Antitote to greyness

It's been nothing but grey skies in Toronto this January.

I've been stuffing clementines in my face - for the energy, for the vitamins, for the pop of colour.

Walking by my fave thrift shop window the other day, I spotted this torquoise pedestal bowl in the window - a bowl in which my clementines are now nestling.

The bottom revealed a "Made in Japan" stamp, and a $3.99 pricetag.

I've always wanted a bowl with a pedestal, and pottery and glass pieces Made in Japan always appeal to me for some reason - I think its their simplicity of design.

Natch I bagged the bowl. I love the contrasting jolts of colour, and the way the bowl pops against the black tablecloth. It helps ease the grey feelings.

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One Year Anniversary: decor then & now

My blog turns a year tomorrow, and I'd like to thank all you lovely readers for reading along, commenting or emailing me privately, or linking back to me - you make my day when I do!

Here's a pic of my living room Jan 18 last year. It's wide and open, and now that I look at it it does look cluttered, with all the stuff on the wall.

This is my NEW living room, the result of an agonizingly creative day-long apartment re-do after the holidays.

True, I essentially chopped the room in half by positioning the two love seats facing eachother, but I'm really liking the cozy vibe of the smaller space I created.

I also pared down some of the accessories to keep the look more streamlined.

I think style constantly evolves, and I'd like to think my design and decorating sense has refined itself this past year. It's been fun fun fun to play with my space!

Thanks for reading. Have a fab day!

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Entry way re-do

My New Year's apartment makeover coverage continues ....

I've had this ratty old bookshelf since I was in my 20s, and I've carted it into every apartment I've ever had as it carries my overflow of books. It was a faded yellow when I first picked it up at some long ago garage sale; then I painted it a grotesque emerald green (hey I was in my 20s). It's been white for years now.

I decided to move it to my entry way area and use it as a bookshelf and accessories holder - one, to be different, and two, it made sense as I wanted something narrow in that space that I would not bump into or stub my toe on.

I threw an electric pink scarf over top as a runner (that I've also had since my 20s) and went to work.

On the lower shelves, I've stored scarves, a few vintage purses, and some boots (the latter from the thrift store - ooh I have a fabulous boot post coming soon!), along with some old books on dancing that I've hung onto since my dancing days in my 20s.

And do you see that green peacock fabric on the left-hand side of the third shelf from the bottom? Part of a skirt I've had since I was 15 - the skirt has long since fallen apart but I love the fabric so much I am going to get someone to make me a pillow.

I tried to make the top both practical and whimsical, like those "entry way makeovers" you see in the decor mags.

I love the glam little lamp I dug up at Goodwill for $4.99. I plopped a shade on it that I had around the house.

The clear glass ashtray (used here as a change holder) and paperweight were a few dollars each at thrift shops, and the brass bowl which holds my sunglasses was $3.99 at a thrift shop.

The painting, a work of folk art by well-known Nova Scotia folk artist Leo Naugler, is called "Skiing" and I love it. I bought it from a Toronto dealer for a good price.

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What in the world is it?

I love it when readers comment, send questions and otherwise interact with the Grunge Queen! Today I have a couple reader-related posts, both to do with silver!

The photos and the text below are courtesy of River-Rose, who has a wonderful "What in the world is it?" question re: a thrift find that I'm throwing out to all you savvy thrifters there!
Here it is:

Dear Grunge Queen,

I found this pretty piece at the local thrift store. It seems old and I just love the Acorn insignia at the top. "From small seeds do big trees grow", came to mind and thought it would make an interesting and lovely birthday present to my mother. My only question is- what in the world is it?

It has a wonderful design and separates in the center. The lower half has 4 oval openings.

The mystery deepens as I cannot find a similar image on the Internet. I have also taken the object to my county's museum and at the time they did not have a similar item, but guessed that is was, perhaps made in the 1920's and resembled an incense burner. There are no burn marks on the interior.

It was also taken to an antique shop and although the owner wasn't in at the time, a young employee guessed it is an ornate toothbrush holder. Finding this piece has been a fun experience! If anyone out there has any guesses, please let me know.

What a beautiful piece, River-Rose! I'm going with incense burner, but like your Mom I would use it as a pretty decoration.

Please post your response here if you want to guess what it is; you can also email River-Rose at snakeriver.rose@gmail.com.

Speaking of silver, my gal pal Sarah over at East End Pioneer dedicated yesterday's post to Grunge Queen, showing off her fab silver Value Village score and thanking yours truly for inspiring her in the thrift decor department!

Right on, Sarah, I love the silver and I love that Value Village too! Please check out Sarah's blog as she celebrates all the wonderful things in the community just east of Greektown - my 'hood too!

