I Was Framed

Remember when I showed you a mirror that I got at a local thrift shop?

Well, this weekend it went into transformation mode.

First, I did a little online looking for information about the mirror (utilizing an original sticker and trademark on the back). I am not one to encourage decreasing or defacing the value of something old - if it's worth a nice chunk. But if it's just so-so - then I say do what you want to make it more likeable for you. And if I have the information available, I usually try to do a little research on the item before making any changes to it.

So this is a Syroco Mirror. I took about  1 1/2 hours searching the internet for possible value of the piece that set me back $7.00. Most everything that I could find that was similar to it was in the $25 to $50 range. Now, don't get me wrong - $50 is a nice price - but I decided to bite the (gold) bullet and spray paint the gold mirror frame away anyway with my handy-dandy heirloom white.

After considerable consideration (well, maybe about 5 minutes) I decided that, for now anyway, I wanted to just hang the frame by itself and leave the mirror out.

I thought this little candle sconce hanging on the door on my back porch might like some company.

A couple small nails later, it was up. I liked it.

What do you think?

IMPORTANT DUMB NOTE:  This morning when I jumped on the internet while preparing this post, I did a quick search for the Syroco name again - you know, just to make sure I spelled it correctly. What do you think was the FIRST google search that came up in the list? Yup - a picture of a mirror - not exactly - but very similar to mine - valued at $299.  What?  Where was that picture when I was searching on Saturday? Either I was extremely blind or it was posted after my very thorough weekend search.

So what's a girl to do? I had no choice but to just giggle and shake my head. Another financial opportunity in ruins.

Picture Perfect

It's wool time...
I actually did a piece similar to this a couple years ago - but kind of forgot about it until now. So, I've resurrected the idea and created a "picture" to post on my Etsy page (The Lavendar Tree).

The frame was an old tag-sale find that has been sitting in my shed for some time now. After blowing the dust off it, I grabbed a can of spray paint (one of my close friends!) and coated it white. Then I decopaged torn pieces of an old, yellowed dictionary or textbook of some sorts around the frame. I topped it off with the word "blossom" to add a little extra whimsy.

I used a wool blanket for the background, and recycled felted sweaters and vintage buttons for the flowers. The flower stems are made of the "seams" from the sweaters - don't ever throw those away - they have a bajillion uses!

I'll let you know if it sells or not. If it's well received I'd love to make more because it was quite fun. Heck, even if no one likes it, I think I'll make more. Half the fun is in the making - and half the fun is in the liking. :-)

Have a blessed 4th of July if I don't talk to you sooner!