Tag Archives: vintage

August Good Score!

Good Score! is a monthly feature here at Red House West highlighting our readers’ secondhand finds. If you scored a great bargain at a thrift store, found a treasure on the side of the road, or discovered a one-of-a-kind gem at a yard sale, we’d love to hear about it! Please send a picture and a brief description of what, where and how much to redhousewest@gmail.com -OR- use the hashtag #rhwgoodscore on Instagram and the last Friday of each month we’ll share a few highlights. To see previous Good Scores, click here.

We are giddy about the good scores that came in this month–it was like our collective birthday whenever we got a new one!  Let’s get started.

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From Nikole:

I scored a set of 4 (!!!) teak dining chairs on Craigslist Fairbanks. If you’ve ever perused Craigslist in Fairbanks (or, I’m guessing, most anywhere in Alaska), you can appreciate my overwhelming delight at this find. I got all 4 chairs for $50. FIFTY DOLLARS! Ah. Mazing.

I only needed two chairs, but I gladly took all 4 home. I washed them down with some Murphy’s Oil Soap and then gave them a good coat of Feed-n-Wax. The wood was in pretty nice shape, so I didn’t need to use any Restor-a-Finish. I resisted my initial temptation to try and stain them a bit darker . . . I kind of love the natural beauty of the teak and figured it’s always easier to go darker later rather than try to reverse the process.

Teak.Chair.1

The fabric on the chairs was not hideous, but not really my speed . . . plus, it was covered in plastic. I know that’s practical and all, but . . . just, no. I tore the fabric and plastic coating off of each seat and – miracle of miracles – discovered that the batting underneath was like new! I’m willing to admit that this was probably because of the plastic covering that I had given the stink eye and that I may regret this decision later.

I found a lovely fabric at JoAnn’s and, after washing, ironing, and Scotchguard-ing, I reupholstered the chairs. VOILA. They are fabulous and comfortable and I am totes in love.

Teak.Chair.4

From Pippin:

I bought a small beautiful Mexican rug from a garage sale for $15. The previous owner bought it in Mexico, and had intentions to make a pillow out of it, but never got around to completing the project. She was nice enough to throw in the fabric for free! The pillow took less than an hour to make.

As you can seen from the photos, my dog Jake was quite fond of the rug. This project turned out fantastic!

PS The chair in the photo I bought years ago for $20 and simply covered it with fabric I had laying around the house.

Pippin Good Score

 

From Cara:

I was driving down a busy street and saw this with a “FREE” sign attached to it, so naturally I had to slam on the brakes to see what it was. The owner happened to be outside of his house, and when I asked if he was sure he wanted to get rid of it he said to just take it. Music to my ears!

Cara GS

 

From Grace:

This white & blue planter isn’t my usual style, but I know gorgeous when I see it, and as I was on a mission to find pots for all my house plants I had to get it. Definitely worth it for $2.99 from St. Vinnies, and I love that with enough different patterns and colors of pots they all seem to match somehow. The last picture is a fantastic tin I found at Goodwill, also only $1.99, and another piece that isn’t my usual style, but brings so much to my plant area. I love the detail, colors, and antique quality. European made, and one of my new favorite pieces to show off!

Grace GS pic

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Amazing stuff, right?  And how awesome are the bonus DIYs from Nikole and Pippin (and Pippin, keep that Jake of yours locked up tight–we’re smitten and might just dognap him!).  And extra points to Cara and Grace for finding treasures for free or close to free!  Way to go and thanks again to everyone who sent in their Good Scores!  Have a terrific weekend and check back in on Monday for a new collaborative post.  And don’t forget to send your good scores!

June Good Score!

Good Score! is a monthly feature here at Red House West highlighting our readers’ secondhand finds.  If you scored a great bargain at a thrift store, found a treasure on the side of the road, or discovered a one-of-a-kind gem at a yard sale, we’d love to hear about it! Please send a picture and a brief description of what, where and how much to redhousewest@gmail.com -OR- use the hashtag #rhwgoodscore on Instagram and the last Friday of each month we’ll share a few highlights. To see previous Good Scores, click here.
Thanks so much to the folks who sent in Good Scores this month!  We love seeing what you’re finding and we love sharing them.  Please send us more.  MOAR!  And now for the fun part!

