Before & After

I found this sweet little foot stool today on a thrifting date with my sweet friend Kelly.

It was right there staring at me when we walked in the door.

I was initially drawn to the beautiful blue fabric.

I knew it would look spectacular with my new rug, picking up some of the blue,

and the slight striations in the fabric were so pretty.

Well then I got a bit cheeky with the stool and flipped up her skirt.

Her legs were to die for! 

Who would cover those beauties up? 

I snipped the stitching on the skirt and carefully pulled it off.

Then I gave the legs a good rub down with Old English.

The stool was perfect.

(pardon all the dog hair! Stella is in dire need of a hair cut and my vacuum took a crap!)

I'd have to say that I think this stool passes the test! 

I'm in love!

Coffee Talks

"Nothing like a vintage hair piece to make you laugh!" - Erin

"Momma Dukes, Cools as a Cuke!" - Jess

30x30

Day 6 was devoted to 

fulfilling the quest for the perfect white shirt.

This crisp clean beauty was a thing of perfection 

hanging there on the thrift store rack.

I feel like I have been searching for this shirt for a life time,

although I really only looked for a few minutes.

#wherehaveyoubeenallmylife

The white button down can be paired with so much,

and something about it instantly made me feel sexy-ish.

See what I wore here!

It was the perfect blank canvas for my new Firmoo glasses,

and my new Lorna Ruth gold glitter earrings!

Thrifty Finds

As promised, here are the goodies that I thrifted at Atomic Living.

I am a sucker for a good vintage skirt.  Being so long waisted and busty I can almost NEVER find a vintage dress that fits me correctly.  So over the years I have learned to just stick with the skirts.

My new "Collette Tours" bag had to come home with me.

It's the perfect size for carrying lots of things and it is super light weight,

but what really got me about it was the fact that it reminds me so much of the 

Paddy Noonan bus tour of Ireland

I went on with my great grandmother as a teen.

Ah memories.

And that vintage Darth Vader action figure carrying case.

You know that I couldn't pass that up for the boy.

He actually spotted it buried in a heap on the back porch of Atomic.

It was filthy, but I knew we had a gem.

I used the same technique to clean it that I talked blogged about here.

These two cuties were found at another local favorite of mine, The Bee's Knees.

This place is a great little treasure box in downtown Lake Worth.

The juice pitcher had been calling my name for a long time now.

I think that I looked at it about 5 different times. 

The last time we were there the sweet old man that works there 

told me he'd give it to me for half off...

he knew how bad I wanted it.  

And that pretty little necklace just spoke to me.

There is something so special to me about a vintage necklace that has stood the test of time.

And I may or may not have plans for this looker!

30x30

I was so excited about today's 30X30! 

Today the boy and I were to visit a local thrift store that we have never been to.

When making this list I knew exactly which establishment I wanted to visit!

ATOMIC LIVING!!!

I have been eye balling this store front for a few weeks, and could no longer 

use the excuse of not knowing where to park.

For those who need to know....

parking is around back.

Entering a store through the back door always feels special to me.

It's as if you know some tiny secret. 

As we walked up onto Atomic Living's back porch, 

I knew that we had stumbled upon a real eclectic gem.

We opened the door to this fantastic site, and my heart started to pitter patter.

Then we heard Gooch's sweet voice from around the corner inviting us in.

This place is like a treasure trove full of goodies.

 Gooch, the owner of Atomic Living and one of the coolest people I have met in a while, quickly took a liking to the boy allowing me to hunt for finds!

I found myself lost in a sea of vintage bathing suits.

When I poked my head around the corner to make sure that my child was behaving himself and being respectful, I was shocked and delighted to find that 

he and Gooch were submerged in a heated game of Operation.

This one tiny detail alone (among many others) has gained her a customer for life.

This store is a perfect combination of vintage, kitch, PBR towers and a whole lot of humor.

Any place that has a feature wall with a bald mannequin wearing a gas mask and a dear head smoking a cigarette has my name written all over it! If you are in the area, you must,

 I repeat must stop at Atomic Living!

You can find Gooch and Atomic Living at

619 N. Dixie Hwy

Lake Worth, FL 33460

Want to see what I bought? 

