No Fuss Ceiling Tin Project

Are you looking for a project that's cheap and easy? Well, look no further. All you need is an old frame with glass, a rusty crusty ceiling tin and some leftover clear adhesive dots (from card-making or scrapbooking).

Place clear dots along the front edges of the ceiling tile making sure not to touch them with your fingertips or it may compromise the sticky factor. Only use the paper strip provided with the product. I used eight dots to ensure they could withstand the tin's weight. Press the tin against the backside of the glass allowing it to stick. Omit replacing the cardboard backing of the frame and use the wall color as your matte!

Not bad for a $2 church rummage sale frame and a $2 ceiling tin from a flea market, eh?

As always, take care and keep on junking!

Vintage Stamp Carousel Bouquet

Oh my goodness. My good friend and online junking pal, Kathy Stantz of Sylvia's Vintage Daughter, presented me with a fabulous vintage stamp carousel when we met this past August. It even came with an AIR MAIL stamp hanging from it. Why I was so touched by this gift is the fact she somehow remembered seeing an old post that I had written on JUNKMARKET Style telling anyone who would listen that I wished I had one. (I was actually replying on someone else's great post...my intentions weren't to sound too desperate though.)

Needless to say I was thrilled with my gift and realized that my first impression of Kathy online matched the Kathy that sat next to me. She is one of the most thoughtful people I know and I appreciate her as a friend. So what did I do with it?...


I added glass cigar tubes and a small bouquet of lighted-sprayed Queen Anne's Lace. I love it!






I highly recommend you stop by Kathy's blog if you love vintage style and finds. She is one of the best! Kathy (AKA Shabbychick) is also a contributor on JUNKMARKET Style and you can see her postings here. What a sweetie!

As always, take care and keep on junking!

Burlap Sack Art

Do you have an abundance of burlap sacks just waiting to be part of a project? Well, here is an easy one for you. For a ridiculously low amount of money, you can create your own piece of art with them. Remember the wood "things" I brought home from my parents' house this past spring? If not, you can see the story here.

Supplies needed for this project:

- Burlap sack (coffee bean, potatoes, black eyed peas, onion, flour, etc)

- Wood frame or artist's canvas - Check thrift stores for these items. You'll be covering them anyway.

- Heavy duty stapler

Remove seam from sack. Cut to fit wood frame. Stretch over frame snugly. Staple.

I chose to staple my project along its sides to give the piece a more rustic feel. However, for a more finished look, staple to back.




And at just $2.00, I'd call this junk project a success! You can also see this project featured on JUNKMARKET Style.

As always, take care and keep on junking!

From Card Table to Wall Art

While driving along minding my own business recently, I came across a pile of vintage card tables sitting by the roadside. Well you know me and how this whole junk decor thing works...so I did a little turnaround of the van to check these goodies out. I couldn't leave them all stranded-like, ya know.

I loved what I saw. The tables were definitely vintage, some with wood legs...some metal. But most were decorated with unbelievably cool designs that you just don't see anymore. Then I spotted the superstar in the group!


Check out this black and white plaid baby! She was all nestled in among the group of brown and green tables, but I knew immediately what part of my home she was meant for. My foyer.


The foyer has a 17' ceiling so it requires larger pieces of artwork for the walls. Larger pieces of art means large amounts of cash most times, hence the walls in this area have been bare for the last 2-1/2 years...that is, until now.


From the curbside to my entrance wall. And best of all...I could cut out the middleman.

As always, take care and keep on junking!

Celebrate with Junk Photo Displays

In just a few short weeks my house will be filled with guests celebrating my husband's 40th birthday. He gave me strict orders of, "NO THEME!", so I will go along with that, however he never said, "NO JUNK!", so you know where this is going. After sifting through mounds of childhood photos of him, I went in search of junk pieces within my home that could be used as photo displays during the party. Come see what I've found so far...

I recently acquired this old gas or oil can over Labor Day weekend. While returning home from a visit to my parents' house, my husband didn't even balk when I asked to stop at a roadside yard sale. So unusual for him. ;) Maybe he knew his cute little face would soon be plastered on it with a magnet.

