Vintage Vanity Makeover

I recently found a vanity in a store that was going out of business.  It was in pieces.  I knew that was not going to be a problem since my husband, who is the furniture restorer in our household, would take it apart anyway to secure and redo it. 

The mirrors were off and the shelf in the middle was very insecure.  I debated either restoring it back to a stain or painting it.  I thought about painting it a bright color or in pastels.  Trying to imagine how it could be used, I finally said "It has to be white with some rubbed off edges to show it had some wear over time".

                           One of the reasons I loved this piece of furniture is the fact that it had
                                              folded mirrors that looked like angel wings.

Also, the back of the mirror said 1929 which was probably the year it was manufactured.

 

We had to replace the hinges with new ones but was able to keep the original one on top.

I can only imagine what a lady would hide away in this cute box......

........gloves, trinkets, love notes ???........

 

After much debate, we decided to paint the original knobs instead of replacing them with reproduction or other vintage knobs.   See the detail on the outside legs.  Love that added touch.

 I was happy with the way this makeover turned out.  How about you?

This vanity is for sale in my "Victorian At Heart" space #4749  at

Mill Creek Antique Mall,  Bakersfield, CA

Have fun finding treasures !

A French Style Gift of Love

One of the greatest loves is having friends that know you well and still love you.  I am so blessed with several.  It also helps if they are extremely creative.  I have a special friend, her name is Sandra who I call Sandi.  She amazes me with her creativeness and thoughtfulness.  She has made me countless items and I cherish them all.  The other day she brought me two gifts that she made for me and I immediately had to redecorate my table in my entry.

This beautiful Paris graphic design print had to be surrounded by an ornate frame. 

 This silver frame gave it the presence in the vignette that it needed.

The glow of the lamp sets the mood.   

I don't have blue love birds, so I used my red ones.  

Of course, red roses had to be included.

Sandi made this red velvet book marker....ooh la la. 

I love red velvet and I draped it on the nesting doves so you could see the whole ribbon.  

 

 It may later go for its intended purpose as a book marker.

One end of the ribbon has the French word "amour" which says love and romance.

The pair of red heels are appropriate since I love shoes and especially red ones.

She knows this girl loves bling so this end has three charms.

Typewriters have the perfect place to display cherished items so

I included vintage ruffled gloves, millinery feathers, and a red rose.

You always need that "Touch of the Past".

 

 This vignette was grouped with a vintage typewriter, old Carter's ink bottle and 

silhouette of a beautiful lady pinning a love letter I'm sure.

This "Love" sign says it all.

This is the best time to add a touch of romance to your home decor.

Mill Creek Antique Mall

I wanted to Welcome you to 2013 by 

inviting you to my new space at 

Mill Creek Antique Mall

805  19th Street

Bakersfield, CA 93301
661-324-1900

http://www.millcreekantiquemall.com/

 

You will find me (Vendor #4749)
 in the back of the mall up the stairs
 and to your right in the far corner.

If you get a chance, stop by for a visit.   
If you are interested in anything you see in the photos,
 please contact me and I will be happy
 to give you better photos and descriptions 
and ship it to you.

A Valentine Soiree

Unfortunately about a month ago, I had the flu but the day I was recouping from my suffering time the Valentine issue of the Romantic Homes magazine arrived in the mail, so I had to rest and read my magazine from cover to cover. Under the shopkeeping section, there is an article called "A Romance with France" which was about a French inspired antique shop in San Diego California called Vignettes . They announced their Valentine soiree theme "Queen for a Day".  Since my friend, Sally, and I have enjoyed shopping there in the past, I asked if she would be interested in a Valentine soiree..... of course the answer was ....yes!  We began researching the possibility of attending this soiree and found out that Queen Marie Antoinette would be the inspiration for the soiree.  This is a queen who wore her finest ballgowns to stroll amongst her gardens and said “The least I can do for my gardens is to dress in my finest, for after all, look how they have dressed up in their finest for me”. Also,   Meryl Schoenbaum, Executive Editor of Romantic Homes Magazine   would be the guest for the day and autograph Romantic Home magazines.

