sparklythings

things making me happy right this second:

Tallvik table lamp from IKEA. Looks better in person and WAY better lit. Reminds me of the bottom of my parents’ old lava lamp.

Peacock Alley flannel sheets – specifically that “Glacier” color blue. By far the best flannel sheets I’ve bought in my life! I got ours a year ago – and have been using them on and off the whole time – and they’re still thick, soft and so pretty.  These Target ones are okay (they certainly come in a bigger range of colors) but they’re not going to hold up well.

Christmas penguins from Home Depot and Lowes. I think these are the only two I don’t have yet. Yup – we’re going to be THAT house this year (and I can’t wait!)

Just a few things that caught my eye…there hasn’t been too much exciting lately…

I’m a sucker for a step table, but one with inlaid tile as well? Amazing.

Those chairs are pretty cute, and WAIT A MINUTE…that china cabinet looks awfully familiar…

Okay, these were at the Hubbard House thrift store, not Craigslist. $65 total for the set. I’d reupholster just so it wasn’t Christmas all year long, but they looked like they were in really nice shape.

Saw the durnedest thing at the thrifts today. It’s a buffet that opens up and pulls out into a table! Having an emergency party? Just pull this out and go. Guest list mysteriously doubled? No worries, just pull it out some more!

The leaves are all stored inside on the left. The right appeared to just be general storage space.

This was at a decent size here, but look how many more slides haven’t been extended yet. There wasn’t room to pull it out all the way but I bet it got quite big! How many parties must this piece have seen over the years?

I didn’t see any manufacturers’ markings, but it didn’t look like a custom job. The pattern on the door is vintage-y but I couldn’t give you a year. I’ve never seen anything like it, so if there’s a name for this sort of thing besides “banquet table hidden inside a buffet” then I’d be interested to hear it.

One of my frequent thrift stops was the Salvation Army on Beach Blvd, mainly because they were one of the few open ’till 7 pm.They recently changed their hours so no more post-work stops for me. I really missed it though (friendly people, good layout and selection, decent prices) and decided to give it a shot at lunchtime. It was COMPLETELY worth it:

I picked up a green ceramic tree earlier this summer because it was a steal – but after I got it home and saw other folks’, I realized I wasn’t in love with the green look. The white trees just show off the colored bulbs so much better!

Of course when I least expect it – and on 50% Wednesday to boot! – my perfect white tree shows up. I need to give it a better cleaning and get all the glue off (don’t glue the bulbs in, folks! You can’t redecorate themthat way!) Other than being dirty, it’s in great shape and only missing two bulbs.

I had serendipitously found a cache of bulbs at a yard sale not long after buying the green tree, so I planned to just take all the blue ones out. But when I plugged it in I realized they looked almost purple – swoon! I’ll just switch them around as the mood strikes – monochrome bulbs one day, rainbow berries the next!

My favorite part – other than the white/purple bit – is that this isn’t a huge round tree; it’s got a flat back and a hole to hang on the wall! It stands up quite well too, even though I wouldn’t trust it around the cats. But I’m really pleased with the unique shape and especially the smaller footprint.

There was even another one in the store covered in the red bird bulbs. I hemmed and hawed over it, but there was an obvious and poorly repaired crack where the top of the tree had come off. I knew I couldn’t fix it, but maybe a ceramics specialist will find it, fix it and be as joyous as I was over this one. And if anybody’s interested in the green one, just let me know!

200th post here. I guess that’s some kind of milestone, right? Big up to my homeslices, the always-rockin’-never-stoppin’ Sara Margaret and Miss Leah for regularly tuning in!

If you like what you see here and want even MORE of it, hie thee to Tumblr where all the cool kids are hanging out these days. There you’ll find delicious MCM eye candy, lovely home interiors, blow-your-mind artwork, teen-style hollywood crushes and a smattering of politics for flavor. Some recent gems include:

from jamiemelanimarshall.com via shirt.woot

from lab partners – back with a new look, by the way!

from Sollinero via illustrativo

Best of all, my Tumblr is updated almost daily, excepting legal holidays, sick days and any time I’m flying the friendly skies. And with my Google Reader count consistently set at 1000+ for the last few months, there’s no shortage of content anytime soon. (I’ll never get caught up!)

My summer project…Jennie is a friend at work, and she’s using a starfish motif for her ivory-and-chocolate wedding next year. She found these great Save-the-Date magnets here, and I used those as a guide.

We’re both very pleased with how they turned out – though several of our co-workers thought they were some kind of white chocolate desserts. As if I’d actually be able to come up with something like that – paper is much easier to me than food!

The love-hate relationship continues with Urban Outfitters and Anthropologie (::spit::) Popped into both stores tonight in a fit of masochism, then continued the self-loathing online. Here’s what i found:

Not sure how I missed it, but there is a whole line of Alexander Girard housewares here. Hel-lo! There were actually a few other items in the store, but then some of the pieces online are on sale while everything in the store was full-price. A conundrum, for certain.

I have to pause and share this picture of Alexander and Susan Girard, which i found in this amazing post by The Invisible Agent. Lots of eye candy at the end of that link, y’all. Isn’t this shot faboo?

Back to the show. Just when we’d settled on an IKEA couch (for reals, we’re working out logistics now!) for a variety of practical reasons, I come across these beauties. The one on the right is even on clearance, which usually seals the deal for me. However, the reviews for each couch all say that they’re hard and uncomfortable and that just won’t do. I’ll stick with IKEA for now and admire the lines on these from afar.

