Yard Sale Update

So I made about $150 (fist pump!) at my yard sale and (double fist pump!) I got rid of lots of stuff/crap. I did NOT, however, even put my mannequin outside. I was having second thoughts the night before and realized that I still luff her too much. I also realized that I had never done a "big head photo" shoot with her! Say what?! Remedied:

Love

More top model hilarity HERE.

Alert: Yard Sale!

Cardboard, 8-11-2007

Attention! My condo building is holding a multi-unit yard sale tomorrow...er...today! Some of items I am contributing are unused IKEA wares, a Breadman, and a very-close-to-my-heart-and-I-might-cry-if/when-she-sells reclining mannequin (see above).

If you want to come out, Saturday between 9am-2pm, HERE are the details. See you there, thrifters.

Do It Your Own D*mn Self

Crystals, leather, lace, fringe, notions, plastic bags, sequins, and much more crafty goodness is for sale this weekend for super cheap.

Details:
Do It Your Own D*amn Self - Craft supplies for super cheap
Saturday, March 28
12-4 pm
Pulaski Park Field House
1419 W. Blackhawk, Chicago

RuMe Bags

RuMe Bags, at Delight

Oh, pretty pattern! Not since the Envirosax have I been so attracted to a reusable grocery tote. Yet these RuMe bags (get it? roomy...) are less expensive (3 for $25) and they're constructed to stand open, like an "old-fashioned paper bag."

One last reason to grab some for yourself: apparently "Nicole Richie and Joel Madden LOVE their RuMe Bags" (yet the Delight link is broken so I'm wondering who, really, is behind this celebrity endorsement).

Groovy x 3

Vintage Chrome 3 Globe Ceiling Light

Illuminated vintage awesomeness for sale on Ebay. Snap it up now for only $10 (plus shipping).


.

Domino Visits Chicago!

We love Domino magazine and now we love them a little bit more. They're venturing away from their NYC home to come to Chicago and give us a weekend full of design fun. Domino Design District 2008 is going to own Lincoln Park this weekend (June 7 & 8).

Saturday is packed with editor meet-ups and workshops - all open to the public and all FREE! I'm most looking forward to the flower arranging lesson at Jayson Home and Garden at 1pm. To see all the happenings, click HERE.

The other nifty part of this event is that over 40 stores are offering special discounts all weekend long. Art Effect, Jonathan Adler, Lori's Shoes, LUSH...the list of stores and discounts continues HERE.

Visit the Domino Design District site to download your shopping guide/map and we'll see you there!

Photo credit: Domino magazine

S-H-O-P-P-I-N-G: IKEA

Porcelain and I took a trip out to IKEA last Friday. We reserved our I-GO and, in spite of the quick and nasty blizzard, made our way - slowly - out the to the 'burbs. We started the day with the hot mess of a BK breakfast, a pre-suburban shopping trip tradition. While in Burger King, we had a brief sad/crazy moment when Porcelain spotted a fellow diner "feeding" french toast sticks to two framed photographs that shared his tabletop. Really sad = if the photos were of deceased loved ones. Really crazy = if the photos were of Joe Rogan and Elmo.

Please enjoy this smattering of IKEA photosnaps. I especially want those of you without a local IKEA to imagine you're here with us, giggling at fake toilets and towering over the teeny tiny scales.

INSJÖN Bathroom Accessories

KIVSTA Velvet Shades

The main reason for this trip was so Porcelain could pick up a LACK bookcase (in white). She did that and had a few minutes of fun in the lighting department with a stuffed shark.

I want to know who has the design guts to wire a whole wall of those blue shell lights (haha, called SMILA SNÄCKA) in their bathroom or along the ceiling of a walk-in closet? I challenge thee!

HEMNES Chest

I'm still scouting out a sideboard and almost caved for this HEMNES chest in the "As Is" section. It was marked down from $250 to $174 and looked in near perfect condition. Alas, it's all drawers - no doors - and, therefore, not ideal for dish and glassware. It's also pretty ginormous and I'm trying to pair down on large furniture. Guess I'll have to keep looking...

See more IKEA photos HERE.

Pretty Pretty Iittala

Iittala Aino Aalto Large Tumblers, at FinnStyle

I recently made an impulse buy of one of these Iittala Aino Aalto glasses. Bamboo, my roommie, had just complained about us having no medium-sized glasses and this nearly 12-ouncer fit the bill. Plus, while browsing through all the lovely glassware at The Sweden Shop, I kept coming back to Iittala's shape and the unique blues.

It took me many, many minutes to decide between the Blueberry Blue (top row, left) and the Sea Blue (middle row, left). Both of these shades seemed really fresh and new to me. The Blueberry was smoky and the Sea was brilliant. I finally decided to take home the Sea shade because I feel my kitchen could use a jolt.

When I get back there, I'll probably buy another glass. I paid $12.50 to The Sweden Shop for the single glass so it's comparable to the "twofer" FinnStyle sale price. But, if I go back, I'll have to reserve at least an hour for trying to decide on color all over again because the Sand (bottom row, middle) is also very nice...

S-H-O-P-P-I-N-G: Circawho.com

CA 12, in Cabinets

I love this shop. Perusing CircaWho's lo-tech website feels just like walking around a dusty but bountiful thrift shop. They have some pretty great stuff! If you actually happen to be in Florida, they're only open on Saturdays or by "chance or appointment." The website is updated every Tuesday and since everyone is considered a decorator, everyone gets the "trade discount." It seems, however, that you'll have to email the shop to see the price tags.

