Thrifty Finds // 2

Another thrifty post already?!

Recently I've picked up these four vintage paint-by-numbers at some vintage stores. The dogs were $2.00 each and the windmills and Venice were $7.50 each. I especially love the the information on the back:

They're in great shape except that they're very dirty. I tried the bread cleaning technique from the Brick House, but I they still have a layer of grime that I need to find another way to remove. You can really tell how gunky they are on the sky in the first two paintings. Ew, sick!!

So I'm working on that. Also, I'm kicking myself for passing up on a pair of other paint-by-numbers a couple months ago, because I've had a paint by numbers collection wall on my mind for a while. You just never know when you're going to find one for cheap, but they're out there. So far with only four paintings, I don't have much of a collection going yet, but here are some inspiration photos of what I'm going for:

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That's a lot of paint-by-numbers!

Even with only four, I'm ready to hang them in my bedroom, but I'm wondering this-mine come in pairs, so how do you hang a gallery wall with things that come in pairs? Should I hang the partners together, or split them up to make the whole thing the right shape?

These are the big life questions, here. Any thoughts?

5 Brilliant Uses for Washi Tape

Have you used Washi tape yet? It's really interesting stuff. You can order it online, but I just grabbed a couple of rolls at Hobby Lobby. It's paper tape, and it comes in all kinds of colors and patterns. And it has a million uses that I might actually do! So for fun, I rounded up five of my favorite uses I've seen for Washi tape. These are so easy-perfect for the lazy DIYer, like myself.

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1. Hang pictures.

I've seen this idea all over the place and I think it is quite brilliant. First of all, picture frames are crazy expensive, and second, Washi tape is kind of like painter's tape-it peels off your pictures pretty easily when you're done. Plus, for people like me, who are scared to commit to color, this is a way to add some color to a room without investing too much money or energy. My kind of decorating!

Oh, and that second picture, oh my. You know how I'm crazy about black walls. House on the market or not, that may be happening soon.

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2. Make twist ties.

This might get my vote for most brilliant. I'm not sure what I need to make attractive twist ties for, maybe to give my bread package a face lift? Maybe I could make little gift baggies for my students at the beginning of the school year. Whatever, this is such a cool idea.

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3. Fake some wallpaper.

This is Elsie Larson's beautiful doorway from A Beautiful Mess. I've seen several photos of whole walls done in Washi tape stripes, but that seems like an unrealistic amount of work. But this little arching doorway is brilliant and it wouldn't be a measuring/leveling nightmare. 

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4. Add cupcake flags.

I'm not the kind of person who usually shows up to potluck events with great looking food. I usually buy something premade, just for everyone else's sake. But cupcakes are something even I can handle, and this would be an easy way to make my pathetic cupcakes look "Pinterest-y" and cute!

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5. Keep track of drinks at a party with straw flags.

My husband's family is growing at an alarming rate which makes get-togethers more fun (when I don't have to bring food) except that keeping track of everyone's drinks can be challenging. If someone remembers to bring a Sharpie we can write on our red solo cups, but adding flags with each person's name is such an easy way to get fancy. (I saw those striped straws at Hobby Lobby recently, too!)

I'm so happy to see that Washi tape can mean some easy DIY stuff for us regular people. Pinterest can be really hard on my self-esteem sometimes, when it gives the impression that others out there are doing incredibly cute/stylish things and I can't keep up. But I think the trick is just to choose easy projects like this that just make it look like you've got it together when you roll into the party with your little cupcake flags. Brilliant!

Thrifty Finds // 1

It's been quiet around here, no? That's because I've been devoting all my energy lately to that other room in my life, my classroom. The first day of school is Tuesday, and I have been working to get everything ready. I love it, but it hasn't left me much time in the last two weeks to obsess over home decor the usual amount. Bummer!

But don't worry! There has been some room-related action over here. I was driving home yesterday and I happened to glance over at a house a few blocks away from mine. I live in the "hood-storic" district, meaning the up-and-coming part of what used to be the scary side of town. So sometimes people leave lots of junk on their porches...that's what I'm getting at. And sitting with some random junk, there was a chair I recognized...the Wassily chair! Yep, a reproduction Wassily actually (originals were fully welded with no visible end caps or bolts), and it was beautiful. 

Looking back, it was kind of stupid to ask if it was for sale. I keep stuff on my porch to sit on that's not for sale. But it didn't look like it was part of the decor...not sure why I thought that. Anyway, I managed to get Rand to walk the few blocks from our house, knock on their door, and ask. At first, the guy at the door said it wasn't for sale, but he joked that it was a strange looking chair, and I blurted out "It's the coolest thing I've ever seen!" And suddenly, the guy says "Take it." 

Yeah, seriously. He said it wasn't that important to him, and if we cared enough to knock on his door and ask about it, we could just have it. His words. So we picked it up and carried it home!!

I'm so excited about this chair! Some of the straps are in rough shape, but I remembered reading over at Our Mid Century about how they took the chair apart and rearranged the straps to hide the rough spots. I think I'll be able to hide most of the wear that way. 

Sitting time! What do you think?