There’s a saying that goes “Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” We are living proof that this is soooo true, especially since we find ourselves busy all the time! The paint, found in 20 colors under the Bungalow 47™ brand, 18 colors with the Junk Gypsy™ Paint line, and 10 soft colors for Rachel Ashwell and the Shabby Chic® Paint line, is always a great source to transform that flea market find. The Junk Gypsies™ have great style and love bold colors, and Rachel’s line is soft and pastel like her Shabby Chic® world. We love to paint, and lately Chantelle has gotten into spraying it on too. Check out this awesome spray booth her […]
A Bungalow 47 Style Christmas
At Bungalow 47, our style started out as a mix of Chantelle and I and what we loved. We each had a distinct style, different from each other, but there was always a common ground where we crossed over and loved the same stuff. Of course that always includes vintage! At Christmas time, it’s always fun to see how everyone brings their style to Christmas decor, so we thought we’d share a little peek into ours. Chantelle has a thing for kitschy vintage Santas and decor, including large plastic ones! This little corner shows her Christmas style perfectly. And of course you’ve got to have painted vintage furniture! A view of her pretty dining room, featuring vintage beadboard and salvage. She’s all about the plastic […]
A Storage Cabinet – The Ultimate Makeover
Last year I shared that we had sold our house and downsized now that all of the kids were gone and married. We purchased a house that was built in 1956 from the original owners and in need of a lot of love. The last 12 months have been spent doing a major renovation, more projects then I was in the mood for, and the continual shift to try to fit all of our stuff efficiently (and stylishly) in the house. The past month I set my sights on finding the perfect storage cabinet for the dining room, which already has a hutch and sideboard that don’t offer much storage, so I needed something to house my milk glass collection. The search was on. As […]
A Look at the Country Living Fair in Georgia
Last month, one of our B47 crew headed south to attend the Country Living Fair in Stone Mountain, Georgia. These fairs are always a great place to check out trends and see creative displays of vintage items. A few years back, Chantelle and I attended the Junk Bonanza show in Minnesota. Check out the top 10 trends from that show here. This is Lynne, our B47 store manager, and her daughter Kelly. Lynne and Kelly spent the day perusing the fair, checking out all the antiques and taking in the autumn sites. Get a load of this adorable airstream cooler! Airstreams are always cool, but this little mini is the cutest! Vintage items that are useful are always on trend, and these old ball […]
Fall and Winter Scarves – B47 Style Exclusives
Every fall we head to New York City to soak in the fall colors, eat our way through the city, and buy scarves to sell at Bungalow 47 that no one else in our area has. We love to bring exclusive items home from our travels for our customers! It’s one of the things that makes shopping at Bungalow 47 so unique, as we travel around the country finding different items to make your shopping experience with us fun and special. It’s always a fun trip and this year was especially entertaining since I went over Halloween weekend. The Halloween Parade, held in Greenwich Village, was nothing short of spectacular and was crazy enough that it made me feel like I was in New Orleans […]
Got Flannels? Feel the Chill No More!
I’ve always been a bit of a collector, which has usually oozed into my closet as well, so when I saw this quote on Pinterest I had to laugh! I think we all can admit we’ve peeked into the fictional life of Carrie Bradshaw (played by Sarah Jessica Parker) on Sex and the City, if not to glimpse her fabulous single life in New York City, then to check out what the heck she was wearing! Man, I never tire of those reruns, because even now, Carrie is the queen of rocking that casual “oh, I just threw this on and look amazing” look. So down to Texas Chantelle and I go, bringing back a little real style we can rock up here in the […]
Window Shopping – Top 10 Ideas for Projects
Attention all repurposers and craft enthusiasts! This week is the Bungalow 47 Expansion Sale! Beginning Tuesday, September 9 and going until Saturday, September 13, we will be having our (non) warehouse sale! This time it will be done slightly different and there will be lots of great deals, awesome furniture and cool items. In this sale, we have lots of old wood windows with the perfect amount of peely, chippy-ness for your next project. To get you inspired, I have compiled a top 10 list from Pinterest of projects you can do with old windows. 1. Jewelry Organizer 2. Memo Board 3. Cabinet Door Front 4. Shelf and Hooks 5. Picture Frame 6. Quotes and Pictures 7. Coffee Table 8. Memory Board 9. Calendar 10. […]
Yellow Milk Paint – and a Text Message Garage Sale Find
It was Saturday, May 25th and I had a wedding to be at but that didn’t stop me from scoring a great piece from a local garage sale! Isn’t technology wonderful?! This text came through from a friend who was out hitting the sales. Can you believe she came across this great dresser for only $20? Buying it was a total no brainer!! She did all the hunting and all I had to do was pick it up (and pay for it) the next day. SCORE! The moment I saw it I knew it was perfect for Miss Mustard Seed’s Milk Paint. I selected Mustard Seed Yellow, cleaned it with some Simple Green and GoT BuSY!!. I’ve used blenders to mix MMSMP but I actually prefer to […]
Rose Bowl Flea – Ready for Bargains!
