GIVEAWAY! Win something vintage, upcycled, handmade or random!

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I think the Secondhand Fancy Facebook page has more followers than this blog, but just in case anyone’s missed it – I’m hosting a giveaway to celebrate getting 100 FB fans!

All you have to do to enter is become a fan of Secondhand Fancy on Facebook, and then post a comment letting me know which of the four categories you want to enter the drawing for (vintage, upcycled, handmade, or totally random).

The deadline to enter is Friday at noon (EST) and I’ll announce the winner(s) in each category later that afternoon.

As of now there aren’t many entries, so your chances of winning are pretty good! :)

Secondhand shopping without leaving home! (online estate sales)

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So a couple of weeks ago I decided to look online to find an estate sale to go to – I’ve never been to one -  when I made an amazing discovery: there was no need to wait – I could bid on numerous local estate sales right that very minute!

I’ve since been filling up our house with purchases from online estate auctions.  It’s just so convenient and fun! The deals are amazing, too.

Kady helping me pick up my winnings

So here’s what I brought home yesterday – it cost $41.50 total.  (I feel compelled to add that some of this stuff was purchased in a lot – basically I paid $1-$2 for a big box of unknowns.)

Online Estate Sale Basics

If you’re unfamiliar with online estate sales, they basically work like a simplified version of E-bay. Of course, I can’t speak for every company out there, but it seems that the majority of them use the same (or very similar) software to run their auctions, and it’s really easy to use.

First,  go to the estate liquidator’s website and register for a bidding number. Some of them require a credit card on file but many don’t. It’s a simple form and you’ll be e-mailed a bidding number immediately.

Once you have that, return to the auction and view the list of items (they’ll have at least one picture and a brief description). You’ll be able to see the current bid, and enter your own maximum bid. After bidding, you’ll be told if you have the highest bid or if another bidder had previously entered a higher bid than yours. That’s about it!

I’ve been at this for just under a month, so I’m far from an expert, but here are a few tips that I’ll pass on:

  • Carefully consider the convenience of the auction’s pick-up location and date/time before bidding.  I bid on several things in one of my first auctions, but when it ended, I had only won a $1 vintage tin box. Sure, it was cute, but not really worth driving 45-minutes across town on a Monday afternoon for, and the shipping costs would have been ridiculous. I ended up paying for it and apologizing profusely for not coming to pick it up.
  • Pay attention to any measurements given in an item listing. It can be really hard to tell how big something is without a frame of reference. When I was picking up yesterday, another buyer was stunned when the vintage tea set she had purchased turned out to be doll-sized.
  • When it comes time to pick up, bring your own copy of your invoice, and check each item off to make sure you have everything before you leave. And if you bought several things, bring your own bags and boxes and don’t count on any help carrying things to your car. The auction employees I’ve encountered so far have been super nice, but also super busy.
  • If you start participating in multiple auctions, come up with a system to keep track of the end dates and pick-up times of each one (I just printed a blank calendar page and wrote only auction-related dates on it.) You’ll usually get an e-mail when you’re outbid on something, but it can be hard to remember which were things you just bid on because they were ridiculous-cheap, and which you really really wanted. Make a habit of reviewing an auction shortly before it ends. There seem to be a lot of people who just wait until the last few minutes and then pop in and place a bid.

There really are some amazing deals to be had! Sure, if you’re set on bidding only on Waterford crystal or Tiffany lamps, you’ll spend some bucks. But if you’re a junker/thrifter who’s into fixing things up, you can definitely find some hidden treasures! It’s not at all uncommon to see pieces of furniture going for under $5, and I’ve picked up plenty of things for $1.

I found my local online estate auctions via simple google searches. I definitely encourage you to check out the ones near you – and let me know if you get anything good!

Guest Post from Melissa @ MeloMomma :)

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Today my friend Melissa is swinging by to share a cute and simple craft idea for the younger kiddos. She blogs about crafts, recipes, and all kinds of other fun mom stuff at MeloMomma. She’s posts really frequently and I always enjoy what she writes about. Go check her out!
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My son’s teacher assigned a family craft! We were to make an animal entirely out of leaves. It took a little thought from the four of us, but with a little guidance my son designed Rahh, the lion! Have fun and be creative!!!
What you will need:
Newspaper
Leaves
Cardboard
Heavy books
Scissors
Glue

Directions:
Gather several different shapes of leaves.
Open a heavy book in the center and line the pages with newspaper.
Place the leaves on top of the newspaper. Be careful that the leaves do not touch.
Place newspaper on top of the leaves and close the book.
Repeat until al the leaves have a safe spot in the books.
Allow approx. 5 days to dry.
Remove the leaves from the books and design your leaf animal or creature.
It may be helpful to draw an outline before placing the leaves on to the cardboard.
I also recommend designing the creature and laying the leaves in place prior to to actually gluing them on.

