Shop Photos

Tess and I have been working the last week or so on cleaning, measuring and photographing the majority of my thrifted finds for the Etsy Shop! I am very excited to list everything ASAP. I have a lot of amazing things this time around. Plus, working on everything the last week has made our office extra pretty - with gold glassware and vintage linens everywhere! Be sure to check back soon for updated links to the store!

Note below: Tess almost buried in newspaper. Hahah!

New Year Goals + Thoughts

Bathroom Collage Wall

Just before all the holidays rolled around, T.J. and I finally had our upstairs bathroom redone. Someday soon I'll post a full before + after blog, but in the meantime, enjoy the bathroom collage wall process.

It worked out perfectly that the space I wanted to hang artwork was the exact size of a roll of wrapping paper. So, it was really easy to lay out my design on the floor, trace the frames, hang up the piece of paper, and hang the nails accordingly. Love when things work out like that.

It's not totally complete yet - both the collage wall and the bathroom as a whole. But it's on my January 2014 list!

Most of the frames and even some of the artwork itself was thrifted. I'll do a price + vendor breakdown once it's complete!

Pretty Much Anything

It never ceases to amaze me what you can find at a thrift store. I found the giant strawberry cookie jar early last year, but only filled it with candy and set it out this past Christmas. Never regretted buying that sucker! Plus, I think it's one of a kind-ish... it has someone's initials carved into the bottom. So that's cool.

Also, really loving the little wooden deer I picked up last week. I almost didn't get them, but am glad I did. I found them in the Christmas section (for 50% off!), but set aside from anything Christmas related, they look very Swedish in design and modern.

What have you found lately?

xox

Wooden Deer - I love that they can be a part of my deer collection, but also stand alone with their own modern "danish" look.

Strawberry Cookie Jar - I never thought I would own a cookie jar. That seems so grandma-ish and weird. But the second I laid eyes on this colorful giant strawberry on the top shelf, I had to have it. It looks great anywhere. And is so fun to dig around in for a handful of candy!

Gold Rimmed Dish Set - This was another one of those things that I purchased just because I couldn't leave it on the shelf at the thrift store. It sat upstairs on a shelf for over a year before I found it and thought "Wow! Why am I not using these everyday!?" It's unfortunate that you can't microwave them (due to the gold), but I still love them. In fact, there are large dinner plates not shown above!

Thrifted Finds / December 20th

I went thrifting the other day specifically to find things for my friend Tess and her new apartment. She gave me a list of household items and gave me the colors yellow, black and white, and told me to pick floral items over geometric ones. I think I did pretty good! And all for under $20!

10 Tips To Thrift

I get a lot of comments, mostly on Instagram, about how and where and when and how often I thrift. So I figured I would write a post with my Top 10 tips to thrift by! So, here goes, in no particular order.

1. Know your style. This is something that took me awhile to figure out. It took me while to realize what decades I am drawn to most, what colors and finishes work best in my house and that I often buy things simply because I find them funny. Several weeks ago I bought a planter that is a white pig wearing red suspenders. I actually laughed out loud when I saw it. I had no reason to buy it, but I did. And now it’s sitting on a shelf in my Dad’s recording studio… and it looks awesome. Before I really knew my style I would have hesitated to buy something so silly.

My style is modern-vintage with a dash of whimsy and mid-century. Brass and anything animal shaped catches my eye. I heavily gravitate towards items from the 50′s, due to their beautiful colors (which always match my kitchen perfectly!!) and items from the 60′s due to the patterns and clean lines in the furniture. I love anything that’s heavily typography based. I have a thing for thin gold frames and Fire King coffee mugs. And like I said above, before I learned these things about myself from shopping at thrift stores for a few months, I would go into every store and feel like it was all junk. I couldn’t see past the ugly items and certainly didn’t know what I was looking for. But it was worth the time to figure out my style!! Keep track of all of the things you buy at first. Be selective with your first handful of purchases. Then, when you get home, Google them. Read about them. Analyze why you bought what you bought. Learn what you like – so when you see that amazing, vintage, in perfect condition chair of your dreams for a high price, you’re not afraid to pull the trigger.

2. Look at shape, not color. Many of the awesome things I find while thrifting are usually a terrible color when I buy them. Lamps, frames, animal figurines, side tables… anything! If it’s a decent price, but ugly color, consider spray painting it. Probably gold.

3. Walk through the store more than once. It never fails I find lots of great items my second or third lap around store. It takes my brain awhile to really see everything on the shelves. Especially in the stores that aren’t organized or clean.

4. Have a running list of top things you’re looking for. While every thrifting trip ends with a few odd-ball items that I just couldn’t leave on the shelves, most of my purchases were “planned.” My current list consists of needle point artwork, felted deer, 4×6 frames, linens, anything that screams ‘MERICA!!! and (as always) colorful handmade blankets. Knowing what’s on my “I actually need this for something” list helps me decide whether to buy an entire vintage wooden ship collection or the handful of frames and linens I could actually use.

