Barn Sale Fun

Posted in Vintage Finds by Michele at Lilacs & Rust

One of the best things about living in New England is the plethora of barn sales. They are everywhere and I am completely obsessed.

This time around I did not buy anything, but I l-o-v-e-d everything I saw. The one I went to happens once a month so I will definitely be back. Look at these great items!!!

I am seriously considering buying one of these large bins. No Idea what I would do with it, but I keep picturing it in a vertical position working as some type of shelving fixture, or lying horizontally across some hay bales chock full of pumpkins on a rustic fall front porch. Gorgeous, right???

Barn doors and shutters……..swoon!!!

I am sure my fellow “Golden Girls” fans know why I took a picture of this sign. The girls sang this jingle in season 7 episode 24 while they were waiting for Rose in the hospital (“My beer is Rheingold the dry beer, think of Rheingold whenever you buy beer, it’s not bitter not sweet it’s the extra dry treat won’t you try extra dry Rheingold beer”.) God, I love those women!!!

Which items did you like best?

For today’s song I chose two from one of my dad’s favorite movies in honor of Sunday being Father’s Day. It’s been nearly seven years since he died and my world has been such a cold dark color without him. But he and my mother gave me the foundation from which my love of music was born, and from the moment he and I first watched “Eddie and the Cruisers” together, there was no denying how much he loved it and its soundtrack.

We will not discuss the fact that it nearly drove me into a catatonic state every time my dad refused to acknowledge that these songs were NOT by my true love Bruce Springsteen and his E Street Band (so so sorry, Bossman 😦 ). My dad forgave me for a lot of things, so I must show him the same courtesy here. So Dad, the second song is for you because I know how much you loved it. The first one is for us & how much I yearn to relive all the tender years we spent together again. And how I wish we had more. Te amo, Dad.

“Oh oh oh tender years

Won’t you wash away my tears

How I wish you were near

Please don’t go tender years”

Eddie & the Cruisers/John Cafferty & the Beaver Brown Band: “Tender Years“.

Eddie & the Cruisers/John Cafferty & the Beaver Brown Band: “On The Dark Side“.

Until next time, happy digging!!!

24Sep2017

Creating A Mood

Posted in Decorating by Michele at Lilacs & Rust

Hello and happy fall, Vixens!!!

I have been stuck for a while on how to decorate my place. It seems the more choices I have, the worse it is. And since I have so much saved on Pinterest, I decided to go through my pins and create a mood board to help me narrow down my choices.

I started with the living room. I asked myself what is important for me to have in there. Comfortable seating for me and guests when I entertain, good lighting for when I curl up with a good book, a comfy pillow and throw for when I want to get extra cozy, color, texture and a few things that I love.

Here is what I came up with:

What do you think?

Let’s break it down.

The focal point of any living room is the sofa, so that was my first pick. I never had one with a chaise, but the thought of having one has always been in the back of my mind. This sectional from Arhaus really spoke to me, from the overstuffed cushions to the rolled arms to the gorgeous color (Theater Cream). So pretty. They have a wide variety of sectional couches to choose from.

Next I moved to lighting. I adore the feminine charms a chandelier gives to a room, but in a living room, I prefer lamps. This industrial style floor lamp embraced my love of old & worn while bringing in a masculine touch.

A floor lamp eliminates the need for an end table on one side of the sofa, but on the other side I envisioned a place to stack a pile of old family books that I like to have around. I thought the white metal chair from Target would serve that purpose beautifully while providing some balance to the metal lamp on the other side.

More texture and comfort are provided courtesy of the cable knit throw and pillow, and the velvet pillow provides a subtle pop of color while keeping the neutral pallet of the room alive.

And those items store away easily when not needed in an antique tool chest which serves as a coffee table. Look at that beautiful hardware!!!!! Sa-wooooon!!!!!

My sofa will be up against a wall because the room is not big enough for me to float it. That means the big blank wall behind the couch needs some visual interest. Instead of doing a straight line of prints which will only follow the line of the sofa, I prefer one large picture. I adore black and white photography, and the grittier the better. This one satisfies all of the above.

I finished up the room the way I finish every room-with fresh flowers. Pink roses are gorgeous, but especially in my heart’s desire, white Ironstone. Just imagine those beautiful blooms in that pitcher on top of that tool trunk………..too beautiful for words.

