Sunday Wrap Up...A Market, Theatre Letters, Laundry Project & a bloody Root Canal...!!

You would of thought I'd learned my lesson 4 years ago when my ABSOLUTE fear of the Dentist led to a costly root canal but no...My Dentist advised at the time I needed a filling in one of my upper teeth but I'd just spent 12 months a LOT of money on my mouth & really just wanted to put the whole thing behind me...!! Well...'behind me' came up & bit me on the butt a little over a week ago in the from of an all too familiar tooth ache & abscess which in turn, contributed to a nice case of tonsillitis & a very lack luster time for 'yours truly'....! So...NO 'Sunday Wrap Up' for last week but I'm hoping this one makes up for it....!!!

I headed off to the Market this morning & had a GREAT time....I scored not one but TWO of my all time FAVE cream coloured striped suitcases (very hard to find here in Oz), a sweet little wrought iron planter & a GORGEOUS scooter....I need to replace the modern wheels on this little cutie though....LUCKY I have me some spares... :o) !!


WOOHOO...I now have SIX of these BEAUTIES.... ** sigh ** The bottom case had a TERRIBLE stain on the top however, the inside was in SCHMICK NICK & after a hardy scrubbing, I've managed to remove 90% of the stain...I may have another 'go' at it during the week....!!

I also found 5 jelly moulds which I'll use in one project, a metal whisk....I think I'd like to collect these as this one is just SO CUTE...3 x coat hooks & two drawer handles....Indeed, you can NEVER have too much GREAT vintage hardware....A YUMMY Remington Typewriter ribbon tin (to go with my recently acquired Remington 16), 2 x bakelite string lines that you use when travelling to hang your 'unmentionables' on....(Though why socks, undies & bras are referred to as unmentionables is a mystery to me...??!) I also scored two wonderful Kandy trays ...They're for some sort of pastry I think but I'm going to use them as organisers & last but by no means least is the most DELICIOUS beaten up * crackly pottery mug I've ever seen.....It cost me ONE WHOLE smacker & I'll either use it in the bathroom as the 'new' toothbrush/paste holder or perhaps in the bedroom & sit a big fat vanilla candle in it....YUMMO....!!

And WHAT do we have here....??? Why...It's a BUNCH of theatre letters....I HEART shabby vintage metal letters (who doesn't....???!!) & had the word JUNK already....!!

Yesterday though, I purchased 21 x more to make up the following.....

I'm thinking of putting the RUSTY in our living area beside the JUNK...Very appropro I think... !!

The other words will be used for display at the next Antique Fair I attend...!!

Now for a project Mr SVJ & I've been working on for the laundry which is quite narrow...I found two french doors in the Hard Rubbish (one of which has been hung horizontally in our living room) & I'd put this one aside as it was in need of repair...Mr SVJ removed one side for me & I cleaned it up & gave it a coat of poly to seal the remaining paint.

This piece has now been trimmed to fit the space & mounted & is waiting on just one more coat hook....I'll add a pic when it's finished....!!

Now this is a really nice piece of wood also found in the Hard Rubbish that Mr SVJ has cut down for me...I've cleaned it up & am just debating with myself as to it's 'finish' & it too will be mounted UNDER the other piece as a shelf to hold my paints & brushes etc....I'm hoping the laundry will be ready by Tuesday so stay tuned for the pics....!!

And to top off the weekend Mr SVJ & I found a storage unit not 4 minutes drive from our house...We're hoping this means an END to the MOUNTAIN of stuff currently squeezed into our small home....I KNOW I recently let go of one storage unit but it was MILES away, EXPENSIVE & inconvenient...We'll be moving the 'excess' next weekend & THEN I can start showing off the INSIDE of our home....!!!

Hope you had a SAFE & happy weekend...!

Cheers,
Tamarah :o)

Sunday Wrap Up....I am SERIOUSLY knackered....!

Mr SVJ woke me a short time ago from my restless slumber on the couch to tell me I was drooling on myself...."Well I'm bloody tired" I said when confronted with the news....He responded by advising he was worried I would be embarrassed if visitors arrived unannounced to find me with drool all over my shirt...."SILLY git" I chided...As IF I'd care....hahahahahaha....I'm sitting here now still in my drooly t-shirt...!

I thought I'd share that snippet as a precursor so you would have an idea as to just how pooped this Aussie junker is....!!! After yesterdays HR (Hard Rubbish for the uninitiated) haul & I DO mean HAUL....What with all the cleaning (of previously mentioned HR) & packing of my van....By the time I managed to hit the hay it was close to midnight....! I was up again at 3am to leave for the market to share a stall with my friend Lyn....!

