Trash tales: grey chair found but left there

Grunge Queen has been feeling a tad under the weather lately, and this grey chair spied in the trash the other day is not only a perfect embodiment of her mood of late, but very possibly an apt symbol for this very grey Monday afternoon we're experiencing in Toronto the good.

I would never dream of being critical of other peoples' decor choices - perhaps this was a very comfortable and beloved chair for someone, much like the much-maligned chair Fraser's Dad loved in the well-known sitcom, Frazer. But this one is definitely not my style. It's so big, it must have taken up half the living room. Still, I can appreciate that nod to good design in the curved underbelly of the chair. Maybe if the whole design was scaled down a little bit, and the poufiness deflated a bit, the chair would have been worthy of a GQ haul. As it is I left it there. Happy Monday to all you fellow garbage pickers out there!

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Grunge Queen in Toronto Star Weekend Living today!

I love Rita Zekas from the Toronto Star newspaper - she writes a quirky shopping column (like moi) called Store Gazing (makes sense; she was the Star's former entertainment writer) and another fab decor column called DecoRita.

I pitched Rita on a fun concept: Men don't bring me flowers; they bring me trash!

Check out the link below for Rita's visit to the apartment of yours truly (and no, my cat's name is not Bag - it's Dag, though come to think of it, Bag is kinda cute ... I suppose the name would make a certain amount of sense given my trashy tendencies and shopping!), and thanks to Rita for a really fun afternoon:


http://www.yourhome.ca/homes/article/727121

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Sun on desk

If I were a true blue photographer, I wouldn't be a storm chaser: I'd be a sun chaser.

After a media photo shoot in my pad (SO excited - will link to article when it comes out this weekend!), I caught the sun sliding across my desk, as you see here.

I had to catch it quickly, though, as it was moving fast.

I love my desk area now, by the way.

I took a dining room table from the trash and covered it with dollar store wall paper by Ralph Lauren.

The lamps are thrift, and the spanky new phone is my recent thrift score. The desk chair was found in the trash, as was the chair to the left of the desk.

The green Toronto Harbour prints were found at Value Village for a few bucks each.




The blue head vase by the white lamp was one of my very first trades - I saw it in a junk store window when I was a starving student and traded a bunch of my jewellery with the owners - they were happy as they gave the bling to their daughter, and I was thrilled to have my first head vase.

See the finial on the top of the blue lamp? It's actually a tortoise shell drawer pull from an old vanity.

And before I knew it, the sun was gone ....

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Magic window

My Moroccan hanging lamp (see yesterday's post) has me thinking of this pretty hanging ball I received as a gift recently.

I finally strung it up in my window the other day, substituting ugly fish wire for a bright bow another gift came wrapped in.
Looks pretty magical doesn't it?

I've tried to make this little nook cozy and magical looking at the same time.

I've tied back the Value Village curtains with a ribbon, and put the flower boxes from the balcony (dug out of the trash by my ex) on the window sill. So far the lavender is doing ok but it's so hot in this apartment I have to water diligently to ensure the other herbs don't dry up.

I hung up a blue glass ball I bought for myself on sale years ago beside the other ball.




And if you look closely you can see the tiny yellow crystal I bought a year or so ago (then stuffed in my closet and forgot about it until I unearthed it with joy the other day during a closet clean put).

You're supposed to put it in the south-western most corner of your living space to promote harmony. So that's where it is.

Hope it'll help those plants survive.

Meanwhile I've got my trusty purple water bottle - which just happens to match the sheers, go figure! - on the ready to spritz that lavender away.

I just love plants in the window like this. Not sure what I'll do when the winter comes and the windows get cold - will the plants be ok, do you think?

As you may have guessed I'm new to the plant thing.

My Hibiscus, also hauled in recently from the balcony, is turning yellow. Think it could be experiencing culture shock in this warm and non-humid space.

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Could have been so beautiful ... in my apartment

Sorry for the late post today; Grunge Queen is feeling sick today.

She was feeling pretty ill yesterday too, when she saw this Oriental lacquer and wood screen on the way to doing a couple shopping columns.

I've always wanted a screen like this. It's not perfect, but you must know by know that I think imperfection has its benefits.

I tried to pick it up but it's solid wood underneath and was just too heavy for me, alas.

I see a lot of great things in the trash while on my travels - most temptingly close to my apartment. Much of the stuff I leave there as I'm on my way to do something and invariably running late. Other times the item in question - normally a solid piece of wood furniture - isn't something I can pick up and carry on my own.

I hope it found a good home. If it's still there on my way to work tomorrow I may have to hatch a plan!

