When it comes to a chrome table, buy new

img_3260A lot of people come to this blog looking for things related to chrome tables — particularly those chrome tables that are covered with the cracked ice Formica. I myself was in that same place about a year and a half ago when I first got a wild hair to obtain one such table. Red cracked ice is what I had my heart set on, and I’m a little embarrassed to say that it became somewhat of an obsession. I scoured eBay and local ads, pouncing on anything that said “50’s table” or “chrome dinette set.” But alas — as is the trouble with being an antique hound, it takes a lot of time and energy to find what you want. Even if you are lucky enough to find what you want, the other part of that battle is finding it in good condition. Continue reading “When it comes to a chrome table, buy new”

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A fire on a snowy morning

My fireplace experience didn’t turn out so great at first.  The two boxes that housed the fireplace parts came on two different days, so there was panic on the first day when I just received the fireplace frame and not the firebox or logs.  I put the frame together, and was a little miffed at the vague directions, but it all worked out in the end.  Last night we received 8″ of snow, so when I got up this morning, I wasted no time in doing this: Continue reading “A fire on a snowy morning”

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Tah-Daaaaaah!

The contractors worked most of the day today, installing trim and quarter-round.  My coveted George Kovacs “Bling Bling” light was hung, and, at that moment, angels sang.  Until the table comes in, we’re using our wobbly card table as a very, very, VERY poor substitute.  The K Mart tablecloth (obviously straight out of the bag, hence the wrinkles) almost hides the ugly thing. But the chairs are cool, aren’t they?

Next decision: curtains. God help me on this one.

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My first purchase from QVC

After the flooring was installed, I started staring at the room, trying to envision what everything would look like when this project was completely done.  The table would be toward the front of the room in the space where the was formerly was.  The back of the room, originally, was supposed to be where our computer would go, since we lack a better place for it other than the basement.  While the basement might be an OK spot for it, it is also the kids’ playroom, and we were a little worried about the damage those kids could inflict with flying toys, etc. Continue reading “My first purchase from QVC”

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Pluggin’ along …

The new room is taking shape.  The contractor finished mudding the walls, and I put an initial coat of primer on them on Saturday so he could touch up any spots.  I suppose I’m learning why people don’t like non-textured walls in their houses: they show every single flaw.  However, I wanted the walls to match the non-textured walls in the kitchen, so my intentions were good. Continue reading “Pluggin’ along …”

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Flooring decision: Made! (finally)

The other night I finally decided on what flooring to put in our kitchen and new dining/miscellaneous room.  I wanted laminate so it would be easy to change out when/if we got sick of it, and I also wanted something that brought a retro flair to the rooms.  For months I’ve been toying with the idea of black-and-white checkerboard flooring, but I kept getting hung up on the fear that my house would look like a diner rather than a cozy kitchen with a retro flair. Continue reading “Flooring decision: Made! (finally)”

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