Commas Save Lives

What?!  You don't believe me?  Well, just look at the two sentences below and see if you disagree.

Let's eat, Grandpa!           vs.           Let's eat Grandpa!

See what I mean?  This is important stuff my friends!  A few years ago my girls and I read the book Eats, Shoots, and Leaves: Why, Commas Really Do Make a Difference and really enjoyed it.   It's definitely worth checking out from your local library if you haven't read it.  Lots of good stuff in there!

Knowing how important punctuation is, can you imagine how excited we were when Big Daddy and I came across this little cutie on one of our typography quests?  Isn't she pretty!?  I've been admiring all of the marquee letters on Etsy and thought this lovely would be the perfect place to start.  Big Daddy did his electrical thing and I added a little trim to the inside and I must say that I absolutely adore her!

Say, you know what the real problem with this thrifting/upcycling lifestyle is?  You want to keep every last fabulous thing.  I do keep a few from time to time but this one I'm going to share.  (I've already called dibs on the first pi and ampersand we come across, don't you worry.)  I think I'll hang her in my bedroom for now, you know, just to keep her safe and all.  In the mean time you folks watch that punctuation.  Commas really can save lives!

Borrowed Thrift

I've been thrifting for a long time and you know what that means...  I have a LOT of stuff.  Yes, it's fabulous stuff but even if you put a bunch fabulous things together it's still just a pile of stuff.  And my piles are piling up.  That means it's time to start sharing some of my favorite things in the shop.
I think I'll begin with a couple of vintage Disney serving trays I found some time ago and fell in love with instantly.  The old school graphics are absolutely charming.  And can you just imagine using them to serve at your next backyard barbeque?  I can.........(queue dream sequence)............................................
 The Eames chairs resting comfortably on the bright green AstroTurf covered patio....me in my ruffled half apron exiting through the sliding glass door with these trays held high...the brightly colored shiny aluminum tumblers full of icy Tom Collins nestled safely in the souvenir of our most recent Disney vacation...in the other hand a plate of deviled eggs, carefully sprinkled with my best Hungarian paprika and garnished with curly parsley on the side. (Oh my, maybe I'm not ready to let go just yet.)  But the truth is that I don't have the Astro Turf to really put these babies to good use so I'm going to have to pass them along to someone more worthy of their retro charm.  And that is one of the things that is the most fun about this thrifting life.  I get to spend some time with all of these lovely things before passing them along.  It's sort of like borrowing from a friend.  Yes, that's exactly what it feels like.  And now it's time to send them off to someone who does have the patio to put them to use.  (I just hope they invite me to the shin-dig.  I could use a good Tom Collins!)

On this day

Twenty two years ago today my life was changed forever.  I was eighteen and had only been out of the house a few weeks when it happened.  Sitting in a dance club for the first time with my best friend, feeling very insecure and nervous, I was approached by a cutie who wanted to dance.  Because it was early and the dance floor was wide open I just couldn't do it.  I asked him to come back later when more people were dancing and thank goodness he did!  We spent that evening together, and the next and the next, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Fifteen years ago today we were married in a small ceremony in an historic downtown Austin restaurant.  It was a day we had worked towards for a very long time, scrimping and saving and planning..and it was all worth it.  Surrounded by family and our closest friends we celebrated the love we had found and the future family we were so very looking forward to.
Today, Big Daddy is still a risk taker and I'm still playing it safe.  Together we are an unstoppable team and balance each other perfectly.  I am grateful that we have made this incredible journey together and look forward to the many adventures yet to come.
Happy Anniversary Big Daddy!

A, B, C's

Last fall I took my first trip to Marburger Farms and found myself blown away by all of the beautiful things.  Two of my favorite trends were the industrial equipment used as every day furniture and the heavy use of typography in absolutely every space.  I became inspired by the letters and started gathering them on my thrifting adventures.  I now have a serious supply of Scrabble tiles as well as some plastic marquee readerboard letters and use them gratuitously around the house.  They are lovely little reminders of the things I want to focus on and can really pack a visual punch when decorating.

