Thrift Store Find & Putting My Magazines on a Diet

Very fun day...not particularly productive...but fun nonetheless. First I was determined to go to a few thrift stores today. I have read about them non-stop for the last few days on everybody's blog...so I decided to go back to some of my old haunts to see what they had. I did NOT find but one thing that whispered my name.

Look at her, poor little thing. She is tin with a black shade and oh, so in need of a day at the "spa". (I must admit something here, I am a lover of all things primitive, but when I decorate in that direction, my house becomes extremely cluttered...I have tried to go more contemporary in the last few years, but whenever I see something like a yelloware bowl, a dough bowl, a little tin lamp...my heart flitter flutters.)

Anyhoo, I brought her home, cleaned her up and re-did the shade. I used an old children's nursery rhyme book (1936 and in bad condition) and some really old sheet music to cover the shade using, ta-da, Mod Podge. I like using Matte finish for a project like this. Then I tied a twine and checked ribbon around her neck, finished the bow off with a square mother of pearl button, and I think she looks mighty fine.

I put her in my kitchen since I had been looking for a tiny lamp for under the counter. She may reside there or I may move her around until a suitable abode is found.

Next, I did some weight reduction...not on my person, but on my magazine collection. Every six months I take all my magazines, go through them thoroughly and tear out every page that appeals to me...this is no small task as you can see the very large stack of magazines with which I was faced.

Notice the magazines on the right. I actually had around 6 more that I couldn't part with, so they were spared the scalpel. But now check out the left side. Yep, that's the sum total of pages that I kept! I then took those pages and divided them into six or seven stacks. These stacks will be filed in my file folders: Christmas, Tablescaping, Gardening, Crafts, Interesting Articles, Decorating, and Patterns. At the end of the year, I go through the files and unceremoniously dump any articles that don't appeal to me anymore. That keeps the folders under size control.

Unfortunately I LOVE magazines. Those companies will never have to worry about me reading them online rather than perusing the real McCoy. I re-read them many times...and I always find things I missed the first or second go round. Read with a magnifying glass close by. You will be amazed at what you see with its aid.

Hope you are having a productive time after Christmas. I love this time of the year because I do a pretty good "clean out" of the house. I am working on several other projects that will be ready for a reveal shortly.... Happy Tuesday!