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Outside comes in

This is how part of my apartment looks from my balcony.

Kinda cozy, yes?

I admit it: I love looking in front living room windows while walking along the street at dusk - not to see people but rather to look at their decor!

But it would seem kinda creepy if one of my apartment neighbors was looking across the way into my pad ... unless of course they happened to be editors of decor mags!

Yesterday's post in which I showed some worn chairs my Mom found in the trash and decorated her patio with has inspired me to bring in my balcony chairs - it's getting colder and the wicker and rattan will get damaged in the rain and snow that will inevitably come, alas....

Outside, these chairs took on a Shabby Chic look, with flowery pillows and such. Inside, though, that frilly dilly look won't go with my decor. Here I created a little nook with empty picture frames and a suede multi-coloured pillow. Cozy wozy.

The faded striped pillow was found used at Goodwill for a couple bucks and the blue wicker chair was from the trash.

With this rattan chair, found at the Sally Ann for $10, all it took was tossing a faux fur rug over top - a look I've seen in decor mags on chrome chairs. The effect is cozy with a modern twist.

I finished off the look with a plush brown pillow found at Value Village for a couple bucks.

Who says you have to store outdoor summer furniture?

For a peep at my balcony with these chairs in the summer, and other outdoor decorating projects, head here.

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Proud of my Mommy

When I was at home on my vacation I snapped some pics on my parents' back deck before the frost would drive the plants in forever - or until the Spring at least.

My Mom has done this cute thing with potted plants and old chairs she's found in the trash along the side of the road.

This little guy is your average white outdoor chair, except it's a mini chair for a kiddie.

Check out this wee one.

It's wood and worn and has a definite Shabby Chic look to it.

And it looks just fine sitting next to those cheap faux wrought iron dollar store plant holders, thank you very much.













As I was about to go in the house I spotted this regular size chair, again distressed with time, at the side of the house.

Didn't get a chance to ask Mom what she had planned for it, but I bet I'll find out in the Spring.

Will she let it linger outside all Winter, I wonder?

No matter: Mom, you do this trash picker proud!

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Plucked from the trash

Ok, I have a problem with velvet and chairs.

I was walking home the other day and saw these gorgeous green velvet bucket chairs across the street. They were even made in Canada!

Reader, you already know I have too many chairs, and too many velvet ones at that. So I didn't even turn the chair over to see what kind of shape it was in ....

But I did nab one of the cushions, just to keep my hand in, you understand.

I plopped it on the seat of this faux bamboo chair (found, come to think of it, by the same apartment building trash), whose seat was falling out. The velvet cushion keeps the chair intact now and looks better than the 1970s caning across the original seat.

Needless to say, the kitties are loving it - here's Dinky hanging out on it.

Meanwhile those chairs are still across the street, being rained on, wah. Should I have brought one home even if I had no space and a few too many velvet pieces in green and blue?

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Reader inspired by grunge queen

I feel like a proud mother.

My pal and colleague Cathy P is an avid follower of this blog, for which I am flattered and grateful.

But she's never plucked a gem from the trash before.

That changed yesterday when she spied a suite of dining room chairs - which she needed - by the dumpster across the way. The office there looks as though it's being renovated, so they're clearing stuff out.

Cathy tells me she thought of me and then recruited the gaggle of people she was outside with to help her haul them into our office.

Here's the dumpster in question.

It looks innocent enough doesn't it?

Cathy's chairs are in great condition - wood with upholstery on the seat that she can live with. She plans on recovering them one day.

Way to go Cath, I love your trashing ways, you go girl!!

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Great garbage find

I was wondering what I would post on the blog today as I was walking home yesterday afternoon, when 'lo and behold, I saw this funky lampshade on the curb.

It was attached to a base that looked like a robot - the industrial look was carried a wee bit too far - but I couldn't walk away without the shade ... isn't it just fab?

As you can see it's made of mesh rings and has little sprongy things hanging from the bottom - truly a grungy glam lampshade that's perfect for the Grunge Queen!


See how neat it looks lit up and how it casts teeny honeycombs on the wall?

I put it on a modern lamp base that I found in my closet - if you check out my numerous lamp posts you'll see I play around with shades and bases - and no doubt I'll play with it some more before I find the perfect arrangement for the moment.

For now I've put it in the kitchen along with a small Persian-y rug so the look is bohemian industrial for now.




This is only the beginning - think I feel a kitchen makeover coming on!

A tip on garbage picking: you have to have no shame, and looking purposeful and somewhat in-your-own world can make you look like some eccentric designer type who's going to get your big break by digging "x" out of the trash.

