Fabulous & Frugal Fun: Free Streets

I always tell people that the streets of New York are a treasure trove of goodies that you'll never find in a store, and quite often, absolutely without a price tag.

Just last week I walked by this trash heap, and as you can see, it's anything but garbage. If the velvet wing chair wasn't enough, right next to it was this mid-century vanity, complete with a beveled mirror in perfect condition sitting right next to it.

I had no way of hauling this stuff home, and if I did, well, I can't imagine where I would have put it. Instead, I snapped this picture with my BlackBerry and crossed my fingers that someone with good thrift karma, and a van, would soon pass by.

Get ready for tomorrow on West Palm Beach and RSVP to Gardenhouse Decor when it hosts The Find: The Housing Works Book of Decorating With Thrift Shop Treasures, Flea Market Objects, and Vintage Details. Special decorating guests featured in The Find Randall Beale of Beale-Lana will be there along with Carl & Co.'s Mark Ciolli.

Tell your friends!

Thursday, November 12

6:00 to 8:00 PM

Gardenhouse Decor

437 Northwood Road

West Palm Beach, FL 33407

RSVP to 561-832-8260

www.gardenhousedecor.net

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Always Frugal, Always Fabulous,

The Elegant Thrifter

The Find: Book Notes

There's been yet another round of amazing press for The Find: The Housing Works Book of Decorating With Thrift Shop Treasures, Flea Market Objects, and Vintage Details thanks to Elaine Markoutsas' Primary Color column that appears all over the country, including the Kansas City Star.

Also, The Palm Beach Post has listed Gardenhouse Decor's event for The Find as a must-attend for this week. See the announcement here.

As I've said before, if you have a copy of The Find, and would like me to personalize it for you, just send me your mailing address at theelegantthrifter@gmail.com and inscription instructions and I will happily send you a bookplate to put in your book.

Remember to RSVP to Gardenhouse Decor when it hosts The Find: The Housing Works Book of Decorating With Thrift Shop Treasures, Flea Market Objects, and Vintage Details. Special decorating guests featured in The Find Randall Beale of Beale-Lana will be there along with Carl & Co.'s Mark Ciolli.

Tell your friends!

Thursday, November 12

6:00 to 8:00 PM

Gardenhouse Decor

437 Northwood Road

West Palm Beach, FL 33407

RSVP to 561-832-8260

www.gardenhousedecor.net

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Always Frugal, Always Fabulous,

The Elegant Thrifter

The Object of My Desire: A French Twist

It's usually around this time of year that I take a trip to Paris to revive my inner Francophile and wander the streets of my favorite city in the world. I never over plan this trip but go where my heart takes me, be it an art gallery in the heart of the Marais, the sunny Luxembourg gardens for a relaxing read , or even the cinema for a series of French films on a misty, gray day.

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to jet off to Paris this year, and was feeling a little blue the Sunday afternoon I spent recently at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art. But my mood soon brightened when I noticed this tapestry created after a painting by François-Pascal-Simon Gérard of Napoléon I -- the same one I photographed last year when I visited Malmaison, the château that Napoléon Bonaparte built for his beloved Joséphine.

As I gazed at the tapestry, I was reminded of the drizzly, gray day that my friend Catherine and I took the bus to the outskirts of Paris to linger in the rooms that are now a decorating inspiration, and have been restored with care to retain the sensation that the Emperor or his Empress might glide through at any time.

This painting now hangs in a room called Le Salon de L'Empereur. Originally, the couple occupied a single room, but when Napoléon found it cumbersome to traverse the château to reach his library, he took over the two rooms so he could be closer to his work.

Now isn't that just like an emperor?

Remember to RSVP to Gardenhouse Decor when it hosts The Find: The Housing Works Book of Decorating With Thrift Shop Treasures, Flea Market Objects, and Vintage Details. Special decorating guests featured in The Find Randall Beale of Beale-Lana will be there along with Carl & Co.'s Mark Ciolli.

Tell your friends!