You will have to stay tuned for my Thrifty Finds post later in the week.

thrifty finds

i had some serious luck the other day at the thrift store.

i think it was the thrift gods in my corner...i haven't been in a really long time, 

so i was due for some seriously amazing stuff.

i have been crushing on pyrex a lot lately and when i saw this

beauty from across the kitchen isle i freaked out!

i was just shy of pushing little old ladies out of my way

so that i could guarantee that mine would be the first hands to grab it.

it was filthy. but under the dirt, caked on grease, 

and chunks of questionable dried food bits, i knew she was a beauty.

so i tried the old baking soda peroxide trick....and viola! 

perfect. 

i also saw this beautiful pot tucked into some other larger ugly pots.

i first noticed the beautiful turquoise color popping through a crack in some lids.

i literally crawled on the floor in between two ladies arguing over a blender,

(did i mention that all this took place on senior citizen day?)

and dug it out of the mess of wrinkled up panty hoed legs, pots and pans and mismatched lids.

i pulled it out and jumped to my feet and shouted from excitement! 

this shout was like firing a gun in a field full of zombies! 

a really good way to draw attention to your fabulous luck. 

by the time i had made it back to the cart that was parked 2 feet away from me...

the vultures were swarming.

i actually had a man take the pyrex bowl out of my cart

and tell me that i shouldn't buy it.  he then tried to take the pot out of my hands.

i must of shoot him an "i will cut you" look. 

i am sure i said something smart assed to go along with that look.

i was a great trip. vintage kitchen goods, old ladies legs, and zombie vultures. 

10 things i couldn't live without this week:

1. broken car A/C i wish i had car A/C
2. the hubs did the easter basket shopping this year.  i just couldn't find the time to get alone and too the store. but i will tell you what...he may be doing it every year! he got great stuff for the boy, but here is the kicker....he knew that we were not going to be able to fill that basket full of candy with out devouring some our self, so he bought candy for us to eat while we were playing easter bunny! love that man! he knows me and my sweet tooth far too well!
3. i borrowed a pattern for some super cute shorts from a friend...they are almost finished!
4. i had a great all day date with the boy on wednesday.  gym, coffee, story time, happy meals, thrift store, ice cream....it was a great day!
5. i can't tell you how excited i am about my amazing vintage kitchen ware finds! i was so lucky this week! i can't stop starring at the cabinets! haha
6. we met up with my dad, stepmom, and baby sister on thursday at Seaworld! it's my new/old favorite place! it was my favorite as a kid and now it's my favorite place to take my kid!
7. the hubs had a friend over for a paint/skate man-date. it was so nice to see him getting "him" time.  doesn't hurt that his buddy sam is a great guy!
8. surfing is not like riding a bike. it's been around 8 years since i have surfed on a regular basis. needless to say it felt great to get my board in the water on sunday, but i got my butt kicked! drank a lot of sea water. at one point when the life guards started blowing their whistles at me i thought it was because they were going to come rescue me....they just wanted me to move. i felt a bit defeated and the hubs had to have a conversation with me about my "bad attitude" (which i was later able to laugh at - i was really embarrassed by my poor performance). moral of the story....i need to surf try not to drown practice more.
9. i can even begin to tell you how lucky i am to have a husband that is good in emergency situations.  the dog ran full speed into the boy last night, resulting in a face slammed into the concrete.  needless to say there was a skinned face, busted lip, and a whole lot of tears.  what do i do? panic, turn white at the sight of the boys blood, and have to leave the room while the initial assessment is made so that i don't freak the poor kid out. the hubs, on the other had, must have been a paramedic in a former life. he just jumped right into that bloody mess and saved the day.
10. we had the most unconventional easter sunday supper of my entire life.  after all the chaos settled down with the boys face, we were hungry and it was late.  too late to really start cooking dinner. a good fact to know: chinese take out delivers on easter.

thrifty finds

i couldn't be more excited for this weeks thrifty finds! and with the grand opening of my new etsy store i am finding myself thrifting through a whole new set of eyes. it used to all be for me and the boy, but i am seeing the potential all around me! 

the first thing that  i found....literally sitting out side the door of the store just waiting for me... was this beautiful watering can.  i don't think that it's old, as a matter of fact i am pretty positive that it's not. BUT i have been wanting/needing a watering can for years. i refused to spend the money on a brand new, generic looking can. i told myself that i would wait until i found one at a garage sale of thrift store. currently i have been using a recycled milk jug...you know i am only kinda ghetto sometimes. hehe. but look at this beauty! oh she is just so cute. and $2. perfect. see ya later milk jug.