After a soggy start thanks to the rain, it ended up being a good day & I came home with only a few items....!! These pieces will make their way to Maldon with the rest of my 'stash' next weekend....!!

Now unfortunately, in my excitement (greed, haste, frenzy) while I was out in the HR I NEGLECTED to take pics of my loot....YES I KNOW....I'm a TERRIBLE blogger....I really am trying though.... :o) !! So....I only have a few pics of the items I bought at the market.

Before I talk about my pics though some background......

I have recently been inspired by the LOVELY Rebecca from Urban Rose Jewellery Designs to re-start my jewellery making activities....Now I say 're-start' as about 18 months ago I started buying bits & pieces with the intention of making (re-purposing) jewellery however, I became sidetracked.....*** sigh *** so MANY ideas.....So LITTLE time however, I am FEELING the need to create & be creative (aside from my furniture & re purposed decor pieces) so STAY tuned....!!! I'd also like to take the opportunity to mention the equally LOVELY Margo from robolady whom I recently found thanks to Sue at Vintage Rescue Squad ....I'm LOVING her funky jewellery & she is an ABSOLUTE sweety....!!!

So in honour of all things 'vintage & jewellery', my first pic shows the four items purchased at the market today....Two YUMMY tarnished metal whistles (the patina on each of these is to DIE for just quietly) & an exceptionally NEAT brass disc that I initially thought was a lid....The vendor I bought this piece from explained to me that the knob actually turns to reveal small pins that were used for creating a similar wool craft to 'french knitting'....!!! This is going to make a GREAT centerpiece in a necklace....!!!

The sweet little wooden horse was a Valentines gift to myself....hahahahahaha.....from my lovely friend Callie who specialises in STUNNING costume jewellery....Callie would quite honestly have to be one of the BEST Treasures I've found over the last year....We 'did' Fryers Town together & are about to head off to Maldon in tandem as well....Funnily enough.....While I've OFTEN admired the kind of pieces Callie deals in....It's ONLY after meeting her last year & LISTENING to her speak about her pieces & their respective histories that I've really found myself ENJOYING & wanting to learn more about this fascinating genre....!!!

Isn't he ADORABLE....I'm going to wear him to work tomorrow to make me smile when the 'going gets tough'....!!!

The market ended at 1pm & after a brief stop home for lunch I headed off to my storage unit to start emptying out before next weekend so I don't have to pay another months rent....Talk about HOT work....It must have been at least 50c in there....!!! I packed the van with a GOOD load of 'stuff'....By 'stuff' I'm referring to items requiring my (or Mr SVJ's attention) that I KNOW we won't be able to get to before Maldon & that I DIDN'T want to sell as projects to someone else....! I then went back to the HR & deposited my goods....I BET someone had a BALL packing their van with my castoffs a short time later.... :o) !!

Before I go I would just like to mention two WONDERFUL blogs I have recently been introduced to.....Gina at Vintage Junk in My Trunk who's home is filled with FABULOUS lamps created by her clever hubby from a variety of vintage items & whom I'm THRILLED to say reached out to me all the way from the US....I AGREE Gina....It makes me smile just thinking how lucky we are to have a medium that brings us together with like minded people we otherwise would not have had the opportunity to meet....!

The other blog I'm CHUFFED to have 'fallen' into belongs to Heather of Post Road Vintage and Home Decor....Her pics are to DIE FOR & you will be drooling yourself when you check her out....!!!

Cheers,

Tamarah :o)

PS: Drool patch has dried & there have been NO unannounced visitors.....hahahahahaha.....!!!!

Presenting my NEW Shabby Vintage Headboard...!!

Today has been a FULL on junkfest for me....!!! It's just after 11pm & the last 2 1/2 hours have been spent outside in the DARK washing & dusting my Hard Rubbish finds & packing my van for the market tomorrow....To say I'm BEAT would be an understatement however, I have an ice cold beer in my hand & Baxter (fur baby) is on my lap so all is well....!

Having said all THAT....I won't be sticking around as I have to get up at 3am....Just wanted to leave a pic or two of the mantle I scored last week in it's new home behind our bed....I LOVE IT.....! BEST $25- I EVER spent....hahahahahaha...!








I still need to add something to the centre of the mantle just above the headboard but it will need to wait for the mo....!

