Shoppin’ and Junkin’ – Page 22

Craigslust

Nice Craigslist weekend.Â As some may remember, I’ve been lusting after some Woodard Sculptura for years now, but couldn’t find the right deal for my budget.Â My Crafty Counterpart assures me that a little mig welding is well within his comfort zone, soooooo…challenge accepted.

I manage to find both a loveseat and a chaise, (yeah, a freakin’ chaise!) which need our love for $200…and an hours drive from here.Â MmmmHmmmm.Â I’m happy, they’re happy…the sellers were these groovy mid-century furniture dealers turned miniature horse farmers (craziest, cutest damn things I’ve seen in ages).

I have houseguests coming this week and can’t wait/MUST use them, so I might just add cushions until the welding can be done. The chaise needs a heat gun and some WD-40 to allow the back to adjust as it has rusted in the current position…no worries though…it will be fine.Â I’ll post some pics once they are cleaned up and repainted.

Ring A Ding Ding

Fun for froogs….and the whole family…for only $11!Â The ring game is rumored to have been invented by Ernest Hemingway in Bimini many moons ago, and the Highlands, NC based company that sells them is sticking with that story.Â True or not, the game is addictive and able to be played by anyone tall enough to reach the ring…grab a stool and the toddler can probably play too.Â Just swing the ring until you hook it…or not.

Calder Conundrum

I scored this Alexander Calder print on one of my junking expeditions…but was disappointed in the lack of information available on the Calder Foundation website.Â I knew that the original drawing was done at the same time he was performing his “Cirque” while living in Paris…but I needed to know more.

I remembered that Rago Arts, one of my favorite auction houses, has sold quite a bit of his work, so I headed over and found my piece right away!Â Â Apparently a portfolio of 12 drawings were printed commercially in the 60’s…so I’m guessing that’s what I have.Â No title, but at least a bit more info.Â Now to figure out to clean it up a bit..I’d love to get rid of the water damage.Â Back to research….

Here is a performance of his Circus…It’s really something.

Alexander Calder Performing His Cirque

Hot Vinyl

Gotta love upcycling.Â I was really pleased to see all the “back to school” upcycled products at Target this summer.Â Nothing like a Capri-Sun pencil case.

Anyway, this works for me on many levels.Â sofa city sweethearts has made this pendant from 3 45s and 1 LP.Â It has a mod, feminine, yet sinister quality I’m drawn to…..like ruffles on a biker suit…..

Bringing a Burke Back

One of my more recent junking expeditions yielded a nice Burke, Saarinen style tulip chair. I had just read the posts here, and here on fiberglass shell restoration so I was feeling pretty confident that the condition of the fiberglass wouldn’t be an issue. Granted, all of the posts I’d found focused on the colored Herman Miller/Eames shells, but the consensus seemed to be that white ones were easy too…just coat with a different sealer to avoid yellowing…simple enough right?

Armed with different grits of sanding sponges, I start at it…at first it looks like the dirt is coming off easily…until I realize the white grit I am sanding off is just filling in all the gouges and as soon as I wipe it clean…it’s there again.Â This continues for several hours over 3 days.Â Even with wet sanding..the itchy arm syndrome exists.

Finally, I realize I need to just let it go and say enough is enough…it will never be perfect and I wouldn’t have wanted it if it were, so just seal the damn thing already.Â I used a spray lacquer/high gloss clear coat and it just kept sucking it in.Â I had considered linseed oil, but liked the low maintenance a sprayed coating would provide.

I had a few fabric scraps in the attic I tried to picture it with…but I think at the end of the day…I want a pretty obnoxious print on here so the search continues to complete the job….

Garage Inspiration

I’ve been trying to figure out how we can give our garage door a modern DIY makeover…or a budget replacement door.Â This is the look I’m drawn to at the moment, but I’m not sure how difficult it would be to simply install metal on top of the “wood” material we currently have…..if anyone has done this, I’d love to hear about it.

OR… perhaps if we had to replace rather than refurbish..we could do something like this?

Wood/Stainless Garage Door from Hill Country Door — Wood/Stainless Garage Door via Hill Country Door

But I keep coming back to the copper….but that’s too much metal, right?Â Boy, these are cool though….but no…must… resist… urge… for more metal….

Copper Garage Door via jo91150's Flickr Feed

STAINLESS-STEEL-GARAGE-DOOR IDC — Stainless Garage Door via IDC