ARTful: using or characterized by art and skill

Salvage: to rescue or save especially from wreckage or ruin


[ARTful] Salvage was born from a love of creating, repurposing and salvaging. I simply abhor seeing perfectly "useful" items headed for the landfill or tucked away in a cardboard box, never seeing the light of day. I believe there is always beauty to be found, even under a layer of rust or a coating of dust. I see scratches, dents or imperfections as badges of honor to be worn proudly. I have a great love for the history, story and life of a piece. We lovingly dream up ways of restoring new life to these discarded and neglected fragments of life. I am glad you are here and hope you will come again often. Please make yourself at home; friends are always welcome. I'd be thrilled to hear from you and get to know you better.

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

newly listed repurposed ART on Etsy

Finally had a few minutes to list 3 goodies for sale on Etsy. Please stop by and check them out. I'd LOVE to hear your feedback! :::Smiles:::

There is a repurposed garden mirror that has been lovingly etched with "The Garden is the Mirror of the Heart".


Also a stained glass mosaic stepping stone featuring a buzzing bee.



and finally a repurposed fish platter turned birdfeeder or serving stand.


Enjoy!

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

take 2 gallons of Oops paint and a few hours.....

....and ta-da. It's the beginnings of a totally NEW room! So, pink and black are my 2 fave colors and definitely my choices for my new room re-do. But, the $35 per gallon x 2 was not to my liking. But, being the "ever happy to tag along with hubs to the Home Improvement stores" gal that I am.....I double scored. First I found a light pink gallon......well, ok....but really lighter than I wanted and definitely not enough for all 4 walls. So, I set it aside in the closet. Fast forward to last week when I was standing at the paint counter watching the paint man mix MY PERFECT shade of pink for a lady. When he finished, I ask where their Oops paint was. Before I leave I hear her say she does NOT like the most perfect shade of pink on the planet. Oky dokie says Mister Paint Man....and off he trots to retrieve a new gallon of tint base to try again. Do you SEE where this is going. Slyly I say, So, Mr. Paint Man, whatcha gonna do with that gallon of pink paint there. Put it in the Oops he says. No, sir, says I......you can just put that little puppy right here in me shopping basket and totally make my day!!  So, you might be thinking we are painting my walls 2 shades of pink, right? No way....we poured them into a clean 5 gallon bucket, stirred them up like I was making witches brew and we now had the best shade of pink a girl could ask for. In 3 hours, Wonder Husband had painted my walls and transformed my world. Regular cost: $70......total repurposing cost: $10. Woot! Woot! Oh and don't you LOVE how the black quarter round really sets off the 12' ceilings? Also yard sale fodder for less than $5.





















Also in the pictures are my salvaged "hutch" painted with free sample black paint and my $1 dresser (yep yard sale price was $1). Found the drawers pulls at another sale with many more for $5. Total cost for the 2 pieces: $6. Now to find a nice piece of NOT brown or beige carpet......maybe some pink shag?

Also in the pics is my new quilt top. Sadly, NOT repurposed but still quite pretty if you ask me. It is my own pattern and my first made from scratch quilt. I am quite happy with it. Now I must begin the quilting process. On the bed are 5 of the 8 pillows I yard saled the other day for $2.

Soon I'll be able to share some of the repurposed ART I have in the works for the giant expanse of pink walls......stay tune.