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Light my Fire

I'm not telling you how many lamps I have in my apartment. I love ambient lighting; it creates a wonderful mood.

This blue lantern was $4.99 at my local thrift store. For now it's sitting on my window sill and hangs out with my new blue sheer curtains, which I picked up at Fabricland in the discount bin.

These wicker lampshades are lined in satin and in fab condition. They were $5 for the pair, again at Stretch Thrift.

Again, I'm loving the symmetrical lamp look. It just adds a touch of class.

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Retro hutch redo

Part of my apartment re-do entailed jazzing up my teak hutch, which I love but quite frankly has never suited my style. I tend to like more curvy lines and though they tell you to mix styles, I'm not sure this piece mixes well with my other furniture.

My strategy: don't fight the modern lines.


In other words I decorated the hutch with retro modern objects, then added a dash of glam. Grouping similar items together (like the retro coloured glass pieces and stacks of bright-hued decorating books) can create a real impact, especially when they pop against the black of the velvet scarf (thrifted) that I'm using here as a runner.

Add some spray-painted lamps with classy black and silver shades - placed in a symmetrical arrangement for maximum glam appeal - and toss in a thrifted gold mirror, and the look is retro modern chic with a touch of elegance.


Some of my fave pieces here: the flat green Venetian dish on top of the books, given to me by my best friend after she went to Venice; the green and gold decanter that she also gave me, which used to belong to her parents; the black sculpture thrifted for a few bucks; the retro orange blown glass vase with a 'made in Canada' sticker still on it, thrifted for $10.

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Elle Decor inspired makeover: dining table area

Ok, so we left off yesterday at my little library vignette, the first part of my full-on apartment makeover inspired by an ELLE DECOR magazine my sis gave me over the holidays.

I'm so glad I relocated the bookcase to a smaller wall, and this fab blue chair from the corner of my room. With the chair in front of the bookcase, the bookcase becomes less of a focal point (as it should be), and the chair just stands out in all its blue velvet splendor - and it especially pops against the reversible carpet, whose pattern is reversed on the other side (great 'cos I can flip it any ole time I need a change).

Directly in front of the blue chair in the dining room is my dining room table, as you see here. Yup, I finally relocated the dining room table to the dining room! Remember how proud of myself I was for relocating my love seat to the dining room? (see post here http://grunge-queen.blogspot.com/2009/03/boho-sitting-room-in-dining-room.html). Well, I decided to put it back for reasons of practicality AND glamour.

See, once I extended the table by flipping up the leaf, and once I added a black silky tablecloth and positioned two matching lamps on either side (any good recipe for glamour entails a pair of lamps in symmetry, in my opinion), the look was so impossibly chic - especially with my new painting that I'm still paying off overhead - that I couldn't stand it!

The more practical part of me said this: eating is a good thing, and a vital task I sometimes forget, so if I can create a lovely nook with a comfy chair where I can savour my cereal in the morning instead of choking it down while standing over the kitchen sink, perhaps that may make the task of fueling and energizing my body more ... hallowed?


And since my desk is taken up with my computer and a few lamps, I figured this long table could also function as a work space, where I go over clippings and books and bills and work on other creative projects that entail pen and paper (I'm a tactile gal, if you haven't guessed, so I actually hand write notes to myself and others). This gilt mirror, picked up at a junk store for $3.99, was quickly transformed into an inspiration board with some of my fave clippings, photos and cards from over the years. I can look over at it while I'm working and it'll hopefully fire my creative juices.

And natch, when I have guests over, the whole thing can transform into a proper dining room table. I've positioned my two wrought iron (and silver spray-painted chairs) on either end of the table for easy access ... and more symmetry.

More to come!

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New Year's apartment makeover

Happy New Year! Today's post will be extra long as I missed yesterday ....

I've started the new year off on a high decorating note by completely redoing my apartment.

Pictured here: the work in progress.

It all began with a copy of Elle Decor that my sis gave me as I was boarding the train back to T.O. after the holidays.

Elle Decor is my absolute FAVE decorating mag - it's eclectic yet elegant and that's exactly my decorating philosophy.

The mag inspired me so much that all I could do on the train ride home was brainstorm what I would do to my apartment to make it more elegant looking.

All I had was a general idea: less cluttered and junky looking; more elegant, but functional too.

It took 10 hours for me to do the re-org. Boy did I get a workout.

The key to any re-org is clearing away all the knic-knacs and bric-a-brac from furniture and dumping it in piles in a room or area that you're not going to re-do. That way you can work with a clean slate. In my case it was the desk area, the hallway and the kitchen.

I started by moving the cheap IKEA bookshelf from one corner of the apartment to a small wall.

I had to take out all the books and drag the bookshelf across the room - don't do this on your own, please, as you could end up under a heavy bookshelf!

