Thrift Store Fun!

 I see so many YouTubers thrift store shopping and finding wonderful, amazing treasures. The stores they visit are full of furniture, pottery, baskets and all sorts of possibilities at amazing prices. Will we be as lucky here in Tennessee? 

My daughter, Brianna and I decided to check out some of the thrift stores near us to see what all the fuss was about. Don’t get me wrong, we have been to thrift stores, antique stores, flea markets and estate sales in the past. My mother found some of her milk glass collection wandering through these stores. She loved the hunt and so did I. 

We just hadn’t been to a thrift store in ages and the YouTubers made it look so exciting.

The Hunt is on!

I was actually looking for a nightstand so I had a reason for this adventure. Many years ago Tom and I bought this knotty pine bedroom set. We foolishly bought the set which only came with one nightstand and didn’t buy the second. Years later I’m wanting to update the set and realized I would really like my own matching nightstand. So we are heading to the thrift store.

The first place we went was a Goodwill very close to home. My grandson hit the jackpot when he found a signed picture of a former Memphis Grizzly. He is a huge fan so he was pretty excited. Unfortunately no appropriate nightstands. 

Next we went to a ReStore and found some great deals on lamps. They were brand new and even on sale! Brianna and I both purchased lamps. No nightstands though.

On to the next store! We went to another Goodwill where I saw a beautiful woven basket/trunk with a lid. I couldn’t find a price so I just walked away. Honestly, it was filthy, full of spider webs and it looked like someone had spray painted something on top. It was still a beautiful shape and had such potential. Brianna insisted I ask about it and I’m so glad I did. I got it for $35.00 which I thought was a great deal.

Bringing my Treasure Home

The first thing I had to do was take the trunk outside to clean, clean, clean. I wanted to make sure none of the spiders that made those webs came into our home. After it dried I lightly sanded some of the black paint off. I think the weave is sea grass so there are a lot of shades of brown and just very carefully sanding off some of the paint with very fine paper helped it to blend in so it wasn’t as noticeable. The weave is not like sanding wood, if you try this be very careful. 

Minwax Polyshade for the Refresh

Years ago I touched up a beautiful stained wicker set with a polyshade and it came out great. I thought this trunk would be a perfect candidate for the same application so I picked it up at Home Depot. Even with generously dabbing the product so I had good coverage, I still had half a can left. 

I took a foam brush and dabbed the entire trunk. As you can see, the piece was dull because the finish was worn out. If you decide to try this treatment out, make sure you clean your piece well with a brush. If it’s not well cleaned you will set in the dirt. I also recommend letting your piece dry for at least a day before you start. I waited 2 days.

Immediately I began to see the colors popping and the old finish coming back. I realize many of you would have painted this black or given it a rustic white wash finish but, this is me and I’m so pleased with this finish. It fits my decor perfectly.             Before the Polyshade

                  And after

Brought back to its former glory, I had also been looking at an end table for our sofa and this turned out to be a lucky find.

The tray was a thrift store find too. It was silver and I sprayed it with 2 coats of matte black and 3 coats of clear matte. I purchased the wick cutter from Amazon. It was on sale but only came in black or silver. I got the black and added some Rub and Buff. The acorn is actually a candle I made. If you are interested in learning about it you can find it in this previous post. The beautiful sculpture was from my wonderful sister, Janet. I have no idea where she found it but, I love it.

I hope you enjoyed this post. It was pretty simple but turned a piece that was really showing it’s age, not in a good way, into something special.

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Thank you again for stopping by. If you like this post or have any questions, please comment. I would love to hear from you. I wish you happy crafting and lots of Sunny Days.