I'm Almost Done With My Booth!

So the other day I told you what I've been up to...showed you my own little piece of real estate in a big antique mall. With some solid hours my booth went from looking like this:

To this:

Once the back drop got painted (which raised a few eye brows), I was able to move around the furniture and then proceeded to unpack all the tubs of things that I decided not to keep of Mom and Dad's. There are even pieces that are from my grandma (mom's mom) and granny (dad's mom) that need to find a new loving home instead of being squirrelled away in a storage unit. But it really is bittersweet.

Do you like that blue lamp? It didn't always look like that, I spray painted it and added a new shade. Lot's of fun things; Marble trophy vases, sherbet dishes, candle holders, peacock tapestry...

Aren't these wonderful?

Some old books, still life painting, and an old salty dog carved out of wood.

Pretty brass lamps with embossed flower detail, all I did is clean them up and wipe down the shade.

I did have to paint some furniture, some pieces were just too bad looking to go in, so my MIL and I spent two days painting furniture. I hope to get a post together to show you the 'befores'. The blue dresser below was mine growing up, it's got a new paint job now!




The mirror use to be attached but no longer. It looks much better on it's own (and hanging higher) and I gave it a different finish.

This is a nice sized curio cabinet, filled with perfect condition glassware and collectibles, most of it all over 50 years old (if not more).

Some details:

My granny's Singer sewing machine

I started pricing everything and it dawned on me to grab the camera. I've got a few finishing touches, finish pricing and I'll be ready for business! September 1 is opening day, if you are local please stop by!

I want to extend a huge thank you to every member of my family that has supported me in this new venture! I couldn't have done it without them.

Rangeline Antique Mall

3421 N. Rangeline Rd.

Joplin, Missouri

Monday-Saturday 10-7

Sunday11-6

Starting September 1!

What I've Been Up To

Well, it's time to spill the beans about my absence lately. I figured that if I didn't start sharing now that I would have too much to share, to many pictures and then end up not sharing at all. I'm not really sure how this all happened, I'm definitely filing it under 'The Snow Ball Effect' because seriously friends, it's been happening fast. I've looked into getting a booth at flea markets and antique malls before, but either they were all full or the price was too high. However, about a month ago, I noticed this sign and a number to call if you were interested in vendorship (is that a word?): I called, I went, I rented. Ha! It wasn't that easy, it was more like: I called, I went, I looked, I pondered, I thought, I hem-hawed, I walked around, I called husband, I called MIL, I left, I came back, then I rented. It was a serious process people. :)

For the next two solid days, my MIL and I filtered through my storage unit in the sweltering heat. It was full of furniture and cast offs from me, and what I brought back from NC after my parents passed. It wasn't easy, it was actually hard to go through my mom's stuff, but what kept me going was the fact that this stuff shouldn't be in storage. If I'm not going to use it, then I need to let it go. I kept everything that I absolutely loved and let go of things that I didn't.

Of course a lot of things didn't even make the cut for the booth and those things were donated.

Fast forward through all of that and two doctors appointments in St. Louis and here I am in my 10X10 booth. It of course has three walls of peg board, which is not my favorite thing....so in comes my backdrop. These are salvaged boards that we turned on the side and screwed up. When I asked my FIL if he could help me put the boards up he said "Sure, I can screw anything up!" :) Funny man.
I decided to create a trellis pattern on it, I wanted a real eye catcher. I drew out the pattern on paper then transferred it to cardboard. I traced around the cardboard starting from the middle and worked my way out. I'm not sure you can see the pencil lines here or not:

Then began the painstaking process of painting it out. And the the painstaking process of the second coat. :) Please don't laugh at me in my grubby work clothes.

So while the process was slow, it certainly added a lot of appeal to a pegboard booth! I will show you the progress as I go. The Antique mall will be open for business on September 1! I've got a lot to do!!

The Chain Link Dresser

Thank you so much for sticking around even with my erratic postings. I am thankful for all of you who read and comment and welcome to those of you who are new. I've got some exciting things happening in my world and I can't wait to share with you. In the mean time, I'm finally getting around to sharing a dresser project for the master bedroom. I'm calling it the Chain Link Dresser.

If you remember the feature that Erin did on a beach house that is out of this world fantastic....well I think I was instantly inspired by this dresser. I loved the circular detail on it, I don't know whether it's painted or papered or what, but I knew I had to try to create something like it for myself.

I found this plain dresser several months ago and it's been sitting in the garage.....finally I knew what I was going to do.

It's a great dresser, taller than average, about 50 inches. I like the simple design of it so I knew that adding the circular detail would elevate it to greatness.

The finish was not in the best condition, some gouges and scratches, but well made. A perfect candidate for extra storage.

I worked on it right in the kitchen area, took off the hardware, and laid it down on it's back.