then i was pleased to find these super cute vintage seafoam green earrings. they remind me of gum balls. they are enamel coated metal, and while huge (they are literally the size of large gum balls) and kinda on the heavy side, they are super unique and retro. and with my current obsession with the color i am not sure if i am going to put them in the store or in my jewelry collection. 

also not pictured, due to the fact that he insisted on taking it to bed for his nap, the boy found a pretty cool monster truck. the owner of the store was kind enough to pull in down out of storage and gift it to him. i think that it was because he was so impressed with his chattiness. the old man and the boy sat on a sofa and talked for a good ten minutes about cars and life while i perused the store. love that place! hope you have a great weekend and happy thrifting!

thrifty finds

had some serious luck at the thrift store this week. i was so excited to find this vintage "p" cloisart pendant and the adorable vintage strawberry broach (that i am going to jazz up to make it double as a pendant). both of these items are going to come with some future fantastic news for you and turquoise violets.

i also found this shirt that i love oh so much. well i actually saw it on the sale rack at the bee's knees on sunday and didn't get it. then i spent the next 24 hours thinking about it and lucky me it was still there when i went back. and now it is mine in all of it's oversized bright red glory!

thrifty finds

dropped into the massive "walmart-esque" thrift store down the street today. got luck and found these black enzo angiolini flats ($3) for myself and a backpack with detachable lunch box ($4) for the boys first day of school! score.

thrifty finds

hit up my favorite little gem of a thrift store today.  once again i have left there just giddy with my finds. i have been dying for a skinny belt and made out like a bandit with this mahogany vintage gucci belt ($0.75) and this amazing turquoise vintage pierre cardin ($1.50).  in the quest for more black and white work clothes i found this super cute men's style blazer ($1.00), it may need a tiny bit of altering, but for one dollar we can make that happen.  i can't really say enough about those sunglasses ($2.00). you know when you try on a pair and you just know they are perfect before you even look in the mirror....yup that's these glasses. so for a whopping $5.25, i'd say i had quite the score.

10 things i couldn't live without this week:

1. the boys best little lady friend is back in town! we spent the whole week hanging at the beach and water park with v and her mommy! so happy to have our friends back.

2. the cutest little puppet show at the lake worth library.

3. taco tuesday at tijuana flats. yummy.

4. fixed up those bracelets. don't forget to check them out and leave a comment for your chance to win.

5. sock monkey surgery.

6. road trip to longboat key....my favorite beach in florida. the hubs family had a little beach weekend getaway...it was amazing, even if it did rain most of the trip.

7. florida thunder storms. not only did we really need the rain, but there isn't much better to falling asleep to a beautiful lightening storm over the ocean.

8. the mote aquarium. if you are ever in sarasota, you should check out this amazing aquarium. the boys face was just light up the whole time we were there.

9. my new kitchenaid mixer! well new to me anyway. my sister-in-law is an amazing cake artist. with demands growing for her beautiful and delicious cakes, she needed a bigger mixer, so that meant it was time to retire he 30+ year old mixer to me. i have dreamed about a vintage white mixer for years and years. it is beautiful and i can't stop staring at it.

10. thrift store shopping in a new city. we went to an amazing estate sale in a retirement community...wait until you see the cutie pie dress that i added to my collection.

thrifty finds.

this weeks thrifty finds come from that same amazing thrift store that the hubs found. if you are into old lady fashions like i am this is the place to be. here's what i got:

$3 for a set of two of the cutest and squishiest pillows. i just love this shade of mustard yellow, and our couches could use a little makeover. $0.50 for this vintage elastic belt, couldn't turn that down. and i have been wanting a pair of moccasins for as long as i can remember. found these for just $3 and by the looks of the soles they have never been worn. too bad i will probably have to wait a few months before i can wear them...it's too hot now.

thrifty finds.

this weeks thrifty finds come from a new thrift store adventure.

a few months ago, on the quest for the perfect bike shop, the hubs discovered a consignment shop that i had never heard of. well, the catch is that he couldn't really remember the name, or exactly where it was, he just knew that he saw it. gotta love that man. so for months now every time we were in that area of town we searched without any luck.

