Flea Market Madness!!

As I type this it is POURING outside! Total bummer to wrap up a holiday weekend ....so thank goodness I got all my shoppin done yesterday! I always look forward to a great day of junkin with my fav guy by my side.

We got up E~A~R~L~Y yesterday morning and headed out. We had to deliver a piece of furniture to a customer and the rest of the day was ours.

Take a peek at what I unearthed......Rusty ~ crusty old white wire baskets. Wish there had been a huge pile of these, I would have bought them all! The blue stars are metal and make a great little candle holder!

SMALL BASKET SOLD!!
Here's the whole deal! The hoosier was a great find as I had recently sold the other I had in the shop. I LOVE the color on this one...it's like a chippy grayish white. Right now the roll top is stuck so I am headin out to the garage after I type this post to see what I can do for it. Anyone have any ideas?? The box on the ground is an old OCTAGON soap box with handle filled with old bottles.

You can't really tell but the little table is an old dark red color. I love little tables and boxes. I can never seem to pass up either one! What is it with me? The old door in the background came from an old farmhouse and was the doorway under the stairs. I love how narrow it is. See the little thing with the old wood turquoise handle? It's an old ice pick! I have been looking FOREVER for one of these simply because I need one at the shop and do you think I could find one? HA!! Search is over....I just have to get all the rust off it. For a$1.00 it was worth it.

WHITE CHIPPY BOX SOLD!!
See what I mean about the hoosier? Ain't she sweet. The patina is so mellow and worn. She still has the flour sifter too~ with the cap!

Immediatly I thought how cute this little trailer would look with flowers planted in it. The guy I bought it from was telling me that he had gone to get all of his old metal toys from his mom's place and someone had stolen all of them except this trailer . Who does stuff like that? Haven't they heard of karma? I hope it get's um good.
RED WIRE BASKET SOLD!!

This old chippy crackly basket has a big hole in the bottom. Why would that stop me huh? I thought it would work to get a plastic trash basket and slip inside. I hope I can find one that fits.

If a ya got a scale and it's good price I will ALWAYS buy it! Yet another item I can never pass up! What do you think of that little red metal cup? I wish you could see it better but there is a faint rose decal on the front...too cute!

Last but not least was my FAVORITE , I LOVE THEM, STOOD THERE FOREVER TO MAKE UP MY MIND, FIND!!
This guy had a BUNCH of letters from old signs. Big ones , fat ones, red ones, brown ones, plastic ones, metal ones, teeny tiny ones and then I saw these....CHIPPY ONES!!! Heart starts racin, palms get sweaty, back off vibes are going out to anyone who might even think of cutting in!

So there I stand trying to make words , trying to figure out which letters to buy, not being able to put any back because I love how they all look! THEN a wise voice comes from the man dressed in an Olde Tyme Marketplace t-shirt and baseball cap
" Why don't you just buy ALL OF THEM?"

"Have you gone mad?" I say " There has to be a million dollars worth of letters in here!"

He's like "Beth, there are only maybe 24 letters in the whole box!"

Okay so he's right. It's worth askin about. Maybe they have a finance dept.

So I count them up and go get the guy. "What kind of deal can I get if I buy all of these?" I ask

He has to go ask another guy and let me just tell you, I could have just kissed him! I got the whole darn box and then Mr. OTM says "Aren't you glad I'm here to advise you on how to shop at these things?"!!! LOL! Too funny!

SO my Memorial Day weekend was Memorable! Had a great time and found some great junk!

Hope yours was the same!

Look CLOSE!! Do you see it??

Are you looking hard? Do you see it yet?? YEP!!! IT'S SNOW!!!

I have been DYING to use this pic in a post! For someone like me who is a very "average" photographer with just a digital point and shoot~ I thought this picture was pretty good!

The beautiful flag against the snowy branches with the Carolina Blue sky in the background...whew! I took this when we had one of our snowstorms this past winter and
have been hoarding it ever since!

What better time to use it than Memorial Day when we take the time to honor those that are there~ those that are here~ those that went~ those that came home~ those that didn't.

This picture is for all of you...from the bottom of my very grateful heart.