It’s that time of year again, where the weather gets better and people are out hunting for treasures. Of course, if you are in Southern California, it’s always flea market weather at the Rose Bowl. Held the second Sunday of every month, the Rose Bowl in Pasadena fills up with vendors peddling their treasures and hoards of people searching for a find! Recently Chantelle and I had the chance to visit the Rose Bowl and bring home unique items for Bungalow 47. Even if you only go to be inspired, it’s the place to find whatever your heart desires. My favorite treasure from past visits to the Rose Bowl include my amazing vintage bread board, featured in the blog post Tray Chic. With many opportunities for […]
Warehouse Sale
Do you remember when you were a kid, the anticipation of Christmas morning? What would you find under the tree? Will they like your gift? Will you wake up to an ideallyic snow (none for me in Southern California)? Well it’s just about Christmas morning at Bungalow 47 again! Our Warehouse Sale is coming next weekend, Friday and Saturday May 10-11. It’s our occasional sale where you will find ah-mazing things to paint and finish yourself. I think I have mentioned before that we are somewhat hoarders (in the best kind of way, of course!). This sale first began because we were overflowing with finds that we had not painted yet. The great thing about the sale is that we only present merchandise no one […]
I’d Like to Buy a Vowel…
When it comes to decorating with salvage letters, I’m a FAN! I love everything about them. I love the different sizes and colors, the rust, peeling paint and the variety… so much variety. While we were shopping Antiques Week last spring, my obsession got the better of me and I ended up bringing home a truck load of salvage letters. LITERALLY! Yup, that’s my truck! Bet you thought I was joking. I would never joke about something as serious as my love for salvage. When we came across this huge supply of letters we loaded up and left no letter behind. Well, at least we tried. The letters we couldn’t bring home we staged for FUN photo shoots. If I can’t have them all then […]
The Prairie in Round Top, Texas
Since it is the week of fun in Round Top, Texas right now, I thought I would share our memories from our trip in January. The highlight of our journey was staying at Rachel Ashwell’s Prairie, an amazing bed and breakfast in Round Top. As you drive out into what seems to be the middle of nowhere, you come upon a dirt road with an American flag that beckons you down a path to a cluster of the cutest little buildings ever. We stayed in a smaller cottage next to the main house where our associates were staying. There are wonderful patios for conversation all over the property and wide open spaces to enjoy the true Texas prairie. We woke early in the mornings to […]
Tray Chic
I have a little ‘tray’ problem. Actually, you could say I am somewhat obsessed. But truth be told, you could say I’m obsessed with a lot. Hmmm, this explains some stuff. Anyhoo, what’s not to love about trays? By definition they are meant to carry, hold or exhibit articles and that makes them super useful! As always, it’s good to think outside the box, so here are some tips for finding and using trays. 1. To be truly tres chic, it doesn’t have to actually be a tray. Marble slabs, wood cutting boards and pedestals, wood remnants, small framed or unframed mirrors and open baskets all make excellent trays. My favorite I own is actually a vintage European cutting board. I don’t cut on it, […]
Bring it On Home!
I recently attended the Stormville Flea Market in Stormville, NY that is frequently featured on the HGTV show Flea Market Flip. I had high hopes for the day, feeling that I might find something special. After making the full loop of the flea market and sampling yummy food there (even though we had just had breakfast and it was still early), I ended up finding THE FIND. After a slick negotiation (“can I get it home?” and “gee, that’s more than I wanted to spend”) I was the proud owner of something special. Hmmm, now how to get it home to Michigan? Hubby suggested we just pack it up and ship it, but that fell on deaf ears. Part of the ‘thrill of the […]
Jill’s Weekend in New England
One of the perks of having a husband who travels is occasionally he will ask, “do you want to come with me?” Well, that depends; Vegas in the summer “NO thank you!”, Alaska in the winter “have you lost your mind?”, New England in the fall “yup! i’m in!” So a few weeks ago we headed off to the northeast. We spent 15 years vacationing in Cape Cod while the kids were growing up, so we headed to Massachusetts to have a little stroll down memory lane and to visit a few of my favorite thrift stores. Needless to say, when we travel, I shop. We have a little understanding that goes, if he doesn’t have to touch it, I can buy it and haul […]
I Need a Makeover
Climbing out of bed in the morning and walking by the mirror can be scary at times. I often think, “man, I need a makeover!” Sometimes we find furniture that is just screaming for a redo. Maybe it knows that if it were to not get one, it would end up unloved and dumped by the side of the road, which frankly, we might still find it. I think I have mentioned before that we are certainly not above trash picking. Actually I have a funny story about that… One day I received a text message from a friend who said, “I’m on ‘X’ Road and just drove by a piece of furniture in someone’s trash that looks like something you would like”. Conveniently, that was very close to where […]