Be back tomorrow night for a FULL weekend wrap up....!!

Cheers,
Tamarah

Sunday Wrap Up...1x Swap Meet, 1x Market & more Hard Rubbish than you can poke a stick at...!!

This post is dedicated to my lovely friend Wendy who lives in the country...! Every Monday during my lunch break, we call each other for the 'weekend wrap up' to discuss the treasures we've found....Alas, I'm often distracted by my environment & I end up forgetting half my discoveries....!

So....from now on, I'll post Sunday evenings & this way Wendy will be able to see ALL my stuff & we can look at my blog together on Monday while we chat & giggle over my 'loot'....!!

My friend Trevor called me Friday evening & asked me if I'd like to go to a swap meet out at Berwick....hmmmmm....I agreed of course, though as a junk/treasure finding prospect I wasn't holding out much hope as I'd been to a Sunday market AGES ago at the same locale & wished I HADN'T wasted the fuel....!!!

Trev picked me up at 4.30am & away we went...The pic below was taken at 5.15am & it was pitch black....I used the ISO setting on my dig & it's shown a lot more than I thought it would.

**** CLICK ON PICS to enlarge.....!!! ****



This annual junk fest started off as a Swap Meet for 'rev heads' but has blossomed into a HUGE vintage/collectable venue...Check out the WAY COOL Holden below....ahhhhh....They DON"T make them like this any more....!



I wasn't able to get the entire weekends haul into the one pic so be sure & scroll down to the bottom....! The dress dummy you see below was a GREAT buy & I'm smiling as I type as to how it actually came about....!!!

You see....After Fryers Town, Mr SVJ & I stayed in Castlemaine for a couple of days & I engaged in a little retail therapy of the vintage kind (of course) while we were there....I found the dress form along with the stick however, there was no base....hmmm....It was $100- but I was feeling good & snapped it up as I'd ALWAYS wanted one of these & have seen them for $250+....Then lo & behold, yesterday at the Swap Meet I found a base for $25-....I took a punt that it would match my stick bit & wallah....It was a MATCH made in heaven....!!!

The dolls pram, heavily detailed gesso frame, blue enamel fridge crisper, Princess carpet sweeper & Brockhoff biscuit tin were all gathered from the Hard Rubbish after I returned from the Swap Meet....Not bad hey for a couple of hours.... :o) !!

The red leather suitcase, West German jug/vase Royal Blue lizard skin hand bag, tin globe, tall tin storage bin with lid & the majority of the jewellery were sourced at Camberwell market....The Skippy bank ( a child hood FAVE) & the rest of the jewellery were nabbed at the Swap Meet.

I LOVE the sweet little Bostock tin....I'm going to use it to store jump rings etc for my jewellery in.








This mantle piece was found just on 5am at the Swap Meet for a tiny $25-....The detail is TO DIE FOR & after a few repairs such as regluing & chiselling at the back of one of the legs to remove some burned wood....HEY....it WAS a fire mantle for heavens sake....I'm going to mount it as a head board in our bedroom....Stay tuned for those pics....!

This vintage wooden sign is P-E-R-F-E-C-T in VERY way....It was originally quoted as being $65- however, the vendor let me have it for $35- which is a BARGAIN....You don't see MANY vintage signs like this 'Down Under' so I feel VERY fortunate & it's a KEEPER....It's been cleaned & I've given it a coat of poly to ensure there's no further deterioration....!! It has a three digit phone number (obscured in pic so I'm dating it bewteen the late 50's early 70's)....I'll do some investigation at work during my lunch break this week if I'm able....!

The little toy high chair was resting inside the dolls pram & the two grates...Gee aren't they....hahahaha....Well they were found at the Swap Meet for $5-....I have a very simple project in mind for them....Stay tuned....!!

Last but by no means list on this weeks Treasure list is this WONDERFUL industrial paper dispenser found at Camberwell this morning at 5.30am for $50-.....It's ALSO a keeper & will live in my office....!

On the Tamarah rating scale I put this weekends Treasure hunting at 13/10....It was fun, I enjoyed myself SO MUCH & was totally relaxed & in my element....I'm THRILLED with the pieces I found though I must admit I am ABSOLUTELY KNACKERED & will be asleep within moments of logging off....!
I look forward to sharing some projects this week....I have HEAPS to do to get ready for Maldon in a couple of weeks PLUS I'll be at Camberwell next week clearing some 'clutter'....!
Cheers for now,
Tamarah :o)