Belly up to the bar...cart.

Happy Halloween! Or is it? I'm not a huge fan (in fact, I think you either are or you're not), and I feel like a bit of a scrooge saying this, but...I'm not handing out candy this year. In fact, I didn't even decorate because I just didn't have it in me. My halloween decor consists of one glittery skull and a fake pumpkin...so that just makes me lazy, right? Ah well, maybe next year. My sister will be holding down the fort & handing out candy to all the kids that insist on pushing each other on our stairs for that god forsaken Twix bar. Note to self: remove my precious mums from the danger zone.

Okay, moving along! Something that's not halloween related? I just finished working for my first client! Okay, so that client would be my sister, but everyone has to start somewhere, right?! We found this retro tea cart with the intention of turning it into a bar cart. Tea, booze. Tomato, tomatoe.

The four removeable trays were rather scrufty (yes, it's a word), so I needed to figure out a way to cover the existing surface which was half faux wood, half laminate. Yummy. Lucky for me, my sister is pretty laid back, and with the exception of the color of the cart (she chose black), I was given free reign to figure out the rest.

First, I thought about decopage. But then I realized I have ZERO experience in that arena. So my genius ways led me to a local hardware store, where the helpful sales guy cut me 4 pieces of double pane glass. I made sure to bring ALL four trays with me, just to make sure they were all the same size--which they were. Whew! Can you imagine having to go back for MORE glass in the event that they weren't?! I did opt to forgo the finished edging, as it would have been more expensive. Which, I'm sure I'll regret that decision the next time I try to ch-ch-change things up & cut a huge hole in my hand.

Then the cart got 3 coats of paint, and the trays got 2. As you can see, I wasn't particular about spraying the trays, since my plan was to line them with paper or fabric...

And in the spririt of using what you've got, I lined the trays with some leftover wallpaper from the real, real entryway. My sister was totally cool with the look...so bonus points to me for saving us some cash along the way.

Woot, woot! Looks good, right? Let's get this party started!

The amazing glassware is courtesy of our mom....she scored those silver polka dot babies for $20 at a local thrift/junk shop, and they're in amazing condition! The vintage cocktail shaker is also a gift from my mom...a nod to my sister's old riding days.

We've since added new booze & accessories to the cart and I'm happy to report the end result is 100% sister approved! Pumpkin martinis anyone? Now that's the halloween spirit!

Long time, no post

Long time, no post! I have little time to write anything of substance today, but I'm alive. And alive is certainly a good thing...especially after the fun, whirlwind weekend of yore. I'll be back with a full update later this week! Can you guess what I was up to?

I'll be back tomorrow with an update on the real, real entryway. Until then, happy Monday to all!

Vintage Ice Crushers

Say what? It's July?! What's happening to summer? It's going way too fast. We headed out of town over the long weekend (an update on that soon...'soon' as in tomorrow, not 3 weeks from now), and I got a chance to catch up on the July issue of Martha Stewart Living.

I'm not a regular reader, unless of course, the cover catches my eye. Seriously (or 'bible' if you're a Kardashian). But would you look at those firecracker cookies? Why, yes please! Anyway, my mom's friend (hi Pam!) told us there was an article in this month's issue about vintage ice crushers. Remember the one I purchased a few short months ago?

Truth be told, I got nostalgic & bought this particular one because my parents had it when I was growing up. Plus I thought its vintage vibe fit our 'old' meets new kitchen. But did you know these ice crushers are a hot collectors item? Well, consider me in the know (ha, I wish!). If you google 'vintage ice crushers' you'll get a whole slew of items to peruse. But here are some lovelies from Etsy that caught my eye...

A turquoise Ice-O-Mat from seller Miss Hettie's...

A lovely little red number from Forgotten KC...

I love his pink one (with a removable ice bucket) from seller Looking for Yesterday...

Yellow & white from Hello Pretty...

Energy for the Soul is selling this fun retro ice crusher...



A search on Etsy also turned up these items that my family had too. Old fashioned ice cube trays...

Forgotten KC

And a vintage Tap-Icer...



Gypsy General Store

What can I say, our family liked ice.

If you're in the market for one of these, they'll set you back around $15-$30. Which makes me feel like I wasn't ripped off at $25. Whew.

Anyone want to come over for a frozen margarita?!