Thrift Store Art

When I go to a thrift store there are usually two sections I zone in on. One is the home décor section which includes everything from vintage ceramics and vases to brass and small objects.  The other is art.  I make my way around the whole store and look at everything but since things like furniture or lighting require a "need" more than a "want" I focus most of my attention on things I can actually take home that day!

When I go through the piles of art at a thrift store I'm on the look out for original art. I really love buying paintings signed by the artist and googling them when I get home later.  I also don't pay more than $25 for a piece - at least I haven't so far - overpaying for anything at a thrift store kinda takes the fun and "thriftiness" out of it for me so I try to stick with that rule no matter how much I love something.  I have written about a few pieces I have found - here, here and here and today thought I'd share my latest finds.



The parrot painting above was done on wood - the colors are so pretty and the details are amazing!
 I bought this piece for $6.

This is probably my favorite thrift store art find - ever! 
The colors are so saturated and the landscape is so realistic it's almost like you could jump right into it.
 I spent $8 on this piece and with the frame - it was almost my biggest thrift store art "steal" ever too!

I was so excited to find this huge sunflower painting.  It hangs in the basement playroom and brightens this little corner perfectly.  I paid $10 for this one!

This painting was creating using dots and smudges and I was just in awe of the time it must have taken to paint it.  I hung it in our front living room for awhile but decided to replace it with this weaving.  It's now for sale in my Etsy shop!

Well there you have it!  I will probably continue to collect thrift store art until I run out of wall space!

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Wish List Wednesday ~ Beach House Decor

Just dreaming about the summer, warm weather, and the beach with today's special items....all from Etsy!




Nautical Sea Shell bowl

Raggedy Ocean nautical illustration

Shell tureen and serving tray

Octopus poster

A brass sailboat

Crab watercolor


Now, maybe I can WISH the cold weather away!! ♥

 

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Powder Room Makeunder

Hi there!  Hope you had a lovely long weekend!  Ours has been extended by a couple of inches of snow and single digit temps.  Hoping it warms up a little so we can get outside and play!

Our tiny powder room off the kitchen has been the subject of two makeover attempts (here and here) that I knew were only temporary until I could decide what I really wanted to do with the room.  And  I think that time has finally arrived!  So today I present the powder room makeunder.  A little less stuff and a whole lot brighter!

I used  cloth napkins from Anthropologie as hand towels.

 

The first thing I had to deal with was the walls.  While I liked the gold dots I used before, the wall color was an off-white creamy color that just made the space seem dreary.  So I got to work painting the entire room (ceiling to floor boards) bright white.   I also repainted the vanity cabinets and spray painted all the fixtures (towel bar, toilet paper holder) bright white as well.

Once everything was painted I tried something I had wanted to do somewhere in house for a while - a Sharpie drawn wall.  All you need for this a Sharpie paint pen (I got my mine Micheal's for $4 and used two for this room) a yard stick or clear ruler and a little free time.  In hindsight I should have used a level too, to keep everything straighter, but I skipped that step I am fine with the wonkiness here and there!

A colorfully lined basket and mason jar is the perfect spot to keep the girls' toothbrushes.

 

I replaced the old glass knobs with these pretty hand painted ones from Anthropologie.  And got rid of the fabric that had been hanging under the sink with a woven piece I made using a dowel and lots of yarn of different thickness and color.  I like how it what is hidden under the sink but it more airy that just a piece of fabric.

I like how the yarn has unraveled a bit since hanging it.

A little vintage rag rug - in colors similar to the yarn - is cozy underfoot for the girls while they are washing hands or brushing teeth before school.

I wanted a bold piece of art on the wall above the toilet where I had shelves before.  So I looked for inspiration from some of my favorite abstract artists and whipped up the painting below.  I love how the shapes and colors look against the lines of the wall pattern.

My OhJoy for Target vase fits right in here!

Well there you have it!  So happy with how this little room turned out.  So much brighter than before.  And it feels a lot more like me!

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My First Weaving Attempt

Hello!   I mentioned a few weeks back that was really inspired by all the lovely weaving art that has been popping up everything - I mean her stuff is amazing!!  Anyway, after reading a few tutorials and skimming a pattern book or two I decided to the try it out for myself.  I just used materials I already had on-hand and made my own "loom" out of a piece of cardboard reinforced with painters tape. 

The end was result was so so but it was fun to try all the different techniques I had read about.  I'd love to try another larger version using different materials...but for now this little one is perfect for Hadley's (soon to be revealed) big girl room!

 

 

 

This is a great tutorial!!

 



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Thursday Thirft Store Finds

Hi there!  Every Thursday I get a little "me" time while both girls are in school for a few hours.  And on most of those kid-free days I do all the things that are easier to do solo, like going to the grocery store, post office or doctor appointments.  But there are those certain rare Thursdays when I don't have a ton of laundry to do and no errands to run that I can take my time and hit up a few thrift stores and look for treasures.

Two weeks ago I went to both ReStore and Goodwill and found a few lovely things that I thought I'd share with you today!

I recently started collecting pretty, vintage plates and immediately fell in love with butterfly lovelies.  I also have been hoarding bunnies of all shapes and sizes for Hadley's big girl room and of course if I find a piece of milk glass for less than a dollar it's coming home with me!!  The polar bear piece was handmade and signed on the bottom and too odd/cool to pass up and for only $3.98 a good deal to boot!

 

 

 

But my favorite find of the day was this original painting.  I was really drawn to the colors and shapes.  Since it was signed (by someone I couldn't find any info about) it was a little more than I would normally spend ($15) but it looks great in our family room so it was worth it.