I picked this in full view of a family sitting on their porch. They watched me; I watched them; then I watched the lamp; then I decided, what the heck - it's too fabulous! - so I took the plunge and started rooting!

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Romance & trash: my balcony project

Romance and trash? Definitely a doable combo.

Two things for my current patio project were given to me by men I've dated/am dating.

An ex gave me the silver hanging box planters - yes, he found them in the trash!

I plan on putting herbs in them. I know, it IS a little late in the season but I'm a novice balcony gardener, ok?







See, I even have the pebbles in the bottom, ready to go!

Mmm, come to think of it I got the pebbles from the business of the man I'm dating now.

And to be honest, he bought me my flowers and herbs, the sweetie.

After I told him I needed a tiny wrought iron table or some such thing for my patio project, 'lo and behold he found me this brass marble-topped table that was left behind.

Isn't it just perfect?

Romance and trash: it works. My legs are jelly, really!

Let's see if I can get him to drill holes in the concrete for my sheer curtains ... Grunge Queen isn't so handy....

Then I can make him dinner as thanks - and serve it on my new balcony!!

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Patio project proceeds - slowly!

Perhaps its the less than seasonable temperatures, or maybe it's because it's been crazy busy, but my thrifty patio project is moving along at a snail's pace.

But with the purchase of some herbs and flowers yesterday, I was able to spruce up the balcony a bit.

I found this huge planter - that looks like it's been broken and glued together several times! - on the curb. It now houses my new Hibiscus, which I'm told is super easy to care for.




The other pots, both signed Italy on the bottom, were found for a few bucks each at thrift and consignment shops.

Tomorrow I'll show you what the men in my life, past and present, have contributed to the project. Yes fellow grungers, thrift and romance can coexist!

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Trash couch re-do

This is my couch re-do, my Barrymore loveseat found in the dumpster, slipcovered by Lisa Buckland and her crew at Potato Skins in Toronto!

Note: any scrunchy bits you see are the fault of the couch's owner, not the slipcover Gods at Potato Skins.


The fabric is a suede-like microfibre that wears well and doesn't pick up as much kitty hair - it also makes it more difficult for the little critters to scratch. I love the deep blue.




This is how it used to look before, with a shapeless velvety cover I bought from some department store over it.

You can see how scrunchy-bunchy it was.

And the cat hair - don't get me started.

Slipcovers can look just like reupholstered pieces, especially if you get the uber custom kind that zip on. My kind is the less expensive version where they measure the couch and make a piece of fabric that you drape and fold and then pin into place. I even had the cushion covered!



Speaking of cushions, don't you just love the gold lame circular pin-cushion pillow I picked up at the Sally Ann Thrift Store for $1.99?

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Sparkly drawer pulls inspire

I've been obsessed with sparkly glass drawer pulls for a long time now - what better way to jazz up a beat up curbside find? - but haven't been willing to pay the $18 EACH I've been seeing them for in stores.

A troll in the Beaches the other day unearthed a new shop with a whole counter of pulls - for way less coin than I've ever seen them!

In Nesters (2207 Queen St. East, 416-698-2207) I found these blue acrylic pulls for less than $3 each! There are also glass and ceramic ones for good prices.

Needless to say I bought a wack to add a bit of bling to this dark dresser - you can see the difference here.

The old faux tortoise shell pulls are lovely, but don't really do much for this dresser, you'll agree.

I ended up buying two too many just for the heck of it - I have a lot of dressers - and just before beddie-bye last night discovered a cool alternative use for these drawer pulls.

Can you guess? Check out some of my older posts, where I switch up lampshades and lampshade hardware to create entirely new looks!










You guessed it: a lamp finial! Doesn't it look like a little jewel on the top of my lamp? I love the way it's all illuminated.

The purple shade helps - I tried the drawer pull on a lamp with an off-white shade and it doesn't look as special.

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Easy chair makeover

Let's be honest: I'm not crafty or handy in any way. In fact my best ideas about how to fix up junk entail little physical prowess or handiwork.

But I'm drawn to retro chairs like a bee to nectar, and plain and simple, I can't help but collect 'em if their bones are good and the price is right (ie: free at the side of the road or a few dollars at a garage sale).



I found this retro chrome chair on the sidewalk. All I did to spunk it up was buy some new foam, cover the seat in a textured fabric and add a silk cushion to make the yellow pop.

This was a few years ago so I'm ready for another change. The boho bonanza gal in me would want to redo the seat cover in a rich jewel tones and a patterned fabric - something that would foil the streamlined modern lines of the chrome.

