2009 May | Real Life Beach Decor, Coastal Living & Nautical Decorating Ideas - A Beach Cottage

Vintage Treasure Hunting & A Beach Cottage Guest

4:26 pm Byabeachcottage

G'day sweet bloggers, I went treasure hunting yesterday but came back with not too much apart from this rustic old bench, which after a quick whitewash is looking kewl in the cottage.

So I thought I you might like a much more interesting treasure hunt story and so we have a guest at the Beach Cottage to woo you with her tales of seeking out old vintage specials…

I first met Laura at Shorehouse Chic, when I had just started logging my adventures with the run down old cottage by the sea… She surfed on in liking the sound of my blog and left me a comment…and then I won one of her giveaways…and then she laughed at my thrifting, then at my boom boom days and more at my writing…

Anyhoo, about a week ago, I was out in the yard of the cottage doing a spot of gardening when I thought of Laura, she hadn't been around for a while and I wondered what she was up to. When I logged on I saw that she had commented and not only had she commented but that same day she, all those many miles away, had thought of me, while standing at a yard sale and how much I would enjoy the pure boom boom of it all…the unadulterated thrifting pleasure.

So of course I emailed her, I just had to see what she had found and goodness I got the vintage treasure finding thrill just from the photos, not only did she score bigtime (including ENAMEL, hello!) but she got fed as well – so I asked her if she would mind sharing the story…

Normally the idea of going on a nice little holiday would be good news. Great, even! But when I found out blogger Susan from Black Eyed Susan�s Kitchen would be having a yard sale the day after I flew out of town, I was a little sad. Black Eyed Susan owned a store in her town of the same name, and much of what she was planning to have at the yard sale were the bits and bobs and antique and vintage goodness once housed there. Plus, I never �met� Susan � only through our blogs � so this seemed the perfect way to make the face-to-face intro.

here's some of what was on offer…

So imagine my delight (and I don�t used that word often, but I was indeed delighted!) when she invited me to a �post yard sale, yard sale� � my own private romp through the goodies that were left. And this past Friday, that�s where I went.

Susan welcomed me into her home for some delicious iced tea, fresh fruit salad and chit chat about �old times� � but on to the sale�

She let me sort through the boxes and bins of leftover goodies. And lest you think I was saddled with sloppy seconds, au contraire! Just LOOK at what I found:

I would have walked across an eight-lane highway during rush hour to get my hands on that picnic basket alone! It�s gorgeous, and has many of its original enamelware pieces inside. I can�t believe no one bought this (neither could Sue). I added a pair of teapots, (love!), a couple of vintage globes (LOVE!), a wooden knickknack shelf, a festive vintage fiesta-themed tablecloth (happy hour!), and some fabulous old cookbooks. That oversized �Picture Cook Book� is from 1958 and the photos inside screamed, �Take me home!�

If this was the leftovers, imagine what I missed out on?!

I was also gifted with a very generous �friends and family� price tag (a.k.a. the �please get this stuff out of my garage,� I�m sure, LOL!) of $25 US! Actually, she asked for $22 but there�s no way I was going to take change for what turned out to be a priceless day.

Thank you, Susan! And thank you Sarah, one of my thrifty heroines, for inviting me to chat about this boom-boom of a day over on your blog! I am honored to be here.

Moral of the story? Get out there and start hunting…put your green environmental head on, recycle, re-purpose, save yourself some cash, annoy your husband by gathering more vintage teapots and picnic baskets and most importantly get yourself a boom boom thrill for free!

And don't forget my giveaway a slice of book candy for your coffee table from Atlanta Bartlett – Easy Elegance. All you have to do is comment here, any post, however many times you like, all week

…and if you fancy having me add you lots more times for the giveaway and you wanna know the scoop on the Beach Cottage sign-up for the Beach Cottage unplugged – just add your email address to the box up there on the right and surf on in!

