorp Sofa with Blekinge white slipcover

Ektorp Jennylund Chair with Blekinge white slipcover

Once I had a nice white backdrop it was time to put some color in the room--and that is where the exciting, nail-biting, rewarding, terrifying, thrilling, satisfying part of decorating comes in--the part where you give your room some personality!

I had to decide what kind of feeling my room should evoke when people walked in.  I wanted people to feel uplifted and say Ooooo--niiice and yet not feel intimidated because the room is too precious.  I wanted the room to welcome guests, invite them to relax and to have furnishings that delight them and make them feel happy as they look around. Also I wanted the room to say You're at the beach!!  without getting too cute and overly kitschy.

When I began to shop I tried to keep my objective in mind--to only buy things that met my goals.  I usually try to establish a color scheme fairly early in the game and pull the colors through the house to all the rooms to keep it cohesive.  But who am I kidding?    

My Most Important Rule:  Buy what you really love and skip the rest.

So today I want to show you some of my favorite things--things that made the cut because 

they say "happy" to me.  

This painting was my first purchase--it was my birthday/Christmas present from Henry. 

I blogged about the artist, Bellamy Murphy, way back in April when I visited her studio.  Her paintings make me smile and I'd been wanting one for several years.  The only problem was narrowing my choice down to just one...

After seeing "May Day" on Bellamy's blog I just knew.  I had found it.  The perfect painting to use as a focal point and inspiration for my bright and happy color scheme!

I love to shop for vintage pieces.  I've scored some great deals with Craig's List, eBay, and little local flea markets.  Some have needed do-overs like this cupboard I posted about here.  It now has a split personality since I separated the top and bottom, painted them, and made them into 

two pieces of furniture!   

These tables for each side of the sofa were also flea market finds.

The lamps and shades I bought to go on the side tables came from Target.  They were chosen to echo the yellow found in Bellamy's painting.

It's white, folks!  The picture makes it look sort of grey.

This little painting from Home Goods was left over from decorating a different cottage.  I liked it too much to return it and for now it has found a home above the sofa.

Then there is the matter of pillows...

A pair of these are on the sofa.

These are my faves!  I found them on Amazon but their price took my breath away.  No matter how much I loved them, I could not justify it with my tiny budget :( 

But hooray!  A few weeks later just in time to furnish Doc Holiday, one of my favorite flash sale sites, Joss and Main, offered them for less than half the Amazon price and I snagged a couple!  Sometimes it pays to wait! 

If you'd like to check out some of the great deals at Joss and Main please click my link and join up!  The deals change daily so if you don't find something you like and need today you may find it tomorrow!  At any rate, it's fun to window shop!

These are a few of my favorite things!  This post is getting long so I will wait til next week to show you a close-up of an absolutely fabulous seashell-encrusted mirror!  Then I want to put everything together and show you how it looks in the living room!

What about you?  Do you have any favorite finds or stores to share with us? 

Where do you like to shop?  Are you a flea market enthusiast or do you prefer the

fancier stores?

Time For The Good Stuff!

It's time for the good stuff...at last I can show you all the fun things I found for the bunk room during my shopping adventures online.

I fell in love with this fabric when I walked through the kids' department of IKEA!  The flag print made me think of nautical flags and the bright colors are so cheery!  The Atlanta IKEA carries the curtains in this print but the only stores that carry the duvet and pillow sham are the stores on the west coast:(

I was scheming about how I could get the duvets and was just about to pick up the phone to dial up my sister Crystal who lives in the L.A. area to beg her help...then I thought I'd check eBay first.  And yaaaay--there was a seller who had four sets for sale still in the packages! 

Vitaminer Vimpel Duvet Cover and pillow sham set

Does anyone else love to score a bargain?  I get a little thrill each time I find just the right thing for an amazing price and that is just what happened with these euro pillow shams.  I can't keep it to myself--normally $40 each, they were on clearance at C. Wonder for $4.99!

I love the rope and grommet detail on each pillow!

 

There is one more item to share--I was walking through Home Goods one afternoon and this little wicker monkey "spoke" to me--he really did.  I had to take him home!  I'm not sure yet the best way to display him but I think the kids will like this little friend!

Here's the room...the room is small and it was hard to stand far enough back to get a good picture with my little point and shoot but I did my best.

As you can see, we managed to get four bunk beds into the room and still have a little floor space!  The kids seemed to like the room a lot when they stayed here a few weeks ago.  They chose to hang out in there reading or playing games--I guess it is fun to have your own space but to have company nearby!  We've got tweaking to do but I'm already loving the way this room is shaping up!  

Tybee Here I Come!

IKEA.  When our closest IKEA store opened a few years ago it was announced in a huge headline by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.  What?  I thought it was strange that they 

should herald one store opening.  What's the big deal?

For weeks it was reported that you needed to make an appointment to see the new IKEA store.  The lines were so long that you had to have a reservation to get in.  Really?  I thought it was strange that anyone would be willing to stand in line just to see a store.

Then I went to IKEA....

And then I got it.  Love at first sight.  This is the perfect place to shop for high style-reasonable quality- low budget goods that don't have to last for a lifetime.  Perfect for our beach house.

It took a couple extra days to obtain a U-Haul truck--seems that June is a busy month for many people to move.  No matter how many times I have driven a big truck, it always seems to be a little nerve-wracking especially when I have to drive to Midtown Atlanta!  This pictures captures my feelings pretty well!

 It was mid-week and the hubs was not available to drive me since he was working so I asked Loretta to go with me for moral support and because she is very strong (IKEA is self-service.)

We shopped my list and thankfully, Marvin, one of IKEA's finest, was available and came to our aid.   Good thing because we had 4 huge, heavy shopping carts to maneuver!  Marvin loaded the big boxes onto the carts and helped us get everything to the cash register. 

 Then Tiffany checked us out at the cash register.

 Did I mention there was a lot of stuff?

Oh yeah...gotta pay.

At long last we got our things out and loaded onto the truck.  A nice employee came over and offered to assist Loretta in getting the larger pieces on the truck.

And we managed to get out of Atlanta before rush hour!  Next comes loading all the Tybee goods that are at home--then the drive to Doc Holiday!  Tybee here I come!