I was mostly content with my little letters and while I continued to lust after the large industrial ones I simply could not bring myself to spend the big bucks to purchase them.  (Why is it that people sell salvaged items for so much money?!)  Well lookie what I came across this week!  Can you believe it?!  These beauties were destined for the landfill and I was able to work a deal and save their little lives.  (That, and managed to severely embarrass my 10 year old...but that's not unusual.)  I brought them home and got straight to work scrubbing, disassembling (not as easy as I thought it would be), and even enlisted Big Daddy's help in turning a couple into lamps.  It's hard to tell from the picture but these beauties range from 18 inches or so to almost 3 feet.  That's right, 3 feet!  My living room is like a trippy version of Sesame Street right now and I just couldn't be happier about it.  Now I am very excited and hopeful that someday I'll find the perfect ampersand, or maybe even a pi symbol.  Oh, can you even imagine it?!  For now I'll be content to sing the alphabet song all day and wait for these lovelies to find their forever homes.  Oh!  And if you happen to come across a 1950's factory that is closing their doors and giving away their heavy duty assembly tables you just let me know!

For now I'll leave you with this little trip down memory lane.  Enjoy!  Sesame Street - Learning About Letters

Not So Slow Summer

Every year when the weather heats up I start to dream.  I imagine long summer days sitting by the pool, late nights walking through the neighborhood, and indulgently late mornings with nowhere to go.  It feels the same every spring, but that is never our reality.  Instead we seem to spend our time picking up fun little things here and there until I don't know which way is up.

This here is my friend Nellie.  She lives at my mother's little farm and pretty much sums up the way I've been feeling lately.  I'm hoping to take a little break and see if I can wrap my head around all the changes and rearranges around here.

Bad News, Good News

Big Daddy and I have come to the conclusion that we have too much awesome stuff.  As cool as it all is we are seriously running out of space for it, so it's time to downsize a bit.  But how?  We decided the first thing to do is slash prices in the Etsy shop.  So, until we are able to sell a good portion of these lovelies (and easily walk thru the bedroom without fear of knocking something over) they will be at rock bottom prices.  Just think of it as our early Christmas present to you.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Blue Gal

Grunge Thrifting

Hi, I'm Christi and I'm a thrifting geek.  Not just any thrifting, mind you. I prefer the dirty, you have to dig to find the good stuff and be careful not to loose a finger, kind of thrifting.  Somehow the pretty stores with their treasures all lined up and dusted off just aren't doing it for me these days.  Don't misunderstand me, you can still find lots of amazing things at the pretty places but I need to feel like I earned it.  Besides, I believe these things are on a sort of death row for junk and that every piece I buy is saving a lovely from the landfill, which makes me extra happy.


One of my favorite hangouts lately is the Goodwill Outlet Center, also known around town as "The Bins".  That's right, they sell the things that didn't make the cut at the regular Goodwill.  (Frightened yet?)  Honestly you can find some pretty amazing things here but you have to be willing to dig for them and deal with some seriously aggressive shoppers.  And guess what?  Everything in the store is $1.39 a pound.  Nice, huh?  You fill your shopping cart up, roll it onto a large scale, and that's that. 

If you're looking for the Goodwill Outlet near you I suggest checking out this site.  (That's what I did prior to the last family road trip!  More about that later.)  Also, I have a few hints and tips to keep in mind.  First and foremost, be careful!  These bins are loaded with stuff and there is no organization whatsoever.  You could be reaching for an embroidered linen tablecloth and not see the broken glass sitting just underneath it.  Broken glass, knives, and sharp objects of all kinds are all over the place so be on the lookout.  Some people wear gloves to protect themselves but I find that they just make me clumsy and that I'm safer without them.  You'll have to decide what works best for you and go for it.

You should also be prepared for some serious funk.  Yes, pack the hand sanitizer but don't fool yourself, it's likely you'll run into a few things that your handy dandy cleaning gel isn't going to be able to help you with.  I have come across live bugs, rotten food, dirty diapers, and even a dead rat.  Just when you think you've seen it all you will find yourself surprised, that I can assure you.  If you're still interested then I suggest you make your way to a Goodwill Outlet immediately.  And when you do, please drop me a line and let me know how it went.  I just can't wait to hear all about it!