Wednesday, June 5, 2013

New Storage : :

One afternoon during the long Memorial Day weekend, we spent some time together moving things around in my sewing room and did some major organizing of all our art supplies. Since we moved here in November,  my sewing room has worked great as a shared craft space for the kids, but soon with the the four of us together each day, it was time to do some shuffling around. I have a few more things yet to figure out and then I plan to share what we've done!

The amount of colored pencils we've acquired alone since we moved is pretty astounding, but I don't worry -- with my crew, they'll be useful!

colored pencils

I had things looking pretty tidy, and then as usual, just as soon as everything was nice and neat the kids got everything out again! This happens in your house too, I assume?

Later that day I stopped in at our local thrift shop to pick up these beautiful, large wooden spools I had left behind on my last visit. Perfect for quilt binding, right?!

vintage spools

While I was there I spotted this piece right away! It had just come into the shop and was something I was looking for, for years!! It had a great price and my friend who owns the shop was willing to give me an even better deal. But still, it was a lot of money to spend on a random Sunday, after telling Kevin that I was running to the store and then the thrift shop to pick up a few $3 spools.

This piece was just brought into my local thrift shop! I've been looking for something like this for years. The owner is my friend and will take $350 -- good deal??

I'm excited to share, that with the encouragement of my Instagram friends and a husband who understands that I would be kicking myself, and him, forever if I had passed on it -- I brought it home! And, I love it!!

Kevin even cleaned it all up for me, he's the best!!

and just when I thought I couldn't love him anymore... #love #him #forever

Can you tell how huge it is? It's really, really big!

Thrifted Utility Cabinet

Since, I swapped out the knobs with these pretty, white porcelain knobs from the 20's, and filled each of the label areas with a bright, fabric/washi tape tag.

white porcelain knobs

fabric tape

making tags

I'm so happy with it, it's such a special piece! Each of the drawers is made with extra large dovetails and it's got such a great handmade look. I think it's a good fit here!

Storage Chest

new storage

I'm curious, are you all interested in thrifting and collecting, as well? I bet that's another thing most of us have in common! If so, I might just have to share more of my finds here throughout the Summer! Feel free to share your own favorite pieces for storage, I love seeing creative uses for thrift finds! How about collections, do you have any??  I love chatting about this stuff just as much as I love chatting about sewing!!

And, if you would like to listen to me do that for a few minutes, I was a guest this past Monday on the American Patchwork & Quilting Radio Show with Pat Sloan. I was really nervous, but it was a lot of fun! I'd love for you to listen if you get the chance!   Maureen

68 comments:

  1. Absolutely gorgeous! My husband also is understanding and helpful when it comes to my projects. Good thing, as I have a few in mind about now.

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  2. Sewing is my hobby but thrifting is my passion! I can't seem to pass up a thrift store. And, very jealous of your find. It's just what I've been looking for!
    My collections are: fabric (or anything textile), older pottery (Metlox is my favorite) and old photographs.

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  3. I love your vision, but I do have to admit I am not an antiquer. My hubby is a woodworker and can make the styles of the antiques in new wood and I guess that is why. He has made me so many pieces of furniture and copied the styles new in oak. but I do love your vision Maureen and know that is something you love to do.

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    1. I do love it, but what a great hobby for your husband to have! I bet your house is beautiful!!

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  4. I only have room now to recycle fabric. The chair your son is sitting in is just like the set I have!
    Sandy

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    1. This set came with our house, actually, we love it, but I have a set that belonged to my great grandparents. It really needs refinished and I hope to get that done this Summer or in the Fall. I just love old furniture!!

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  5. Luckily, both my Mr. and myself love thrifting/collecting! Our boys are getting in on the act too! I like to think of the history in a piece, the hands that handled and loved an item and how that item affected them.

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  6. Love the piece, what a lucky find! Those spools are great too, so perfect for binding like you mentioned. Can't wait to see more!

