There's too much stuff: Coping with sensory overload

Face it, people get rid of a lot of crap; from craigslist to the thrift store, to the dumpster and flea market. Here are my tips to finding what you want, for less.

Craigslist
- Search under "free" items first, why should you pay if you can get it for free?
- Use the tool bar when looking under furniture, I typically look at items under $50, that have an image, and are relatively close to my house (this will cut out a tremendous amount of crap)
- I only deal with people that have an email address, it's a time saving issue

Thrift Store
- Some days are good, and some are bad; if its not a good day, move on, don't waste time
- If you're going on 1/2 off or other sale days, get there early to get the best selection and avoid lines

Flea Market
- Bargain, bargain, bargain- never buy something without asking for a lower price (people mark items up for this reason- take advantage of it)
Dumpster
- Keep an eye on older homes that are being remodeled, old doors are a steal
- Find out when trash days are, and go the day before
- Watch for moving trucks, people often throw items out simply because they don't want to move them

Vintage Fabric, Fab Find

One of my favorite things to buy at thrift stores are mismatched chairs. They look great around a table, or as an accent chair in any room. One way to unify a group of mismatched chairs is to paint them all the same color, and re-do the cushions. If you haven't re-upholstered a chair cushion, it's one of the easiest things you can do.
- Flip the chair over, undo the screws
- Use the original fabric as a pattern to cutting out your new fabric
- Use a staple gun, and staple fabric around the edges
- Screw the seat bottom back to the chair, and you're finished
Tip:
- Pay particular attention to the corners, they can be a little tricky. I take the corner of the fabric, and staple it down first, then do the sides.

Don't let peeping Tom see you...

Need a quick and inexpensive fix to cover a window?

Materials:
1. Tension rod (I spray painted this one black)

2. Drapery clips (these came from Target, again, I spray painted them black)

3. Dishtowel (This cute towel came from http://www.worldmarket.com/)

Tip:

Measure your window first to make sure you get a dish towel large enough

Total cost for both windows- $20

Bad Lamp...Good Lamp

You see these everywhere, they're so cheap... and so ugly. I bought this at Goodwill's half off sale (first Saturday of every month) for $2.50. Spray painted it red, and added a funky lamp shade that I already had (which I bought at Target a while back).

Similar lamps sell at http://www.potterybarn.com/ for $139-$219. Save the dough!

Get creative with your FREE stuff

Problem: No kitchen island and no money
Solution: Re-purpose an inexpensive cabinet into focal point.

Since I already had the base cabinet, I only needed to add a "counter" to the cabinet. I wanted something a little eclectic, something that would have the "wow" factor. The idea was to use old newspapers and create a collage. I posted an ad on http://www.freecycle.org/ to see if anyone had any old newspapers. Someone gave me a stack of old newspapers, including some very historic articles. Some newspapers were old, some were not, I found articles, pictures, and even entire pages.

Materials:

1. Old cabinet painted black (this one is from the 1950's, all metal- $30 at some thrift store in Alabama)
2. 2 pieces 30"x42" 3/4" pieces of MDF board (Home Depot/ Lowe's will cut boards for you)

3. Construction adhesive to glue MDF together, and then to glue the boards to the cabinet

4. Old newspapers (again www.freecycle.org)

5. Mixture of 1:1 white glue and water, mix together and cover newspaper onto MDF board

6. Apply 4-5 coats of polyurethane to protect newspapers

7. Add some funky stools, these came from http://www.ikea.com/ ($17 a piece)

The $20 Dresser...word

Dresser- $0 (under free posting on http://www.craigslist.org/)
Paint- $15
Paint brush- $5
Old dentures left from times past- $0

1. Wipe down the remnants from 1980 with damp cloth, lightly sand any imperfections, remove hardware
2. Apply base color of paint, then repeat (make sure to take drawers out and paint separately)
3. Mix black acrylic paint with water (2:1 ratio)
4. Take a soft cloth (think used t-shirt) rub black paint mixture into grooves of wood, immediately wipe off excess.

5. Spray paint hardware black

6. Re-assemble

7. Watch all your friends drool because your furniture kicks more butt than there store-bought pieces, and you paid a ridiculously less.

If you can't hit up a dumpster...what's the next best place?

Here is my TOP 5 list (in a particular order) of where I have found the best deals:

1. http://www.craigslist.org/ (all time favorite)
2. Goodwill Outlet stores (basically you buy everything by the pound)
3. Goodwill Stores (1/2 price everything first Saturday of the month)
4. Salvation Army (sometimes a little pricey for furniture pieces, but still a great place)
5. Thrift Stores
6. Garage Sales (ALWAYS bargain for a lower price)

Tip- If you see something you like, buy it right then, you can always post it on craigslist (possibly for more than you paid) if you decide you don't like it later. If you don't buy it, then chances are, when you go back to get it, it won't be there (trust me on this one).

Love thy bulbs

Bulbs are a great and inexpensive way to add drama to your home. These paper-white bulbs were 10 for $1. I bought 20...how could I resist. Place them in any bowl you have lying around. I put these in small plastic cups, with a little dirt in the bottom, then covered them with moss.

Total at the Thrift Store $6.50

On my latest trip to the thrift store, I am intrigued by the magic of books, and an old basket- my grand total $6.50. You can never have too many baskets. This one, which I bought to use for laundry, has found a better way to live, by housing rolled up blankets in a guest bedroom.

Now, for one of my old tricks. I can't deny...I love books. Old books are a great way to add drama to your decorating. The books that I bought were $0.50 a piece. If I'm looking for books to decorate with, I usually try to look for these 3 things: (1) Classic novels (2) Books that I would like to read (3) Books that have an interesting cover. Always look for books of different heights, thicknesses, and color, they will add instant interest. Here are the books that I bought from the store, and how I used them to add interest. Books are also great to give a small lamp more stature, or to "ground" an item.