Palm Springs Vintage

Palm Springs is a meager two hour drive from LA but it feels like another world entirely. The desert air, the sunsets on surrounding mountains, the sea of stark windmills all wax off the denseness of Los Angeles. This little desert town where the yards all have pools and the architecture transports you back in time to era of casual glitz is one of my favorite places.

Full of Mid Mod Vintage stores and gay men with fabulous taste leaves the thrift stores here either scoured or sorely expensive for a reseller but I always try my luck because you never know what may have just come in the door, and the furnishings like the architecture pang me with jealous delight.


Ever since my stay in Paris a little more than a year ago that had us holed up in the quaintest studio apartment I've been a fan of vacation home rentals vs. hotels. So when my friend Amy decided to host her birthday bash at a desert pad I was in. We stayed in 50's Palm Spring style, the way it should always be.


I was able to get away for a couple of hours on Saturday and hit up two of my go-to thrift stores, Revival and Angel View Thrift. Both are a bit over priced but I did manage to come home with some cool new decor items and some fabric for a DIY project I have lined up.




As usual readers of this blog get first dibs on items seen here. These will be posted on Etsy tomorrow so if you see something you like send me an email at: SellingVintage@Gmail.com

DIY: Paint Side Table

Supplies: Thin Grit Sand Paper, Rust-o-leum White Primer, Rust-o-leum White Gloss Spray Paint, and the ever-so-useful Rust-o-leum "Comfort Grip", Painter's Tape

BEFORE:


These pictures were taken after I sanded the table down, this took about an hour and my wrist was killing. I'm totally investing in a power sander.

You can kind of see the awful color someone had painted this pretty little table in the past, it was the most hideous beige. They failed to even take off the hardware which worked out okay against the white paint I used.


It was so easy! The whole process took about two days but that's only because I got a late start on day one. You could easily have this done within 24 hours.

AFTER:


First sand the entire unit. Prime and paint. Oh, and don't forget to use painters tape to cover the areas you don't want to change, like the mirrors on this piece. And please remove the hardware, it takes about five seconds.


One thing I'll do different on the second unit - tape up the mirror BEFORE sanding the table. I can't wait until they're both done, but I am going to wait long enough to get that electric sander!

Topanga Beach Photoshoot

For whatever reason I tend to stray from acting as my own model. I think that's why I lean toward acquiring home and kitchenware vs. clothing and accessories. One of my favorite things to do with all these items is to photograph them, to put them into some kind of look book, aka blog, that I can ogle over even after the goods have long disappeared. But my love for clothing and accessories topped by great deals has the goods piling up, and me getting in front of the camera vs. behind it.

Yesterday Scott, Lucas and I took a trip to Topanga Beach and found an opportunity to put Scott behind the camera. I dragged along a few warm weather accessories and with the beach as a backdrop we snapped some shots.


Scott was more interested in playing with Lucas than photographing me (ugh!) but he managed to get a few good shots. I went home with less than I had hopped but pleased none the less.


Do you just love these vintage Charles David's? There were my Grandma's. I wish they'd fit me but they don't. Boo Hoo.

If you're interested in any of the goodies you see here they'll be on Etsy soon but you can send me an inquiry before that at SellingVintage@Gmail.com.

*All photos taken by Scott Dudelson

Social Network Happy

Hey Everyone.

I just signed SellingVintage up for not only a FaceBook page but it's on Twitter now too! We're all Social Networked out over here. And I'm planning something that I'm really excited about too and I hope you can get behind as well.

Become a fan of SellingVintage on Facebook and/or Twitter and you'll be notified when I'm about to pass up something great. The cool thing about this is that if you "tweet" or message me back in time I'll buy it on your behalf!

What are waiting for? Become a fan of SellingVintage now by clicking on the above links.

x's and o's

Melissa

Rain Rain Come Today

I have something beautiful to keep you away!

I live in LA. As most anyone knows rain is hard to come by in this tiny little corner of the world. But an Angeleno has got to prepared for that one dreaded storm of the year and what Angeleno in her right mind would fail to be stylish when the clouds cave in on our sunny little bubble?

I'm already prepared with the dominatrix of all umbrellas but... I could also use another sale on my Etsy store so in contemplating the sell of my beloved umbrella I decided to hunt around Etsy and see what these things are selling for. To my delight they're mostly on par with what I thought I could let this stunning piece go for.

And since I was at it, and since I found the cutest little "umbrella bags" that I just had to share with you, I decided to do another What's Available on Etsy post! But before I get into that let me just show you my sexy little find.

First of all it has a CASE!


And look at that handle.


Va Va Voom! What do you say, keep it or sell it, it never rains in LA!



Drum roll... On Sale at Etsy now.

51VC is selling the umbrella bags, two for $60! Aren't they so mid century? I just love them!


TheVintageThread (don't you just love that name?) is selling this lovely set of three vintage umbrellas for only $45. Only one of them, the orange one, which is also tote size, is in excellent condition. But the other two are still good and you have to see the white one fully open - so pretty.


Here's one that's compact and reasonably priced. StudioStebbylee's is selling this pretty aqua thang for only $19! I'm drooling over the chain wristlet.


This 1940's Damask Print Umbrellas is so feminine and sweet it's just to die for. JessJamesJake is selling it for $48.


Suddenly I have an itch to see a little pitter-patter on my window pane.

Lucky ME!