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  7. Oh wow, that is a gorgeous piece. So nice of hubby to clean it up for you! I love thrifting. I collect milk glass (real or imitation, I don't care) so I always have my eye out for interesting pieces (since I have about a million and one bud vases already). I would love to find some great furniture, but at this time, our house is a little small for the types of pieces I tend to find.

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    1. I only have eight pieces of milk glass right now, but that's one of the things I'm going to keep an eye out for this Summer. I've probably only paid around a $1 on average for each piece, and they look so pretty clustered together. I have them displayed on a wooden tray, on top of a cabinet my husband's Dad made, and I plan to use them for buds once the flowers start to really bloom!

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  8. I LOVE to thrift! There is nothing quite as wonderful as getting a good deal on a real "find". I am kind of a crafty chameleon... What I do depends on my mood or what I have on hand. For a long time, I created handmade greeting cards. Then, I got into quilting and lately I've been dabbling in some refinishing of furniture. In general, I'm all about things that let me CREATE! :) If it makes my home a prettier place or lets people that I love feel special, it's even better. (I don't collect anything in particular, but I am a BIG fan of the retro styles when it comes to furniture.)

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    1. I think thrifting is super creative! Whether I'm looking at a piece and trying to think of how I can make it work in our house or what it might need to make it better. I love it, too! Where do you live? I think we're pretty lucky here in Pa. Even here in my little town, the owners of the local thrift shop do such a great job at bringing in new things in all the time!

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  9. Such a find! I've been on the lookout for something similar with no luck. This post helps me stay motivated. Thanks for sharing!

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  10. HELLO! WHAT A BEAUTIFUL FIND!
    THANKS FOR SHARING!

    msstitcher1948@yahoo.com

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  11. I *LOVE* antiquing! My most treasured antique is an Eastlake china cabinet my husband and bought shortly after we married 16 years ago. We saved for so long LOL. If you ever have a chance to visit Mt.Dora, Florida they have an antique fair in the fall and in the spring that would make you go nuts. It's called Renniger's. Hills an Hills of booths and tables. It takes me about 5-6 hours to go through all of it!

    I love your find and hubby should get brownie points for the TLC of your new find :)

    Cindy

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  12. I am drooling over your new cabinet.. Yes I thrift shop, antique sale, estate sale, curbside, shop all the time.
    My sewing room consists of an old, huge, drafting table (used as my cutting table) 2 pie safes and a 50's wooden desk/credenza set for hidden fabric storage. Then throw in old wooden boxes, old wooden bobbins, etc. Yep I am right there with you.

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  13. Love love love the cabinet. To think of all the quilty/sewey things that could be stored in it!! I too have a lot of colored pencils, crayons, markers, etc. The art and office supply stores love me - I can't resist when they put out a rainbow display.

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  14. Oh man, total jealousy going on here. I love that piece and I love the little tags you added to it. I love to find fun things like this.

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  15. Oh, I so want drawers like that! I love second hand shops, I often look for leather jackets and skirts to make bags and accessories. We don't have much in the way of second hand furniture shops round here though.

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  16. Oh my goodness I would love to have that thrift find of yours.. I could fill all those little drawers in no time at all. Great find!

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  17. Oh my goodness I would love to have that thrift find of yours.. I could fill all those little drawers in no time at all. Great find!

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  18. I love it! I have been wanting something just like that for forever! Maybe someday I will find one for myself!

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  19. What a beautiful piece! And it will be so useful. My stuff is (mostly) stored in a strange metal cabinet I acquired from friends when I helped them move. It seems like an old library piece or something -- not as much character as those lovely drawers though! I'm hoping for a card catalog type cabinet some day...

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  20. What a FANTASTIC find!! 30 drawers!! And I love your white knobs.

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  21. I would KILL for one of those. Well, not REALLY, but I have wanted a multi-drawer cabinet for AGES. Of course, I don't know where I would put it...but I WOULD find a place! Congrats on your WONDERFUL find! I just LOVE scouting out the local thrift store and would love to hear all about your SCORES!

