A little bit of this, and a little bit of that...

Well, I thought I'd share some of what's new at the shop.  Hope you come out this week to see for yourself.  We have lots of furniture, and some great new smalls.

Another little cabinet, perfect for a bathroom.

Lots of little tables.  This one is painted in Annie Sloan's Duck Egg, which you can now buy in the shop.

We have a couple of old cow bells. 

Lots of cool architectural pieces this month.

We are crazy about old crystal door knobs, and have a couple of bowls to prove it.

One of our best sellers, are antlers, so we made sure we have a ton to choose from.  They are perfect for fall tablescape's.  If you don't believe me, check out our friend Susan's blog over at Maple and Magnolia.  She did a beautiful tablescape today using antlers as part of it.

This is painted in one of the new Annie Sloan colors, Pure White. 

Any dresser I paint in Paris Grey, turns out fab.  Add crystal knobs, and it just sets off the whole piece.  This isn't the greatest of pictures, but trust me, she is a beauty.

Burlap ribbon would look adorable on a Christmas tree, don't you think

I love this piece, but personally think it needs a light tatter for some character, and maybe a 1, 2, 3, on the drawers.  What do you think?

You better get your burlap runners while they last.  They are perfect for a Thanksgiving table.  Poor mom can barely keep up with demand.

 
Extra seating anyone?  We have a couple of cute benches.  Including a really nice black piano bench.

Aren't these great? 

Need a great and inexpensinve gift for someone? Give one of these vintage key necklaces, I think they are a steal at only $18 each.

This little house is just perfect for winter decorating, which will be here sooner that we know it.

We have tons of vintage ornaments in back.  I can't wait to bring them all out. 

Give us a visit at 22029 N. Pepper Road, Unit 2, in Lake Barrington, IL.  Thursday and Friday hours are 10-5, and Saturday 10-3.  We will be open next weekend as well, November 10th, 11th, and 12th, as well as November 17th, 18th, and 19th.  Hope to see you soon! 

A special thanks to all our repeat customers!  You guys are the greatest!! 

Chalk Paint

We are so pleased to be carrying Annie Sloan Chalk Paint!!  Our good friend Michelle, over at Di Lucca Design is stocking our shelves with chalk paint.  We only have a small portion of all the colors, so please let us know if you are looking for anything specific. We have been using Annie Sloan Chalk Paint since we opened the doors back in April.  It has transformed the way we look at old furniture, and how we paint it.  Chalk paint goes right over almost anything, no priming or sanding needed! 

The other thing I love about this paint are the names.  Things like Provence, Paris Grey, French Linen, and Chateau Grey.  These names all conjur up images of France. 

Such simple little cans with so much potential!

This is Paris Grey, our favorite.  This color can make anything look grand, especially a dresser.  Here you see it up close on a lightly distressed piece.

And here it is on a heavily distressed dresser. 

We have tons of new furniture this week, and we will post more information on Annie Sloan Chalk Paint soon, but in the mean time, go here for more information on the paint. We are so excited to share this paint with you, you're going to love it!

Come see us this week, we're open Thursday, Friday and Saturday, Nov. 3rd, 4th, and 5th. We are at 22029 N. Pepper Road, Unit 2, Lake Barrington. 

 

Maple and Magnolia

One of the best parts about doing what we do, is when you get to see where one of your "picks" ends up or what someone does with it.  Well, one of our good friends and best customer is Susan Haskins of Maple and Magnolia.  We are so glad she found our shop and continues to visit us.  She has such a unique eye for things and even better knack for incorporating her finds into her beautiful old farmhouse.  Her blog is such a great place to find inspiration and ideas.  

Recently, she came in and bought this old sign we had found.

This is what she did with it. It looks amazing!  Check her blog to see how she got the look and where she hung it in her house. It looks fab!

 

She also took home this BEAUTIFUL old cash register drawer last week.  Such a great piece! Her husband is going to use it as a caddy on his dresser to hold his change and what nots.  Great idea!

 

One of my favorite ideas of hers was to use this old fence section to hang jewelry on.  So clever! We still have a couple of these fence sections left if you want to re-create Susan's look!

 

Here's a collection of antlers she found at Tattered Tiques.

 

And here's how she displayed them in her entry.  Once again, genius.  The genius is that she hung 3 sets instead of just one.  As Susan would say, "Perfection!"