M 2, in Mirrors

T 9, in Tables

L 24, in Lighting

S 28, in Seating

S-H-O-P-P-I-N-G: Caputo Cheese Market

Cheese snuggle

If you love cheese, you really must try this. Caputo Cheese Market is a wonderland of stinky, soft, bleu, herbed, crumbled CHEESE! Nearly 2/3 of this family-owned and operated market is devoted to any kind of cheese you could possibly imagine. The staff is very knowledgeable and attentive. In fact, if you would like to sample a variety, they will crack open the shrink-wrap (on most cheeses) and cut you off a piece. If you like it but want a smaller portion, they'll downsize it for you. But, if you've got many mice to feed, you can easily purchase one of those impressive wheels or giant wedges. The aisles are littered with chef-recommended recipes so you don't need to walk in with a game plan. However, it is a good idea to have something in mind because it's easy to get carried away by the sheer abundance of taste and beauty.

Spanish Sheep Cheese w/Rosemary

Ukraine Marble Cheese

blah, blah, blah, blah...Cheese!...blah, blah, blah

Caputo's also consists of a small grocery with canned goods, pastas, Italian mineral water, and bagged spices. If that weren't enough, there is also a bakery and deli where the staff present fresh cannoli, seafood, sandwiches, and cut-to-order deli meats. To complete your antipasto plate, Caputo's also hosts a small village of an olive bar.

For under $20, I left Caputo's with a gorgeous White Stilton w/blueberries, a small portion of Bleu Cheese w/pear bits (Quezo Azul con Pera), and another variety which I can't yet reveal. (I picked it up for Santa and he hates it when his stocking stuffers aren't a surprise on Christmas morning). Porcelain scored a wedge of Parmigiano-Reggiano that looks as if it was lifted straight from a shoot in Food & Wine magazine. Formica sampled a beer cheese that made her turn up her nose (thank goodness for samples!) but soon found an Ireland Cheddar w/Guinness that rocked it.

Caputo Cheese Market (and much, much more) is open 7 days a week. They're located a bit outside of the city but it's well worth the trip. If you don't get out there in time to stock your holiday cheese plate, you should definitely get out there in the new year. Why not start 2007 with a healthy slice of CHEESE FUDGE? Seriously. It's cheese that tastes like fudge. It's even got the nuts!

Fudge? Cheese? Fudge?

Caputo Cheese Market
1931 N. 15th Ave.
Melrose Park, IL 60160
Phone: 708-450-0074, ext. 217

S-H-O-P-P-I-N-G: RAM, Mode & re.

Earlier this month Cardboard and I, along with our two friends, Formica and Hardwood, visited Ravenswood Antique Mart and Mode on Damen Avenue and the brand spanking new store re.revival on the corner of Irving Park and Southport. Our mission was to help Formica find some new goodies for her apartment, which we are currently helping her redecorate.

We oooh'ed and ahhh'ed over shiny chrome lamps, squealed in delight over a painterly horse print, and lusted after a set of Marimekko-esque mugs at the friendly Ravenswood Antique Mart. Formica scored a fantastic round white metal plant stand for $48.

RAM’s stock focuses on mid-century modern and Scandinavian furniture and accessories with occasional bursts of Art Deco items. The furniture is in good to very good shape, but prices are a little high (at least for our budgets).


Porcelain's favorite mugs @ Ravenswood Antique Mart


Ravenswood Antique Mart


Ravenswood Antique Mart


Ravenswood Antique Mart

Still on Damen Avenue, only a block further south, we got dirty trudging through the mountain of items at Mode. Shopping at Mode required quite a bit more work than Ravenswood Antique Mart. There were no artfully crafted displays making us drool and causing us to whip out our credit cards. This store required us to lift up lamps, paintings and globes to get at something we spied between the cracks. Sometimes we were lucky, sometimes not. If we were lucky, we had to raise the item above our heads and bellow, "How much?"

The owner gives somewhat fair prices, but always a little more than the items are worth, considering that one has to sort through a mountain of junk in order to find treasures. Haggling was created for stores like Mode. But it is an adventure and worth checking out, but remember to wear clothes you don't mind getting dirty.


Mode


For those of you who love minimalism! @ Mode

Our intrepid antique shopping team had planned on stopping at another antique store along Damen, but Mode left us tired and our eyes sore. We decided to change gears slightly and head over to the newly opened re.revival on Irving Park and Southport. (After checking out their web site we're not sure if this is a 2nd location or if they’ve moved here from their South Loop spot.) Re.revival had the best displays and arrangement of furniture and accessories, but the store left us somewhat cold. We were used to conversing with the friendly and chatty owners at both Mode and RAM, but at re.revival we got very little attention (not that that is bad, but we really felt ignored). Perhaps it was the absurdly large wheels and ceramic columns, or "Found art sculptures," that left us scratching our heads and wondering who really buys that kind of stuff. Or maybe it was the raw, sloppy plywood flooring (which made total sense as far as being able to hold weight but still looked a little rough). Either way, we left empty handed and called it a day.



Re.revival


Re.revival


Re.revival

For more photos from all stores, check out our Flickr photos.
All photos taken by our colleague Hardwood.