picture of dress to come shortly

We have two thrift stores here in town. The old one is run by old ladies and it benefits some type of ministry. The new one is AWESOME, although they both have good qualities. I still go to both of them.

The other day at the old lady one, the ladies were talking about a scantily clad woman who had just left the store and they said, "Did you see her? Doesn't leave much to the imagination, does it?" I ruminated over the meaning of that phrase. Those ladies there are nice and pretty cool. They are like church ladies.

So, yesterday, i went to the new store and the family who runs that place are COOL!
I bought a used sofa set to replace our piece of crap green velvet sofa which was falling apart and was the only sofa we could fit through our front door when we first moved in. We got it for free at a yard sale last summer. I felt that we need furniture that is solid, grounding, stable and gives a sense of strength and security.


The set I purchased is like a granny couch but also it is a lot like a modern futon. I got a denim futon cover for $2 and some homemade patchwork for fifty cents and covered up the old cushions which had things on them like cobs of corn and acorns and pinecones. I still thought that would be funny in an ironic way to furnish our house like with all old people type of furniture.

For me, the whole experience was a lot of fun!
I wanted to get some solid furniture for our house and it all happened so quickly. I just said yes and paid them $45 for the set. A funny thing, too, is that i decided to go out of the house in short shorts and a dress that just grazed the bottom of the shorts. The dress was a total granny dress, which balanced out the shortness, in my mind.


I was worried Scott wouldn't 'get it' but i was also excited at the prospect of 'making it work'. He was very concerned about Sophie being around the old cushions. I sprayed them all heavily with Lysol (Crisp Linen scent) and then ran to the old thrift store SURE that I would find some way to cover the cushions.

I searched through all of their material remnants and linens. I'd come up with a few ideas, but nothing perfect until.... I saw something that I'd seen there many times but never did buy... I always thought it was a sofa cover. I bought it and hoped it would work. Turns out, it's a Futon Cover, made expressly for this purpose and the cushions ALL FIT perfectly! YAY. One problem solved.

Feeling like a total Interior Designer, I was inspired to sew the unfinished denim quilt into covers for the footrest cushions. YAY. Scott was surprised at how deftly I maneuvered the whole situation. I'm still feeling like it was a cool deal.

Another cool aspect is that the sofa looks almost identical to my boyfriend's parents sofa, which I believe he grew up with... so it brings that feeling of home and familiarity. The removable cover is a plus, with a toddler around it will likely need frequent washing.

The best part is that it's not some generic sofa purchased in a retail establishment for $1000. It is a humble, practical, solid piece of furniture which I can customize any way I want without too much concern since it basically only cost $50. That is the price of an evening meal out for a lot of people.

This purchase sets the stage for any future purchases of household furnishings.
I intend to refurnish our house using only items purchased at the thrift stores here in our town (unless there is just some amazing exception and I have to buy something somewhere else). I like to be creative and inventive and resourceful. I like having eclectic furnishings, also.