Just Bottles

Bottles, as seen at Country-by-the-Sea, June 27

I love this little display of vintage glass and doodads. I took the photo yesterday when I picked up my new (old) dresser. (Which is fabulous, by the way. What a deal!)

I have a small collection of vintage New Jersey seltzer bottles that were just sitting in a box in my closet collecting dust. I picked them up over the years at tag sales, and never really did anything with them. But, just when I was about to get rid of them (in my constant-yet-futile attempt to downsize), the shore house came to be. Now they're happily united in the kitchen window.

In New Jersey where they belong.

To Julie Newmar, Thanks for Everything! Laura

Julie Newmar in Cottage Living magazine?

I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me. That happens sometimes when I decide to flip through my shelter mags at, like, 2 a.m. But not this time; there she was. Looking all sassy and nonchalant perched in her garden.

Photo by Marion Brenner for Cottage Living, July/August 2008

How deliciously enjoyable.

And not for nothing, the Catwoman’s got a heckuva garden. The photos are stunning, and the magazine (July/August issue) even has a detailed sketch of her garden’s layout (page 78).

We have a plot of land the size of a postage stamp (it’s very Jersey Shore to have homes thisclose to each other) so I’ve started a file of photos of interesting container gardens like Julie's:

Photo by Marion Brenner for Cottage Living, July/August 2008

And, hello: As if all of this isn’t fabulous enough, my favorite feline lady has a rose named after her! The Julie Newmar Hybrid Tea Rose. (There is a fantastic photo of her with a big fat bouquet of Julie Newmars online here.)

Photo by Marion Brenner for Cottage Living, July/August 2008

It's simply purrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrfect. (Sorry. I couldn't resist.)

Photo from Julie Newmar's web site.

Mad props!

I am *totally* giving myself mad props for this one.

So, I was walking home from work minding my own beeswax. Out of the corner of my eye I see a "Props for Sale" sign in the window of Tinsel Trading Company. The store was closed for the day but the window was chock-a-block with vintage shelves, racks, suitcases (!), buckets, baskets and even a super old dressform – with a $10 price tag hanging from its muslin-lined armpit!

I froze in my tracks. And I really do mean that literally...not for the benefit of sucking you in to my story, dear readers! The store opened at 9:45 the next morning. I decided to go to work super early (it’s amazing the things that incent me) so I could bolt out on a recon mission.

I scooped up some good swag (at least in my eyes!). These sap buckets ($3 each) will be filled with ice to chill beverages on the front porch. Or, to hold the sunflowers that will grow from the seeds I planted last week (I’m not going to hold my breath on this one):

This little table ($4) will also be a great al fresco dining accessory. I love its flaky patina (almost as much as I love using the word patina):

The salesperson pointed out that the price was low because, “it doesn't bend or stand up so well anymore.” Honey, that's OK. Neither do I! I need to do some work on it but I’ve temporarily rigged it with the twine we use to tie up newspapers. I’ve convinced myself the "rope" makes it look nautical.

Lastly, I picked up these gigantic vintage blooms for $2 each:

I’ll probably use to dress up a gift, or maybe to accessorize something like this recent Etsy purchase:

I hemmed and hawed over the vintage suitcases that were marked $10, and when I came back later in the day, they and the dressform were gone – along with most of the other stuff in the prop sale. I can’t say I was totally disappointed – the thought of dragging those bigger items home on the train wasn't rocking my socks.

If you’re in midtown you should stop by – Tinsel Trading Company is moving to 37th Street from its home of the past 45 years on 38th Street, and almost everything’s now on sale. It’s a great store run by Marcia Ceppos and founded by her grandpa 75 years ago. I love that “mom and pop” shops still exist – in Manhattan! I don’t know how they’re able to do it in “this day and age” (I’m sounding more and more like a little old lady lately, I swear), but they do, and they do it well. It’s like stepping into a shop in a quaint seaside town, right in hustle and bustle of midtown Manhattan. A personable and helpful staff guide you through the beautiful floor-to-ceiling shelves and vintage store fixtures (that I hope are going with them in the move!) that are bursting with beauty, from antique appliqués to fancy fringes and everything in between.

It’s great place to pop in if you just need a yard or two of a very fancy trim to complement the nailhead edge on your vintage boudoir chair, or for a D.I.Y. gift like these fabulous slippers in their book, Beautiful Bedrooms with Ribbons and Trims.

(photo from Beautiful Bedrooms with Ribbons and Trims)

They also have beautiful gifts and greeting cards so it’s a great place for me to pop in to between office and train to pick up a quick "happy birthday," or, "thanks for walking my crazy dog while we were out of town" present.

