Thrifting for a new home

As you know, we recently moved across town to the Kemp Town/Queens Park area of Brighton, the Mister and my first flat together. As you can imagine, there has been a lot of ruthless sorting, tears and tantrums in the process of unpacking, but after quite some time, we are now slowly getting there and seeing the benefit.

Both the Mister and I are great hoarders, and find it very very difficult to part with anything (even silly mini-golf scorecards from our holidays!) so I've been having fun moving bits about and playing tetris in our new basement flat. 

It is quite dark, so I've been on a mission to buy lights and lampshades to make it feel more cosy. 

I am now addicted to all things thirfting. I cannot pass a charity shop, antique centre or flea market without having to pop in and have a quick rummage. And this also meant learning to resist temptation to buy anything and everything, and to have a rather flexible shopping list but a very strict budget. Nothing is allowed to be over £45, unless it is that extra super special something I've had my eye on for a while. No Emma....RESIST!!

So on our way home this afternoon after a weekend with some friends in their lovely new home in South London, we popped into my favourite Antiques Centre in Lewes. I have wanted a chair for the bedroom since we first moved in, but had a pretty particular idea in my head, and have been trying to stick to a red yellow orange kind of theme. The Mister kept pointing out various options not to my picky likings, and as we were about to leave, he picked up a blanket and underneath was hidden our new bedroom chair!! 

In a gloriously bright yellow and orange textured wool, and only £30 to boot! I was one happy bunny and went skipping back to the car, with the Mister trying to avoid knocking anything over in the shop. 

This will be my new sewing and repairs corner of the Den. The Misters Mum passed on the sewing box to me after finding another one while they were clearing out his Grandma's old house. The hat box serves as a handy storage box for some bits and bobs for my sewing machine, picked up while on Holiday this summer on the IOW for £5. The sewing machine fits quite nicely on the windowsill, and now I just need to take my old radio to get fixed, it stopped working after the move :( but luckily I have a specialist in Vintage Radios around the corner from work so am taking it in this week.

I also picked up a few bits and bobs for my improvised dressing table as we have no room in the bedroom for one. Consisting of The Misters Mum's old chest of G-Plan drawers, and an old mirror I picked up when I first moved out. The Basset and the jar in the back are today's new additions from Lewes for a couple of quid each, the art deco perfume bottle was last years Birthday present, and I found the green clock in the flea market on Upper Gardener Street a few weeks back. It still works, but the ticking is annoyingly loud and keeps me up at night, so I have to hide it in my drawers to shut the thing up....which sort of defeats the object of having an alarm clock really! But I like it, its pretty :)

The Misters side of the bed. Various suitcases picked up over the years. We now have too many and have had to hide them under the bed, behind the door, and on top of a wardrobe, as well as stacking them up next to his chest of drawers. I told you we are hoarders. I cannot resist and a bargain is too good. All picked up at car boots and charity shops for a fraction of a price sold at antiques fairs. The chest of drawers came from the Brighton Flea Market around the corner from the flat, for a £5! They were going to get rid of it if no one bought it because it had a few dinks...it still works, it's not broken, so why chuck it on the skip? Mine now!

We're still in the process of sorting through our mess, but if you wanted, I could give you a little peak at the living room? We managed to pick up the most gorgeous 1930's Sofa that turns into a chaise longues, which I spotted in the Friday-Ad for £30. I do love those bargains!

Much Love from Brighton

L.J.

xxx