Since I was still recouping from the flu, I downloaded from Netflix the movie "Marie Antionette" to recall the story.  In my opinion, the story wasn't  that great but the fashions, grounds, and furnishings were lovely.  If you would like to see some photos go to Sony pictures, Marie Antoinette.

As time went on, life started to get in the way of us attending the soiree but around 9 pm the night before the lavish party was to take place, we decided to make the trip.  It is around a 3-hour drive.  So the next morning around 6 am we were on our way to a royal-inspired road trip.  Following is what greeted us.

 I'm trying to wait patiently for the door to open so Sally took a picture of me and......

 I took a picture of her.

Since my husband knows how I love to shop, he gave me an early Valentine gift of extra spending cash for the trip.  Following I will show you what I came home with.

The first item that caught my eye was this French Boudoir Sweetheart chair.

 

See the red velvet cover buttons and the detailed wood.

 

The sweetheart chair found its new home next to my Victorian gown.

Ooh La La 

 

This Valentine's Day painted sign was perfect to put in my entry vignette.

I purchased a few other items that I didn't take pictures of 

such as a book titled "Cupid's Understudy" and 

some very cute Valentine tags.

 

Wishing you a very special Valentine's Day

Christmas Flight and a Wonderful Life

 

I have a dress form that greets guests as they enter my house so

I thought it would be fun to dress her up for the holidays.

I saw angel wings for costumes so 

that was my inspiration.

 Burlap Luxe happens to be one of my favorite blogs

so I purchased this "Merry Christmas" sign from her Etsy store.

 This angel with her vintage black lace apron

is ready to whip up some Christmas goodies.

Also, there is a musical vintage dress form at the entry to our living area and

she got her wings, too......Did you hear the bell ring?

After talking about angels getting their wings.....

I have to go watch the classic movie "It's a Wonderful Life"

"It's a Wonderful Life" is a 1946 Hollywood Christmas drama film produced and directed by Frank Capra and based on the short story "The Greatest Gift" written by Philip Van Doren Stern.

The film stars James Stewart as George Bailey, a man whose imminent suicide on Christmas Eve brings about the intervention of his guardian angel, Clarence Odbody (Henry Travers). Clarence shows George all the lives he has touched and the contributions he has made to his community. 

 

It is a lesson for us all to learn to touch a life 

during this Christmas Season.

Have a Wonderful Life 

Merry Christmas

Romancing your Home

In the previous post, I mentioned that the pink and black was inspiring me to create a vignette.  Well, I didn't have to look too far to see I already had a vignette with those colors.

 All I had to do was turn the corner in my living room to find some pink and black.

 We can take a closer look.

While on a shopping adventure in a vintage store, I found this print.  Actually, after I posted my shopping adventure, Suzanne mentioned in a comment that "this was wrapping paper" and I thought "I think I have seen that print before" so I looked in my stash under my bed and guess what I found.  I had this print all along.  That confirmed I must really like this map of  Paris.  I have read "Paris is the most romantic city".  I don't know about that but maybe some day I can check it out.

When I showed this print to Mr. VH he wasn't impressed.  He said the frame was not good so he set out to put it under glass and square-up the frame.  He, also, painted it black for me. 

The metamorphosis was complete.

If you want to Romance your home....Inspiration is found everywhere you turn.

From the same shopping adventure, I came home with this black Underwood typewriter.  The unique part that made my heart beat faster was the fact that it had a "pink" key.

If you take a closer look, the key on the top right is "pink".  It is on a teeter-totter mechanism with a black key.  It seems these keys were used to change the colors on the ribbon because it shifts the ribbon up and down.  I guess I'm really aging myself because I remember typing on machines that did that.  

If you would like to check out the post of this fun shopping adventure click here on Rock-a-Billy Adventure.

More romantic detailing with this pair of pink birds.  

Notice the author's name on book....Byrd.

I don't know if you noticed, but the photos in this picture frame change.

There are so many fun ideas for decorating your home.

 I just love watching my three grandsons have fun.

Set the mood by

Romancing your Home

Be inspired by visiting  these following links I've joined:

Show and Tell Friday at My Romantic Home 

Junkin' Finds Friday at Al a Carte

Inspiration Friday at At the Picket Fence

Pink Saturday at How Sweet the Sound

Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch