i adore thrifting

To procrastinate from doing homework and the endless amount of cleaning that I had (have) to do before Mr. Man's mom comes for the weekend, I decided to swing by my favorite thrift store in Madison.  The St. Vincent DePaul store on Jenny Street is the oldest and biggest here in town.  I'm never able to escape without putting my debit card to good use (or Mr. Man's). 

When I first started thrifting, I would always walk in looking for specific things, "A blank for the blank that I can do blank to."  And I never had good luck.  After changing my mindset to, "Just look to look, look at everything with an open mind," I've had much better luck.  I just slowly peruse and I look at everything.  Linens, housewares, books, magazines, frames, furniture, lamps, seriously EVERYTHING.  And these days, I hardly walk out without a cart full.  It drives Mr. Man nuts.  When we go together, I can tell when he's over it all.  He starts following me around the store, looking over my shoulder, literally breathing on my neck.  Drives me nuts.  So much so, that eventually I get so annoyed that I insist that we leave.  I think it's all part of his master plan. 

Anyway, Monday I went.  By myself.  And I loved every minute of it.  I normally go on the weekends, when it's crowded, people are all over the place, the aisles are crowded.  Monday, it was empty.  Me, one older lady, and the workers.  I was there for an hour and a half.  I left with GREAT goodies.

The houseware aisles are probably my favorite place to find different odds and ends.  I love looking for old juice glasses that I can turn into candles.  They put a smile on my face.  Also in these aisles I always scour for brass candlesticks and brass birds.  With a little sanding, spray metal primer, and spray paint, they turn into great updated accessories for our home.  Here are some candlesticks I found on Monday.

On this particular thrifting trove, I found this beautiful piece just staring at me.

I didn't hesitate, didn't think twice.  At a buck seventy, this owl was going home with me.  I have big plans for this napkin holder.  It's going to be great.

Updating brass is kinda a kick I've been on lately.  It screams dated in its original state, but with some imagination (and spray paint) it can be glorious.  So when I saw this lamp, I knew it was going home with me.  The fact that it has pull chains (my Grampa swears by those pull chains) and it has double bulbs (which I'm supposed to be calling lamps now, based on my lecture on Thursday) are mere bonuses!

This lamp immediately caught my eye.  I love the crackled glass spheres around the base.  I love the vintage brass floral decorations that went along with the spheres. 

But it's kind of a love/hate relationship.  When I put it in my cart, I loved it.  When I put it on the counter to check out with it, I hated it.  And my mind keeps waivering.  Hopefully I can find a shade that'll make me love it.  Should I paint the brass?  Or leave it in it's original shape?  Thoughts?  Ideas?  Help!  Here's a close up.

And finally, I love ornate, old frames.  I absolutely love finding them, spray painting them bright fun colors, using white mats, and framing original artwork or black and white photographs.  Here is the pile I gathered up on this latest adventure.

All for about $80.  The lamps were more than half of that.  But lamps are always expensive and these beauties are going to be one of the kind.  All the treasures I picked up will be.  And you can't put a price on unique objects going into your home. They help show your guests who you are, both individually and as a couple.  We don't want a house full of Potterybarn accents.  As appealing as they are, everyone has them.