Suburban surprise...with scrollwork

During October I spent a weekend with friends, nothing surprising about that.  After dinner we went for a walk, nothing too out of the ordinary.  Then, when we were only 1 block from their house we came across a bunch of discarded items that had been set out for trash day. Jackpot!  Does the freestyle follow me? No, really its just that once you start looking its hard to stop seeing.
It was dark but from what we could see of this metal and wood table it was servicable and in ok shape.  It had nice scrollwork details, probably over a decade old based on the styling, aaaaaaand the amount of dust on it.
I kid, it actually wasn't too bad, just some dust inside the scrollwork- because who would dust that?

After the requisite cleaning we paused to look at it.

We could't tell if the wood was solid, burl veneer, or maybe some sort of patterned pressboard product.  Furniture mystery.
There were a few spots where the knots/burls had been scuffed, so maybe that means there is some real wood?  If anyone is more informed about this table or others like it feel free to leave a comment.
The next day we swapped some tables around and arrived at this arrangement.  It works for now since the heavy metal look doesn't really go with the rest of the furniture, but since you only see bits of it from the rest of the room it doesn't overwhelm the space.

Yes, that is a cutting originally from my fern, all grown up!

Its a useful entryway table and sofa end table.  For $0 I'd say it was a lucky night on the town.

Happy freestyling.

Windsor windfall

(This post was delayed for a bit, but the fruits of summer freestyle can be enjoyed all year long!)

Summer moving season is here, and with it comes the garbage-fruits of other people's apartment. Yay!

I spotted a pair of Windsor-style chairs in the discard section but initially passed them by because our apartment has plenty of seating already.  However, the very next day a friend with nearly identical chairs expressed the desire for more seating (and a willingness to take freebies). Quelle coincidence!  Luckily the chairs were still there.

Pair of chairs

The finish isn't perfect, and there are a few scratches, but this seems normal for a pair of chairs that are 20+ years old.  When I was turning them over to inspect the loose connector I found a stamp on the underside of the seat, "Made in Yugoslavia." Interesting.

One chair was solid, but the other required some wood glue action to get the cross-brace back in shape.  I don't have any clamps, so I used some bungee cord and books to hold things together while the glue dried.

After a short car ride this pair of cold-war castoffs finally found a new home and some comfortable green cushions.

Happy freestyling!

Purple mountain-of-a-blanket majesty

I got this heavy-weight jewel-tone blanket a few weeks ago, and man, it is awesome.  Originally from Pottery Barn the internal batting is really heavy, perfect for snuggling under on cold nights.

 Unfortunately the underside lining was a thin silky material and the decorativ stitching that went through the blanket had caused the lining to rip in a few places.

It had been repaired in a few places before.....

But at some point you just have to decided to either reinforce, or replace, the entire backing. So that's what I did.  I had found a set of like-new ike sheets in a dark grey, a perfect tonal complement to the jewel-plum color of this blanket, and decided to sacrifice the flat sheet to this higher calling.  Just like making a pillowcover I put the 'right' sides of the fabric together and sewed around the edge for most of the way, then turned everything rightside out.  I finished the final bit with  machine since I was not interested in hand stitching suh a heavy duty item.

In order to cover the entire backing I had to go around the edge of the blanket a bit, so if you were to lay it flat the front velvet side would have a thin grey border.  A recent houseguest heard this story and got to try out the blanket for a few nights.  She declared, "This blanket it awesome.  I want it."

There you have it.  Another example of a successful attempt to repair, reuse, and remake.  

And the entire thing is machine washable!

Happy freestyling.

Mango wood I ?!?

You wouldn't think that a search term as generic as 'round wood coffee table' would actually help you identify the lovely mystery table I found a while ago, but thank goodness for the internet.
I found a round wood coffee table, and the only identifying clue was a half-attached sticker than said CB2 on it.  I wasn't sure if it was associated with the table or had just gotten stuck as part of someone's move, but lo and behold, there was my new table splashed across the internet.

Apparently it is named the 'Stout' coffee table, and was made from mango wood.  Not needing a new coffee table I passed it along to some friends who have a house to furnish.  Now it graces their living room, and looks might nice holding up a plant or two.

Even the dog approves.

Happy freestyling.