Onto Anthropologie (::spit::) Can I just say that this store smells? It’s completely overpowering and will knock you over even if you’re out on the street. But i blame all the candles – because in the back I found numerous perfumes that I really, really liked. I didn’t catch the names on any of them them because a. they were written in hipster doofus frenchy fonts and b. I was moving fast, didn’t want to be spotted inside. But next time I am in the market for a new scent (sometimes Gwen needs a break) I will don my secret identity and go back. I also got a weird craving to buy a bottle of this:

I had a bottle a long time ago, but i can’t seem to find it anymore. It’s yummy!

The other thing that got under my skin and into my brain was this completely charming butter dish. It was so cute I could almost justify the inflated price on it – crazy, huh? I need an app that will monitor items and alert me when they go on clearance.

Also, dear misguided Anthropologie shoppers…you can get almost the exact same trees for $.75 each at Wal-Mart. You’re welcome.

**UPDATE** How about 16 trees for $6? Try Big Lots – add in a can of fake snow and brown paint if you want to be super technical, and you’re still out the door for less than $10. Rustle up some cute packaging for gifts and still keep a few for yourself. Easy!

Also dropped in on Pier 1 because I figured I’d get them all out of the way tonight. Opening complaint: most annoying employees ever. That’s at every Pier 1 location I’ve been in. I’m not sure what they’re teaching these girls at corporate HQ but if they keep following me around and shoving baskets into my hand somebody’s going to get hurt.

Secondary complaint – and this is not just limited to Pier 1 – this Christmas glitter fad needs to end immediately. Everything everywhere is covered in glue and rolled all around in glitter. It’s messy and none of it is going to hold up – and if you ask me, there’s nothing sadder than something glittery with bald spots. In ten years I predict we’re going to look back at all this glittery crap and cringe ala big 80’s hair.

Anyway – the only thing worth mentioning at Pier 1 were these large stand-up thingies. They serve no purpose at all, but I couldn’t help but stand there and stare. Much more striking in person (yes, there was SOME glitter) I almost want to say they’ve got a touch of Mary Blair/Small World to ‘em. Not enough to get me back into Pier 1 for another six months, but still.

I just can’t resist the lure of all the retail Christmas displays – even though we’re still weeks away from Thanksgiving – and I’ve hit almost all my usual haunts already. Nothing is really jumping out at me this year, though – nothing is making me “oooh” and “ahhh” and wish wish wish that I could get it. I guess i’m content with what I have, which is a nice feeling. I’m looking forward to getting it all out and putting it up soon!

Okay seriously – Pam has absolutely nailed it with her Mid-Century Modest Manifesto. Check it out (and wish Retro Renovation a very happy birthday!)

The other disappointing part about being out of commission as long as I was is that I didn’t get a whole lot of good pictures of the things I DID do – but here they are anyway!

I finally put my Cricut and the Sure Cuts A Lot software to work – and it’s WONDERFUL! I made a few banners, this one was my favorite. It’s the same font as the Love banners from Valentine’s Day, but what a difference. The Cricut made it so much easier and faster – this banner is almost three times as long and it took me just a fraction of the time. The software is super easy to use; I highly recommend it!

I spent a lot of time finding old gothic-looking metal servingware pieces at the thrifts and spray painting them black – and I barely have have any pictures of it all! I really liked the look – like the themed decor you’d find in stores, but maybe a bit spookier! – and it was all way cheaper. These candle holders struck me as particularly cage-like, and with the paint and some Dollar Tree skeletons, they ended up deliciously eerie!

Here they’re in action on our candy table (a little hard to see.) We got a lot of compliments on the scent of the candles (some kind of spice thing from Ikea) which I found pretty funny. Even little kids would walk up and say, “MMMMmmmm your pumpkins smell SO GOOD!” Ha!

It was practically still spring when I found this box of flasks at an estate sale. By the end of the day I’d plotted an entire yard setup for Halloween with a Mad Scientist’s Laboratory theme! Obviously that didn’t work out AT ALL, but they still look cool as centerpieces. Next year: dry ice and actual glowing liquids (Mr. Wizard! Help!)

Last year during a storm one of these pumpkin buckets rolled into our yard. On a whim I put some Margarita sweet potato vine and purple queen in it and really like how it turned out. I searched for these things at garage sales through the year and had a small collection ready to go. My new favorite filler is the Limelight sedum – it’s too funny, like a big curly wig.

I really dug the cauldrons, though. The sedum looks like witch’s brew bubbling over the side, and the purple queen is magic shooting out! I planted these well in advance and really liked having natural decorations throughout the season – they all held up great. Now to figure out how to replant them for Thanksgiving and Christmas!!!

I had such big plans for this Halloween, but things didn’t work out the way I expected them to. I started off great and got the ball rolling on supplies and projects early. There was a business trip the first week of October that we’d known about for a while; but what I didn’t know is that i’d come back with the flu – and that I’d be down for another two weeks after that! So a lot of things ended up falling by the wayside.

One of the things I figured we’d just skip was pumpkin carving. However, yesterday Jim informed me that “it just wouldn’t be Halloween without a pumpkin” and “we HAD to have one.” Hookay, then! This is how I ended up googling for carving stencils at 4 pm on Halloween – without much luck. My requirements were something free, quick -n- easy, and at least somewhat cool.

Then it hit me – I had the most perfect thing on my computer the whole time! I’d found an awesome font called “Evilz” by N+ for some cricuit projects; i’m happy to report that it’s also great on punkins:

Jim picked out the vampire cat to carve while I fell in love with that upside down bat! And you know,  some of those characters look pretty close to that Skelanimals line that Target was selling this year:

Next year I’ll be better prepared – and I’ll plan on doing some more Evilz pumpkins from the start!