lemony fresh

stumbled upon this little dream of a room over @ knack. old ceiling tiles turned wall art using a few lovely shades of yellow. i think i may have just developed a craving for a lemon bar....

there's magic in them drawers....

i couldn't resist this little makeover. old drawers turned into brilliant & useful display pieces. love. it. for the details and another amazing makeover, visit design sponge (there is a mail sorter that is well worth the trip)

when does free become expensive?

sometimes the freebies & hand-me downs are just plain great; right from the start. providing proof that one person's junk is another person's treasure. and sometimes the free & neglected come with a price. when do you say enough is enough, I will only spend so much salvaging what was on the side of the road/in my garage for years/given to me? 

over $29 was spent resuscitating the lamp in the above photo. it was found on the side of the road, and it is now a staple in someone's living room. that someone could have so easily given up, said why should i bother? but she didn't. she persisted. she re-wired, and later found her beloved lamp on ebay for $95. plus shipping.

i am always a proponent of salvaging what comes your way. you usually save a few bucks in the long run and always gain something from the process. it's yours, in a way that something from target never could be. and sometimes, if you are lucky, it's even cheaper.

{via apartmenttherapy}

a quick lift...

a bit rustic, but i think it's a charming, don't you? plus it offers a lovely way to show off your shoe collection. might be a little hard on the toes though, especially for a clumsy gal like yours truly...

{photo via designsponge's best of bedrooms}

got an odd drawer, or maybe even a few?

catherine created a bedside station using a single old drawer, a corded bulb, & a little ingenuity. she started by sanding & cleaning the drawer, then attached the corded bulb to the existing handle & secured her project to the wall.

here, a set of drawers have been used to create a unique shelving unit. the holes were patched, the drawers sanded, painted & lined, and then stacked.

 {images & ideas via design sponge & apartment therapy}

once for rope, now for watercolors.

objects that are made to be used, like this old industrial rope spool, deserve to be relevant even after their original purpose has long gone. if you stumble upon an old industrial treasure, whether it's a spool, an old warehouse cart, or even an old dentist lamp, take a chance. they are built to last and may fit in with other furnishings better than you would think.

{the little artist & her spool via design sponge}