I snagged this rather skanky chair (don't want to speculate on the stain) at a garage sale a few years ago for five bucks.

My solution this time was easy peasy Shabby Chic: simply cover it in a tablecloth from the dollar store and tie the tablecloth with a long chiffon scarf.

I like how the polka dots and swirly pattern mix together - the look is spanky chic. The bonus is I tend to hoard nice fabric, tablecloths and such so I can change up the look - with one of my many scarves - as often as I want. Mmm I think I have a funkier look I could come up with - stay tuned!

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Work area makeover

I think I'm going through thrift shop withdrawal.

I'm trying to budget in preparation for my high school reunion at the end of the month, and it's rough, this not thrift shopping thing.

I still have some garage sale booty to show you but wanted to finish the big reveal re: my most recent makeover.

The TV used to be where the chair (found in the trash) with the red pillow now is.




I hated that the TV was the focal point of my living room and wanted to tuck it away, which you see I have in the far corner.

I also tried to streamline the decor a bit as I find I naturally want to pare down a bit in the summer - which makes total sense as we do it with our clothing.

I kinda like the way it all turned out. My work desk area is normally so junky clunky, so I got rid of all the papers on the desk and relegated them to the coffee table I placed by the entrance hallway, which is under the retro painting and flanked by the green lampshade lamp and teak hutch.

That table is my toss table when I come home, and it's where I'll throw all my papers and bric-a-brac collected throughout the day. Once every week or so I go through it and recycle, toss or store its contents.

I've tried to keep the teak hutch you see on the back wall (bought 15 years ago for $80 at a thrift shop in Ottawa) fairly streamlined. The top shelf features a piece of green pottery purchased at an artisan shop in Ottawa during my university days (yes even in my starving student days I shopped). The painting next to it is by my very talented twin sis (see her work at www.gadzala.com); the bowl my garage sale buddy Matthew bought me at a garage sale; and the paper vases - which I'll give you a better view of soon - are by Filipino designer Tes Pasola.

The metal shopping bins under the teak coffee table to the right I found - where else? - on the sidewalk outside my apartment.

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Chair from the trash

Remember my garage sale booty (two posts below and I still have more to show you!)? On my way home that day I found this fab faux bamboo chair in the trash - fully functional!

I believe in trashing Karma: if you want something in home decor, it will eventually come to you in the form of garbage.

It's a big chair, maybe a dining room one, that I would have used at my desk if it weren't so large. For now it's tucked in a cozy corner by my dining room table.




I plopped a cusion on it I found at Value Vilage for $1.99 - it has an old tag on it that says "The General Store on Mount Pleasant Ltd Toronto" - a shop that I can't find a reference to so it must be long gone ....

I bought the coverlet that's on the seat that day too. After the garage sale I strolled around an area in Toronto called The Junction and previewed some of the photography exhibits for the Contact photography show premiering that night.







The Junction is a haven for semi-junky and architectural salvage shops. Mark Taaffe's relatively new store, on Dundas St. West near Keele, houses all kinds of quirky items this deal diva could just eat up.

I walked away with this shawl, something Mark called a great example of Victorian Industrial prowess, if memory serves. He told me it came in a box marked "great-grandmother's shawl" and was apparently bought in a London market in the early 1900s.

I love it, eventhough it's worn and is stitched up in places ... but that adds to the charm for me. It's wool and large enough to function as a table cloth, duvet coverlet or even a wall hanging. Mark let me have it for a song.

More on Junction shops soon.

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Curbside chic

I feel like Oscar the Grouch from Sesame Street: I love Trash!

Now that's Spring's here it's time to start trolling the streets for nifty furniture finds. Students are out of school any day so there could be even more stuff on the street this time of year.

I found this white leather chair on my street. The springs are wonky and the seat has sort of collapsed - something that could be fixed if I had the cash and the inclination - but I picked it up anyway as the rest of the bones were good.



I simply built up the seat by piling a couple old blankets. In the winter I had a white faux fur rug over the seat concealing the blankets but now that it's warmer a swath of silk material is less wintery weighty - it also pops nicer against the white.

The orange silk cushion picks up the orange in the material and adds an exotic look.

Tossing material over trash finds is an easy peasy, non-handy way to deal with a slightly ramshackle piece of furniture.

This teak veneer coffee table was a bit worn on top when I found it years ago, and now it's even more worn.
The objects I had on its surface looked rather hodge-podgey until I threw a black velvet handmade scarf (found at the thrift shop for a couple bucks) over the table top.

Now the items pop against the black, and the black balances the lacquer mirror and lamp base.

Voila: instant curbside chic.

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