At Home with Booth 58 - Issue 3

Before There Was Container Store....

Boxes and Baskets and Bowls...

  Instead of heading to the nearest Container Store, use a one-of-a-kind container to house an everyday object.

Mom uses this beautiful old trunk as her coffee table. (and notice the basket/tray on top that holds a few little pretties).  Inside she stores her Christmas Santa Claus collection.

Don't we all have those things that end up lying around and creating clutter if they don't have a "place" they belong? 

Mom's awesome bread box holds all the grandkids' sippy cups.  No one would even know!  I keep my kids' school papers in my old bread box.

  

 Without a cabinet to hide anything in my powder room, I used this box to hold the tp. A few guests have noticed that the box is an old prune crate and laughed... get it?
 

 

Another example of everyday items in unexpected objects.... My kids take lots of medications throughout the day...and prescription bottles aren't fun to look at - right?  Each time I reach for another dose of meds, this little stack of blue and white bowls make me smile.

Hmmm... What could be in Mom's flour box?  Not flour!  How about paper napkins???



My sis-in-law is the queen of organizing and she is great about making sure everything has a place where it belongs.  Mom and I try to channel her organizing abilities... but we still need lots of her help.... I always try and think, "What would Whitney do with this?"

 

Do you see the electric cords coming out of this cute picnic basket?  Along with lots of pills, my two youngest also have lots of respiratory treatments they do each day.  After tripping over cords and looking at not-so-cute-machines, I decided to hide them when we aren't using them.  They still are easy to get to, but much prettier!

On my coffee table - Pretty bowl from my blue collection for the not pretty collection of remotes

And this box....on top of my plantation desk. It is an old fish box from Seattle.  It used to be in my nautical themed playroom but it was replaced with something cooler (for another post!) At first glance, it might seem to just be decorative, but it does hold everyday items... the things that Little Mr. 58 throws down from the upstairs catwalk... right now it has collected several nerf bullets, a handful of green army guys, and a mini batman.... 


 Who needs Container Store?  Use an old box, basket, or bowl!  We've always have lots to choose from in Booth 58. 

 * Disclaimer.... We have nothing against Container Store..... We love it as much as the next girl!  

 

 

The "Stacks" are High

Mom and I spent some time in the booth last week moving things around... and bringing in some new treasures for you all..... 

Realized that one of our "fluffin'" techniques is stacks...



Stacks of books, boxes, dishes, starfish...what else???

Come up to ACM soon to see what stacks are waiting for you.

 

Also visit our Facebook Page to see lots more photos... And "Like" us while you are there!



Monday at the Mall

It's the third week of school... and we are getting into that routine finally.  It is hard to switch gears and fully embrace this new schedule.  But we are getting there...

 Monday at the Mall .... Some of the "routine" sights at Booth 58 today....

crank up the fan... it's still hot!  But we are waiting for fall any day now - right?

 silver and books and black and white photos

We found a great stash of ironstone pieces on our last junkin' trip... Come by to see what we dug up!

Happy Monday Yall!

Monday at the Mall

Anyone have one last road trip planned before school starts? 

Look at this common trend I found at Antique Company Mall .... Signs... lot and lots of them....

Happy Monday at the Mall!

The Key

 How do you get by with this vintage look that so many of us love?  What does it take to pull off a unique, one-of-a-kind feel to a room?  Do you ever worry, "Does this just look crazy?"  or "Will anyone 'get' this?"  What is the key to decorating well?

I have an old painters' ladder leaning against a wall in my living room.  My brother-in-law likes to tease me and ask "What are you doing with that ladder?" Anytime we have a party or family gathering, he talks someone into coming up to me and asking , "Hey, Elizabeth, I was wondering, what are you doing with that ladder?  Are you painting that wall or something?"  Ha ha!  We all get a good laugh out of it, but if I didn't know better, I would think he doesn't "get it" when it comes to my decorating style! 

From FunkyJunkInteriors.blogspot.com

I recently found this quote in Country Living Magazine from Sarah Gray Miller, Editor-in-chief...

"Confidence is Key.  Value shouldn't be determined by the sticker a shop owner puts on a given object, but by how much you like it.  Trust your taste, and you'll be free to fall for what you really love..."

Good advice, right?  The key to pulling off your unique one-of-a-kind style is to have confidence in what you are doing.  If you LOVE it, that means it is YOU.  And if it looks crazy, that is okay.  That means it will be a conversation starter!  And who doesn't love to be part of a great conversation?

Just Read

I'm taking the kids to the library to work on summer reading list.  It's always fun to snuggle up with a book.... not the laptop or Nook or iPad... Just a good ol' book with a cover and pages.

Our family favorite right now is "Pete the Cat"

Don't you love old books?  A bookcase full of them is wonderful too.  And beautiful books with colorful spines?  I even love books turned around so that you can't see the spines! 

Mom and I stack them and sit them in Booth 58 backwards a lot... Makes folks stop and ask "Did they mean to do that?"  Yep.... we like to make you stop and look twice!  We know it bugs some people.... 'cause they really just want to see what books we have to sell. But those yellowed page edges are just too pretty!

Happy Summer Reading!



This is a "cubby" piece that Mr. 58 made... perfect for books, shoes, toys, dishes, or other collections.



Constants - Part II

Constants... Part II -
The next "installment" of this season's series - "What are constant sellers in Booth 58?"

Boxes and crates and trunks of all kinds are another constant in Booth 58.

 Fun to see what we can do to make an old milk crate, wooden tote, bank box, travel trunk, cigar box, tool box, or ammunition crate into an interesting piece. 

Lots of stacking and creative contents inside!

 

 I'd love to ask our customers what all they've done with these boxes and crates.....

are they now housing toys in the playroom?
shoes in the back hall?
pencils on the desk?
magazines under the coffee table?
or money under your mattress?

Boxes, and Crates, and Trunks... Oh My!.... We'll keep 'em coming!



"Constants" - Season 2 - Part I

Last fall I did a blog series on our Booth 58 "Constants"- those items that you can usually find in our corner and usually are hot sellers.  "What are constant sellers in Booth 58?"

Chalkboards, empty white frames, and silver are still big sellers for us. Now that Booth 58 is larger, Mr. 58 brings more of his repurposed furniture. Most of our furniture is painted white.

Can't sell much of any other color or finish.... We try gray every now and then, or leave wood furniture with it's original stain, but many times we find ourselves taking it back out of the booth. If he puts a coat of white on it, and we sand to "shabby-fy" it... and it sells! Crazy, huh?

Inspiration

On Sunday, Mom and I strolled through some of the shops downtown while Hubby and Mr. 58 stayed outside with the kids. We treated ourselves to some "eye candy" in Gray Living, The Smitten Flea, and Bloom and loved every minute of it. Now that we are busy with Booth 58, we don't get to browse like we used to. 

I hope to take some inspiration from Gray Living's upstairs bedroom displays for my own bedroom.  That store is incredible.  Inspiration in every corner... and also enjoyed this article from Dallas Magazine.

The Smitten Flea had a great sparkling of seasonal cheer, along with Lady Butterbug's Annie Sloan chalk paint... another "to do" on my list - I'm planning on painting some furniture I inherited from my grandmother soon.  Still trying to decide on just the right look.  The Flea had samples of the finished products for all the colors.  Great to see in person.

And Bloom... A beautiful fashion portfollio. I have been following Kendi's blog for a while... fun to see what is "in" in the fashion world too... and she is just as cute as can be.  I love how Kendi mixes the old with the new. Thirfting is one of her favorite ways to find treasures for her personal clothing collections. I can kind of relate with her...kind of like "junkin" for our Booth 58 treasures!

Something to Sing About

 Tis the season to use sheet music!

We are covering the walls, trees, and anything else we can think of with it!  Mom found another stash of it at a recent estate sale, so we are making more plans to use it up. 

  How many ways can we add some tunes to our corner?

Shiny Pumpkins

I've noticed lots of pumpkins with "bling" lately.  We've added some to the booth:

Metallic Silver Punkins

Glittery Punkins

 Loved the glittered pumpkin selection at Curious Sofa Blog.

Also found Martha Stewart's How To online from a few years back.  These are super cute!

And this DIY on these sweet place card holders.