Thrifting and A Garden Clean Up

I am very busy cooking today, I will post it in the next couple of days, so today I am posting a few recent thrift shop finds and the first attempt to clean up the garden. I paid a dollar for this necklace and these 2 bracelets cost 95 cents each and still had the tags on them.


Another nice basket for 99 cents.


We are only 220 days away from Halloween and this blow mold only cost 2.95, so I just could not pass it up!


Another cute little table for 2.95.


This is a vintage ashtray. I added the eggs. 99 cents.


I got these 3 trellises for 3.95.


Another 99 cent basket.


This heavy sterling tray was only 99 cents.


The Rogers sticker is still on it.


Two unused boxes of Kerr canning lids. I think they were 59 cents.


This is a nice old broom.


It is very well made. I would love to know where this came from. It's only about 2 1/2 feet long so too small to ride.


Oh boy do I have plans for all these little boxes in my future mosaics.



Whenever I see a blue and white plate, I pick it up because I want to do a blue and white mosaic table.




I am going to mosaic the top on this 2.95 nightstand. I am also going to mosaic the inside on the bottom.


My sink is not open yet but it sure was time to clean this area up after a long tough winter.


I took all the shelves off and scrubbed the counter. This counter top is made from the old blue stone pavers which made up the original walkway around my house.


With the shelving back in place and all of the dirt gone it actually looks decent.


If you look closely, you can see the dead bottoms of my arborvitaes. After my maples leaf out, there is little light in this area and the roots from the trees dry up the ground. I have tried to grow every ground cover possible and nothing has worked. Does anyone have any suggestions as to what might grow here?


The cast cat doorstop I recently found looks particularly devious in front of the bird house.

* Back tomorrow with food!

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Comments

Those baskets are really cheap! Óver here they´are so expensive that 99 cents is nothing :-) :-)

I do like that little nightstand too. Looking forward to see it mosaiced (can one write like that :-) :-) ).

Have You tried different geraniums as ground cover? Like Geranium macrorrhizum or Geranium x cantabrigiense. They usually works in most places. Or perhaps Asarum europaeum? that can live very dry without problems. A slow starter but then it spreads nicely.
Have a great cooking day now!
Christer.
brokenteepee said…
I know nothing about things that grow. I tend to kill all except spider plants.
*sigh*

I think the kitty looks cute.
Whoo Hooo great thrift finds. I love the little bird ashtray. Can't wait to see the nightstand mosaic. I think the cat doorstop in front of the birdhouse is esp cute!!!
Sharon Day said…
That Jack-O-Lantern is just too cool! Under the maple/arbor vitae---have you tried hostas? Or let English ivy sprawl across the ground? You might consider using a woodbark mulch and just leave it if nothing grows. I would so love to be sitting out in your garden! I'm working on mine now--it's in the 80s here, so everything is going insane, but I haven't determined how to make little "rooms" in my yard to have private places to take the laptop and write. I think today on my day off, I'll go hit the garden shops and get some inspiration. You got me all excited to work on it.
Hi! Have you tried moneywort as ground cover in the area you mentioned? I love the stuff, but it can be a little invasive.

Peace,
Chris......
pastrywitch said…
My garden is under a foot of new snow. But my neighbor spared me hours of backbreaking shovelling (we're on the corner) by showing up with his snowblower. Now the sun is out, and in a few days it's supposed to be 70. Springtime in the Rockies :)
Can't wait to see more mosaics - it's a great medium.
Good heavens, Joyce! You cleaned up!
I espcially like the broom. Now that is just plain charming! Love the little cat door stop too.
I just bought one recently..in a thrift shop.
But...alas, mine is glass. Lovely though. We are definitely Autumn people. I am also looking ahead to the Fall season..my favorite.
Mona
Your background is just beautiful. Blossoms...perfect Springtime background! Someone does my background also. Wish I knew how...but I don't.
Love is in the air right along with Spring....I love the blossom background, the new side bar, the new button (which I updated on my blog), all the thrifties; most especially the broom, the bird nest ash tray w/eggies....the garden shelves cleaned up real good. Great job Jaz.