 

But before it was wall-ready I needed to wipe it down thoroughly - years worth of dust/dirt were really dulling the paint.  I also removed the frame which was damaged.

 

Once the canvas was clean and nail and frame free I covered the edges with black and white striped washi tape.

 

 

I love how it brightens up this corner - aren't the colors spot on!?!?

 



 

 

 

 

 

Here's to hoping there are more thrifting Thursday in my future!

Happy Friday!!

xo!

Kendra

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Wishlist Wednesday - Serena & Lily's Art Collection

Hi there and happy Wednesday!!!  I am always on the hunt for pretty original art and on a recent visit to Serena and Lily I found a lot...here are a few of my favorites: )




Yellow Interrupted



Rising of the Setting Sun

Between the Lines in Green





Balancing Act

Lemon Print

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Showcasing A Very Special Collection

Hi!  I've recently been working on finishing up the stair gallery wall on the small space opposite the gallery wall I shared here.  I added a few photos and artwork but I also wanted to include something that would pay tribute to my beautiful Aunt Margie.

One of my favorite memories of spending time with my aunt was going through all of her jewelry.  She never pierced her ears so I was able to try on her clip-on earrings which instantly made me feel like a grown up!  Most of the jewelry she owned was costume jewelry - bright pieces with lots of beading and details without the expensive price tag.  And since I was lucky to inherit a few of those vintage pieces, I decided to make this special piece to add to our family's growing gallery wall.

I started with the earrings, hair accessories a shadow box frame.

Once I came up with a layout I liked, I used a hot glue to attach the jewelry to the back of the frame and that was it!

 I made sure to hang it in a spot that I would look at every time I went up and down the stairs.  It's a pretty daily reminder of a very special aunt.

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Feeling Artsy Part 3

Hi! So for my last "artsy" post (at least for awhile) I thought I'd share the little paint job I gave a few sticks from our backyard.  You might remember the lamp I made here, well I've been making some changes to the kids' library/living room (I'll post more on that later) and it was one of the first things to go.  But with a few of the sticks in a pile and my painting supplies out, I decided to try paining a few with different patterns.   I wasn't sure what I was going to do with them when I was finished (you can see what I did with branch I painted last year here) but they ended up looking great hot glued to a rectangular painter's canvas I had.  And now they are up on the wall - art!

 

 

You can see at least one BIG change in this room above!

xo!
Kendra Pin It

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Cute Easy "Art"

Hello!  I shared photos of our gallery wall last week and promised to show how I made the little neon pink, half moon piece.  It's so simple, it's hard to call it art but I did make it so we'll just go with it: )

Start with a pair of scissors, a set of those circle stickers/seals (you can find anywhere - office supply/grocery/Target) and a white canvas.

Cut the circles in half.

 Start attaching the half moons to your canvas end to end.

 

Go over the whole thing with a little white school glue - to keep those pesky edges from curling up.  Then flip it upside or keep it the way I have it above.  Hang!

Fun little project to add some brightness wherever it's needed!

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Feeling Artsy - Part Two

Last week I posted the painting I made for our house.  Well after that went up I got a few inquiries about making some for friends and family, which was both flattering and really exciting!  So I decided to try doing a few smaller paintings to sell in my Etsy shop...just to challenge myself a bit more, because putting myself out there isn't always comfortable for me.  So adding these paintings to my shop for everyone to see/judge is scary but empowering.

I'll see how it goes, but for now I'm proud of myself for taking the chance and, if nothing else, I'll have some new art for our house:)

I'm calling this series of  Candy Dissolve:

Happy Tuesday!!
xo!
Kendra Pin It

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A Coloful Gallery Wall

Hi there and happy Friday!!  Today's post is one of those projects I completed awhile ago, but just have taken forever to photograph and edit. 

The bare wall next to the stairs leading upstairs was begging for some color and a little bit of love - and after I was finished with it - it got both!  I added favorite photos and mementos, using thrift store frames, some colorblocked in pastels others in solid gold, blue and pink.  I also included some vintage finds from Scott's childhood that I fell in love with after a search of his parent's basement earlier this summer, as well as some of the girls artwork - of course!.

I used the same layout plan that my Mom used here to ensure the spacing was right and to make hanging easier - just a nail through the top of each piece of paper!

BEFORE

Once I was confident with the layout I whipped out the hammer got to work!

Lots to hang - not all made it! A little blurry - sorry: )

 

AFTER

The view going up.

And the view coming down.

My favorite photo of Scott, b/w of the girls, vintage watercolor from thrift shop, the cutest pair of little bird scissors (found in Scott's stuff) Layla's artwork, Hadley's baby belly, a vintage game piece and sun art made with leaves to represent each one of us.

Instagram of Layla, Hadley's paint pressed handprint, the girls' first shoe and a family of vintage dominoes (1.2.3.4). 

My cute feather princess Hadley, and mini cars from Scott's stuff - I flipped a small painter's canvas over and hot glued them into it!

Layla's paint pressed handprint, a vintage embroidery hoop and this portrait print, neon pink half moon "art" by yours truly - I will post the simple instructions for that next week!

My gorgeous Mom holding Hadley in the hospital and this piece of art (reminded me of Layla and Hadley).

 

A vintage clipboard serves as the frame for the pretty (and appropriate) print from here.
 

So happy every time I go up and down the stairs (about 100 times a day) to see all these special photos, memories and colors.  Love that I will be able to update and change out the pictures and other items as the girls get older and as I find new pretty things to showcase!

Have a lovely weekend!
xo!Kendra Pin It

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