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Saturday, 9 January 2010

Entry way re-do

Posted on 06:51 by kumar
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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Posted in Emotional decorating, Furniture, Goodwill, Lamps, thrift shopping, Thrift store decorating | No comments

Friday, 8 January 2010

What in the world is it?

Posted on 05:48 by kumar
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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Posted in Reader help, Reader Questions, Thrift store decorating | No comments

Thursday, 7 January 2010

Light my Fire

Posted on 05:28 by kumar
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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Posted in Lamps, Lighting, Stretch Thrift, Thrift Shopping East Toronto, Thrift store decorating | No comments

Tuesday, 5 January 2010

Retro hutch redo

Posted on 05:53 by kumar
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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Posted in Books, Collections, Colour, decorating, Home, Lamps, Room Makeover, Thrift store decorating | No comments

Monday, 4 January 2010

Architectural Digest score

Posted on 03:52 by kumar
We interrupt regularly scheduled programming re: the apartment re-do to bring you this important thrift announcement:

Grunge Queen scored some more inspirational mags yesterday!

There must have been decades worth of Architectural Digest magazine at my local thrift shop.


I could hardly contain myself. I picked up this collector's edition containing pics of Greta Garbo's New York digs. Another had pics of Rita Hayworth's abdode, and Jimmy Stewart's too.

Goldmine.

I took home only five at .49 cents each (they were .99 cents each but the guy gave me a deal).

I also picked up a few from the late 1970s. The stack appeared to start there and go to present day.



Guess what I'm buying on my way home from work every night this week?
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Posted in Deals, Home, Room Makeover, Thrift, thrift shopping | No comments

Saturday, 2 January 2010

Elle Decor inspired makeover: dining table area

Posted on 07:21 by kumar
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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Posted in decorating, Nostalgia, Room Makeover, Thrift store decorating | No comments

Friday, 1 January 2010

New Year's apartment makeover

Posted on 06:50 by kumar
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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Posted in Lamps, Lighting, Room Makeover, Thrift store decorating, Walls | No comments
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  • ▼  2010 (19)
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      • Yes, fashion & the dollar store can be in same sen...
      • And the winner is ...
      • Antitote to greyness
      • 5 buck pick-me-up with G-Q reader pal
      • Raise a glass ... or two, or three
      • Audrey Hepburn from the 1960s
      • One Year Anniversary Giveaway!!!
      • Something old, something new
      • Thrifted Treasure Giveaway
      • New year, new look, new apartment?
      • One Year Anniversary: decor then & now
      • St. Lawrence costume jewellery find
      • Entry way re-do
      • What in the world is it?
      • Light my Fire
      • Retro hutch redo
      • Architectural Digest score
      • Elle Decor inspired makeover: dining table area
      • New Year's apartment makeover
  • ►  2009 (227)
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kumar
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