 

Check out Susan's blog, Maple and Magnolia, to see more inspiring ideas and uses for your fabulous vintage finds.  And if you're looking for some items to work with, stop by Tattered Tiques and grab your own fabulous find and show us how you display it in your home!  We love to see where our "picks" end up and the new life they are given!

Lavender Sachet Tutorial

I just finished making 10 lavender sachets for a customer, and along the way I took some pictures in case I thought it would make a good tutorial.  Well, since it's 11:01pm and Lily and I are still wide awake, I thought I would share.  First of all I have to say my pictures were taken in the kitchen, in the evening, so the lighting is bad, and, the lavender sachets are very crudely made!  I'm not really talented when it comes to sewing, that's Anne Marie.  I can however sew very simple, things. 

First I started with the muslin, which is always on hand for ribbon.  I figured out how wide I wanted my square, and snipped, and ripped.

Then I figured out how long I wanted them to be, and I cut all the way up the long muslin piece, about the same legnth each time.  When I was done, I was left with 10 long pieces about 10 inches long each.

After cutting them all in half, I pinned them together with their mate, and ironed them.

Here is the muslin with the burlap square I cut and stamped earlier.  The burlap squares are about 3 1/3 by 3 inches, some being a bit larger.  You could always skip the burlap part and just stamp the muslin instead.  I happen to like the mix of the two fabrics. 

The next step it to start attaching the burlap to the muslin. I grabbed a muslin pair, and separated it,  choose one square and with a zig zag stitch, attached the burlap square.

I back stiched the corners to reinforce the burlap, because it frays easily.

After attaching the burlap, I ironed them all again.  Then I attached the other muslin to its mate.  Sewing along three sides with a straight stitch, then filling with lavender.  I put approximately 4 tablespoons in each.  Then straight stitch the last side and cut along the whole edge with pinking shears.

They turned out really cute.  I wanted them to look very homemade, to cover myself.  That's part of the reason I choose 2 different stiches, and pinked the edge.  If this was Home Ec class, I would not of received high marks on quality of work!

And, Done!  So cute, and so simple.

 

Vintage Laundry Cart

My Birthday was a few days ago, and one of mom's gifts to me was too cute to keep to myself.  I had to share with you what she did.  First of all, she went to this adorable little antique and vintage shop in Lake Barrington, called Tattered Tiques.  She picked up this great old laundry cart, which I had my eye on, ever since it came into the shop.  I have always wanted one.  Well, she brought it home and made a liner for it.  It turned out fabulous.  I just love it!  Thanks mom!

It's great isn't it?  I bet some of you want one for yourself now, don't you.

She created simple ties every so often to attach it to the cart.  She also added casters to the bottem.

I love Birthday surprises like this one, and this just might make doing laundry a tad more fun.

This is the Pottery Barn version for $150.00.  It is practically the same thing, at a portion of the cost.

Don't forget, we will be open this week, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.  Stop by. 

Worn Goods

We try so hard to have new things in the store every week.  Sometimes there are just a few, sometimes there are a ton.  Today, I fell in love with all our new treasures.  I just love all the worn patina and history these things have.

I love everything about these old pulleys.  They are wonderful!

It would be very hard to pick a favorite, but if I had too, it would be this black one.  It's so great.

This picnic basket is so adorable.  I can just imagine all the places and picnics it's been to.

How cute are these?  They are the best I've seen.  We have sold a lot of vintage cheese boxes over the years, but non have been so perfect and cute as these!

We got this great table in today.  It needs just a little love, and maybe some casters to raise it up a bit.  It's a great size.

These are the best chippy, shabby, antique, aged and worn chairs ever.  They are just perfect! They made their debut at the Na-Da Farm event last week. 

See what I mean? Perfect chippy-ness.

Little worn industrial table. 

More great baskets. 

We have been stocking up on sleds for winter decorating.  I picked these three up on the "Autumn Drive".

These old time card holders would be great to hold notes, pictures and such in a kitchen or office.

Great color and advertising on this old wooden box.

Well, there you have it.  Worn Goods.  Hope you come out to see all these for yourself.  If you see anything you like, stop by for a visit.  We will be open again next week, October 20th, 21st, and 22nd.