What I Did on My Summer Vacation

Next weekend my husband and I will be heading to Maui to visit my daughter, Heather who recently moved there. I'll have you know this will be a working vacation. Here is a photo of me during our trip to Hawaii last summer. We were walking down the street in Hilo and lo and behold...I spotted the Salvation Army! My travelling companions were confused. "You are on vacation", they protested. Why would you want to go into that place? My brother in law, Todd says thrift stores make him itchy.

So, while I'm in Maui next week, I'll be on the look out for the Salvation Army. Being the serious "junker" that I am, I just can't resist the lure of a thrift store. I am drawn like a magnet! My work never ends! Here today, gone to Maui!

Love, Kelly

How to live a Fairytale Life...

I always grew up with the idea of "waiting" for my Fairytale Life to begin. I was always looking forward to my future for the next step that would bring and signify my ultimate happiness. But often of course it either never came, or I was disappointed by unmet expectations. It was always dependent on someone else providing it for me...

Then I gained the wisdom of disappointment, and realized that living in the future and not the present would never afford me the ability to be happy even if I had every thing I thought I ever wanted. I was a strong, talented, empowered woman that not only could provide happiness for myself but for many others around me. I acknowledged myself for doing it again and again in my life.

So the point of this analogy is this: often we get the carriage of our dreams without the accessories that go with it. Life offers no prince on a horse riding up to sweep us away, no slippers, and no Fairy Godmother. Or so we think, but we are actually all of those things to ourselves IF we choose to be. Who better then to fulfill our dreams then ourselves? Who better to learn the lessons and gain the experience from that satisfaction than us. Why do we always find it easier to look outside ourselves for happiness to be brought to us?
Regarding the JUNK in our lives; this is the type of thinking that should be thrown away. So get out your best princess outfit, your dancing slippers, and dance the night away in your front room or where ever you choose to dance, and know that you were and always are destined for happiness of your own making. Begin making it today! Your Fairytale Life is NOW!

love, Connie

A Painting Primer

Today the Second Hand Chicks will be sharing the mystery of furniture painting! No previous experience necessary.

First, find a well-made, solid wood piece. I scored this beauty at the DI, our local thrift store in Salt Lake. The best part is that it was only $12.

Bumbee gets excited about painting!

Assemble your materials:

Gloves

Brushes

Sandpaper

Primer

Paint

Stain

Varathane

Apply a coat of primer. I like to use KILZ, a water base product for easy clean-up.

Let dry.

Apply 2-3 coats of paint. I use the "oops" paint from the Home Depot because it is only $5 a gallon.

Let dry over night.

Lightly sand corners and other areas that would wear naturally over time. Wipe off dust. I prefer baby wipes for this step.

Rub stain onto the piece. I prefer an oil-based product beacuse it's very forgiving. By the time you have worked the stain into the finish it is usually dry enough to varathane.

Finnish with 2-3 coats of varathane. I like a water-based product for this step. It dries quickly and is has no fumes.

Wow! That table looks great but what happened to her?

Even Bumbee needs a bath!

Have fun painting!

Love, Kelly

Life at Roadside

It's Springtime in Salt Lake City and you know what that means...city clean-up. It's a proud junking tradition here in Zion. The gutters are lined with gold, just waiting to be picked up, hosed off and proudly displayed. You were promised down and dirty in this blog so here it is.

There are some finer points to retrieving that special treasure form the side of the road. Not all junk is good junk. To wit: old mattress: bad junk. Vintage TV tray: good junk.

Television: bad junk. Wheelbarrow: good junk. Are you getting the non-digital picture?

Some junk may require more love than other junk. Like this broken chair. Examine chair for sturdiness. You can cut off the top half with the missing spindles, paint it a fun color and oila! You have a handy dandy stool.

After a quick hosing, this picket fence is going right to my shop. It will be a whimsical addition to the garden display.

It's a race against time before the orange trucks arrive to haul everything off to the landfill. Remember, these trucks are bigger than you so it's usually not worth it to pick a fight over that broken chair. Just get over it and move on to the next pile.

So happy roadside scavenging. Have fun, wear gloves, think outside the box and be careful out there. By the way, John loves his new wheelbarrow.

Love, Kelly

Baby Doll Memories

Ever Feel like someone is watching you? Maybe its your sweet baby dolls from years of youth when you loved them and were inseparable. Remember how older brothers tortured you by hiding them or holding them ransom? Even going as far as to dis-member them or pull their hair out?

But quietly at night when you were snuggled in bed with the spring air gently lulling you to sleep there was no one better to whisper your secrets too, or hold you tightly back then your dolly. We gain our practice for motherhood, shopping, fixing dinner, teaching, and gaining medical assistance experience with the help of our loving playmates.

But as we grow we often forget about the little things that kept us stable, and gave us comfort even though we are able to move through our lives with the experiences we were rewarded with by such gifts. So every now and then please stop and pick up a baby doll, and cuddle her in the thrift store, secondhand store, doll hospital, or your own children's rooms...

Whisper in her, or his ear those loving secrets, cooing words, and relive those memories of times gone by. And if nothing else think tonight right before you fall asleep of all those freaky, posessed doll zombie movies, and know that they are true and you are not alone. It's not your imagination.

Love, Dolly (Connie)

A Lesson in Color

Nothing lifts our spirits quite like color. Then why are people so afraid to use it in their decor? Go ahead...be bold! Update your home this Spring with a new piece of furniture in an exciting color that reflects your personality.







Pink is a feminine and romantic color that even big girls never outgrow.

Red is exciting, energetic and dynamic.

Blue and turquiose are serene, quiet and dependable.




Green is refreshing, restful and serene.

Orange is zesty, tantalizing, spicy and festive.

Purple is passionate, elegant and theatrical.

A Wedding Quilt

Have I mentioned that I love old quilts? I suppose obsession would be a better word than love. If I were Superman, quilts would be my Kryptonite.

The feel of those soft, hand-sewn squares of fabric makes my heart skip a beat.

When customers in my shop ask me how I manage to part with the beautiful things that come through my door, I reply,"They are just things and I don't let myself get attached to them. I am happy that they go to a good home."

This applies to everything but my collection of old quilts. I guard it jealously. There was a time when I used to keep my collection folded neatly on a shelf in the livingroom but people kept using them to sleep on! Horrors! Now my precious quilts are stored away in a locked room in the basement. I think I need a 12 step program.

John and I are happy to announce the marriage of our cute daughter Karen to a wondeful man. This is the one and only blessed event that could allow me to give up one of my beloved quilts. So congratulations to Karen and Justin...I hope this quilt will give them as much joy that it has given me over the years. This quilt is going to a good home.

Here is a quilt that I have been saving to give as a gift upon the birth of my first grandchild. It has the sweetest little hand-stitched squares depicting Mother Goose nursery rhymes. With an adorable quilt like this as an enticement I'll be grandma in no time. Are you reading this, Karen?

Love, Kelly