5. Shop at the same place again and again. (Unless it really sucks the first time you go.) One of my favorite places to shop is the little thrift place right down the street from me. I have shopped there probably 50 times in the last year. I know when they get new things. I know their price ranges. I know their sales. It’s just nice to know several of your favorite stores really well. It helps me compare one store to the next.

6. Always find more places to shop. While it’s best to visit the same shops more than once, it’s also great to constantly be on the look out for new ones. I have found quite a few new stores by asking the person at the register “Are there any other thrift stores in this area?” More than once they’ve told me about one that my iPhone doesn’t know about!

7. Shop often! This is kind of common sense. The more you shop, the more you’ll find. DUH.

8. Don’t give up on thrift shopping when you don’t find anything amazing for weeks. While I haven’t been doing much thrifting lately, the little bit I have found lately has been preeeeettty lame. But that just happens sometimes. People aren’t donating. Others beat me to the purchase. I’m not taking enough time to actually dig around and find the best items. But, never give up! Try and try again. You will find that brass unicorn you’ve been searching for.

9. If you love it, but have no use for it, buy it and give it away. Thrifting has allowed me to give my loved ones small but thoughtful gifts. I found a cooking utensil for $2.00 that was exactly like the one my Mom had, but lost awhile back. She never stopped talking about “that brownie fork”. So when I found it, I bought it. I mean, it was only $2.00! There are things I’ve snagged for friends and family like books and plates and records. I love giving them items that mean a lot and bring back memories. And better yet when I can find them for only dollars!!

10. Research and compare prices on Etsy. And this is where my iPhone saves the day again. More than once I’ve been in the back corner of a semi-creepy thrift store, with what I think is an overpriced yet amazing item in hand, and I’ll look it up on Etsy. Usually I realize that the price is actually not that bad, and that if I was to order it online and pay for shipping and handling, it would be the same price. Or, I realize that it’s over priced and not that “one of a kind” after all, seeing that dozens and dozens of listings are popping up.

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Hope those tips are helpful and that you enjoyed the random photos of my house. Happy Thrifting!

xox

Pots + Pans

The walk in love. team purchased new pots + pans for me as my Christmas gift. And what an awesome gift it was! Once they arrived, I took the time to clean out my lower cabinets where I keep such things. It had gotten really out of control. But! Before I put everything back inside, I lined the shelves with this awesome thrifted contact paper. I knew it'd been saving it for the last 2 years for a reason! It looks great on the shelves and makes me smile just a bit every time I reach in for a pot or pan.

Contact paper is always something I look for at thrift stores. You can do many things with it and sometimes they have the best vintage patterns on them.

December Goals + Thoughts

Thrifted Finds / December 5th

Wanted to share a few photos of my latest finds. I thrifted a lot of my Christmas gifts this year, so don't think that everything I post is always for me. I'm actually working very hard on buying less, or if I do buy extra, giving it away. It's so fun and easy to give away things you thrift considering they only cost a quarter at times!

Thrifted Finds / November 22

I love when thrift stores start to put out their Christmas items. It's such a fun way to get in the spirit of Christmas without spending a lot of money. Come Christmas thrifting time, I always look for the following items:

+ Vintage christmas lights

+ Angels and caroler figurines

+ Candle holders

+ Brass angels, trumpets, etc.

+ Serving ware (knowing I'll be hosting a party or two!)

+ Unique ornaments

+ Tinsel and garlands

+ Deer stuff!!! Christmas time seems to be the best time to add to my deer collection quickly. Vintage christmas stuff has a lot of deer elements to it. I love it!

What do you look for!?!

Welcome Back!

I've been accumulating a massive amount of amazing things over the last 8-12 months and am finally starting to put them all to use. But, for the most part, my house is just piles and piles of thrifted goodness. And while it's all beautiful... it's quite overwhelming. I've actually given away and re-donated a lot of items, but am looking forward to giving each little item I've kept a more permanent place in our home. (Enough with drawers full of beautiful, hidden things!!) 

Also, since I'm revamping this entire Tiny Anchors site to focus almost solely on thrifting, bare with me as I get things going again. I hope to really streamline what I post about to only several topics - thrifting, thrift store reviews, DIY posts, pretty photos and home decor. Oh, and cats. Always cats.

So! Welcome back to all of my thrifty readers... and welcome back to myself. 

xox

Wicker Planter - I love that it raises one of my larger plants off the floor so another can nest underneath it. My next step will be replanting my larger plant into a lower rimmed plastic pot, so it's flush with the wicker.

Brass Deer - Considering I have so many brass animals, and so many deer, this little guy is my first brass deer find! She's a great addition to my deer collection!

Vintage Books - I think I'll always purchase vintage books. My advice (when digging through boxes and shelves at a shop) is to take off the book jacket and look at the spine. I choose the books I purchase based off the spine color + typography.