Well, Hello…

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If anyone still checks in here – thanks! I’ve been crazy-busy and thus MIA for a few weeks (although I did stay semi-active on Facebook). Unfortunately, the crazy-busy was mostly boring not-worth-reporting stuff, but we’ve had a few fun happenings lately.

First, Piper’s 5th birthday. I know every parent says this at every birthday, but I can’t believe I have a five-year-old! Seriously – anyone with kids will understand – it feels like, oh, maybe a few months ago when we were brand-new parents dealing with a newborn.

And now….

For her big birthday present I turned a flower bed in our backyard into her own flower garden. I have about the blackest-thumb there is (not to mention I just don’t like getting down and digging in the dirt) but she loves gardening with my parents. This flower bed has been pretty much neglected for the last few years, so I bucked up and weeded and mulched it, came up with some decorations, painted a sign, there ya go – Piper’s Garden.

(This picture is from her birthday, the day I finished it. It’s since gained a bunch of flowers and a few more decorations.)

For her gifts, we got her a bunch of just-her-size gardening stuff (shovel, trowel, hoe, kneeling pad, gloves, watering can, etc.) She just loved it all.

We’ve also gone to a few birthday parties, including a princess-themed one, and another with a Star Wars theme.

I accompanied Piper’s preschool class on a field trip to Lunken Airport -

Of course there was Easter -

I saw the amazing Hunger Games with the BFF

Piper had her first horseback riding lesson (which went amazingly, considering she’s quit dance class twice and is terrified of everything from ants to getting her hair brushed)

I volunteered at The Crafty Supermarket

volunteer swag

And there was plenty of playing outside, in this amazing weather we’ve been having! Then yesterday was my birthday (sorry, no picture – we (I) went on a Goodwill shopping spree and then to a kindergarten parent-orientation meeting).

Other than that, Steve’s been working a ridiculous amount of hours, I’ve been busy work-wise too, and have also had a lot going on in my volunteer role as a CASA.

Thus, I’ve had very little time to work on projects lately (boo!). But luckily, I haven’t been too busy to accumulate lots of new stuff to work on! I’ve come across some great roadside finds, done plenty of thrift store shopping, discovered the amazing world of online estate auctions, and had a former co-worker/friend give me first dibs on pretty much everything she owns prior to an inter-country move.

I have lots to share, which I’ll do soon! You’ll also be treated to a guest post from one of my favorite mom bloggers, Melissa at MeloMomma.

So please stick around – I promise there won’t be any more weeks-long blog breaks!

Mini Makeover…Thursday? (Crate & Board Ottoman)

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Well shoot, right when I started to get into a posting groove, life got crazy and I just haven’t had the time to do much of anything related to Secondhand Fancy.

Since I also dropped the ball on “Mini Makeover Mondays” (projects that took less than 30 minutes to complete,) I thought I would just share one now.

When I began working from home full-time we transitioned the kid’s playroom into my office, and it’s since morphed into my office/craft room. I think I’ve come up with some pretty unique storage solutions that allow me to fit everything I need for work and fun into a 10×10 space, but this was one of the simplest.

I found this plastic crate, along with another 2, on the side of the road.

I wanted to use it for storage, but it didn’t stack with the other two, and since space is at a premium here, I wanted an alternative to just having a crate sitting there with stuff in it. This is what I came up with.

The top was formerly the door to our old bathroom cabinet. After screwing the doors closed, I just covered it in a layer of batting and used my staple gun to cover that with a pretty pillowcase (the counterpart to the one I used on this chair).

I attached a couple brackets to the bottom that help it fit nicely on top of the crate, but it’s not attached – so you can’t sit on the edge of it or anything. But it’s fine for resting your feet on! Or even doing art projects, as K demonstrates (I placed another piece of wood on top, here,  since she had been painting.)

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I got my volunteer assignment for Crafty Supermarket today! (I’ll be helping to direct people outside from 2-4.) I’m excited to be able to participate in this super-cool event, and am looking forward to being inspired by these awesome vendors (and doing some shopping!)

Wobbly People – Kids Plastic Easter Egg Craft

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A sampling of our plastic Easter egg collection

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you’re anything like me, you’re probably wondering what the heck to do with all of these empty plastic Easter eggs right about now. While they can be recycled (at least by our provider), here’s an easy craft that lets your kids get some more fun out of their plastic eggs once all of the candy is gone.

Easter Egg Wobbly People

Supplies

Plastic Easter eggs

Small rocks or pebbles

Hot glue gun

Paint, yarn, tissue paper, googly eyes, etc.