I actually used a photo similar to this one on his party invitation saying, "This little man has waited 40 years to party!" Heehee. I thought he could pass as having a little green thumb (or as a leprechaun) in this photo, so I pinned it to a vase of sunflowers. It coordinates quite nicely I must say.

Attaching a photo to old books reminds me and the girls how hard daddy works and goes to school to make our life better. Come graduation in March 2010, we will have him all to ourselves...finally!

I purchased this piece at a garage sale of a former dealer last week and met a fantastic family. When I told them I have a blog called JunkSophisticate.com, the man of the house immediately replied, "meet two junk sophisticates right there", pointing to his wife and adult daughter. I loved that! His daughter has already contacted me and I am hoping to see her around here more often. Hello if you're out there Michelle!

The frame is a former carbon-copy receipt holder. Or do they call them cc: receipt holders now?

I paired a photo of my husband's first early steps with a cute little nest retrieved from our front yard. Tucked inside the nest is a perfect seashell acting like an egg. The setting represents to me, the beginning stages of life.

Well, my hubs was the engineer of his own train back then...and I suppose he still feels that way now. I used the girls' train set and simply adhered the photo to one of the cars. This display would be great using a vintage model.

When I found old photos that showed food such as his birthday cakes or snacktime, I paired them with kitchen items and placed them in a grouping.

This is only a sampling of the photos I have ready for display so far. (I am being nice with these ones. Heehee). I wonder how he will feel once I get all his junior high and college photos out!

As always, take care and keep on junking!

Glad it's Sunday

I purchased this bouquet of gladiolus for you today, to show my gratitude for each and every one of your kind hearts. Thank you so much for taking the time to visit Junk Sophisticate. I am honored to be part of your day.

Oronoco Gold Rush Days Stash

My trip to Minnesota this past week can be best summed up using Darren with Junk Mafia's favorite word.

Whooodawgies!

I will share a series of posts in the coming days detailing my experience across state lines. There was just way too much going on those five days to fit everything into just one measely post! The first in the series focuses solely on my AWESOME finds from Gold Rush Days and some of the sweet junky gifts I was given during my stay.

Speaking of gifts, in addition to her offering the amazing comforts of her home, the genuinely kind Sue Whitney of JUNKMARKET Style, provided me this, ahem, keychain. (Don't you see cool pendant written all over it?) This "fitted-jean" chica knows how to make a person feel welcome and I hope to one day be able to exchange the hospitality.



Got me a great black and white sign at Amy of Junkologie's booth! I'm hoping to confuse the heck out of people when I use this sign in the coming weeks. ;) I bought a few other junky pieces from her amazing booth (which was seriously one of the BEST booths in the entire place) and I made sure to purchase one of her awecome ijunk tees! Head to her website to check them out after you finish up here. Very, very cool!


Fellow JUNKMARKET Style contributor, Gretchen, was such a sweetheart and gifted me one of her beautiful creations. I didn't remove it during my entire stay! Her blog, Mimi-Toria's Designs features some of her gorgeous jewelry which is a must see! I can't recall hearing so many people talk about a designer's jewelry as much as I heard this past week. Way to go, Gretchen!






I was in search of feed or burlap sacks to use with a couple projects and boy did I hit the jackpot! The price was right so I snagged up all they were selling except for two. Finished project to come...




These brass letter press stamps were the coolest things ever! I was particularly drawn to the "9s" since the #9 is our family number. (It stems from my birthday being 9/9 and my husband's 9/27).



Can you see using this SPARE PARTS ROLL for an M14 as a fleamarket tote? I can, and it was a nice little freebie a vendor included with my purchases.



This street sign says Junkologie all the way! Amy gave me the pick of the litter as a gift and of course my 10 year old agrees with me this is the coolest thing ever!


My road trip friend, Kathy of Sylvia's Vintage Daughter, was sneaky and remembered a previous post of mine online that said I'd love to have a vintage stamp holder but I felt they were always so spendy. Along with a bunch of other little goodies, Kathy included this cute little number that I'm just dying over. Love it!




So these are my goods from Oronoco. How'd I do?

I'll have more posts to come. I'd love to hear from others that attended Oronoco Gold Rush Days and hear what your experience was! My first time was amazing!