Loves to Teddy....and Happy Spring dayzzzz....having some real fun visiting your blog!
I guess if I was as smart as you I'd be hitting up the 2nd hand stores - ALL THE TIME! I can't believe the great bargains you find.
Teddy is such a cutie!
I REALLY want to go to your thrift shop! I love everything, and the price is out of this world!
Hey you guys...Hello...
nice thrifting...
I am IN LOVE BIG TIME with that Jack O Lantern...what a HUGE SCORE!

and love the brooms too...and I have that cast iron cat doorstop...excatly like it but mine is all black....

still crying...but not ALL DAY.

3 weeks today...still going...can't believe i am still here..i had my doubts..i really did.

a little bit better today...was it you that told me i wouldn't be able to breathe for a month..whoever said it was right...

i am knitting Lil Buddy a blankie..it helps..and keeping a journal of all this...i know someday i'll look back and go OMG!

remember that :-(

more later and hugs to teddy
kary
xxx
Cindi Myers said…
I'm loving those trellises!
Lin said…
Oooh, you got some treasures there. :) And your kitty looks adorable down there by the bird house.

Try Lily of the valley--they'll grow just about anywhere. They spread like wildfire though, so be forewarned. The smell is lovely when they are blooming.
Melodie said…
My favorite has to be the vintage ash tray! It is so hard to find things like that is such good shape! And probably no one else has one!
Sharlene T. said…
You gotta sleep sometime and, when you do, I'm gonna slip over there and entice that kitty cat to my container garden. He'll scare the real ones away and won't that be nice? I knew you'd understand.
Rue said…
I love the cat door-stop!

The only thing that I can think of to grow in a dead area is mint. It's invasive and will take over, and it's hard to kill. Won't harm the tree though. I've had mint come up everywhere, so perhaps it will grow in full shade too?
I Wonder Wye said…
you found some great bargains. Your place looks awesome! A few years ago, a friend came to visit while I was recovering from surgery. I had grass planted between my concrete pavers on the terrace that I cultivated. While I was napping, she had dug it all up!!!! Gulp. I didn't say anything - didn't want it to feel bad -- but it never grew back. have you tried herbs?? I am trying for moss but our raccoons keep digging in it....
Danni said…
Ohhhh....a blo-mold!! I was seriously obsessed with blo-molds back when I lived in the city. Nowadays, everyone is into the giant inflatable things that you have to blow up with a huge fan. Give me a rigid piece of colorful plastic shaped into a cool animal any day! lol
(Let's see, in my garage I've got 2 penguins, Frosty the snowman, a polar bear, a giant green alien, a little gnome....) :-)

What great finds you always come home with.
Suzie said…
When I see your patio it makes me want to go rip ours out and start all over. I got talked into using the left over concrete from our garage and driveway, and in only a couple of years, it is cracked and uneven, and has always lacked any sort of warmth. The only plus is that I now have moss growing on it on the shady side!

I LOVE all of your decor..one could browse for hours in your gardens.

Have you tried growing wild ginger in your problem area? Or False Solomon's Seal? I think that those are both native to your area too, and should do fine.

As for your treasures, you once again hit the jackpot! I too love baskets, and I especially love your trellises and the brooms! Brooms are another favorite of mine. Little broom? Little witch! A standard size would be too much for someone with a learner's permit to handle. Less damage in landing this way.

And rest assured, I'd never get a cat declawed. I know all of the arguments for it, but to do so takes away their basic defense. Right now, we have two cats (all of ours are totally indoor kitties) rescued from outside,from separate owners, that were declawed, then thrown out to fend for themselves. One has been with us for 6 years, and the other for 3, and they seem extremely content. And I tease about Mysti, but she truly is my love. Of course, I say that about all of our furry friends, depending upon which one I am holding at the time! This is the first period in a long time that I haven't had a dog, and sometimes I really miss one in the house, especially when I look at Teddy. I've always had cats at the same time too, with the co-habitating just fine. But I've got my hands full with everything going on here, and think it wouldn't be fair to a dog..but if one showed up at my gate, I know that I wouldn't turn it away.