Tuesday, April 12, 2016

Everything is VINTAGE in the Bedroom

One's bedroom is the most intimate part of the home. It actually is where you spend the most time. I have many familial antiques to finish our bedroom remodel with. This is just a beginning of how to live with antiques in a new room remodel. I'm sure I will be weaning and changing items out, until I find the right mix of OLD, NEW, GREEN, REDO.


I've been splitting up these bedroom posts because they are so picture heavy, plus this bedroom accessorizing is a work in progress.


My vintage pickled oak furniture changes daily as I'm learning what it wants to be furnished with. Currently, many things are precious and others are not.





The fileboxes are paperwork I must go through...boxed to give me the incentive to sort and throwaway, not a decorating statement.



I love OLD REDO chandy...circa 1960-70's that we just put up last weekend.


From the left, i'm starting at the top.

My antique reference books with my great grandmother's powder jar which is fired/enameled glass on a brass/once silverplate base and lid.  A small little goose girl box..porcelain circa 1980's. The purple porcelain vase is a souvenir of Rebild, Denmark and from the 1940's. It's a family piece and I visited Rebild in 1963. A huge summer festival commerating Denmark's ties to the USA. So many Danes emigrated to the US, it's sort of a big homecoming party.




This vintage silver tray is filled with OLD grandmothers' and NEW beads and shells. This piece moves about the house. Now, it needs a touch-up polish, though it is never perfect and delightfully shabby.


Photo of my parents disguising the television cable control. More books, vintage jewelry box, an an oil painting by my son when he was in jr. high. and a little elf pot.



Porcelain cup was my grandmother's, the plate has a noogie on the edge-otherwise I would sell it, the figurine is from the 1940's and was one of my mom's--marked Caroline by Ynez. She has the sweetest face and the ceramic dipped lace so popular on lady figurines of that time. I have five different ones. Mom was also partial to bells as figures, but you can't keep it all.



The unmarked porcelain plate I snagged for .99 cents from Goodwill for the color, and porcelain cup and saucer from Denmark, my grandmother's. More books--you can see I am fond of 1/2PriceBooks. Bits of lace here and there.


On the center cabinet/desk area...an adorable porcelain inkwell--I picked up fro 4.99 unmarked, have no idea how old it is...but it's perfect. A new cube of butterfly notes--a birthday gift, ...a stoneware glass from Monet's Giverny gift shop in France--gifted to me by a friend probably 20 years ago. So vintage artisan stoneware.

The embroidered placemat was my grandmother's probably done by one of her sisters in Denmark. Very fine linen with three-dimensional embroidered roses and for-get-me-nots could be from any time after 1915. Many of these pieces were placed in dowry trunks and saved before and after marriage. I had two maiden Great Aunts. WWI depleted the male population in Europe and both had lost a beau and never married. They did gorgeous needlework up until their deaths, and I have many beautiful pieces.

Then there is the funky clock.

Which started like this---but came to me as a give-away from a friend...has the lovely old fashioned ticking. I just painted it with a dry brush and white enamel.




This middle shelf has my mom's dresser set that my Dad bought for her when they were eighteen-years-old before WWII. He said he unloaded an entire train car of cabbages by hand for this. It was still the Depression and he worked before school and after school to help feed his family of 6---and also to spoil my mom. That's true love for you.

The blue girl planter is my logo for my Etsy shop and here on the blog. I was put dandelions and wild flowers in it for my mom when I was a child. She gave me the love for small and everyday things,  and antiques. Most of my antique books were hers.

The small dresser to the right was from a thrift store and simply painted white.



Here it is in all it's 1990's Chinese painted Country style, that so killed that decorating trend of the 1980's-90's. It was nicely constructed though and now I keep 'special' things other than jewelry in it.

The top center shelf holds more treasures.


A heavy porcelain pansy necessary pot from my great aunt, probably my great-grandmother's. She had a thing for pansies. It currently holds my curlers, yes, I baby my hair with curlers instead of a curling iron. I just noticed the swan stuck there, lol, part of the transitions that have happened on these shelves.

The sweet over polished silver vase was part of my great grandmother's coffee set and holds precious dried roses. The brass shows through, the pattern is a common one in Scandinavian silver and silverplate, called French Lily or French Lilje.


Far left is a beatiful frosted glass vase with a flower frog top, a geisha shaker, and a small dog I thnk I found in an old purse of my mom's. The box had been a gift from me to my grandmother in the 1970's, hand painted wood with little blue flowers. On top is one of the last pictures of my mom with us together, she was 82 there and I was 57. Time flies so when you get older...seems like last year and it's over 10 years already.

 
My mom's EAPG crystal jar with the once silver-now-brass top, circa 1880's. A Cordey figurine from my grandmother from the late 1940's early 1950's. My mom and Aunt split a set of two, sadly. But both were damaged, so while pretty and collectible they are not resellable.

A cut crystal shaker, I keep intending to put powder in. 