Thanks Laura, you rock! don't forget to scoot over to Laura's and leave a comment, she's having a giveaway too…

blogged for the thrift event at Southern Hospitality – Rhodas weekly round-up of wonders!

Filed Underjunking for the cottage, just a beach cottage life, thrifted finds for the cottage 56 Comments

Vintage Coffee Table Makeover + A New Giveaway

1:46 pm Byabeachcottage

G'day girls, I hope your weekend meant you could sit around with your feet up drinking tea. My Saturday certainly did not provide that, I was the beachside taxi driver from hell but yesterday with a beautiful day forecast we headed down the beach at about 11am, stumbled into a few friends and mooched on home at about three o'clock. Mr Beach Cottage and I thanked our lucky stars for our new life in the sun, by the sea and although things here are sooo far from perfect with lots of real life pressures, being able to take time out at the beach really really does re-charge.

So, anyway, this coffee table, I am almost embarassed to tell you I picked up for zero, yep that would be nothing. I spied it outside the back of an old junk shop that likes to call itself an antique junque shop, but we all know that really it's proper junk mixed in with a tad of antique. Don't ask me what I was doing around the back of this shop but it has to do with paint and children and walking.

This old table was kinda propped up and looking very forlorn and sorry for itself, BUT it was just what I had been looking for for a long time – I had been harbouring romantic notions of a bistro we once had morning coffee in right down in the south of France, a few years before we came out to Australia. The outside area consisted of heaps of white painted furniture, truly chippy and shabby and dripping laid-back elegance. We sat at a table similar to this, strewn with cushions and throws. Rattan or wicker or whatever it is, criss-crossed to the sides and with the little wrapped corners, just like this one.

So when I saw it I really wanted it. Like really wanted it. I thought this old girl had just the right mix of beachy/rustic and vintage to sing once it got the beach whitewash.

I popped my head through the back door (in my running gear and errrm quite errrm sweaty and not attractive).

'Scuse me, is this old table for sale?

What, that old piece of junk?

Yep.

Nah, that's not for sale love, no-one will want that.

(What you mean no-one would want to buy a piece of junk like this from this junque shop?)

Errm, well how much do you want for it?

It's not for sale.

Oh ok but I like it?

Sorry I'm waiting for the boys to get rid of it for me, no use to anyone.

But I'd quite like it.

Whaaat??? You want that old piece o' junk? !

Yep.

Lady, you can have it!

Hoorah. So I scooted it into the back of the Beach Mobile before he could change his mind and think it might be a piece of junque rather than a piece of junk.

It's been sitting in the whitewashing studio, *wink forever and waiting and just recently it finally got some treatment as I'd found a chair while not the same, I thought might tie in quite nicely with it.

So I brought it into the cottage as a place for books and magazines (not that I have that many, of course not, ho ho ho) and just a place to sit and flick. Because I sooooo like doing that.

And if you like to sit and flick too, while I can't provide you with a vintage table from a junque shop, I can give you a chance to win my new favourite coffee time browsing.

Easy Elegance, from Atlanta Bartlett – easy to dip into for a little bit of somtimes unrealistic but fabulously inspiring ideas to fill your home with laid-back charm, and make you dream of the easy elegance of a French cafe somewhere in a former life…

For a chance to win, just leave a comment anytime this week on any post. Oh and yep I'll ship anywhere.

One comment = one entry, so if you comment 102 times you'll get, yep you guessed it 102 chances to win.

And if you subscribe to my feed I'll make sure you're entered lots of times.

Kelly from Design-Ties is the winner of last weeks' giveaway, congrats – two beachy stripe cushion covers will be winging their way over the oceans sometime soon!

Oh and don't forget you can also do some flicking at Beach Cottage Inspiration

…stacked to the brim full of white inspiration – pictures and things I've found to keep in an online portal to inspire me

Blogged for Susan's event over at Between Naps on the Porch, where on Mondays you will find a whole heap of creative and inspirational gals in the real world making over…and Rhoda's thrifting show and tell, here

If you enjoyed this post, sign-up for the Beach Cottage email updates (just up there on the top right of the bar) for more chances to win and to access more from the Beach Cottage….unplugged!