Problem: I didn't have enough bookshelf for all my books as I wanted to turn one small bookshelf into something else (more on that later), and I had a lot of ugly paperbacks that don't really display well.



My original solution: turn my linen closet into a bookshelf and take the door off. The idea is wonderful, but it is problematic as I don't have a place to put all my linens.

So for now, the linen closet is a combo linen closet/bookshelf.

Once I can figure out where to put my linens I'd like to make the entire thing a bookshelf and just take the door off. I think it would look really funky.





Here's a makeover preview, of the bookshelf relocated to a smaller wall. I moved the blue velvet chair from the bedroom - it's such a showpiece and wasn't getting much attention there - and put it in front of the books to create a cozy reading nook.

The tiny retro glam lamp on the side table was $4.99 and found during a recent Goodwill dig; it is part of a set so I can pair the two together when I'm feeling symmetrical.

By the way, this is in my dining room area. I have so much more to show you, and I'm thrilled with my new glam look! Stay tuned this week!!

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Yesterday's steal: lamp & shade

So I ended up going into work to an empty office yesterday, forgetting it was a Stat holiday.

With nothing better to do, I left work and - what else? - shopped. On my way home, I found this festive red lampshade at my fave lamp and lighting store, Consumers Lighting, on Dufferin St. Then I popped into a Salvation Army Thrift Store on the way home, only to find it was 50 percent off day. I picked up a Ports vest for $1.50 and a sassy green Nygard trench coat for $3.50. I also found a pretty mauve Louben blazer for $3.50 that will be perfect for my Mom, and a pretty silk boho pillow for $1.50.

But this lamp, $12.99 regular price, was the keeper.

I had to fight to get it.

First I waited in line to get to the cash, only to be told it was final sale. When a lightbulb couldn't be found for me to test it, I found an employee in the back room who procured one, tested the lamp, then waited in the line all over again - only to be told the lamp wasn't part of the sale.

The cashier let me have it for 50 off in the end.

I just love it. What a statement piece. What texture. What a steal! The shade and base were made for eachother.

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Boho pillow, late Victorian fabric?

Here's THE pillow, purchased at Around the Block in Toronto (see yesterday's post) for a mere $30.

It's green velvet - not surprising considering my decor fetish for blue and green velvet.

Warren, the shop owner, told me the fabric was early century and that the owner has someone make it into a pillow. The pillow is huge, sturdy and firm and has these lovely tassles that have been sewn all around it - so boho pretty.

Something like this would have been BIG bucks new at a decor or custom design shop. I've seen handmade pillows for over a hundred bucks!

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Top 10 Toronto Thrift Shops, Finale!

Ok fellow grungers, so these last two listings aren't thrift shops per se, but they're pretty fab place to pick up some thrifty-type finds, and I haven't really covered the midtown area in Toronto (there are a couple thrift shops here, like Sally Ann and Goodwill on St. Clair Ave. West, but since I've already covered those I'm not writing them up.). Here's 9 and 10:

Midtown:

9). Bead Goes On
256 Soudan Ave. (just off Mt. Pleasant Rd).
416-481-7622

This is one of the teeniest shops I've ever seen but every time I hit Mt. Pleasant I check it out. Owner Cyndi is a blast and her collection of vintage and retro handbags, jewellery and some clothing and accessories is to die for. You can find every style and era from Victorian to Art Deco, everything from vintage croc bags for a couple hundred bucks to Hermes scarves for $150. Natch, I eke out the inexpensive costume jewellery, like the Sarah Coventry ring pictured here, bagged for $15, or the 1970s carpet clutch also pictured here, about $40.

10). Around the Block
1903 Avenue Rd.,
416-546-1760
www.aroundtheblock.com

I hit Avenue Rd.north of Lawrence Ave. West every few months and always find something in this fab decor and accessory consignment shop - the prices have been around the block too! There's everything from original art to Persian carpets and dining room sets, and the bonus is the decorative accessories like vases and lamps are super well-priced. There's also some good costume jewellery with more expensive baubles under glass. You can see a full review I did as a shopping columnist if you go to their website ....

Recent finds: Uber worn Persian style runner rug, in rare blue tones, for $95 (pictured here: can you spot the kitty?). My cats can scratch away on it all they like! Just the other day I found a WONDERFUL boho Victorian pillow here ... that I'm saving to show you in tomorrow's post!

Night night!

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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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Top 10 Toronto Thrift Stores, part 4

I'm winding down my Top 10 Toronto Thrift Shops today and tomorrow. Lest you think I shop solely in the east end, the next two days I'm listing west end thrift shops and midtown consignment and retail shops with a thrifty edge ....

(Apologies btw, that the links to stores aren't working - Blogger seems to be showing everything in html coding when I create a post, including links --- help??).