The bust is beautiful high quality porcelain, and the mark says Cordey and is numbered. Here is a nice link Collecting Lacy Cordey Busts.  I love her porcelain curls and ribbons reflected in the vintage mirror.
 


Unmarked USA ceramic planter in a nice matte white, a vintage glass basket of my mom's, two Fenton birds of my grandmother's. I still need to work in a few taller items when I remove the file boxes.




The desk/table was a Yield House piece of furniture from the 1980's I picked up at a garage sale years ago--for $10.00, I think. I'm going to do a post on painting various surfaces. The desk still needs knobs but has two rough coats of white enamel, I may or may not distress.

The chair is sturdy bentwood in oak, and will probably stay as is---or move to another location in the house.

The bust from the bathroom has moved out to grace the desk/table. She has some bling on to celebrate spring. That topiary wanders...I will remove it as soon as I can have garden flowers in a vase.



The stained glass will go up---when I find the copper chain --that got misplaced during the remodel.


Though mye budget was tight with the remodel, I couldn't resist picking up this gorgeous pot at a local store. It was only about $30.00 but I had to grab it because of the color. I need a new plant the fern is most unhappy.

A lace runner is Quaker Lace probaby from the 1940's. I have lots of lace from the family going back to the mid 19th century.

I will probably refinish the top of the desk when the weather is right.



I love the bit of gold and the shape of the handles on the pot. It's probably German porcelain, not really marked but from a bedroom set of washstand pieces. This would have been the slop-jar or dirty water container and would have had a gorgeous lid.



The pot is a nice balance for the bust...but everything may change.


This woven basket is NEW I received from a very good friend for my birthday this year. It is woven by Zulu tribe members from colored telephone wire. This will travel to the dining buffet eventually. I have a streak of Bohemian in me and it seems the COLORFUL stuff will land in the living/dining room.


It's exquisite and so intricate and right now it has the blue of the bedroom and reminds me of summer flowers...oh please..now...summer...!


This little lamp was a gift to my mom, in the late 1980's for Mothers' Day from myself. It went perfect in her bedroom. I stuck it on the table until, I find something different. I probably have 10-12 lamps in storage. We will see if any of them work in this room.


My childhood toy chest, complete with 1949 decals was at the foot of the bed. It's lined in cedar, so worth keeping no matter how distressed it is. The new furniture placement puts it on the blank wall next to the window.



Here.



I caught this picture by accident while photgraphing some glasses on it for the Etsy shop.


A new pillow from SteinMart perches on my old ticking duvet/quilt. I may just make a custom cover for the chest...instead of refinishing. I need something else soft in this room besides the bed and curtains.

What do you think?






A bedside table is currently my grandmother's sewing stand circa 1940's and is Maple.



Lift the top and here you have an organizing insert and original tatting crochet thread rolls. Very old and dusty. I have never used this storage area. Dad apparently stashed keys here and I missed them.


It desperately needs some love, but Im not sure what kind, lol.


 For now a simple cloth, a Grandmother's lamp and a book will have to do.

Another piece which may not go back into the bedroom, walnut probably from the 1870-80's and a needlepoint cover I just love. I have no idea where or if this chair will stay in the house.



Another project---this shelf was on it's side out on the porch when I took the picture. It's an Oak organ top probably turn of the 19th century. This was what the dining room cabinets replaced---my mantle of sorts. We actually got this piece before we were married, and falls into the category of 'begged, borrowed, or stolen." I won't tell which, lol.

Its new life may be as a headboard. We will see, hubby has no vision and just shook his head...so I will have to proceed slowly and it has 50 years of oil on it, needs some regluing. It will not be fun to paint.


 It has machine carved decoration of factory produced furniture in all oak.



But has some doo-hickeys here and there. I loved decorating this piece for Christmas with lights, garland and vintage Santas and it was always a focal point of the buffet. But so nice to not have my porcelain stored in boxes, now.


Here's a shelf and a magazine holder from thrift stores. Some paint and the magazine holder is under the desk table. I'm looking for some funky legs for it.


The shelf will land somewhere or in the shop. Apiece was missing, but when painted not even noticeable. 


 I love this artwork, from an old print--a gift from a friend. You will recognize the Little Mermaid, circa the 1890's with the Scandinavian ship in the background.



Here are some frames, artwork, and a couple of hooks I used before with new paint or had squirreled away for this bedroom redo. I plan on changing out the pictures to perhaps 19th century family portraits from both sides of our family.


I see these frames washed in white...but will wait until I choose, which where. I have many small photo portraits I may also use on the shelving unit.


I got this cutie last summer and redid it, here, REDO my junkin finds for the Bedroom



 For nailpolish and insundries.




Wonder if I can work this into a display on this wall to the left of the window.I also need a hanger for necklaces and scarves.



And then there is this monster rack, I mean its like over thirty inches wide...which may not make the cut, but is in the basement--waiting to be used.

If I added everything, I would be able to open my own Gypsy Caravan Bedroom shop on Etsy.
So I will have to proceed slowly and move on to the bathroom redo while my ideas incubate. 

So what's your hardest decorating choices? 