MAKE-OVERS and WHITE WEDNESDAY!

WARNING!!! This is a LONG POST with LOTS OF PICS!!

I recently had the fun of doing Make-overs for a couple of my wonderful clients!

WAIT!!!

I didn't make-over the clients....I made over some of their furniture..that sounds better!

Okay first off is Monica's coffee table! Already painted a fantastic brown base coat~

All I had to do was the topcoat and some distressin and.......VOILA!

The distressing really made this table come to life because of all the nooks and crannies it has!

nooks......

crannies!

Next up is Jen and Rich's (hey guys!!) hall tree, bench, chest,rack combo! It started off this cool granny smith apple green color.......

Here she is after the top coat was applied and I did the distressing

Notice how neat it looks with the green peekin though.......

This was a photo holder that I picked up at the TS. I LOVED the little tag holders and just knew it would be put to good use someday.......

TODAY WAS THE DAY!!!

Here are most of the tools I used for the job.......

The finished product! There is actually a mirror that goes into the window area and was removed before the whole make-over process started (thanks Rich!) It made the process go that much faster! No taping off!

Close up of finish.............

I really think the tags made it! They loved it too and that's the most important thing!

Last but not least is this pretty little turquoise /aqua mirror with a fancy schmancy applique, also belonging to Jen and Rich! Again, already a fantastic base color................

Great nooks and crannies again!!

ALL DONE!! I think this may end up in their foyer so they can check themselves out when they come down the stairs!! LOL!

I love how the distressed finish instantly transforms a piece! I know that this isn't a typical White Wednesday picture collection but I was so pleased with how these all turned out and I hoped to inspire others to make-over a certain garage find or perhaps something they already have!

You can't make a mistake!

Trust me!! Go for it! You'll love the result!

Have a great Wednesday!!

My drive to work.......

This is my rush hour situtation I have to deal with every day to and from the shop!

Can you believe this? Unreal!(LOL!) Everyday it's the same old thing....

donkeys....I love each and every single one..

espicially those EARS!!

I LOVE DONKEY EARS!Is there anything cuter than a baby donkey....

a fuzzy little baby donkey with 12 inch ears...

What the heck? How did he get in here? He is definitly NOT on my way to work!
Boy would that be a treat!
HOLY ABS-OLY!!!
WHEW!!
he looks a little warm in that vest don't you think?
OKAY OKAY! BACK TO REALITY......


Here is some more traffic! They are all over the place always eyeballin me as I drive by! I LOVE IT! If there is nobody behind me and there rarely is, I will stop and try to make them talk to me. I think they think I'm nuts...
They are probably right......



And if THAT weren't enough I have to look at all the little babies running around! GEEZ!
Can you see what I have to deal with? It's amazing I get to work at all with all this going on!

On top of all this , the smell of honeysuckle is thick in the air and is beyond intoxicating!

What a drive huh?? Everyday.....I am blessed!

Chippy Day Dream display...

Everyonce in awhile I will buy something for the shop just because I can visualize how great it will look in a display ~ the " I don't care if they ever sell" type of thing.

Such is the case with these butterflies...... Huge ,Chippy, Rusty, butterflies!

Sometimes I luck out and can see the whole display in my head as soon as I come across something and I knew the minute I saw these what I wanted to do. I had to act fast though!

I had six in a stack on the porch and by the time I got to the display, I only had two left!

They (forgive me) really FLEW outta here!That is an old mattress spring hanging on the wall from and antique metal baby crib....
The old chippy porch swing was a flea market find for 15.00 that really came in handy! I filled it up with old feedsack and linen pillows but they sold before I got a picture and I had to remake some more. Keep scrolling to see what I put on the old screen door...........


These letters are up there with old clothespins........

Ta-da! This is an old metal and canvas fruit pickin bucket. You would sling it over your body , climb a ladder, pick some apples and release the bottom to let all the fruit out. Funny how dried hydrangeas make everything look so good.

See what I mean??? Add some hygrangeas and BANG! Great display! This little greenhouse is also a new piece at the shop. Perfect table top size.

