2016 & still buying

I try hard not to buy stuff, I really do, but it's difficult when the local charity shops are so good/ affordable and stocked with stuff I like. I walked away from two blue glass vases today. But then I came home and was reading Period Ideas and thought, Argh, why did I leave them there?! So, I hopped into the car and in jig time had them bought and home. Blue. Glass. €10 for the pair. No brainer.

We've put an extra room (sunroom/dining room) on our house so have been busily re-jigging how rooms are used. Much as I love the oasis of my bedroom as a writing room, I wanted it back as a bedroom alone. We've gained a study because of the sunroom but, with both of us working from home mostly, and me needing quiet to write, I now need to have two desks. One in the study for when Mr is away and one in the sitting room for the rest of the time.

So I went to Lynn Antiques in Athlone hoping to find a nice bureau but got this oak desk instead for €150. Great price, great desk. I love the lions! You put your hand in the lower one's mouth to pull open the drawer.

And finally not vintage but whimsical, a €5 brontosaurus planter from Tiger:

DEER HEAD - AT LAST!!

I have been coveting deer heads since I was a child. I finally have one that suits the modest proportions of my house. It's wooden, beautifully made. I'll save the real stag until I get the dream house. Anyway, here it is:

I bought it at my beloved Lynn Antiques in Athlone for €100. I went in to buy a book case (got one!) and came out with this too. Irresistible. Made in Europe, apparently. There was still wood dust from the carving on it when I bought it and I imagined some lovely man in Bavaria whittling away in his Lederhosen...

And while I'm at it, here is the bookcase. At last a replacement for a hideously ancient Atlantic Homecare number:

NEW DRESSER FOR OLD

I sold my old dresser some time ago. We have a small house and I love furniture but it was always too big for the space. I put a  china cabinet in its place but was keeping an eye out all the time for a smaller dresser to replace it. I found one - at last - in Lynn's Antiques in Athlone. It's not as old as I might have wanted but it is well and simply made and I may paint it eventually. For the moment I am enjoying its honeyed brown wood.

Before pic 1

It needed a bit of work before it would suit my needs. I got pine beading in B&Q yesterday, so I could put plates standing up on the shelves and I also got cup handles to replace the ugly brass ones that were on the drawers. My hubbie stained the beading and put it on the shelves and he changed the handles, so the dresser is in place now, looking lovely. It's great to be able to see my stuff again! Here are a few pics.

Before pic 2

After pic 1

After pic 2