My 7th and 8th picks:

7). Salvation Army Thrift Store
1219 Bloor Street
416-533-9553
http://thriftstore.ca

It's a smaller store by Sally Ann standards, but it rocks. There's not a ton of furniture but I've found great jewellery, brand new lampshades, and lots of wonderful clothing. The trick, of course, is going regularly. The Sally Ann, you may know, is an international Christian organization that provides social services to vulnerable people. The thrift stores rely on donations and proceeds from the store go back into funding SA programs. SA is 125 this year!

Best finds: Theory red cashmere ladies' sweater for $6.99 (brand new and still had Holt Renfrew tag on it read $299.00!!); Matt & Nat handbag in mint condition, $4.99; tons of great 1970s costume jewellery bling such as a beautiful mood ring with a patent number stamped on the back and another fab gold-tone ring (pictured up top), $3.99 each; and (pictured here) a Tara Jarmon Made in France blazer (dug up at the Parkdale store, a close second)for $4.99 that would retail for $500-600!!


8). Eldorado Second Hand Store
482 Roncesvalles Ave.,
416-531-7244

A Polish lady and her kitty preside in this second-hand shop, where you can pick up items for .50 cents to a buck. I've never found any designer pieces here but it's a good place to pick up basics. There's a back jean room where jeans are heaped into a big pile; I haven't had luck in that room but I keep hoping. I did find a MEXX rain jacket for a buck and a cool 1970s skirt for .50 cents. My absolute finito best find: a HUGE reversible wool are rug for $5 pictured here - a fiver, I kid you not!

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Top 10 Toronto Thrift Shops, part 3

Sorry I missed yesterday; here's part 3 of my Top 10 Toronto Thrift Shops, starting with number 5 ....

East/Central:

5). Value Village
2119 Danforth Avenue
416-698-0621
www.valuevillage.ca

It’s more expensive than Stretch Thrift or Sally Ann, but the selection is there and let’s put it this way: VV is a for-profit enterprise and it’s its job to get you good stuff. Still, I'd shop carefully ... Bongo Jeans can be close to $20 here where I’ve found them for $5.99 at other places.

Best deals: I always raid the jewellery cases as I’ve found some gorgeous retro and even vintage pins for a couple bucks – these tend to be underpriced compared to the sterling stuff (though the pin pictured above IS sterling and was bagged for a few bucks at VV). Often – and like many other thrift shops – the pricing gods at VV will underprice a well-made designer piece as they don’t know its value – meanwhile the mass market stuff is overpriced.

Best finds: 1970s boho velvet & paisley blazer, $7.99; scads of fab, mostly retro costume jewellery for $5-10 each; two Oriental style lamps for $24.99 each; Nine West booties in mint condition for about $14.99. Bonus: donate a substantial bag of stuff and you get 20 percent off.

6).Neat Things
1126 Queen St. East,
416-778-9453

This shop is jammed packed with furniture, decorative accessories, art, and other baubles. Leave the kids at home as there's too much bric-a-brac precariously balanced, and make sure you call first as owner Ellen's hours aren't always stringent. I love this place, though, and have spent good quality time rooting through everything. The prices are really reasonable, and there's no telling what you could find. My best finds: Liberty of London scarf - beautiful - for a couple bucks; retro Italian suede bag with red leather interior, for about a fiver if memory serves. P.S. There's a string of antique shops along this block with heaps of furniture and decorative accessories...

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Top 10 Toronto Thrift Shops, part 1

I've had some requests for my top 10 thrift shops in Toronto, so I'm starting with my absolute fave today and will be wrapping up by week's end. Here ya go!



Central/East



1). Stretch Thrift, 974 Pape Ave., 416-425-0024



I buy most of my wardrobe at this place, along with the majority of the art on my walls and some furniture too.The prices can’t be beat and rival Sally Ann: jeans starting at $4.99; jewellery for a buck or two; leather belts for a buck. The store relies on donations – and donates a portion of its profits to the East York General Hospital – so items are arriving on a constant basis. I go regularly and always find something. They know me now so when an item isn't priced I get a good deal.



Some of my best finds: blue suede Italian boots in great shape, $14.99; Theory blazer in perfect condition for $6.99; retro brown suede Alfredo Picchi bag handmade in Italy for a twoonie! Also found a German crystal lamp for $29.99 and a huge solid wood dining table for the same price. Oh, can’t forget the Bill Blass yellow 1980s swing coat, $14.99 and the green velvet and faux fur jacket made in Canada by Irving Posluns for the same price!



FORGIVE THE PICTURE! MY LATEST STRETCH THRIFT FIND, AN IRVING POSLUNS JACKET FOR $14.99!



Check out the Stretch Thrift label to the right to see the rest of my finds from this store.

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