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  22. Amen! Thrifting goes with sewing because they are both about seeing the possibility in pieces.

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  23. what a wonderful find, and what a sweet hubby to clean it up for you so quickly!! And I love the change in the knobs and the washi tape tags! What a lovely fix-up! And I 'm going to go listen to you: I'm sure it will be a fun interview to hear! Have a wonderful day! Hugs, H in Healdsburg

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  24. Wow, what a treasure! I'm envious, you are so lucky! Yes, I love to thrift and collect, scrounge and get things out of skips. There's nothing like a great find. We still have a coffee table that I found on the pavement and carried home on one shoulder while pushing the pram with the other hand.

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  25. What a find! I've been wanting one of those cabinets for years!

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  26. I've been a collector for most of my life & it's getting very evident in our home. Nothing I enjoy more than digging around in a second hand store or antique shop ( well maybe quilting). I love old things & drag things home that my husband helps me turn into something special.
    I'm so happy for you to have found something you can repurpose into such a gem. It makes it even more special that your husband helped you bring out the magic. You will enjoy it for many years.

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    1. Having him help me out so much with it definitely makes it more special! He doesn't think he has a vision for things when we go out to the shops, but once we get the things we find back home, he does a great job. I appreciate him so much!!

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  27. I'm so glad you got it!!! It's a gorgeous piece. I love thrifting and collecting. We're just starting out, but the possibilities are endless. Beauticul work!

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  28. That piece is so perfect in every single way I can think of, and if you hadn't bought it, I would have kicked you! And I don't even know you or live near you!! ;-) Your tags and knobs are a definite improvement. Congrats!

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    1. Thanks Terry! Oh my gosh, I would have driven my husband crazy if I would have passed and someone else scooped it up! I was a little worried at first that I changed the knobs out too quickly, but the white just brightened it up so much, it was a good choice!

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  29. Oh my gosh so beautiful! I love handmade and DIY! Your vision is inspiring :)
    https://www.etsy.com/shop/prettygirlmariagirl

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  30. Beautiful Maureen! What a great piece!! I am feeling that need to hit up the antique stores myself..thrifing..what have you. I love that combination of old and new. It definitely gives a better flavor to a home. And what fabulous labels!

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    1. Thanks Angela!! I totally agree, it makes it feel very homey and relaxed in here. I just have to be careful, the number of thrifted/antique pieces are started to out number the new, and I don't want it to look too second-hand in here either. I think there's a balance I have to find! :)

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  31. Hi Maureen,
    Our friend Larry and his wife Cheryl have the same thing in there office/study.. But It is from Pottery Barn... Beautiful!!! I love that!
    They have a med/dark glossy finish on it...... Beautiful Piece with endless possibilities...

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  32. Oh that totally happens in my house. Except I'm the only kid in this house ;o)

    Loving the new toy!

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  33. Yes, feel free to share thrifting/collecting finds here. I'm interested! I love your new unit. P.S. My husband always cleans up my things too. I think he knows I might never do it. I do love him for it.

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  34. Oh my goodness that is absolutely fabulous!! I love love love that! I wish so much i had space in our home for something like that, I've always wanted a many many drawer chest :) I love thrifting and such, I have a fave barn sale that happens every month around here that I always come home with some fabulous treasures from, but I haven't been in a while...probably better that way...save money, right! :) nice score!

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  35. What a an amazeing find....I would love to own something like that ; if I was every lucky enough to find one...Allways wanted one like that too. For my sewing room or front entry way.

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  36. Love the cabinet! I love thrifting and antiquing! Always find stuff when i'm not looking for anything specific! Found some great vintage linens on the way to the airport from Camp Stitchalot that I hope to make into totes and pillows.

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    1. I've found some really great unfinished quilts and there's a small part of me knows that they would be so cool to chop up and use for smaller things, but I just can't do it! I need to start looking for vintage blocks or linens like you mentioned!

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  37. This is really cool Maureen. I love how you two fixed it up.