And the final touch? Music, what else? My favorite song of all time-“Jungleland“-from Bruce Springsteen’s life altering “Born To Run” album is always in my CD player – yes, I still LOVE my CD’s!!!! 🙂 And happy birthday, Bossman!!!

The best part of this mood board? It can be created on any budget. I may have taken some of the pictures from expensive websites or stores, but that does not mean when I am ready to bring my dream living room to life I will not be able to find any of the items at flea markets, tag sales or on Craigslist. I find the key is to be patient and go after one piece at a time. Start with the focal point and go from there. Before you know it, everything comes together & you did not have to empty your bank account to do it.

What does your mood board look like??? Let me know in the comments below.

None of the images in this post belong to me. All resources are provided in the links.

This post was not sponsored. All opinions, ideas and swoons are mine 🙂

Until next time, fellow Vixens, keep digging!!!

12Nov2016

Movin’ On Up

Posted in Uncategorized by Michele at Lilacs & Rust

Hello, Vixens!!! How are you all doing today? Is everyone in full swing holiday mode? How is it even possible that we are down to the last two months of 2016??? Wow.

I have had a very busy fall. I just started a new job that I love and I just moved (yes, again!!! LOL) . So you know that means I am in the middle of boxes upon boxes, but so happy to share my new place with you. And for the same price of my previous place-a 400 sq foot studio-now I have a four room apartment in the heart of my downtown city. I am just loving it.

My apartment is in a very old house so yes, it had old gorgeous wood floors. But, the landlords had already decided to cover them with new carpeting, so that was a bit of a let down. But the place still has lots of charm which I adore. Like this room, which I was told was the living room but I decided it will be my bedroom:

And look at these fabulous doors…..

The room that was supposed to be the bedroom will eventually become the living room. Right now it is piled with boxes so it will probably be the last project on my list. I do not mind that the double closets are in here, but if I change my mind I can always cover them with curtains.

The kitchen is a bit of a hodge podge of different cabinets which I hope to unify with white paint but probably not until after the holidays.

It does have great charm though, like the porcelain sink and full back splash. I also have a gas stove again after 3 long years!!! Yay!!!

There is an eating area outside the kitchen which can definitely pass as a dining room so I am excited to set that up. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of it before it became a wall of boxes, so you will just have to trust me on this one.

I also have a nice size linen closet, a giant pantry closet and another room with a lot of charm. What is that again??? Oh right, it is the bathroom WITH A CLAW FOOT TUB!!!!

I have wanted one of these my ENTIRE life and without even thinking about it I just followed the real estate agent around the apartment and was SHOCKED when I laid eyes on my dream:

It is in great shape and shined up beautifully after some much needed elbow grease. The bathroom is very small so I could not get a good shot of the room in its entirety. But it is cute with a lilac wall color. But let’s face it…..the tub is the star, right??? I am ecstatic about it!!!

So after several months of packing, interviews, apartment hunting, stress and limited sleep, things are finally settling down. I do have a lot of work ahead of me, but after all the cleaning and scrubbing comes the decorating!!! If any of you have any suggestions, please let me know. You are all so inventive and creative I would love to hear from you, even if it is just to say hi!

Until next time, my fellow Vixens, happy digging!!!

25Aug2015

Estate Sales, Explorations & An Exquisite Anniversary

Posted in Uncategorized by Michele at Lilacs & Rust

Hello, Vixens!!! How have you been?

I have been avoiding the heat of these final weeks of summer by staying inside in the A/C to either work or unpack. But when you are as bad of a procrastinator as I am, time goes by even quicker than usual (or so it seems). This is where I started-with a mountain of boxes in my living room:

I left the bedroom and kitchen clutter free so I could function and live in them while I went thru the boxes (and because I know how slow I am!!! LOL) Those two rooms are not close to being set up yet either, but at least they are box free. I really want things livable by the end of next month so I am ready to celebrate the arrival of fall (HOORAY!!!). So what did I choose to do this weekend with a ton of unpacking still left to do? Of course, I hit some estate sales!!!

I have not indulged that much this summer for the obvious reasons, and I was getting stuck in my head between wanting things in my apartment to be perfect and getting lost in the details of it all. So my solution was to clear my mind by getting out & exploring the new state I live in. I originally had plans to go to the Bridgewater County Fair but the weather was still a little too hot for me, so I decided to wait until next month before attending any fairs.

GPS took me to the first sale through the beautiful back roads of CT. It was so nice to be amongst nature instead of just looking at other cars and cement. Here is a picture I took from the car at a red light:

It was my view for most of the ride. Just beautiful.

I also passed this tiny little cemetery. Have I ever told you how much I love cemeteries? They may represent death, but they are always so peaceful and showcase such beautiful craftsmanship on the stones, especially the older ones. Some tell you a family’s history, or contain poetry or bible verses. But all of them tell you someone was loved and remembered, which is the nicest part of all to me.

At the first two sales I did not see anything I wanted, so I just enjoyed looking around and being back in the game. However, at the last sale I went to I found these beautiful pieces of silverware, including a few ice tea spoons to add to my collection. It is not a complete set, but I do not mind since I love the pattern. And all these pieces (plus 6 knives not pictured) were only $10!!!

After my purchase, I went to CVS for a snack. I am obsessed with their Kettle Corn and lucky for me it was on sale so I stocked up!!!

I also took some time to admire all their fall candles. Isn’t it great how you can buy your fall decorations and Halloween candy at the same time you buy your back to school items??? NOT LOL!!!

After that I traveled around aimlessly for a while longer and came upon one of my FAVORITE places in the ENTIRE world: Stew Leonard’s!!!

The first time I went to this chain was last November but that was at their Yonkers location. The one above (in Danbury) is less than 15 minutes from my apartment!!! It could get me into trouble, but this weekend it gave me a great dinner from their hot buffet and some fruit and vegetables for later in the week. If you have never been and there is one in your area, you MUST GO!!! Their nickname is the “Disneyland of Dairy Stores”!!!

Sorry for the quality of the pictures, but I took them on my iPhone because it was a little too hot to carry around my SLR.

No part of this blog was sponsored. I am just sharing my weekend with you. 🙂

So, have you been to any estate sales lately???

Also, today marks the 40th anniversary of the release of one of the greatest rock albums of all time, Bruce Springsteen’s “Born To Run”. This album changed my life. I believe the last song on the record, “Jungleland” is still the greatest song I have ever heard. And when all else fails, I remember a quote from the first song on the album, “Thunder Road” which always seems to help me find my way again: “What else can we do now except roll down the window and let the wind blow back your hair.” Amen.

To commemorate this landmark album’s anniversary, Backstreets.com is selling the poster below. Too cool!!! And all net proceeds will go to WhyHunger. Even cooler!!!

Photo courtesy of Eric Meola.

Until next time, Vixens, happy digging & happy listening!!!

20Sep2014

Some Seasonal Shopping

Posted in Uncategorized by Michele at Lilacs & Rust

Last weekend I was rained out on Saturday (and there were no indoor sales that I was aware of) so Sunday was my only day to hit the local sales. I went to five of them-yes, FIVE-and did not find ANYTHING!!! It was not that any of them were junk, they just had things I was not in the market for: newer items, toys, children’s items, clothes and large furniture (tables and chairs, etc).

It was nice to be at it again in the crisp weather-it was 70 degrees here on Sunday-so the outcome was by no means a complaint. But the cooler air always puts me in the mood to hit some of my favorite stores to see what is new for the season. I do not purchase a lot, maybe a few pieces here and there to mix in with my vintage items, and I shop at stores where I get the most bang for my buck.

While most of my decorating this time of year is with real pumpkins and other finds from nature (read: acorns and leaves), a few store-bought items peppered in seem to complete the look I am going for.

Some of my favorite places to visit are the Christmas Tree Shops, the Dollar Tree and Michaels.

At the Christmas Tree Shop I found some burlap pumpkins and seasonal pot holders.

At the Dollar Tree I found a witches sign (and some bungee cords for those big treasures I find that need to be secured in my car).

At Michaels I found another seasonal sign and some burlap ribbon that I plan to use on my Christmas tree.

I am still in the throes of organizing and decorating my apartment, but soon I will show you how I incorporate these purchases in my space.

Until next time, fellow vixens, happy digging!!!

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Lilacs & Rust

Music & makeovers! I swoon for chippy paint, a gorgeous patina and a fabulous song!!! I love great music (read: Bruce Springsteen & Otis Redding), white lilacs, walking in freshly fallen snow, the Golden Girls, road trips and the fall!!!

Tag Archives: tag sales

Barn Sale Fun

Creating A Mood

Movin’ On Up

Estate Sales, Explorations & An Exquisite Anniversary

Some Seasonal Shopping

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