Step 1: Choose Eggs

Feel free to mix it up by switching around tops & bottoms!

Note: if you have some eggs that open vertically instead of horizontally, I would encourage your kids to NOT choose these. You’ll appreciate this when it comes to Step 3.

Step 2: Gather Stones

You can use either small-to-average sized stones – or pebbles. Pebbles are easier to balance but stones are easier to glue, so it’s a bit of a wash.

If using stones, try to choose those that are relatively symmetrical and that fit nice and snug in the bottom of the egg. We got stones from the river rocks that surround our fire pit (the kind you buy in a bag from Home Depot) so we had a huge selection to choose from. If you don’t, you can make nearly any rock that fits in the egg work.

make weebles

Step 3: A Balancing Act

This is where you’ll hot glue the stones or pebbles into the egg to create the “wobbly person.” It’s easier said than done.

Before adding the hot glue, experiment to get an idea of what position the stone should be in to keep the egg somewhat upright. Obviously, after you add the hot glue, you only have a small time-frame in which to slide the rock around until the glue dries.

If you’re using pebbles, you’ll probably have to add a second layer of glue and some more pebbles, unless you happen to have particularly heavy pebbles.

Now’s not the time to be a perfectionist. As long as the egg didn’t immediately fall over, it was good enough for me!

Important! If you haven’t noticed, the eggs have a slightly-larger-than-pin-sized hole in each end, so be sure to set the egg on a piece of scrap paper or something when you add the hot glue, as a little bit will leak out. Onto your fingers, if you’re holding it (learned from experience).

If you have eggs that don’t stay shut well, add a touch of tacky glue to the edge in a couple spots and wipe away the excess. Or just use scotch tape.

Step 4: Decorate

This is the fun part! You can use paint, paint markers, permanent markers (I let my girls use Sharpies under close supervision), yarn, tissue paper, googly eyes – whatever you want! Tacky glue works best to adhere things, but regular school glue works OK as long as you hold the item in place for a minute.

My girls opted to go relatively simple with theirs.

Step 5: Play!

Once everything’s dry, these are pretty sturdy little things. Ours ended up getting a tour of the house, riding a cat, joining some Little People for dinner, going for a boat ride in a shoe, and who knows what else that I didn’t notice. :)

If you make these, let me know! I’d love to see what some other kids come up with.

Owl Tree Stump Table

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A couple of weeks ago I got a bunch of paint for free on Craigslist. When I got home and went through it all, I found that there were two half-gallons that were nearly 8 years old. Since paint that old has generally deteriorated in quality, I didn’t want to use it on anything important – yet they were pretty yellow and purplish-gray colors that I just couldn’t bring myself not to use at all. So I scoured my house and yard for something that I could paint that it wouldn’t matter if it didn’t turn out great or last well. I looked at a few tree stumps we had sitting around our fire pit from last summer and thought, perfect!

(I forgot to take a before picture, but I think we all know what a tree stump looks like)

I’d been wanting a little table for the patio outside my office, and a prettied-up tree stump would work great. If the old paint produced less-than-ideal results, no big deal, and it didn’t have to last forever (there are no shortage of tree stumps, after all.)

I started by rolling the stump onto a tarp and basically dumping a bunch of the yellow and purple paint on top, then using a brush to smooth it on the bark down the sides. I did this a few times until it was fairly-evenly covered, yet still showed the natural color through.

(Unfortunately I didn’t take any in-process pictures either. I really need to get better at remembering to do this.)

I wanted to add a pop of color, and thought about hand-painting something on top, but since I’m not much of an artist, the results could be questionable. Then I remembered this big felt owl that I had stuck a magnet to and hung on the fridge, and realized it would make a perfect stencil.

Before doing the top I filled in some of the larger gaps with pre-mixed granite. When that dried, I positioned the owl on top, put a few small rocks on it so it wouldn’t move, and applied two coats of bright pink spray paint.

When I took the felt owl off I was pleased with the results, although I did do a little bit of touch up painting with the purplish-gray, and added a few sunbursts on either side.

I ended up spraying just a touch of the pink around the sides to tie it in better with the top.Then I applied a few coats of polyurethane furniture varnish, using a brush to really get it down into the grooves of the bark.

I like the end result, although if I were making this as an indoor end table that I wanted to last indefinitely I would have had to take much more care in drying and washing the stump prior to painting (and probably in varnishing too.) Since it was such a spur-of-the-moment project for me, the bottom of the stump is still damp and unfinished, and so I know this won’t last forever. Still, it was easy, quick, and cheap (free), holds my cup of coffee just fine, and looks cute on my patio next to my work-in-progress pink lawn chair.

pink patio furniture