Filed Underbeach cottage makeovers 83 Comments

Beach Cottage Tablescape + May Giveaways!

12:55 pm Byabeachcottage

G'day bloggers, hope you are all feeling the happy days of Spring or the crispness of Autumn as I am – it's wonderful weather today, and my walk by the ocean this morning was filled with sparkly sea and sunshine, nothing like that to get you going in the morning.

Now, to tell the truth I didn't intend of bombarding you with printed burlap sacks this week here at the Beach Cottage but you know, just call me obsessive…when I find something I like I kinda seem to take it on full steam until I exhaust it. Funny really, because I spent months procrastinating with doing anything with, what is, a huge pile of sacks, which seemed to fall over just about every time I walked in the study, but sometimes you need a little bit of a jolt to get you going, don't you… You'll find more procrastinators and their results, here at The Inspired Room.

Soooo at the weekend we had some friends over and I decided I wanted a rusticy-cum-beachy table setting and while I would hate to tell you that this took me seconds (though really it did not take me too long) it really was easy to do.

Starting with the white base and then the sacks, the rest of it was just a case of layering and piling on shells, candles and the like (and surf on over to Between Naps on the Porch for more delightful tables).

And the reason I love doing these tablescapes is that, for me, a leisurely little bit of creation like this is just not an option for the hurly-burly of our week nights. In fact on nights in the week, it is just about all I can do to get a dinner on the table, let alone one that has been dressed up to its eyeballs.

I refuse however to let time, or lack of it, dictate my enjoyment of doing the table at the weekend, which is why I keep the dining part as simple as possible so for this we served dips to start then roast chicken with basil and lemon plus roasted onions and red peppers (all easily shoved in oven) plus green salad, followed by Nigel Slater Apple Tart which even the bake challenged like me can do (if you need some more recipe ideas and you can't be bothered to sit with a book, though I can think of no other thing that I enjoy at the end of the day, then try Pioneer Woman for some no-brainer recipes for normal people.

I would much rather spend time setting the table than making a souffle, even if I am running round like a headless chicken in my undies, just before the doorbell rings trying to find the square white candles…

don't forget to comment on this post to enter the giveaway for a couple of the beach stripe cushion covers below – comment once, twice or as many as you like, every comment = an entry. Simple.

I'll be hosting giveaways all through May, just come visit and comment…

hop on over to Beach Cottage Inspiration with a cup of coffee…nice browsing!

Filed UnderUncategorized 115 Comments

A Beach Cottage Burlap Bucket Bag & Giveaway

7:16 pm Byabeachcottage

In the ideal world, inhabited by the designer, decor can be, more or less, manufactured…but for me, here, it has been, and I do not wish to mince my words, much more of a challenge to get the cottage looking as I want. And a way I get around this challenge is to seek out top-notch inspiration (and see Beach Cottage Inspiration for some oh-so-fabulous, mind blowing rooms to make you zip off to your nearest DIY store in a hurry). But in a way I think that is the beauty of this funny old journey I seem to find myself on – putting our own mark on things, finding ways to achieve a look and sometimes just having a go.

And this is so what I did with this bucket bag, have a go (and I have more than one gone-wrong prototype around the cottage, oh and yes one with upside down print and one with wonky sides).

The aim, dear bloggers, was to try and conceal, I mean store, my ever-growing and much-irritating-to-other-members-of-the-cottage magazine collection while incorporating a few rustic touches, for texture and balance with all the errrm, white and the a-bit-too-modern leather sofas in the family room.

What a great plan eh? I've always loved me a bit of vintage burlap, especially that which is stamped with an industrial print.

