Outdoor Bakers Rack

July 31st and the summer is half over already. Just like that. And it's been a great one so far. Lots of time with family and friends, incredible weather, a mountain getaway, lazy weekends at home, thrifting and projects...I couldn't ask for more, really.

But I never seem to find the time to blog what I get up to. However, this recent project of mine is a current favourite so I wanted to be sure to share.

I've really been enjoying my container gardening this summer and even planted a few perennials. Although we have a garden shed in the back yard to house everything, I decided a potting bench would be nice. We have a walk out basement and an under utilized 12 x 18 patio that I decided would be a good place for it. But nothing turned up on kijiji.

What did turn up was this bakers rack. At 3 feet wide and with no glass I knew it would fill the space I had in mind perfectly. And at $35 it was reasonably priced. It's very solid too. I've seen a few of these online used outdoors.

A before shot of the space as a whole, not very pretty and like I said under utilized.

Here is the bakers rack freshly spray painted and ready to hold all my stuff. But before I decorated I decided to spruce up the space a little too. I found some funky Martha Stewart pillows (the smaller ones) on clearance for $8.50 each and an outdoor rug for $14.44 for the seating area.

And here are a few shots with some potting stuff on the bakers rack.

I love how the gardening tools sit nicely on the wine rack.

Some thrifty items on here:

Galvanized tub for my potting soil, $2 garage sale find

Galvanized vases 25 cents each, garage sale find

Terracotta pots 27 cents each at our local greenhouse

(And everything else I had on hand)

Here's the entire space, it's a little more welcoming now.

Do you see that planter? That might be the most thrifty item of all since it was FREE. My office hosted a lunch time gardening session in June where they supplied all the plants and flowers to make a large planter.

Love it.

But I wasn't so sure I loved the bakers rack all junked up with the potting stuff. I think it can also be used as an outdoor space for drinks and snacks (lots of people do this from what I saw online). The tub would be great with ice for canned beverages and there is lots of shelf space for snacks, dishes, etc.

I still think I like it better as a potting bench.

So there's my bakers rack redo. I think I spent about $90 with the spray paint to revive the space. And the best part is we have been using it. It's been incredibly hot this weekend and this seems to be the best outdoor space to keep cool.

Thanks for visiting. I am linking up to Rhoda's Thrifty Treasures party and Linda's Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays.



Thrifting in the Mountains! With Jake!

We went on a little vaca in the mountains two weeks ago. My husband was working so I was flying solo with my 15 year old, Jake, and his friend Patrick. The boys golfed every day so I had lots of time to read and relax, not a bad deal.

I did not even have thrifting on the brain but saw a sign that the local Lions Club were having a big garage sale on the Saturday morning. Jake asked if I thought they would have any golf clubs. He hadn't played since the summer before and we hadn't realized he had outgrown his junior set. We were in Fairmont Hot Springs, BC and the place is a mecca for golf (the resort we were at had three courses alone, plus countless others within a short drive). Seriously, if anywhere was to have golf clubs it was there.

So my son got up with me bright and early while Patrick slept and we hit the sale. Within minutes Jake worked out a deal with one of the volunteers for a set of clubs for $10. TEN DOLLARS!! For an entire set of clubs including a great bag with a stand. He was pretty pleased with himself. I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree ;). Here's a shot from the iPhone.

And I managed to find something myself for $10. This glass and iron shelving unit. I knew this thing had promise.

But it didn't *quite* fit into my Honda Civic (especially with the third bag of golf clubs!). But I was determined to bring it home and for the entire 3 hour highway drive it stayed securely up top thanks to the 100 feet of rope I picked up at the hardware store and the Mexican blanket I always keep in my trunk, along with some strategic rope tying.

The boys thought I was NUTS. I suppose I am. But look at how this thing prettied up with a can of Krylon Fusion Hammered Finish spray paint.

It was absolutely worth the time it took to mount it to my roof and the stressful drive home worrying if it was staying secure. And the fact that the drivers behind me left lots and lots of room was A-OKAY too. Kidding. I tied that sucker so tight it didn't even BUDGE.

Thanks for visting! I'm linking up to Rhoda's Thrifty Treasures party and Linda's Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays.