Shed Building Plans

Mystery Thrift Off Reveal Tray Chic

As you know per my previous blog post HERE,  I was chosen for the Mystery Thrift Off from the amazing blog,  BetterAfter!  Lindsey sent this little beauty to me and I had to make it over....



It was pretty scary and quite dusty so the first think I did was wipe it down, and dismantled it piece by piece.




The twine was wrapped so tightly it was insane not to mention the ridiculous amount of glue use to secure all the twine.  I seriously had to break out the big time hand tools to remove the twine.  Gross.


Once completed, I sanded it and painted it.  At the end of May here in Chicago, it was seriously in the 40s so spray painting outside was difficult at best.  I sprayed quickly and then had to move everything into the house to dry immediately.   But the end result was worth it.


To make the base of the tray, I cut out two circles of pine wood and painted one a bright orange for summer and one a deep navy, my favorite color, for the 4th of July!  I made it so the tray is interchangeable because I could not decide on a color.





And here are the final products!  I cannot wait to use it for the 4th of July or a summer soiree!


Thank you for stopping by to check out my tray makeover!  What do you think?  ;-)



Mystery Thrift Off Reveal Tray Chic

Thrift Stores Spray Paint Unique and Fun Halloween Decorations!

I love Halloween!  I love thrift shopping!  And I love spray paint!  Put them all together and you get this post!  LOL


I found this very pink princess castle at Savers for only $3.99!  But in my head I totally saw HOGWARTS!  The brick walls, the turrets, the large doors.  So to the horror of little girls everywhere, I pulled out the black spray paint!



I didnt use a plastic-specific spray paint.  I just went to the shelf in the garage and grabbed my favorite spray paint ACE Hardware premium enamel.  I love that fact that it covers very well and dries so quickly.


As soon as I was done I was SO excited!  My vision had become a reality and yes, it really did remind me of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from Harry Potter.  Yes, I am a proud #potterhead.

I placed it behind my sink for now but once I decorate for Halloween in full,  I will post more pictures.  I am quite excited about how it turned out.

I have posted the following before but I thought they were worth a revisit for this Halloween spray paint specific post....



Everyone knows Im a Disney addict.  And so when I saw this pretty white candle holder at GoodWill, in my head I thought HAUNTED MANSION!


I found these glitter Halloween clip ons at WALMART for only 97 cents each.  Oh the possibilities.


Here is the result!  I really like the way it turned out.  I also found the candle for .99 too at GoodWill.



I found this awesome candlestick at GoodWill and the candle for under $5!  I took it apart and painted it black and rubbed it silver.  I found glitter decals at Michaels and I really like the way it looks on my foyer table.  It is very regal like something found in an old Hollywood scary movie.


Last week I stopped in this random thrift store and found these lanterns.  Obviously, the previous owner used them outside and they were pretty beat up and rusted.  They were only $3 each!  So I cleaned them and spray painted them and they turned out like new.  I am so excited because nothing screams Halloween to me like a spooky lantern.




 I have also had these on the shelf in the garage and I have contemplated just donating them because I never knew how I would put them to use.  SO glad I let them sit there.  I spray painted them to match the lanterns and decided to put them to use in the foyer.  I have more work to do on them but they look very cool!  Very old school Halloween.



I found these rusted look candle sconces on clearance at Hobby Lobby in the summer department.  They were ridiculously cheap and of course they found their way into my cart.  I decided to spray them black for Halloween!  They work perfectly at my front door and I!  I placed some flameless candles that flicker - my candles must have that spooky flicker - and they look very inviting.


I hope to post more Halloween pictures in the coming weeks with decorations and ideas.  I would head to your local thrift stores and look for random things you can spray paint for fun and unusual spooky decor!  Good luck and Happy Haunting and Happy Hunting!



Thrift Stores Spray Paint Unique and Fun Halloween Decorations!

I was chosen for the BetterAfter Mystery Thrift Off!

Wow!   I cant believe it is May already!  I should totally be ashamed of myself as my last blog post was in March!  Yikes - that is not good.  Tennis season is in full swing and I am busy coaching and stringing racquets and all things associated with the Spring sports season.  I have also been working on my guest room and that is another reveal post that is coming up shortly after I put up the crown molding.  Then that room is DONE!  What a great feeling!  I love how it is turning out too.

Anyhoo - if you read my blog regularly, you know I am a huge fan of the blog BETTERAFTER!  It is like a daily ritual for me to visit and see the latest makeover.  It is like I wake up, eat breakfast, brush my teeth and then... go and visit Lindsey at BetterAfter.net to see what incredible makeover is being freatured today!   I have been extremely fortunate and honored that she has posted four of my makeovers on her site.  First, it was my faux carriage garage doors HERE, then it was my faux granite countertops HERE, then it was my backyard shed HERE, and my Christmas sleigh HERE.  If you havent ever visited this site, Im warning you now, make sure you have ample time and enough beverages to keep you properly hydrated because you once you go in, it may be hours before you come out!  Seriously, not even kidding!  If you need a good laugh out loud moment, read her post on her new bookcases.  It is like snort laughing funny! HERE!

So, in February, Lindsey - the very talented and hilarious author of BetterAfter announced a crazy new idea she had.  She partnered with Goodwill Industries to announce a new contest called #TheMysteryThriftOff!  She was going to go to Goodwill thrift stores and find items which she would send out to those lucky enough to be selected via an entry questionnaire submitted to her blog.  Well, of course I entered immediately!


Lo and behold, a few weeks later, I receive an email that I WAS CHOSEN.  I was one of only 12 people and I couldnt be more excited.  I totally felt like Charlie when he finds the Golden Ticket except there was no Wonka Bar with which to celebrate.  Bummer.  This was such an intriguing idea and I was super excited to see both the crazy items she chose and the transformations her followers created.  And to know now that I was going to be given the opportunity to participate in the first annual GREAT  MYSTERY THRIFT OFF, well, it is just very cool.


So each day I earerly awaited my mystery delivery.  And then it finally arrived!  The box was a little worse for wear but there it was!  The box!  Sitting on my front step in all of its General Splendour. Hmmm....what could be inside!  Drumroll please...... TADA!

This is my item that I need to make over.  I guess it could be described at a macrame wall hanging but all I keep thinking of is the hilarious scene in When Harry Met Sally with the Roy Rogers Wagon Wheel Coffee Table.  So I do call this my Roy Rogers macrame wall art thing item.  It is about 13" around and accentuated with pine cone petals.  And enough glue to choke a small pony.



I was chosen for the BetterAfter Mystery Thrift Off!

Random Shopping finds J Crew and Thrift Shoppes!

I saw this in the J Crew Outlet in Michigan City, Indiana and instantly fell in love!  I love the citron cardi  (to me it will always be tennis ball yellow) and the navy shorts and crisp white shirt.  But what I am loving most of all is the polka-dot bow tie!  It is absolutely adorable!  I have been picking up bow ties at second hand stores lately because I so want to copy this trend.  I love this look so much.  Casual and yet so polished!


I also gushed over this lobster cotton sweater.  It just screams summer and reminds me of my time in Kennebunkport, Maine.  One of my most favorite places in the whole world.  This is on my J. Crew bucket list for sure!  Adorbs.

Since getting my iPhone, I love that fact that I have a camera with me at all times and I must admit the photo quality is pretty sweet.  I find myself taking pictures and videos of totally random stuff.  This post is simply a collection of some of these pictures!  :-)



I stopped in a Thrift Shoppe (I like to spell it that way to class it up a bit  :-) and found this vintage table!  I love this - the metal detailing, the decorative trim all make it adorable.  I dont know what I am going to do with it but I could not pass it up for $10!  White with silver metal accents?  Deep cherry with silver?  Mahogany with gold?  Seriously confused.  :-)

Then I walk five more feet and come across with this low side table.  It is SO cute and again it was only $10!  I think I am going to paint this and use it for flip-flop storage in my new navy and pink closet.  But the more I look at it, I think it would be a wonderful bedside night stand.  Storage for books and such.  And it also has a larger drawer for storage at the bottom.  I will have to think about this one.



























 I also found this vintage magazine holder.  This is definitely going to get painted and stenciled but there are so many possibilities that my head is spinning.  I am going to take my time until I come up with the perfect idea.


Then I found this adorable metal sign at Hobby Lobby!  I love the saying and think I may have to use this quote somewhere in my house!  SO cute.  

So those are just some random shopping finds I wanted to share.  I have lots of work to do with my thrifty finds.  Hopefully, I will be posting "AFTERs"  very soon.  Have a great week - enjoy the promise of Springtime!


Random Shopping finds J Crew and Thrift Shoppes!