Vintage TV Tray Makeover & Arctic Boy Water Cooler Find

Remember my metal TV tray that I wanted to paint after finishing my aqua bar cart?  I had every intention of refinishing this tray a lot sooner than this, but it is finally done!  Here it is before.  I found only one similar online but there was no price.  It has been sitting outside all winter and was a rusty mess.

 Cody and I went to his shop and got to work yesterday.  My first job was to get all the rust scrubbed off.  Can you believe the rust that was pouring off this thing with every spray of the degreaser?  It was crazy.  There was even more than that after I sanded it.  

 In to the paint booth it went to get a coat of primer.  Cody even let me spray it!  Here we are all decked out in our spray masks in the paint booth.  Those masks are no fun and the paint booth gets really hot...it makes me admire Cody even more for the hard work he does everyday.

After the primer was dry we mixed up this sweet pink color.  We painted it white first because I wanted to adhere this doily onto it and spray the pink over it so it would look like it had a doily on it at all times.  Unfortunately, the air pressure was too high and it didn't work so we just painted the whole thing pink.  I still want to put a fake doily on it though...somehow! 

 Right now it is inside with some pretty Valentine's Day decorations on it, but soon enough it will be out on the patio being put to good use.  I am sure it will still be a few more months until it is warm enough to be enjoyed outside, so this will work for now.

 I have to say, being in on the whole process from start to finish makes me want to do even more projects like this with Cody at work.  I want to buy all the metal things and paint them!

Here is another fun vintage treasure that needs no refinishing whatsoever.  We found this in an old abandoned shed.  Why would anyone leave this?  I wasn't sure if it was really old or not because it has a plastic lining, but sure enough, it is vintage! 

Arctic Boy water coolers were used in the 50's and 60's.  The outside is a lovely galvanized metal and the inside is white plastic.  I won't be using it to cool any water, but I do think it would make a lovely planter.  As soon as the warm weather gets here, I can't wait to add some pretty bright flowers to put in it.   

Hope you all have a wonderful week!

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Amaze Me Monday
Monday Link Party
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Inspire Me Tuesday
Wow Us Wednesday
Vintage Inspiration Party
What's It Wednesday
Centerpiece Wednesday
Before & After Wednesday
Share Your Cup Thursday

Vintage Meets Work & Save Family Photos

It is fantastic when your love of vintage can come into play with your job.  We are exactly one month away from our Scholarship Gala and my centerpieces are ready to be assembled and put on display for everyone to see.  I can't show you yet what they will look like, but here are a few of the things that will be used in them.

 Seam binding!  It was so exciting when I got the go-ahead to order and use seam binding in my centerpieces.  My manager had never heard of it and when I showed it to her she said "How have I never heard of this stuff before?"  It will really "tie" all of our centerpieces together, if you know what I mean!

Vintage paper medallions!  We needed a way to incorporate book pages into our centerpieces as well as something to make table numbers.  This medallion was the perfect solution.  After 3 different attempts, I finally made one that was the perfect size.  And now I have to make 50 more! 

And vintage books!  I love book bundles but that isn't what we will be doing with them.  There are many little libraries on campus and instead of going out and buying a bunch, we will just borrow what we need.  I think we will be using around 175 books total.  Sounds like a heavy job to me!  I can't wait to show you the venue after we get it all set up.  I am really excited for my first gala and hope that it is a big success! 

I have shared this picture before of my dad, my aunt and my grandparents and now I am sharing it again.  I wanted to tell you about Save Family Photos.  It is this amazing site on Instagram and Facebook that shares vintage photos for others to see.  Today, this photo was featured and it means so much to me.  If you don't already follow them on Instagram or Facebook, I suggest you do.  They post vintage photos daily and they are so much fun to look at and hear the story behind them.  Go give them a like right now!

Dog Birthday Party

My friend Justin recently had a big party to celebrate his dog's 14th Birthday!  I went to the party and took some pictures with my phone so that I could share this handsome fella's 14th year.

I went to college with Justin and now we work together at that same college.  He works in Residence Life as a Hall Director in one of the dorms and Ranger is the most loved dorm dog there ever was.  All the residents came to celebrate Ranger on his big day!

 Here is the spread: Puppy Chow, Chex Mix, Crescent Wrapped Dogs and Pizza Bites.  The snacks were served in brand new dog bowls that were gifted to Ranger after the party.

 To drink was this refreshing "Toilet Water" served in a fancy silver bowl.  I have to say it was the best toilet water I have ever tasted...lol!

Lot's of pictures of Ranger were all over so everyone could see what a handsome boy he is.  He was definitely loving all the attention and love that day! 

There was even a bone shaped cake for everyone to enjoy.  Ranger even got a tiny piece of his own cake to try.  He scarfed it up super quick. 

I made Ranger some PupCakes of his very own.  My dogs couldn't make it to the party but they were really happy that I made these for Rangers because that meant that they got all the extras! 

Ranger could hardly wait to try his PupCakes and he loved them.  I think I may have to go into the dog treat baking business!  That is my friend Justin, we both love to plan parties and this one was no exception! 

 Happy 14th Birthday Ranger!  I hope you enjoyed your special day and know how special you are to so many people!

Top 10 Posts of 2014

It's always fun to go back and see which post was the most popular among your followers!  So here is a recap of some of my favorite posts that just happen to be your favorites too!

10. Winter Tablescape

9. Holy Sheet!

8. Monogram Spring Wreath

7. Vintage Melamine Easter Tablescape

6. Valentine's Day Decorating

5. What Color Should I Paint My Cart?

4. Aqua Cart Love

3. My Vintage Camper

2. Come Take a Tour Inside My Camper

1. Lovely Lilacs & Some Big News

It appears that I am a much better blogger in the first half of the year!  I hope to continue to post things that make you want to come take a look and leave a comment.  Thank you for another wonderful year of blogging and friendship!

Winter Survival Kit & gifts from friends

Winter is in full force here in Idaho.  We had an unusually warm November and December but  Old Man Winter made his way and it is cold!  Today's high is 18...if you ask me, if the temperature is  under freezing, it doesn't matter what the actual number is!  I decided to make some Winter Survival Kits for some special friends.  A quick trip to the Dollar Store and a few other stores and I was set.

I picked up this fun blue box that goes with my theme.  To it, I added warm socks, gloves, lotion, antibacterial gel and lip balm.  All things that will help you stay warm and keep your skin hydrated in this freezing cold weather.  This is such a fun gift to give someone in the month of January when there isn't too much exciting stuff going on. 

My sweet friend Jenny of Jenny's Heart and I had a little Christmas swap of our own.  We decided to do homemade treats and ornaments.  Here is what Jenny sent me.  I love the little snowmen and all the fun things she included.  What's missing is the delicious treats and the holiday velvet cake mix.  Cody always likes to see what I get and then take whatever he likes!  Thanks Jenny...I always love what you send and can't wait to swap with you again! 

My French loving friend Donna of My Shabby Chateau  sent me these sweet little Angel tags.  I just love these!  They have so many of my favorite things--angels, sheet music, French and glitter!  Thank you so much Donna, it was such a sweet surprise to receive these from you! 

I also wanted to share my simple winter mantle.  I love silver, white and aqua and my mantle looks gorgeous in these colors.  I will leave this up until the end of the month.   

I can't believe that 2015 is already here...time definitely flies when you are having fun.  Happy New Year everyone!

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