Thursday, November 12

6:00 to 8:00 PM

Gardenhouse Decor

437 Northwood Road

West Palm Beach, FL 33407

RSVP to 561-832-8260

www.gardenhousedecor.net

I won't see you in Paris this year, but come see me in sunny West Palm Beach instead!

Always Frugal, Always Fabulous,

The Elegant Thrifter

Saturday Surprises! Palm Beach Doings

Remember to RSVP to Gardenhouse Decor when its fabulous artist-in-residence Cheryl Maeder Antonio hosts The Find: The Housing Works Book of Decorating With Thrift Shop Treasures, Flea Market Objects, and Vintage Details. Special decorating guests featured in The Find Randall Beale of Beale-Lana will be there along with Carl & Co.'s Mark Ciolli.

Check out the Notables listing in the Palm Beach Post here!

Tell your friends!

Thursday, November 12

6:00 to 8:00 PM

Gardenhouse Decor

437 Northwood Road

West Palm Beach, FL 33407

RSVP to 561-832-8260

www.gardenhousedecor.net

The Gift of Thrift: Trash Talk

Having lived in a New York City apartment for more than 20 years -- not the same one continuously, though -- I'm always amazed at the true treasures that you can find in the compactor room.

Now I didn't find this little ceramic elephant planter, but Veli did. He somehow sneaked it into the apartment, gave it a thorough scrubbing, wrapped it up and gave it to me as a gift last week. In a small flower pot, he combined a cactus with an African violet, which by the way, bloomed on my birthday, proving that some of the best gifts are absolutely free -- or can even be found in the rubbish!

Always Frugal, Always Fabulous!

The Elegant Thrifter

Remember to RSVP to Gardenhouse Decor when it hosts The Find: The Housing Works Book of Decorating With Thrift Shop Treasures, Flea Market Objects, and Vintage Details. Special decorating guests featured in The Find Randall Beale of Beale-Lana will be there along with Carl & Co.'s Mark Ciolli.

Tell your friends!

Thursday, November 12

6:00 to 8:00 PM

Gardenhouse Decor

437 Northwood Road

West Palm Beach, FL 33407

RSVP to 561-832-8260

www.gardenhousedecor.net

Reuse & Repurpose: Start Your Engines!

While perusing Whisper Wood Cottage the other day, I saw this fabulous lamp made out of Chevrolet pistons and transmission gears. It's so elegant and architectural, and the natural patina helps its mechanical shapes blend easily into a traditional decor.

It also complements the piece of an industrial fan that she has leisurely placed inside the fireplace.

Now Amy at Whisper Wood credits her talented husband for coming up with this one-of-a-kind piece of portable lighting. See what happens when great creative minds get together!

Always Frugal, Always Fabulous

The Elegant Thrifter

Remember to RSVP to Gardenhouse Decor when it hosts The Find: The Housing Works Book of Decorating With Thrift Shop Treasures, Flea Market Objects, and Vintage Details. Special decorating guests featured in The Find Randall Beale of Beale-Lana will be there along with Carl & Co.'s Mark Ciolli.

Tell your friends!

Thursday, November 12

6:00 to 8:00 PM

Gardenhouse Decor

437 Northwood Road

West Palm Beach, FL 33407

RSVP to 561-832-8260

www.gardenhousedecor.net

Fabulous & Frugal Fun: Watch Your Back!

Spotted in the elevator at the Park Avenue United Methodist Church rummage sale on the Upper East Side:

Always Frugal, Always Fabulous!

(and always attending my belongings)

The Elegant Thrifter

Remember to RSVP to Gardenhouse Decor when it hosts The Find: The Housing Works Book of Decorating With Thrift Shop Treasures, Flea Market Objects, and Vintage Details. Special decorating guests featured in The Find Randall Beale of Beale-Lana will be there along with Carl & Co.'s Mark Ciolli.

Tell your friends!

Thursday, November 12

6:00 to 8:00 PM

Gardenhouse Decor

437 Northwood Road

West Palm Beach, FL 33407

RSVP to 561-832-8260

www.gardenhousedecor.net