And without seeming all coochy-crafty-coo (this was definitely a project with a few words that the Beach Cottage kiddos wouldn't want to hear) I enjoyed making this today - I believe that resorting to a bit of home foofying, sometimes is, the place to escape to.

It was pretty simple to do, I simply made a lined square bucket bag from some old sacks that I came across (and I stumbled upon a huge heap of them, bring it on).

I won't tell you that it probably took me longer to clean up the pieces of burlap from just about every surface in the cottage than it did to actually make the bags…or that when I arrived at the school I wished I had taken a look at my black jumper which seemed to be have a thick covering of a strange animal's hair, which was in fact burlap fluff, but who was actually asking and not just sort of staring?

Tomorrow I will, Dyson duties permitting, be attempting a couple more cushion covers to go with the beachy stripe that, you of course, can WIN, should you like to take the time to leave me a comment telling me just what you think of my little adventures today with old sacks…

blogged for Works for Me Wednesdays

for the giveaway simply comment as many times as you want, on any post this week or subscribe to my feed, tweet about it or add my button (see yesterdays post for details)

don't forget the Inspiration Board, updated with some more finds today!

Filed Underjust a beach cottage life 54 Comments

Beach Cottage Makeover & A Giveaway!

5:38 pm Byabeachcottage

Morning campers! Hope you all enjoyed a happy Mother's Day. We spent it with a bbq right on the waters edge at the wharf, it was windy but we were well-wrapped.

For a while now I've wanted a large chalkboard somewhere in the cottage and see the Beach Cottage Inspiration Board for lots more inspiration – a portal for all things, white, vintage and beachy. I thought about painting directly on the wall as I've seen in some magazine shoots but always thought that looked somewhat 'flat'. And considering that I find it particularly difficult to find any kind of art that I like I thought that I might try and re-work a vintage piece to lean on the wall in lieu of art.

Which takes me to this old door. I could tell ya that I picked it up from a beautiful old antiques shop and paid a small fortune for it or any other such tale but actually it was found for me for a cost of nil by my number one sourcer. And I don't need to tell you who that is, do I? He phoned me one day on his way to work about an old door he'd seen outside a turn of the century old cottage, with a hand-written sign on it 'Free to a Good Home' and he wondered if I might like it.

Hmmm, it sounded gorgeous, but I have to say I was rather dubious, Mr BC can be somewhat, shall we say, blinkered at times in the taste department.

Anyway I loved it and my first plan was to turn it into some kind of shelf and hang it horizontally in the family room, but after it taking three of us to even get it inside the cottage we decided that it wouldn't be a good idea, should you be sitting there happily watching tv when an old door fell on your head…we have enough of those sort of events in skate parks.

So this is what I did to it over the weekend, gave it a quick coat of oh-so-delicious, beachy white, my secret formula, hahaha and then a coat of chalkboard paint…simplicity itself to do, I think it's the mix of textures I like..

I'm pretty pleased with it & however much white painted furniture there might be around here, there'll always be room for a vintage door re-worked with beachy white…

This week's giveaway is two of the putty striped cushion covers, just right for you to stick on an old vintage white chair to give you that old beach housee ambiance and as you know, my favourite thing to do is to team old vintage pieces with a coastal feel…laid back, easy and just nice…

As before, no rules, just comment, as many times you like, the more you comment the more you enter. Simple. Of course I'll ship worldwide baby.

If you subscribe and add my little button I'll add you lots and lots! (just copy the code and pop it in the html section)

<href=http://abeachcottage.com><img alt="swing by the Beach Cottage Giveaway" src=http://i356.photobucket.com/albums/oo10/abeachcottage/plaincottagebutton.jpg border="0" />

Blogged for Susan's Metamorphosis event, thanks Susan and lovely Rhoda, whose blog is always a great source of inspiration for the thrifter and for that matter the decorator out there.

And the winner of the beachy napery from last week is Suzann-Marie - can you let me know your address, abeachcottage@gmail.com

Filed Underbeach cottage makeovers 110 Comments