Plus, Martha Stewart shops there. I should have just started with that. Way more interesting.

Come home to momma...

So here's how the conversation went (roughly):

L: I saw a dresser with a mirror that's on the small side but I think it could work in our bedroom.

M: Will it fit at least some stuff, or is it those tiny "olden days" drawers?

L: No, manly-clothing-size drawers but only two of them, with two small drawers up top. Here's the picture.

M: Does that price tag say $125?

L: Yup.

M: And it has a mirror? That's, like, not broken?

L: Yup.

M: And you left it there? (Note: There was a slight tinge of disbelief in his voice at this point...I really don't leave anything behind that even resembles a good deal. And this more than resembles. It is a good deal. I was just trying to keep him involved in the process.)

I left a message at Country-by-the-Sea Tea Room in Avon-by-the-Sea (another quaint New Jersey beach town. Doesn't Avon-by-the-Sea just sound lovely?) and they called back to say the dresser will be sitting by the front door waiting for me Friday. I wish they had a web site. It's a little antique store/gift shop/tea room Co-Op that's run by all the women who sell their wares there. The fabulous little tea room is a totally fun ladies-who-lunch spot, with all sorts of yummy treats (and if you like the chair you're sitting in, you can probably buy it out from under you). I'll take pictures on Friday (better than the blurry one above. Yikes!)...It's post worthy.

Rockin'!

Imagine my surprise when a small local furniture store actually called me yesterday, just like they said they would, and told me our rocking chairs arrived (just like they promised they would)! My faith in the little man’s ability to efficiently conduct commerce is restored. We'll be rocking this weekend.

We ordered three chairs similar to this one for our Little Porch of Horrors:
We’re kind of liking the way our little $20 teak folding chairs from the Christmas Tree Shops look on our porch right now (and my little bamboo table from the Ocean Grove Flea!) so hopefully they’ll pair well. I was shocked to even be in a Christmas Tree Shop, much less find perfect little folding chairs to seat guests (in- and outdoors). But I tell you what, don’t mock it ‘til you try it (like I did). Amongst endless rows of enough tchotchke and knick-knack to make your head blow off your shoulders are useful items at deeply discounted prices. I just hopped on their web site and noticed 72” bamboo torches for $1.99 and bamboo and seagrass roman shades for $16.99 (in 26”, 30” and 36” widths). I also noticed rocking chairs for $59.99 that are very similar to the ones we bought (for more than $59.99) but I’m trying not to think about that. Wait – it says they’re “indoor only.” There. I feel better.

Little Porch of Horrors

We have a plant. A giant plant. And it is trying to eat us.

Here’s what we arrived to on Thursday night:

The wisteria in the front of our house is attempting to take over. And, it is winning.

It’s important to note that we trimmed this bad boy back BIG time about three weeks ago. Filled a huge trash bin with branches. I wonder if it’s like that old wive’s tale about shaving your legs – shave one hair and three grow back in it’s place? Except this tale is for real, y’all.

For more evidence of the destructive persona of the horticultural freakazoid, check out Decorno’s somewhat-hysterical post (I say “somewhat”…because it’s not that funny to me anymore) on the wild weed. At the time I first read the wisteria post, ours was just starting to get little, happy leaves on its barren winter branches. And since this is our first year in the house, I had no reason to believe our harmless green friend would be anything like the unruly monsters described so vividly by others.

Wrong-o.

We hacked it back again this weekend so we’ll see what happens. (I guess it will be our new weekend routine for the next several months.) It does provide a nice natural shade, and we’ve actually had folks walk by and compliment it. Knock on wood, we don’t have the wasp or rat infestations that Decorno’s commentators have experienced (yup; you read correctly: wasps AND rats). But I think we might have to start pouring a third margarita for our uninvited guest.

Tagged!

Well, I left my digital camera cords at our apartment (I hope!) which is a bummer. I catch up on blogging on Fridays and had pictures to download from this past week. And, new ones I took this morning -- like the seeds germinating on my kitchen counter (wish me luck with this one – I’m no gardener!) and the wisteria that apparently tried to swallow our house in our absence last week (I was on the porch singing Little Shop of Horrors last night. Audrey II's got nothing on our little horticultural monster in residence.). So I'm taking my photo-free opportunity to finally respond to Laura B's tag.

Incidentally, I “met” Laura through these here internets and she has a great blog that chronicles her home renovation projects, and showcases her amazing, stunning (insert any adjective of high praise) photography. From family sessions to weddings, she approaches her subjects like little mini documentaries and I just love how her photojournalistic style lets the real people shine through. And look fabulous in every frame, I might add. Check out shoot-scoop when you get a chance.

