A Journey to a Simple Happy Life

Did someone say vintage?

I have to be honest: I never set a foot in a thrift store before starting to read crafty mamas blogs. Then I went once, wandered down the aisles and left empty handed. I had no idea what to look for and no vision to transform these oldies into goldies.

Well that was before participating in the Vintage Swap organized by Heather. I had some doilies and some buttons and that was it. My first taste of the good stuff came in the form of a package sent by Lina.

Then yesterday I hit gold…

The pillowcase will become a much needed bread bag.

I love these fall colors.

And my absolute favorite finds are these blue bowls. I used to make fun of my mom for the amount of dishes she owned. Seriously, she can host a 60 persons dinner without borrowing a napkin!! Well I seem to be heading that way ;o)

And if you’re like me and  you need a lesson in thrift store shopping then head to the vintage swap blog.

P.S: Salim if you read this, it's not my fault!! you can blame all the wonderful participants of the vintage swap.

My Vintage Swap is here

I don’t know if Lina timed the arrival of this package but it was the perfect starter to my week. I came home from picking up the boys in school and here it was in my mailbox. After the less than good Sunday I had, this really helped cheer me up. 

A beautiful bag. I saw it some days ago on Lina's blog and I couldn't believe how lucky I was to get it. And while you're there check the wonderful holiday decoration tutorial she posted.

With a wonderful attention to the details.

Awesome handkerchiefs.

I love the embroidered details of this one.

Buttons galore.

And best of all my very first vintage apron.

I hope my package arrives soon.A very sleep deprived mama sent it to the wrong address but today it is headed the right way.

If you want to see some more vintage beauty head to the Vintage Swap Blog and to the Flickr group.

Thank you Lina for all these beautiful objects and thank you Heather for organizing the swap.

flea flop

We took a day trip to Englishtown Flea Market . It's part of my efforts to discover good thrifting spots in New Jersey.

First I have to say that we got there late. I went running this morning and then Salim was exercising and we had a brunch.By the time everyone was strapped in the car and ready to go it was 1 p.m. Add to that an hour drive and you get the picture.

We made our way into the crowd with a double stroller, that went well. Our mission of the day was to find fabric, trims and buttons. There were a lot of stores full of chinese imports but not much in the way of vintage. Not that I would recognize interesting items even if they were staring at me in the eye. I am only starting my journey as a thrifter, for now I'm educating my eye.

So what was the result of this quest? nothing, rien, nada. So that was the low of the day. 

Salim tried to cheer me up by offering to come back soon and early in the morning. Poor Papa he doesn't know that I'm planning on doing a lot more of these thrifting trips.

And our highs (because there were many of them):

 

 Convinced  Tarek that we didn't need the cheap toys. i don't think he really got the argument.. well not considering the screaming and wailing involved. 

Some local grown goodness...

I need this fishing pole..We're still working on the separation between needs and wants.

And the best of all

a dirt bike racetrack>

 Look at my boys...

Samy wants to ride a green bike (over my dead body). Papa is all for it, well he was a champion back in the old days. And the one that was even more excited was Layla. She was kicking and giggling on my back.

I hope you are having a wonderful weekend! And if you know of any good flea markets/thrift store in the tri-state area please email me.