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  38. Congrats on those wonderful finds! I have found a lot of little drawer cubbies, but still waiting for the perfect large one. I guess I will have to wait and see if you ever get tired of yours (NOT!) and put it in 'your' yard sale! :-)
    I'm a re-thrift-consign-yard-sale magnet! But I've been much better lately about not being so impulsive.
    BTW, how was Penny's first Memorial Day! Need some updated photos pleeeeeze!

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    1. The cubbies are so huge in this piece that they are almost as big as the crates I've been collecting, I love it! I feel lucky to have it!

      Are you on Instagram? I share Penny pretty much daily over there, but now I wish I would have worked her into my post for you! She's doing great!!

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  40. What an awesome find! Lucky you! I love a good thrift store. I buy tshirts to make tshirt quilts, and I collect McCoy pottery, flower frogs, vintage sheets, any pretty vase, people's old dishes, embroidered pillowcases. Lots of fun stuff.

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  41. Oh, my gosh. What a find you made! Love the new chest of drawers. Yes, we want to hear more about your thrifting!

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  44. I think you made a great purchase. I cannot wait to see how your studio turned out. I have a few pieces that I have refurbished in my sewing studio. I love them there. That is my "getaway" place. My refuge - even if I just look at it and don't do anything - it fills my soul with satisfaction.

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  45. Wow - what a wonderful find! I'm glad it came home with you.

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  46. You lucky one in every case! :)

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  47. Such a beautiful vintage piece of furniture! It was a right decision to get it, it looks great with your renovation!

    Hugs,
    Tatyana

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  49. The white buttons were a great change. Love the labels. Adorable storage!

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  50. Amazing! Lucky you, it's a fabulous piece! I too am drawn to anything resale, rummage sale, tag sale or tossed at the side of the road. I just picked up a huge cabinet on the side of the road being tossed. It was perfect and in a great painted color. Good thing I have a big enough car for those kinds of finds. It's amazing how much strength you can muster up to load a monster piece in your car by yourself ;c) I collect pyrex (I should list some on ebay/etsy I have so much!) vintage tablecloths or any eclectic items I can repurpose. I rarely use something found for it's original use. It's fun to marry two pieces into one item with a whole new purpose. We bought a load of barn boards and my husband will regularly go to that pile and make something like our fireplace mantel, a shelf for my sewing room for my clear glass cookie jars that I store my scraps in. So much fun! Keep up the great work I truly look forward to your posts everyday!

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  51. That is an awesome find!

    My best tag sale item was an actual DMC thread cabinet with 3 pull out clear drawers. It was obviously a store model for selling cross stitching thread.

    $5!

    Husband did comment that he did not understand why I would want it. :-)

    Christie

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  52. SCORE!! That's a find, alright.

    I have a small collection of pyrex but I decided to limit myself to orange and blue pieces only or it could easily have gotten out of control. :-)

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  53. What a find! I can't wait to see your new arrangement for your studio. I have many collections including teapots and tea cups and antique/vintage pewter. You absolutely should share your finds with us!

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  54. wwhitney@mhcable.comJune 7, 2013 at 8:57 AM

    love the cabinet, if I saw it I would have gotten it for sure. Lots of organized storage.

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  55. Wow! just wow. I would love to have a great piece like that. Yeah for you. I do love thrifting but don't do it much. I need to call my local quilty friend and get back at that.

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  56. I have to comment that the storage cabinet did not look attractive to me at first. However, after you had the knobs changed to the white porcelain ones, it instantly changes to something so appealing. I think the white really stands out against the vintage finish of the cabinet. There are so many drawers, so did all the porcelain knobs cost you a bomb? And I think the white shade fabric/washi tape tag really complements the knobs as well, and also your entire knitting/sewing concept of the entire room. It is good that you have such a supportive husband to help you with the physical labor needed to settle the storage cabinet down. Glad that you found the one true perfect masterpiece unexpectedly during your random visit to your friend's store.

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