A bounty from Elisa:

First, I got some plant pots which makes me very happy because we have no yard and have to pot all our plant dreams.  I always have pot sticker shock so I was happy to find some for $2 each!  My favorite may be the small blue and white pot that looks like I plucked it off a Dutch or Turkish person’s ancient windowsill, but I also scored a yellow and brown, and multi-color.

Thrifted Pots
Second, I got a really fun carved wooden coat rack thingy.  It is imported from Indonesia from David Smith and Co. and has my current favorite color- turquoise.  It also has peacocks, so … you know, that is something new. Plus, magically it exactly fits in the tiny entryway space we have even though I totally forgot to measure it before buying.  Hooray!  $20, but well worth it for a little fun.
Peacock coat rack
Finally, for $5 I got a small carved and and shell-inlaid wooden table (plant stand?  Not sure what its function is meant to be or will end up).  I am a major carved wood and inlay enthusiast- but I actually don’t have almost any of it because it is always too expensive and impractical.  But cheap and impractical and I am in!
Screen shot 2014-06-26 at 8.28.06 PM
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From Brandi:
From the thrift store.  I love the shape of this small dish and I now search for this designer, Ben Seibel, whenever I encounter dishes.
Ben SeibelBottom of dish
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Thanks again to those who sent in their good scores and thanks to everyone for reading along.  Have a great weekend, and check back in on Monday for an update on Katie’s dining room!

Good Score and the Giveaway Winner!

Good Score! is a monthly feature here at Red House West highlighting our readers’ secondhand finds. If you scored a great bargain at a thrift store, found a treasure on the side of the road, or discovered a one-of-a-kind gem at a yard sale, we’d love to hear about it! Please send a picture and a brief description of what, where and how much to redhousewest@gmail.com -OR- use the hashtag #rhwgoodscore on Instagram and the last Friday of each month we’ll share a few highlights. To see previous Good Scores, click here.

You might notice from the paragraph above that we’re changing Good Score from a weekly feature to a monthly feature.  We love Good Score, and we’re not getting rid of it, but we realized we don’t yet have the readership to generate enough material to share each week (but we certainly hope to have enough to share each month!  Don’t be shy, send ’em in!).  This blog of ours is definitely a journey, and all of you are here as we take our first steps and try new things–figuring out what works for Red House West and what needs to be tweaked.  So far we’re loving every minute of creating and writing this blog and are so grateful for the feedback, contributions, and community that all of you provide.  Thank you!

Now on to the good stuff.  The winner of this month’s giveaway is Carol Sayre Miller (fitting, as she’s the self-described ‘bird freak’ in this week’s Good Score). Thanks so much for sharing your wonderful finds with us.  Your bird cards will be winging their way to you soon!

Mera Matthews Block Prints

We’ve got some terrific Good Scores to share this week; thanks so much to everyone who sent them in.

Anyone who knows me, knows that I am a bit of a bird “freak” so naturally I collect bird figurines but try to keep it under control by only going with glass. And, they have to be inexpensive. Otherwise, I would be living with entirely too many…

The sparrow, with head down, is Lalique, France. A very good score at $2.99. The swooping swallow is marked “Cofrac, Art Verrier, France,” also a good score some years ago. The smallest bird is not marked but is beautifully made.

I recently bought the plate, for $1.99.  It is Sasaki from the “Wings” pattern.

Help me, I can’t stop…

–Carol S.M.

Bird glass all three

bird glass 1

bird glass 2

bird glass 3

bird plate

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Vintage (according to Google photos and eBay info, from the 1950s) coffee pot and tea kettle purchased from an estate sale, when we first moved to Washington. They cost a dollar each from a bargain table, and they’ve been in the garden for nearly nine years, withstanding all sorts of rain and temperature changes with no rust or broken plastic from freezing and thawing. I keep them near hose bibs to use when dragging the hose is too much trouble, and a new plant or a bird bath need water. I love their generous capacity and iconic shapes, redolent of campfires and wood-burning Aga Stoves.

–Katy

garden coffee pot_tea kettle

I was shopping at a thrift store in St Helens for a wedding present for some friends. I bought these wonderful little bar glasses and once I got them home I knew that I couldn’t part with them. My favorite drink to make in them is Chocolate Cake Shots.

–Brandi

Brandi bar glasses

Thanks everybody!  Have a great weekend, and we hope to see you back at Red House West on Monday!