Magical Mercury Tutorial

 

Take a few of these ...

Thrift store finds - about $1.50 each

Add this and a spray bottle of water ...

I couldn't find this at Home Depot or Michaels, so I ordered online from Amazon.com.

The large size is around $17

And get this - faux Mercury Glass!

Here they are with some tea lights in them.

I first saw this done by Maury of A Fabuless Home.  Mine didn't go as smoothly as hers -- I accidentally sprayed the front of my shirt with the paint (I blame a faulty sprayer valve ... not the fact that I'm basically a klutz!).   

But it's easy. All you do is spray the glass piece with the Krylon paint, let it dry for about 20 seconds or so, then lightly spritz it with water.  I decided to spray mine on the outside of the piece.

Because of the aforementioned issue with the paint sprayer valve, I got drips.  But all I did was blot with a paper towel and spray again until I got the desired effect. Actually I should have done more spraying and blotting, but the paint fumes were giving me a headache (note to self and to you, make sure you do this in a very well-ventilated area). 

The best thing about this project is you can't screw it up! The more you blot and respray the more realistic it looks. Well, maybe that's the second best thing.  The very best is the fact that you can get the same look as this ...

Ballard Designs, $25 - $39 each

For a whole lot less. I'm trying it on glass ornaments next!

Latest Cheap Finds

Hey there -- Happy Friday! 

I was planning on sharing a furniture make-over with you today, but Tammy at Type A is starting a "Hunter Gatherer" party on her blog, so I'm sharing some recent finds instead. Now I know my last post was on "stuff" shopping, but really, who doesn't love a good deal?! I promise I'll talk about something else next week!

Last weekend after the yard sale where I scored the harvest basket and wood crates I showed you in the last post, I decided to stop by Goodwill to see if I could keep the bargain mojo going. Yard sales and thrift shops in one day -- my idea of a good time!

And my luck continued!  I found this set of milk glass vases. 

I think they'd look great with a bud in each and lined down a dining room table instead of a centerpiece.  The small ones were just 50 cents each, and the larger one was 75 cents. What a deal!

I love these little bud vases. They are hand-blown glass rimmed with what looks like 14k gold. A label on the bottom of one says it was made in Egypt. 

I think they'd look beautiful with a sprig of holly in them for the holidays. They were only $1 each.

Speaking of the holidays, look at this candle holder! 

It's brass detailed with red berries.  I've never seen one like this before.  (It's going on Etsy in Mr. P's Emporium if you're interested!)

I've talked about how versatile cake plates are before.  This glass one is a bit smaller than typical, it would look great with a couple of larger ones on a buffet.

This serving plate isn't vintage, but it's fun! It adds a little savoir faire!

And lastly, these two large hobnail goblets are a beautiful green.  Personally I think they are too big to drink from, but they will make great candle holders for the holidays! 

I think the candlelight bouncing off of all those facets will be lovely.

So that's my haul from last weekend. Who knows what lies ahead for this weekend?!  Thanks for giving me an excuse for sharing Tammy!

Too Much of a Good Thing?

Here's the thing:  I keep finding things that are such great deals I can't pass them up.  But I'm running out of room in the garage for the things I want to refresh and/or resell. When I mentioned this to a friend she asked, "Why don't you just quit shopping?"  My jaw dropped and I sputtered, "Wha ... wha?"  Didn't she understand shopping is in my blood?  There's a reason this blog is named Confessions of a Craigslist Junkie! She also mentioned something about sending my name to one of those shows about hoarders, but I ignored her.

I really, really want a "real" space (as opposed to just online). The small things I put in Mr. P's Emporium on Etsy, but furniture and heavier items just don't work because of the high shipping costs. I sell on Craigslist, have a couple of pieces on consignment, and I'll do more tag sales in the spring, but I want to get further into the vintage furniture and home accessories business.

So imagine how excited I was when I thought I had a space in my favorite shop in downtown Leesburg.  After looking at photos of my pieces and checking out Mr. P's, the owner basically told me I had it; she just had to check with her partner.  She said she was the one who is mainly running the shop, but she wanted to give her partner the courtesy of a call.  It was the perfect space for me because it was small.  I'm a bit concerned about leasing a large space because I work, and since this would be my first "real" shop I want to make sure I have the time to keep it well-stocked.  Plus I don't want to have to spend a ton on rent when I'm just starting out. This place would have been a great first step as I learn about the business. I was already figuring out how I was going to decorate it!  Then after putting me off for a couple of weeks she told me she decided to lease it to a vendor who is already in the shop.  Needless to say ... big disappointment, and it's no longer my favorite shop!

So I'll keep looking, and I'm still shopping!

I checked out a yard sale last weekend and found some great primitive pieces. This vintage harvest basket was $10. Ten bucks!  It's got the original straps.

At the same yard sale I found two old wood packing boxes.  This one was for Alaskan salmon and the writing is still vivid.

This one is older and unique.  It still has its label.

I saw a blog post (sorry, I don't remember whose it was, otherwise I'd give credit!) about putting casters on the bottom and using these boxes for rolling storage. Great idea.

Maybe I'll just keep everything.  But then I wouldn't need a shop -- we'd just need a bigger house!

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Coastal Charm: Nifty Thrifty Tuesday

Happy Halloween!

Hope you had a good weekend.  Ours was strange: snow and sleet on Saturday, bright and sunny on Sunday.  Today is a beautiful fall day.  It would be the perfect evening for trick-or-treaters ... if we ever got any.  We live at the end of a long, dark driveway, and even though we have kids in the neighborhood, kids who see us regularly and know our dogs, I guess the driveway is just too spooky for them. (I just had a thought -- maybe we're too spooky for them!  You should see my husband when he goes up the driveway to get the paper first thing in the morning.  And if I'm out early with the dogs before my morning coffee, I certainly may have a zombie-like quality!)

Most of the houses in our area are on plots of an acre or so.  Ours is an acre and a half. When the boys were young they liked to go over to their friends' neighborhoods to trick-or-treat because the houses were closer together and they could get more candy with less walking! But I do usually see some trick-or-treaters out and about in our neighborhood. Over the years I've tried putting out lighted luminaries along the driveway and a sign with "Trick or Treat" and an arrow, but nothing has worked.  Still, each year I buy Halloween candy "just in case."  And since I know that we probably won't get any trick-or-treaters, I make sure it's candy I like!  (Hmmm ... do you think this attitude has contributed to the 20 lbs I need to loose?)

Since we won't get any cute costumed kids tonight to celebrate the season, I decided to make some additions to my indoor fall decorating to get me in the autumn spirit.  I  leave these vignettes up through Thanksgiving, and jump into setting up our holiday decor the day after.

The centerpiece on our coffee table.

The buffet table in the dining room.

The antique desk in the family room (a Craigslist find!).

 Close up - the acorns are from our yard.

Pumpkins mixed with my white vases on the mantle.

More white and white on the white chippy shelf in the family room.

The washstand under the shelf (Craigslist find).



Our entry.

Even Pepper (Mr. P) is in the mood with his orange coat!

But Mosby apparently just wants an uninterrupted nap!

Hope you all have a Happy Halloween!

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TypeADecorating: Anything Goes