Everyone drives in LA. We don't have much of a choice. Walking in LA is like walking in the suburbs, the blocks seems to go on forever, there's not a whole lot to look at, and barely a person walking beside you, it's cars just racing by. Cars with grouchy people in a hurry to get somewhere that barely have the patience to let a pedestrian pass without hollering *profanities, at least that was my experience today.

The surprising thing is people actually DO walk in LA. We walk through quaint neighborhoods with well landscaped yards to look at and we see other people walking too, walking home from school, to the Farmer's Market or their local coffee house, walking the dog. It's really quite pleasant when we get out of our cars and hit the pavement. But it's tough to accomplish much this way and so we're chained to our cars.


There is a great thing about driving in LA though. Driving in LA means when you pass by someone's "trash" and you see something you like, like say a really cool pair of retro metal lawn chairs you don't have to ooh and ahh over something you can't take home. Sorta like The Elegant Thrifter had to do just the other day on the streets of NYC! Instead you come inches away from causing a car accident, speed around the block and jump out of the car asking ever so kindly if you can take this person's trash home.


At least that's what happened to me today and it was glorious!

I had thought about refinishing the street finds but was convinced otherwise by my friends at the Antique Station where I was conveniently on my way to when luck came my way. Don't you just wish it had been you?! I know I would.

*slight exaggeration though profanities are easy to come by in LA

I Spy...

Something graphic. Something smart. Somethings I want today.

I recently stumbled across a new-to-me blog that I am absolutely loving! I'm loving this blog so much that I spent close to an hour scrolling through old posts. What I love most about Little Green Notebook is her DIY tips, inspirational DIY projects, and her post on these most amazing re-covered classics.


Some of the titles available include: Picture of Dorian Gray, Alices Adventures in Wonderland, Little Women, Crime and Punishment, Emma, Treasure Island and more.

She's even so kind as to have done the research and shared where we can buy them online, and at a discount no less! Indigo books out of Canada is selling them for a mere $14.99 and apparently the dollar is strong somewhere in the world - eh... Canada!

I haven't pulled the trigger just yet but I'm going to, soon. I'm dying to hide these beauties away some place until I have the means to display them just right.

You should check out Little Green Notebooks post on these here if you like what you see, and how couldn't you?

Sizzling Servers

It's been a couple of months since I mentioned my mad crush on Sizzling Servers. I picked up these visions of a kitchen beautiful when visiting an antique mall in Redding, CA. Naturally they weren't my idea of a deal but I just HAD TO HAVE THEM!

You can check out my previous posts on these oven friendly servers here and here.

Since these posts I've noticed a fair amount of traffic to the Selling Vintage Blog from the keywords Sizzling Servers and Caravelle, and in my own research I've found these items to be few and far between. But I've also found some knock-offs and other manufacturers of a similar product. Though I know nothing of the history I favor the Caravelle brand of Sizzling Servers for it's rounder bottom and higher, easier to grasp handles, and in my opinion superior craftsmanship.


The other brand you see in this photo above is a close second but I could be saying that from the pure bliss I felt when I found it in an old box of my Nana's stuff. I've always felt a oneness with her though she passed in the early 90's and was delighted to see we share a love for this vibrant kitchenware. Nana's Sizzling Servers were Imported from Italy vs. my Caravelle Sizzling Servers which were Imported from France.


Periodically I do a search for "enamel" on Etsy as I did today when I found a couple listings for this type of serve ware. I'm going to share those listings here in case anyone wants to see their purchasing options!

Retroology is selling this set for only $18! You can see that these ones have a silver rim vs. the black rim on the Caravelle brand, but for $18 it's easy not to be too picky.


CrankHeartPony has a set from Yugoslavia, also with silver rims, for $35.


ModishVintage is selling this single red one for $25.



And that's it for Etsy. I also have a set that I'm willing to let go of. It's a set of the Caravelle brand of Sizzling Servers.


They're in booth right now but the next time I'm down I'm happy to grab them and sell them to any of the readers of this blog at a 20% discount. I'm asking $45 for them so that would be $36 with the blog discount! And of course the cost of shipping which I estimate to be another $12. If anyone is interested email me at: SellingVintage@gmail.com First come, first serve!

Busy on Etsy!

New items in the shop - check 'em out!

In Review: The Find

It's no secret that I enjoy a good thrift store and decorating with these finds, and so naturally "the find" a book about decorating with thrift store finds is right up my alley. But I had no idea that not only would I love this book and read it page for page the entire way through, but that I'd actually learn a thing or two as well!

You see, with these kind of books - big beautiful pictures, do-it-yourself text, it's completely my style to flip around, find what interests me and leave the rest for another day. Stan Williams, aka The Elegant Thrifter, held my attention as I'm sure he could do yours by sharing tips for everything from ensuring quality to painting a piece, alongside inspirational home interiors and fun vintage parties he's personally attended.

It's no doubt that it can cost a pretty penny to reupholster furniture and the minute you decide to hire someone to get the task done that inexpensive find can turn expensive. With loads of inspiration in this book you don't have to break the bank to decorate your home, as long as you take it at just that, inspiration. If you have the money, go for it, replicate the methods that others have used to create a unique home interior, with the cost of modern furniture these days you'll still be saving your wallet and you'll have a blast doing it.

Either way if you're interested in thrift store shopping and/or decor buy this book, it's fantastic... five stars.