Thursday 7 February 2013

This Week's Haul

Ok, kids.  I promised you a thrifty thrill today and I will not disappoint.

The Back Story:

When I decided to move into my grandparents' old house after my grandfather moved in with my parents, I knew I didn't want the dining room suite that was there.  As lovely as it was...and it really is a gorgeous suite (late '70s Pulaski Keepsake)...it just isn't remotely my style.  The china cabinet was huge...luckily my mom took it to use in her bedroom which, quite providentially is also Pulaski Keepsake!

The table, however was a different matter.  A massive, oak behemoth of a clawfoot pedestal table.  The chairs were equally massive, 4 captain's chairs with leather seats
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Mom decided she also wanted the table when she realized that my grandfather was RUINING her own turn of the century Sears catalog pedestal table.  He's soooo bloody rough with everything and was literally pulling the thing apart.  But she refused to take it until I could find a suitable replacement as she wanted me to have something to eat on!  I tried to tell her to go ahead and take it, but as mothers are want to do, she wouldn't hear of it.

Therefore, I've been searching and scouring Craigslist, facebook selling sites, antique stores, thrift shops, and used furniture places for months trying to find the perfect dining room table.


The Rest of the Story:
 
Finally, about two weeks ago, I found a steal and I MEAN a real steal.
I'm forever searching 'Broyhill' on Craigslist.  My dream dining room is Brasilia...whose isn't, I ask you!...and I'm always hoping that I'll find some pieces on the cheap!
I didn't find any Brasilia that day, but I did find my #2 'dream dining room' listed this way:

"Nice older Broyhill dining room set with hutch. Table w/ drop down sides, extra leaf, 6 chairs (5 regular, 1 captain), hutch (54in wide, 56in tall) has nice storage (3 drawers, shelves, drop open serving station)."

The pictures, however, left no doubt as to the identity of this elusive little butterfly......SCULPTRA!!!!

And, as if just FINDING one wasn't exciting enough, the price was great.  The bad thing was that it was $200.  Now, I hear you saying "$200??  For a Sculptra suite???  And you're complaining??".  But alas, my Scottish heart won't let me ignore my budgey.  And it was $50 over what I'd promised myself I'd spend.

So I put her out of my mind until a conversation a couple of nights ago when I mentioned them to the OH.  "I can tell you want that set pretty badly.  Do you think they still have it?", he asked.
"Doubtful", says I, "Especially at that price.  Even someone who doesn't know what it is or worth will have snagged it by now."

But I was still thinking about it when we hung up.  Determined that I really SHOULD buy the darn thing even if it was slightly above my budgey, I went on Craiglist and searched for the ad, not expecting it to be there.
Not only was it there, but........they'd reduced it to $150!!  That was the official, "Please come get me and take me home, Miss Doll!!"
My dad helped me move her in and the old dining room out today!

And here she is, in all her glory, in MY dining room.  I seriously have been pinching myself for the last few hours!  My arm is quite blue!


The table is slightly curved at the ends.  The ends are drop leaf, so it can be made into a very small table and there's also an extra leaf to make it even longer!

The Buffet/Hutch is in two pieces.  The right side pulls down to make a serving area and reveal shelves.  It'll make a great laptop desk!



Please overlook 'The Ugliest Carpet In the Free World'.  I actually got in trouble back in the '80s when my grandmother put it in.  I actually TOLD her how ugly it was.  Not a smart thing for an 8 year old to do.  It is, however, the next thing being ripped out of this house and replaced with black and white checks!!


And on the inside of the top drawer, THE label!


There's only 1 captain's chair.  It's got some condition issues, but it's something that can be masked until I can have it professionally redone.


There are 5 of these bad boys!  This one and two of the others have their original seat covers.  The other two have a horrible pinkish red cover.  All of these will be coming off this weekend!  I've been saving this fabric.....

....for months.  I found it at Habitat for $2, but when I bought it, I was expecting to be covering 4 chairs, not 6!  So I may cover the captain's and one side chair in solid blue.

Well, there she is, This Week's Haul!!

Did you muchkins find any goodies or steals this week?

4 comments:

  1. WHAT. A. TRIUMPH! And only $150 for the whole set! I totally identify with you for the "Well, $200 may be a deal to someone who was willing to pay $500 for it...but for someone like me, who would prefer to spend $100 on it, that's a little steep." I AM SO EXCITED FOR YOU! The whole shebang, it's just gorgeous. GORGEOUS. And I love the fabric you have to replace the seats. Ugh! YES! Go enjoy that room! :)

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  2. Haha! I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks that way! I'm excited about the fabric. It's gonna clash to high heaven with 'The Ugliest Carpet in the Free World', but who cares! That fugly carpet is coming up asap anyway...and I'm thinking of a throw rug in the meantime.

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  3. Nicely done! You've got some really hard to find Broyhill chairs there. I bought (and later sold) a Broyhill Sculptra desk with a matching chair years ago and have had lots of people question whether the included chair was in fact Broyhill Sculptra since there isn't much info out there to match them up to. I'm sure I'll be referring my readers here quite often! Take good care of those chairs, you might have a hard time replacing any of them.

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    Replies
    1. I'm loving my Sculptra! In fact, I may have even decided I like her more than Brasilia! Those cat's eye drawer pulls and back rests are soooo bloody persuasive! Hypnotic even! Love them!

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