Thanks always for visiting and I will be happy to try and answer any question or comments.

All the opinions and photographs in this blog are my own unless noted.  I have not been paid or reimbursed in anyway for my opinions of products or posts. Please do not use photos without linking back to this blog without my permission. Thank you for your cooperation, Sandi Magle

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Sandi

Monday, April 11, 2016

REDO: Shabby Chandelier

Vintage Charm
Way last year, I was on a hunt for a chandelier. I wasn't sure what I wanted, until I saw this OLD one at the Elkhorn FleaMarket in Wisconsin. My budget was scant at the time, so I passed and then contacted the seller online and purchased it later.
oldnewgreenredo


Jeanine's booth is called, ChiPPy-SHaBBy


oldnewgreenredo

 I loved all her things, here is the original post about the Elkhorn Fleamarket.

oldnewgreenredo

Hubby is a genius and made it into a fixed light for the bedroom---but before---I HAD to adust the color with a REDO.


oldnewgreenredo

When I got the fixture home---it was not only chippy, shabby, but filthy and also very, very yellow. Not pale yellow but electric 1970's yellow. First I stuffed the candle sconces with toweling and sprayed the whole thing with degreaser...and scrubbed.


oldnewgreenredo

After multiple scrubbings with a bottle brush, scrubbies, and elbow grease...I hung it upside down over the sink for three days to dry out. I went on the statement from Jeanine...that it worked.

Results---it was even brighter yellow. And some of the dirt was really what had been a 'gold' paint which had tarnished to simply dirty looking.



oldnewgreenredo

Here is a good example of the tarnished gold that is more of a dead, yugghy gray green
If it werent' for the yellow, and the tarnish that looked like dirt, I could have lived with this just as is. But the bedroom was looking so NEW and pristine---I needed to find a middle ground.



oldnewgreenredo

Taking acrylic craft enamel paint in white and water, I daubed all the ugliest areas with a thin white finish of white



oldnewgreenredo

 I left all the rusty stems...but simply freshened the flowers, sconces shafts and the petal candle holders.


oldnewgreenredo

Here you can see how thin the coating is. Enamel paints tend to need three coats to get a perfect finish, so this was only one thin daubed on layer. This took some time, and lots of turning and changing angles to cover every surface.


oldnewgreenredo

Now to mask the yellow on the leaves.  I loved the style of the finish---just not the color...a combo of briliant yellow, brown, and greens. 

oldnewgreenredo

I started a plan of working on the easiest accessible leaves so if it didnt' work, I could scrub it off.


oldnewgreenredo

The plan---to use three acrylic enamel greens: a chromium (dull), a bright lime and a grass green. I used paint from my stash, I store my paints upside down, so they last forever. (Think GREEN make it last.)



oldnewgreenredo

Here's my palette, a plastic plate which I will reuse for other projects, with white enamel added. White adds opacity to the brighter enamel greens which I was afraid would be too transparent to cover the yellows.


oldnewgreenredo

Here is the palette half-way through the project. I grabbed a little of each color with my brushes to mimic the original freestyle paint.

oldnewgreenredo


Where the leaves were textured, I wiped excess paint off, to preserve the original spirit of the chandy.
I also used a damp sponge brush where it was difficult to get my hands in.


oldnewgreenredo

 So many surfaces to paint. Bits of yellow showing through, but no where near as bright.



oldnewgreenredo


As the paints began to dry darker (always keep that in mind when doing a project), the chandy began to look under control color-wise. I left edges rusty where possible and on the leave stems the original finish.




oldnewgreenredo

 The last touches were watered down green dry brushed into the centers of the flowers.



oldnewgreenredo


I thought of beautiful white geraniums centers with green blush. The touches are very subtle, but helped to tie the fixture parts together.


oldnewgreenredo

Here it is installed. What a perfect spot for it and hubby didnt' have to crawl up into the attic to do new wiring. The chandy is on a dimmer.


oldnewgreenredo


I do have built in electricity in the furniture as well as a desk lamp under the first shelf. But the lighting is not as dreamy as having a chandy.



oldnewgreenredo


 The blue changes so with the lighting, this is bulbs on full with the dimmer switch.


oldnewgreenredo

On at halfway here.


oldnewgreenredo


 Halfway with night setting on my camera...love this!


oldnewgreenredo

Approximate DIY costs on My OLD REDO chandelier.

Price: $79.00
4 new cardboard socket covers: $3.00
I bleached the plastic covers and brought them back to sorta white. $0 =
Paint: $0 from my stash otherwise, 4 colors at $2.50 each
Plastic base fitting-specialized to accept any fixture:@$10.00
Ceiling rossette (to cover old holes) $10.95

Total: @ $103.00
under my $150.00 budget for this item.


Thanks for visiting and I will be happy to answer any comments or questions.

All the opinions and photographs in this blog are my own unless noted.  I have not been paid or reimbursed in anyway for my opinions of products or posts. Please do not use photos without linking back to this blog without my permission. Thank you for your cooperation, Sandi Magle




Sandi