Right: Back to the tag. For those of you new to the world of blogging like me, a tag is a friendly game amongst bloggers to get to know each other; you pass along the tag and your little circle keeps growing. Thankfully the questions I’ve been tagged with are short and somewhat easy to answer. Thinking is just so difficult lately!

Where were you 10 years ago? Ten years ago I was working for Rupert Murdoch's (insert audible gasp here) then-fledgling dot-com properties as public relations manager. I met a lot of great, fun, smart people (one who's about to be tagged) and it was still during the high-energy dot-com start-up days which was interesting to be a part of (unfortunately, I was/am not a dot-com millionaire...on paper, or otherwise.). That said, the Los Angeles boys came-a-knockin' when they realized they could "Hollywoodify" (word?) the Fox and TV Guide online properties. My new boss (who, incidentally, we called “Hollywood.” Just not to his face.) clearly wasn’t a fan of mine: I was, well, plain and normal. It quickly became obvious to me he was about to trade me in for the workplace equivalent of a trophy wife, so I reckon ten years ago today I was looking for a job!

Five items on your to do list today? I wish I had five! But here's what I hope to do by 2:00:
1. Edit 2,300 person marketing list mail database for work (Done! Ugh. Is it too early to have a cocktail?!)
2. Pull weeds and germinate seeds (Check! Check!)
3. Buy bigger planters for herbs that are busting out of existing pots (So exciting!)
4. Call furniture store in Bradley Beach to see if our new porch rocking chairs are in. Scratch that, go in person – I seem to have problems communicating via phone with furniture stores so why risk it!
5. Do laundry (do I have to?)

Snacks I enjoy: I love, love guacamole, particularly when we make it at home (which is often). And pretty much any baked product gets me going. Not the boxed or bagged mass-produced stuff – I need the real deal. M. and I are currently big fans of the baby cakes at The Baker Boys. They're mini carrot cakes with a cream cheese/marscapone frosting that is OUT of this world. Baby cakes are enough for two people to share with a little something-something leftover for later. And unfortunately for my butt, The Baker Boys is steps from our house.

What would you do if you were a billionaire? My initial inclination is to just say, “anything I want!” Well, for starters I’d quit my job then call my brother and tell him to quit his (the man of the house actually likes his job – he owns his own business – so I’d “simply” finance his company for him.). I’d definitely give a large stash to small, local charities – especially Hudson Cradle (where I've volunteered for years) and Liberty Humane Society (where the other lady of the house, Princess Margaret Rose -- or, as she’s known more informally, Maggie -- came from). I’d certainly travel a LOT (but interestingly, I don’t think I’d buy a lot of homes. Who needs the worry. I’ll rent.). My brother and I would open a large café/antique store/art gallery/live music emporium somewhere in our current neck of the woods…like in an old bank building or something…where all of our friends and local folk could exhibit their work, and musicians could play long sets not limited to the four song/20 minute set bar managers typically give bands these days. We’d hire our friends, and have a great time. Doesn’t sound like a particularly sage business model, right? Who cares! I’m a billionaire!! Woo hoo!!!

Places I would live: I’m with Laura B. – East Coast all the way. I’ve had the opportunity to move and have always chickened out. But as I grow up (maybe not “grow up” so much as get older :-) I realize maybe it wasn’t cold feet at all. I heart New York (and New Jersey now, too). But if money were no object, I’d be tempted to set up a “base of operations” on the island of St. John.

Bloggers I'm tagging. Tag – you’re it!! OK, OK, I know I took the easy way out here. But this post is so darn long (you can thank my missing camera cable for that) you’ve probably not even made it this far. If you have, and you’re one of the folks who generously reads my blog like j. cro, nesting instincts, please sir, the laundry is never finished or hooked on houses, please play along!

Ahoy!, or Oy!?

We were spending the weekend with friends in Long Island and got to go on a lazy Sunday stroll through Sag Harbor -- one of my favorite places to stroll. At the beautiful Beach Bungalow Home Furnishings (no dedicated website, so you'll have to take my word for it) we spotted porthole mirrors similar to these ones I just found on eBay (Beach House's were shiny silver). We're still looking for a long dresser for our bedroom (pictured in my "We're in the Chips" post), so I thought maybe two or three spaced out in a row over it (in lieu of the more expected large, bureau mirror) could be clever? So is it:

Ahoy! They'd be fine in a shore house not chock-a-block with seashells, beach ephemera, coastal knick-knacks, etc., etc.

or

Oy! Are you kidding me? Is this shorehouse chic or Gilligan's Island?