Well, I've got lots of projects to get to today! Two pieces of furniture are calling my name for two separate clients. Both are getting the antique treatment. Hopefully I can get some work in betweeen raindrops today! Have a great day!

SHOPKEEPER SUNDAY...THIS SUNDAY MAY 16TH

OLDE TYME MARKETPLACE IS

excited to announce

SHOPKEEPER SUNDAY

MAY 16TH 11-5!!

DO YOU LIKE ANTIQUES, JUNK, VINTAGE FINDS,

HANDMADE ITEMS, PLANTS , FLOWERS ??

Join us and shop with our WONDERFUL OUTSIDE VENDORS

and enjoy the "thrill of the hunt!" You NEVER KNOW what you are gonna find!

The SHOP IS PACKED with a new load of goods added this week!

LIVE BLUEGRASS & GOSPEL MUSIC ALL AFTERNOON!!

BRING A CHAIR!

121 N. WHITE ST

MARSHVILLE, NC 28103

Conveniently located one turn off HWY. 74 right behind BB&T Bank!

SEE YOU SUNDAY!!!

RAIN OR SHINE!

HERBS & FISH TACOS...WHAT????

The only thing they have in common is the Cilantro.....

otherwise this all totally random!

Sometimes I like to pretend that I am a great photographer and make the attempt

to inspire fellow bloggers to become

as great as I am at taking an awe inspiring photo.

NOT! Ha! Who am I kiddin!

So what you see is what you get!

Let's talk HERBS. I LOVE UM! Nothing adds such a nice FRESH flavor to a dish

like fresh cut herbs. I planted a bunch this year in containers and have them on the deck where they soak up the full sun and are right off the dining room so I can go and easily snip what I need when I am cooking!

My favs are: SWEET BASIL, GLOBE BASIL, CHIVES, OREGANO, ROSEMARY, CILANTRO, CURLY PARSLEY, and THYME. I use these all the time! I encourage you to plant a container Herb Garden and REMEMBER...HERBS LOVE TO BE SNIPPED!! It keeps um comin on!

In review....Herbs+full sun+water+snipping= delicious dishes!

I know, I know these are zinnias~ they asked if they could have their picture taken during all the Herb fuss...I felt bad they were being left out.......

That varigated oregano gets a little cocky sometimes because it's one of the few herbs that has two tone color and adds a splash to your container. Gets a big head over the whole deal.
OKAY DONE WITH THE HERBS!
ONTO FISH TACOS! I can hear how thrilled you all are! The suspense has been unbelieveable!



Tuesday night is Seafood Night at our house.
WHY you ASK?
Long story.
Okay, it's not so long.
We LOVE to watch Deadliest Catch.
Deadliest Catch is on Tuesday nights.
Deadliest Catch is about catching crab.
Crab is seafood.
Deadliest Catch+Seafood+Tuesday Night
We are dorks~ (do you see a pattern yet?)
The end.
Sooooo...I got inspired by that little Martha Stewart Food Magazine that had Fish Tacos on the cover. I Googled Fish Tacos and combined two recipes and I am telling you.....
in a word....
FANTASTIC!!! OMG!!!

Here it is in case you wanna try um!
Olde Tyme Marketplace Fish Tacos
(just humor me okay?? :0)

1-2 pounds Tilapia
flour
salt and pepper
oil for frying
Red cabbage ( shredded)
Avocado (sliced)
Pico de gallo
Buritto size flour tortillas
Poppy Seed dressing (this is the little secret that puts these OVER THE TOP!)

Coat the fish with flour, salt and pepper and fry in oil until crispy on both sides about 5-7 minutes. Remove and pat dry. Start piling it on the burrito with everything else! Smother with the Poppy seed dressing and roll it up into a big wad with everything shooting out the sides and
ENJOY!!!
A great side dish for these is Cheesy Rice.
Okay, I am pooped and need some beauty sleep. I am putting my next post together of little "sneek peeks" of what you'll see that's NEW in the shop for ShopKeeper Sunday this weekend May 16th!! RAIN OR SHINE!!
Gotta go catch some zzzzzzzz'ssssssss!