well i just found it! i wasn't even looking. isn't that how it always goes? and oh is it ever glorious!

anyway this is what my $4 got me.

this little dress is about as sweet as can be. it's vintage. it's handmade. and it doesn't fit. isn't that fantastic? i am having a bit of a moral dilemma... do i alter it to fit me? or do i leave it alone in it's perfect condition and let someone with a micro-waist love it as much as i want to? oh and did you notice the adorable buttons that go all the way down the back?

i love linen. i love pencil skirts. the only thing i love more than a linen / pencil skirt combo is a bright yellow linen pencil skirt. i got this for a mardi gras costume, but you can bet your bottom that you will see it on me again and again and again!

10 things i couldn't live without this week:

1. a well spent $10 at world thrift. this exceeds my normal couple dollar budget, but i just couldn't turn these down. after doing a little research i think the fiesta ware purchase might be the buy of the year. i priced out one cup and saucer set at about $40. that was a very good $5 spent. and then the linen blazer that i got the hubs fit's like it was tailored for him. my trick worked! and the hubs got some sweet new digs for his birthday to wear under that blazer.

2. getting to see all my lake worth mommy buddies. i love all these inspiring and talented ladies! their maybe a surprise here in the future.....all depends on what the mommy ladies say.

3. swimming pool playdates.

4. turquoise violets first ever homemade giveaway. don't forget to enter for your chance to win.

5. my impromptu trip to orlando for two important ladies.

6. lady #1. my momma. sometimes i need my momma, but sometimes my momma needs me.

7. lady #2. my favorite lady, Ms. Z if ya nasty. we had a mini farewell party at house of blues to see the Darling Cavaliers. they were amazing. saying goodbye to Jess was not. i take that back. in the past few years she and i have become so much closer than friends. she is my teacher, my shoulder, my colleague, my therapist, my inspiration. and i could not be more proud that she is doing it. she is jumping out of an airplane without a parachute, and she is going to land on one foot with so much laughter and grace.

8. the hubs birthday. when i met the hubs there was a strictly enforced "no celebrating the birthday" rule. it brings the utmost joy to my heart to see how much he enjoys his birthdays now. i have worked hard over the past 5 years to make it that way.

9. some fantastic haircuts given out by your's truly. now if i could just corner the boy....he's looking like he needs a trim.

10. auditioning for the one month to win it contest. keeping my fingers crossed.

thrifty finds.

with all the vacationing and company i've been a bit behind with everything else. so this is two weeks worth of thrifty finds.

the first two were from my favorite kind of garage sale, "the cleaning out of the old lady house". i scored this cutie pie dress and a to die for pristine condition vintage purse for only $2.

then today i hit up my favorite local thrift store and found this linen sport coat for the hubs. for $4, it looks like it's never been worn and it's a perfect fit. and icing on the cake this week was the start of my fiesta ware collection. for years now i have been wanting to start picking up piece by piece, until i had a bit of a collection. i didn't realize that everyone and the mother was collecting and how pricey some of the pieces could get. so i vowed to collect, slowly, and on a budget. i found this set of 8 tea cups and 9 saucers for $5.

have you found any thrifty finds lately that you are proud of?

10 things i couldn't live without this week:

1. beach days with a friend that is leaving for a little while. can't wait to see you again.

2. the major pile of treasures scored this week. i spent way more that my yard sale budget, but my favorite lady and her man were here and that meant thrift stores and flea markets galore.

3. my favorite lady and her man were for 4 days. best week ever.

4. bad itchy sunburns and the adventure walks on the beach.

5. skype.

6. this fantastic website that i just discovered and this cutie pie dress that i can't wait to get.

7. the hubs momma was in town friday night. which meant saturday morning yard sales. this is one of my favorite things to do, this woman knows just how to yard sale.

8. ring pops and pride fest.

9. saturday nigh cook outs with grilled zucchini.

10. my new favorite sweet treat....dark chocolate zucchini cake, this may replace the brownie.

thrifty finds.

this is from last weeks yard sales. i spent a whooping grand total of $2. small brass mirrored box, 3 vintage flower frogs, 2 tea towels, tin (that might be a gift for a friend), and belt. not bad for $2.