Round and round it goes.

Imagine our surprise when Pottery Barn told us they could have the Harvest table for us in three days. We just didn’t think it was possible to get a dining table in less than four months.

We borrowed Uncle G’s pick-up truck to fetch it (Note: If you are purchasing a table that you know is 48” round, why would it fit through the 40” opening in your hatchback? For two reasonably intelligent people, we can be awfully bubble-headed every now and again.), and the man of the house was able to assemble the table super easily.

Can you believe how well our chairs match it? These are the chairs from the five piece dining set M. scored on sale for $359 at Gothic Cabinet Craft. All by himself. I'm so proud of him!

At the time we bought it, we knew we’d be able to use the rectangular table as our desk. We’ve moved it to our den-in-progress, and it’s the perfect size and surface area for spreading out work and other (more fun) projects. Since the table is, well, cheap veneer, I’m thinking I’ll have beveled glass cut to preserve the top…which is already a little marred.

The one issue we have with our new table is that the fine folks at PB thought it would be “neat” to make their faux farm table a little more authentic by distressing the finish. The only thing distressing is how much the two symmetrically placed manmade dings look like Frankenstein’s head stitches. Here’s one of them:

Its matching scar is on a direct diagonal from it. It was almost a deal breaker, but we liked everything else about the table so decided we could live with it. Although I’m sure more than one person will try wiping it off the table – like I did in the store – thinking it’s a crayon or Sharpie mark.

We’re very happy we went for a table with a leaf. We’ve already had five people sit comfortably at the table without the leaf in it, so we know there will be many happy meals (not the Mickey D’s variety) served in our little dining nook.

And: Can we talk about that huge elephant ear leaf for a second? I bought it on April 18, and two months later it’s just starting to turn a bit brown. I picked it up at the lovely Anthiea Floral Design in downtown Jersey City. At $15 it was definitely a couple of bucks more than I wanted to spend on a leaf, but since it's been the table centerpiece for two months I’d say I got my money’s worth.

Seriously big air.

(c) Justin Kosman/Red Bull Photofiles

I know, I know -- this blog is supposed to be about my shore house and my pursuit of all things that make me happy in that house. And my last post was about my dog knocked out by the heat. And now I'm posting about a BMX dude.

But Kevin Robinson is no ordinary dude, and I was lucky enough to be as up close as this photo (my current freelance job is very interesting, and dare I say fun!) when this amazing (albeit, crazy) athlete took to the NYC skyline late last night at the Red Bull Experiment. It's one of those "you had to be there" things. Amazing.

Now that the world record has been broken (and, thankfully, no bones) my evenings are freed up a bit, so it's back to the blog. It looks like my first order of business will be to respond to a tag. And, unfortunately I think the heat made me a little crazy this past week because I accidentally deleted a bunch of house photos, namely ones that were supposed to be for "before and afters" but now will have to be "no before but afters."

Dog days of summer.

This about sums up how everyone feels this week in our neck of the woods. The other lady of the house (pictured) has had it with the heat, and so have I. (But doesn't her coat look fabulous?! Olive oil.)

Sorry for the lack of updates. I've had a hectic couple of weeks, and I'm a hot mess. Literally. Our round Pottery Barn table has arrived and M. has assembled so I can't wait to share the newest addition to shorehouse chic.

We got trouble.

If you’ve cruised on over here to my blog this week, you may have seen that we’ve got trouble.

Oh, we got trouble.
Right here in River City.
With a capital "T"
That rhymes with "P"
And that stands for Pool,
That stands for Pool.

I should thank the person who left that not-so-nice post (and Meredith Willson) for affording me the transitional phrasing here. From trouble earlier this week to a glimpse at one of our newest rooms…

TADA! We did it. We eschewed the traditional dining room in favor of billiards. The pool table est arrive!

Now, granted, this is not one of my frugal finds. But we shopped around a lot to find a deal. The tables we liked all looked the same to us, but prices were all over the map. Seems it comes down to the construction and guts of the table: Brazilian slate…Italian slate…Mother of Pearl inlay…Simulated pearl inlay…At the end of the day we asked, “What’s the difference?” And the answer seemed to be: Not much for you shlubs. Unless you’re Minnesota Fats or The Black Widow, you’ll be just fine with a cheaper (emphasis on “-er”) model. And one pool table and the whole room is furnished. Done! So one could argue we ultimately saved money. And one (me) does.

