Finds--Vintage and New Plus Shells for Summer @ The CoOp

We girls have been very busy pulling our sale together for this weekend at Buckeystown Design CoOp.  I always have a mix of new and vintage finds.  Since summer is here with all thoughts of the beach, I added some seashore decor as well.  

I think my favorite vintage find is this day bed.  It originally had pink and white ticking.  I used a dry brush technique to give it a weathered look and had it upholstered in a gray linen.

DAY BED IN GREY LINEN WITH WEATHERED FINISH

I also added a bolster pillow.

DAY BED WITH BOLSTER

Behind the day bed is an MCM buffet that's a perfect TV stand.  The top was chippy and crackled.  Since the paint on the base was in good condition, I was going to strip the top and then paint the whole piece.  I really liked the natural weathering, so I randomly applied stripper to the base and removed the paint in sections with no real pattern in mind.  After I felt it was mottled enough, I applied a gray wash and then waxed it to seal it.  It looks good with the day bed.

MCM BUFFET

I placed a paper mache vase on the top of the buffet and filled it with rolled up prints of shells.  It's from the 1920's and the pattern looks like something you'd find on a salt glazed pot.

1920's MACHE VASE

A few months ago I purchased large European bread boards. Fabulous patina.

EUROPEAN BREAD BOARDS

Some of them actually had repairs.  You can see the repair on the base of the one in this image.

BREADBOARD WITH REPAIR

I always collect empty frames.  I actually removed the mirror from the black and gold one.

EMPTY FRAMES

ELEPHANT BOOK END AND MAP OF PARIS

Here come the shells.

OCTOPUS PILLOW

SHELL PRINT ON BURLAP

This is the companion shell print.  I rested it on a vintage cupboard.

VINTAGE CUPBOARD AND SHELL PRINT ON BURLAP

These framed shell prints complement the vintage chest with its original color.

VINTAGE CHEST AND SHELL PRINTS

LARGE DOUGH BOWL, MIRROR, TRAY WITH CORAL

If you're in the DC area, please join us for our sale July 15-17.

Details here.

Finds--Vintage and New Plus Shells for Summer @ The CoOp

We girls have been very busy pulling our sale together for this weekend at Buckeystown Design CoOp.  I always have a mix of new and vintage finds.  Since summer is here with all thoughts of the beach, I added some seashore decor as well.  

I think my favorite vintage find is this day bed.  It originally had pink and white ticking.  I used a dry brush technique to give it a weathered look and had it upholstered in a gray linen.

DAY BED IN GREY LINEN WITH WEATHERED FINISH

I also added a bolster pillow.

DAY BED WITH BOLSTER

Behind the day bed is an MCM buffet that's a perfect TV stand.  The top was chippy and crackled.  Since the paint on the base was in good condition, I was going to strip the top and then paint the whole piece.  I really liked the natural weathering, so I randomly applied stripper to the base and removed the paint in sections with no real pattern in mind.  After I felt it was mottled enough, I applied a gray wash and then waxed it to seal it.  It looks good with the day bed.

MCM BUFFET

I placed a paper mache vase on the top of the buffet and filled it with rolled up prints of shells.  It's from the 1920's and the pattern looks like something you'd find on a salt glazed pot.

1920's MACHE VASE

A few months ago I purchased large European bread boards. Fabulous patina.

EUROPEAN BREAD BOARDS

Some of them actually had repairs.  You can see the repair on the base of the one in this image.

BREADBOARD WITH REPAIR

I always collect empty frames.  I actually removed the mirror from the black and gold one.

EMPTY FRAMES

ELEPHANT BOOK END AND MAP OF PARIS

Here come the shells.

OCTOPUS PILLOW

SHELL PRINT ON BURLAP

This is the companion shell print.  I rested it on a vintage cupboard.

VINTAGE CUPBOARD AND SHELL PRINT ON BURLAP

These framed shell prints complement the vintage chest with its original color.

VINTAGE CHEST AND SHELL PRINTS

LARGE DOUGH BOWL, MIRROR, TRAY WITH CORAL

If you're in the DC area, please join us for our sale July 15-17.

Details here.

It's Not the Owl, It's the Octopus

I know that we all love owls, but I think that the octopus has replaced the owl for me any way.

When I was re-doing my screened porch I came across some octopus inspiration.  My first accessory find was the sea life pillows.  The vibrant blue and the coastal look were my accessory and color starting point.  Can you see the octopus on the pillow on the left?  He's peeking around the corner.

Sea Life Pillows on My Sun Room Day Bed

I found the fabric here if you want to make your own.

FYI, my favorite on-line fabric store is Fabric.com.  I select Home Decor Fabrics by Designer or Home Decor Fabrics Recent Arrivals.  I have found some wonderful fabrics at great prices.  

 
On a Home Goods excursion I found these plates with octopus images. 

Perfect for summer cook outs since they're not breakable.  I wish I could have found more than six.

Then at Zgallerie this ceramic octopus showed up.

Home Goods came through for me again with mugs with what else but an octopus.

One of my blog readers alerted me to the Etsy shop, Vintage By The Shore.  I ordered these prints a while ago and still haven't gotten around to framing them.   I haven't been able to find out if they're still available in her shop (Her shop is closed until May 1.)  They're printed on quality paper and fit standard frames.

I have always admired the octopus plates from Anthropologie.  When I got my 15% off birthday coupon I used it to buy a set of them.  Here's one of them in front of my clam shell.  The back is just as cute as the front.  The tentacles curl around the plate and grasp the back side.

I also wanted to share some Pinterest octopus inspiration.

Via

Via

Octopus Wall Hook Via

Thomas Paul Alpaca Baby Throw Via

Via

Via

Via

Bar Towel Via

 
So, is it the owl? Or the octopus?

Have I convinced you to check out some Cephalopods?

Kathy

I Love Z Gallerie

Over the years I've found many wonderful items at Z Gallerie.  I like items that are sea-life related and they never disappoint.  One of my favorite finds is this faux coral that currently is on my mantel.

They now are offering it in indigo  and  turquoise as well as ivory.

Last week I was checking out their new stuff and found this porcelain octopus.

He will be a perfect centerpiece when I use my Home Goods plates.

I can't wait for the warmer weather so I can uncover my screened porch furniture.  I think the place for him when he's not prettying up my table will be on my factory cart.

 He ties in so well with my Thomas Paul sea life pillows too.

So who's ready for Spring and lounging on the porch?