For the circles I used 12" wreath forms called craft rings. They are made of a composite wood and can be cut and painted for any number of uses. I've used these "craft rings" (from Michael's) for numerous intended things and knew they would work perfectly for this project....the wood strips (to join the circles) are just lattice from the Home Depot that is sold by the foot.

I played around with the circles until I was happy with the configuration. I marked where I needed to cut and cut all the circles and lattice by hand. I admit it was a pain in the butt. I thought for sure that I would have to get Justin to help me, but I just marked with a pencil and used a mitre saw to cut everything. I used liquid nails and glued all the pieces down. Once the glue had dried, I filled in the holes that are on the rings with caulk to make them smooth. I also used the caulk around the rings too to make them seamless and more a part of the dresser.


I primed and painted everything white (I spared you the pictures of that :) I used Martha's Tailors Chalk left over from painting the kitchen cabinets so I didn't have to buy any paint. I toyed around with painting it a color, painting the circles a different color, and vice versa. In the end chose white. When in doubt paint it white. :) I knew it would be against the brown walls and would really pop nicely ( I use a lot of white in there). I really considered aging it out like the inspiration picture, but I'm a gloss girl. :) Don't get me wrong, I love the look of age. I like mixing high gloss and rustic, but in small doses.


I still might put some handles on, if I find the right ones. Am I they only one that can't seem to find the perfect hardware? The drawers open easily from the sides, so I don't mind waiting until the right ones come along.
I've marked a couple more things off my bedroom to-do list....I've gotten another curtain panel that I needed and the fabric has arrived to do the skirted desk. Now I've got to get it done!

I hope you're inspired!

Let's Go To Cimarron Flea Market!

Well friends, I found yet another flea market that was out of this world. If you travel along I44 between Springfield and Webb City Missouri take exit 29 and you will find Cimarron Flea Market. It doesn't look very big from the outside, but looks can be deceiving, it's pretty big. Not too big though, just right, you know how sometimes they can be a little overwhelming. I dragged the kiddies and my MIL along and spent the afternoon roaming the aisles. The weather today was just right, so that means it wasn't too hot to shop. Sometimes the flea markets aren't air conditioned and are just too hot to enjoy. It's no fun if you're ringing sweat!

What was interesting is, that as 'junky' (in a good way) as it was, the junk was pretty well organized. I mean, if you are looking for kerosene lamps, camp lanterns, decorative plates, lamps, scales (like pictured above), black panthers (not kidding), elephants, etc......there is an entire booth (sometimes more, sometimes less) dedicated to it. What struck me too while wandering the aisles, how many years did it take to establish such 'collections'!

They had lots of great mirrors

Snow shoes anyone? Would these be great for a lake house or what?

Great chandys too, I wanted to take this one home.
I'm pretty sure it was made out of resin, but it looked like carved wood, it would be a great piece for an entry or hall. So pretty.



Love that amber glass one on the right...



Lamps. Very cool.

Look at these license plates, it was crazy how many!

Logan taking a break in front of a fan, poor kid!

More lamps

I didn't photograph much of it, but this was a gold mine of skulls, mounted animals, antlers, and more. I even saw a mounted Caribou that was ginormous. I am often drawn to skulls like this because it reminds me of Georgia O'Keeffe. Skulls were a source of inspiration for her during her years in New Mexico. So I admire these in an artistic manner, so to speak.


Keegan playing with an old "Colorburst 250" Polaroid camera (they had a camera section :). Cameras of yesterday.............

Cameras of today !:) We were having fun!

(When did that kid get taller than me?)

Some of the decorative plates

Brass and silver section.

I bought one of these brass leaf plates, I love the look of them. I hope I don't regret not getting both of them!

This cute fella came home with me too. Doesn't he remind you of the clockwork owl in The Clash of the Titans? Not the new one, the Hunky Harry Hamlin version.

Here was one shelf of the owl section...not quite the type I like though. ;)


Lots and lots of stuff!

I thought this was pretty cool, very 'Scooby Doo' looking....you know that episode The Ghost of Captain Cutler where the gang encounter the ghost of an old sea diver? OK, maybe not, but it was really neat. I could totally see it as a prop in a seafood restaurant.

I was seriously tempted by these chicken coops, especially after seeing what Heather did with hers, but I refrained.

Getting ready to leave, but I had to do a little more looking around out side, I just about wore everyone out! Except that little one, he has more energy than the bunny (you know which one I'm talking about).

Still outside. An entire basket of those glass insulator things.

Well, I hope you have enjoyed a litte tour of Cimarron Flea Market. Did you go thrifting this weekend? What did you score?

Just to let you know, the kids start school this week so I won't be around very much. Logan is starting kindergarten and Keegan is a freshman and I'm a little nervous about it all.Wish us luck!