The slate was fused together right there in the room, and the table gingerly assembled around it. While it was kind of cool to watch – it was like having our own performance art installation – there’s basically no turning back now.

There’s a couple of things left to do in the room. We need to figure out the wall art situation, and address that built-in in the back corner. It’s a useful and pretty piece made from salvaged items (that’s a cast iron coal fireplace cover on the bottom) that the former owner put together. It’s actually kind of cool.

And, when you open it you can get a glimpse of the wallpaper the entire room was covered in.

Wowza, right? That’s a whole lot of flower.

We’re thinking of turning it into a bar. Adding some corner shelves won’t be much of a problem, and someone suggested maybe mirroring the back walls. Too much? The door will be closed most of the time, so it could be cool…Or over-the-top tack-a-brack?

Then there’s the light fixture (the one that’s there came with the house). It’s hard to find one that will work for a pool table that does not look like this:

I totally dug this one as soon as I saw it in the newest Gump’s catalog…

…but then quickly saw the $670 price tag and moved on.

This one I found online and like quite a bit. I like that it’s simple and somewhat modern, which would go with the whole eclectic thing we seem to have going on.
It’s certainly not urgent so when we find something that works well in the room, we’ll go for it. Until then, rack ‘em up. I got next game.

Feeling hot, hot, hot!

Don't these "gals" bring a smile to your face? They're made by a friend of ours I first mentioned in a post last month and she's decided to start selling them which I'm very excited about! Since we are apparently going to forgo spring altogether here at the Jersey Shore and go right to summer, I figured I'd get psyched up by looking at someone (or something, I suppose) in a bathing suit other than myself. It's supposed to reach over 90 this weekend with humidity in the mix (great), so I think I'll be headed for the beach for the first time of the season. Since it was, like, 50 degrees not a week ago.

I've been a busy, busy bee at work but finally took some "house progress" photos this past week, so I'll be posting over the next couple of days for sure. I'll give you an update on the great table debacle (it has a happy ending), I'll show you why said table is in the living room instead of our dining room (hmmm...what could we have done with that room? Stay tuned!), and I'll let you know about the new URL for my blog but not until I've had the time to properly address a kind of terse comment posted here (a little curt for a genteel business owner who sells seashells by the seashore, n'est pas?).

Enjoy the weather...while you can still breathe outside!

Flea Finds

I started my big flea market day on Saturday by hitting yard sales near my house (there was no time for dilly dallying so I stuck to the sales close by). I totally struck out with one exception...a woman on my block was having a J. Crew sample sale on her porch. Go figure! I know this doesn't count towards home improvement (I was supposed to be looking for a dresser for our bedroom), but I happily sifted through the clothing piles. Unfortunately most of the stuff was very small. And I am not. But I did get this cute (new) little "lady like" tee shirt for $3.

OK...now on to the flea. This oil painting was the first thing I bought, and I almost took a pass. It's 16" x 20" and I was waffling on the $15 the vendor said was her best price (I think the bad weather made some vendors pretty inflexible -- I think they were determined to make money somehow. I overheard quite a few failed attempts at bargaining.). But then I snapped out of it. It's a bit beat up but in a totally good way (or so I'm trying to convince M.), and when I got it back to the house I decided I loved it.


I think this next piece is hysterical: A "Pray Without Ceasing" chromolithograph by Colton Zahm & Roberts (New York, c. 1875). Ocean Grove is a former (and current, really) Methodist campground so the town's roots are deeply steeped in the traditions of the church. And, back in the day, they did pray without ceasing. I think this sign (warning?) will be right at home here.

From the same vendor, I bought this old apple print (the bug-eaten leaves are my favorite part. I'm all about keeping it real.) in a fabulous gilt frame. We left some wallpaper in our pantry area (from previous homeowners) that this will look nice against. This and "Pray Without Ceasing" were $40 for the pair.

This little rustic bamboo and wood table was a budget-busting $36 (high flea market dollars for me!). But it's super lightweight, which I like for moving around as needed. I plan on perching my margarita glass on it on the front porch.

I just can't pass up a potter. But I only buy what I can use (bowls are big for me -- you can never have enough chip and dip receptacles for guests). It's not a raku piece, but its dark purple glaze really reminded me of one. The bowl is a decent size, too -- about 7" across -- and I was happy to pay the artist $13 for it. Perfect for guacamole to go with my aforementioned margarita!

All in all, as I look at this stuff I think at a hair over $100 ($107 to be exact) I did OK. I didn't find a dresser for our bedroom, though. And my clothes won't fit in the bowl. So the hunt will continue.